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Mohawk Valley EDD briefs Otsego committee on broadband, New York Forward and brownfields projects
Summary
Mohawk Valley Economic Development District updated the Otsego County committee on regional programs: USDA broadband assistance, a ConnectALL grant for Butternuts (about $863,000 plus match), New York Forward awards and small-project funds, a 13-unit Grove housing project ($1.3M award), and brownfields assistance in Richfield.
Steve Smith, executive director of the Mohawk Valley Economic Development District, told the Otsego County intergovernmental committee about a range of regional programs and locally targeted projects MVEDD supports, including clean-energy and climate-smart programs, broadband technical assistance under a USDA grant, and New York Forward small-project administration.
Smith highlighted a ConnectALL mobile-coverage project for the town of Butternuts with an $863,000 grant and local match that together push the project toward roughly $1.1 million; MVEDD expects that project to extend cellular service to about 795 households in the targeted area by putting antennas on a new 911 tower. He also described administration work for New York Forward awards in Coopertown and other communities: Coopertown received a $4.5 million award with a carve-out for small projects, and MVEDD is administering a Grove housing project awarded $1.3 million to support a roughly 13-unit development of mixed townhouses and apartments.
MVEDD said it had completed greenhouse-gas inventories for the county and several towns, helped communities apply for climate-smart and comprehensive-plan funding, and pursued EPA brownfields assessments (a Phase I brownfields evaluation for a Richfield site). The agency also described loan and revolving-fund programs to help local projects move to shovel-ready status.
Why it matters: The presentation outlined concrete funding opportunities and technical assistance that county municipalities can use to improve broadband access, remediate contaminated sites, and advance housing and downtown revitalization projects. Board members emphasized the value of MVEDD’s grant administration and technical-assistance services for small towns and villages.
