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With funding from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, and Main Street America (c), Downtown Lewistown, Inc. applied for and received a grant from the Equitable Entrepreneurship Ecosystem in Rural Main Streets Grant Program to develop a website designed by and for entrepreneurs. This trial Program included only 30 communities in the United States with support from our statewide affiliate, the Pennsylvania Downtown Center and local partners: the Juniata River Valley Chamber of Commerce and Mifflin County Industrial Development Corporation, with DLI as local coordinator. Check it out here: http://jrvbusinesshub.com  

Downtown Lewistown, Inc., an accredited Main Street America© Community, seeks your input on a range of downtown perceptions and impressions to help guide our work. Your responses are invaluable in shaping the future of downtown. This survey should take approximately 6-8 minutes. https://forms.office.com/r/stmqfPDYbK Thank you for your comments intended to further improve the downtown and Greater Lewistown Area community.

The local economic development partnership between Downtown Lewistown, Inc. (DLI) and the Mifflin County Industrial Development Corporation (MCIDC) secured $375,082 in PA Department of Community & Economic Development tax credits for PA Insulating Glass’s manufacturing facility in the Mifflin County Industrial Development Corporation Plaza located in Granville Township. The tax credit award leveraged a minimum $1.5 million in new investment including a new tempering oven, equipment, facility improvements, and utility upgrades that allowed for capacity expansion at the Pennsylvania facility. The investment also resulted in the creation of an additional 5 full-time family sustaining local jobs. These public securities are a part of a cumulative $1,083,534 in tax credits provided to four companies in the Greater Lewistown Area investing a minimum $9,237,741, and translating to an 8.5 to 1 return…

The local economic development partnership between Downtown Lewistown, Inc. (DLI) and the Mifflin County Industrial Development Corporation (MCIDC) secured $196,452 in PA Department of Community & Economic Development tax credits for Clayton Lewistown’s manufactured home facility in the Mifflin County Industrial Park located in Granville Township. The tax credit award leveraged a minimum $785,807 in new investment including new equipment, facility improvements, and HVAC upgrades that allowed for capacity expansion at the Pennsylvania facility. The investment also resulted in the creation of an additional 25 full-time family sustaining local jobs. These public securities are a part of a cumulative $1,083,534 in tax credits provided to four companies in the Greater Lewistown Area investing a minimum $9,237,741, and translating to an 8.5 to 1 return on investment while generating a minimum…

We have been awarded an opportunity to participate in a state and national undertaking with our partners at the PA Downtown Center and Main Street America to bolster our entrepreneurial network! The first phase of this initiative invites business owners to complete a survey assessing both positive attributes and potential stumbling blocks encountered by business owners locally. We encourage you to be forthright with your responses as these are anonymous and not identified by any associated specific reference. Deadline for return of responses is Friday, April 19 with a review of the survey results and discussion of next steps to be held beginning at 9:00 a.m. in the Mifflin County Annex, 101 West Third Street Lewistown. Link to the survey here: Copy and paste into your browser. https://nationalmainstreet.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5oOQZoE4EUtGMFE

A $4,881 matching facade grant reimbursement from the PA Department of Community & Economic Development (DCED) and Downtown Lewistown, Inc. was awarded toward rehabilitation of a formerly vacant building at 110 Valley Street in the Five Points/East End Neighborhood. The landmark building at the intersection of East Third and Valley Street, owned by Jeff & Bobby Real Estate now houses the dispatch office of Landstar Inway.The building received major upgrades inside and out with the reimbursement grant helping to fund the cleaning of the brick exterior, followed by painting of the facade and placement of three canvas awnings supplied by Mid-State Awning of Bellefonte.Bobby Hammond, co-owner, added that "It is incredibly exciting to partake in a renovation project within the confines of Lewistown Borough. Special thanks to Jim Zubler and…

A $5,000 facade grant reimbursement from the PA Department of Community & Economic Development (DCED) and Downtown Lewistown, Inc. (DLI) was awarded for upgrades to a multi-tenant building at 130 East Market Street/131 South Plaza Drive in the redevelopment area of downtown. Flanking the west side of the South Plaza Mall Area, the building now owned by Equity Trust Company fbo: Michael A. Buffington IRA houses Families United Network (FUN) in the East Market Street front with two new businesses, Morgan Chiropractic, and a self-serve location for Reedsville Creamery recently relocating to rehabilitated space along the Mall Area and South Plaza Drive elevation respectively. The building received major upgrades to the existing overhead canopies, masonry cleaning, window painting, lighting improvements and security enhancements. In partnership with Lewistown Borough, DLI coordinated…

A $2,719 facade grant reimbursement, from the PA Department of Community & Economic Development, was provided to East End Coffee Company, 18 East Market Street, in the heart of the downtown. The storefront received improvement in the form of an awning recovering and painting of the two-story masonry structure. In partnership with Lewistown Borough, Downtown Lewistown, Inc. conducted an inspection of the property outlining work to ensure exterior code requirements were met. Following an assessment by the DLI Design Committee made up of community residents, the contractors; Mid-State Awning and Crossiette Painting & Repair completed the work. Ryan Cherry, co-owner, added "Downtown Lewistown, Inc. was extremely accommodating of our timeline for completion of the facade work, flexible with finding the right contractors for our project and the design application process…

Small businesses everywhere have needed to adapt to meet their customers needs and desires during the global pandemic but have these changes/adaptations resulted in greater visitations by you and your family? Think about your experiences in the past and during the previous year to determine how your behaviors may have been impacted by taking this simple survey measuring the downtown and its environs. Copy and paste link if having trouble opening directly. https://reporting.padowntown.org/forms/current-perceptions-of-downtown-Lewistown Thank you for your feedback.

A Public meeting to receive input regarding submission for re-designation as a Pennsylvania Keystone Community will be held Tuesday, June 30, 5:00 to 6:30, in the Stevens Room (lower level) at First United Methodist Church at the corner of North Dorcas and East Third Street (enter from the North Dorcas Street side). This meeting will be an Open House format to allow for greater social distancing with a drop-by type of interaction. In addition, proper masking measures will be in place to protect all attendees. A follow-up meeting to be held later this summer will report out responses and ideas. All are invited and encouraged to attend.