From This Collection

Erie worries its natural beauty — and tourism — will suffer under budget cuts

Jun 12, 2017
Federal funds help fight beach erosion, protecting an industry that draws $1 billion a year from visitors.
Matt Greene, director of operations at Presque Isle State Park, said government funds help fight beach erosion that uproots trees.
Erika Beras

Prisons try to curb addiction with a drug that heroin-proofs your brain

Jun 2, 2017
Inmates leaving Erie County Prison get a shot of Vivitrol before they are released.
Dennis Rodgers, 29, is serving a sentence in the Erie County Prison stemming from drug abuse. A candidate for Vivitrol, he says, “This is a good shot to be completely clean.”
Erika Beras

In Erie, Pennsylvania, a refugee family dreams of college and worries how to pay for it

May 30, 2017
'It's like heaven inside,' junior Megha Ghimirey says of her American high school.
Megha Ghimirey, 17, with her sister Niti, 8. Megha is wrapping up her junior year at Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy.
Amy Scott/Marketplace

How health care is healing Erie's ailing economy

May 24, 2017
The city's two biggest hospital systems employ nearly 7,000 people.
Health care “is a very, very core thing to the community,” said Marc Bryant, a former paper mill engineer who is now a nurse at UPMC Hamot.
Erika Beras

Erie public schools are consolidating to survive

May 10, 2017
Even after cutbacks, the district is facing a $10 million deficit.
Catherine Doyle teaches an ESL class at East High School in Erie, where more than a quarter of students are learning English.
Amy Scott/Marketplace

100 days into Trump's presidency, Union City, Pennsylvania, stands behind him

The president has our 'best interests at heart' Union City locals say.
At Ma-Donna’s Restaurant, a local gathering spot in Erie County’s Union City, Marketplace host Kai Ryssdal checked in to see how locals feel about President Trump’s first 100 days. From left to right: Merv Troyer, Robert Glen, Keith Troyer, and Norm Troyer.
Caitlin Esch/Marketplace
At Presque Isle Angler Bait and Tackle in Erie, you can get fishing supplies along with a read on the economy.
Caitlin Esch

For public good, not for profit.

Rebuilding Corry, Pennsylvania, one store at a time

Apr 5, 2017
A group of women business owners has a plan to revive the former oil boomtown.
Sisters Wendy Neckers and Valerie Beckerink grew up near Corry, Pennsylvania and returned as adults. They manage two businesses in the downtown area, which they’re trying to help revitalize.
Caitlin Esch/Marketplace

How Erie is rewriting the Rust Belt narrative

Apr 4, 2017
Entrepreneurs are building a startup culture in the Pennsylvania city and bringing new energy to its economy.
Sean Fedorko heads up Radius CoWork, Erie’s first coworking space.
Caitlin Esch/Marketplace

Erie depends on immigrants to boost its economy

Mar 22, 2017
Erie's population is declining, and it's relying on immigrants for growth, and the immigrants are relying on each other.
Saad Albidhawi, a long-time mechanic, is part of the reason there are now more than 10 Iraqi-owned auto shops in Erie.
Caitlin Esch/Marketplace