Small Business Cash Mob Scheduled For Downtown Pottstown

The Pottstown Buy Local Committee invites you to kick-off your LOCAL holiday shopping by joining us for

A POTTSTOWN CASH MOB – Hometown Holiday Style

It’s the perfect time of year to re-establish your dedication to the Pottstown community by embracing the importance of shopping locally FIRST whenever possible!Pottstown has some great small businesses that are striving to become established and/or continue to grow, but they cannot do it without us – their neighbors and their friends!

To participate in this Cash Mob, please visit the PDIDA office located at 17 N. Hanover Street (Pottstown Downtown Improvement District Authority) at the beginning of your shopping (any time from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm) to receive your “Shop Local” cash mob sticker, a map of the Downtown Pottstown Shopping District and detailed instructions on how to play Buy Local’s “Where In The World is Captain Buy Local and Small Biz” game while you shop throughout downtown Pottstown! (There will be prizes!!) When you are finished with your cash mob shopping, please return your game entry with the approximate amount of money spent by you and your family during the Cash Mob to either the PDIDA office or Grumpy’s – 137 East High Street, Pottstown, PA.

*Special offers and holiday treats will be offered to Cash Mob participants throughout the day by various merchants.

**Captain Buy Local and his trusty sidekick Small Biz will be popping in throughout the day to check in on progress of the holiday Cash Mob!!

For more details on holiday events offered in the Downtown Pottstown Shopping District, including the very cool Hometown Holiday Raffle, please visit:www.facebook.com/pdida.pottstown

PS – SPREAD THE WORD!! The Pottstown Buy Local Committee encourages you to invite all of your local friends and family to join in on the “cash mob” fun in Pottstown on Small Business Saturday, November 24, 2012!

‘Hometown Holiday’ Turns Season Green In Pottstown

POTTSTOWN, PA — There’s a lot of money to be made, a lot of money to be spent and a lot of money to be won in downtown Pottstown this year as part of the “Hometown Holiday Celebration” planned by the Pottstown Downtown Improvement District Authority.

The money to be made and spent obviously involves shopping in local stores, but you probably want to know more about how the money can be won.

Well, there are two ways.  The first is an innovative raffle idea called “Five at $25.”

For $25, shoppers buy a raffle ticket at selected locations and spend $25 in four different participating downtown stores. Return the raffle ticket to the PDIDA offices on North Hanover Street with receipts attached and you’re eligible to win three prizes — $2,000, $1,000 and $500 in gift cards.

Read more:  http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20121119/NEWS01/121119369/-hometown-holiday-turns-season-green-in-borough

Pottstown Hometown Holiday Celebration 2011 Events

Here is a breakdown of this year’s Pottstown Hometown Holiday Celebration events:

Sunday, November 27th – Noon until 4pm

Crafters at the Farmer’s Market and face painting for the kiddies

Decorating downtown, starting at the Santa House at Smith Plaza

Free Trolley Rides throughout the day

December 2nd – 6:30pm until 9:30pm

Santa comes downtown at 6:30pm  (photos with Santa are $7)

Candy toss

Tree lighting

Carol sing with Barbershop Quartet

Storytime sponsored by the Pottstown Regional Public Library every half hour starting at 7:00pm – TANGO 139 High Street

Face painting at Memories N More

Coloring at Argento’s

December 10th – noon until 4pm

Santa House open

Crafters at the Farmer’s Market

Face painting at Memories N More

Coloring at Argento’s

Storytime at TANGO 139 High Street – every half hour

Free Trolley Rides

December 18th – noon until 4pm

Hometown Holiday Brunch – Farmer’s Market and Juan Carlo’s.  Reservations!  To buy tickets call (610) 323-5400 by December 12th!

Santa House open

Crafters at Farmer’s Market

Face painting at Memories N More

Coloring at Argento’s

Storytime at TANGO, 139 High Street – every half hour

The following shops will be open from noon until 4pm on 11/27, 12/10 and 12/18:

Grumpy’s, J&H Produce, Freeland Meat Market, Cole’s Tobacco, Tri-PAC, Rich Renieri, Argento’s Pizza, Laserworks, Weitzenkorn’s, High Street Music, Christian Science Reading Room, The Brick House, Flaming Franks, Bistro 137, Old World Barber and Company Cakes.

