New York State

Appalachian Regional Commission

Area Development Program

APPLICATION GUIDANCE

Including NYS’s Implementing Strategies

For Projects Solicited for FFY-2021
I. INTRODUCTION

This document provides guidance to Local Development Districts (LDDs) and to project sponsors of 

proposed projects for which funding is requested under the Area Development Program of the Appalachian 

Regional Commission (ARC) for Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2021. This guidance also provides general 

information on program priorities, technical assistance contacts, and the application process and schedule 

for FFY-2021.

Appalachian Regional Development Organization and Authority

The ARC was established by the federal Appalachian Regional Development Act of 1965 to improve the 

economy and quality of life in the thirteen-state Appalachian Region. Governors of the Appalachian States 

and a Federal Co-Chair appointed by the President, comprise the Commission. The NYS Department of 

State (DOS) is the official agent of the State of New York for cooperating with the ARC in administering

the Appalachian Regional Development Program, asspecified in Article 6-B, Section 153 of NYS Executive

Law. Deputy Secretary of State for Local Government Services Mark P. Pattison serves as the Governor’s 

Alternate for NYS’s Appalachian Area Development Program.

NYS receives an allocation of resources from the ARC each year to fund area development in NYS’s 14-

county Appalachian Region. Appalachian New York’s counties are represented by one of three LDDs: 

Southern Tier West (STW) based in Salamanca, NY and comprised of Allegany, Cattaraugus, and 

Chautauqua counties; Southern Tier Central (STC) based in Corning, NY and comprised of Chemung, 

Schuyler and Steuben counties; and Southern Tier East (STE), in Binghamton, NY and comprised of 

Broome, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Otsego, Schoharie, Tioga and Tompkins counties.

Investment of ARC funds is guided by ARC's Strategic Plan 2016-2020 “Investing in Appalachia’s Future”1, 

which details five General Goals. The first three goals cover broad themes: economic opportunity, 

workforce development, and infrastructure modernization (including the completion of the Appalachian 

Development Highway System (ADHS), which, in NYS, is funded and administered by other federal and 

state agencies). The last two goals focus on natural and cultural assets and leadership and community 

capacity. All proposed Area Development projects in NYS must implement an ARC General Goal and one

of the NYS Strategies contained in Section VI of this document.

Role of the LDDs

The LDDs work with their existing board members and a wide array of local participants to identify and 

prioritize economic development needs across the district and within local communities. Each LDD’s 

economic development priorities are articulated in an annual Comprehensive Economic Development 

Strategy (CEDS). Each LDD serves as a hub for regional planning and coordination and for developing 

collaborative community participation and civic leadership.

In addition, NYS’s LDDS are important partners to the New York State Regional Economic Development 

Councils (REDCs), which are public-private partnerships composed of local experts and stakeholders from 

business, academia, local government, and non-governmental organizations. REDCs are charged with 

developing long-term, locally-driven strategic plans and regional investment priorities for each of 10 

distinct regions of NYS. These councils were created in 2011 to function as the cornerstone for statewide

economic development efforts. (Appalachian NYS spans four REDCs but lies predominately within two –

the Southern Tier REDC and the Western New York REDC. Otsego and Schoharie counties are in

1 http://www.arc.gov/images/newsroom/publications/sp/ARCStrategicPlan2011-2016.pdf
the Mohawk Valley REDC; Cortland County is in the Central New York REDC.) Each REDC’s economic 

development strategy is tailored to its region’s needs, opportunities and challenges. The LDDs have key 

oles on REDC work groups for their respective regions. Both the LDD’s CEDS and REDC’s economic 

development strategies are essential references for identifying higher priority projects for Area 

Development funding. Beyond these two references, regional and local comprehensive plans and other 

strategic plans are considered important documents that can elevate the ranking of proposed projects in the 

evaluation and selection process.

To leverage their regional planning capabilities and the related economic development focus of the ARC 

program, each LDD annually solicits from local non-profit organizations, agencies of state or municipal

government, or recognized indigenous tribal communities, regionally significant area development projects 

that will advance the goals and objectives of the ARC and one of NYS’s ARC Implementing Strategies. 

LDDs are encouraged to solicit a wide range of projects types, to provide technical assistance to potential 

project sponsors, and to recommend projects for consideration by DOS for ultimate approval by the ARC. 

LDDs also assist project sponsors whose project proposal could be fully or partially funded through NYS’s 

Consolidated Funding Application (CFA) program. Applications not completed in close consultation with 

an LDD generally are not given favorable recommendations for consideration by DOS.

Construction projects must be administered by a “basic agency”. LDDs work with construction project 

applicants to identify a potential basic agency, such as U.S. Department of Agriculture/Rural Development 

(USDA/RD), which specializes on construction projects in rural areas. Other federal basic agencies include 

the U.S. Department of Commerce/Economic Development Administration (EDA) and the U.S. 

