The Adirondack Council applauded the Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Smart Growth Grants of $400,000 to Adirondack communities and regional projects.

“These grants will help Adirondack residents to capitalize on the park’s clean air and water and its wild beauty by developing new economic opportunities tied to tourism, outdoor recreation, our great local farms and cuisine, and our dark night skies,” said Adirondack Council Executive Director William C. Janeway.

Smart growth funding comes from the NYS Environmental Protection Fund (EPF), which is supported primarily by taxes on large real estate sales.

The Adirondack Council was part of the coalition that urged creation of the EPF in 1993, and for the past decade has been part of a coalition of more than 100 organizations that urged the Legislature to appropriate $300 million per year for the EPF.  The EPF reached $300 million in funding this year for the first time in Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s budget plan.

 “This year’s EPF contains a total of $2 million in Smart Growth funding statewide, an increase of $1.4 million above the 2015-16 budget,” Janeway said.

Founded in 1975, the Adirondack Council says their mission is to ensure the ecological integrity and wild character of the Adirondack Park.