Schedule

Welcome to the 2026 PDC Conference in beautiful Erie Pennsylvania! It’s great to see you. The Registration Desk will be open from 11:00 AM-5:00 PM. Stop to pick up your name tag, conference program and swag bag.

The foundation for any revitalization effort is Safe, Clean & Green. Block watch concepts, crime prevention and clean-up programs are all explored. Creative ways to implement an environmentally friendly philosophy in your community is also explored in depth.

This CRA will be taught by Sam Pearson, PDC’s Healthy Communities Program Manager, Steve Ward, Scranton Tomorrow’s Safe, Clean, Green & Design Project Manager, and Bill Arrowood, PDC’s Field Services Specialist.

Bill Arrowood, PDC

This introductory session tailored to volunteers and new Main & Elm Street managers seeking to better understand how to effectively lead a revitalization organization. Topics will include vision and action strategy; approaches to revitalization; fundraising; roles of volunteers and staff; and resources available to support your efforts.

This session will be led by Bill Arrowood, PDC’s Field Services Specialist.

PDC Executive Director, Julie Fitzpatrick, will be joined by Deb Thompson, President & CEO of Strategy Solutions, Inc. for this year’s Leadership Forum for

All Hands On Deck: Steering Your Board Toward Excellence | This session will be drawing on the Standards for Excellence® framework. This dynamic workshop equips Main Street and Elm Street, community development and neighborhood revitalization board members and staff with practical best practices in governance — from clarifying board roles and fiduciary duties to building diverse, high-performing boards that drive organizational sustainability and community impact.

The Leadership Forum is specifically designed for local revitalization organization leadership and the elected or appointed members of municipal governing bodies and their advisory commissions, committees, councils.

Economic Transformation Cookbook and Tour: Combining Connectivity and Education to Help Communities Thrive in the Digital Economy

Attendees will tour former Corry hotel being rehabilitated as a digital economy career training center, data center, and co-working space with citywide gig fiber network hub. Attendees will be given an overview of the challenges and some of the solutions for making communities thrive in the digital economy. Attendees receive Corry project cookbook including challenges and solutions in bringing the city-wide gig fiber network and Corry Area Technology and Cyber Hub (CATCH) to life and the project’s projected economic impacts. Attendees will be invited to discuss their own projects and connect for potential replication altered to succeed in their communities.

The tour will be led by Chuck Gray, Director of Impact Corry and Dr. Matthew Platz with Corry Higher Education Council.

*This tour will require some easy walking with elevator and steps as options. Most of the walking is on flat and level ground.

Community Cycling in Erie

Learn about upcoming infrastructure plans, community cycling events, cycling culture, and the exciting Pay-What-You-Can bike repair Erie Bike Co-Op with Dave Tamulonis and Garrett Raszmann of BikeErie, Erie’s all volunteer bike advocacy nonprofit. This tour takes participants through Erie’s 2024 Cyclefest Slow Roll route to see the Bayfront, East Side, South Side, and West Side of Erie highlighting the best spots for cyclists in the City (and the areas of most potential).

Bikes and helmets will be available for Erie Bike Co-Op. Be sure to select the option to use a bike in the registration form. There is no charge for the use of the bike.

*The tour is of medium difficulty with some hills and a total distance of approximately 15 miles.

Joy of Play along the Bayfront

The Erie Downtown Partnership welcomes you to Erie with an evening of food and drinks at The Cove’s Tiki Patio with an option to add a ride on the Scallywags Pirate Ship for an added adventure.

To attend, please add this event when registering. Cost to attend is $30 and the additional Scallywags adventure is $25.

The Registration Desk will be open from 7:00 AM-5:00 PM. Stop to pick up your name tag, conference program and swag bag.

Emily Fetcko, CEO of the Erie Downtown Partnership, along with Mayor Daria S. Devlin will welcome attendees to Erie. Julie Fitzpatrick, ED of the PA Downtown Center will give an overview of the conference as attendees enjoy breakfast.

Stop by the Vendor Marketplace and see how exhibitors can help you with your Main and Elm Street initiatives.

