Luzerne County Convention/Visitors Bureau
February 22, 2010

Luzerne County Convention/Visitors Bureau invites you to download thier visitors guide.

Request your Visitors Guide HERE!

In addition, hiking maps are available here: Request your Hiking Map HERE!

And while your clicking links, join thier facebook fan group to learn of the latest attractions in NEPA! Face Book Fan Page – Click HERE!

Fish and Boat Commission
February 1, 2010

The Fish & Boat Commission has posted North Branch Water trail maps: Download Stream Guides: CLICK HERE!

NORTH BRANCH TRAIL GUIDES
Section 1: Click Here
Section 2: Click Here
Section 3: Click Here
Section 4: Click Here

Breaker Brewing Company Presents:

River Common: 2009 in Review Click Here

Times Leader
January 23, 2010
by Jerry Lynott

WILKES-BARRE – “County Commissioners have agreed to support the River Common with a ‘minimal’ amount on the upkeep of the new $23 million park.

The idea is to make the park self-sufficient and minimize the use of taxpayer funds to pay for recreational, social and entertainment events on the park located on the Wilkes-Barre side of the Susquehanna River.

Commissioner Thomas P. Cooney estimated the set-aside at $30,000 and said it will pay for expenses such as lighting and insurance that are ineligible for coverage by the county’s levee fee.

The River Common saw limited use last year of its amphitheater and river landing because of the timing of the opening. Few events could be planned in such a short time and Luzerne County Tomorrow, the nonprofit organization that will oversee the planning of concerts, festivals and other activities, was not yet ready to handle the tasks.

Frank Pasquini, president of the Downtown Wilkes-Barre Business Association and one of the people behind the nonprofit organization, said it will be similar to one set up in Hartford, Conn.

“We are hopeful this is another innovative step for us,” he said.

The organization, similar to RiverFront Recapture, which was created to hold events along the Connecticut River in downtown Hartford, will eliminate the need for taxpayer funds to program and market the River Common, he said.

The organization will seek sponsors for events at the park. In addition, it will raise money from corporations, businesses, individuals and private foundations for name sponsorships for such things as the amphitheater, benches, seating areas, portals and the 200 lighting fixtures. “There are literally hundreds of naming opportunities,” Pasquini said.”

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Green Life Pennsylvania
December 12, 2009
PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

WILKES-BARRE – “In Wilkes-Barre residents have been reconnected with the mighty Susquehanna River” states a newly posted video featuring the River Common. The new video describes Wilkes-Barre’s relationship to its premier water way, from the floods of 1936 and 1972, to the cleaning of the Riparian Forests, to construction and reopening of the River Common in 2009.

James Brozena, P.E., Executive Director of the Luzerne County Flood Protection Authority, and Vincent Cotrone, Extension Urban Forester of Pennsylvania State University, take viewers through the 5 minute documentary based on the Susquehanna River. The video includes highlights of the regional park system and features some of the many events hosted on the banks of Wilkes-Barre’s beautiful waterway.

Watch the Feature

WBRE
August 4, 2009
by Jeff Chirico

WILKES-BARRE, LUZERNE COUNTY —If you plan on visiting the river common, you don’t want to forget your sunglasses. It can be bright out here. So in tonight’s Tuesday Tryout, we’re testing the new HD Vision Wraparounds. Consumer reporter Jeff Chirico is across the river where he put the snazzy looking shades to the test.

The commercial says “Introducing HD Vision Wraparounds.” The maker claims once you put these glasses over your prescription lenses, you’ll see things in a new light. It uses high definition vision technology.

So we asked folks walking the Common to try it. Rocky from 98.5 KRZ happened by. He tries the glasses on and says “there’s colors I’ve never seen before.” But he’s already wearing prescription sunglasses, so it wouldn’t be a fair to test with him.

So Karl Borton —events coordinator for the River Common—slips them on, as I fire off claims made in the commercial. “Do they wrap around your prescription glasses? Like a gorilla. Yea. “ “Does it give clarity and enhanced color? It does. I can see all different textures in the ground.” “Does it enhance vision and produce optical definition? Optical definition. I don’t know what that means.”

But for the last claims we have to ask the pros —Eye Specialists in Kingston. Dr. Michael Havrilla uses a photometer to see if these glasses do offer maximum UV protection. He says the lenses also have anti-reflective —amber-colored coating which may make things look clearer. Havrilla says “it does offer 100 percent UV protection. But it does not offer most comfortable lenses.”

