Community Revitalization Desktop Guide

example, their proximity to major Philadelphia suburban job clusters in Chester or Montgomery County is an asset for Southern Berks County communities. Similarly, the proximity of New York City, New Jersey and Maryland is an asset to communities in the Poconos, Easton and Allentown area that offer comparatively affordable housing and good schools. For these communities, understanding the dynamics of these markets creates opportunities. Anchor Employer or Hospital: Pennsylvania understands that employers can close up shop or relocate at will, leaving a town to deal with an unemployed workforce. When a town has an anchor employer who does not leave either because they recognize the beneﬁts of staying in the community or their facilities or customer base are not movable; the municipality has an asset. A municipality can exploit this asset by facilitating expansion and growth and encouraging others in that employer’s chain of production or service delivery to relocate to the area. SEE CASE STUDY FOUR Transportation Hub: A city that can offer residents and developers the advantage of bus, rail, water and/or highway connections has an asset. A highway running through town or near to it, a bus depot, an Amtrak station or a small regional airport all provide key infrastructure assets, as does proximity to an international air terminal. The average U.S. household spends 19 percent of its budget on transportation, Case Studies 3 – 4 3. Arts Launch Rebirth: GoggleWorks of Reading and Milford Downtown Reading’s GoggleWorks Center for the Arts is a community arts and culture center that opened in the fall of 2005. GoggleWorks inhabits a group of industrial buildings that were formerly the site of a safety goggle manufacturer. The Berks County city opened GoggleWorks in a distressed section of downtown in anticipation of jump-starting the revitalization other cities have seen in response to new arts centers. Governor Rendell provided $3 million of funding from the Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP). GoggleWorks welcomes between 300 and 1,000 visitors each day. Second Sunday open houses, with performances by local musicians and open studios featuring the resident artists, attract an average of 4,500 visitors. GoggleWorks’ 130,000 square feet encompasses 34 artist studios, classrooms, dance and music rooms, a large wood shop, a darkroom, a ﬁlm theatre, studios for glass blowing and ceramics, galleries, and a café, as well as ofﬁce space for 24 community arts and culture organizations. The presence of these organizations, including a ballet academy, music school, and children’s chorus, makes GoggleWorks the single central hub of the arts in Reading. All studio and ofﬁce spaces had occupants even before GoggleWorks opened. Reading is leveraging Goggleworks with adjacent projects. The Reading Public Museum is connected to the GoggleWorks via a river walk and amphitheatre being developed by RiverPlace Development Corp. A large movie theatre with an IMAX is planned for the land next door to GoggleWorks, along with 60 units of luxury apartments across the street, and 2 large parking garages in the neighborhood. Points out Karl Graybill, director of the Reading Downtown Improvement District, Reading still needs to strengthen its overall strategy for revitalization, and needs to support downtown improvements by addressing the needs of the lowincome neighborhoods surrounding downtown. f In Pike County, the town of Milford, population 1,100, has enlivened its economy by recasting itself as a cultural destination for weekend travelers and a ﬁrst or second home for lovers of the arts and outdoor recreation. Located two hours from New York, Milford has attracted a summer and fall chamber music series, a ﬁlm festival, sophisticated restaurants, public art, and a reputation for welcoming people of all sexual orientations. In 2004 the Mountain Laurel Center for the Performing Arts opened in the nearby town of Bushkill, bringing a lively summer music scene to the area. g 4. New Medical School Offers Care and Jobs: Scranton When the city of Scranton took stock of its community’s strengths and weaknesses, local leaders recognized the city’s shortage of doctors as a major challenge. Since Scranton lost a large number of doctors due to high insurance liability rates, the doctor shortage has caused residents of the Scranton area to spend $60 million annually on healthcare services outside of northeastern Pennsylvania. One projection has suggested that by 2020, the Scranton area will be 200,000 doctors short. With support from the State and Blue Cross of Northeastern Pennsylvania, Scranton is solving its healthcare problem by building a new downtown medical school that will open in the fall of 2009. Elected ofﬁcials, local doctors, and entrepreneurs jointly proposed the medical school idea to address the doctor deﬁcit , redevelop the city’s economy and bring in high paying jobs. Scranton leaders formed the Northeastern Pennsylvania Medical Education Development Consortium to plan the project with a $700,000 two-year feasibility study ﬁnanced by the state. The two year study, begun in 2004, found that a new medical school will bring over 400 new physicians to the area by 2025, and boost the local economy by bringing in 1,000 new jobs with an average salary of $68,000. The Medical College also will provide $46 million in new business to the Scranton area by 2015 in expansion of current businesses and in the start-up of new businesses. In October, 2006, Governor Rendell committed $35 million of Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program dollars for the school. Blue Cross’s generous contribution brought the total up to $60 million and Scranton’s leaders are assembling the additional $25 million needed. With support from the community, business and the state, Scranton is implementing a detailed action plan to transform a weakness into a strength. h While the medical school is still in the planning stages, evidence that Scranton can expect success can be seen in the city of Erie, which has already seen results from its medical institution, the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM), opened in 1993. The founding physicians started with the mission of training more primary-care physicians in response to local, regional, and national shortages. LECOM has 1,400 medical and pharmacy students, employs over 250 Erie County residents, and generates $62 million annually for the local economy. Residential development and retail growth have occurred because of LECOM, and doctors and pharmacists have stayed in the area to practice after completing their training. LECOM is now making another investment in Erie with its planned $31 million wellness center, and in 2006 offered an in-kind payment of $300,000 to Erie to help allay the city’s current ﬁscal crisis. i GOAL ONE: CHOOSE ONE ASSET-RICH REDEVELOPMENT AREA step one: identify key economic and physical assets 12

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Community Revitalization Desktop Guide

PA Community Revitalization Desktop Guide Table of Contents How To Attract High Impact Investment to Core Communities Goal One: Choose One Asset-Rich Redevelopment Area Interviews with Pennsylvania Mayors Goal Two: Prepare Redevelopment Area for Market Interviews with Developers who Have Invested in Pennsylvania Cities and Towns Goal Three: Welcome Investment Interviews with Developers who Have Invested in Pennsylvania Cities and Towns Goal Four: Apply Strategies That Work Conclusion

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