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Governor Hochul Announces Montour Falls and Waverly as Southern Tier Winners of First Round of NY Forward Program

Villages of Montour Falls and Waverly to Receive $4.5 Million Each

New $100 Million NY Forward Program Builds on Momentum of the Successful Downtown Revitalization Initiative to Support a More Equitable Downtown Recovery for New York’s Smaller and Rural Communities

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced that the Villages of Montour Falls and Waverly will each receive $4.5 million in funding as the Southern Tier region winners of the first round of NY Forward. Building on the momentum of the State’s successful Downtown Revitalization Initiative, the $100 million NY Forward program adopts the same “Plan-then-Act” strategy as the DRI to support a more equitable downtown recovery for New York’s smaller and rural communities. As part of NY Forward Round One, two to three awards will be made to smaller communities in each of the state’s ten economic development regions to support development and implementation of a revitalization plan for their downtowns.

“Montour Falls and Waverly represent some of the best that New York State has to offer: natural beauty, a vibrant business community, thriving agriculture, and culturally rich historical sites,” Governor Hochul said. “Thanks to NY Forward, these communities will be able to leverage these assets and state funding to revitalize their downtowns, welcome even more workers and businesses, and transform their Main Streets into regional destinations. My administration remains committed to investing in local economies like these to give residents the jobs, the tools, and the infrastructure needed to thrive."

NY Forward is a central component of the State’s economic development efforts, working together with DRI to accelerate and expand the revitalization of New York’s downtowns. NY Forward serves smaller communities with historic character that distinguishes them from the larger, more urban central business districts typically funded through DRI. NY Forward communities are walkable, less dense areas that serve the immediate local community, and are more local in nature – focusing on the immediately surrounding residential or rural agricultural centric development.

Like DRI, each NY Forward community will develop a Strategic Investment Plan to revitalize its downtown through a slate of readily implementable projects. The Department of State will provide enhanced technical assistance to better support smaller communities that may have less capacity as part of the NY Forward program and fund projects appropriately scaled to the size of each community. Projects may include building renovation and redevelopment, new construction or creation of new or improved public spaces and other projects that elevate specific cultural, historical qualities that enhance the feeling of small-town charm.

Read the full press release here.