FY2024 Community Project Funding Awards
FISCAL YEAR 2024 COMMUNITY PROJECT FUNDING AWARDS
Charles Settlement House: Teen Center
Account/Program: Economic Development Initiatives (EDI)/EDI
Project Request: The Charles Settlement House (CSH) requests $652,330 to renovate their building at 445 Jay Street at the intersection with Saxton St. in the JOSANA neighborhood into a Teen Center The existing two-story building is 125 years old and has been home to CSH since 1919. Most of CSH's programs have been moved to our community center at 71 Parkway. However, this building is structurally sound and is located in the center of the JOSANA neighborhood. It is one block from School #17 and three blocks from the Rochester Community Sports Complex. Surrounding streets have also seen a major influx of new affordable housing – 91 single family rental homes (Stadium Estates: co-developed by CSH) and over 50 owner occupied homes (Habitat for Humanity) during the past 12 years. CSH would create a new entrance that would make the building handicapped accessible, renovated and accessible restrooms; HVAC upgrades and improved ventilation; masonry work to brick exterior; a new roof to ensure the building remains in good condition for many years to come; electrical upgrades and fire alarm system to bring the building up to code.
Award Amount: $652,330
Notice of Financial Disclosure
City of Rochester Police Department: Gunshot Detection System
Account/Program: Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS)/Technology and Equipment
Project Request: The City of Rochester NY Police Department requests $195,000 to provide for a gunshot detection system that covers 7 square miles. Based on an analysis of firearm homicides and assault shootings since the year 2000 this coverage area encompasses 70% of shootings and firearm homicides. This program has led to faster police response to shooting incidents, and an increase in the recovery of ballistic evidence obtained from shooting incident locations. This will create additional investigative leads and ballistic analysis that will help investigators tie together incidents and suspects, thereby increasing arrests and prosecutions of firearm-related violent crimes.
Award Amount: $195,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure
City of Rochester: Public Market Expansion
Account/Program: Economic Development Initiatives (EDI)/EDI
Project Request: The City of Rochester requests $7,000,000 to enhance the year-round economic viability of the Rochester Public Market by providing additional indoor vending space for farmers and other vendors, an area for a nutrition education kitchen and classroom, as well as enhanced indoor event space. This project would also relocate the market office from its historic current location to facilitate reuse of the space as a "Rochester Store".
Award Amount: $850,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure
City of Rochester: REJob Training Facility
Account/Program: Economic Development Initiatives (EDI)/EDI
Project Request: The City of Rochester requests $4,500,000 to buildout a vacant commercial space at 42-50 South Avenue to be dedicated space for the City’s successful, US EPA-funded REJob program, other workforce development programs, and internal trainings. The space has been vacant since 2018, except for 50 South Avenue which has been used temporarily as a construction field office. The floor area is approximately 8,380 square feet and is multi-leveled in several locations. The funds would allow for asbestos abatement, construction (specifically levelling floors to make the space ADA compliant), replacing the HVAC units, and updating the restrooms to be ADA compliant. Currently, the REJob program relies on space in multiple facilities, which poses transportation challenges for program participants as well as difficulties with scheduling. This project will create a centrally located, easily accessible facility in Downtown Rochester and will allow the City to focus on the delivery of the US EPA-funded REJob program. The REJob program is a comprehensive, multi-partner effort to train and place disadvantaged City residents in environmental industry jobs, with a 100% job placement rate for local graduates.
Award Amount: $850,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure
Episcopal SeniorLife Communities, Inc.: Middle Income Senior Housing Development
Account/Program: Economic Development Initiatives (EDI)/EDI
Project Request: ESLC will renovate the vacant school at St. Cecilia Catholic Church in E. Irondequoit (Rochester, New York) and build a 74-unit middle-income housing development for seniors with public gathering space for community wellness programs. This request is for the necessary funding for construction to prepare the vacant school for safe use and outfit the campus with an emergency generator. ESLC’s program priority is to build middle-income housing for seniors that is sensitive to the social and economic characteristics of the neighborhood. The need for middle-income housing and programs for seniors is well documented nationally and locally and is referenced in the Town of Irondequoit Strategic Plan. In addition, Monroe County is home to 125,000 people over 65 today; this number is projected to increase to 147,000 by the year 2030. This growth exemplifies the need for more local, mission-centered housing to provide safe living in place.
