The City of Niagara Falls is getting an economic boost, in the form of a $40 million rejuvenation plan, which is a joint effort by Empire State Development (ESD), its USA Niagara Development Corporation (USAN) subsidiary, and the City of Niagara Falls. The targeted funding will be allocated along Niagara Street, Main Street, Portage Road, and Pine Avenue. The funding is in place to enhance walkability, create new businesses, attract tourists, leverage investments in the waterfront and city anchors, and ultimately enhance neighborhoods. A PDF of the initiative has been posted online, detailing the strategies at hand.
Planned efforts include:
- Fostering agritourism and food entrepreneurship through revitalizing the City Market
- Supporting and improving important heritage and community facilities in the target areas
- Assisting small business owners in restoration of storefront facades and other capital improvements
- Investing in the capacity of local organizations to take on long-term responsibility for these improvements and projects
Funding for the the revitalization project is from the Regional Revitalization Partnership (RRP) – a $300 million private and public regional co-investment in three interconnected geographic areas: Buffalo, Niagara Falls, and Rochester.
“The Niagara Falls Strategic Economic Development Initiative has taken a forward-thinking and community-driven approach to identify projects that will create a more vibrant city. By enhancing mixed-use, walkable corridors that better connect downtown to adjoining neighborhoods, growing new businesses and increasing waterfront access, Niagara Falls will be a more dynamic draw for visitors and entrepreneurs alike” said Empire State Development President, CEO & Commissioner Hope Knight. “With funding through the Regional Revitalization Partnership now in place, we can now get to work moving these critical initiatives forward.”
“Working together with the state and community partners, we now have a solid economic development plan in place that builds on Niagara Falls’ unique assets and will work to build and lengthen visitorship, which will grow small businesses, heritage areas and commercial corridors,” said City of Niagara Falls Mayor Robert Restaino. “The projects and programs expanded upon today represents a portfolio aimed at improving economic conditions in Niagara Falls. I look forward to getting to work.”
The project development process included a community-driven component, to better target opportunities that are most desired by residents, businesses, organizations, and other community stakeholders. A number of organizations have submitted renewal projects for consideration. These projects range from creation of new patio spaces to stabilizing historic structures. In total, over 60 ideas were submitted for consideration, all of which are listed in the PDF.
The breakdown of the RRP funding is as follows:
- Grow the Niagara Falls Agritourism Sector Through Innovation & Entrepreneurship – $19 million. The program will foster a long-term pipeline for food entrepreneurship in Niagara Falls that capitalizes on the rich food culture of the city, regional agricultural strengths, and food-based tourism/hospitality opportunities and trends. Funding will support a food-based ecosystem strategic action plan along with capital needs, organizational supports and programmatic interventions associated with the plan. Revitalization of the City Market area along Pine Avenue will serve as a key anchor of this effort.
- Waterfront, Heritage Tourism and Community Anchors – $15 million. Investment in waterfront and heritage tourism projects will reinforce and strengthen important corridors connecting to the waterfront, upgrade community anchors, and/or enhance the current or future built environment.
- Small Business & Placemaking – $5 million. The initiative will establish a Niagara Falls Small Business Property Improvement Program to provide funding for renovations to commercial and mixed-use buildings along the investment corridors. In coordination with the City of Niagara Falls, funding will also be dedicated to selected streetscape and infrastructure improvements along the investment corridors.
- Intermediary & Community Based Organizational Support – $1 million. The funding will help build the capacity of local government and not-for-profit organizations to help implement components of the initiative and undertake follow-on activities once these projects are completed. Such project leadership and coordination would help maintain the momentum of revitalization moving forward.
For more information on the Niagara Falls Strategic Economic Development Initiative, please visit buffalobillion.ny.gov/niagara-falls-strategic-economic-development-initiative.