Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz was joined today by Commissioner of the Department of Environment & Planning Dan Castle, Field Director with the Erie County Soil & Water Conservation District Mark Gaston, Erie County Legislature Minority leader John Mills (11^th District), Legislator John Gilmour (9^th District) and the owner of Draudt’s Farm Market and Greenhouses, Les Draudt, at Draudt’s Farm to announce a new county initiative to assist local farms and agribusinesses affected by the extreme lake-effect winter storm in November 2022. Erie County is investing $2 million in grant funding to aid such businesses in recovering by helping with costs not covered by insurance; eligible applicants can receive up to $200,000 through the fund.  

“The November 2022 snowstorm was very difficult and demanding, dropping seven feet of snow and causing millions of dollars in damage to local businesses, especially agribusinesses” said Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz. “After discussing the damage caused to area farms by last November’s storm with Les Draudt I knew we had to act. With this program we are extending a helping hand to those businesses, providing grant funds to assist them with covering the cost of capital damages to buildings, structures, machinery, or equipment that were not be covered by insurance.”  

Erie County Soil & Water Conservation District (“ECSWCD”) will administer the grant program on behalf of Erie County. ECSWCD will be responsible for accepting and reviewing applications and determining which applications are complete and meet the eligibility criteria to qualify for potential funding.  ECSWCD will then work with selected businesses to determine what costs are eligible and work with the business to finalize the contractual agreement to allow for the transfer of funding. 

Mark Gaston, Field Director with the Erie County Soil & Water Conservation District, said, “We know that many farms sustained significant damages from the November Storm.  Our ability to help these critical agri-businesses recover from these storm damages and remain in business will benefit all of Erie County, as we all rely on local farms and agribusinesses.”

“Insurance does not typically cover damage to greenhouses.  The weight of the snow from last November’s storm did considerable damage to many structures.  I’m hoping this $2 million commitment will help many farmers make the necessary repairs,” added Erie County Legislature Minority leader John Mills (11^th District).

“Last winter was a devastating one for us in Western New York. We were hit by two once-in-a -generation snowstorms and it was particularly hard for our farmers and agricultural businesses,” Legislator John Gilmour (9^th District) said.  “I’m happy that the county is creating this grant to assist those business owners in their recovery. It’s another example of Erie County investing in our small businesses.”

“Our intent is to strategically invest in and strengthen our local farms and agri-businesses business that were adversely impacted by the November Storm but were not eligible for full insurance coverage or federal/state loan assistance resulting from the November Storm not being declared a federal disaster,” said Daniel Castle, Commissioner of the Department of Environment and Planning.

Funds will be made available to eligible businesses (up to $200,000) to address documented storm damage to facilities, structures, equipment, machinery, and capital assets which were determined not eligible for insurance coverage.

Applications are being accepted at https://ecswcd.org/ and will be approved on a rolling basis for up to 1 year, or until all such funds are allocated. All applicants will need to submit proof that damage occurred between November 16-21, 2022 as a result of the November 2022 Storm, and that eligible repairs were not covered by an insurance settlement/payment or an SBA Loan.   Funds approved by ECSWCD will be in forgivable grants conditioned upon preservation of farmlands for a period of 5 years.

For more information:

On the grant program and ECSWCD, click here

On the Department of Environment and Planning, visit  https://www3.erie.gov/environment/ 

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