Well, it’s happening — just as Pittston’s Mayor Michael Lombardo promised a few months earlier during an extensive interview when the I sat down with him to discuss Pittston now and Pittston in the future.
A permanent stage on the second tier of the Tomato Festival is in the process of being constructed.
The stage will be just to the left of the James G. Zarra Tomato Festival Headquarters and will eventually be undercover. The first goal, though, is to have the foundation built.
It’s hard to believe the Zarra building is three years old; it feels like it was just built.
The facility has made a big difference to the festival and the committee since its construction.
The permanent stage will have a green room and a dressing room equipped with a shower. It was a plan well thought out and I believe any act from locals to national will enjoy playing on the new stage.
The top tier behind the library has tons of potential, as well. When the parking lot was constructed, it was pre-wired for electricity for vendor booths.
The amphitheater is done well and could accommodate a few hundred people. The stage has its back to the library and the audience has the view of the city skyline as well as of the sunset from the west over the mountain. It’s really special.
I’m excited about the changes to the festival and I know there’s a lot of traditionalists reading this, but change often times means progress.
Having a permanent stage could change the layout of the festival.
Of course, having a permanent stage at a huge parking lot opens the doors for plenty of music to fill the air in Pittston.
Mayor Lombardo’s vision of making Pittston a city of the arts is well on its way to achieving that dream.
With the addition of the Tomato Fest stage and the completion of the amphitheater behind the Pittston Memorial Library, the only thing needed is to line up entertainment.
One more dream of Mayor Lombardo’s is to host a jazz festival with multiple stages running at the same time, like a true festival.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned about Lombardo, he dives right into a project where the goal is the finished project, even when he knows there might be some bumps in the road. Sometimes, you need to take baby steps to get to a goal and, even though that can be frustrating, Lombardo never loses sight of the end goal.
Things are starting to gel in Pittston for sure.
The city just hired a Main Street coordinator in Mary Kroptavich. Mary is no stranger to downtown Pittston, first getting involved in the Second Friday Art Walk, then taking over the helm of the art walk, then being the director at Art e Fekts gallery and finally opening up a photo studio adjacent to the art gallery.
She has accumulated a lot of knowledge over the last two years to pick up where former Main Street manager Rose Randazzo left off.
Rose did an extraordinary job as a volunteer job while working as a full-time attorney. She was never trained as a street manager, but took the job straight on and learned a lot along the way.
Mary, on the other hand, has experience and will continue to be trained through a state and national Main Street management program.
You can read more about the hiring of Mary in today’s edition.
Mary will be the voice of downtown merchants, acting as a liaison between business and government as well as coming up with strategies for the continued improvement of downtown.
Following the state and national model, she will continue to be educated on the latest strategies to improve downtown areas.
As Mayor Lombardo told me, having Mary in this position will free up his time to concentrate on projects like completing the rest of Main Street improvements north from the Dale Kridlo Bridge to the Junction. He will also work on improving neighborhoods throughout the city.
The man’s mind is running 24/7 on what can be done for the city. He has a bunch of projects on the table and probably a dozen more in his mind.
There’s still plenty building projects to be seen through, including a movie theater which could also be a venue for concerts, as well.
I’m sure there will be more art projects about town. The mayor would even like to see a sports complex in or around Pittston. That’s not a bad idea.
What’s really cool about the revitalization of Pittston over the last 20 years is the fact that other cities and municipalities across the commonwealth have taken notice and want to know the secret behind the success of the city. In fact, officials from other towns have come to Pittston for a tour of the city and to meet with city administration.
The secret of Pittston’s success is, there is no secret – Mayor Mike’s door is open to anyone who will listen to Pittston’s success story. He has a wealth of knowledge in his head to help anyone who asks.
Quote of the week
“Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.” – John Lennon
Thought of the week
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.” – Mark Twain
Bumper sticker
“Love is a serious mental disease.” – Plato