1. “But Did You Ask Tho?” Creating A Small Business Development Program for All of Us with Rhonda Matthews and Kyra Taylor: Cities are seeing rapid growth in small business accelerators alongside rising entrepreneurship among minoritized communities, which account for 21 percent of U.S. employer businesses & nearly 44 percent of GDP. Despite this scale, many accelerators ignore the lived realities of these owners. This session examines how programs fail without a Sociological Entrepreneurship approach & outlines how to design small business supports grounded in community voice, lived experience, & shared decision-making.
2. From Renters to Revitalization: SSJNN’s Genesis Homeownership Program with Heather May Caspar and Kyle Blackmer: The Genesis Homeownership Program of the Sisters of St.  Joseph Neighborhood Network (SSJNN) turns long-term renters into first-time homeowners through affordable rentals, financial coaching, and intentional support. This session explores how Genesis addresses housing affordability, reduces blight, and strengthens neighborhood stability. Attendees will learn the program’s structure, outcomes, and replicable strategies, and leave with practical tools to adapt community-based homeownership pathways that support equitable, people-centered neighborhood revitalization.
3. What I Wish I’d Known as a First-Time Main Street Manager: 10 Boundary-Pushing Lessons for Turning Limited Capacity into Big Impact with Angie Urban: This session offers a candid look at the realities of leading a small Main Street program and how bold, high-impact work can still happen with limited resources. Drawing from experience in two Pennsylvania communities, the presenter shares ten lessons that help first-time and early-career managers prioritize effectively, build alignment, avoid burnout, and push boundary-breaking ideas forward.
4. Bridging Communities: Transforming the Bayfront Parkway to Advance Erie’s World Class Waterfront with Anna Frantz, Mayor Daria Devlin, and Brian McNulty: This session will discuss the transformative impact of the Bayfront Parkway Project, which is unfolding right outside the PDC conference. Speakers City of Erie Mayor Daria Devlin and PennDOT District 1 Executive Brian McNulty will discuss how this major transportation project will advance Erie’s vision of a world class waterfront, while utilizing a variety of features to improve multi-modal connections and create a more pedestrian friendly environment.
5. How Academic Institutions Can Drive Business Development: The NWPA Innovation Beehive Network with Chris Riggert and Josh Slaga: At the core of any thriving downtown are streets that function as signature public spaces. But when owned by state transportation agencies, their mandates for safety and capacity often conflict with downtown revitalization. This session explores the intersection of transportation engineering and placemaking to demonstrate how integrated approaches deliver Main Street priorities. Through example projects, attendees will learn key transportation planning concepts, context-sensitive design solutions, and actionable implementation steps for their communities.

Visit the Vendor Marketplace and get ready for a new experience!

Join Spud Marshall with My Creative Community for Co-Creating What Comes Next | A Collaborative Experience on How to Shape Your Downtown’s Future

** This isn’t your typical conference session or keynote. Instead of sitting and listening, you’ll be part of the experience — sharing stories, building on each other’s ideas, and leaving with real momentum on the issues that matter most to your community.

