By Vyola P. Willson, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT
POSTED: July 14, 1994
"COATESVILLE — About two years ago, the chief executive officer of Lukens Inc. had what he calls a "defining moment."
During a visit to a senior center in Coatesville, R.W. Van Sant realized that the people he was talking to - people who had lived and worked in the Coatesville area and invested time and money in their community - had given up on their town in despair.
What made them abandon hope were some of the same problems that beset many small U.S. cities: a disappearing downtown retail area, job losses, aging housing stock, increasing crime.
"If you look back over the last 10 years, there has been a definite deterioration in the quality of life for Coatesville citizens," Van Sant said. "Lukens is the largest employer in the area. . . . It was time to step up to our responsibilities."
That watershed experience led to the formation of the Coatesville Area Partnership for Progress (CAPP) and an effort to bring the clout of corporate Coatesville to bear on issues facing the city of 11,000. The eight-month-old partnership aims to be more than just another acronym that brings people together to talk about problems over breakfast or lunch.
His realization also persuaded Van Sant to move forward quickly on another front: a plan to create a tourist attraction out of four historic buildings tied to Lukens' past.
Twenty businesses have joined CAPP, committing $360,000 over three years. The partnership has hired a new director, Regina Horton, and members of the executive committee already find themselves going toe-to-toe with officialdom to change the outlook for the city in four critical areas: jobs, housing, education and safety."
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