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12 'Priority Projects' Receive Designation to Seek State Funds

By David Robinson
November  9, 2011 

The further development of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus rates as one of the Western New York Regional Development Council's top priorities, and it leads the council's list of projects seeking $40 million in state funding.

The council released its 12 "priority projects" Wednesday, and three are linked to the Medical Campus, from genetics and biotechnology research done there to a center that would help turn that research into job-creating businesses and products.

The council also backed three local work-force development programs to address concerns among the panel's members that there are too many jobs in the region that go unfilled because businesses can't find enough skilled workers to do them.

The panel also threw its support behind the Niagara Experience Center, a long-discussed museum and visitors center in Niagara Falls, and projects to revitalize the central business districts in Olean and Buffalo.

The local panel's recommendations now go to state economic development officials, who will compare them with similar lists submitted by the state's nine other regional development councils in a competition for $200 million in state funding. Four of the councils each will receive up to $40 million in funding and tax credits, with the remaining funds split by the other six.

The council approved the list of priority projects at the same time it adopted a regional strategic plan that focuses on creating jobs and finding ways to get the biggest bang for the buck out of investments made in Western New York.

"Our plan is pretty good. We hope we'll win the $40 million," said Satish Tripathi, the University at Buffalo president, who serves as co-chairman of the local development council.

"We were looking for projects that were consistent with our plan," said Howard Zemsky, the Buffalo developer who is the other co-chairman.

"You can think of these as projects that are implementable, impactful and consistent with the plan," Zemsky said. "We have projects that touch on all parts of the region."

The council culled the dozen projects selected for the priority list from about 100 that sought the designation, he said. Those projects, and hundreds of others that have applied for funding, still are eligible for a slice of the additional $800 million available from state agencies.

The 12 priority projects that are seeking nearly $48 million in direct state funding would require a total investment of nearly $187 million.

The council did not release a list of the eight additional projects seeking a share of the $15 million in Excelsior tax credits available as part of the $40 million in funding for the highest-rated areas.

Those additional projects, expected to be identified next week, are seeking $26 million in Excelsior tax credits and would involve nearly $100 million in capital investment.

In all, those 20 projects, which would create or retain more than 1,500 jobs, are seeking $74 million in state funding and involve nearly $285 million in other investments, or nearly $1 in state money for every $3 in capital from other sources.

Tripathi said the projects are seeking more than the $40 million cap imposed by the state in the expectation that state officials could eliminate some projects backed by the council. The state review is expected to be completed next month.

The priority list includes three Medical Campus projects:

•$11 million for the Jacobs Institute, also known as the Center for Innovation in Medicine, a $60 million facility that is intended to be a center for innovation and entrepreneurship. It would be the only U.S. center for entrepreneurship at a clinical facility and would include a fabrication center, machine shop and clean room to create medical devices and techniques, along with a training center for physicians to test them.
•$8 million in funding for the Roswell Park Cancer Institute Genome Project, which will study genetic sequences.
•Nearly $900,000 for an expansion of the Hauptman Woodward Crystallization Laboratory.
Three other projects focus on work-force development and training:

•$2.5 million for the Hospitality and Tourism Center in the former Rainbow Center in Niagara Falls, which will be operated by Niagara County Community College to train students for jobs in the hospitality and leisure industry.
•$2 million for the Urban Automotive Center of Excellence, a facility to provide training for auto body repair and auto-service technicians and mechanics in conjunction with Erie Community College.
"It's very hard for people in the city to get to the Southtowns, so we're bringing the program to the city," Zemsky said.

•$1 million for the Buffalo Arts and Technology Center to train workers in the health sciences field.
Three other projects are focused on what Zemsky described as "smart growth" initiatives:

•$1 million for the reconstruction of East State Street in Olean, providing better access to several key employers.
•$1.2 million to redevelop several properties on North Union and West streets in Olean, along with a redesign of Union Street to aid downtown revitalization efforts and encourage private investment.
•$8 million for transportation, streetscape and infrastructure improvements in Buffalo linking Main Street, the Genesee Gateway and the Medical Campus.
Other projects include:

•$6.5 million for the High-Temp Materials Characterization Laboratory at Alfred State College, to buy equipment and renovate facilities to test high-temperature materials.
•$5 million for the Niagara Experience Center, an 80,000-square-foot museum and visitors center that would add a major attraction for tourists and help direct them to other local tourism venues, with the goal of extending their stay in the region, Zemsky said.
•$800,000 for a Small Business Green Retrofit Initiative to provide incentive grants to small businesses and nonprofit organizations for energy-efficiency improvements.

drobinson@buffnews.comnull