Economic News for Ithaca and Tompkins County

October 2023

IAED Receives $1.2M Grant for Workforce Development

IAED was awarded a $1.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor Workforce Opportunities for Rural Communities (WORC) program, which aims to address employment and training needs of the local and regional workforces in Appalachia, Lower Mississippi River Delta, and the northern border region. Through WORC, IAED will support expansion of the Direct to Work (DTW) manufacturing initiative and extend into the construction trades. The 3-year grant will also enable IAED to support capacity building for critical community-based organizations to provide support, services and referrals.

“Funding from WORC supports the billions of dollars in federal investment in these two critical industries and improves economic mobility and wealth equity in underserved populations. It’s win-win for our workforce ecosystem and economy,” said Heather McDaniel, IAED’s President.

Read more about the WORC grant and DTW initiative here:

• Direct to Work – Powered by IAED
• Senator Schumer
• Ithaca Voice

IAED Helps ITIA Receive $750k SCASDP Grant to Expand Services

Ithaca Tompkins International Airport (ITH) was awarded a $750,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Small Community Air Service Development Program (SCASDP) to enhance air service connectivity. Specifically, ITH will use the funding to encourage and support a new direct connection to Washington, D.C., creating greater accessibility for the more than 200,000 regional residents and visitors and academic institutions, including Cornell University and Ithaca College. IAED helped plan and edit the application, and secured letters of support from elected officials and community leaders. Read more about the SCASDP grant and ITH here.

Photo by: Jason Wu, The Cornell Daily Sun, Senior Editor. Read the Sun article here.

2023 TCG awards approved by Tompkins County Legislature

The Tompkins County Legislature approved the 2023 slate of Tourism Capital Grants (TCG) program awards recommended by the  Strategic Tourism Planning Board and TCG review committee. IAED, which administers the program, received eight proposals (six Capital Improvement; two Feasibility Studies) requesting $413,550. Six were selected to fill the budget of $291,000. Awardees include Cycle CNY, Tompkins Chamber Foundation, Cinemapolis, Friends of the Ithaca Farmers Market, Sciencenter, and State Theatre of Ithaca. The TCG program is made possible by the Tompkins County Tourism Program and funded by hotel room occupancy taxes. Learn more about TCG and other grants here.

Business Council, Area Leaders Tour BorgWarner

On October 10, the Business Council of New York State and officials from IAED, Tompkins Chamber, Workforce Development Board, and Alliance for Manufacturing Technology toured BorgWarner in Ithaca. It was the fifth stop on the Business Council’s weeklong bus tour across New York to visit manufacturing facilities and highlight the challenges and opportunities of doing business in the state.

Attendees toured the production floor and listened to prepared remarks.

IAED Participates at MADE Event

On September 27, TC3 hosted the fifth annual Manufacturing and Development Expo (MADE). The event coincides with National Manufacturing Day and offers area manufacturers and students the opportunity to engage through interactive displays. This year, 23 manufacturers and over 350 students from surrounding districts participated in the all-day session. IAED was an event sponsor and hosted a table for students to try Virtual Reality (VR) headsets and practice manufacturing skills.

State Senator Lea Webb is joined by Chris Sponn and Diane Achilles (Workforce Development Board) and Danielle Szabo (IAED).

Area students participate in a VR demonstration led by IAED.

CALENDAR

Southern Tier 8 to Host 2^nd Upstate Broadband Conference 11/9

The Southern Tier 8 Regional Board is hosting its 2^nd Annual Rural Broadband Conference at the Doubletree Hotel in Binghamton on November 15. The program – Connecting Communities: Bridging the Equity Gap – features a presentation from New York State’s ConnectALL office and panels on fiber deployment, municipally-owned utilities, digital equity, and more. For more information or to register, visit the Southern Tier Summit page here.

Seeking Input on Regional Strategic Plan

Empire State Development (ESD) is hosting two remaining public open houses in October to solicit input on an update to the eight-county Southern Tier Economic Development Strategic Plan. Ithaca and Tompkins County are part of the Southern Tier region. As part of the update, ESD will award a $10 million Regional Challenge grant to one of the state’s 10 economic development regions. The Southern Tier’s focus is on regional talent attraction, development, and retention. In addition to the regional meetings, a community survey is available here.

Join one of the Zoom Open Houses.

Visit Ithaca Area Economic Development's Website