Keystone C.O.R.E. Services

Who We Are

In 2009, Pennsylvania Downtown Center (PDC) created a subsidiary nonprofit organization called Keystone C.O.R.E. Services, Inc. (KCS). C.O.R.E. stands for Community Oriented Real Estate, which is based upon the community-initiated real estate intervention process developed by Donovan Rypkema for the National Trust for Historic Preservation's Main Street Center.

KCS is incorporated in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and is in the process of obtaining formal IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) status.

The mission of KCS is to act as a redevelopment partner for the reclamation and rehabilitation of blighted and deteriorated properties in which the private sector has not reinvested or redeveloped. KCS is led by a nine member board of directors, which is never comprised of more than 49 percent of PDC board members. Initially, KCS will only operate in communities where it has been invited to partner with the local revitalization organization.

The recent passage of the Conservatorship Act by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Legislature, as well as the pending passage of SB 900 (known as the Blight Bill), have further strengthened PDC's belief that a more direct role in real estate redevelopment (with local organizations that have an interest in but reluctance to intervene in their local real estate market) is increasingly necessary in order to assist in the integration of real estate development in local revitalization programs across Pennsylvania.