DEC has worked for more than a decade to support smart growth planning and implementation activity within the Adirondack and Catskill parks. Smart growth is a renewal of land use patterns that once came naturally in the parks. Hamlets and villages developed as close knit forest communities, clustered around strong commercial centers, surrounded by vast wilderness. These communities were home to working people in the local mining and forestry industries and doubled as service centers for tourists, who were drawn to the regions' pristine natural beauty.
In the 21st century, park communities retain their heritage, a strong sense of place and a powerful connection with nature. Today's challenges, whether economic loss or development pressure, can threaten the sustainability and unique character of these communities. Located within a patchwork of public and private lands, park communities are presented with challenges and opportunities that can greatly benefit from smart growth.
NYS Smart Growth
Since 2007, the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) has contained a line of funding dedicated to supporting smart growth in New York State via a series of competitive grants to municipalities and not-for-profit partner organizations. DEC is responsible for distributing a portion of these funds toward smart growth within the Adirondack and Catskill Parks. The Department of State (DOS), which has traditionally been responsible for local government planning and development-related assistance, will receive the remainder of these funds for distribution statewide.
DEC Grant Program Summaries
Adirondack Park Community Smart Growth Program
Smart growth can provide the right balance between development and preservation for Adirondack communities. The Adirondack Park Community Smart Growth Program supports projects that foster sustainable development, environmental protection and community livability. The program supports planning and implementation of key projects identified as priorities in plans. The program offers grant funding for counties, towns and villages that need financial or technical assistance to plan and grow successfully in the Adirondack Park.
Adirondack Park Eligibility Requirements/Restrictions
Applicants must be a county, town, or village located wholly or partially within the Adirondack Park or a not-for-profit organization. Partnerships are encouraged. Projects submitted must be located wholly within the Adirondack Park and must be consistent with the Smart Growth principles outlined in the grant program Request for Applications.
Catskill Park Community Smart Growth Program
The Catskill Park Community Smart Growth Program supports the implementation of capital projects that apply smart growth principles in communities located wholly or partially within the Catskill Park. The State, through other programs such as the Department of State's Watershed Planning and Implementation grants and Local Waterfront Revitalization Program, has previously provided funding for comprehensive plans, strategic investment plans, revision of land use regulations, stormwater management plans, and qualified capital improvement projects. This program builds on these and other efforts by offering opportunities for eligible applicants to further enhance historic hamlets within the program area. These hamlets, located within or proximate to the Park, complement the region's protected natural and historic resources, and give the area its special sense of place. The program seeks to enhance the connection of residents and visitors to the area's exceptional natural resources.
Catskill Park Eligibility Requirements/Restrictions
Applicants must be a county, town, or village located wholly or partially within the Catskill Park or a not-for-profit organization. Partnerships are encouraged. Projects submitted must be located wholly within the borders of a Catskill Park town or village (any town or village that lies wholly or partially within the Catskill Park) and must be consistent with the Smart Growth principles outlined in the grant program Request for Applications.
Awards History
2024 Grant Awards
In April 2024, DEC awarded more than $5.46 million from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) to fund 48 projects for Round 7 of the Smart Growth grant.
- 2024 Grant Awards (PDF)
Detailed plans, project results, and details of prior grant rounds may be obtained by contacting DEC.
DEC Grant Program Details
Round 7 of the DEC Smart Growth Grants
Round 7 of the Adirondack and Catskill Parks Community Smart Growth Grant is now closed. Updates about future rounds of the grant will be posted on this website.
Details and scoring information for this grant are included in the Request for Applications (RFA) (PDF).
DEC held virtual information sessions about the Smart Growth grants:
- The November 14 information session discussed goals, eligible projects, funding details, budget building, answered questions, and gave a Grants Gateway tutorial during the second hour (starts at 1:12:33). View a recording of the 11/14 information session and the presentation (PDF).
- The October 25 information session provided information on the Round 7 funding opportunity. View a recording of the 10/25 information session and the presentation (PDF).
Funding
Funding is provided from the Environmental Protection Fund.
Match Requirement
No match required.
Program Goals
The overarching goals of the programs include:
- Support main streets in villages, hamlets and town centers including streetscapes, bicycle, transit and pedestrian access
- Encourage mixed use and adaptive reuse of underutilized buildings and sites
- Enhance community housing availability and encourage age-, income- and ethnic-integration
- Improve waterfront access and facilities
- Ensure environmental resource protection including watersheds, habitat, and wetland protection
- Enhance recreation sites and public access including parks, trails, and greenways
- Protect and manage open space, farmland, working forests and scenic resources
- Promote and support tourism with a focus on resource-, recreation-, ecological- and heritage-based tourism and educational opportunities, including historic and cultural resources, festivals and interpretive systems
- Build local capacity to engage in collaborative, public, stakeholder-driven planning processes
Project Examples
Eligible projects include, but are not limited to:
- Providing bike-friendly routes and amenities or providing shuttle services
- Improving main street facades and refurbishing historic properties
- Providing community-based tourism programs and activities and improving or promoting local/regional museums and theaters
- Creating new recreational opportunities and developing multi-use trails
- Installing informational signage and kiosks and enhancing parks and public spaces
- Beautifying tourism sites and improving visitor centers
- Providing sidewalks and streetscape enhancements
- Cleaning up contaminated sites and preparing them for re-use
- Developing municipal comprehensive plans and updating land use laws
- Conducting project-specific feasibility, design, market and climate change resiliency planning and energy efficiency assessment and improvement
