Conference to Highlight Downtown New Castle Revitalization

NEW CASTLE, Pa. – A conference scheduled for Oct. 12 will aim to spotlight redevelopment opportunities downtown by highlighting successes that have already taken place, a city development official said.

The Citywide Development Corporation of New Castle will host its first Downtown Development Conference from 8 a.m. to noon at The Confluence, 214 E. Washington St. The free event is open to current property owners, potential real estate developers and anyone interested in downtown revitalization, but advance registration is requested by Monday.

“The purpose of this conference is to highlight the success stories that we’ve had in the last two years, and then also promote and let people know that it is possible to buy a vacant building or invest in real estate in downtown New Castle and make it a profitable venture,” said Brian Burick, executive director of the New Castle CDC.

The conference is being funded with a $7,500 grant from the National Association of Realtors.

Kim Cragle, president of the Lawrence County Board of Realtors and a member of the New Castle CDC board, learned about the NAR grant program last year through the regional field representative of the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors.

“We were trying to find the best fit for things that we could get grant money for and help in our area,” said Cragle, a real estate agent with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices The Preferred Realty. “We live here. We work here. We want to be able to see our area thrive, so we figured that it was the perfect fit to be able to try to help an organization like that out.”

New Castle used to have a population of more than 50,000 but experienced declines in manufacturing jobs and population over the decades, he said. Downtown has several vacant buildings, but in recent years the city has had “very positive examples” of converting those for new uses, including a brewery and a distillery that opened last year.

In addition, developers have purchased buildings that were nearly or completely vacant and converted the office space into market-rate apartments that are all occupied. Because of the demand for that type of housing, another local developer, Metrovitalization, plans to build a new 38-unit apartment building downtown that will have retail space on the ground floor. 

“There is a need for downtown housing,” Cragle said.

Following a keynote address by Bill Arrowood of the Pennsylvania Downtown Center, who will offer a statewide perspective on downtown revitalization, two panels are scheduled. One will feature local developers who have acquired and successfully renovated downtown buildings, and the other will include city and county planning department staff.

“We’re going to highlight other vacant buildings that are still available for redevelopment or reuse, and we’re also going to promote some of the other things we’re working on to promote improving downtown New Castle,” Burick said.

The conference will end at noon with a 15-minute walking tour of downtown New Castle.

The goal of the event is for developers, real estate professionals and people who live in the area to come downtown “just as a way to put us on the map for more commercial activity, which then should turn around and increase the housing downtown,” Cragle said.

Pictured at top: Downtown New Castle.

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