18990_Authority_Feb_2026

municipalauthorities.org │ 25 The Discover Downtown Johnstown Partnership is a volunteer consortium of business owners and business leaders located in Downtown Johnstown. The journey of the Christmas Tree @ Central Park began in 2013 when the Partnership held a strategic planning session; a ‘no idea is a bad idea,’ meeting. A reoccurring theme at the session was to enhance the Christmas experience in Downtown Johnstown, but at the time we didn’t know exactly what that meant. A while later I had the opportunity to meet Jeff and Wendy Konicky, a local couple with a fantastic holiday light show at their home. They were generous and genuine. At that time that we started to imagine the possibilities. The initial idea was to purchase a 36’ foot tall, animated Christmas Tree to place in Central Park. A tree of that size and capability would cost $100,000. The Partnership was never a fundraising organization. We had very little money that we accumulated over many years, but nothing near what was needed for the 50% down payment. Even though we were steadfast with our intent, we certainly could not fundraise for the first time to the tune of $100,000! But we did, and on February 18, 2015 we took the leap to order the Tree, paying 50% of the amount due up front, money that we did not have. At that point, there was no turning back. Over the course of our nine months of fundraising and planning, we were met with an even share of encouragement and skepticism. In addition to the purchase itself, hundreds of hours of programming songs and technical design and layout went into the initiative. The fundraising campaign was challenging. There were months when money flowed in, and months when nothing was raised. For our board this vision was always real, but it was when Tree arrived from Oregon on October 19, 2015, we knew that our vision became a reality. It was a breathtaking moment. Throughout this project we faced obstacles that were large and small. The team effort was colossal. The support from the community was generous. Never doubt the power of a small group of people and never say that something is not worth the risk. For every amount of stress, every doubt, and every frustrating moment over the course of the project, that all vanished on that very first Light Up Night. The 2025 Christmas season marked the 11 th year of the Christmas Tree @ Central Park. Over the years I have been honored to have so many of my PMAA friends and colleagues travel to Johnstown to see the Tree. There is no way to quantify the tens of thousands of people who visited over the years. There is no way to measure our leap in community pride. There is no way to estimate the economic impact of its presence in our community. But I can tell you, the Downtown has never been the same since. I don't think that anyone who was there on Light Up Night will ever forget the first lighting of the Christmas Tree @ Central Park. When the vision became reality. When the Tree came alive! S A uthority N ews V ision B ecomes R eality – J ohnstown C ommunity P artnership U nleashes C ommunity P ride December 6, 2025 - From L to R: Melissa Radovanic, Greater Johnstown Water Authority/ RDM - Johnstown and current PMAA President; Terri Hauser, Latrobe Municipal Authority and PMAA Immediate Past President; William Ross, Lower Saucon Authority and PMAA Second Past President; Melissa Komar, HRG (former Executive Director of Johnstown Redevelopment Authority) and PMAA Third Past President. By Melissa Radovanic, President, Discover Downtown Johnstown Partnership and President, Pennsylvania Municipal Authorities Association