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). NYS’s Department of Economic Development is 

a Registered State Basic Agency (RSBA) for projects involving funding from Empire State Development 

(ESD) and may be considered as a basic agency on a case by case basis with the prior consent of the agency. 

In addition, the Office for Community Renewal (OCR) may be authorized to serve as a non-federal basic 

agency to administer ARC construction projects on a case-by-case basis.

State Priorities for the 2020-2021 ARC Cycle

During the upcoming program cycle, DOS will seek out projects that emphasize the following priorities:

• Advance the REDC’s strategies/priorities, the LDD’s CEDS, and county or community 

comprehensive plans. (All 3 is best.);

• Contribute measurably positive economic impact and advance economic development;

• Demonstrate job creation; or, alternatively, demonstratively retain local jobs; 

• Train the workforce for employment in “wealth producing” careers;

• Promote Smart Growth (and/or village or urban center commercial revitalization); 

Foster rehabilitation of local pockets of distress*

*NOTE: Local pockets of distress are identified periodically by the ARC, which evaluates census tracts and

counties of the Appalachian region against national averages for poverty rate, per capita market income and 

unemployment. Under this comparison, all Appalachian NYS counties except Allegany are categorized by 

ARC as economically “Transitional”, ranking in the middle 50 percentile of all counties in the nation. For 

2021, Allegany Co. will be categorized as “At-Risk”, meaning that its economic condition is in the lower 

25% of all U.S. counties. ARC will match up to 70% of project costs for “At-Risk” counties and up to 50% 

of costs for projects in “Transitional” counties. Although, several census tracts in Appalachian NYS fall 

into the bottom 25% of the nation’s, ARC match is determined only by the county’s economic category. 

More information on “pockets of distress” is available from the LDDs, DOS and the ARC.
NYS’s Smart Growth Public Infrastructure Policy Act

NYS enacted the Smart Growth Public Infrastructure Policy Act of 2010 (“Infrastructure Act”), 

Environmental Conservation Law §§6-0101 - 6-0111, to promote Smart Growth and sustainable 

infrastructure investments. The Act established ten Smart Growth criteria in NYS law, and infrastructure 

projects reviewed by NYS must meet those criteria “to the extent practicable.” State agencies and public 

authorities that approve or fund infrastructure projects are required to convene a Smart Growth Advisory 

Committee to ensure that funding and approval decisions for public infrastructure are consistent with the 

“relevant” Smart Growth criteria in the law. The agency’s advisory committees produce a Smart Growth 

Impact Statement after reviewing each project; if the project cannot practicably meet the Smart Growth 

Criteria, the agency must provide a written statement detailing the reasons the project fails to comply with 

such criteria.

The ten criteria of the Infrastructure Act can be broken down into two broad categories of land use: (a) 

“Where”, focusing on locations that maximize and strengthen existing communities and infrastructure; (b) 

“How”, concerning design features and planning processes that promote livability, sustainability, housing 

and mobility choices, environmental protection, equity, and broad-based community participation.

In summary, ten Smart Growth criteria used to review public infrastructure projects are:

1. Maintenance and use of existing infrastructure: Similar to a “fix-it-first” policy, which focuses 

funding on repair and maintenance of existing infrastructure, rather than constructing new 

infrastructure.

2. Location in “municipal centers”: Development and re-development in existing or new centers of 

activities – e.g., downtowns, Main Streets, central business districts, brownfield areas, local 

waterfront revitalization areas, environmental justice areas, hardship/low-income areas and transitoriented development, among others.

3. Infill development: Redevelopment, rehabilitation and development between existing buildings and 

on vacant, abandoned or underutilized properties.

4. Natural resource protection: Preserving, protecting and enhancing water, air, agricultural land, 

forests, recreation, open spaces, scenic areas and historic/archaeologicalresources.

5. Smart Growth planning and design principles: Includes density, mixed-uses, public spaces, diverse 

housing choices near employment and other amenities and age- and income-integration.

6. Mobility and transportation choices: Reducing car-dependence through walkable, bikeable, transitfriendly neighborhood design and street connectivity.

7. Inter-governmental coordination: Regional, inter-municipal and state/local coordination.

8. Community-based planning: Projects that result from inclusive, bottom-up, stakeholder-driven 

planning processes.

9. Predictability and reliability in building and zoning codes: Clear codes that promote smart growth 

and are consistently and predictably applied.

10. Sustainability development: Projects that use existing resources in ways that do not compromise 

the needs of future generations – e.g., reducing greenhouse gas emissions, promoting broad-based 

public participation and adequate governance structures to ensure and maintain sustainability.

