Streetscape is our major annual, volunteer event.  The event began in 1998 and continues to grow each year. The campaign begins in March and the event is always the first Saturday after Memorial Day. In  2023 nearly 800 volunteers planted, pruned, mulched, and beautified the city in one day!

In 2021, CityScape acquired the city’s last urban greenhouse, the former Briel’s located on Youngstown’s west side in the Rocky Ridge neighborhood. CityScape at Briel’s will help us defray costs by growing plants locally while saving a unique community asset. This new venture will also serve as a micro-enterprise in an underserved neighborhood, offering a garden center, maker’s market, and gift shop, as well as event/educational programming space.

Since 2008, CityScape and its partners have raised over $925K for improvements to Wick Park. This has included new corner landscaping and signage, street and sidewalk improvements, security gates, a playground, exercise equipment stations, a 9-hole disc golf course and $400K renovation of the pavilion.

CityScape has been the driving force in  bringing back the annual Holiday Parade tradition and spearhead the downtown Christmas Tree lighting. We coordinate the entire event in partnership with the City of Youngstown and various downtown stakeholders. We also raise the funds and install thousands of lights in trees all over downtown to make Youngstown sparkle during the cold winter months.

CityScape has partnered with other community organizations for public art projects such as the State Theatre Mural Project, the Andrews Avenue Mural Project and the beautiful Downtown Art Boxes covering electrical equipment.

Youngstown CityScape has also undertaken corridor improvement projects. A primary project was the Wick Avenue Improvement Project which was conceived in conjunction with Congressman Tim Ryan’s 2009 Pedestrian Safety roadway configuration project. The project area ran along Wick Avenue from Wood Street on the south to the Route 422 Service Road on the north. The Andrews Foundation committed $63,000 for engineering design, and CityScape entered into a contract for engineering services with CT Consultants in early 2015. This work has now evolved into the $10.8 million BUILD Smart2 Corridor Project, in which CityScape serves as a partner organization.

As downtown continues to grow, so too do the service needs of its public spaces. The Youngstown CityScape Sidewalk Squad is a program designed to keep downtown looking ‘clean and green’ year-round. This includes maintenance of all annual Streetscape planting day locations (green) as well as addressing trash/litter (clean) and other quality of life issues.

One of CityScape’s goals is to add quality of life perks to our city. For example, we’ve added a pet clean up station, cigarette disposal units, and artistic bike racks downtown.

CityScape maintains all the landscaped areas throughout the greater downtown area. We also partner with the City of Youngstown and CCA to address issues such as trash removal.

In partnership with the Mahoning Valley Historical Society, CityScape installed four markers providing historical and architectural information about Youngstown’s Central Square and its cornerstone buildings and monuments.

CityScape developed self-guided walking tour signs in five locations throughout downtown. The signs tell the history of the location. There is also a QR code which you can scan for information about current plans, projects, and information.

The Downtown Youngstown Partnership (DYP) is a component of Youngstown CityScape. It is a stakeholders group which meets quarterly to discuss news, projects, and events happening downtown. The group also conducts service projects and helps organize Happy Birthday Youngstown, an annual event.

For more details: Email adam@youngstowncityscape.com

CityScape hosts regular Downtown Volunteer Workday events in which different projects or tasks are completed by individuals or groups. The Workday events are held on Saturday mornings, typically from 10am-12pm. For more information contact Adam at adam@youngstowncityscape.com, or sign up for email notifications by clicking the button below.

Each year Youngstown CityScape produces and distributes the Downtown Discount Card which offers discounts to 20 different restaurants and venues throughout the city. The card can be used repeatedly throughout the year.

Our downtown tree sponsorship program is a terrific way community members and businesses can provide long-lasting impact. Sponsors get recognition on a planter plaque next to their tree, but more importantly, once the season is over these small evergreen trees are planted on city lots in partnership with the County Land Bank to reforest our community.