Join Neighborworks at the West Scranton Fall Festival This year, NeighborWorks Northeastern Pennsylvania is excited to present the West Scranton Fall Festival in collaboration with the City of Scranton! This two-part event is FREE to the public and will be held on Saturday, October 22! The first part of the festival will be at Clover Field (400 W Locust St, Scranton) from noon to 3pm. There will be food, bounce houses, children’s activities, and entertainment! The second part will be at Allen Park (corner of North Main Avenue and Price Street) from 6-9pm. There will be live music, smores, hot chocolate, and more! El Buen Amigo and Paradise Soul Food & Sweets are among the food vendors that will be at Clover Field. Grupo Zona and Jack Bordo & Jim Cullen, joined by Sharon Ambrozia, will be playing music at Allen Park. More details to come.
West Scranton Hometown Heroes Banner Program Open for Applications Applications are now being accepted for the first full cycle of the Hometown Heroes banner program, an initiative jointly sponsored by NeighborWorks Northeastern Pennsylvania and the West Scranton Neighbors Association. The Hometown Heroes program seeks to honor current and former members of the U.S military who have a connection to West Scranton. Banners will be hung along both Main Avenue, as well as Luzerne Street, in the Spring of 2022. Family members wishing to honor a loved one for their military service can obtain an application by vising www.nwnepa.org, or by visiting the NeighborWorks Northeastern Pennsylvania office at 815 Smith Street, Scranton, PA 18504. The office is open Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. To complete an application, family members must submit a paper copy of the application form to the office, and also provide a photo of the veteran in military uniform, as well as proof of honorable discharge (a DD Form 214 is preferred.) A cost of $250 per banner is assessed for printing and hanging; a check or money order for the full amount (payable to NeighborWorks Northeastern Pennsylvania) must accompany each application at time of submission. Banners will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis, and will be available until all spots are filled. The Hometown Heroes banner program was initiated in West Scrantonby a project group from the Leadership Lackawanna Core Program Class of 2021, who organized an initial run of 30 banners. This project is part of the West Scranton Neighborhood Plan, a 10-year strategy for revitalizing West Side. NeighborWorks released the plan in the fall of 2020 and is currently leading its implementation. Anyone interested in participating in the Hometown Heroes program is asked to contact Deborah DeFazio, NeighborWorks Northeastern Pennsylvania Front Desk Operations, at (570) 558-2490 or ddefazio@nwnepa.org.
NeighborWorks West Scranton Neighborhood Plan Wins Award NeighborWorks Northeastern Pennsylvania’s West Scranton Neighborhood Plan was recognized by the Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Planning Association at its annual conference and awards luncheon in Pittsburgh on October 19, 2021. NeighborWorks’ West Scranton Neighborhood Plan was one of just three plans to receive an award. According to the judges, “The plan achieves its essential purpose. Its thoughtful organization and graphics appeal to a wide range of users and the size and scope allow for implementation.” “It is an honor to receive this award not just on behalf of NeighborWorks but all the people and organizations who were involved in developing our West Scranton Neighborhood Plan, especially the residents,” said NeighborWorks’ n eighborhood re vitalization manager, Todd Pousley. “ From the beginning, we set out to develop a resident-driven plan that reflects the ideas and priorities of the people who live and work in West Scranton, and we accomplished that with the help of a 26-person steering committee. We can’t wait to put the plan into action!” The West Scranton Neighborhood Plan, a 10-year strategy for revitalizing West Side, was released in the fall of 2020 and is now being implemented by NeighborWorks and its community partners. WRT—an architecture, planning, and design firm based in Philadelphia—assisted with development of the plan, which was funded by the Regional Foundation (formerly the Wells Fargo Regional Foundation).
