‘Great Momentum’ Behind Downtown Hazleton Revitalization

Downtown Hazleton, PA (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A team that will develop a plan for the future of downtown Hazleton is working on a similar downtown revitalization project in Hershey.

With a $30 million streetscape project nearing completion on Broad Street and a private-public partnership funneling millions into the restoration of the Markle and Trader’s Bank buildings, a project manager and architect who will develop a 10-year blueprint for downtown Hazleton said at a revitalization kickoff reception Thursday that the city has plenty of positives to build upon.

“There’s great momentum and we want to harness that momentum and set a vision,” said Christopher J. Brown, a project manager with Derck & Edson, a firm that specializes in improving downtowns, college campuses and athletic venues.

Brown spoke about plans for the downtown at a revitalization kickoff reception at the Markle hosted by the Downtown Hazleton Alliance for Progress.

Read more: http://standardspeaker.com/news/great-momentum-behind-downtown-revitalization-1.1686744

New Economic Study Points To Rapid Growth In Downtown Pittsburgh

English: Downtown Pittsburgh (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

When it comes to economic and residential growth, the Golden Triangle has had the golden touch in recent years, with almost $800 million in development under construction and about twice that much planned.

A study released on Thursday predicts that trend will continue with explosive development of apartments, hotels and retail and high-end office space in Pittsburgh’s Greater Downtown, including the Triangle, North Shore, South Shore, Uptown, the Bluff and near Strip District as far northeast as 31st Street.

“We’re only experiencing the beginning of Downtown’s transformation,” said Jeremy Waldrup, president and CEO of the Downtown Partnership.

The partnership produced the study, which looked at economic indicators in several key areas to evaluate Downtown’s vitality. It gave the results in a presentation at Union Trust Building — itself a symbol of Downtown’s revitalization.

Read more: http://triblive.com/news/adminpage/6115943-74/downtown-percent-partnership#ixzz31tEGYvVi
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New Partnership Between Revs, York City Gives Employees Incentive To Live Downtown

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting York County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In Eric Menzer’s 27 years of living in York City, he said there’s never been a better time to have a downtown business.

As the York Revolution’s president and general manager, Menzer said he and the 7-year-old baseball team aren’t going anywhere.

And he wants the same for his employees.

That’s why the team partnered with the city to offer its employees incentives for buying homes downtown.

Read more: http://www.yorkdispatch.com/breaking/ci_25775906/new-partnership-between-revs-york-city-gives-employees

Urban Strategist To York County Community Foundation: Stakes High For City

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting York County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Blame the millennials.

Those gadget-wielding young people born in the 1980s and 1990s are the reason America’s real-estate market seems, well, a bit confused.

After decades of suburban sprawl designed to accommodate the nation’s love affair with its cars, millennials and “the creative class” want something else — a walkable place to live, said Christopher Leinberger, an urban strategist and researcher who visited York this week.

That demand for urban life — where people can live, work and play within a relatively small geographic area — is both driving and slowing the economic recovery these days, Leinberger said.

Read more: http://www.yorkdispatch.com/news/ci_25776014/design-future

Man Hospitalized After Wilkes-Barre Shooting

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Luzerne County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

WILKES-BARRE, PA — A man was hospitalized after being shot on Hutson Street on Thursday morning, setting off a search for a gunman.

The suspect was still at large late Thursday. Police described the suspect as a 6-foot tall male, possibly wearing glasses, with tattoos on his neck. Police warned he was armed and dangerous.

The victim went to Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center, Plains Township, and his injuries weren’t life-threatening, according to the city police Facebook page.

Read more: http://citizensvoice.com/news/man-hospitalized-after-w-b-shooting-1.1686693

Darden Announces Sale Of Red Lobster For $2.1B

NEW YORK (AP) — Darden Restaurants says it will sell its Red Lobster chain to investment firm Golden Gate Capital in a $2.1 billion cash deal.

The company, which also owns Olive Garden, had announced late last year that it planned to either spin off or sell Red Lobster to improve its financial performance.

Both Olive Garden and Red Lobster have been losing customers in recent years, and the company has tried various menu changes and differentmarketing campaigns in hopes of winning back business.

Read more: http://www.pottsmerc.com/general-news/20140516/darden-announces-sale-of-red-lobster-for-21b