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Mayor Walsh Opens Applications for ARPA Fund

Published on April 18, 2022

Applications for grants to support capital building upgrades and corridor enhancements will be accepted until June 15

Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh today opened an eight week application window for a new Commercial Corridor Improvement program funded by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The fund, created by the Department of Neighborhood and Business Development and authorized by the Syracuse Common Council, will foster new growth in neighborhood business corridors, reactivate storefronts and support recovery from the impact of COVID-19.

“Investing in neighborhoods, children and families is an important component of our ARPA strategy. We are using pandemic relief in ways that stimulate recovery and create lasting improvements in all parts of the city,” said Mayor Walsh. “I encourage City of Syracuse businesses, non-profits and community organizations to consider how they can use the Commercial Corridor Fund to create more vibrant neighborhood business corridors. We’ve set a two month response period to give applicants time to develop creative and compelling proposals.”

The Commercial Corridor Fund will provide grants to support the redevelopment and improvement of underutilized commercial and mixed-use properties, and for quality of life and “catalytic” neighborhood development programs. The fund has five project categories:

Level 1 projects are those estimated to cost between $10,000 – $100,000 and include exterior enhancements and/or façade improvements.
Level 2 projects are those which are estimated to cost between $100,001 – $1,000,000 and include interior buildout to expand existing business or welcome a new tenant.
Level 3 projects are those which are estimated to cost between $1,000,001 – $2,000,000 and include new construction or development, and significant interior and exterior improvements.
Quality of Life Corridor Improvements are those estimated to cost up to $2,000,000 and include new lighting, shared parking solutions, shared energy efficiency upgrades and pedestrian safety improvements.
Neighborhood Catalyst projects are estimated to cost between $2,000,000 – $10,000,000. These larger projects will include job creation requirements and must involve new construction or adaptive reuse of a longtime vacant structure.

Applicants can be for-profit and nonprofit/501c3 or c4 organizations. All proposed project sites must be located within a qualified ARPA census tract (see map here).

Fund levels 1-3 target commercial-use properties, including mixed-use buildings with residential apartments, that contain a significant portion of vacant and underutilized space. “Significant vacancy” is defined as a minimum of 40% of the total square footage of the building.

Details on the program and the application process can be found at http://www.syrgov.net/neighborhood_and_business_development. Applications will be accepted beginning Monday, April 18, and the deadline for submissions will be 5 p.m. on Wednesday, June 15. 2022. Applicants can submit electronically to business@syrgov.net or send applications to: City of Syracuse Department of Neighborhood & Business Development, 201 East Washington Street, Suite 612, Syracuse, NY 13202.