SIEDC receives two grants for Staten Island

Grants will have significant impact on the borough’s industrial business community

The Staten Island Economic Development Corp. recently announced two significant grants that will impact the borough’s industrial business community. A $25,000 grant from Northfield Foundation will fund the launch of a workforce development program to place Staten Islanders in industrial jobs. A $50,000 grant from Empire State Development Corporation will be used to a implement stormwater management program on the west shore. The SIEDC also announced the organization has been selected as the managing entity of the New Dorp Business Improvement District. The New Dorp BID is the second BID managed by the SIEDC as part of the organization’s neighborhood development efforts.

“Since 1993 SIEDC has been at the forefront of growing and enhancing businesses on Staten Island,” said Cesar J. Claro, president and CEO of the SIEDC. “Today with the announcement of three exciting initiatives, we will continue to help the business community in new and valuable ways.”

SI Works

Since its inception, SIEDC has had a primary focus on small business with a particular eye on industrial, manufacturing and transportation sectors. To make an even more significant impact, there was a need for a mechanism to connect out of work residents with the firms whose growth is already being fostered by SIEDC. With the help of a $25,000 grant from Northfield Foundation, the SIEDC will be able to utilize strong relationships with industrial employers and leverage these synergies to provide a path for unemployed local jobseekers to enter the workforce while supporting local economic growth for industrial businesses.

Stormwater Management grant

In addition to job placement, the SIEDC also focuses on appropriate, sustainable development in industrial areas.

SIEDC began its work on the West Shore in 2011 with a comprehensive study for the area. In the time since, SIEDC has implemented a number of critical planning and development efforts that have resulted in many new businesses, projects and policy recommendations for the rapidly growing corridor. Among these was the West Shore Brownfield Opportunity Area study, which was completed in 2017 for the industrial areas of Chelsea and Bloomfield.

The BOA program is administered through the New York State Department of State and there are currently three BOAs on Staten Island. This exclusive program provides financial and technical assistance to municipalities and community-based organizations to complete revitalization plans for contaminated (brownfield) or underutilized and vacant sites.

SIEDC Cabinet member Adam Zellner and his firm Greener by Design were the lead consultants on the project and identified a number of issues throughout the district including stormwater management and drainage due to a lack of sewer infrastructure. Using Greener by Design’s work, SIEDC applied for a New York State Regional Economic Development Council grant to develop a plan for non-traditional stormwater management infrastructure including bioswales, rain gardens, trickling filters, slow sand filters and treatment ponds among others.

With the support of Assemblyman Michael Cusick and the members of the West Shore Business Improvement District Board of Directors, SIEDC was able to secure $50,000 to design this system to provide critical relief for businesses in the area which require significant infrastructure investment. Over the course of the next year, SIEDC and the West Shore BID board will select a consultant to perform the design work.

New Dorp BID

For the last three and half years, the SIEDC, New Dorp Merchants Group and Councilman Steven Matteo have been hard at work making significant improvements to Staten Island’s most celebrated shopping corridor. The SIEDC is proud to announce that they have been selected to manage the New Dorp BID. Out of the 75-plus Business Improvement Districtsin New York City, New Dorp provides the best Main Street, USA feel within the heart of the Island’s historic retail district. With an already successful community of businesses and property owners, they are very excited to provide more beautification, public events, street festivals, grant writing, and neighborhood development.

To learn more about these, please visit siedc.org or call (718) 477–1400.