Smart Growth has been recognized to promote economic and fiscal sustainability. Research is showing that 

businesses value quality-of-life factors – such as vibrant downtowns and outdoor recreation and open space

– in deciding where to locate, in part to attract the young talented workers who are fueling the New 

Economy. Infrastructure investments that induce Smart Growth provide a greater return on the public
investment – that is, they are more likely than sprawling development to pay for themselves in tax revenues 

and economic activity. In this fiscal and economic climate, sustainable infrastructure and land use 

investments can go a long way toward managing strained municipal budgets.

Communities affected by development projects related to the I-86 corridor are recommended to incorporate 

Smart Growth principles into local and regional land use decision-making and planning, zoning and project 

development processes. This can be accomplished in part by designating nodes for concentrated (ideally 

mixed-use) development in areas most appropriate for such development. Land use and infrastructure 

investments in municipal centers and other previously developed areas can help enhance and create Smart 

Growth-type development. This type of development – if designed properly – can create vibrant, livable 

and sustainable communities. Localities can also integrate their land use and capital/infrastructure plans to 

reflect Smart Growth principles and sustainable land use patterns that reinforce one another.

Infrastructure Construction Project Impact Statement Procedures

ARC project applications that involve infrastructure construction must be accompanied by a NYS Smart

Growth Public Infrastructure Policy Act Compliance Questionnaire. This form is available from the LDD 

or via DOS’s ARC program website. If a project proposal is being reviewed by another “State Infrastructure 

Agency”, the information must be noted in the applicable section of the questionnaire. If another NYS 

agency has already completed its Smart Growth Review, the applicant has the option of submitting a copy 

of the other agency’s Smart Growth Review opinion, if available, with the grant application for 

consideration by DOS’s Smart Growth Review Committee.

NYS’s ARC program staff will forward the application and questionnaire to NYS’s Director of Smart 

Growth Planning and to DOS Office of Counsel for a preliminary review and draft Impact Statement. 

During this process, the applicant and NYS’s Director of Smart Growth Planning may potentially identify 

modifications to the proposed project that could bring non-conforming work plans into better compliance 

with the Infrastructure Act principles. Once a proposed project is ready for submission to DOS’s Smart 

Growth Advisory Committee, DOS’s Office of Counsel will forward the final application and Impact 

Statement to that Committee for a final opinion on the suitability of the proposed project. Projects that are 

consistent with the Smart Growth goals will be eligible for DOS approval and submission to the ARC if all 

other project ranking conditions and requirements are in place. Project proposals that are not deemed tobe 

in complete compliance with the Smart Growth criteria may be returned to the LDD with comments 

suggesting changes that might allow the project to achieve compliance with Smart Growth Policies.

“Energy Efficient Efforts” (Construction Projects)

ARC construction proposals should include a discussion of the energy efficient features of the project 

and/or describe efforts made to improve the energy efficiency of the project, including a discussion of 

features that were considered but were not included. Three major categories, Technology, Design, and 

Materials should be covered. Technology may include the use of equipment that allows for greater 

energy efficiency, lower operating costs, greater durability and increased output over conventional 

equipment. Design comments explain efficiency elements designed into the project plan. Materials used 

comments should explain how recycled or renewable materials have been incorporated, how low impact 

materials (such as low to no VOC content chemicals, natural dyes and components) are selected over 

alternatives, and how porous paving, indigenous landscaping and other features make the project more 

energy efficient and minimize environmental impacts.
II. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CONTACTS

A. Local Development Districts (LDDs) and Counties Served

Allegany 

Cattaraugus 

Chautauqua

Southern Tier West Regional Planning and Development Board 

4039 Route 219, Suite 200

Salamanca, New York 14779 

(716) 945-5301; Fax (716) 945-5550

www.southerntierwest.org

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR – Richard T. Zink

PROGRAM CONTACT – Fileve Palmer <FPalmer@southerntierwest.org>

Chemung 

Schuyler 

Steuben

Southern Tier Central Regional Planning and Development Board 

8 Denison Parkway East, Suite 310

Corning, New York 14830 

(607) 962-5092; Fax (607) 962-3400

www.stcplanning.org

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR – Chelsea Robertson

PROGRAM CONTACT - Victoria Ehlen vehlen@stcplanning.org

Broome Southern Tier Eightt Regional Planning Development 

Board 49 Court Street, Suite 222 (2nd Floor)

Binghamton, New York 13901 

(607) 724-1327; Fax (607) 724-1194

www.southerntier8.org

DIRECTOR – Jennifer Gregory 

PROGRAM CONTACT 

Dorothy Richter drichter@southerntier8.org

Chenango

Cortland

Delaware

Otsego

Schoharie

Tioga

Tompkins
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 1

New York State (NYS)

Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC)

Area Development Program

Implementing Strategies

Federal Fiscal Year 2021
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 2

Appalachia and the New York State Appalachian Region

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) is a state and federal partnership concerned with the 

socio-economic development of the Appalachian Region of the United States. Established by an act of 

Congress in 1965, ARC has progressed over the past 46 years to become a model for regional 

economic development. The 205,000-square-mile federally-designated Appalachian Region extends 

more than 1,000 miles along the spine of the Appalachian Mountains from southern New York to 

northern Mississippi. The U.S. Appalachian Region is comprised of 420 counties and is home to 24.8 

million people. The ARC’s leadership consists of the governors of the 13 Appalachian states, appointed 

state Alternates, and the Presidentially- appointed Federal Co-Chair.

