The Village of Canajoharie is the recipient of a $4.5 million grant award from New York State Governor Kathy Hochul and the Mohawk Valley Regional Economic Development Council (MVREDC) through the third round of the NY Forward program. Building on the momentum of the Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI), the NY Forward program is intended to support more equitable downtown recovery for New York’s smaller communities with a focus on hamlets, villages and neighborhood-scale commercial centers. The NY Forward program provides smaller communities with planning and implementation support needed to attract more businesses, residents and visitors while also providing a higher quality of life for all residents.

Located along the banks of the Mohawk River, the Village of Canajoharie was once a thriving hub for transportation and industrial development. Most of the village is located within a historic district due to its abundance of well-preserved architecture from different eras. The Erie Canal trail — a popular destination for bicyclists as part of the Empire State trail — also traverses the downtown business district. With recent investments and its key location along major transportation routes, Canajoharie’s downtown has the potential to become a vibrant riverfront destination and local employment center.