Environmental Protection Fund
Title 9 NYCRR (sections 439.1 – 443.4) implements the Environmental Protection Fund Act of 1993 (Title 9 of Article 54 of the Environmental Conservation Law), which created OPRHP's program for Parks, Preservation and Heritage Grants. The Environmental Protection Fund Grant Program for Parks, Preservation and Heritage (EPF) is a matching grant program for the acquisition, planning and development, and improvement of parks, historic properties, and heritage areas located within the physical boundaries of the State of New York. Funds may be awarded to municipalities or not-for-profits with an ownership interest.
The EPF legislation requires the public benefit from the investment of state funds. All properties acquired or developed with grant funds will receive long-term protections (samples below). The method and term of the protection is dependent upon the type of applicant and project undertaken.
Program Categories
Parks funding is for the acquisition, development and planning of parks and recreational facilities to preserve, rehabilitate or restore lands, waters or structures for park, recreation or conservation purposes and for structural assessments and/or planning for such projects. Examples of eligible projects include: playgrounds, courts, rinks, community gardens, and facilities for swimming, boating, picnicking, hunting, fishing, camping or other recreational activities. Funds may be awarded for indoor or outdoor projects and must reflect the priorities established in NY Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP).
Historic Preservation funding is to improve, protect, preserve, rehabilitate, restore or acquire properties listed on the State or National Registers of Historic Places and for structural assessments and/or planning for such projects. Properties not currently listed but approved for nomination in March or on the agenda for nomination at the June or September State Board for Historic Preservation meeting in the current calendar year, are eligible to apply. Questions about or proposals for listing on the State or National Register should be directed to the OPRHP National Register Unit at (518) 268-2213, or contact the National Register representative for your county as listed at: https://parks.ny.gov/shpo/contact/. All work must conform to the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties.
Heritage Area funding is for projects to acquire, preserve, rehabilitate or restore lands, waters or structures, identified in the approved management plans for active Heritage Areas designated under section 35.03 of the Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Law and for structural assessments or planning for such projects where an active management entity has endorsed the project. Information about active Heritage Areas with approved management plans, including exact heritage areas boundaries and Heritage Area Contacts, go to https://parks.ny.gov/grants/heritage-areas/default.aspx.
How to Apply for EPF Funding Assistance
- Read the Environmental Protection Fund for Parks, Preservation and Heritage Program Application Guidance document for the current grant round in its entirety.
- Contact the Regional Grants Administrator (RGA) for your project area, listed below, to have an initial conversation regarding your proposal prior to submitting an application. RGA’s are available in the Agency’s Regional offices to offer assistance with applications and program details.
- View the recorded informational webinar for EPF.
- Attend a Consolidated Funding Application (CFA) Workshop.
- Review the EPF scoring criteria for the current grant round before beginning the application.
- All applicants must use the Regional Economic Development Council’s online application process, the Consolidated Funding Application (CFA). Visit the Consolidated Funding Application web page
and click “Apply Now.” - Complete the application by the deadline and include all relevant information.
GRANT APPLICATION CYCLE IS CLOSED
APPLICATION GUIDANCE AND DOCUMENTS ARE REVISED AT THE BEGINNING OF EACH GRANT ROUND. PLEASE CHECK BACK FOR UPDATED GUIDELINES TO BE POSTED IN ADVANCE OF THE NEXT GRANT APPLICATION ROUND.
In the meantime, please use the documents from the previous application round as an example only to see what is involved in assembling an application.
Information on 2024 Grant Round
OPRHP is dedicating up to $26 million to parks, historic preservation, and heritage areas through the CFA for the Environmental Protection Fund Program. The Environmental Protection Fund Grant Program for Parks, Preservation and Heritage (EPF) offers up to $26 million in matching grants for the acquisition, planning, development, and improvement of parks, historic properties listed on the National or State Registers of Historic Places and heritage areas identified in approved plans for statutorily designated Heritage Areas. Funds are available to municipalities or not-for-profits with an ownership interest. The maximum award is $675,000.
The deadline for submission is 4:00 p.m. Wednesday, July 31, 2024.
