Bethlehem, Pa – October 2, 2019 – State Senator Lisa M. Boscola announced today that the Greater Easton Development Partnership and the Easton Area Neighborhood Center have been award Urban Agriculture Infrastructure Grants, a grant program intended to promote urban farming in Pennsylvania.
“The Urban Agriculture Grant program was created with the understanding that urban farming can have a tremendous benefit in not only providing fresh, locally produced food in our cities that also can a positive impact on community and economic development,” Senator Boscola stated. “I commend the leadership shown by the Greater Easton Development Partnership and the Easton Area Neighborhood Center for taking advantage of this funding opportunity and for their efforts in promoting urban farming.”
Greater Easton Development Partnership was awarded a macro grant in the amount of $50,000 for a pick-up truck, cold storage, and green house to increase the efficiency of food yield. The Easton Area Neighborhood Centers was awarded a microgrant for $2,265 for a tractor, rototiller, and bed shaper to increase efficiency.
This past June, the Senate passed Senate Bill 661, which was subsequently signed into law as Act 40, creating create the Urban Agriculture Infrastructure Grant Program. The program provides for both microgrants, which can be for up to $2,500 in funding for one-time projects or single applicants, and macro grants that can be up to $50,000, for projects that demonstrate cooperative or regional efforts with multiple partners. Awards announced today statewide totaled $500,000 in urban agriculture grant funding for 28 projects located in Allegheny, Butler, Erie, Lawrence, Northampton, Philadelphia, and York counties.
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