News

HRIF Highlights

In the 2010 cycle, the Hudson River Improvement Fund provided over $200,000 in funding to 31 Hudson Valley organizations for shoreline improvements, boat repairs and restorations, and educational programs and exhibits.

New York's historic vessels stay afloat through the 2010 Improvement Fund cycle

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HRIF and Public Access

In 2010, HRIF provided $86,000 to increase public access to the Hudson River through grants for waterfront improvements and community boating activities.

For more information on these organizations and to get involved, visit:

HRIF and Education

Grants from HRIF expanded the Hudson River Interpretive Center at the Children's Museum of Science & Technology with the Invasive Species: Our River - Our Responsibility exhibit and furnished LED displays of real-time water quality data on the Walkway Over the Hudson.

Scenic Hudson outfitted several new classrooms at Beacon's Long Dock Park and the Scenic Hudson River Center with teaching supplies and hands-on learning equipment.

On Governors Island, the New York Harbor School used its grant for structural improvements of the Eco Dock and Cove at Pier 101.

Hudson River Improvement Fund

HRIF

In 1985, the Hudson River Foundation received $1.5 million from the State of New York to establish the Hudson River Improvement Fund from monies originally paid to New York to settle litigation concerning the out-of-state export of Hudson River water by oil tankers. Through the combined efforts of Hudson River environmental organizations, including Scenic Hudson, the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, the Hudson River Fishermen’s Association (now Riverkeeper) and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, the Improvement Fund was created to support projects that promote the enhancement of public use and enjoyment of the natural, scenic and cultural resources of the Hudson River and its shores - with an emphasis on physical projects that require capital construction, development or improvement.

Examples of projects that may be considered for funding include:

  • PUBLIC ACCESS-- Development or improvement of facilities that increase public physical or visual access to the Hudson River, including but not limited to docks, boats, piers and shorefront access points.
  • HABITAT -- Repair, restoration or creation of habitat.
  • EDUCATION FACILITIES -- Development or improvement (and equipping) of facilities suitable for Hudson River education programs -- such as interpretive centers, marsh boardwalks or waterfront classrooms.

HRIF has a special interest in projects that promote accessibility.

2012 CALL FOR PROPOSALS

Application Deadline: Monday, November 19, 2012

Application Instructions

HRIF requests that proposals be assembled and sent electronically to info@hudsonriver.org. To the extent possible, individual files should be combined before submission. The file names should include the applicant organization's name (example: orgname_photos; orgname_application). The complete electronic file must be received by the Foundation by Monday, November 19, 2012.

Additionally, six complete hard copies (one with original signatures and five copies) should be mailed and postmarked no later than Monday, November 19, 2012 to:

Hudson River Foundation
Hudson River Improvement Fund
17 Battery Place, Suite 915
New York, NY 10004

Applicants having difficulty putting all or part of their proposals into electronic format should contact the Foundation at 212-483-7667.

The proposal submission should contain:

  1. HRIF Proposal Form.
  2. A copy of the organization's tax exemption certificate under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue code or an indication that the applicant is a subdivision of a government unit.
  3. Where appropriate: graphic representations of the project, such as maps, photos, plans, drawings, etc.; studies which support the need for the project, such as engineering or architectural studies; letters of support.

If you have any questions regarding the application procedure, please contact us at 212-483-7667 or info@hudsonriver.org.

Requests for funding in the 2012 grant cycle will undoubtedly be far greater than the funds available. Applicants are therefore encouraged to seek matching funds and provide in-kind services whenever possible. The typical grant awarded by the Hudson River Improvement Fund will be under $10,000. Requests for larger grants will be considered for projects that provide a significant benefit to a very large number of people.

The Fund is particularly interested in projects that will have a lasting impact on waterfront access, education, and habitat restoration. The Fund discourages applications for festivals or other one-time events unless such events are demonstrably related to the accomplishment of projects enhancing public access or achieving another HRIF purpose.

Download the proposal form.

