Inside this issue:

DCAP Spotlight:

Economic Vitality

1

Department of

Economic Development

DCAP Goals

1

Adjacent Centers of

Employment

2

Team has Eagle Eye on

Floodplain Project

3

Craft Beverages:

A New Market Thrives

In Delaware County

4

DCAP QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER Encourage and empower communities to be stewards of the watershed. Maintain the high quality

water supply while supporting environmental integrity, rural character, and economic stability.

D C A P P A R T N E R S

Delaware County

Departments of:

Watershed Affairs

Planning

Economic Development

Public Works

Code Enforcement

Emergency Services

Delaware County Soil &

Water Conservation District

Cornell Cooperative Extension

Q3 2016

DCAP SPOTLIGHT: ECONOMIC VITALITY

The Department of Economic Development DCAP goals:

The guiding principle of the

MOA is that watershed protection and economic development are compatible. A healthy watershed requires good economic health. Responsible economic development and projects create new job opportunities for local residents without detriment to water quality. Delaware County considers this a fundamental principle in its role as a steward of all watersheds in the County. Through the Department of Economic Development, the county seeks to: • Encourage traditional economic and industrial development in the Susquehanna and Delaware River Tailwaters; • Foster environmentally

friendly initiatives in NYC watershed communities and businesses. Since the release of the 2006 DCAP Progress Report, the Department of Economic Development has • Increased the capacity of the Industrial Development Agency (IDA) and Local Development Corporation (LDC) to affect business development by increasing high risk, small business loan capacity from less than $2M in 2006 to roughly $5.5M; • Established site development capacity with $1.2M in new funds (plus $1M already invested in projects); • The IDA and LDC provided nearly $8.9M in loans to

107 businesses to support the creation of 520 new jobs and the retention of 814 jobs; • Secured over $1.6M in Main Street program grants and financing; and • Provided specific flood recovery funds for businesses impacted by flood events in 2006 and 2011, restoring Main Streets and making businesses more resilient for any future event. • Nearly $37.3M in funding was awarded to assist almost 150 small businesses, fostering a total additional investment nearing $63 million. These businesses have pledged to retain or create approximately 1,700 full-time jobs.

Goal 1: Site development and building redevelopment for commercial parks in Sidney, Hancock and Deposit, as well as building redevelopment within the Watershed. This will establish available space for business relocation or creation in Delaware County. With this infrastructure, the County will be better positioned for State referrals for businesses.

Goal 2: Actively promote Delaware County to expanding or relocating businesses, particularly small businesses or those filling a specific community need.

Goal 3: Prioritize small agriculture for micro and direct lending and working

with agricultural entrepreneurs on larger value-added projects. (An awarded agricultural microenterprise matching grant program will provide $370,000 in matching funds to assist 22

small businesses, fostering a total

investment of approximately

$920,000 in agricultural

development. These businesses will retain and/or create

approximately 56 jobs.)

Goal 4: Maintain focus on existing

small businesses seeking direct lending for start-ups and expansions, outside grants/incentives/financing for job-creating expansions, and meeting infrastructure needs as they arise.

Espoused in the economic

development study

commissioned as part of the

signing of the Memorandum

of Agreement, is the term

“adjacent centers of

employment.” This means

the watershed communities

should promote economic

development and job creation

opportunities in towns

located within Watershed

counties, but outside the

“green line” delineating the

boundaries of the NYC

Watershed.

The Successes… The Delaware County

Department of Economic

Development and the

Industrial Development

Agency (IDA) has focused a

significant amount of effort

into some of Delaware

County’s adjacent centers of

employment – specifically,

Hancock, Deposit, Sidney and

Davenport. Through a partnership

agreement with the

Millennium Pipeline Company

established in 2008 for the

purpose of stimulating

economic development in the

region, the IDA has made

significant positive impacts on

the communities of Hancock

and Deposit. Through this

partnership, Millennium

committed to certain

investments in compensation

for their impact upon the

localities, and the IDA has

been able to assist 11

businesses and community

development projects in the

Towns. Matched with nearly

$3.9 million of private and

public investment, these

projects have resulted in the

establishment of four new

businesses, and the creation

or retention of 73 jobs, as

well as additional community

benefits. Over the same time

period the IDA has

committed a further $9.4

million in financing assistance,

stimulating nearly $13.7

million of additional business

investment in Deposit and

Hancock. In Sidney, the Delaware

County IDA has invested over

$7.6M in grants, loans, and

building and site development

activities over the last five

years. This effort has resulted

in the investment of over

$51M from private businesses,

the creation of 200 new jobs

and the retention of nearly

1,600 jobs. The IDA’s

activities in Sidney have

ranged from site development

to the acquisition and

renovation of vacant buildings

to traditional lending. The IDA has recently

completed a $1.4M

infrastructure project in the

Town of Davenport to

support a business expansion

that has already resulted in

the creation of 35 new

jobs. Additional projects in

development will result in

over $11M of new business

investment and the creation

of over 50 new jobs.

