The Office of Economic Development asked the Ways & Means Committee to accept and appropriate $750,000 from the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation to support Advancing Allegany County for capacity building and project readiness, with $500,000 proposed for 2026 and $250,000 for 2027.

Staff outlined proposed amendments to the long‑range transportation plan and updated the board on major corridor projects. Lee County is seeking a USDOT construction grant for Burgester Road and FDOT described procurement and schedule prospects for SR 31 and SR 78.

Planning staff said round 3 of the county infrastructure grant program was soft‑launched without full details; the county has two active grants—$1,000,000 for the town of Oneonta and $500,000 for the village of Cooperstown—and staff cautioned about fronting costs and slow ESD reimbursement.

Staff presented draft edits to the TIP policy, proposing to shift weighting toward project readiness (from 10% to 15%) and to clarify eligibility, financial capability requirements, and limits on pilot transit funding; detailed edits will be refined in TIP subcommittee meetings.

The Affordable Housing Advisory Committee recommended distributing $1,000,000 across competitive applications, approving a $350,000 award to Habitat for Humanity and a $650,000 award to Solaness while recommending $0 for Raintree, Related Northwest and Alpenglow, citing readiness, cost-per-unit and affordability concerns.

Commissioner Caswell confirms ARPA projects must be completed by December 2026.