Mayor Kraham Announces $150K For American Civic Association HVAC Upgrades
Project Will Replace Decades-Old Air Handling Unit At ACA
(BINGHAMTON, N.Y.) — Mayor Jared M. Kraham on Monday announced the City will
provide $150,000 to the American Civic Association (ACA) for critical HVAC upgrades to
the building at 131 Front St.
“The American Civic Association provides invaluable services to the Binghamton
community, supporting local immigrants and refugees in a myriad of ways and fostering
pride in our area’s diversity,” said Mayor Kraham. “This funding will allow the ACA to
make essential upgrades to their building to ensure they can keep the doors open and
continue serving our community for many years to come.”
The ACA will use the $150,000 to replace the building’s air handling unit, which dates
back to the 1960s. The new unit will improve the building’s energy efficiency and
include a modern air sanitation system, which can help reduce the transmission of
airborne contaminants like Covid-19 in workspaces.
“This funding will help the American Civic Association make critical, long-needed
improvements to our building infrastructure,” said ACA Executive Director Hussein
Adams. “Like many non-profits, it can be a challenge for the ACA to find the extra capital
to take on costly projects that arise. We’re grateful to Mayor Kraham and the City of
Binghamton for providing this funding so we can continue to focus on our mission of
helping immigrants and refugees start a new life in our community and building bridges
of understanding between people of all backgrounds.”
The ACA serves immigrants and refugees in the Greater Binghamton area, offering
citizenship classes, English as a Second Language (ESL) classes, legal clinics,
translation assistance and more.
Founded in 1939, the ACA is the only non-profit in the Southern Tier approved by the
Department of Justice to carry out a list of immigration services and in compliance with
the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
The $150,000 for the HVAC project comes from the City’s federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief,
and Economic Security (CARES) Act allocation of Community Development Block Grant
(CDBG) funds.
Since 2020, the City has received more than $1.7 million in Covid-19 CDBG funding
from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
City Council will vote on the $150,000 allocation for the ACA at the July 6 business
meeting.
