Low-Income Housing Credit Program

NYS Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR)

DHCR has announced the availability of a tax credit under the Low-Income Housing Credit Program (LIHC).
ELIGIBILITY:  Persons and firms that construct and/or rehabilitate rental housing that is reserved for low-income households may apply for LIHC.
FUNDING:  DHCR expects to have approximately $20 million available for Credit Reservations.
DEADLINE:  5:00 p.m., February 26, 2007.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:  Contact a DHCR Regional Office: Capital District Regional Office, 38-40 State Street, Albany, NY 12207; (518) 486-5012; Buffalo Regional Office, Statler Towers, 107 Delaware Avenue, Suite 600, Buffalo, NY 14202; (716) 842-2244; Syracuse Regional Office, 800 South Wilbur Avenue, Syracuse, NY 13204; phone (315) 473-6930, mailing address: P.O. Box 1127, Syracuse, NY 13201; New York City Regional Office, 25 Beaver Street, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10004; phone (212) 480-7644.

Community Development

NYS Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR)

DHCR has announced the availability of funding for site-specific projects funded under the HOME and/or the Housing Trust Fund (HTF) Programs, and the Homes for Working Families (HWF) Program; and locally administered programs funded under the New York State HOME Program (HOME), the Residential Emergency Services to Offer Repairs to the Elderly (RESTORE) Program, the New York Main Street Program, and the Access to Home Program. Applications for site-specific projects are available at DHCR Regional Offices (listed below) and at www.dhcr.state.ny.us. Applications for locally administered programs must be submitted electronically and are expected to be available on the DHCR web site in December 2006.
ELIGIBILITY:  Persons and firms that construct and/or rehabilitate housing for low income persons or households.
FUNDING:  Contact DHCR for complete funding details.
DEADLINE:  Applications for HOME and HTF Site-Specific Funding (except seed money requests) must be received by 5:00 p.m., February 26, 2007. Applications for locally administered programs must be received by: 5:00 p.m., March 19, 2007 for RESTORE and Access to Home; 5:00 p.m., March 22, 2007 for HOME; and 5:00 p.m., March 26, 2007 for New York Main Street.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:  Please contact a DHCR Regional Office to obtain an application package or for more information: Capital District Regional Office, Hampton Plaza, 6th Floor, 38-40 State Street, Albany, NY 12207; (518) 486-5012; Buffalo Regional Office, Statler Towers, 107 Delaware Avenue, Suite 600, Buffalo, NY 14202; (716) 842-2244; Syracuse Regional Office, 800 South Wilbur Avenue, Syracuse, NY 13204; phone (315) 473-6930, mailing address: P.O. Box 1127, Syracuse, New York 13201; New York City Regional Office, 25 Beaver Street, 7th Floor, NY, NY 10004; phone (212) 480-7644.

Conservancy Small Grants Program

Hudson River Valley Greenway

The Hudson River Valley Greenway has announced that applications for the 2006 Conservancy Small Grants Program are now available. This program offers funding for trail planning, construction and amenities, historic landscape preservation, regional and local partnership development as well as many other resource enhancement and economic development projects.
ELIGIBILITY:  This program is an annual competitive grant funding opportunity available to communities and not-for-profits within the designated Hudson River Valley Greenway area, which extends from Battery Park in Waterford, Saratoga County to Battery Park, Manhattan.
FUNDING:  This is a matching funds program requiring 100% match of funds awarded, with $75,000 in total funding available. Requests for funds must range from $1,000 to $5,000 for projects involving, or located in, one municipality, and up to $10,000 for projects involving, or located in, two or more municipalities. Greenway Conservancy grant assistance toward the cost of the project shall not exceed 50% of the approved project’s cost.
DEADLINE:  All applications must be postmarked or hand delivered by 4:00 p.m., December 15, 2006.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:  Visit www.hudsongreenway.state.ny.us. Questions and requests for information may also be directed to Hudson River Valley Greenway, State Capitol, Room 254, Albany, New York 12224; phone (518) 473-3835; fax (518) 473-4518; e-mail hrvg@hudsongreenway.state.ny.us.

Charter School Funds

New York State Education Department

The New York State Education Department has announced the availability of start-up and facilities grants to charter school applicants and charter schools. Start-up grants are for costs associated with the development and submission of an application to establish a charter school. Facilities grants will cover costs associated with the acquisition, renovation, or construction of school facilities.
ELIGIBILITY:  Charter school applicants and charter schools.
FUNDING:  A total of $770,000 is available.
DEADLINE:  January 5, 2007.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:  Send an e-mail to msccsp@mail.nysed.gov or contact Dr. Darlene Mengel at (518) 474-1762 or Jeanette Canaday at (518) 474-3936.