• Framing of Collective Story Harvest

• Story Tellers | 9 Sessions to include:
  • Small Town, Big Reach: Marketing Your Main Street When You Don’t Have a Marketing Department with Moriah Taylor | This high-energy crash course shows how Main Street Hanover amplified its voice, programs, and impact without a marketing team or agency. Attendees will learn how to craft clear messaging, maximize earned media, and turn everyday programming into compelling content that resonates with residents, businesses, and funders alike.
  • 5 Transformative Initiatives for Under $ 50k with Jim Wenger & Kyle Stauffer | We will share five transformative projects or strategies that can be implemented for less than $50,000.
  • Common Ground: Accessibility and Belonging in Community Green Spaces with Jonathan Desmarais and AJ Monsma | Community green spaces often serve as vital “third places”, connecting neighbors, supporting wellbeing, and strengthening local identity; but only when they are accessible to everyone. This session uses an accessibility assessment of Garfield Community Farm in Pittsburgh as a case study to explore a slow-moving, people-first approach to designing/improving green spaces. Attendees will learn how to enhance access and inclusion without sacrificing the culture, character, or community roots that make these places vibrant neighborhood assets.
  • Building Accessible New Housing in Pennsylvania’s Changing Industrial Heartland with Linda Nitch and Anita McKeever | Pennsylvania’s industrial heartland faces a growing mismatch between aging housing stock, rising construction costs, and community needs—driven partly by statewide underproduction of new homes and housing shortages in both large and small metropolitan areas. The state’s Housing Action Plan aims to increase supply, preserve existing units, and expand affordability and accessibility through coordinated strategies and measurable goals. This session offers a practical, step‑by‑step guide for practitioners seeking to build new accessible housing in industrial communities.
  • Rebranding Mayberry: Understanding Main Street Image, Identity, and Promotion for Changing Times with Alec Hersh | The Ardmore Business District Authority spent 20 years doing business as Ardmore Initiative. However, during that time, the needs and expectations of its stakeholders changed. In February 2026, they rebranded as “Downtown Ardmore District.” The biggest lesson learned was that a Main Street Program that cannot adequately promote itself cannot promote its businesses. Participants will be asked to think critically about the needs of their community and how their organizational identity can better suit them.
  • See It, Touch It, Believe It: Tactical Urbanism as the Fast Track to Community Buy-In with Peter Quintanila and Trajan Jones | Discover how Tactical Urbanism can turn big, intimidating infrastructure ideas into community‑supported successes. This session explores how quick, low‑cost pilot projects let residents “experience the future” before major investment—reducing fear, building trust, and generating real‑world data. Attendees will learn practical tools for designing pilots, measuring impacts, and converting temporary installations into long‑term improvements. Leave equipped with strategies to accelerate planning, strengthen public buy‑in, and unlock momentum for transformative projects.
  • Corner of Trail and Main: Strategies for Levering Trails in Your Community with Amy Camp | Trails contribute to more vibrant places, so why not find ways to get trail users into your downtown area? This session will explore similarities between the Main Street and Trail Town approaches and identify ways managers can orient their business districts toward trails. The session will include examples across Main Street’s Four-Point Approach (meaning: this conversation isn’t limited to design solutions). You’ll walk away with tangible ideas for cultivating a trail culture in your community!
  • Steering the Surge: Bold Governance for High-Impact Main Streets with Deb Thompson & Jacqui Catrabone | Don’t let your board drift! This highly interactive session empowers leaders to navigate the complexities of nonprofit governance with confidence. You’ll master essential legal duties, distinguish board leadership from staff operations, and align committee work with your strategic vision. Learn how to break the status quo, boost member engagement, and recruit a bold team capable of making waves in your downtown. Transform your governance into a powerful engine for Main Street success.
  • Creative Placemaking on Main Street with Sarah Merritt | Creative placemaking is more than public art or community festivals – it’s a strategic approach to community and economic development that centers local creativity, culture, and collaboration. This session will introduce participants to practical tools, funding opportunities, and real‑world examples that demonstrate how creative placemaking can strengthen Main Streets, support small creative businesses, and build more vibrant, connected communities across Pennsylvania.
• Lunch & Discussion
• Action Storming

1. 1:45-4:30 PM | Downtown Erie’s Waterfront: A Boat Tour Highlighting Waterfront Transformation with Anna Frantz: Hop aboard the Aquabus, the Port Authority’s “Water Taxi”, for a unique perspective on Erie’s rapidly transforming waterfront! This engaging boat tour will include stops at a variety of properties located along Erie’s rapidly changing bayfront, giving participants a unique glimpse our community’s vibrant waterfront district, its history and future. The tour includes guest speakers that focus on the evolving history and purpose of the waterfront to Erie’s economy, environmental and land use challenges, and practical realities of public waterfront access. Cost for mobile tour: $10    *Participants must be comfortable traveling by boat; some short walks involved.
2. 1:45-4:00 PM | Food Access: How Addressing Food Security Reshapes Main and Elm Streets with Heather May Caspar, Sisters of St. Joseph Neighborhood Network; Marcia Farrel, Bayfront East Side Taskforce; Erin Carey, Groundwork Erie; Laura Guncheon, BUILD CDC; Gretchen Kerr, Our West Bayfront: To address the issue of food access within specific, low-income neighborhoods within the City of Erie, neighborhood groups have worked with area partners to increase food access through several innovative approaches and structures. These include high-yield produce production through urban agriculture, a weekly farmers market that features produce from more than 10 local farms, and ‘Pay-What-You-Can’ market stands that pop up in neighborhoods across the City. * Easy walking, on and off bus.

