What's Happening in Youngstown, OH…

On Saturday, June 2, nearly 500 people pitched in to help make Youngstown more colorful with the CityScape StreetScape Project. Lori Shandler and the other volunteers spent the day planting, mulching, and helping make the city a more attractive place. Sharon Letson, the Executive Director for CityScape, said the way citizens look at their community is a large determinate to who comes into the area. New businesses are more likely to move into an area where the community demonstrates an effort to keep the streets and surroundings clean and beautiful. It’s all a matter of economic development she said.

Letson stated:

"How about our new downtown restaurants? If we don't look a certain way, they're not going to be downtown either."

Citizens who help keep their communities looking clean and beautiful also help boost the economy and development of the area. New businesses moving into the city not only boost the city’s economy through the business they personally generate, but also through the business they create for other companies in the area, such as local printing companies that provide banner printing, business card printing and other printing services for those businesses. A clean and well-kept city also helps attract tourists to the area.

Dion Johnson, the 10-year-old son of Margo Johnson, pitched in with the other volunteers by digging holes for the flowers and planting them along the area. His mother said she enjoys showing Dion various ways to help others, and she wanted him to learn how to give back to the community.

CityScape has continued to have a volunteer day like this for the past 15 years.