Child Day Care Center Funding

New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS)

OCFS is making available a series of grant opportunities to expand the availability of and/or improve the quality of care in regulated child care settings. The specific funding categories include: Child Day Care Center and School Age Start Up and Expansion Programs; Expansion of Hours of Existing Child Day Care Centers and School Age Child Care Programs; Health and Safety Grants; Innovative Programs Initiative and Accreditation Grants.
ELIGIBILITY:  All categories except for the Innovative Programs Initiative are open to not-for-profit and for-profit child day care centers, school age child care programs other not-for-profit organizations and government agencies. The Innovative Programs Initiative category is limited to government and not-for-profit organizations.
FUNDING:  Contact the Office of Children and Family Services for funding details.
DEADLINE:  Applications for all program types, except Health and Safety grants $15,000 and under, will be accepted on March 16, 2007 and July 14, 2007. Applications may be submitted for Health and Safety grants $15,000 and under by the 10th of each month ending with submissions on June 10, 2007.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:  For information and an application, contact Suzanne Sennett, Bureau of Early Childhood Services, 52 Washington Street, N. Building, Room 338, Rensselaer, New York 12144; phone (518) 474-9454.

. . . On the Federal Level

Fire/Rescue Ambulance Program

United States Department of Agriculture, Rural Development

The United States Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, has announced the Federal Fire/Rescue Ambulance Program. This program makes loans and grants available to construct new facilities, make renovations or additions to existing facilities, purchase new or replace existing equipment and vehicles that provide service to rural areas of 20,000 or less. Rural Development can typically provide a financing rate of 4.5% or less on these types of loans. A “fast track” system to speed of the application process has been developed.
ELIGIBILITY:  Rural towns, villages, and cities of 20,000 people or less.
FUNDING:  Contact a Rural Development Office for funding details.
DEADLINE:  There is no deadline.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:  Contact any Rural Development Office listed in the telephone book under the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Community Facilities Program

United States Department of Agriculture, Rural Development

The United States Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, has announced its Community Facilities Program to assist in the development of essential community facilities in rural areas. A Community Facilities loan and/or grant would be approved to finance the following types of activities: Health Care – clinics, ambulatory care centers, chemical dependency centers, hospitals and nursing homes; Public Safety – communication centers, police and fire stations, fire trucks, rescue vehicles and jails; Public Services – adult and child care centers, town/village halls, courthouses, libraries, museums, schools, fairgrounds.
ELIGIBILITY:  Rural towns, villages and cities of 20,000 people or less.
FUNDING:  Contact a Rural Development Office for funding details.
DEADLINE:  There is no deadline.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:  Contact any Rural Development Office listed in the telephone book under the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

. . . Foundations and Organizations

Youth Service Improvement Grants Program for the New York Metropolitan Area

William T. Grant Foundation

The William T. Grant Foundation has announced the launch of the Youth Service Improvement Grants program. Grants made through the program will support activities conducted by nonprofit community-based organizations in the New York metropolitan area to improve the quality of services for young people between the ages of 8 and 25.
ELIGIBILITY:  Organizations must have tax-exempt status under Section 501(c)(3) of the IRS Code and must provide services to youth located in the New York metropolitan area, which is defined as Bronx, Kings, Nassau, New York, Putnam, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk and Westchester counties in New York state.
FUNDING:  The foundation expects most grants will be close to the maximum amount of $25,000 each, and that twenty to twenty-five awards will be made per year.
DEADLINE:  Proposals will be accepted during March through April, with an application deadline of April 30, 2007.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:  Call (212) 752-0071; fax (212) 752-1398; e-mail info@wtgrantfdn.org.

. . . Grant Writing

Grantsmanship Center

The Grantsmanship Training Program is coming to New York: Binghamton, January 22-26, 2007, hosted by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Broome County; Buffalo, March 26-30, 2007, hosted by American Red Cross, Greater Buffalo Chapter; and New York City, April 16-20, 2007, hosted by the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development.

The classes will be conducted by The Grantsmanship Center and are kept at a maximum of 30 participants. The cost is $825, which includes one-year enrollment in the TGCI Membership Program. A limited number of half-tuition scholarships are available to agencies with annual budgets of less than $300,000.

To register, or to apply for a scholarship, contact TGCI at (800) 421-9512 or visit www.tgci.com.