ITHACA, NY (607NewsNow) — Sustainable Finger Lakes awarded its first ever round of mini grants to help local initiatives in Chemung, Steuben, and Tioga Counties, and is now looking ahead to the planning and completion of several projects.

The projects being given a boost by the funds are:

  • Chemung County’s network of libraries: The network collaboratively hosts a “Library of Things” available to all Southern Tier Library System patrons, offering loans of items that many households use occasionally as a free alternative to purchasing them. Big Flats Library Advocates, a local supporting organization, received a grant for a storage shed allowing the Big Flats Library to expand its Library of Things beyond its indoor storage space.
  • The Corning Street Tree Project: An all-volunteer organization that has planted 147 trees throughout Corning’s urban public rights-of-way and shared neighborhood spaces since 2017. The trees are planted at the request of property owners, with a focus on areas that are historically underserved or have few trees. The organization received a grant for two trees and grow bags, a contribution to their Spring 2027 round of plantings. 
  • Dakota Hughes, in collaboration with the Town of Caton in Steuben County: Funds will be used to create and maintain a “community orchard” of native fruit and hazelnut trees and bushes in Margaret Smyers Park in Caton, supported by a grant for plants and anti-deer barriers.
  • Derek Ruth: Funds will be used to coordinate and lead a neighborhood litter cleanup on and around Gray Street Elmira, seeking to build community and promote environmental responsibility while reducing pollution, supported by a grant toward the cost of supplies.
  • The Family Reading Partnership of Chemung Valley: The organization will expand its Bright Red Bookshelf children’s book distribution program with Outdoor Bright Red Bookshelves designed for protection from weather and installed in public spaces. The organization received a grant to build an Outdoor Bright Red Bookshelf for a park in an underserved Elmira neighborhood.
  • Hadiya Fuller and Charles Fuller: The granddaughter and grandfather duo seek to create a wildflower u-pick micro farm on a vacant lot in the City of Elmira with multigenerational help from their family, creating not only a business but an environmentally beneficial community attraction in a neighborhood that currently has little green space. The Fuller Family received a grant for seeds and a rainwater irrigation system. 
  • The Spencer Van Etten Farmers Market: Northern Tioga County currently has no on-site storage for its tents, tables, chairs, and signs, which are housed by multiple attendees and brought weekly to the market in season, a major use of time and effort. The farmers market received a grant to buy a year-round storage shed for this equipment, making for easier operation and helping to sustain a source of local food, livelihoods, and community. 

The Neighborhood Mini-Grants have awarded more than $100,000 in over 250 grants to Tompkins County initiatives. Additionally, they have provided $5,000 to 11 grants in Seneca, Schuyler, and Keuka Counties.

Learn more about Sustainable Finger Lakes on their website here.