EPF Application Guidance
- 2024 Environmental Protection Fund for Parks, Preservation and Heritage Program Application Guidance Document (pdf)
- Consolidated Funding Application (CFA) Workshops: May 22, 2024 – June 20, 2024
- Visit https://regionalcouncils.ny.gov for the CFA Workshop Calendar.
- View recorded informational webinar for “Parks: Environmental Protection Fund.” 2024 REDC Webinars and FAQs | Regional Economic Development Councils
Documents Required with Application
Use the Attachment Checklist (pdf) to determine what documents you need to provide with your application. Some documents are required of all applicants. Depending upon the particular circumstances of your project, other attachments may be required. Still other attachments, while not required, may be essential to support rating points. All documents should be current to the grant cycle you are applying in. Applications lacking these attachments (or an acceptable explanation) are considered incomplete, and may cause the application to be deemed ineligible, or adversely affect the rating points assigned.
Template Documents to Provide with Application
- Environmental Review Form (Not-for-Profit Corporations only) (pdf)
- Municipal Endorsement (Not-for-Profits applying for Parks projects only) (pdf)
- Cost Share Summary (fillable pdf) | Cost Share Summary (xlsx) – see Cost Share and Budget Help with sample Cost Chare summaries (pdf)
- Cost Share Summary - Sectarian (fillable pdf) | Cost Share Summary - Sectarian (xlsx) – see Cost Share and Budget Help with sample Cost Share summaries (pdf) and Information and Instructions for Sectarian Projects (pdf)
Helpful Documents to Complete an Application
- Frequently Asked Questions (pdf)
- Grant Selection Criteria (pdf)
- Cost Share and Budget Help with sample Cost Share summaries (pdf)
- Percent Below Poverty Level Table by ZCTA (pdf)
- Historic Preservation Work Detail (Planning, Construction, Sectarian) (pdf)
- Historic Preservation Terms and Professional Qualifications (pdf)
- Information and Instructions for Sectarian Projects (pdf)
- Photography Tips and Guidance (pdf)
- Using the Grants Map for CFA (pdf)
- Value of Volunteer Time for New York State (pdf)
- Heritage Area Contacts for Endorsement Letter (pdf)
Documents Required for Successful Applicants
Successful applicants will be notified of their award, including those elements of the proposed scope and budget that have been accepted for funding, as well as conditions of award specific to the applicant and the awarded project.
All successful applicants (grant recipients) are required to execute an agreement with the State, using The State of New York Contract for Grants.
Certain conditions of award must be met to the satisfaction of OPRHP before a contract can be executed with the applicant/grantee. Grant recipients are advised NOT to begin work until a contract with the State has been fully executed.
Grant contracts will require that prior to commencement of project work, certain procedures must be followed and documentation provided to an approved by OPRHP.
Project costs will be eligible for reimbursement only if the specified grant work is included in the approved contract, meets State standards and the expenditures are made in compliance with State requirements.
The EPF Application Guidance document provides general information for successful applicants (grant recipients). All grant recipients are encouraged to work closely with the Regional Grants Administrator for their project to ensure all conditions and procedures are followed to the satisfaction of OPRHP. Failure to comply with program requirements may jeopardize the grant.
Documents Required When Executing a Contract
- Authorizing Resolution and Certification (Not-for-Profit Corporations only) with Instructions (pdf)
- Authorizing Resolution and Certification (Municipal Entities only) with Instructions (pdf)
Opinion of Municipal Counsel
Affidavit of Title
EPF Sign Order Form and Image (Historic Preservation/Heritage Area Projects)
EPF Sign Order Form and Image (Parks/Heritage Area Projects)
Long Term Protection Documents
Generally, the long-term protections include:
- Grants under the Parks category are awarded on the condition that real property acquired, developed or improved with grant funds shall be publicly accessible and designated as parkland in perpetuity. It follows that such real property shall not be sold, leased, exchanged, donated, or otherwise disposed of, or used for other than public park purposes without the express authority of an act of the legislature, which shall provide for the substitution of lands of equal environmental value and fair market value and reasonably equivalent usefulness and location.
