Have you familiarized yourself with PDC’s new CRM on the website? If not, we encourage you to do so and, first things first, set up your member account. This new CRM will remind you that July 1st is the start of PDC’s next membership year (July 1 – June 30) and by logging in to your account you will have access to member-only resources, discounts for events (such as the conference), update your program’s information – and you can renew membership right there!
Your commitment to our organization – especially during such an unsettled time – has been a crucial message to us – thank you! We recognize that we have a natural reliance on each other and hope that we have brought value to your membership. It is our goal to do so again over the course of this next year and into the future.
Please contact Maria Wherley or Katie Tyson if you have questions about membership and the benefits associated with it.
Just as we thank all members for their commitment to the Pennsylvania Downtown Center we express a welcome to PDC Gold Business member, Herbert, Rowland & Grubic, Inc. Thank you for your partnership with our organization—a declaration to the communities we both serve and support in making a greater commonwealth for all.
PDC Welcomes New Board Members
Emily Fetcko,
Assistant Director + Main Street Manager
Erie Downtown Partnership
Emily has over ten years of specific community and economic development experience working across two communities as well as the entire northwest Pennsylvania region. She is a passionate problem solver whose work is centered on advancing community-lead placemaking and Main Street business support. In her current role Emily is aligned with the Pennsylvania Downtown Center as a member representing both a Downtown Improvement District and designated Main Street community. She is committed to working with us to sustainably build the network and impact of Main Street communities across Pennsylvania and represent the northwest Pennsylvania region in her role as a board member.
Silas Chamberlin Vice President
Economic & Community Development York County Economic Alliance of PA
Silas Chamberlin, PhD, is vice president of economic development at the York County Economic Alliance, a position in which he serves as executive director of both the Redevelopment Authority of the County of York and the York Business Improvement District Authority and oversees a variety of economic financing, business attraction, and workforce development initiatives throughout York County. Silas recently created the York County Trail Towns program, which is now active in seven communities. He also serves as facilitator of the YoCo Strong Recovery Task Force and the YoCo Fiber Broadband Task Force, both of which were commissioned by the County of York to respond to COVID-19.
Silas previously served as CEO of Downtown Inc, executive director of the Schuylkill River National Heritage Area, and in regional leadership roles with the PA Department of Conservation & Natural Resources and the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor. He is currently an adjunct professor of economics and urban revitalization at York College.
Silas holds a PhD in environmental history from Lehigh University and a certificate in commercial real estate development from Cornell University. His first book, On the Trail: A History of American Hiking was published by Yale University Press in 2016, and his research has been published by Landscape Architecture Magazine and other national publications.
Silas is immediate past chair of the Pennsylvania Humanities Council board of directors and currently serves as a Governor’s appointee to Pennsylvania’s Conservation & Natural Resource Advisory Council. He also serves on the boards of the Pennsylvania Historical Association, the York County History Center, and the York County Rail Trail Authority.