The Failures… The Department of Economic

Development is frustrated

with the NYC DEP. They find

there is little balance between

the dual objectives of water

quality and economic vitality,

and they fear watershed

communities are experiencing

death by a thousand cuts. For

example, the “adjacent

centers of employment” are

convenient for those who live

nearby, but commuting 30—

60 minutes each way for work

is far from convenient for a

resident living near the center

of the watershed. Additionally, the original

economic development study

did not anticipate that many

of the developable parcels

inside the “green line” would

be controlled by New York

City through the Land

Acquisition Program and

Agricultural Easements. For several years the Town

of Delhi and the IDA has been

looking for a developer to

reopen the nursing

home. There are very few

available parcels left on which

critical community facilities

such as this can be located,

and the list is even shorter

when it comes to parcels that

are connected to water and

sewer. The closing of this

facility had left an essential

community service - the care

of our elderly -

unfulfilled. Additionally, the

facility was quickly

deteriorating. Community

needs such as this, which are

not traditional commercial or

industrial development, but

are essential community

services, have been stifled, as

they have been viewed by

NYC as development. The

stormwater management

regulations, which are

arbitrarily applied and

interpreted, lead to a long and

arduous NYC approval

process, which in this case

and in many other cases,

nearly made the project

impossible and threatened the

community’s ability to

reestablish this facility. With

no recourse to dispute these

interpretations, the possibility

of providing the community

with essential services seems

overwhelming and impossible. Within the watershed, the

tourism industry was meant

to be one of the directions in

which growth was

promoted. That said, the

small businesses which have

popped up to support tourism

have faced an uphill battle to

find a cost effective way to do

business and support

themselves when faced with

the stormwater and septic

regulations imposed in the

watershed. The challenges,

costs and time involved are

much greater within the

watershed than outside. Due to the necessity of

being able to offer businesses

a location and opportunity for

expansion, particularly in

cases where they are

constrained from expansion

within an existing Watershed

location, and in order to keep

the jobs within the County,

the IDA is planning further

site development investments

within Sidney. In a federal court decision,

the watershed communities

were denied any standing in

the Filtration Avoidance

Determination (FAD). The

FAD is the document that

allows NYC to use an

unfiltered source of drinking

water. This denial came in

spite of the fact that without

the cooperation of the local

people and the Memorandum

of Agreement, this FAD

would not be possible.

Article contributed by:

Glenn Nealis, Director

Delaware County

DUAL OBJECTIVES IN DELAWARE COUNTY: SUCCESSES AND FAILURES OF

FOCUSING ON “ADJACENT CENTERS OF EMPLOYMENT”

Amphenol Aerospace, Sidney, NY

County Soil and Watershed

Conservation District, New

York State Department of

Environmental Conservation,

New York City Department of

Environmental Protection,

Village of Walton and the Town

of Walton.

A floodplain is the land

bordering a river. Over the

years the 13-acre Walton

Floodplain that borders the

West Branch Delaware River

has been filled with gravel that

has raised and hardened the

floodplain and degraded the

natural vegetation.

Graydon Dutcher, stream

program coordinator with the

Delaware County Soil and

Water Conservation District

who was the team’s guide on

the floodplain tour said, “The

floodplain has been filled

through the years one dump

truck at a time as a place of

easy disposal of materials.”

As a result, when the river

floods the water that would

naturally be absorbed, filtered,

and transported by the

floodplain is unable to. So

floodwater backs up because of

the over filled floodplain and

stays trapped on the streets of

the Village of Walton, flooding

businesses and homes,

especially Delaware Street and

the ironically named Water

Street.

When this high volume of

stormwater runoff floods the

streets, it sweeps up

contaminates and carries them

to the West Branch Delaware

River that feeds into the

Cannonsville Reservoir. The

reservoir supplies 97 billion

gallons of water to New York

City’s drinking water supply.

This project will return the

floodplain to its natural state

and as a result it will reduce

flooding and improve water

quality.

Dutcher said, “We are going

to remove the gravel creating a

more natural floodplain

elevation.” This work will

include removing and relocating

a New York State Electric &

Gas line to a deeper elevation

and recycling the gravel and

moving it outside of the

floodplain.

During the walking tour,

Dutcher pointed to a

McDonald’s golden arches sign

several yards away. He said,

“We are at the same height as

the golden arches. This is how

high the floodplain has grown

over the years!”

Dutcher took the group

through a long muddy path

surrounded by high shrubbery

leading to the West Branch

Delaware River. The team

stood along the river’s edge and

continued to take photos of the

resting Eagle perched above the

moving river.

The project includes

restoring the floodplain’s

vegetation. The invasive plant

species that the group has been

walking through is going to be

removed and grass is going to

be planted.

He said where the team is

standing along the river, a

riparian buffer or hardwood

forest is going to be created

that will include a mix of native

Maples, Ash and a mix of

shrubs.

“Flood waters will drain from

the town’s streets, building

rooftops and parking lots and

filter through the restored

vegetation and the riparian

buffer before entering the

river,” said Dutcher.