The NYS Appalachian Region, also known as NYS’s “Southern Tier” (and as “the Region” where the 

context is appropriately clear), consists of fourteen counties extending approximately 285 miles from 

eastern Schoharie County to the southwestern corner of Chautauqua County. (See Map 1.) The Region 

covers 24.8 percent of the State’s total land area and has a population of slightly more than one million, 

which represents about 5.5 percent of NYS’s total population. Roughly half of the Region’s residents live 

in or around medium to small cities or villages with the largest population clusters located around the 

cities of Binghamton (Broome County), Elmira (Chemung County), Ithaca (Tompkins County), Cortland 

(Cortland County), and Jamestown (Chautauqua County).

Local- level leadership and participation in the ARC Program is coordinated through multi-county local 

development districts (LDDs). NYS’s ARC Program is co-administered by three LDDs (alsoknown as 

“regional planningand development boards”) asfollows (constituent counties arenotedin parentheses):

• Southern-Tier Eight (Broome, Cortland, Chenango, Delaware, Otsego, Schoharie, Tioga, 

and Tompkins), headquartered in Binghamton (Broome Co.);

• Southern-Tier Central (Chemung, Schuyler,andSteuben), headquartered in Corning (Steuben Co.);

• Southern-Tier West (Allegany, Cattaraugus, and Chautauqua), headquartered in Salamanca 

(Cattaraugus Co.).

NYS Executive Law §153(d) (2) designates the NYS Department of State (DOS_ as:

“.... the official agent of the state for the purpose of administering, carrying out and 

otherwise cooperating with the federal government in connection with the provisions 

of thefederalAppalachian regional development actof nineteen hundredsixty-five as 

heretofore and hereafter amended; to apply for, accept, and expend funds made 

available by the federal government pursuant to such federal acts and enterinto any 

necessarycontractsorcompacts inconnectiontherewith;andtotakeanyfurtheraction 

which may be required under the terms of any such federal act.”
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 3

Map 1: Boundaries of Appalachian New York State and New York State’s LDDs

Strategic Overview

The following five investment goals are identified in ARC’s Strategic Plan, “Investing in Appalachia’s

Future: The Appalachian Regional Commission’s Five-Year Strategic Plan for Capitalizing on

Appalachia’s Opportunities 2016 − 2020”1:

• Goal 1: Economic Opportunities

Invest in entrepreneurial and business development strategies that strengthen Appalachia’s 

economy.

• Goal 2: Ready Workforce

Improve the education, knowledge, skills, and health of residents to work and succeed in 

Appalachia.

• Goal 3: Critical Infrastructure

Invest in critical infrastructure—especially broadband; transportation, including the 

Appalachian Development Highway System; and water/wastewater systems.

• Goal 4: Natural and Cultural Assets

Strengthen Appalachia’s community and economic development potential by leveraging the 

Region’s natural and cultural heritage assets.

• Goal 5: Leadership and Community Capacity

Build the capacity and skills of current and next‐generation leaders and organizations to 

innovate, collaborate, and advance community and economic development.

1 http://www.arc.gov/about/ARC2016-2020StrategicPlan.asp
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 4

These goals and their implementing strategies are each closely aligned with the priorities of New York 

State’s ten Regional Economic Development Councils (REDCs), which were established to transform 

the statewide approach to long-term economic development. REDCs are composed of local experts

and stakeholders from business, academia, local government, and non-governmental organizations, 

and have been tasked to develop strategic plans that emphasize each region’s strengths and unique 

assets. (See Map 2.)

Map 2: New York State Regional Economic Development Councils

The REDC process is closely correlated with ARC’s approach to economic development that 

emphasizes local decision-making.

Prospective applicants are advised to collaborate with their LDD and REDC and to explore co-funding 

opportunities through the NYS’s Consolidated Funding Application (CFA) grants program. ARC Area 

Development project proposals are expected to match the planned priorities of the constituent REDC 

and LDD, and to implement one of the supporting NYS Implementing Strategies related to an ARC 

Investment Goal. Projects that have been proposed in the REDC’s strategic plans and/or the LDD’s 

Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) are likely to receive preference by NYS’s 

ARC Program when making recommendations for funding from the ARC.
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 5

NYS GOALS AND STRATEGIES

This Section identifies the NYS strategies to guide the investment of ARC resources in the NYS 

Appalachian Region. The strategies were established for NYS’s ARC Program in response to 

ARC’sStrategicPlan “Investingin Appalachia’sFuture: The Appalachian Regional Commission’s 

Five-Year Strategic Plan for Capitalizing on Appalachia’s Opportunities 2016 -2020”.

