Walking through downtown West Chester you could easily believe the borough has always been the success it is today, but that is not entirely true, writes Evan Jones for Reading Eagle.
A center of commerce since 1762, West Chester has also had its share of down times.
Starting in the 1960’s, a lot of the merchants that had the made the town such a success, began moving to newer shopping areas like Exton Square in West Whiteland Township.
Over the next two decades, this slow exodus gained speed.
“In the ’90s, we saw the nation’s longest economic expansion, and Chester County benefited from that,” noted Malcolm Johnstone, Executive Director of the West Chester Business Improvement District. “It was the fastest growing and wealthiest county on many levels in Pennsylvania, but West Chester lost population. I had spoken with longtime police officers and they said it was a scary place.”
Nowadays it seems hard to believe. The center is thriving with local residents and tourists with two hotels along with a plethora of other new projects on the drawing board. One of the keys to this revitalization is a community that enjoys the fact that the downtown area is very accessible.
“There are more young professionals and empty nesters that want somewhere to walk downtown,” said Sandy Riper, who runs Sunset Hill Jewelers & Fine Arts Gallery on North High Street. “The number of people on the streets has greatly increased, especially in the last five years.”
Read more about the comeback of the borough at Reading Eagle here and check out previous VISTA Today coverage of West Chester here.