Hands-on Workshop: Turning Tactical Urbanism Daydreams Into Reality with Sam Pearson & Bill Arrowood, PDC Staff

Interested in the concept of Tactical Urbanism, also known as pop-ups or demonstration projects? Have you heard about or even seen them, but wondered what was involved in actually pulling them off? This session will allow 10 people to take part in the moment it all comes together for a tactical urbanism intervention in downtown Erie being organized in conjunction with the PDC Conference. You will both learn about the preparation and planning required for temporary public space initiatives and get your hands dirty with the actual implementation on Monday afternoon of the conference in advance of our night on the town that evening. Be part of building the famed “better block” in a small way this summer! (Participants should wear comfortable shoes and clothing that could get paint on it or tears from carrying and moving unfinished wood and other raw materials. No construction experience or skills required, but willingness to do physical work is.)

1. Community-Driven and Transformational Strategies in Action with Mark Evans and Kyle Stauffer of Derck & Edson | Effective community engagement is the foundation for high impact and transformative downtown revitalization. We will highlight community engagement techniques that inform Community Transformation Strategies and have helped three Pennsylvania downtowns to clarify revitalization priorities and implementation plan objectives. These case studies will include: 1) community engagement exercises and survey types, 2) techniques for translating these insights into bold and compelling Community Transformation Strategies, and 3) tools for establishing implementation matrices and timelines.
2. Beyond the Beginning: Building Partnerships, Exploring Collaborations, and Increasing Capacity in a Real Estate Investment Cooperative with Renna Wrubleski and Vesta Silva | The beginning of a project is exciting and can have a lot of momentum. But once that first project is accomplished, how does an organization mature and expand? How do you empower and excite members beyond being a “new” idea? In this session, we explore the work of the Northwest Pennsylvania Investment Cooperative to build community partnerships and grow our membership as we enter our ninth year and launch our second real estate development project.
3. A Rising Tide Lifts All Boats: The Power of Partnerships and SCORP for Economic Development Through Outdoor Recreation with Janice Mullen | Pennsylvania’s Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP) emphasizes how outdoor recreation can be a driver of community and economic development. This panel will showcase successful projects from across the Commonwealth and examine how partnerships among businesses, government, and non‑profits can amplify impact. Learn how meet your community’s needs by aligning initiatives with SCORP priorities and leveraging shared strengths to expand recreation opportunities, stimulate investment, and advance broad‑based economic growth.
4. Placemaking: Using Murals to Transform Main Streets into SAFE Streets with Casey Corritore and Susannah Faulkner with Erie Arts & Culture | United Way’s Safer Walking Routes to School began in 2018 to ensure Erie students have a hazard free way to get to school. Erie Arts and Culture’s 2023 VIEWS Festival paired artists, building owners, and neighbors together to create vibrant murals that serve as a form of wayfinding and highlight the safest routes that students can use when walking between their home and school. Learn how organizations with shared community needs forged a meaningful collaboration.
5. How Academic Institutions Can Drive Business Development: The NWPA Innovation Beehive Network with Christopher Lantinen and Jacob Marsh | The NWPA Innovation Beehive Network is a collection of 5 universities and the regional library system, all of which provide free assistance to businesses throughout the region and its Main Street corridors. This collaborative spirit among traditional competitors has resulted in a key piece of Erie, PA’s revitalization. Meet members of the Beehive, hear about how they built their network, and discover how Northwest Pennsylvania academic institutions are fostering business growth.