NYS’s ARC Area Development Implementing Strategies

Each of the ARC’s Investment Goals has been matched with Implementing Strategies for NYS’s ARC 

Program that have been adapted to meet the needs of the NYS Appalachian Region. Applications for 

ARC Area Development funding for projects in NYS must address one of the ARC’s five Investment 

Goals and one of NYS’s related Implementing Strategies as explained herein. NYS programs related 

to the ADHS in NYS are administered by NYS Department of Transportation (DOT). Applications will 

be submitted to DOC via the LDD in which the project sponsor is based or where the majority of 

project benefits will be seen.

Outcome Measurements

All ARC Area Development grant applications must articulate measurable economic development 

benefits to be derived within three years of project completion, and other outputs and outcomes

related to the goal and strategy that projects address. The following additional performance targets 

are relevant to each of the ARC Investment Goals2:

• Goal 1 projects target outcomes that create and strengthen businesses, create and retain 

jobs, and leverage private investment. Relevant outputs include numbers of businesses 

assisted and/or created, numbers of full-time jobs created and/or retained, and dollar of 

additional regional investment resulting from an ARC project.

• Goal 2 projects target outcomes that educate and prepare students and workers to participate 

in the Region’s economic opportunities. It also addresses outcomes that expand access to 

health programs for the Region’s residents. Number of students or participants 

served/graduated, and health outcomes or workers improved should be estimated.

• Goal 3 projects target outcomes that improves infrastructure for businesses and households. 

Measures of infrastructure outcomes should include dimensions of infrastructure improved 

and numbers of residences and businesses improved.

• Goal 4 targets project outcomes that create or strengthen local businesses through initiatives 

tied to tourism/asset development. Typical output estimates include the percentage and 

number of new daily and overnight visitors project deliver and the percent and dollar value of 

regional revenue increases generated.

• Goal 5 projects target outcomes that strengthen communities, develop local leaders and 

enhance community capacity. Typical outcomes include numbers of community participants 

improved and dollar values of efficiencies created, or additional funding provided to 

communities resulting from such ARC projects.

2 https://www.arc.gov/images/newsroom/publications/guidelines/ARCProjectGuidelines.pdf
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 6

ARC INVESTMENT GOAL 1: Economic Opportunities

Invest in entrepreneurial and business development strategies that strengthen 

Appalachia’s economy. Increase Job Opportunities and Per Capita Income in 

Appalachia to Reach Parity with the Nation

NYS Condition: The NYSARC Program emphasizes threethemes related toward thisgoal: 1) fostering 

the capacity of communities to leverage their resources to planregionally and to raise fundsto complete 

regionally significant projects, 2) working with the REDCs and county leaders to identify projects that will 

have a transformative impact toward developing the regional economy, and 3) collaborating across 

government and program boundaries to accelerate the growth of the Region’seconomic base.

NYS Implementation Strategies to Promote Economic Opportunities:

Strategy 1.1: Encourage and support entrepreneurship and local business development 

through technical assistance, incubation and acceleration, capital access, 

mentoring, networking, business‐ownership transition, and other types of 

support.

Rationale: Locally-owned businesses need an environment that encourages and supports 

entrepreneurship and businessdevelopment throughtechnicalassistance, incubationand acceleration, 

capitalaccess,mentoring,networking, business‐ownershiptransition,and othertypes of support.

Strategy1.2: Supportthegrowthandstartupofhigh-potentialbusinesses,particularly 

intargetedsectors thatbuildonlocal andregional assets.Thisincludes, 

butis not limited to: advanced manufacturing, clean energy, health care, 

high-technology,tourism,agricultureandlocalfoodsystems.

Rationale:Supportingentrepreneurshipandbusinessdevelopmentintargetedsectorsthathavegrowth 

potentialandthatbuildonlocalandregionalassetsprovidesthegreatestopportunityforbuildingastrong 

regional economy. These businesses also offer better job opportunities for Appalachia’s workers. Targeted 

sectors can include manufacturing, diversified energy, tourism, local food systems, and health care, as well 

as other sectors with growth potential.

Strategy 1.3: Enhance the competitiveness of the Region’s manufacturers.

Rationale: The region’s historically strong manufacturing sector offers significant potential for growth. 

Developing networks and supporting innovative manufacturing processes and business plans will enhance 

the sector’s economiccompetitiveness.
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 7

Alstom Transport North America in Hornell is the largest passenger rail manufacturing facility in North America 

and has been in operation for over 150 years.

Strategy1.4: Promotestrategiestoconnectstart-upandestablishedbusinessesto 

global markets.