The riparian buffer traps

sediment and pollutants like

harmful phosphorus and

nitrogen particles from entering

the river. This improves the

quality of the water, maintain

the river’s temperature and

fosters the creation of fish and

aquatic habitats. The project

will treat 2.8 acres of

stormwater runoff.

Dutcher said, “This project is

a big thing in Walton. It benefits

the community in several

ways.”

The project will lessen the

damages of flooding. When

completed, the project will

provide flood reductions for a

100-year storm event. This is a

flood whose strength and water

height is predicted to occur, on

average, about once in 100

years. In addition, it will also be

useful for lesser, 10-year storm

events that occur on average

once every decade. This

project will also connect and

drain the newly built green

space in the center of Walton’s

Main Street.

Dutcher added that this

project, which is expected to

be completed by 2018, will also

potentially give the land back to

the community for other uses

like athletic fields and park land.

That Eagle never left the branch

the entire time the team was

walking the floodplain and it

seemed to be keeping a steady

eye on them. Some in the

group saw it as nature’s way of

reminding them to keep

focused on this project that has

multiple benefits for locals, city

dwellers and Eagles who just

happen to make Walton their

home.

Article contributed by:

JoAnne Castagna, Ed.D. ,

Army Corps of Engineers

TEAM HAS EAGLE EYE ON

FLOODPLAIN PROJECT

A group of people are wading

slowly through high grass under

a hot summer sun as they begin

a guided walking tour of the

Walton Floodplain in Delaware

County, New York.

Suddenly there's excitement in

the air as an Eagle perches on a

nearby branch hanging over the

West Branch Delaware

River. The group swiftly

changes its focus, and cameras,

from the tour to this majestic

bird.

It seems the group is no

longer interested in what their

guide has to say. On the

contrary, this group is an inter-

agency team that is looking over

the land because they’re starting

a reclamation project that will

improve the floodplain’s

environment for that Eagle,

reduce flooding for the local

community and protect New

York City’s drinking water.

The Walton Floodplain

Reclamation Project is part of

the U.S. Army Corps of

Engineer’s New York City

Watershed Environmental

Assistance Program.

“The program funds projects

that are protecting the water

quality of New York State’s

watersheds that provide

drinking water to millions of

New York City residents and

businesses,” said Rifat Salim,

project manager, U.S. Army

Corps of Engineers, New York

District.

On this project, the Army

Corps is working in

collaboration with the Delaware

Photo credit: Rifat Salim

Photo credit: JoAnne Castagna

Republished with permission.

Original article available: http://

www.nan.usace. army.mil/Media/

News-Stories/Story-Article-View/

Article/967021/team-has-eagle-eye-

on-floodplain-project/

1 Courthouse Square, Suite 3

Delhi, NY 13753

Website Address: delcowatershed.com

Phone: 607-832-5432

The Water Starts Here

The Delaware County

Department of Watershed Affairs was created in 1999 to

increase awareness of and assist with issues related to the

New York City Watershed and to preserve the environment

and economy of the communities within the

watershed.

Microbreweries are becoming

a popular new business and

growing trend in New York.,

and Delaware County is no

exception. The Delaware

County Industrial Development

Agency (IDA) has recently

assisted two businesses by

offering them low interest loans

which will in, one case, help the

business get established, and in

the other, help a business with

early success to expand. Rock Valley Spirits, a new

business established by James

and Theresa Milk received

assistance from the IDA to help

purchase equipment to start

producing top quality spirits

aimed at the high end craft

distillery market. They will

soon begin producing bourbon,

rye and single malt scotch at

their Long Eddy location. Future plans for Rock Valley

spirits include opening a tasting

room where visitors can taste

their selection of beverages.

Due to aging requirements it

may be some time before you

see their product on the

shelves, but once the whiskey

has aged and is ready for sale,

Rock Valley will be participating

in marketing events throughout

the region which will require

additional help. In the meantime

the Milk’s will be making and

selling products like vodka that

don’t require the aging process. Gravity Ciders, Inc., owned

by Casey Vitti and Patricia

Wilcox, produce several types

of hard cider. Having recently

outgrown its location in Walton

this business moved to a new

facility in the Industrial Park in

Sidney where they lease space

from the IDA. Marketed under

the name of Awestruck

Premium Hard Ciders, you can

find this product line in stores

and local restaurants and

taverns. The IDA is a valuable

resource for small businesses

across Delaware County.

Typically, the IDA provides

assistance with the

development of a viable

business plan, guides businesses

CRAFT BEVERAGES: A NEW MARKET

THRIVES IN DELAWARE COUNTY

Inside the Gravity Ciders Bottling Facility in Sidney

through any necessary

permitting processes, and

provides low-interest loans for

small and medium sized

businesses. The Delaware County

Industrial Development Agency

(IDA) provides assistance to

businesses to develop business

plans and to do finance

planning. Combined, this

brewery and cidery have

pledged to create six jobs in

Delaware County. Additionally,

they will attract tourists to our

area which will have a positive

impact on the local economy.

Article contributed by:

Tabitha Byam,

Delaware County

Department of Economic

Development

Rock Valley Spirits, Long Eddy, NY