1. “Someone Should Do Something About This” Reestablishing the Neighborhood with Rie Witherow | Tapping into ground up mutual aid networks and techniques often overlooked by nonprofits to reaffirm trust for them within their communities. The entanglement of perfection and bureaucracy often leads nonprofits to halt or stall work. Which creates distrust with their communities they’re serving. This session will explore ways of reintroducing nonprofit workers to their communities not as workers, but neighbors. Allowing for foundational trust and solutions to be more accessible.
2. Vacant to Vibrant: Imagine the Possibilities with Sarah O’Brien, Downtown Inc | Downtown York, PA didn’t just talk about being “investment-ready”—we proved it. This session dives into how Downtown York leveraged its Downtown Investment Guide and the Imagine the Possibilities Vacant Property Campaign to reframe vacant spaces as opportunities, tell a compelling and consistent downtown story, and directly support leasing outcomes. This session is ideal for downtowners looking to better align marketing with economic development, activate vacancies, and create tools that brokers, investors, and municipalities actually use.
3. Moving Past Planning: Turning Your Downtown Master Plan Into Action with Ben Levenger, Downtown Redevelopment | In this lecture, we will explore how Main Street programs can use their existing planning documents as powerful operational tools. Participants will learn how to synthesize multiple plans into a single action-focused roadmap, identify priority projects with the highest return on investment, and build realistic implementation strategies grounded in current capacity. Special emphasis will be placed on incremental progress, early wins, partnership building, and methods to maintain momentum even with limited resources.
4. What’s the Plan, Stan? Crafting a Redefining Preservation Plan to Revitalize Your Town with Matthew Falcone and Elizabeth Rairigh | How can a historic preservation plan reach non-traditional audiences and catalyze lasting revitalization? This session will discuss how the City of Erie, a Certified Local Government, worked in partnership with the Commonwealth’s State Historic Preservation Office and the Lakota Group to craft their APA award-winning Historic Preservation Plan. The Plan, Erie’s first, engages diverse sectors of the community to participate in preservation efforts of varying scales, stages, and budgets.
5. Understanding & Combatting Blight with Andy Walker and Bill Fontana | BLIGHT! It’s a confusing term. Both in the way it is defined and the in the way it is addressed…and by who. In this Keystone CORE Services (KCS) presentation, participants will be presented with both the perceptions and realities of BLIGHT. They will be able to see how the definition of blight has evolved over the last few decades here in PA, and how that evolution has  changed the way we  think about, and deal with, blight. Participants will also have the opportunity to become more aware of the various powers and capabilities of redevelopment authorities, land banks and community development non-profits as the partners that should cooperate to implement a blight remediation program. By the end of this session, the attendee should be better prepared to confront blight in their community, educate their board members on the topic and move forward with an organizational plan to deal with this all too persistent problem.

Downtown Erie Street Party

The PDC team will welcome you to Erie with an evening of fun with a street party in downtown Erie. The street party will offer an opportunity to see the work done during the tactical urbanism session earlier in the day. Enjoy fun, food and friends from 6-8 pm.

Stop by the registration desk if you are just checking or if you have any questions. The PDC Staff are here to assist!

Join fellow attendees for a delicious breakfast and general session.

Learn more about our conference exhibitors. They all have something unique to offer-perhaps something you didn’t know you needed!

These two mobile tours will explore Meadville and the Rt 6 Corridor. There is a cost of $20 for each tour which will include lunch.

1. Creative Community Development in Rural NWPA with Andy Walker and Renna Wrubleski | This two-hour mobile tour of downtown Meadville highlights creative rural community development and the partnerships that strengthen a thriving Main Street. Participants will explore community-driven real estate projects, focusing on cooperative models and adaptive reuse. A visit to the Meadville Market House will highlight innovative governance, funding, and small-business incubation. The next stop, Hatch Hollow, models a rural co working, arts, and entrepreneurship hub. The tour then concludes with an exploration of downtown placemaking initiatives—community greenspace, coordinated building murals—demonstrating how cross-sector collaboration enhances community vitality, with a catered outdoor lunch, weather permitting. *This is an outdoor walking tour with relatively flat terrain throughout.
2. Revolutionizing as Small, Rural Downtowns: A Route 6 Heritage Communities Mobile Workshop with Amanda Sissem and Melinda Meyer | This 4-hour off-site session includes bus travel to and short walking tours of Edinboro, Union City, and Corry, three small, rural Erie County communities revolutionizing their downtowns through small, strategic investments in placemaking, economic development, and infrastructure to support downtown recovery without largescale redevelopment. Attendees will learn from community leaders and partners how partnerships and utilization of local/regional assets and resources are being maximized to drive change.  *Combined distance of walking tours is one mile.

Stay local with this mobile tour highlight public art & murals in downtown Erie.

