DYP starts to engage downtown
By Kalea Hall
YOUNGSTOWN
Three downtown business owners and supporters of the city have created the community-based Downtown Youngstown Partnership to retain and attract new business and promote community pride.
“We want to help enrich the experience downtown,” said Sarra Mohn, owner and president of Jet Creative, a downtown marketing firm in Youngstown, co-owner of the Soap Gallery downtown and co-chairwoman of DYP.
The partnership had its kickoff event for businesses, organizations and other downtown stakeholders at Oh WOW! The Roger & Gloria Jones Children’s Center for Science & Technology on Wednesday evening.
Ellie Platt, owner of Platt Insurance and Financial downtown, and Phil Kidd, associate director of Youngstown CityScape and owner of the downtown store Youngstown Nation, and Mohn joined forces to start DYP.
“It made sense to connect everyone downtown to provide a unified voice for those living and working [here],” Platt said.
The goal for the group is to be the gap filler on special projects downtown, such as Photos on Phelps.
This project is a Youngstown-themed photo installation to replace the stock photo images in the windows of 20 Federal Place on North Phelps Street.
On Wednesday, those at the kickoff event voted on 17 different photos to fill seven photo spots.
The winners will be announced on DYP’s Facebook page at a later date.
Each DYP meeting will include an update of the events downtown, a featured business and an educational component.
The group has a committee and is looking at membership.
“We do want membership,” Mohn said. “We want to gauge the interest level and what benefits would be good for them.”
The next DYP monthly meeting will be at the Tyler Mahoning Valley History Center, 325 W. Federal St. from 5 to 7 p.m. July 28.
For more information on DYP go to: www.dypartnership.org/.