Schoharie County has been added to legislation reauthorizing the Northern Border Regional Commission.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer says adding Schoharie County to legislation reauthorizing the Northern Border Regional Commission will provide a much-needed jumpstart to the county’s economy. The commission is a federal-state partnership for economic development in New York and New England. Speaking Friday, the Democrat says it has brought more than $50 million in federal investment to upstate New York.
“It provides federal resources to support new and existing businesses, to expand job training, to boost infrastructure like high-speed internet to address child care and health care needs and more. So I'm fighting tooth and nail to make sure that this new reauthorization becomes law in the budget bill,” Schumer said.
A federal spending plan to avert a government shutdown is due December 20th.
On his visit, Schumer also touted federal funding for infrastructure improvements in the county totaling more than $40 million, including nearly $12 million to replace the Bridge Street Bridge.
Schumer says replacing the century-old span is key to protecting county residents.
“The next closest bridge over Schoharie Creek is more than 20 minutes away,” Schumer said.
County Director of Emergency Services Mike Hartzell agrees.
“It doesn't fit two cars, so it really connects the other side of the river with the town of Schoharie. So if we were to send EMS or fire and not have that bridge, or lose that bridge, we would have to, like the senator said, drive 20 to 25 minutes around to get to our residents,” Hartzell said.
Hartzell says the age of the bridge compounds the issue.
“They've lowered the weight limit on that bridge, so you can't you're limited to what trucks can go across, to what fire trucks can go across it,” Hartzell said.
Village Mayor Colleen Henry says there are improvements she’d like to see made when the new bridge is built.
“Definitely an area for pedestrians to walk, because we are improving our waterfront, and definitely two cars going on it at the same time. Right now, it's dicey,” Henry said.
Schumer also announced more than $180,000 in Assistance for Firefighters grants for Schoharie and Richmondville.
Meeting with Schumer at Niagara Engine Company No. 6, residents also noted concerns over staffing for local emergency departments. They told Schumer while county ambulances have filled in shortages, the village only gets a fraction of its costs reimbursed. The Democrat says to address those concerns, he would support an effort like Nassau County’s Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response, or SAFER, tuition assistance program.
“If you were in college, the federal government would actually pay a thousand bucks of your tuition if you volunteered more than, I think, 60 hours a year at the firehouse. And that brought people in. Once they were there, they loved it,” Schumer said.
Schumer also noted $30 million for improvements to high-speed internet, funded through the American Rescue Plan and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. With that funding, the Broadband for Schoharie County project will build nearly 300 miles of fiber internet cables. Mayor Henry says she saw the importance of connectivity when schools went online during the pandemic.
“I think we saw that with COVID, children at home- and they couldn't get access to the school materials online, that was huge. And so our library ended up having to have appointments with these kids so that they had that ability to use a computer,” Henry said.
Residents responded positively to the funding. Bridey Finnegan, a retiree, says she worries about the bridge’s stability every time she crosses it.
“I'm wondering, is this going to be the day when something happens? So I don't know when it's going to start getting repaired, but I am looking forward to that,” Finnegan said.
