The due date for applications for the 2021 Round of the County’s 2% Occupancy Tax Grant Program for Lakes & Waterways has been extended from April 1 to April 15.

“We recognize that Chautauqua County residents and agencies who plan to submit applications to the 2% Occupancy Tax Grant Program for Lakes & Waterways are being challenged with the COVID-19 virus,” said Chautauqua County Executive PJ Wendel. “We hope that extending the application period by two weeks will help everyone to overcome these challenges and prepare good quality applications to the program.”

“The projects that we fund provide long-lasting water quality benefits by reducing nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorous that enter our lakes and waterways,” said Chautauqua County Watershed Coordinator Dave McCoy. “When we reduce the amount of nutrients, we reduce the occurrence of nuisance aquatic vegetation and algae and improve the environmental health of our aquatic resources. We should be able to adapt to the two week extension and allow those who are selected for County’s 2% Occupancy Tax Grant Program funding to leverage their awards for local matching contributions to State and Federal water quality improvement programs.”

“We have funded some very beneficial and creative projects since the Occupancy Tax Program’s inception,” said McCoy. “Projects as large as $40,000 will be considered for implementation in 2021. Chautauqua County has a lot to offer for visitors and tourists and the Occupancy Tax Program for Lakes and Waterways continues to have beneficial economic and environmental impacts.”

For more information, please call Dave McCoy at (716) 661-8915 or (716) 753-4061.