Six projects in Niagara County share $1.5M state funding

Robert Creenan, Lockport Union-Sun & Journal, N.Y.
·2 min read

Feb. 6—Six Niagara County-based applicants have received some of the $15 million of grant funding announced earlier this week from Empire State Development.

The awards for 19 projects across the state come through Round XIII of the Regional Economic Development Council initiative.

The awards for local institutions and businesses add up to about $1.5 million. They are:

—$750,000 for the City of North Tonawanda to revitalize the Memorial Pool at Payne Park.

—$400,000 for Radio Niagara, the in-development venue by TM Montante with a restaurant, bars, bowling alley and a boutique hotel on Third Street in Niagara Falls.

—$150,000 for Artpark, which will build an artistic light installation to help increase visitation during its offseason.

—$100,000 for the Aquarium of Niagara for marketing the new Great Lakes 360 expansion, expected to be complete by this spring.

—$99,000 for Becker Family Farms for a branding and marketing initiative to showcase agricultural-based experiences and large-scale events, including a solar eclipse festival.

—$50,000 for Old Fort Niagara marketing.

These projects were awarded through the ESD Grant Funds, Market New York, and Environmental Protection Fund programs. Radio Niagara, Artpark, and Aquarium of Niagara were marked as priority projects.

Other projects in Niagara County that received funding through other ESD grants announced over the past few months include:

—$519,000 for Siva Powers America for its wind turbine assembly facility in the Town of Lockport Industrial Park.

—$100,000 for the Challenger Learning Center of Orleans, Niagara, and Erie counties for a STEAM Center that will create a planetarium providing enhanced learning programs.

—$100,000 for Heart, Love, and Soul, to renovate and expand its current facility in Niagara Falls.

—$79,400 for the Village of Middleport for its canal dock improvements.

—$56,250 for the Village of Wilson for its Local Waterfront Revitalization Plan.

—$45,850 to Vizcarra Vineyards for new bride tanks for storing hard cider and sparkling wine.

—$30,000 for the City of North Tonawanda for installing a boat launch and fishing pier at Mayor's Park.

—$25,000 to the City of North Tonawanda for a feasibility study assessing the redevelopment of the Weatherbest Strip at 50 Dock St.