Rationale: Today’s global marketplace provides the opportunity to sell goods and services on a much 

broader scale. Demand from outside the Region for goods and services has strong potential for growth. 

Helping Appalachian businesses tap into this growing external demand will contribute to their long‐term 

success.
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 8

ARC INVESTMENT GOAL 2: Ready Workforce

Improve the education, knowledge, skills, and health of residents to work and 

succeed in Appalachia

NYS Condition: A healthy, skilled, and ready workforce is a building block for a more prosperous 

Appalachian Region. NYS’s REDCs and LDDs have identified workforce development as a key 

objective toward getting the Region’s economy operating at a high level. NYS’s ARC Program will 

emphasize strategies that: foster better matches between the Region’s workforce and opportunities 

presented by local employers; increase educational opportunities; promote public health; address 

health professional shortages; and lowers barriers to employment to achieve maximum workforce 

participation.

NYS Implementation Strategies to Promote Ready Workforce:

Strategy 2.1: Develop and support educational programs and institutions that contribute 

to a better educated workforce prepared for 21st Century careers.

Rationale: Education, particularly post-secondary education, is a key component of the business and 

entrepreneurial ecosystem and often a primary economic driver. Investments to connect education, 

workforce, and business interests in a seamless system that prepares the Region’s young people to succeed 

in existing and emerging sectors and creates new opportunities for workers transitioning to new employment 

is essential. These efforts must begin with strong educational programming and institutions, and ensure that 

all students have the basic skills, as well as the soft skills, needed for productive employment or 

entrepreneurship.Emphasiswill beplaced on providing educationand trainingmatchedto the Region’s

current sectors and jobs, while increasing access to advanced skills training for the jobs of the future.

Strategy2.2: Supportprogramsthatprovidebasicandsoftskillstrainingtoprepare 

workersfor employment,reentry intotheworkforce,ortotransitionto 

sectors that are experiencing growth and that provide opportunities for 

advancement

Rationale: A ready workforce includes workers that have basic knowledge and skills—such as literacy, 

numeracy,andproblemsolving—tosucceedintheworkplace.Inaddition,workersneedsoftskills—such 

as communication, time management, and interpersonal skills—to obtain and maintain employment. 

Investing in activities that build the basic and soft skills of the workforce will help retain, attract, and grow 

businesses.Further,asalargeportionofthepopulationhasbeenoutoftheworkforceduetoawiderange 

of causes, NYS will support efforts of BOCES and other organizations to prepare inactive or displaced 

workers forreentry into the workforceand to promote the skillsneededfor growth-orientedsectorsof the 

region’s economy.

Strategy2.3: Increaselocalresidents’accesstoSTEAMandotherskillstrainingon 

state-of-the-art technology and processes across all educational levels.

Rationale: To takeadvantageof new employmentopportunitiesprospectiveworkers musthaveaccess 

toandengageincareer‐specificeducationand skills trainingthat can helpthem succeed andadvance in 

their careers. A number of emerging sectors require a workforce with strong science, technology, 

engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) skills. For workers to take advantage of employment opportunities in 

growing sectors, they must have both the foundational knowledge and the relevant technological skills 

needed to succeed.
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 9

Strategy 2.4: Improve access to affordable, high-quality health care for workers and their 

families.

Rationale: Many parts of Appalachia, particularly economically distressed areas, are underserved by 

health‐care professionals and health‐care facilities. Investments that increase access to quality, affordable 

health care are critical to the Region, as a healthy workforce is essential for Appalachia to compete in today’s 

economy.

Strategy2.5: Supportpublichealthpracticesandsustainableclinicalservicesthat 

address health conditions that affect the Region’s economic 

competitiveness.

Rationale: The workforce can be better prepared by reducing high rates of chronic disease and by 

innovative initiatives that improve the health of the Region’s residents to ensure a ready and able workforce.

Strategy 2.6: Develop and support sustainable programs that remove barriers to 

participating in the workforce.

Rationale: Access to reliable transportation, affordable elder or child care, and primary health services 

can improve workforce participation. Developing and supporting programs that are specifically designed to 

increase workforce participation will help ensure a ready and able workforce.

Jamestown Community College’s Manufacturing Technology Institute was funded in part with ARC grants.
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 10

ARC GENERAL GOAL 3: Critical Infrastructure

Invest in critical infrastructure—especially broadband; transportation, including 

the Appalachian Development Highway System; and water/wastewater systems

NYS Condition: To attract businesses investment and workers into the Region, investment incritical 

infrastructure—especially broadband;transportation, andwater/wastewater systems is essential. NYS 

has articulated several areas for emphasis: Telecommunications and Broadband Connectivity; 

Community Revitalization; Intermodal Transportation connections to the ADHS; and healthy efficient 

Water/Wastewater systems. In addition, brownfield remediation will be encouraged in cooperation with 

the state’s Brownfield Opportunity Areas Program.

