When the garment and coal industry was at its peak in Shenandoah, Susan Williams said the borough was called “Little New York."
The apartments, homes and storefronts were filled, said Williams, executive director of Downtown Shenandoah Inc. (DSI). But when the major industries left, so did the people.
“That kind of continues today,” she said.
For the past 15 years, the organization has been working to revitalize the borough in Schuylkill County. On Thursday, DSI got a boost — $1.8 million from the state for the organization’s Center for Health, Education, Business and the Arts (CEBA).
CEBA was one of 49 projects across Pennsylvania to receive Multi-Purpose Community Facilities grants totaling $45 million from the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority.
The funding is from the federal American Rescue Plan Act. The grants are given to community anchor institutions and local governments for projects that create or improve facilities for the public, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development. The projects have to directly enable work, education and health monitoring and ensure that people have free access to reliable, high-speed internet.
In Northeast and Central Pennsylvania, five organizations received a total of $6.8 million.
“We need to have something that's going to spur this economic growth,” said Williams. ”Shenandoah has a lot of heart, has a lot of history. Shenandoah has a lot of people who care about their hometown, and this center is going to be open to all walks of life to come in and use it how they need.”
Inside CEBA will be a commercial kitchen, Penn State classroom, co-working spaces, entrepreneurial development and an event space. There will also be a health care component to the project and the technology will be up to date, she said.
"We're going to have a lot of different people walking through that building and hanging out with a whole new look on their career, and their their skill set and their life," she said.
Phase I of the center is in progress — a new foundation is laid and an elevator shaft is in place for the new building on Main Street. Williams said the steel is coming next week.
The broadband grant will help with Phase 2, which complete the building's second floor where event and office spaces will be.
DSI is aiming for an October 2025 opening.
"It takes a village, and I always like to say, in this case, a borough," said Williams "It's a lot of people, a lot of time, and a lot of energy put forth to building what ... we believe will spur economic growth and a resurgence of interest in our communities."
Elsewhere in NEPA
In Lackawanna County, United Neighborhood Centers of Northeastern Pennsylvania (UNC) received $1.2 million for its CEDAR Center project in South Scranton.
CEDAR is an acronym for Community, Education, Development and Revitalization.
"It's going to become home to several of our programs," said Lisa Durkin, president/CEO.
The broadband funding will help renovate the former Peoples Security Bank at Cedar Avenue and Alder Street. There, UNC’s job readiness programs and classrooms, ESL classes, citizenship preparedness and some of the center’s community health work will be housed as well as their administrative offices.
The year-round South Scranton Farmers Market also will move to the new location. They’re also partnering with Penn State LaunchBox to operate a coffee shop out of the center.
“We really envision it as a community center, an asset for the community," said Durkin.
The broadband funding is one of several funding sources for the project, said Marty Fotta, Vice President of Community Development.
“Part of what we're planning to use the funds for (is) really to have the most up-to-date technology, both for for the students and for all of the programs that are going to be operating out of the building,” he said.
Durkin thanked state Rep. Kyle Donahue for bringing the funding to UNC’s attention.
"It's the good work of our local senators and state representatives that are leveraging this money, bringing those dollars, really advocating for us in Harrisburg so that we can have impact at the local level.”
As in Shenandoah, UNC’s South Scranton project is over a decade in the making.
"This was always kind of our dream, that this would be the culmination of all that work, is the renovation of this building as a real community center for the neighborhood and the larger community," said Durkin.
Grant recipients in the region also include:
- Liberty Township Community Broadband Access and Building Repair, Susquehanna County: $787,322
- Church of the New Covenant's Extending our Reach, through broadening access to multi-use community facility, Mansfield, Tioga County: $1,999,933
- Wyoming County Healthcare Center's Facility Improvements, Tunkhannock Township, Wyoming County: $1 million.