2011 Grants

Organization Project Location Amount
American Littoral SocietyTo cover costs of the Hudson River portion of the 2012 International Coastal CleanupBroad Channel, NY$5,000
Arm-of-the-Sea ProductionsTo develop a new environmental education performance piece titled, "The Rejuvenary River Circus"Malden-on-Hudson, NY$7,000
Beacon Sloop ClubTo repair the Beacon Sloop Club building from structural damage incurred by Hurricane IreneBeacon, NY$11,700
Beczak Environmental Education CenterTo upgrade Beczak's Hudson River water monitoring equipmentYonkers, NY$8,000
Children's Museum of Science & TechnologyFor mechanical and aesthetic improvements to the Museum's "Living Hudson River" ExhibitTroy, NY$5,500
Hudson River Sloop ClearwaterTo provide matching funds for the replacement of the stern section of the sloop, "Clearwater"Beacon, NY$10,000
Columbia Land ConservancyTo create a new parking lot and entrance to the Greenport Conservation Area, and to extend the "Acess for All" trailChatham, NY$5,000
Constitution Marsh Audubon CenterTo print a brochure and interpretive exhibit labels for the Constitution Marsh Audubon CenterCold Spring, NY$2,700
Earth CelebrationsTo conduct a series of 30 environmental art workshops in lower Manhattan focusing on Hudson River topics and culminating in a pageant along Hudson River ParkNew York, NY$4,000
Groundwork Hudson ValleyFor construction of the American Eel Outdoor Classroom along the newly daylighted Saw Mill River in YonkersYonkers, NY$10,000
Hudson River Maritime MuseumTo winterize the Maritime Museum's galleries to allow year round programmingKingston, NY$10,000
Hudson Crossing ParkTo create a self-guided audio tour system for the handicap-accessible trail along the Champlain Canal in Hudson Crossing ParkSchuylerville, NY$5,000
Hudson City School DistrictFor equipment and travel for students to take part in an invasive species survey, mapping and removal project at the Greenport Conservation Area and Harrier Hill ParkHudson, NY$2,872
Hudsonia LimitedTo conduct wetland biology seminars and lectures geared to municipal officals and environmental professionals, create an accompanying brochure, and to re-survey Hudson River goldenclubAnnandale, NY$18,047
Hudson Opera House, Inc.To conduct a series of youth oriented environmental workshops focusing on the Hudson RiverHudson, NY$4,000
City of Kingston Parks & RecreationTo purchase aquatic environmental education equipment to be used in programs for the City of Kingston school districtKingston, NY$4,000
Metropolitan Waterfront AllianceFunding to oversee the programming and stewardship of the Bay Ridge Community Eco DockNew York, NY$20,000
Newburgh Rowing ClubTo fund the Hudson River Student Ambassador Rowing Project and to replace floating docks damaged during Hurricane IreneNewburgh, NY$11,000
New York Harbor SchoolTo conduct a study of aquatic organism growth under porous concrete tilesNew York, NY$9,000
NYC Water Trail AssociationTo purchase equipment to conduct weekly water-sampling for enterococcus at human-powered boat launches in New York HarborNew York, NY$3,000
New York/New Jersey BaykeeperFor costs associated with the installation of a Community Oyster Gardening Reef at Soundview Park in the Bronx RiverKeyport, NJ$3,500
The Olana PartnershipTo conduct eight programs for children, and two workshops for adults, using art to explore the history of the Hudson ValleyHudson, NY$4,000
City of PeekskillFor materials and staff to build a rowboat as part of the Community Boat Works program in PeekskillPeekskill, NY$8,000
Regional Plan AssociationTo fabricate a moveable harbor map for use in Governors Island's education programsNew York, NY$5,000
RiverkeeperTo upgrade the Riverkeeper vessel's onboard communications equipmentOssining, NY$4,037
The River ProjectFor materials needed to renovate the River Project's Pier 40 WetlabNew York, NY$5,949
Rocking the BoatTo purchase equipment for Rocking the Boat's On-Water education youth and community development programs in the South BronxBronx, NY$7,370
Rogers Island Heritage Development AllianceFor interpretive exhibits for the walking trail on Rogers Island in Fort EdwardFort Edward, NY$5,000
Saugerties Lighthouse ConservancyTo repair the marsh boardwalk and bridges and create a map and interpretive displays for the Saugerties Lighthouse TrailSaugerties, NY$9,912
Teaching the Hudson Valley, NPSTo conduct educator outreach regarding Hudson River teaching resources and conduct a Hudson River writing contestHyde Park, NY$7,500
Tug Pegasus Preservation ProjectTo upgrade systems on the Tug Pegasus to allow her to obtain USCG Attraction Vessel statusNew York, NY$10,000
Waterfront MuseumTo restore and repair the bow and stern ends of the Waterfront Museum’s Lehigh Valley No. 79 deckhouseBrooklyn, NY$10,000