Watch the Feature

Diamond City
June 18, 2009
by Eric Scicchitano

WILKES-BARRE – In Brozena’s words, RiverCommon is the third grand public works project in the city’s history, joining the likes of the Market Street Bridge and the county courthouse, which turns 100 years old this year. “Those have been the icons in this community, and we want to make (RiverCommon) the new icon for the 21st century.”

Perhaps the main amenity to the park is access, provided by two 60-foot openings cut into the levee wall near Northampton and Union streets — openings which can be closed with sliding flood gates, helping lock out any of the Susquehanna’s waters in the event of a flood. There are walkways atop and on each side of the levee wall lined with benches, shrubs and trees, as well as old-fashioned street lamps and more modern LED sail lights that will keep the area well lit.

“We can be a mini Empire State Building,” Brozena says of the nine-level sail lighting system, which can be colored for special events.

RiverCommon’s debut Friday coincides with the annual Wyoming Valley RiverFest. A ribbon cutting and rededication ceremony will be held at 4 p.m. Friday. On Saturday, festivities continue from noon to 9 p.m. with the 10th annual Sojourn. Festival vendors and exhibitors will be featured in both the Nesbitt and RiverCommon parks, where fishing demos will be held and live birds and mammals will be on display, as well as kayaking demos, a tree climb and rock climbing wall. There’s a full schedule of music, too, including the sounds of such acts as George Wesley, K8 and Charles Havira.

With the conclusion of RiverFest, RiverCommon will become dormant once more for just a brief spell as work at the site is completed. The park should reopen sometime in August. However, if Karl Borton, events coordinator for RiverCommon, has his way, the park will be anything but dormant in the future.

Borton has grand plans in mind for the site. He envisions RiverCommon as more than a public park, and much more than a setting for community events. He talks of seeking the possible expansion of the city’s annual Fine Arts Fiesta to the waterfront, but more than that he sees RiverCommon as a must-visit concert venue for music fans and national acts alike. With a floating stage on a barge and seating provided on each shore of the Susquehanna River, Borton speaks confidently of pulling off large concerts on the river.

“My ultimate goal is to have Dave Matthews and other large artists like that come down here,” he says matter of factly.

It’s a tall task, for sure, but Borton doesn’t feel like it’s a pipe dream. In fact, he said he hopes RiverCommon becomes a go-between for bands traveling from Philly to New York City — a Red Rock of the East, if you will. For now, he’ll concentrate on social networking and getting other events off the ground, but if a barge happens to approach the Market Street Bridge and drop anchor, Wilkes-Barre could be in for one hell of a show.

Read the Full Article

Times-Leader
June 21, 2009
by Sherry Long

WILKES-BARRE – Open less than 24 hours, the River Common park quickly became the hot spot for must-have photos on your most special day.

Ascending the stairs at the park’s Millennium Circle portal in a flowing, white strapless wedding gown early Saturday afternoon, Nadia Kopcha, a Ukraine native now living in Wilkes-Barre, was the first bride to have her bridal photos taken in the park as the Susquehanna River flowed gently in the background

While the park was not built for the exclusive purpose of serving as the Valley’s latest photo hot spot, park supporters were pleased that people were reconnecting to the river during the 10th annual Wyoming Valley RiverFest in their own ways.

Some people strolled up and down the one-mile stretch of the walkways listening to bands belt out tunes as they admired the $23 million River Common that was originally constructed to bring people back to the river and increase the levee protection system.

Children were kept busy with activities designed to help them learn more about the environment in a fun, relaxed setting.

Children climbed trees, painted drawings as they learned about the importance of water, helped paint a mural, painted tie-dye T-shirts, learned about wildlife animals from an exhibit set up by the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and made birdfeeders using pine cones, peanut butter and birdseed.

Passing rain showers didn’t damper people’s spirits; they just took it all in stride as being a part of nature.

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The Beacon
June 20, 2009
by Andrew Seaman

WILKES-BARRE – Click on the first image on the right to view an image gallery featuring pictures from the opening day of the River Commons near Wilkes University.

For Pictures, Go Here

WNEP
June 18, 2009
by Ryan Leckey

WILKES-BARRE – Part of Luzerne County is getting ready to unveil a multi-million dollar project that will connect the Wyoming valley to the Susquehanna River just like it did in the 1920s.

