NY Regional Councils awarded more than $20 million for TBED, $763 million overall

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has announced more than $763 million for economic development projects throughout the state as part of the regional economic development council (REDC) competition. The program, which tasks leaders in 10 regions to determine economic development priorities, has awarded more than $6.1 billion across 7,300 projects since its inception in 2011. In each region, funding went toward projects such as infrastructure, main street revitalization, feasibility studies, strategic planning, microenterprise funds, and workforce development. Of the total amount distributed this year, more than $20 million went to projects related to technology-based economic development. A (non-exhaustive) list of New York projects related to technology-based economic development receiving funding in this most recent round can be found below, while a full list of awarded projects can be found here.

New York City

• The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai will renovate a Mount Sinai Health System-owned building into a state-of-the-art dry lab facility as the first phase of its life sciences hub capital plan. The research component of the dry lab will be complemented by an in-house incubator for corporate ventures in the field, and the initiative will support Mount Sinai’s existing partnerships with educational and corporate institutions. ($2,000,000)
• Science and Arts Engagement New York, Inc. will renovate a facility in West Harlem to serve as a Gallery of Science, designed to expose local youth to STEM fields. The Gallery will provide educational and career pathways by leveraging partnerships with institutions such as CUNY, creating a critical opportunity pipeline for community residents. ($1,000,000)
• NYU is creating an AR/VR Lab that will bring leading researchers and industries together to advance these technologies. With a Black Box Motion Capture theater that will serve as a testing ground for newly developed products and services, the lab will benefit NYC's economy and be an opportunity for New York to establish international leadership in AR/VR development. ($700,000)
• NYDesigns at LaGuardia Community College seeks to expand its services by creating an accelerator program that supports early stage entrepreneurs in the fields of tech, hardware tech, and design. ($625,000)
• The New York City Contract Manufacturing Market Assessment will identify contract manufacturers across the five boroughs and evaluate their ability to serve both startups and established manufacturers. In addition to encouraging local production and supporting innovation and entrepreneurship, this project will provide data-driven estimates of the advanced manufacturing skills needed to access careers offering solid wages and advancement opportunities. ($100,000)
• Hostos Community College CUNY will train individuals to obtain CompTIA A+, and Cisco Certified Entry Network Technician (CCENT) certifications. ($100,000)

• Bronx Community College (BCC) will provide technology skills and marketable credentials training to individuals seeking to enter or reenter the IT industry as helpdesk support or computer support specialist. ($100,000)

• Per Scholas, Inc., will provide technology career trainings. ($100,000)

Long Island

• Broad Hollow Bioscience Park (BHBP) at Farmingdale State College will modify interior building infrastructure to facilitate the recruitment of bioscience companies in need of wet lab space. ($750,0000)
• The Center for Entrepreneurship’s ideaHUb incubator will cultivate early-stage, high growth companies. This project will allow the ideaHUb to provide more services to regional entrepreneurs, including a Mentor-in-Residence program and a program to cost share professional services for client companies.  ($625,000)
• Stony Brook University will add digital and 3-D printing systems, visualization and imaging applications and tools for smart manufacturing. ($500,000)
• The Spur Innovation Center in Southampton will create co-working innovation and an entrepreneurship eco system and space on the east end of Long Island. ($500,000)
• Hofstra University will build a Cybersecurity Innovation and Research Center focused on teaching the next generation of high-tech students in the expanding field of cybersecurity. ($200,000)
• Suffolk County Community College will establish Renewable Energy, STEM Workforce Development and Cybersecurity Labs on their Grant Campus located in Brentwood. ($200,000)
• Town of Hempstead Department of Occupational Resources will provide training to individuals seeking employment in STEM, advanced manufacturing, IT, health care, green technology and more. ($100,000)
• We Connect The Dots will create the STEAM Research & Education Center in Westbury to deliver educational and training programs in STEAM fields to K-12 students, the community and industry partners across the region. ($100,000)
• The Sunrise Association will construct a state-of-the-art STEAM camp facility in Wyandanch to teach children with cancer valuable tech skills that can translate to future career opportunities. ($150,000)

