Holly Lesko, Business Continuity Team Program Manager for the New River Valley Regional Commission has spent three decades in the region, building relationships and exploring community engagement through storytelling, civic participation, and public health.  Learn more about Holly in this episode and at the links below: New River Valley Regional Commission Healthy by Design Youth Digital Storytelling Project Community Heart & Soul NRV Business Continuity Team Holly joined NRVRC in October 2020 and has been supporting the BCT with business and school outreach throughout the pand ..read more

Kathleen Frazier, FAIA, of Staunton, Virginia's Frazier Associates drew upon a career in preservation based downtown revitalization to create one of Virginia Main Street resource-rich technical sheets. Hear Kathy in conversation with staff member Zachary Whitlow on the nuts, bolts, and benefits of upper story housing as part of your revitalization strategy ..read more

DHCD staff member Melissa Mason sits down with Mathews County Broadband Advisory Board Chair Judy Rowe on attaining "reliable, high speed affordable access to universal broadband for all of Mathews County by 2025." In this rural area, the volunteer commitment to audacious and important goals is making this quickly working to make this a reality. Listen in on this inspiring conversation on the power of the tenacious citizen ..read more

This year we're profiling some of Virginia's local administrators, public servants who are often behind the scenes making things happen with creativity, passion, and care for the place and people surrounding them. "I like being able to do all kinds of things in one day," says Scottsville Town Administrator Matt Lawless who talked to us about the variety of challenges, joys, and rewards of serving a small town with a historic district, flood risks, a resilient community network, strong regional partnerships, and eyes on the future.  "I see my work as understanding what the community wants ..read more

Crowdfunding can attract capital to new and growing businesses, and the "return on crowd" is measured in much more than dollars. In the final Creating Community Vitality podcast, crowdfunding expert Bill Huston provides tips and strategies for effectively attracting dedicated customers and investors. Learn more about Pittsburgh's Honeycomb Credit. Learn more about the American Dream Marketplace. Get the full, year-long Creating Community Vitality series of webinars and podcasts here. Bill Huston educates entrepreneurs, nonprofits and small businesses on how to raise community capital using see ..read more

Kirsten Moore opened Magpie–a breakfast and lunch diner-inspired restaurant and bakery, and The Perch at Magpie–a coworking space for small businesses, freelancers, and remote workers—in July 2020 in the middle of the pandemic lockdown. Having started an extensive historic renovation of an old auto service building in September of 2019 to house the businesses, it was a train that couldn’t be stopped once the pandemic hit. As it turned out, it wasn’t the worst possible time to open, but rather the perfect time to open. An entrepreneur and food writer with a background in design and marketing, M ..read more

By layering weatherization and energy efficiency resources, DHCD's new Weatherization Deferral Repair Program will help more people in need and help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In this episode marking Energy Awareness Month and the 45th Annual Weatherization Day, DHCD staff member Jennifer Wares shares her path in energy efficiency and how DHCD and its partners are improving homes and lives through a systems approach to home repair and assistance ..read more

Public spaces – ones that are truly equitable and inclusive – are essential for creating community vitality. Our continued health and racial pandemics prove the urgency of more in-depth analysis and thinking for what these spaces need to and must be. Get to know the National Main Street Center's Lindsey Wallace as she tours us through national examples as communities make the most of their public spaces. Lindsey Wallace has over twelve years of experience in historic preservation, community engagement, and project management. As Director of Strategic Projects and Design Services for the Nation ..read more

More people and places can benefit from interconnected place-focused policies and programs. That's a key idea of transformative placemaking, says Brookings Institution's Jennifer S. Vey in this episode of Partners for Better Communities.  And those strategies have to be rooted in the assets of local residents and businesses. "If the leadership is dominated by a small group of people, even if they are ostensibly acting on behalf " says Vay, "there will be a mismatch that causes conflict. There will be too many people who's preferences and need aren't represented." Vey is a senior fellow an ..read more

We're talking support for food-based businesses and small scale manufacturing in the August installment of the Creating Community Vitality series.  Bok Vocational High School was built in 1936 and accommodated 3,000 students from across Philadelphia studying subjects like wallpapering, cosmetology, auto mechanics, bricklaying, and more. In 2013, the school closed due to decreased enrollment and deferred maintenance. Today it's a hub of more than 200 businesses serving a neighborhood in a new and exciting way. Lindsey Scannapieco is the Managing Partner of SCOUT, a multi-disciplinary desig ..read more