The River Common in Wilkes-Barre officially opens to the public at 4 p.m. Friday and some are calling it a new portal for adventure. It’s a project that’s been 10 years in the making.

Now, more than ever, there are more reasons to flock to the water’s edge in the Wyoming valley. A $23 million project has built a revamped levee system. It not only provides flood protection but has given parts of the banks of the Susquehanna River in the Wilkes-Barre area a whole new look.

“The community has been waiting and, I’m going to say, waiting more than 10 years to come down here and access the river,” said Vincent Cotrone with Wyoming Valley Riverfest.

Something else that’s completely new here is the Millennium Circle which features a fountain for kids to play in during the summertime and, for the first time since the 1920s, a levee portal system. Visitors can actually walk through the area and see the Susquehanna River which allows people to connect to the waters and the Wyoming Valley.

“The levees have provided us protection but they also prevented us from gaining access to the river,” said Jim Brozena with the Luzerne County Flood Protection Authority.

With new sights to see, more people are expected to “paddle” their way into our area, not just for this weekend’s Riverfest but eventually for future concerts in the new 750-seat amphitheater, activity which could lead to economic growth in the Wyoming Valley.

“When people are coming to visit the area from, say, out of the area, they come down here, they look at this, it could be someone maybe looking to make an investment into the community,” said John Maday with Wyoming Valley Riverfest.

Read the Full Article

Times Leader
June 18, 2009
Times Leader: Opinion

WILKES-BARRE: A MANMADE GEM along the Susquehanna River has been created in the Diamond City, and it has the promise to be a public treasure for years to come.

Its name is rather plain – River Common – but it’s really the most unique of Wyoming Valley’s parks.

Using a river park in Hartford, Conn. as a model, River Common has been redesigned to simultaneously offer flood-protection to downtown Wilkes-Barre and open the Susquehanna River for recreational purposes while offering an array of activities that include walking paths, a 750-seat amphitheater, fishing pier and Wi-Fi access.

The massive levee structure offers essential protection from dangerous flood waters – it is part of a flood-control project – but two 60-foot-wide portals offer pedestrian access to the river’s edge. There’s also ample bench seating for those who would rather relax than walk or exercise. All points are wheelchair accessible.

Read the Full Article

June 18, 2009
RiverCommon Press Release

WILKES-BARRE – The RiverCommon stage for the dedication weekend has relocated to the Mellenium Circle. For directions please visit the directions page of this website.

Weekender
June 17, 2009
by Nikki M. Mascali

WILKES-BARRE – While there are no events planned for the RiverCommon area past this weekend’s festivities, Brozena and those in attendance that Friday — Cotrone, John Maday of the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce and Karl Borton, RiverCommon events coordinator — think that will change quickly and that the public will dictate what they want to see there.

When asked what they’d like to see at the site in the future, all four immediately began tossing around ideas like ethnic festivals, perhaps an expansion of the Fine Arts Fiesta, theater in the park productions and winter ice sculptures.

“It’s almost like we’ve got a paper bag over the top because you really can’t see it,” Brozena says. “No one has a real feel for how big it is down here, what it’s like and what the amenities are. Once we open it, it’s a bad term, but that’s when the floodgates are going to open to a whole host of options for this.”

Leighton hopes to see those “floodgates” affect not just the view of the river, but the city beyond its banks.

“It’ll be an opportunity for people to come down and enjoy nature’s beauty. It’ll have a ripple effect with the economy downtown because they can take a stroll in downtown Wilkes-Barre — it’ll be an asset to enhance the image of Wilkes-Barre.”

“I think what’s going to happen during RiverFest is people are going to be able to look back and forth across the river and think, ‘I have to go over there.’ This is a venue,” says Maday, standing under the Market Street Bridge looking toward the River Landing.

The landing/fishing pier is a venue that could potentially seat thousands should plans for a floating stage get finalized. Borton has a vision of the RiverCommon helping the area grow beyond its borders.

“We’d love to see this blow up into a hotspot, like ‘This is the place to go’ in the daytime, and at night, go downtown. Eventually, we want to see this be the stop-off point to Philadelphia and New York, a cool venue every artist around the country will want to play at.”

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Times Leader
June 17, 2009
by Jennifer Learn-Andes

WILKES-BARRE – Move made for potential big crowds, giving elderly and disabled access to events.

Luzerne County officials have no idea how many people will show up for this weekend’s River Common grand opening, so they’re setting up a transportation plan to shuttle the public from several downtown Wilkes-Barre parking areas on Friday and Saturday.