Southern Tier

• At Corning Community College, four main campus learning spaces will be updated to house a mechatronics lab, expanded cybersecurity lab, and create an innovation space for project based learning. An energy retrofit of four academic buildings will provide students with real-life data in their local context. With updated lab equipment and teaching technology, students will engage in real-world problem solving. ($1,000,000)
• Cornell University’s Rev Ithaca supports high-growth startups regardless of their industry sector. In addition to continued incubator services, this project will support the creation of Rev’s Hardware 2.0 program, which will provide product-based startups with specific expertise such as design for manufacturing, outsourced product production, supply chain management and quality control. ($625,000)
• IncubatorWorks (IW) will expand its current services and provide new programming focused on developing an entrepreneurial community encompassing leadership, mentorship, engagement and the creation of new businesses in the Southern Tier. ($625,000)

Western New York

• IncubatorWorks (IW) will expand its current services and provide new programming focused on developing an entrepreneurial community encompassing leadership, mentorship, engagement and the creation of new businesses in Allegany County. ($625,000)
• The Fredonia Technology Incubator will provide new and enhanced services and programs for startups in the music, multimedia innovation (gaming and VR) and the food industries. ($625,000)

Finger Lakes

• The former Kodak Hawkeye Campus in the City of Rochester will be transformed into an international trade center. The campus will be home to a job training center, commercial and medical office space, and international businesses. ($1,200,000)
• Rochester General Hospital will begin construction of clinical space for family medicine, primary care, and research and development in the Town of Greece. ($600,000)
• Rochester Institute of Technology will purchase machinery and equipment to support the Genomics Research Lab Cluster on the Rochester Institute of Technology Campus in the Town of Henrietta. ($1,500,000)

Capital Region

• The Biomedical Acceleration & Commercialization Center (BACC) project will increase support to biomedical innovators and provide expanded services to attract and keep start-up companies in the Capital Region. As part of Albany Medical College, the BACC is uniquely equipped to provide incubator programs that encompass the bench, bedside and business domains of healthcare. ($625,000)
• Partnering with Microsoft, IBM, Columbia University, RPI, and others, the AI incubator is being designed as the go-to resource for these companies to help design and develop the solutions that will enable businesses to operate more efficiently. ($337,000)

Mid-Hudson

• Orange County Community College Association, Inc., will invest to undertake Phase I of the Innovation Grand Street Project, involving the renovation of two vacant/underutilized buildings in the City of Newburgh's historic downtown district. The project has dual priorities — to revitalize Newburgh's downtown district while creating meaningful employment and fostering entrepreneurial activities. ($1,831,000)
• The Center for Discovery will develop a new Research Institute for Brain & Body Health, part of a larger investment to transform a vacant property in Rock Hill into a state-of-the-art bio-behavioral and healthcare facility including a Children’s Specialty Hospital and special education school program. Six laboratories will allow for pioneering studies in Autism Spectrum Disorders, medical frailties, Alzheimer’s and dementia, and other chronic, complex conditions. ($1,000,000)

Central NY

• Cayuga Community College will establish a Collaborative Workforce Development Center in Auburn. The Cooperative Extension will stay in the building and the remainder will be repurposed through major renovations to house multiple workforce development partners. ($1,000,000)
• Good Life Philanthropic Youth Foundation will purchase and renovate the building at 215 Tully Street in Syracuse. The project will convert the building into a mixed use facility which will include incubation offices, training classrooms, retail lease spaces, a print and recording studio, art gallery, event spaces, test kitchen, six new residential units and a fully accessible green roof. ($700,000)
• The Hamilton Entrepreneurship Center, located in the Village of Hamilton, currently functions as the co-working space and incubator space for Thought Into Action (TIA), Colgate University’s entrepreneurship program. TIA will expand the incubator to provide entrepreneurs 24-hour access to high-speed fiber optic Internet, workstations, conference room, classes, events, and networking opportunities. ($625,000)

Mohawk Valley

• The Farm & Food Business Incubator (FFBI) at SUNY Cobleskill will further their mission of enhancing the region's agricultural ecosystem. FFBI partners with the Center for Ag Development and Entrepreneurship which delivers 15 - 20 agricultural business development workshops annually.  Participants identified as viable incubator clients receive business development services and access to food production spaces. ($625,000)