First Niagara announces final $100,000 grant recipient for Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus business development fund

Bank is providing funds to boost community development and encourage small business creation and growth

First Niagara Financial Group announced The Foundry in Buffalo is the final $100,000 grant recipient of $500,000 made available for start-up businesses and community redevelopment initiatives on or near the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus.

The Foundry is a business incubator and creative community space that provides opportunities for entrepreneurs to build and grow their businesses. The 25,000-square-foot building offers workshop space, tools and the exchange of peer knowledge to support emerging small businesses in Buffalo.

Other local organizations already designated to administer funding from the First Niagara Business Development Fund include:

•Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus Inc. - $100,000 to support entrepreneurs it assists through its business development office on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus;

•Buffalo Urban League - $100,000 loan fund for minority- and women-owned startup businesses on or around the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus;

•University at Buffalo Office of Economic Development - $100,000 for startup business on or around the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus that sell goods and services outside the region or for companies that directly support the medical campus community; and

•Westminster Economic Development Initiative - $100,000 to support its microloan program targeting West Side businesses, including assistance to immigrant and refugee entrepreneurs through its "West Side Bazaar" business incubator.

"First Niagara is committed to helping entrepreneurs in our city and providing the resources they need to successfully grow their businesses to further enhance the redevelopment taking place on and around the medical campus," said Buford Sears, First Niagara regional president, Western New York. "The Foundry provides a collaborative work environment that encourages productivity, idea generation and networking opportunities in the community. We are proud to provide the funding they need to support the growth of businesses in our city and help create a vibrant downtown where people can live and work."

"The Foundry is an inspirational community gathering place that supports budding entrepreneurs, particularly those looking to develop low-income, minority-, women-owned and neighborhood-based businesses," said Megan McNally, executive director of the Foundry. "This funding from First Niagara will help establish The Foundry as a neighborhood anchor institution to inspire the next generation of makers, learners and doers."

For additional information on First Niagara, visit www.firstniagara.com.