Dutchess County has awarded nearly $1.5 million in funding for 11 projects through the Municipal Innovation Grant (MIG) Program
Poughkeepsie … Dutchess County has been awarded nearly $1.5 million in funding for 11 projects through the Municipal Innovation Grant (MIG) Program, benefiting all 30 communities in Dutchess County. These projects will promote shared services and consolidation efforts, enhance accessibility and improve public safety through collaborative countywide partnerships.
With support from the Dutchess County Legislature, $1.1 million had been allocated in the 2019 budget for the MIG program, and the County was able to reallocate nearly $497,000 of previously awarded funds which were recaptured due to underspending. An additional $112,000 in MIG awards for municipality accessibility projects was announced last week.
Projects funded through the 2019 Municipal Innovation Grant Program, totaling $1,483,649, include:
Dutchess County Drug Task Force
Project Award: $335,000
Awarded Municipalities: All 30 municipalities in Dutchess County
Project Description: Promote public safety while saving taxpayers money by providing a shared countywide undercover unit charged with reducing the sale and distribution of narcotics and drug crimes, working in partnership with the state police and the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office. This funding will provide the team with a consistent task force, alleviating the financial burden from the four departments who provide an officer currently, allowing the task force the ability to enhance operations, increase investigations and arrests, and increase property seizures.
Streamlining Land Use and Approval Process – Implementation
Project Award: $30,000
Awarded Municipalities: City of Poughkeepsie
Project Description: Promote economic development by hiring a consultant to implement best practices outlined in Streamlining Report with a streamlined intake process, creation of clear and consolidated land use forms and coordinated enforcement and board review processes.
Child Advocacy Center (CAC) – Juvenile Detective
Project Award: $37,500
Awarded Municipalities: All 30 municipalities in Dutchess County
Project Description: Countywide law enforcement program that provides an array of services (i.e., safety plans, evidence gathering, referrals) during the investigative phase of a sexual or physical abuse allegation against children.
Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) – Phase IV
Project Award: $277,149
Awarded Municipalities: Dutchess County, cities of Beacon and Poughkeepsie, towns of East Fishkill, Fishkill, Hyde Park, Pine Plains, Poughkeepsie, and villages of Fishkill, Millbrook, Millerton, Red Hook, Rhinebeck, and Wappingers Falls
Project Description: Law enforcement training to provide officers with the tools necessary to identify, intervene, de-escalate, and divert individuals from inpatient hospitalization and the criminal justice system to community organizations that can address their needs. Additionally, joint collaborative community outreach efforts between local law enforcement agencies and the Mobile Crisis Intervention Team (MCIT) will be expanded to conduct Behavioral Evaluation and Assessment Team (BEAT) patrols in the cities of Poughkeepsie and Beacon and towns of Poughkeepsie and Hyde Park.
New World Police Software Shared Service
Project Award: $187,000
Awarded Municipalities: Town of Hyde Park and Dutchess County
Project Description: Upgrade and consolidate the Town’s dispatch system with the County’s system, which will reduce response times and increase first responder safety. The joint purchase of the system with the County will result in a savings of more than $700,000.
Streamlining the Land Use and Approval Process Study
Project Award: $25,000
Awarded Municipality: Town of Milan
Project Description: Hire a consultant to examine the existing land use process and recommend best practices that will facilitate streamlined land use procedures, resulting in efficient building, planning, and zoning permitting practices.
Shared Highway Garage and Fuel Storage Facility – Phase II
Project Award: $327,000
Awarded Municipalities: Town of North East and Village of Millerton
Project Description: Design and construction plans for a shared highway garage, salt storage shed, storage facility expected to produce more than $800,000 in cost savings over five years. The Town’s current facility is in dire need of repair and relocation, and it sits next to the Webatuck Creek, within a floodplain, posing an environmental hazard to the creek that supplies drinking water to the communities.
Central Septic Feasibility Study
Project Award: $35,000
Awarded Municipality: Town of Pine Plains
Project Description: Promote economic development by hiring a consultant to evaluate the feasibility of creating a central septic system, as its current system is prohibiting development. Expanding the Town’s infrastructure will promote the long-term economic sustainability of existing businesses, while providing residents with the necessary infrastructure to sustain them in their community.
Pine Plains Supervisor Darrah Cloud said, “This is going to help small businesses to thrive in Pine Plains. Those are what we hope to maintain and attract with a central sewage system, as well as affordable housing, and this grant is one step closer to reaching our goals. Our town appreciates County Executive Molinaro and his desire to work with local communities to realize savings for our residents, and we look forward to future beneficial collaborations.”
Intermunicipal Water Storage
Project Award: $100,000
Awarded Municipalities: Towns of Poughkeepsie and Pleasant Valley, Dutchess County Water and Wastewater Authority
Project Description: Promote savings and economic development by conducting an engineering study for the construction of a new shared water storage tank that would serve the needs of residents and businesses in each of the participating communities, as well as to the areas surrounding the Hudson Valley Regional Airport in the Town of Wappinger.
Streamlining the Land Use and Approval Process Study
Project Award: $25,000
Awarded Municipality: Town of Poughkeepsie
Project Description: Hire a consultant to examine the existing land use process and recommend best practices that will facilitate streamlined land use procedures, resulting in efficient building, planning, and zoning permitting practices.
Tri-Municipal Wastewater Treatment Upgrades
Project Award: $105,000
Awarded Municipalities: Village of Wappingers Falls, towns of Wappinger and Poughkeepsie
Project Description: Eliminate a redundant sewer district and increase capacity of the Tri-Municipal Wastewater treatment facility to accommodate increased flow, which will allow for expansion and economic development for each participating community, while allowing the Hudson Valley Regional Airport the ability to tie in, further promoting countywide economic development.
Town of Wappinger Supervisor Richard Thurston said, “Municipal Innovation Grant funding for these upgrades will benefit the residents of our town, as well as our neighbors, allowing our communities to maintain the current level of sewer services, which will help in addressing ongoing repair and maintenance so necessary for economic growth and development. We thank County Executive Molinaro and our counterparts in Dutchess County Government for their commitment to encouraging the sharing of services to the benefit of our residents.”
This year marks the seventh year of the MIG program which awards grants to municipalities for shared service and consolidation efforts, accessibility improvements, streamlined land use practices and public safety advances, with the overall goal of supporting local government efforts to reduce the property tax levy. Since the program’s inception, the grant program has expanded to meet the needs of local municipalities. Additional information about the MIG program is available on the grant program’s webpage.