Grant Supports Dutchess County Driving Tour

The Hudson River Valley Greenway has announced that it has awarded Dutchess County and the Town of Clinton a $9,500 matching grant to “fund driving tour enhancements that will encourage more tourist activity in the northern reaches of the county.”

“With these improvements, Dutchess County hopes to offer a more complete tourism experience in these rural communities, particularly to motorists already visiting major attractions in the better publicized southern half of the county, such as the Culinary Institute of America, Vanderbilt Mansion, the Roosevelt sites, and the Dutchess County Fair,” the announcement to the press said, adding:

“These driving tour enhancements will be the centerpiece of an effort to encourage greater overall agritourism in the region, which will steer visiting gastronomes and heritage tourists towards the abundance of craft food and beverage producers tucked away in the lesser known corners of the Dutchess County countryside. Often these artisanal companies, like up-and-coming distilleries Dutch Spirits and Hudson Valley Distillers, provide the added attraction of operating out of charming historic structures, which only serves to enhance the connection between heritage and agritourism.”

“As part of a regional promotional scheme, Dutchess County sees this as a mutually beneficial collaborative effort between small farming communities in the area, who might otherwise lack the resources required for success in this regional tourism venture on their own. The project will be developed in the communities of Clermont, Red Hook, Rhinebeck, Milan, Pine Plains, Amenia, Hyde Park, Stanford, Clinton, Pleasant Valley, Red Hook, and Tivoli.”

The Hudson River Valley Greenway is a state-sponsored program established by the Greenway Act of 1991. The program is designed to encourage communities to develop projects and initiatives related to the criteria of natural and cultural resource protection, regional and local planning, economic development, public access to the Hudson River (as well as other regional and local resources), and heritage and environmental education.

The Greenway program provides technical assistance and small grants for planning, water trail and land-based trails and other projects that reinforce the Greenway Criteria.  In keeping with the New York tradition of home rule, the Greenway program has no regulatory authority and participation by municipalities in Greenway programs and projects is entirely voluntary. The Greenway also manages the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area.

Applications for the next round of Greenway grants are due August 29th, 2014. For more information, visit the grants page on the Greenway website.