Public Art and Murals: Supporting Commercial Corridors and Key Neighborhood Assets with Heather May Caspar, Sisters of St. Joseph Neighborhood Network; Laura Guncheon, BUILD CDC; Marcia Farrell, Bayfront East Side Taskforce; Gretchen Kerr, Our West Bayfront; and Paul Hamilton, East Side Renaissance | In a 2022 article for Housing Matters, an Urban Institute Initiative with the Urban Institute, Caitlin Young writes, “When places experiencing blight or disinvestment are activated by art installations, they can become more frequented and valued.” That is, not only does public art encourage residents to better steward their public spaces, but also public art initiatives promote revitalization. This tour focuses on the impact of such placemaking strategies that increase neighborhood vitality and health and promote commercial development from the perspective of neighborhood groups working to revitalize core pockets within the city of Erie.

1. BID 101: the Basics of Business Improvement Districts with Larry Newman, Diamond City Partnership and Julie Fitzpatrick, PDC | What, exactly, is a business improvement district (BID) – and could it be the right tool for your community? PDC’s Julie Fitzpatrick, DCP’s Larry Newman, and a panel of Pennsylvania BID directors will explain how BIDs work and what goes into their creation and operation. Practitioners from a mix of program sizes and settings will provide real-life examples of Pennsylvania BIDs in action, and the session will conclude with audience questions for the panelists.
2. Activating Underused Spaces though Cleaning, Greening and Public Art with Jack Howell and Elyse Jurgen | This session shows how Cleaning, Greening, and Connecting can strengthen both downtowns and adjacent neighborhoods through small, visible, community‑driven projects. Participants will explore environmental opportunities—native gardens, pocket habitats, pollinator corridors—and see how local artists and interactive public art can activate overlooked parcels and connect people to shared history. Using a simple hands‑on exercise, attendees will identify low‑cost interventions that build volunteer pipelines, extend district identity, and create lasting place attachment.
3. Carbondale’s Heart & Soul: Memorializing Community Planning Through Art with Emily Arcaro and Alyssa Kelley | The City of Carbondale is a FHLBank of Pittsburgh Blueprint Community. This program helped to establish partnerships with crucial organizations in Carbondale for the purpose of revitalizing the community through collaboration and investing in local leadership. Carbondale Blueprint Community brought NeighborWorks of Northeastern Pennsylvania and Valley in Motion together for the 2025 Murals Project. The project is the result of successful community engagement, partnerships between organizations, and working with property owners and artists. Attendees will be guided to create their own community mural.
4. Leading Without Leverage with Kirsten Hubbard and Diane Chamberlin of Ghost Writer | Main Street managers are expected to spark change without traditional authority—leading beautification, coordinating large downtown events, encouraging extended business hours, and aligning many independent and diverse stakeholders. Leading with Leverage focuses on how to influence outcomes when you don’t control paychecks or policies. This fun, interactive session explores practical strategies for building trust, aligning interests, and moving initiatives forward through persuasion, partnership, and credibility—so you can lead meaningful change across your downtown without formal power.
5. Get Real Value from AI by Building Custom Assistants for Your Main / Elm Street Team with Ron Mattocks, Bull Moose Marketing | Most Main Street managers use AI for basic tasks but haven’t unlocked its full potential. This session demonstrates a custom AI assistant that analyzes performance reporting, then invites attendees to select a common challenge and watch a new assistant built live. Leave with a repeatable process and access to post-conference resources.

Visit vendors, catch up on emails, grab a coffee at the Constant Coffee Bar sponsored by Derck & Edson.

