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National Grid Is First Company to Make Major Commitment to Newly-Launched Buffalo Building Reuse Project
by chocieni National Grid
Is First Company to Make Major Commitment to Newly-Launched Buffalo Building
Reuse Project
Company to Provide Matching Grants
for Economic Development Projects and Marketing Program
National Grid today became the first company
in Western New York to commit direct support to the Buffalo Building Reuse
Project, an initiative undertaken by the Buffalo Niagara Partnership at the
request of Buffalo Mayor Byron W. Brown to improve the competitiveness of
downtown Buffalo by attracting new investment and creating a development
process and structure for long term sustainability. Buffalo Building Reuse
Project is the result of a year-long study, and was announced in January 2012
alongside an $11.25 million commitment from the City over the next three years.
National Grid will offer matching assistance to the Buffalo Building
Reuse Projectover a three-year period through a menu of successful economic
development and energy efficiency programs the company makes available to
communities and businesses in its upstate New York service areas. The total
level of support by National Grid could augment the city's commitment by a
third or more.
"When Mayor Brown announced this effort, he encouraged local
companies to be good corporate citizens and invest in the future of Buffalo's
economic development," said Ken Daly, National Grid's president in New
York. "As a local company we support the Mayor's vision for the project,
as it clearly aligns with our vision of promoting sustainable economic
development and energy efficiency projects in the communities we serve."
"I applaud National Grid as the first private company in Buffalo to
support this public sector effort to accelerate the pace of investment and
development in downtown Buffalo," said Mayor Brown, noting that the City
of Buffalo already committed $11.25 million to the Buffalo Building Reuse
Project over the next three years. "This is a smart investment because as
downtown Buffalo grows, National Grid's customer base will grow. I certainly
hope other businesses follow National Grid's example and invest in the Buffalo
Building Reuse Project."
National Grid is committed to investing up to $1.25 million per year for
the next three years through its upstate New York economic development grant
programs with potential of additional grant monies being awarded from its
various energy efficiency programs. National Grid's economic development grant
programs have a strong focus on site development, community revitalization,
strategic marketing, and facilitating customer growth through infrastructure
assistance, energy efficiency and productivity improvement. The programs also
reflect an increasing emphasis on sustainable development, the efficient use of
existing energy infrastructure, and the strategic deployment of renewable
generation technologies.
In addition, National Grid will contribute up to $500,000 through its
Strategic Economic Development and Cooperative Recruitment programs to support
Buffalo Building Reuse Project marketing efforts of the City to out-of-state
investors in strategically identified industry sectors.
Since 2003, National Grid has supported economic development and urban
revitalization throughout Erie County through more than $15 million in grants.
"Partnership initiatives like Buffalo Building Reuse Project are
clear examples of expertise@work - combining member volunteer and staff energy,
expertise, and resources to grow jobs and investment in our region," said
Andrew J. Rudnick, president and CEO of the Buffalo Niagara Partnership.
"National Grid continues to be at the forefront of this, as the initial
private funder of the project's recommendations, and is doing so in a way that
will encourage additional companies to step forward."
The direct economic impact of the building reuse initiative is
forecasted to create 700 to1,500 new jobs and as much as $78 million of
investment over the next five years. Also anticipated is the absorption of
425,000-800,000 square feet of office space, the creation of 500,000-1,000,000
square feet of residential space and the improvement of ten city blocks. The
project will be responsible for redeveloping two million square feet of vacant
and underutilized commercial space in Buffalo.
The Buffalo Niagara Partnership has been working the past six months to
implement the principal recommendations of the study released in January and
the framework of the project, which include:
Designating
a lead entity for downtown Buffalo development - the Buffalo Urban
Development Corporation - with increasing downtown specific resources
(staff, loans, grants, etc.) to fulfill the recommendations and to ensure
comprehensive implementation of the project;
Creating
a dedicated funding stream and utilizing effective tools (improve
existing, establish new) to encourage redevelopment investments through
project loans, matching grants, and gap financing and to improve downtown
public infrastructure and amenities; and
- Implementing
a housing in-fill strategy to transition class 'B' and 'C' commercial
properties into residential use as the initial focus.
For more information on BBRP, visit www.thepartnership.org/bbrp
ABOUT NATIONAL GRID
National Grid (LSE: NG; NYSE:NGG) is an electricity and gas company that
connects consumers to energy sources through its networks. The company is at
the heart of one of the greatest challenges facing our society - to create new,
sustainable energy solutions for the future and developing an energy system
that underpins economic prosperity in the 21st century. National Grid holds a
vital position at the center of the energy system and it 'joins everything up'.
In the northeast US, we connect more than seven million gas and electric
customers to vital energy sources, essential for our modern lifestyles. In
Great Britain, we run the gas and electricity systems that our society is built
on, delivering gas and electricity across the country.
National Grid delivers electricity to approximately 3.3 million
customers in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Rhode Island. It
manages the electricity network on Long Island under an agreement with the Long
Island Power Authority (LIPA), and owns over 4,000 megawatts of contracted
electricity generation, providing power to over one million LIPA customers. It
is the largest distributor of natural gas in northeastern U.S., serving
approximately 3.4 million customers in New York, Massachusetts, New Hampshire
and Rhode Island.