A Look at the League Connections to the 2022 REDC Grantees

Just like we did last year, when NYS announced its Regional Economic Development Council (REDC) grant recipients, we dove in to find League connections. Announced at the end of 2022, the Round XII REDC grants awarded $90 million in funding to 74 projects. Of those, 17 projects receiving grants totaling $8.9 million have also received direct involvement in the form of advocacy, grants, or loans from the Preservation League.

The 17 projects represent:

That’s $5 from NYS for every one dollar from the League.

Here are a few examples

The Town of Southeast Cultural Arts Coalition
$500,000 EPF
2021 PNY Building Condition Report $9,600
2020 TAG Engineering Structural Analysis $4,000
2019 TAG Building Condition Survey $4,000

The Town of Southeast Cultural Arts Coalition received a $500,000 Environmental Protection Fund grant to stabilize and restore the historic 1896 Southeast Old Town Hall building envelope and replace the crumbling entry steps with a grand entry stair that reflects the civic aesthetic of the original architectural designs. Located on Main Street in Brewster, this historic treasure with its wonderful upper floor theater, will become a cultural and performing arts center and serve as a linchpin in the revitalization of downtown Brewster. The work supported by this EPF grant directly follows earlier studies funded through the League's NYSCA partnership Preserve New York and Technical Assistance Grant programs.

Cohoes Music Hall
$500,000 EPF
$1,383,477 NYSERDA
2021 PNY Building Condition Report $16,500

We were excited to hear that the City of Cohoes received two major State grants for The Cohoes Music Hall, as part of the 2022 Regional Economic Development Council Annual Consolidated Funding Application process: an OPRHP Heritage Area grant will fund restoration work and a Carbon Neutral Community Economic Development grant will support efforts to transform it into an energy efficient, carbon neutral building. In 2021, the League awarded the City of Cohoes a New York State Council on the Arts-funded Preserve New York grant to help fund a comprehensive Building Condition Report. We're thrilled to see how that report is being put to use and can't wait to see how the project continues to move forward.

Reher Center for Immigrant Culture and History
$469,413 EPF 
2010 PNY Historic Structure Report $9,000
2021 PNY Updated Historic Structure Report $9,440
2022 TAG Hazmat remediation study $4,000       

The 2021 NYSCA-funded Preserve New York grant the Reher Center received to complete an updated Historic Structure Report (this report built off an earlier document that was funded by the League in 2010) has created a roadmap for how best to utilize their space in support of their mission. Their recent Environmental Protection Fund grant builds off the earlier reports to begin bricks-and-mortar restoration efforts on their historic Kingston building. You can find out more about the Reher Center and their preservation efforts here.

photo source: Global MLS

Philmont Beautification Inc./Village of Philmont
$800,000 Restore NY grant for the Hopkins House (This follows a $20,000 REDC from 2021 for a feasibility/reuse analysis for properties in the Village’s downtown)
2022 PNY S/NR Historic District Nomination $14,000
2019 PNY Cultural Resource Survey $10,000

A 2019 Preserve New York grant funded a village-wide reconnaissance level survey of Philmont. This survey helped determine the boundaries of a potential State and National Register Historic District — and a follow-up Resource Evaluation by the NYS Historic Preservation Office determined the Village has a National Register-eligible historic district encompassing nearly all of the village’s historic infrastructure. The League was proud to continue moving this project forward by funding the historic district nomination with another PNY grant in 2022. With the Village firmly committed to using preservation to revitalize their downtown, they have identified key buildings primed for adaptive reuse. According to a press release, “The goal of the Hopkins House project is to re-activate the space to create a community gathering space and apartments, remove a source of blight from our downtown, and restore the building to its former grandeur. In addition to increasing the number of apartment units available in Philmont, the project will create commercial jobs.”

Grants, Preservation in ActionKaty PeaceREDC