DRI in Focus: Case Studies from Successful DRI Communities & Projects

The Department of State (DOS) Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) program supports the sustainable redevelopment of formerly contaminated areas of the state—primarily in underserved and disenfranchised communities. In many DRI communities, the DRI and BOA target areas and strategies overlap with one another, as is the case in Oswego, Batavia and Rome.

The craft beer industry in NY has exploded! And that explosion is having positive ripple effects on downtown revitalization efforts throughout the State—including several Upstate DRI communities—most notably, Geneva and Batavia in the Finger Lakes region; Olean in Western New York; and Oneonta in the Mohawk Valley.

The City of Geneva DRI Plan takes sustainability to the next level with one of its signature projects—Lake Tunnel Solar Village. Solar Village is a net-zero community on Seneca Lake that derives all its energy from clean, renewable sources. The project received $1.25 million from the DRI, as well as support from New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) solar installation program and the Department of Labor’s on-the-job training initiative.

New York's historic preservation tax credit has helped save and rehab so many historic buildings in the State. And several DRI communities have embraced and funded these historic buildings—in conjunction with the tax credit—so they can once again become anchors of downtown revitalization.

The overarching strategy in the Oswego DRI is to connect the more vibrant South side of downtown to the struggling North side, and in turn connect all of downtown to the spectacular waterfront. All 12 of the City’s DRI projects feed into that grand strategy, creating an interlocking necklace of projects that is allowing its downtown to reach its full potential as a waterfront community.