Lynbrook Village applies for $10 million revitalization grant

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The Lynbrook Village board of trustees voted in favor of applying for a $10 million downtown revitalization initiative grant that will be awarded to one community on Long Island by the New York State Office of Economic Development. The application was due on June 14.

“They’re only going to give it to one community on Long Island,” said John Giordano, the village clerk. “We’re keeping our fingers crossed.”

To apply for the money, the board had to answer questions about Lynbrook’s downtown area. The questions included the size of the downtown, job growth in the downtown and the attractiveness of the physical environment. Once that was completed, Giordano had to email it to the Long Island Regional Economic Development Council.

The council will next review all of the applications, and create a top-10 list. Those top 10 villages would meet with the members of the council in a five-minute interview. “Then they’ll make a decision on one,” Giordano said.

If Lynbrook were selected as the winner of the grant, village officials would meet with stakeholders and community members to outline a strategic plan. According to Giordano, a portion of the grant money could be used to help decide what the strategic plan for the area would be. The members would discuss what they would like to see happen with the downtown. “At that point, they would fine-tune what is possible,” Giordano said.

Last year was the first year of the initiative, and the Village of Westbury was awarded the grant.