Statewide News

      The announcement that New York would receive $151 million in Federal funding to address needed track upgrade projects and Amtrak station improvements has been well received by transit advocates in the state.  The disparity between New York's share and that of Florida, however, which received $1.2 billion for its high-speed corridor between Tampa and Orlando, has attracted the attention of editorial writers here. California was awarded $2.34 billion, part a nationwide pool $8 billion in rail-related funding. 

      Much of New York's funding will be spent in the Capital region, according to a story in the Times Union, which reported $90 million will go for a second track and signal improvements between Albany and Schenectady. That section has been a long-standing source of delays routinely affecting on time performance on Amtrak trains heading or returning from Western New York. 

      Empire State Passengers Association president Bruce Becker said he hoped New York would get additional funding from $2.5 billion yet to be awarded, according to the paper. "We're thankful for the money New York State is receiving, but we're disappointed it's not more," he said. 

Read the entire Times Union article at:

The RevitalizingNY statewide summit on sustainable development, sponsored by Empire State Future and the New York Department of State, was held October 7, 2009 at downtown Schenectady's historic Proctors Theater. Almost 200 participants--including over 40 expert, experienced presenters and panelists-- attended from across the state and across professional and political persuasions. Here, you can download a document containing the event proceedings; it includes an executive summary as well as complete transcripts of the summit's ten panel sessions.

      Several local, state and congressional officials have announced their support of a coalition to boost high-speed rail in Upstate New York, according to an article in The Legislative Gazette of Albany. The effort is managed by the Greater Syracuse Chamber of Commerce and the Metropolitan Development Association of Central New York.

      The group is focusing on the $20 billion the Obama Administration has said will be used to support high-speed rail projects in several corridors across the country. Last summer New York officials applied to the Federal Railroad Administration for $5 billion of that money, largely to improve Amtrak service in the Empire Service corridor in Upstate New York. Decisions on what projects will be funded are expected in January, according to the paper.

      The coalition is hosting several meetings with stakeholders across the state aimed at educating local economic development officials about the benefits of high-speed rail and the jobs the project could bring if implemented.

      Read more about the effort at: www.legislativegazette.com

Saying "we want to make Nassau County the hub of Smart Growth and mixed use development," Governor David A. Paterson gave a big boost to the subject at a recent Smart Growth Summit in Melville organized by Vision Long Island.

According to coverage in Newsday, the Governor told the gathering that "Smart Growth has to be more than a concept, it has to be a protocol in government."

The article quoted the Governor as saying that a failure to employ Smart Growth principles in the past is part of the reason New York is in dire economic straits currently.

Read the entire Newsday report at: http://www.newsday.com/long-island/nassau/paterson-smart-growth-planningpkeyptopstatepeconomy-1.1613612

Home prices during the recession have fallen in direct proportion to their proximity from a city's downtown, according to recent studies at the University of Utah reported by The New York Times. The research also showed that foreclosure rates in Washington, DC were much lower in counties served by the Metro rail system when compared with the next ring of counties further away, according to the paper.

The findings add to the body of knowledge that indicates highway-driven sprawl is bad for cities, a central premise of mass transit supporters, according to the report.

The study by Professor Arthur C. Nelson is entitled "Locating neat transit and near urban centers is the safer investment."

Read more about the issue in The New York Times at: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/06/us/06transit.html

In a big step forward for Smart Growth in New York State, two major state agencies say they will direct more aid to cash-strapped cities with aging infrastructure rather than supporting suburban expansion into undeveloped areas.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation and the Environmental Facilities Corporation plan to re-write rules governing use of the Clean Water State Revolving Loan Fund, which makes low-interest loans and grants of about a half billion dollars a year to localities, according to the Albany Times Union.

Aging sewer systems are a looming financial threat to the state, according to the article, as nearly two-thirds of 600 municipal treatment plants lack budgets for long-term repairs and upgrades, and about a quarter of them are 30 years old, which is considered their useful life.

Read the full Times-Union story at:
http://archives.timesunion.com/mweb/wmsql.wm.request?oneimage&imageid=8950246

"New York has a wealth of historic properties, particularly in our small cities that are falling into disrepair or are underutilized. The enhanced Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit will breathe new life into the State's historic downtown areas while creating jobs and revitalizing the economy," said Governor A. Paterson as he signed into law the legislation pushed by Empire State Future and a host of good government groups for the past several years.

Jay DiLorenzo, President of the Preservation League of New York State, applauded the signing by saying "We have every reason to believe that the New York State Preservation Tax Credit will prove one of the most effective economic and community development programs in the State. We are enormously grateful to Senator Valesky and Assemblyman Hoyt for shepherding this important Smart Growth initiative through their respective houses and to the leadership of the Senate and the Assembly for their vision in passing this legislation."

Although a preservation tax credit was adopted in New York's 2006, the program did not provide adequate incentives to attract sufficient investment to struggling municipalities, particularly those Upstate, according to supporters of the new legislation.

The full text of Governor Paterson's press release on the issue can be seen at: http://www.ny.gov/governor/press/press_0729092.html

An ambitious, $8.25 Billion list of New York rail transportation improvements has been submitted to Washington in a bid for stimulus funding, including money for a dedicated high-speed track between the Capital Region and Buffalo.

Among 37 projects the state has identified are the purchase of new locomotives and passenger cars, a second track between Albany and Schenectady, replacement of a 130-year-old swing bridge across the Hudson River at Albany, and platform extensions at the Albany-Rensselaer station, according to an article in the Albany Times-Union. Additional funding for the long-proposed Moynihan Station in Manhattan is also included, according to the report.

An ongoing problem that has thwarted efforts to improve passenger service Upstate has been coordination with freight trains over tracks owned by railroads such as CSX and Canadian Pacific, and state transportation planners now propose that New York begin to acquire the tracks on the east side of the Hudson between New York City and Albany, according to the report.

Read the full Times Union story at:

http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=819921&category=BUSINESS