Second Round of East Side Commercial Districts Program in Buffalo Includes $4 Million in Additional Funding and Expanded Building Renovation Program
Applications for $20 Million Buffalo East Homeowner Assistance Fund Program, $10 Million Buffalo East Home Improvement Program, $4.5 Million East Buffalo Down Payment Assistance Plus Program to Open on August 9
Part of Governor's Historic $50 Million Targeted Investments in East Buffalo
Starting August 3, Residents Can Call 211 to Learn More About Programs
Governor Hochul: "We're just getting started. We were already making investments long before that tragic day in May. We are also investing in changing the landscape of this community. The businesses, the Jefferson Avenue Corridor, we're going to bring it back so it is one of the hot spots of Buffalo We are stronger together and that's why I love Buffalo, New York."
Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul announced that applications are open for comprehensive programs supporting residents of East Buffalo as part of the state's historic $50 million targeted investments. The Governor announced applications WILL BE available MONDAY for THE second round of the $4 million East Side Commercial Districts Program, which is creating an expanded building renovation program in four investment areas—Jefferson Avenue Commercial District, MLK Park Business District, Broadway Fillmore, and Kensington Bailey—to improve the business climate, combat commercial vacancies, and contribute to the corridors' overall revitalization. Additionally, Governor Hochul announced that applications for the $20 million Buffalo East Homeowner Assistance Fund, $10 million Buffalo East Home Improvement Program, and $4.5 million East Buffalo Down Payment Assistance Plus Program will open on Tuesday, August 9. Starting Wednesday, August 3, residents can call 211 to learn about our housing programs and small business grants and how to apply.
B-ROLL of the event is available on YouTube here and in TV quality (h.264, mp4) format here.
VIDEO of the event is available on YouTube here and in TV quality (h.264, mp4) format here.
AUDIO of the event is available here.
PHOTOS of the event will be available on the Governor's Flickr page.
A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:
Good morning, friends. And what a great celebration of this extraordinarily strong community. First of all, Reverend A.R. Bernard, you may have not caught this, but he came all the way in from Brooklyn, New York to be here today to show the love across the state for this community. Also, you heard from Bishop Darius Pridgen, who was the person who's helped lead us, lead the flock through the valley of darkness for a time. But we are coming out of that valley. I can feel it. And to all of our elected leaders, our amazing Mayor, who showed leadership when this city was crying for a leader. You were there, Mayor Brown. We will never forget that.
Senator Tim Kennedy, all of us were together the very first hours after this shooting. We came together. Ulysees Wingo was there. But to have also the power of the President of the United States -- President Joe Biden came here. Vice President Kamala Harris came here. They showed up and today, we have a representative from the White House, Dr. Que English, who's representing the federal government in our house, and I thank you.
And it all happens in our schools, my friends. We have a great new Superintendent. Superintendent Williams is going to lead our children into great education. And all of our clergy, I'm so humble to be here and I'm going to give you just a couple of remarks, but it's all about money, so you're going to want to pay attention.
This is how we're going to get money into your pockets. First of all, I have to tell you what this means to me, personally. They say home is where the heart is. Both my heart and my home are in Buffalo. So, what happened on that day is seared in my heart forever. And what it did, out of the depths of anger and pain, I went back to Albany and I said, "Never again should an 18-year-old be able to get their hands on an AR-15 assault weapon that's intended for the battlefield. Never again".
And our legislature, Crystal Peoples Stokes, Senator Tim Kennedy, they passed this. We also said, "Strengthen the Red Flag laws." What does that mean? People are leaving messages on social media basically saying that they're going to do what they did and why aren't we finding that out first? So, we are now looking at social media, we're strengthening our laws, we're empowering our local police departments. This will not happen again if we continue to support the laws that we have in place and look for more ways to protect society. But I came here a month after that and I said, "We need money to rebuild this community and we need it now."
So, we put over $50 million on the table back in June and said, "This is for homeowners. This is for small businesses. This is for people behind in their rent and utilities. We're here to help build you back up and build you back stronger." So starting on August 9th at the Merriweather Library from four to seven, we're going to have people there to help you apply for money. If you're a homeowner, you need some repairs, you're behind in your rent; you come there on that day and we'll help you figure out what to do and how to get access to that money.
And we're just getting started. We were already making investments long before that tragic day in May. We are also investing in changing the landscape of this community.
The businesses, the Jefferson Avenue Corridor, we're going to bring it back so it is one of the hot spots of Buffalo. Once again, people are going to come here to celebrate our rebirth. So, I'm delighted to be here. Thank you, Reverend Bernard, for providing the backpacks here today and all of you from the clergy in our Violence Disruptor Organization. We are stronger together and that's why I love Buffalo, New York.
Let's get it done, everybody.