Visitors to Youngstown influenced by city's look

The decision by Youngstown city government to join forces with the all-volunteer Streetscape group in crucial beautification projects should please two community leaders who have been vocal in their criticism of the city's appearance.
One is Thomas M. Humphries, president and chief executive officer of the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber of Commerce, who believes that a positive first impression is important not only for attracting visitors to the city, but when trying to persuade a chief executive officer of a Fortune 500 company to locate in the Mahoning Valley.
In a letter to Youngstown Mayor George M. Mc-Kelvey dated May 22, 2000, Humphries stated: "Impressions, especially first impressions, have tremendous impact. High grass and weeds littered with debris along much traveled city highways and roads do little to offer visitors or even residents a positive impression."
The other community leader who would undoubtedly applaud city council's setting aside $50,000 in federal money that Streetscape will leverage to fund the beautification projects is Michael Rowan, president and chief executive officer of Humility of Mary Partners.
HM Partners is investing $10 million for physical improvements in and around St. Elizabeth Medical Center campus in the central business district.
Physical impression: In a letter to The Vindicator last March, Rowan offered the following opinion: "I think that it would be difficult to put too much emphasis on the need to improve the physical impression of downtown Youngstown. The physical impression of our downtown area is improving but not acceptable."
The front page story in Monday's Vindicator about Streetscape's emphasis this year on sprucing up the gateways to the city of Youngstown and the downtown comes at a particularly important time in the city's revitalization effort. The McKelvey administration and city council are exploring options for spending the $26.8 million Youngstown received from the federal government. The appropriating legislation passed by Congress at the behest of Congressman James A. Traficant Jr. says the money would be used for the construction of a convocation/community center in downtown Youngstown.
Streetscape's plans for improving the gateways to city is an important aspect of the convocation center project. The grassroots organization has spent the past three years planting flowers and fixing up other landscaping in downtown's core. The success of those initiatives has prompted City Hall to give Streetscape an even more important assignment. We have no doubt the group is up to the challenge.