What We Do
Strategic Impact Areas
Infrastructure Readiness
A community is only as strong as its infrastructure. We will advocate for infrastructure needs in the Canandaigua area to ensure the City and Town are ready for current and future development opportunities.
Strategic Communication
As the only joint economic development organization for the City and the Town, we will work to build “One Canandaigua” through strategic communication with local and regional economic development stakeholders and the broader community.
Balancing Tourism
Downtown Canandaigua is a cultural hub for the City, the Town, and the surrounding Finger Lakes region. Our work will advance and celebrate efforts that draw people to the Downtown, Uptown, and lakefront no matter the season.
Quality of Life Enhancements
The residents of Canandaigua are the lifeblood of our community. Our work will support initiatives that provide people with meaningful work opportunities and a reason to stay here.
Check out what we’ve been up to this year!
2023-2025 Strategic Initiatives
Our Impact Areas
Our Role
Infrastructure
Capacity Building
Identify opportunities to gather data and convene stakeholders to learn more about Canandaigua’s current and future infrastructure needs.
The CLDC views infrastructure as the backbone of resilient communities. It’s an essential component of ensuring quality of life for residents and advancing economic development opportunities. The CLDC plays an active role in convening stakeholders and advocating for Canandaigua’s infrastructure needs at the county, regional, and state levels. In January 2023, the CLDC hosted an infrastructure roundtable to examine water infrastructure needs in municipalities across Ontario County.
Balancing Tourism Initiatives
Support initiatives that enhance year-round tourism opportunities in Canandaigua.
In 2022, the CLDC became a founding sponsor of the Winter in Canandaigua Initiative. This initiative is a joint effort between businesses and economic development stakeholders in Canandaigua and the Finger Lakes Region to promote winter tourism. The CLDC recognizes the opportunity to capture a winter tourism market and intends to continue to support Winter in Canandaigua, as well as other initiatives to help balance seasonal tourism.
Grants & Funding Opportunities
Pursue opportunities to financially support programs and initiatives that address economic development, tourism, and quality of life in Canandaigua.
CLDC was successful in winning a $50,000 Market NY grant from Empire State Development to support tourism marketing efforts in Canandaigua. Funding will be used to promote marketing initiatives through the iconic “I Love NY” campaign, intended to bring in more visitors during the prime tourism months and off-season. To complete this grant, the CLDC is partnering with Finger Lakes Visitors Connection and Winter in Canandaigua to promote events in the Canandaigua region.
Local Plan Implementation
Identify planning projects, data collection opportunities, and funding sources to promote planning and economic development.
Great communities happen intentionally! The CLDC takes an active role in identifying and funding planning initiatives to help create a better environment for residents and businesses. The most recent planning initiatives include the Waterfront Active Transporation Plan and the Canandaigua Signage and Wayfinding Plan. The CLDC is now working with the City Council and Town Board to implement the policies and projects outlined in these plans.
Stakeholder Communication
Create and implement a strategic communication plan to ensure CLDC stakeholders and other economic development organizations in Canandaigua are up to date on the CLDC’s activities and informed of broader economic development trends in the region.
Effective communication is essential to maximize the synergies of the economic organizations working in Canandaigua and the broader Finger Lakes region. The CLDC aims to be the convenor of economic development stakeholders through creating intentional spaces and opportunities for mutual engagement and learning. In 2023, the CDLC created a strategic communication plan to breakdown information silos and is now actively following the plan!
Quality of Life Initiatives
Support quality of life enhancements through identifying economic development and community partnership opportunities
Successful economic development hinges on creating an environment in Canandaigua where people want to live, visit, and work. The CLDC pursues projects and opportunities to advance quality of life in Canandaigua to create an attractive environment for employers, the region’s workforce, and tourists. The CLDC is actively engaged in promoting infrastructure readiness awareness, tourism projects, and other planning initiatives through a multi-pronged approach to economic development.
Prior Strategic Initiatives
Central
on Main
The CLDC provided financial support for the Canandaigua Business Improvement District’s Central on Main project, a pop-up beer and wine garden. In 2020, the Central on Main concept was piloted on a City-owned parking lot to serve as both a community gathering space and a communal dining area for Downtown restaurants. After a successful first year, the Central on Main is now a vibrant public space in the Downtown during the summer months and often features live music events and food vendors.
Ground Floor Development
In 2021, the CLDC completed a market study and multiple surveys to identify key development opportunities and inform strategies to activate Downtown’s vacant ground floor units. This study generated important feedback on the business climate in Canandaigua. As of 2023, Downtown storefront vacancy has improved following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Market
Ready Sites
The CLDC completed a preliminary evaluation of sites throughout Canandaigua to identify key assets and opportunities. In 2021, the CLDC initiated a zoning audit to understand how the City and Town’s existing land use regulations either support or hinder the types of industrial and commercial development Canandaigua hopes to facilitate. This audit led to additional zoning updates in the City and Town.
Residential Development
Informed by the opportunities highlighted in the market study, the CLDC completed a preliminary inventory of downtown sites appropriate for residential development. In past years, the City of Canandaigua has actively advanced a feasibility study, funded through a New York Main Street Technical Assistance grant, to assess renovation needs for select downtown buildings. In 2021, the City, with help from the CLDC, submitted and won the New York Main Street (NYMS) program seeking funds for building renovations, as recommended by the NYMS Technical Assistance grant, to enable residential development.
Lakefront Connectivity
The CLDC provided financial support for the City’s effort to develop a multi-modal, active transportation plan for the transportation network flanking the north shore of Canandaigua Lake, including Main Street (Route 332) and its intersection with State Route 5 & 20. In 2021, the City adopted the Waterfront Active Transportation Plan, which includes recommendations for enhanced connectivity, efficiency, safety, and accessibility with a key focus on pedestrians and cyclists. The CLDC Board of Directors served as a key constituency on the project steering committee.
Canandaigua Beverage Trail
With a sizable concentration of breweries, wineries, and cideries within City and Town limits, the Canandaigua Beverage Trail initiative presented unique opportunity to support Canandaigua’s local craft beverage industry as well as the agricultural community it relies upon. The CLDC convened industry key stakeholders to outline program parameters and identify marketing needs and brand alliance opportunities.
