NORWICH — Commerce Chenango New York has been awarded $750,000 in funding through New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR), which will bring a positive impact for future housing in Chenango County.

This funding will help county property owners rehabilitate vacant and uninhabitable spaces, including residential and commercial properties, and convert them into safe, quality, and affordable rental units.

“Eligible improvements include rectifying code violations, safety upgrades, repairs and modifications; whatever is required to do get the vacant property back to a livable and marketable residential space,” said Commerce Chenango Economic Development Director Tyler Oliver.

Although the program isn't open yet, Oliver said details are being finalized with the state, and they will be rolling it out in the following months and to stay tuned.

Oliver pointed to the program and said it's a very unique funding opportunity for a couple different reasons. 

“One reason being there is no match required for a property owner and the way it’s set up is there are two different opportunities for property owners to get funding and two different levels based upon who the tenant base will be,” he said.

For example: If a property owner rents to a tenant earning at or below 60% of the Area Median Income (AMI), they would be eligible for $75,000 per unit. If they instead rent to a tenant at 80% of AMI, the eligibility amount would be $50,000 per unit. In other words, there is a greater incentive to rent to lower-income tenants.

The property owner must make this selection at the time they submit their application for the funds. Tenants will need to provide appropriate documentation to verify their income, and Commerce Chenango will be responsible for collecting and reviewing this information from the property owner to ensure compliance.

He also noted the program is limited to buildings with 1-5 units.

Oliver said New York State rolled out the relatively new program in the fall of 2024 and recently they considered they were in a good position to apply for the program and to administer it, adding, “So we went for it and received award notification in the first week of April.”

He noted the next steps are to set the program up with applications and parameters and prepare to finalize details with the state to make sure they are in program compliance and market it to property owners through the county.

"It's no secret the county has a bit of a housing shortage in the way of affordable housing for entry level positions or new people moving to the area looking for quality apartments," Oliver said “We really don’t have a huge market for that right now and this will allow us to take buildings in walkable downtowns throughout the county and get people back living downtown or living in houses where they haven’t been living for a while.”

“This is really a stand-up effort to clean up some neighborhoods in all of our communities throughout the county,” he added.

The state program allows Commerce Chenango to receive funding, develop the program; with some state compliance reporting, and to make decisions on the applications.

“We will make those decisions here in house,” Oliver said.

“It won’t be first come first serve necessarily, but it will be based on what projects will move the needle more than others,” he continued. “We will look at what the project will provide, such as a large-scale housing rehabilitation or a specific project that’s been an eyesore for a long time in one of our downtowns, so a lot of thought will go into funding decision making.”

With any grant awarded, Oliver said there is a waiting period which first starts with the award letter and then a few weeks letter a timeline notification letter arrives, adding, “We’re still in that in-between phase as were still not sure when to expect the funds.”

He anticipates the state to release funds sooner than later, as New York State wants the funds to be used aggressively. He said that was part of the stipulation in the application process and the state does not want the money sitting around; they want a quick turnaround.

“I don’t foresee it taking too much longer,” he added, “We’ll have a lot more details soon and the open application process will probably be within the next two months."

Program qualifications are as follows: Organizations incorporated under the New York State Not-For-Profit Corporation Law that have been providing relevant services to the community for at least one year prior to application.

Partnerships between municipalities and not-for-profit organizations are encouraged to bolster administrative capacity. 

HCR may accept applications from municipalities with justification related to experience and administrative capacity.

All areas of the state outside of New York City are eligible.

Ownership must be the legal owner of one of the following: 1–5-unit residential property; Mixed-use building with up to five (5) housing units; Other buildings that will be converted to one of the above.

Compliance Period: A 10-year Regulatory Period will be required during which the owner must be willing to execute an agreement and rental covenant on assisted units that will subject units to rent limits and other requirements.

Property owners interested in applying for the program can do so directly through Commerce Chenango.

For more information and complete guidelines to the program, visit the website at https://hcr.ny.gov/vrp