Public Image

By Jason J. Zaleska

Improve outside public image of Swissvale to encourage new business development and new families to locate in Swissvale.

Other communities in the Greater Pittsburgh area capitalize from their cultural events and attractions. Everyone knows that Bloomfield holds the best Italian Festival and Regent Square hosts the Race Around the Square each year. I feel that Swissvale has a lot to gain by putting some of its unique attractions, events and festivals on the Greater Pittsburgh cultural map by making sure events are online and linked into many websites.

I always tell people that Swissvale is a safe, tightly knit community that has great access to the city, cultural and recreational opportunities. However many people looking to purchase a home or start a business in Western PA have the perception that Swissvale is dirty and dangerous place. This is a terrible public image problem that adversely affects us as a community. This poor public image lowers our property values, hurts local business revenue and contributes to our crime and safety problems.

It is time that we as a community take ownership of Swissvale's public image and set the record straight. With over 15 years marketing and communication experience and my strong grasp of communication technology and trends I feel that I can really help Swissvale improve this poor public image. We need to let everyone know all that Swissvale has to offer. We need to make sure that our communication materials are clean, professional, easy to understand and accurately reflect the qualities and values that make Swissvale a great place to live and work.