1. BID Directors Roundtable with Larry Newman | The BID Directors Roundtable is intended to serve as a facilitated forum for conference attendees who are currently involved in the management and operations of business improvement districts. Join this open discussion, share your experiences, and bring questions for your peers. This session will be facilitated by fellow BID practitioners.
2. Surfing the CRA Current: How Banks Propel Downtown Renewal with Jessica Firmstone with WesBanco Bank and Henry Pyatt and Nathan Culp of First Commonwealth Bank | Banks are required under the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) to meet the credit needs of the communities they serve, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. This session will explore how Main Street programs and local leaders can partner with financial institutions to align CRA goals with revitalization efforts, turning compliance into community transformation.
3. Humanizing the Night, a Vision for Safer, More Vibrant Cities Sectors: Nighttime is Crosscutting Through Sectors: Main Street, Arts, Placemaking, Community Engagement with Leni Schwendinger | Is your downtown “dead,” or overheated with nightlife conflict? In this poetic, provocative, and practical presentation, urban lighting and nighttime expert Leni Schwendinger reveals how creative illumination, paired with smart civic decisions, transforms cities after dark into safer, more vibrant, and more inclusive places. Drawing on global case studies from London to Myrtle Beach, Leni shows how nighttime design shapes public safety, community connection, health, and local economies, delivered with data, humor, and dazzling visuals.
4. Understanding Environmental Justice in Pennsylvania with Justin Dula and Elspeth Koehle | This session will explore the actions being taken in Pennsylvania around environmental justice and how they can help downtown organizations. The session will discuss the PennEnviroScreen mapping tool and how it can relate to downtown redevelopment. Knowing the community concerns and vulnerabilities can help downtown organizations better engage nearby communities. Session participants will come out of the session with a better understanding of environmental justice and a greater awareness of tools to help reach community members.
5. Winning the Grant – Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), EDA, USDA-RD and More with Jennifer Lench | Jennifer Lasser | This workshop will focus on the federal grant opportunities for Pennsylvania attendees including ARC, EDA, USDA-RD and more. We will have a representative from the state office of the ARC and 1-2 speakers from the Local Development Districts that will talk about regional and local grant opportunities.

Lunch on your own in downtown Erie-lunch options will be shared! A bus will run from the Bayfront Convention Center to and from town for your convenience.

Julie Fitzpatrick with PDC and Christie Yerger and Kyle Bailey with DCEC will facilitate discussion regarding Main and Elm Streets. The meeting will also include presentations from guest speakers.

A snack break will be provided to enjoy a few refreshments and a view of the bayfront.

This your chance to enjoy one last mobile tour of downtown Erie. Cost for this tour is $30.

The World in Our Backyard: Tour Erie’s Refugee Owned Markets with Kelly Armor, Eire Arts & Culture and Niken Carpenter | Discover Erie’s rich cultural diversity with Erie Arts and Culture’s Ethnic Market Tours. Erie has a large percentage of resettled refugees, many of whom are entrepreneurs. Ethnic Market Tours offer an insider’s look at some of Erie’s ethnic markets owned by New Americans. Experience the flavors, stories, and traditions that make our community unique! Our guides will introduce you to a handful of local businesses—some established, some new—that showcase the rich cultural diversity of our city. Learn about the journeys of these entrepreneurs, taste the ethnic flavors, shop for unique products, and support local businesses while enjoying a rich cultural experience.

1. Sparking Brilliance in a World of Unpredictability with Jay Jayamohan, Harrisburg University | Discover how creativity, emerging technologies, and breakthrough innovations are revolutionizing main street businesses. This high-impact session equips C-level leaders with the insights and foresight needed to drive smarter, and measurable growth—unlocking competitive advantage and future-proofing their organizations in an increasingly dynamic and emerging technology environment. Make your organization a serial innovator by building innovation muscles. Participants will leave with actionable frameworks to spark innovation and lead transformative change.
2. Recognizing the Possibilities: Unlocking the Potential of Existing Buildings Through Adaptive Reuse with David Brennan and Danielle Mihna of Bostwick Design | Explore opportunities, community benefits, and economic value of adaptive reuse in existing buildings. Showcase how reinvesting in our architectural heritage preserves community character while preparing for future growth. In addition to highlighting successful examples of adaptive reuse, we will discuss how to identify promising candidates for renovation—examining the physical, economical and historical characteristics that make a building suitable for transformation. The conversation will offer practical guidance on recognizing the untapped potential within our built environment.

Take a quick break between sessions to enjoy a few refreshments and a view of the bayfront before heading into your second afternoon session.

1. A Comprehensive Approach to Downtown & Corridor Revitalization: From Vision to Implementation with Paul Roszak and J Brown of Verantas | Communities are investing in strategies that create resilient, connected, and economically vibrant downtowns. This session presents a proven four‑step revitalization methodology—Master Planning, Financial Planning, Design & Engineering, and Implementation that equips communities to turn vision into actionable, fundable, and buildable outcomes. Drawing from successful placemaking projects, this session illustrates how communities can strengthen identity, enhance public realm experiences, and leverage strategic investments to stimulate long‑term economic vitality.
2. Historic Tax Credits on Main Street: Unlocking Impact at Every Scale with Cindy Hamilton, Heritage Consulting and Joshua Lavrinc | Historic Tax Credits (HTCs) are versatile tools for revitalizing Main Street through projects of all sizes. This panel explores how HTCs can drive community-based development, preserve local character, and activate underutilized buildings. Panelists will share real-world examples, innovative deal structures, and partnerships that make these incentives accessible, showing how HTCs can strengthen downtowns, support economic resilience, and foster preservation-driven growth.