** IMPORTANT NOTE: All projects related to investment of ARC fundsfortheADHSin NYSare administered 

by NYS Department of Transportation (DOT) via directFHWAfunding assistance, which is a decreasing 

source of funds as NYS’sARC-funded ADHS corridors are complete. DOT provides technical assistance 

regarding other transportation projects and policies for NYS’sARC Region.

NYS Implementation Strategies to Improve Critical Infrastructure:

Strategy 3.1: Promote the productive and strategic use of broadband and 

telecommunications infrastructure throughout the Region to increase 

connectivity and strengthen economic competitiveness.

Rationale: Telecommunications infrastructure can help reduce Appalachia’s isolation and connect its 

communities with information and markets around the world, but many of the Region’s communities, 

particularly those in distressed counties and areas, lack access to reliable and affordable 

telecommunications infrastructure. Investing in telecommunications for these communities, and supporting 

its productive use, will help strengthenAppalachia’s economic competitiveness.

Strategy 3.2: Ensure communities have the adequate basic infrastructure (water, sewer, 

diversifiedenergy,andhousing)theyneedtoimplementtheircommunity 

and economic developmentobjectives.

Rationale:Communitiesneedadequatewaterandwastewatersystems,diversifiedenergysources,and 

qualityaffordablehousingtosustainbusinesses,generatejobs,protectpublichealth,andensureabasic 

standardof livingforresidents.ManyAppalachian communities continue to lack thisbasic infrastructure, 

compromising their ability to pursue broad community economic development objectives. Investing in basic 

infrastructure that can help advance local community and economic objectives is an investment in the 

economic potential of the Region, as well as in the health of its residents.

Strategy3.3: Support the construction and adaptive reuse of business development 

sites and public facilities to generate economic growth and revitalize local 

economies.

Rationale: Communities must have adequate sites and facilities, tailored to the specific needs of the 

Region’s growing sectors, to sustain and grow the businesses that generate local jobs. Investing to create

and improve technology centers, incubators, shared work spaces, and commercial, industrial, health‐ care,

creative, and educational sites and facilities, and to reclaim and reuse brownfields, is an important 

community economic developmentstrategy.
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 11

Strategy 3.4: Strengthen links between transportation networks and economic 

development; invest in intermodal transportation planning and 

infrastructure that builds on the ADHS and maximizes the Region’s access 

to domestic and international markets.

Rationale: The Appalachian Development Highway System in NYS has significantly reduced the 

Region’s isolation and opened opportunities for economic growth. Now to compete in a global economy, the

region needs reliable access to domestic and international markets. Connecting the ADHS to rail, 

waterway, and aviation routes can help link the region to these markets.

SouthernTierNetwork,Inc.(STN),anot-for-profit,openaccessopticalfibernetwork,wascreatedthroughapartnershipof 

Southern Tier Central Regional Planning & Development Board, Corning Incorporated, and Chemung, Schuyler, and Steuben 

CountieswithassistancefromARCfunding.Its260-mile fiberbackboneringisnowcompleteandfullyoperational.
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 12

ARC INVESTMENT GOAL 4: Natural and Cultural Assets

Strengthen Appalachia’s community and economic development potential by 

leveraging the Region’s natural and cultural heritage assets.

NYSCondition:NYS’sAppalachianRegionencompasses11,681sq.miles,orapproximately24.7%ofNYS’s 

total 47,126 sq. mile area. The Region also represents approximately 5.7% of the Federal Appalachian Region’s 

land area. Approximately 285 miles long from west to east and approximately 41 miles from north to south. It 

contains historic urban areas surrounded by miles of rural space. Within this area are headwaters of major 

drainage basins, including the Ohio/Mississippi Rivers, the Delaware River, the Mohawk/Hudson Rivers and the 

Finger Lakes/Great Lakes. Excellent agricultural assets and centuries of technological innovation have imbued 

theRegion withuniqueculturalassets. NYSis committedtoasset-baseddevelopmentinitiativesthatwillmake 

the most of the Region’s unique natural and cultural assets.

NYS Implementation Strategies to Promote Natural and Cultural Assets:

Strategy4.1: Preserve and strengthen existing natural assets in support of economic 

opportunities that generate local and regional benefits.

Rationale: Natural assets, such as forests, land, water, and mountains, provide a strong base for the 

Appalachian economy. Providing for responsible stewardship of these assets can unlock even greater 

economic development potential for the Region.

Strategy4.2: Preserveandstrengthenexistingculturalassets,suchasuniquehistoric, 

artistic, and heritage sites through strategic investments that advance 

local and regional economic opportunities.

Rationale: Investments that strengthen cultural assets, such as helping maintain cultural traditions and 

improving or developing unique historic, artistic, and heritage sites—all of which attract tourists, new 

residents, and businesses to the Region—should be connected to strategic economic development 

opportunities.

