City Council & Mayor's Office Announce $8 Million Small Manufacturing Investment Fund

If you own or operate a small food manufacturing business, please note the following press release sent by Speaker Quinn's office. It contains information pertaining to a new $8 million grant focused on increasing food manufacturing in NYC.

Gregory
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As part of our work with the Mayor's Office to help strengthen and grow the City's industrial sector, we are encouraging food manufacturers and other eligible businesses to apply to our $8 million NYC Council Small Manufacturing Investment Fund.

New York City was once home to thousands of manufacturing firms and hundreds of thousands of good-paying manufacturing jobs. While we have lost many of these firms and jobs over the last fifty years, we now have the opportunity to capitalize on our resurgent small manufacturing sector and reestablish New York City as the center for 21st century manufacturing. Our Small Manufacturing Investment Fund will help to do this by providing capital for the reactivation and modernization of empty factories into spaces that are well-suited and affordable for small manufacturers.

This past week, the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to renovate existing industrial space in the five boroughs for small manufacturing and related uses. Preference will be given to respondents that meet certain criteria, including those with not-for-profit status and property located in current Industrial Business Zones and Industrial Ombudsman Areas. Awards range from $1 million to $2 million, and the RFP will remain open on a quarterly rolling basis until all funds have been allocated. The first quarter deadline is Tuesday, March 13, 2012.

A copy of the RFP is available at www.nycedc.com/rfp. NYCEDC strongly encourages interested respondents to attend one of their information sessions, the first of which will be held on Tuesday, January 31, 2012, at 10 am at 110 William Street in Lower Manhattan. If you would like to attend this session, please RSVP to IndustrialSpaceModernizationRFP@nycedc.com no later than Friday, January 27th.

If you have any questions about the RFP or our Small Manufacturing Investment Fund, please feel free to contact Katie Codey in the NYC Council Policy Division at 212-788-9144. She can also be reached by email at kcodey@council.nyc.gov.

CITY ISSUES FINANCIAL ADVISORY REQUESTS FOR PROPOSALS

Here is a press release from our Comptroller discussing “an ambitious infrastructure rebuilding plan" requiring billions to be raised in our capital markets”. From the statement I assume more Requests for Proposals (RFP) will be coming down the pipeline and that this is good news for construction and other building trade firms. As I receive information I will post. It seems as if our Comptroller has been doing his best to spread the wealth. Please see the below post for more information.

Gregory
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CITY ISSUES FINANCIAL ADVISORY REQUESTS FOR PROPOSALS
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NEW YORK, NY – In response to questions about the Requests for Proposals (RFP) for a Financial Advisor, Pricing Advisor and Swap Advisor released jointly today by the Comptroller’s Office and the Mayor’s Office of Management and Budget, Comptroller C. John Liu stated the following:

"New York City's ambitious infrastructure rebuilding plan requires billions to be raised in the capital markets. These RFPs will allow new as well as established firms to compete for the City's business, ensuring that our taxpayers get the best deal with lower borrowing costs. Moreover, opening the process up to competition may result in doing more business with firms owned by minorities, women and small NYC-based business, whereas continuing the same old non-competitive process guarantees the status quo.”

The existing Financial Advisor contracts had been extended multiple times without a new RFP being issued.

Deputy Comptroller for Public Finance Carol Kostik stated, “New York City benefits from a deep talent pool in financial services. We manage a large and complex financing program, so we want the best and the brightest on our financing teams. With these RFPs, firms can compete to earn a place on those teams.”

Two RFPs were issued today, one for Financial Advisor and Price Advisor, and one for Swap Advisor. The RFPs will be used to hire advisers for the City General Obligation bonds as well as for the New York City Transitional Finance Authority, the New York City Municipal Water Finance Authority, and the Hudson Yards Infrastructure Authority.