About the Project The Smart Growth Partnership engaged in community task force formation in Scottdale in 2017, leading to deeper engagements with community leaders and stakeholders over the next few years, including monthly meeting facilitation that involved local economy assessment, developing strategies to retain and attract youth, building community capacity and social capital, creating a community vision and community goals, and providing grant seeking and writing assistance and … [Read more...]

Starting in 2007, Derry Borough’s new, visionary mayor and council had the foresight to engage their community stakeholders and stakeholders from surrounding communities in visioning for their north central region of Westmoreland County. An early project was a design charrette and plan focused on a five-acre underutilized railroad parcel in the center of town.   In 2010, with Penn State Extension and Smart Growth guidance, DARCee created a Vision Plan for the next decade. 10 years … [Read more...]

One of the first self-identifying “Smart Growth Communities” of the past decade, Latrobe has transformed itself via strong leadership and the capacity of a robust revitalization organization, Latrobe Community Revitalization.  Throughout this time, the Smart Growth Partnership has been engaged -- building capacity by providing education support and funding acquisition assistance, and as a go-to partner in community initiatives.  The Smart Growth Partnership’s first Executive … [Read more...]

For over ten years, leaders of the Smart Growth Partnership have assisted Penn State New Kensington and the surrounding municipalities consisting of New Kensington, Arnold, Upper Burrell, Lower Burrell, and Allegheny Township and beyond in forming a multi-municipal collaboration to envision and create an action plan of prioritized projects for this northern cluster of Westmoreland communities. Among other projects, this early Penn State Extension’s Charting the Future of Our Community … [Read more...]

Over the years, communities like New Kensington with its Corridor of Innovation -- and additional stakeholders that we've engaged with the Smart Growth Partnership from other Westmoreland communities -- have generated well over $40,000,000 in value for their communities while also implementing smart growth principles. Significant public developments included in that dollar amount since our 2015 New New Kensington: A Better Block event are the Corner Launchbox, Wesley Family Services’ … [Read more...]