Strategy 4.3: Support strategic plans and investment in building connections to and 

between the Region's natural and cultural resources.

Rationale: Strategic investment in activities such as developing and connecting regionalmulti‐use trails 

and cultural heritage sites generates interest from residents and tourists alike and results in substantial 

economic impact inthe Region.

Strategy 4.4: Support preservation and stewardship of downtown communities, historic 

districts, and main streets to advance local economic growth.

Rationale: Strategic investments in downtown redevelopment, gateway communities, historic districts, 

and other uniquecommunity features can helprevitalize and enrichlocaleconomies.
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 13

ARC INVESTMENT GOAL 5: Leadership and Community Capacity

NYSCondition:NYS’sARCprogramishousedwithinDOS’sDivisionofLocalGovernmentwhichcoordinates 

a series of leadership and community capacity programs including the Local Government Efficiency (LGE) 

Program and the Local Government Technical Assistance and Training Program. In addition, DOS works with the 

LDDs topromote community capacity and works with other DOSagencies to promote planning and leadership 

development and community capacity. The following strategies will implement Goal 5.

Strategy5.1: Developandsupportrobustinclusiveleadershipthatcanchampionand 

mobilize forward-thinking community improvement.

Rationale:Economic transition calls forinnovativeleaderswho think long-term and offer effective 

strategies for community improvement. Communities need leadership that reflects their demographics, 

understandsthelocaleconomiccontext,andisskilledincommunication,collaboration,consensus 

building, and communityengagement.

Strategy5.2: Helpdevelopcivicleadershipskillsandcommunitycapacityatthelocal 

and regional level, especially among youth and next-generation leaders.

Rationale: Young leaders are critical to the future of Appalachia. Providing the next generation with 

meaningful leadership and engagement opportunities at the local and regional levels will motivate them to 

stay in the Region—establishing careers, creating businesses, and otherwise contributing to community 

and economic development.

Strategy5.3: Strengthenthecapacityofcommunityorganizationsandinstitutionsto 

articulateandimplementavisionforsustainable,transformative 

community change.

Rationale: Community organizations and institutions are integral parts of local communities. Their 

leadership can help create and implement a vision for community change. However, particularly in 

economically distressed counties and areas, community organizations and institutions have limited 

capacity to engage in long-term community improvement efforts. Support is needed to build organizational 

resources and skills so these entities can have a greater impact in the community.

Strategy5.4: Supportvisioning,strategicplanningandimplementation,andresident 

engagement approaches to foster increased community resilience and 

generate positive economicimpacts.

Rationale: Long-term visioning and strategic planning by local and regional leadership provide a way 

forward for the region's communities. NYS's Local Development Districts and Regional Economic 

Development Councils are key partners to NYS's ARC Program. Including residents in community 

planningprocessesisimportant,astheycanidentifystrategiessuitedtothelocalcultureandeconomy.In 

addition,residentsinvolvedinplanningandcontributingtothecreationofacommonvisionaremorelikely 

to support and engage in implementing the vision.
New York State ARC Program Strategies FFY-2021 14

Strategy5.5: Developandsupportnetworks,partnerships,andothermodelsof 

collaboration that catalyze public, private, and nonprofit action for 

community impact.

Rationale:It willtakemany partnershipsacrossbusiness,government,nonprofit,andphilanthropic 

organizations to advance Appalachia’s economy. These collaborations attract investments and produce 

greater impacts, helping move the Region’s economy forward.

Strategy5.6: Providetechnicalassistanceandreferralstocommunitiessotheyhave 

the capacity and connections needed to pursue community development 

opportunities.

Rationale:Asamulti-disciplinaryeconomicdevelopmentprogram,NYS'sARCProgramcanleverage

its resourcesto assistlocal governments in multiplewaysandto foster connections that enhance

communitycapacity,includingthroughtrainingofcommunityleadersandinopening

communicationsbetweencommunitiesandotherresourceprovidersthat canadvancethegoalsand 

objectives of the ARC's strategic plan.

Strategy5.7: Assistmunicipalitiestoleveragefundingopportunitiesandtomaximize 

efficientdeliveryof services andprovide access toinformationand 

technical assistance that supports this strategy.

Rationale:Stronglocalgovernmentsarecharacterizedbyefficientdeliveryof services. NYS'sARC 

Programwillworkwithall levelsoflocalgovernmenttoensurethatcommunitieshavethecapacityto 

deliverneededservicesefficientlysothattheycanattractprivateinvestmentandretainandgrowtheir 

local populations.

Otsego Co. has seen many collaborations between NYS’s ARC and Local Government Efficiency Programs. Its Career 

Opportunities in Rural Education (CORE) initiative shares services for STEM education across multiple school districts.