The PDC board of Directors met on August 1, 2018, to begin the new fiscal year. New PDC Board Chair Naomi Naylor, the Main Street Manager in Quakertown and Executive Director of Quakertown Alive! presided over the meeting.
Ms. Naylor began the meeting by thanking outgoing PDC Board Chair Larry Newman, Executive Director of the Diamond City Partnership in Wlkes-Barre, for his years of service to the organization. The Chair also welcomed and introduced three new board members, including Jennifer Markus, President of Explore Sewickley (Allegheny County), Eric Persson, Economic Development Specialist for Lower Marion Township (Montgomery County) and Jim Wenger, principal at the landscape architectural firm of Derck & Edson (Lancaster County). Among the significant actions taken and matters discussed by the board were the following:
A. Approval of Preliminary 2018-2019 Budget: The board voted to approve a preliminary budget for 2018-2019 which included estimated income of $624,458 and projected expenses of $612,508 for anticipated net income of $11,950, or 1.9% of expenses. The budget is considered preliminary due to the fact that some anticipated income was still uncertain at the beginning of the fiscal year, the PDC audit for 2017-18 is still pending, and the 2019 conference budget was still a work in progress. A final revised budget for 2018-2019 will be approved at the November board meeting.
B. Certification of Keystone CORE Services Election: In accordance with Keystone CORE Services by-laws, the PDC board ratified the election of the 2018-2019 Keystone CORE Services board of directors. New board members included current PDC board member Linda Nitch, Assistant Director at the Lawrence County Economic Development Corp. (Lawrence County) and Kim Kmetz, Main Street Manager in Easton (Northampton County ).
C. Approval of Commitment to Historic Preservation Resolution: Following board discussion at the May 2018 meeting concerning how PDC should get engaged in local preservation issues, the board approved a “Commitment to Historic Preservation,” similar in nature to what PDC encourages its member communities to approve. A copy of the resolution will shortly be posted on the PDC web site.
D. Response to Reading Eagle Article: The board authorized the Executive Director to prepare a draft “op-ed” piece in response to a Reading Eagle article concerning the evolving restructuring of the Main Street Program in the City of Reading. In the article, several comments were made by the management of the Greater Reading Economic Alliance that the PDC board considered a misrepresentation of the program.
E. Field Services Coordinator Position Update: The board received a report on the progress being made in filling the Field Services Coordinator position, including a proposed restructuring of the work responsibilities among staff. The Executive Director is hopeful that the position will be filled by early to mid-September.
F. Gubernatorial Candidate Questions: In the interest of keeping the PDC membership informed of the positions of the two gubernatorial candidates on community revitalization issues, the board approved three questions for both candidates concerning 1) funding levels for the Keystone Communities Program; 2) restoration of funding for managerial support; and 3) funding level for the neighborhood assistance program. Answers will be provided to the membership upon receipt of the various campaigns answers.