A county transportation authority bus and possibly two county vans will provide free transportation. The shuttle locations will be announced today, said county Flood Protection Authority Director Jim Brozena.

Brozena said the plan is particularly important to allow the elderly and disabled to access all events. The River Common is fully accessible to people with disabilities.

The lot behind the courthouse will eventually be reconfigured to create public parking for the disabled, officials say. Most of the parking spots behind the courthouse will be eliminated, forcing employees to park in a county lot across River Street or the county’s parkade on Water Street.

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Times Leader
June 14, 2009
by Jennifer Learn-Andes

WILKES-BARRE – Though the new River Common park opens Friday, there won’t be a full schedule of concerts and events until next year, Luzerne County officials say.

Scheduling major events would be difficult this late in the summer season, and county officials still have to set up a plan to program and fund events, said county Flood Protection Authority Director Jim Brozena.

Officials are in the process of creating a nonprofit corporation to collect tax-deductible donations, Brozena said.

County officials plan to model their funding plan on the one used in Hartford, Conn., which has a “Friends of the River” organization that finances free events at the city’s riverfront park through sponsorships, annual donations and even estate endowments.

Park programs and oversight are handled by the nonprofit River Recapture group, which is governed by a roughly 50-member board.

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Times Leader
June 12, 2009
by Bill O’Boyle

Wilkes-Barre – Mary Pat Appel (pronounced Ah-pell) is a certified arborist hired by Luzerne County to oversee the planting of all vegetation – trees, shrubs, perennials – along the River Common park.

More than $700,000 has been spent on landscaping for the new park that will open next week, said Jim Brozena, executive director of the county Flood Protection Authority.

More than 250 trees, 500 shrubs and 50,000 perennials have been planted along the River Common from the county courthouse south to South Street.

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Times Leader
May 31, 2009
RiverCommon Press Release

WILKES-BARRE – The RiverCommon is featuring a free two-day festival and sojourn on June 19, 20 and 21 to celebrate its dedication and grand reopening.

Combining forces with the Wyoming Valley WaterShed Coalition and RiverFront Parks, RiverFest will feature live music, artists, artisans, vendors and various exhibitors. There will be music by George Wesley, Don Shapelle, Woody Browns Project, SW!MS, Nowhere Slow, NonRefundables, K8 and Charles Havira. Featured will be live birds of prey, pony rides and a rock climbing wall.

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Times Leader
May 20, 2009
by Jennifer Learn-Andes

WILKES-BARRE – Mark your calendar if you’ve been itching to explore the revamped River Common in downtown Wilkes-Barre.

The park along the Susquehanna River will officially open June 19, kicking off with a dedication ceremony at 4 p.m., the Luzerne County Flood Protection Authority announced during Tuesday’s monthly meeting.

The ceremony will be held on a stage to be set up at the amphitheater, which is accessed through the Northampton Street levee portal opening, said authority Executive Director Jim Brozena.

After the dedication, the public will be invited to enjoy a free “evening of music,” Brozena said.

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Times Leader
Sept. 10, 2008
by Steve Mocarsky

WILKES-BARRE – A state official who toured Luzerne County’s $30 million riverfront park project on Tuesday was impressed with the project’s progress and scope.

State Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Secretary Michael DiBerardinis said he has not seen a river project “this grand and this expansive” and said it was “the future of cities in America and of cities in Pennsylvania.”

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August 18, 2008
Times Leader
by Rory Sweeney

WILKES-BARRE – A trip to Washington, D.C., to see cherry blossoms won’t be necessary next year if Luzerne County levee-keeper Jim Brozena’s plan goes as scheduled.

By May, Brozena, the executive director of the county Flood Protection Authority, hopes to cut the ribbon on a project that is transforming the levee along River Street from a large earthen wall that hides the river to a park with two gaping portals that will provide access to the waterfront, landscaped common areas full of flowering cherry trees and open-air performance spaces…

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July 17, 2008
Citizen’s Voice
by Coulter Jones

WILKES-BARRE — Luzerne County Flood Protection Authority is moving to create a nonprofit organization to plan activities along the Susquehanna River.

Authority board members discussed creating the nonprofit at their Tuesday meeting. Authority members agreed to look into creating the nonprofit that would also be used to help plan activities for the centennial celebration of the Luzerne County Courthouse. Using the same nonprofit organization for both events would reduce legal costs and duplication of resources, authority members said….

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