Downtown Revitalization Initiative and $10 Million Dollars

This Is Your Chance to Weigh In On How $10 Million Dollars of Your Tax Money Is Spent

Author

The Harlem Neighborhood Block Association
October 30, 2023 • Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes

Thursday, at 6:30 PM, at the Silberman School of Social Work (3rd + 119th): Your Chance to Weigh In On How $10 Million Dollars of Your Tax Money Is Spent.  

If you have an opinion on who should or shouldn’t receive revitalization funding, come out on Thursday at 6:30 PM and make your voice heard.

If you don’t speak up, others will surely speak for you.

You likely have heard Governor Hochul announcing last January that $10,000,000 would be given to East Harlem in a Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI) grant. This Thursday at 6:30 PM, at the CUNY Silberman School of Social Work (on 3rd Avenue at 119th Street) you can see and comment on the proposals on how ten million dollars will be spent in East Harlem.

A DRI is intended to revitalize downtown neighborhoods into vibrant centers of activity that offer a high quality of life and attract businesses, jobs and economic and housing diversity. After the governor announced this DRI, East Harlem was tasked with developing:

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"a strategic plan through a bottom-up, community-based planning process that articulates a vision for the revitalization of its downtown and identifies a list of signature projects that have transformative potential and leverage further private and public investments." 

The Department of State will then award DRI funds to selected projects with the greatest potential to jumpstart revitalization and realize the community's vision.

The current list of proposals spans all of East Harlem: Eligible and complete projects can be broadly categorized into four categories:

  1. New Development and/or Rehabilitation of Existing
    Downtown Buildings

  2. Public Improvement Projects

  3. Small Project Fund

  4. Branding and Marketing

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