Award Amount: $1,000,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure
Monroe County Sheriff's Office: Regional Investigative Operations Center (RIOC)
Account/Program: Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS)/Technology and Equipment
Project Request: In 2019, Monroe County created the Rochester Threat Advisory Committee (ROCTAC), a Threat Assessment Team (TAM) involving multiple disciplines and agencies for the identification, and analysis of behaviors indicating domestic violent extremism and other targeted violence. The Sheriff's department requests $940,000 to develop a Regional Investigative Operations Center (RIOC), to enhance our TAM model, receive tips, track leads, and coordinate law enforcement. Currently, the Monroe Crime Analysis Center (MCAC), is inundated with gun violence cases and pattern crimes.
Award Amount: $940,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure
Oak Orchard Harbor
Account/Program: Operation and Maintenance/General
Project Request: The Oak Orchard Harbor is located at the mouth of Oak Orchard Creek in the Hamlet of Point Breeze, Town of Carlton, Orleans County, NY. Oak Orchard is a harbor of refuge providing safe recreational access between Lake Ontario and Oak Orchard Creek. The harbor offers 407 slips for rent, as well as 4 boat launches with a total of 8 launch lanes that accommodate over 10,000 launches per season. It is also home to approximately 56 charter boats making approximately 1,289 trips per year. Oak Orchard Harbor generates $7,000,000 in total revenues to accommodations, restaurants, retail, boat repair, and other services and industries, and supports 73 jobs and $3.2M in labor income. The harbor requires dredging every 3 to 5 years to maintain the navigation channel. The harbor was last dredged in 2014 when 9,200 cubic yards of material were removed. Maintenance dredging is currently required to maintain the functional harbor areas.
Award Amount: $725,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure
Rochester Genesee Regional Transportation Authority: ADA Compliant Bus Stops
Account/Program: Transit Infrastructure Grants (TIG)/General
Project Request: RGRTA is seeking $4,000,000 to make accessibility improvements to approximately 400 bus stops to improve the public transit experience for customers, particularly those that have mobility limitations or rely on mobility aids such as wheelchairs.
Award Amount: $500,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure
Rochester Institute of Technology: Battery Prototyping Center
Account/Program: Scientific and Technical Research and Services/Scientific and Technical Research
Project Request: The Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) is seeking $2 million in Community Project Funding towards a $9.37M expansion of its Battery Prototyping Center (BPC) where innovative research, hands-on training and commercial work are helping to strengthen the battery ecosystem in the State of New York and contribute to the global competitiveness and national security of the United States. This project provides for scientific research and technical equipment as part of Phase III of the expansion of a facility established in 2014 as part of the New York Battery and Energy Storage Technology (NY-BEST) endeavor. The NY-BEST Consortium was created in 2010 to position New York State as a global leader in energy storage technology, including applications in transportation, grid storage and power electronics. Through its BPC, RIT provides prototyping services to more than 125 active members of the NY-BEST Consortium.
Award Amount: $1,250,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure
RochesterWorks, Inc.
Account/Program: Economic Development Initiatives (EDI)/EDI
Project Request: RochesterWorks proposes to move its primary one-stop career center to a more readily accessible and centralized location at the Monroe Community College (MCC) downtown campus in the City Rochester. At this new facility, RochesterWorks seeks to invite the co-location of fellow agencies providing workforce development and supportive/wrap around services to members of the community seeking employment or training for career pathways. As the County's workforce development board, charged with administering Federal WIOA-funded workforce programs on behalf of Monroe County and the City of Rochester, RochesterWorks seeks to remove barriers to participation in the workforce. This project would aim to leverage the strengths of the many organizations within Monroe County's workforce system which will lead to better outcomes for those seeking employment pathways. This capital project would rehabilitate 25,000 square feet of legacy Eastman Kodak office space, located in what, over the past decade, has been transformed into MCC's downtown campus, which opened in 2015.
