A Great Day for New Rochelle and BCW’s Advocacy of Economic Development

A Great Day for New Rochelle and BCW’s Advocacy of Economic Development As City is Awarded $10M State Downtown Economic Development Grant

A major advocacy initiative of the Business Council of Westchester is a focus on the economic reimagining and rebirth of Westchester’s urban centers.  That effort was rewarded Thursday when the City of New Rochelle was awarded a $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI) grant, becoming the first Westchester community to win one of the coveted grants. The funding is designated for investment in the city’s Lincoln Avenue neighborhood.

State Economic Development Commissioner Howard Zemsky, on behalf of Governor Cuomo, joined by New Rochelle Mayor Noam Bramson and County Executive George Latimer, made the announcement.

BCW President and CEO Marsha Gordon is a member of the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council (REDC), one of 10 in the state, that reviews the grant applications and recommends the final selection. The competition for the downtown grants drew applications from communities across the seven-county Mid-Hudson Region.

Gordon’s work with the REDC dovetails perfectly with the BCW’s downtown initiative.  In its role as Westchester’s only true economic development and business advocacy organization, the BCW is producing a broad array of initiatives, actions and positive results.  In accepting the grant, Mayor Bramson gave “special thanks to Marsha Gordon and the BCW for always believing in the City of New Rochelle.”

Said Gordon: “Great things are happening in downtown New Rochelle and this grant further enhances the trend.”

View New Rochelle’s Winning Application. 

According to the BCW Data Exchange, the City of New Rochelle ranks number 1 on the top 5 list of  most new residents added since 2000 with 7,117. Hear from Mayor Noam Bramson about why New Rochelle is at the top of the list in a new guest blog.