Pottstown’s Funky Santa Individual 5K & 3-Person Relay 5K

Funky Santa Individual 5K & 3-Person Relay 5K
Sunday, December 4th, 2011 – 9:15 A.M.
Montgomery County Community College – 101 College Drive, Pottstown, PA

Race will be held Rain, Snow, Sleet or Shine!
Multiple race divisions for teams and individuals!
Great holiday fun with family and friends … make a day of it during the Pottstown Hometown Holiday Celebration!!!
Prizes for the best holiday dressed or festive costumes.

More Information: http://www.pottstown.org/PDF/funk-santa-5k-relay.pdf

REGISTER ONLINE AT:

www.makebreak.com

 

Pottstown’s Hometown Holiday Charity Ball

By now many of you have seen the advertisements for Pottstown’s Hometown Holiday Celebration.  One component of this month-long celebration is a Christmas Costume Ball for charity.  The event will benefit PMMC’s pre-natal clinic.  The ball will be held at the Elk’s and there are only 225 tickets being offered for $40 per person or $70 per couple.

This all sounds wonderful and certainly donating to charity is always great.  The Borough of Pottstown made a $4000 donation to help defray the cost of entertainment.  An 11 piece band has been hired for the event.

The borough’s donation was made using money from Pottstown Area Rapid Transit’s promotions line item in their budget.  This was done at the discretion of the Borough Manager and did not go before council.  Councilor Rhoads asked about this at last night’s Committee of the Whole meeting as councilors were unaware of this donation when contacted before the meeting.

I am wondering how this donation promotes Pottstown Area Rapid Transit?  Do we expect to gain new riders for PART from those attending the ball?  Are there not better ways to have used this money to encourage people to “Take PART”?  A few well placed ads in the Mercury would have reached more people.  I suppose the other thing that puzzles me is why this money was not used toward the Pottstown 4th of July celebration that tens of thousands of area residents enjoy each year?  Would we not have gotten more “bang for our buck”, if we are trying to promote PART, at a huge event rather than a ball for 225 people?

If our goal was not necessarily to promote PART, but rather to give to charity, should this money have come from another source?  Hint: Tom Hylton likes to donate money.

$4000 is a blip on the transit budget for PART.  However, considering the fact the economy is trashed and we keep raising taxes and fees for services, should we not be better stewards of public funds? 

Public figures are just that, public figures.  People watch the decisions you make and follow your example.  Food for thought: Was this donation the best use of money from the transit budget?  You may want to consider that possibility if a similiar situation arises in the future.

Pottstown Area Holiday Happenings – This Weekend

Image via Wikipedia

“A Christmas Carol – The Musical” opens Friday, December 3rd at the Tri-County Performing Arts Center in downtown Pottstown.  For more information click on this link http://www.tripac.org

Daniel Boone Middle School 29th Annual Holiday Craft Show runs this Saturday and Sunday, December 4th and 5th from 9 am to 3 pm both days.  Parking and admission are FREE!!  For more information http://www.danielbooneoptimist.com

Glick’s Greenhouse, Once Upon A Holiday poinsettia show.  December 3rd (9-9), 4th (9-5) and 6th (9-9).  More info at http://www/glicksgreenhouse.com

Christmas at Joanna Furnace, December 3rd & 4th, 6 pm – 9 pm, December 5th, 6pm – 8 pm.   A Victorian Christmas celebration.  Click on http://www.haycreek.org/christmas_at_joanna.htm for more information.

Schuylkill Valley Regional Dance Company presents The Nutcracker, December 5th at 2 pm at the Hill School Center for the Arts.  Tickets are $20.00 for adults and $15.00 for students.  Tickets are available online at www.danceboxoffice.com For further information please call SVRDC at 484-941-0683 or visit our website at www.svrdc.org

Pottstown Hometown Holiday Celebration, starts today, December 3rd at 6 pm and continues every Friday in December.  For more information on all the free family fun click here:  http://www.downtownpottstown.org/