Award Amount: $1,616,270
Notice of Financial Disclosure
Ronald McDonald House Charities of Rochester, NY Inc.: Westmoreland House
Account/Program: Economic Development Initiatives (EDI)/EDI
Project Request: The Ronald McDonald House (RMHCR) at 333 Westmoreland Drive is a “home-away-from-home” for families to lodge at no cost to them while their children receive necessary medical care. Over half of families housed by RMHCR are Medicaid recipients and fall into a low- or moderate-income category. Our main house with 24 bedrooms with private ensuites, a 3-station kitchen, laundry facilities, lounges, and playrooms, is located minutes from Golisano Children’s Hospital and allows families to reside in Rochester and remain close to their critically ill or injured children. To best serve vulnerable families, RMHCR seeks $400,000 of federal funding for a $600,000 project to make safety & accessibility improvements to the house including making bedrooms with ensuites handi-capable, installing automatic doors for wheelchair accessibility, making the deck accessible, replacing the entrance ramp, installing cordless blinds recommended by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, replacing obsolete components in the elevator, repairing stucco on the exterior, and installing a security fence with electronic gate around our parking lot to reduce rising rates of vandalism on our property.
Award Amount: $400,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure
Town of Gates: Community Park Updates
Account/Program: Economic Development Initiatives (EDI)/EDI
Project Request: The Town of Gates requests $1,200,000 for the reconstruction of three community parks (Memorial Park, Lions Park, and Westgate Park), including the installation of necessary upgrades. The project would increase the quality and access of local park amenities and fulfill the area’s identified and documented need to provide adequate recreation and physical activity opportunities for all. Memorial Park's restrooms were constructed 20 years ago and are in poor condition, needing full replacement. The project would upgrade the restrooms and make them ADA compliant. Additionally, the Memorial Park playground would be updated with new, safer, and inclusive equipment. Lions Park does not have any outdoor restrooms available to visitors, which forces them to walk to Memorial Park or use indoor facilities in the shelter when it is open. Funding would allow the Town to install up to six restroom facilities. Westgate Park's restrooms would receive interior upgrades including restoring the walls and floors, replacing doors, and repairing light fixtures.
Award Amount: $500,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure
Town of Rush: New Water District
Account/Program: Rural Utilities Service/Rural Water and Waste Disposal Grants
Project Request: The Town of Rush intends to construct a new water district to provide public water and fire protection to residents relying on private wells. Many residents experience hardships concerning their private well supplies, including low yields during dry periods and failed water samples. The Town intends to install approximately 35,000 linear feet of new 6" and 8" water main, valves, fire hydrants, and related appurtenances to serve the area's residents. This project will improve drinking water quality for approximately 285 residents living in 114 households in the Town. Upon completion of this project, the residents will be served with public water which will protect water resources for the future, reduce greenhouse gases, and reduce potential well water contamination. Water infrastructure is essential, as drinking water can expose people to a variety of harmful pollutants and pathogens when water treatment plants are not up to standards.
Award Amount: $500,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure
University of Rochester: Advanced Quantum Research Equipment
Account/Program: Scientific and Technical Research and Services/Scientific and Technical Research
Project Request: The University of Rochester requests $2,000,000 to purchase Advanced Quantum Research Equipment. This request will provide updated cutting-edge electron microscopy capabilities for advanced research, expanding the University’s tradition of excellence in quantum optics and acting as a key regional resource for the academic and business community. These new capabilities will enhance the University’s Integrated Nanosystems Center, known as URnano, an existing state-of-the-art nanofabrication facility that serves the University community, industry and corporations, as well as faculty and students at other institutions. Advances in quantum technologies will revolutionize a wide range of fields and we now stand on the cusp of transformative change driven by quantum information science and engineering. Because of the potential, quantum information sciences have been identified as one of the Industries of the Future by NIST, as well as a Key Technology Focus Area in the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022.
Award Amount: $1,250,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure
Village of Webster: Community Access Project
Account/Program: Economic Development Initiatives (EDI)/EDI
Project Request: The Community Access Project will provide infrastructure and public investments needed to support the redevelopment of a large industrial/office complex on the edge of the Village’s downtown. Core components include roadway rehabilitation and/or reconstruction and pedestrian accessibility upgrades, including new sidewalks and a multimodal trail to connect the redevelopment site and adjacent recreation center with existing trails. Additional project components include new streetlighting, and placemaking and beautification activities at key gateway intersections. The Project Area includes a mostly vacant 88-acre industrial campus within an EPA Brownfield and is currently an impediment that separates the community’s largest affordable housing community from the adjacent Recreation Center. The Project is aligned with the Village’s ongoing brownfield master planning effort for a surrounding 800-acre study area that is being funded in part by New York State.
Award Amount: $400,000
Notice of Financial Disclosure