Applications will be reviewed and expedited by a dedicated project team and the selected agencies. Participating groups include Empire State Development, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), the Department of Transportation and several others.

On the planning side, Christopher Jones, vice president for research at the Regional Plan Association, tells GlobeSt.com that the plan can provide an economic framework for cities and counties to find business opportunities. “It’s the right approach,” Jones says. “It’s a way of making sure that a lot of the agency plans that are very often siloed are working in concert, so you have your economic development, your housing and your transportation policy all working around an integrated strategy.”

In addition, Jones says the plan aligns “very well” with the federal government’s Sustainable Communities Initiative, which focuses on the construction of transit-oriented development, green buildings and affordable housing. “They both provide incentives for regions to act cooperatively, and to have different agencies coordinate programs and regulations. If you can get the state efforts and the federal efforts to align, that’s obviously the best outcome for everyone.”

However, Jones questions whether the regional councils can stay together long enough to have a long-term impact, not just for the next business cycle. “It can provide incentives for growth in downtown areas where the infrastructure currently exists,” he says.