- For municipal parkland, information is available in the “Handbook on the Alienation and Conversion of Municipal Parkland,” located at https://parks.ny.gov/publications/ under Other Publications.
- Public access covenants or preservation covenants, for a specific term, conveyed to the State and recorded against a property deed, run with the land and apply to the grant recipient and all successive owners, operators and lessees.
- Perpetual preservation covenants or conservation easements conveyed to the State and recorded against a property deed, run with the land and apply to all successive owners, operators and lessees.
Documents Required During the Life of a Grant Project
Grantee Certification
State Aid Voucher
Useful Resources
EPF Rules & Regulations
Standards & Procedures for Appraisal Reporting
New York State Open Space Conservation Plan (OSP)
Statewide Trails Plan
Statewide Greenways Trails Plan
The New York State Historic Preservation Plan
Contact
NYSOPRHP@parks.ny.gov
518-474-0427
-or-
Contact the Regional Grants Administrator assigned to the county in which your project is located.
Capital Region
Counties: Albany, Columbia, Greene, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady, Warren & Washington
Erin Drost
NYS OPRHP Taconic Regional Office
9 Old Post Road
Staatsburg, NY 12580
Office (845)889-3866 | Cell (845)489-8223 | Fax (845)889-8321
erin.drost@parks.ny.gov
Central New York Region
Counties: Cayuga, Cortland, Madison, Onondaga & Oswego
Nicole Freeman
Clark Reservation State Park
6105 East Seneca Turnpike
Jamesville, NY 13078
Office (315)492-1756 | Cell (315)630-8128 | Fax (315)492-3277
nicole.freeman@parks.ny.gov
Finger Lakes Region
Counties: Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Wayne, Wyoming & Yates
Kate Badgley
Beaver Island State Park
Park Office
103 Commission House Road
Office (716)773-5292 | Cell (716)961-8025 | Fax (716)773-4150
kate.badgley@parks.ny.gov
Long Island Region
Counties: Nassau & Suffolk
Traci Christian
Belmont Lake State Park
PO Box 247
Babylon, NY 11702
Office (631)321-3543 | Fax (631)321-3721
traci.christian@parks.ny.gov
Mid-Hudson Region
Counties: Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster & Westchester
Erin Drost
NYS OPRHP Taconic Regional Office
9 Old Post Road
Staatsburg, NY 12580
Office (845)889-3866 | Cell (845)489-8223 | Fax (845)889-8321
erin.drost@parks.ny.gov
Mohawk Valley Region
Counties: Fulton, Herkimer, Montgomery, Oneida, Otsego & Schoharie
Sunshine Jenkins
Sackets Harbor Battlefield State Historic Site
Union Hotel
PO Box 539, 401 W Main Street
Sackets Harbor, NY 13685
Office (315)740-8100 | Fax (315)482-9413
sunshine.jenkins@parks.ny.gov
New York City Region
Counties: Bronx, Kings, New York, Queens, & Richmond
Traci Christian
Belmont Lake State Park
PO Box 247
Babylon, NY 11702
Office (631)321-3543 | Fax (631)321-3721
traci.christian@parks.ny.gov
North Country Region
Counties: Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Hamilton, Jefferson, Lewis & St. Lawrence
Sunshine Jenkins
Sackets Harbor Battlefield State Historic Site
Union Hotel
PO Box 539, 401 W Main Street
Sackets Harbor, NY 13685
Office (315)740-8100 | Fax (315)482-9413
sunshine.jenkins@parks.ny.gov
Southern Tier Region
Counties: Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Delaware, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga & Tompkins
Amanda Marsh
2221 Taughannock Park Road
Trumansburg, NY 14886
Office (607)387-7041 | Cell (607)592-9830 | Fax (607)387-3390
amanda.marsh@parks.ny.gov
Western New York Region
Counties: Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie & Niagara
Kate Badgley
Beaver Island State Park
Park Office
103 Commission House Road
Office (716)773-5292 | Cell (716)961-8025 | Fax (716)773-4150
kate.badgley@parks.ny.gov