About New York Forward
This is the first year of New York State’s New York Forward (NY Forward) program to invigorate and enliven downtowns in New York’s smaller and rural communities. As a complement to the Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI), NY Forward focuses on creating healthy, vibrant, walkable downtowns that catalyze sustainable economic development and accrue numerous economic, social, and environmental benefits to the locality, the region, and the State as a whole.
NY Forward is led by the NYS Department of State (DOS), in close partnership with Empire State Development (ESD), NYS Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) and New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). For more information, please visit https://www.ny.gov/programs/ny-forward.
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Thanks to everyone who joined us at our second public meeting. If you were unable to attend but want to learn more, please review the presentation and recording below.
Hamilton Public Meeting 2 – Presentation
Hamilton Public Meeting 2 – Recording
Please take the time to review and provide feedback on the potential projects presented at the 2nd Public Meeting below.
Hamilton Potential Projects Feedback Worksheet
Hamilton Potential Projects PDF
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Planning Process
Our NY Forward planning process started in May and will continue through Fall 2023 with the completion of the Strategic Investment Plan (SIP):
- Downtown Profile: The consultant team will prepare an analysis of downtown’s key characteristics, strengths, opportunities, and challenges.
- Vision, Goals, Strategies: The public and LPC will provide feedback on these guiding elements for the future of our downtown.
- Project Identification and Development: An Open Call for Projects will ask project sponsors to submit detailed information for the consultant team and LPC to review. Projects should be large enough to be transformative and/or catalytic for downtown, and should leverage other private or public funding sources. The consultant team will evaluate proposals, provide support as needed to strengthen them, and present findings to the LPC for consideration.
- Project Profiles: The consultant team will create project profiles that describe key aspects of potential projects and are the core element of the SIP.
- Strategic Investment Plan: The SIP will include a list of projects recommended by the Local Planning Committee (LPC) for NY Forward funding. This list should total $4-5 million in requested NY Forward funding. The completion of this document concludes the planning process.
- Project Selection and Implementation: Following the submission of the SIP to the State, a multi-agency State team will review each project recommended for NY Forward funding. A subset of the projects recommended in the SIP will be awarded a total of $2.25 million by the State for project implementation. These projects will be expected to start within two years of the funding award.
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How to Get Involved
Schedule of Events:
- LPC Meeting #1: June 02, 2023 (2 -4pm) at The Hub
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Open Call for Projects Released: June 15, 2023
- DRI/NYF Project Form Information Meeting: June 30, 2023 (10am – 1pm) at The Hub
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Public Kick-off Meeting: June 29, 2023 (5 – 7pm) at The Hub
- LPC Meeting #2: July 11, 2023 (5 – 7pm) at The Hub
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Open Call for Projects Closes: July 28, 2023
- LPC Meeting #3: August 01, 2023 ((5 – 7pm) at The Hub
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Public Meeting #2: September 14, 2023 (5 – 7pm) at The Hub
- LPC Meeting #4: October 03, 2023 (5 – 7pm) at The Hub
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LPC Meeting #5: October 12, 2023 (5 – 7pm) at The Hub *
- LPC Meeting #6: October 24, 2023 (5 – 7pm) at The Hub
*Additional meeting if needed
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The Local Planning Committee (LPC) is comprised of local and regional leaders, stakeholders, and community representatives intended to represent diverse interests. The LPC oversees the planning process and the development of the SIP. LPC meetings are working meetings for committee members but are open to the public to observe.
- The committee members are as follows:
- Co-Chairs:
- Mayor, Ruth Ann Loveless
- CNY REDC/ County IDA, Kipp Hicks
- Members:
- Joanne Borfitz
- Bill Butler
- Reverend Brooks Cato
- Jeffrey Coakley
- Suzanne Collins
- Dan Foust
- Jocelyn Gavitt
- Henry Howard
- Samanthi Martinez
- Bill Dowsland
- Julie Dudrick
- Britty O’Connor
- Brian Marks
- Co-Chairs:
- The committee members are as follows:
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Two public meetings will be held during the planning process. These interactive meetings are open to everyone to participate. The consultant team will provide more information on the planning process and ask for community feedback on vision, goals, and potential projects.
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A pop-up event will bring information about NY Forward to a local event to help spread the word. Look for us at an upcoming event to learn more and share your thoughts.
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An Open Call for Projects will be released in June. All project sponsors will be required to submit a form describing their project to be considered by the LPC for inclusion in the list of recommended projects. Check back here for more information.
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About Hamilton’s Planning Area
Hamilton is a compact historic village in the midst of rural Madison County. It has the amenities and feel of a small city and the beauty of a working rural landscape, and is home to Colgate University, a liberal-arts college that has shaped much of Hamilton’s identity.
The downtown center area is the focus for NY Forward. Our commercial district is small, but packed with unique locally-owned businesses. Its historic character is enriched by arts, culture, and community activities. Hamilton will use NY Forward to continue becoming truly accessible and equitable for all who come here, whether for only a few years or for a lifetime.
*The planning area displayed above was proposed by the LPC. The boundary is subject to change under discussion by the LPC and will be revised and updated accordingly.
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Project Documents
Document Sources:
- Hamilton NY Forward Application
- NY Forward Public Guidance
- Hamilton Call for Projects Form
- Central New York – NYF Open Call for Projects Webinar PDF
- Central New York – NYF Open Call for Projects Webinar Recording
- Local Planning Committee (LPC) Presentations:
- LPC Presentation #1: (06/02/23)
- Meeting Summary: Village of Hamilton LPC1 Meeting Summary
- LPC Presentation #2: (07/11/23)
- Meeting Summary: Village of Hamilton LPC2 Meeting Summary
- LPC Presentation #3: (08/07/23)
- Meeting Summary: Village of Hamilton LPC3 Meeting Summary
- LPC Presentation #1: (06/02/23)
- Public Meeting (PM) Presentations
- PM Presentation #1: (06/29/23)
- Meeting Summary: Village of Hamilton PM1 Meeting Summary
- PM Presentation #1: (06/29/23)