Main Street Matters Designation
Pottsville's Application Has Been Submitted
PADCO has officially submitted Downtown Pottsville's application for Main Street Matters designation to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED). This milestone caps more than a year of public engagement, market research, and strategic planning aimed at revitalizing our historic downtown.
PADCO is a proud affiliate member of Main Street America, a program of the National Main Street Center that has supported the revitalization of older and historic commercial districts nationwide for over 40 years.
Built on Community Input
Pottsville's application is grounded in real public feedback, not guesswork. Over the course of the planning process, PADCO and the City gathered input through:
A community perception survey - 1,308 responses, about 10% of the population
Three public meetings (November 3, November 17, and December 1, 2025) engaging nearly 50 to 75+ residents, business owners, and stakeholders per session
A presentation to Pottsville City Council on January 5, 2026, met with strong community and municipal support
What We Heard
Downtown's strengths:
Nearly 80% of respondents value Pottsville's historic architecture, and over 60% call downtown charming - a strong foundation for the Main Street Design pillar
Downtown is highly accessible, with over 70% citing safe street crossings and convenient highway access
Nearly 58% feel safe downtown during the day
Close to half of respondents find downtown prices affordable
Opportunities for growth:
Business mix and vacancy - only about a quarter of respondents feel downtown has the right mix of businesses, pointing to a need for targeted recruitment and storefront activation
Evening activity - 46% say downtown isn't vibrant at night, a key opportunity to build a 24-hour downtown economy
Public realm - over half want more places to sit, gather, and enjoy green space
Branding and identity - 44% feel downtown isn't well marketed, and 41.5% say it lacks a clear, identifiable logo or brand
Upper-floor housing - 46% see a gap in attractive second-floor housing, signaling strong potential for residential redevelopment
Blight, business attraction, and green space consistently emerged as top community priorities across the public meetings.
Our Transformative Strategies
Pottsville's Main Street Matters plan is built around three transformation strategies, representing roughly $41.5 million in five-year investment activity (committed funding, applied-for grants, and targeted private investment). Together, they aim to activate vacant spaces, strengthen economic vitality, enhance the public realm, build a recognizable downtown identity, and create a more vibrant, 24-hour downtown.
Strategy 1: Rebuild Downtown Pottsville as a County and Regional Economic Hub
Downtown Pottsville's revitalization begins with reestablishing it as the region's economic engine. PADCO, the City, and the Pottsville Business Association will implement coordinated business recruitment and expansion strategies, encourage entrepreneurial development, and leverage PADCO's certified economic development agency status to access direct state and federal funding. This strategy represents the largest single share of five-year investment in the plan and is carried out through three goals:
Make Pottsville the region's most business-friendly community, through streamlined permitting guidance, integrated city management software, recurring workshops for business owners, and initiatives to improve downtown safety and the business climate
Support entrepreneurial investment, business growth, and creative economy sectors, by expanding entrepreneurship and mentorship programs, building a private funding endowment for small business and redevelopment, and connecting landlords with prospective tenants
Leverage PADCO's certified economic development agency status to expand grant access, through structured grant roundtables that align partner organizations around shared projects and pursue state, federal, and regional funding sources
Strategy 2: Reinforce Downtown's Historic Character and Overall Appeal
Downtown's built environment is one of Pottsville's greatest assets. This strategy prioritizes reinforcing the district's historic architecture while improving safety, cleanliness, and pedestrian appeal, representing an estimated $5.2 million in five-year investment. It is carried out through two goals:
Win the fight on blight, by adopting a countywide blight mitigation plan, strengthening vacancy registration and code enforcement, pursuing targeted acquisition of blighted properties, and standing up a resident-led block captain program
Implement coordinated streetscape and facade improvement programs, including a downtown facade grant program, new plantings, lighting, benches, and trash receptacles, and multimodal streetscape connections throughout the district
Strategy 3: Attract New Residents and Facilitate Adaptive Reuse Development
The adaptive reuse of upper floors and underutilized structures presents a major opportunity to expand downtown housing while strengthening the visitor economy. This strategy represents an estimated $17.5 million in five-year investment and is carried out through two goals:
Support mixed-use and upper-floor residential conversions, by incentivizing developers to create market-rate units, expanding student and workforce housing options, and engaging residents to identify the amenities that would draw them downtown
Facilitate adaptive reuse of vacant buildings, by pursuing redevelopment funding for long-vacant properties, supporting hotel and hospitality development to meet visitor demand, and targeting blight elimination in key commercial clusters
What's Next
Main Street Matters designation would fund the management capacity needed to execute this plan, support ongoing professional development for Pottsville's Main Street Manager, and allow PADCO to leverage Downtown Development Grants to bring these strategies to life. We're grateful to everyone in the community who contributed their voice to this process, and we look forward to sharing updates as DCED reviews our application.