Stop by the Vendor Marketplace to catch any of those exhibitors you may have missed during your last visit.

Get gussied up for the big event, the Townie Award Ceremony!

Join your fellow changemakers to celebrate their successes during the Townie Award Dinner. A cocktail reception will be from 5:00-6:00 PM with a cash bar. Enjoy a drink and a view of the bayfront before doors open for the Townie Award Dinner at 6:00 PM.

Last call for conference attendees. Check in and get your name tag, conference program and swag bag.

Bring you yoga mat and enjoy a morning of movement and stretching before starting the day. DEP does a weekly yoga class at Dobbins Landing adjacent to the Bayfront Sheraton.

Get the day started with breakfast and a presentation.

Last visit to gather information from our exhibitors in the Vendor Marketplace.

1. DCED Overview with Christie Yerger and Kyle Bailey, DCED | Join us for an introduction to the Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development (DCED) with an overview of several funding programs relevant to community and economic development professionals. In this session you will also learn some tricks and tips for using the agency’s Electronic Single Application System. Wheater you are new to your position and wondering where to begin looking for funding opportunities or just need a refresh, the session will provide some guidance on how best to engage DCED staff to stay connected with everything the agency has to offer.
2. Rewiring Local Economies – A Replicable Capital-to-Careers Case Study: Using Digital Infrastructure and Education to Drive Community Recovery with Chuck Gray, Impact Corry, Matt Platz and Seth Trott, Dentons Cohen & Grigsby| Corry project partners Charles Gray and Matt Platz will share universal gig fiber and technology training center builds. Gray and Platz will share the numerous solutions to legal, community, and funding challenges to project completion. New Market Tax Credit Program Manager at Commonwealth Cornerstone Group/PHFA Wendy Gessner will share policies and processes for New Market Tax Credit funding. Attorney Seth Trott, Dentons Cohen & Grigsby will share legal insight into Pennsylvania’s 63/20 Tax Incentives.
3. “Hey Lil Mama Lemme Whisper in Ya Ear” Telling Imposter Syndrome to Shut the F*ck Up with Dr. Rhonda Matthews, Erie’s Black Wall Street | This confidential, interactive, workshop explores how systemic racism, sexism, & ableism show up in workplace culture & fuel “imposter syndrome” for women, femmes, & people of color. Through discussion, case studies, & reflection, participants will unpack internalized doubt, name harmful dynamics, & build practical strategies for advocacy, resilience, & self-trust. The session creates space to silence the voices that question belonging & identify confidence, power, & authenticity in professional environments.
4. Making the Numbers Work for Downtown Housing with Emily Brown, Adam Hartwig & Mike Pehur | Downtown housing reinforces Main Street’s 4-point Approach, driving economic growth while preserving and maintaining historic buildings. The new Pennsylvania Housing Action Plan signals a renewed policy focus on housing development at the state level. Yet, the gap between implementation and buildout in downtowns will depend on familiarity with the “numbers” that unlock zoning changes, building code hacks, and innovative financing. This workshop will teach downtown leaders the numbers they need to make housing development happen.
5. The Behavioral Blueprint: Unleashing the People Power That Drives Main Street with Amanda Kochia and Elizabeth Cipolla | Most Main Street organization challenges aren’t about strategy they’re about people. This session shows leaders how to understand the individual behavioral wiring behind every staff member, board member, and volunteer. Learn how Influence, Sociability, Pace, and Structure shape how people communicate, make decisions, handle pressure, and move revitalization work forward. When you understand what makes people tick, you can reduce burnout, eliminate friction, and unlock the human power your downtown needs to thrive.

Join us for the closing lunch and special message from Erin Barnes, President and CEO of Main Street America.

Julie Fitzpatrick, PDC will offer a farewell message and reveal the 2027 location!