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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

City Council Meeting on Parade Street Healthcare Project - November 5, 2025

City Council — Wednesday, November 5, 2025

BodyErie, Pennsylvania

SessionCity Council

DateWednesday, November 5, 2025

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 52:51

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:08

Everyone's here.

0:09

It's on his way.

0:14

And just for formality.

0:18

Let's introduce ourselves.

0:20

And then I'll turn it over to Councilman True.

0:25

I get that too.

0:26

Okay.

0:34

Okay.

0:35

Mel with a spoon, member of Council.

0:39

Tyler, I guess, member of God.

0:41

Kathy Shaff.

0:42

Here.

0:45

I'm Danielle Mina.

0:46

I'm project manager with Bosworth Design.

0:49

They have Brandon the partner at Costco Design Partnership.

0:52

Matt Harris, Vice President of East Side Renaissance.

0:55

Olivia Hybox, CEO, Multicultural Health Evaluation Delivery System.

0:59

Jasmine Forrest, City Council.

1:15

Thanks, Mr.

1:15

President.

1:16

I'd like to thank Mr.

1:18

Harris and the rest of his team for coming down today.

1:26

Talk about a project that they mentioned to me, and I thought it would be great for the rest of the city council to hear about it.

1:33

So with that, I'd like to turn over to your team.

1:36

Thank you.

1:36

I appreciate that.

1:38

Councilman Troop and thank everyone at City Council for letting us to letting Eastside Renaissance and the Meds team come over and explain what we think is an important project that's going to be taking place and has been taking place on the Parade Street corridor.

1:54

This capital improvement project has been in the works for the last couple years.

1:59

We presented to in your handout, you'll see some information, kind of an overall white paper describing the program in detail, some of the supporters there.

2:08

And so I figured I thought this capital stack that we've secured thus far.

2:14

You'll see that in the document that we are here in a request for a million-dollar uh loan.

2:20

Chris Grohner, I thought was going to be here.

2:23

I've been talking with Chris for the last two years.

2:26

Chris and his program supported um, I think 250,000 with the 901 uh kitchen with the um Taste of Love Kitchen for us.

2:37

And so we would come back and talk to Chris about um a million dollars regarding this project.

2:42

You'll see the capital stack once again there.

2:44

We understand that there's gonna be a transition with administration, and so 2026, we're not expecting anything before that, but we felt that it was important to update city council um and what's coming in 26 with this project, and we have uh our team here to talk about that.

3:01

So for sake of being redundant with the information you see here, and I don't want to take time because I want to leave time for QA.

3:10

Uh I'm gonna turn it over to Olivia, who's the CEO of Meds, and she can go into a detailed explanation of what meds is about and the importance of um this happening along the Parade Street corridor.

3:24

And I think she has a PowerPoint presentation to talk about.

3:28

Are you gonna do okay?

3:29

And the next slide, please.

3:33

So this project is really about we talk about building neighborhoods of the future, healthcare access on the lower east side.

3:39

Um it's critically important that we continue to invest in the parade street corridor, but building attractive neighborhoods, part of that is having doctors that people can go to.

3:48

Um and meds is committed to investing in this neighborhood.

3:52

Next slide, please.

3:54

A true story.

3:55

Next slide, please.

3:56

Nope, I should have taken that slide out.

3:58

We are invested.

3:59

Next slide, please.

4:02

We believe in a vibrant, inclusive, and successful parade street corridor.

4:05

Um you may have noticed we did open an office.

4:08

Next slide, please, at um 826 parade.

4:11

Next slide, please.

4:12

Um, at 826 parade, October 24th of 2024.

4:17

Um, and that office is staffed by an internal medicine doctor who has um dual board certifications in gerontology as well, which is huge for that neighborhood.

4:25

There's very few geriontologists in the city of Erie, period.

4:29

Um, and then a physician assistant and part-time uh nurse practitioner who is uh pediatric specialists because we know that people in that neighborhood need access to health care.

4:42

We projected that we would see 2,000 patients in year one of operations at that location.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Healthcare Access█████████████████████████25%

Community Engagement█████████████13%

Healthcare Facilities██████████10%

Public Engagement██████████10%

Economic Development██████6%

Engineering And Infrastructure██████6%

Budget Equity Analysis██████6%

Fiscal Sustainability██████6%

Public Safety████4%

Summary of Proceedings

City Council Meeting on Parade Street Healthcare Project - November 5, 2025

On November 5, 2025, the Erie City Council reviewed a proposal by East Side Renaissance and Multicultural Health Evaluation Delivery System (MEDS) to establish a new healthcare facility on the Parade Street corridor. The presentation detailed a $4.8 million capital improvement project designed to address the area's status as a healthcare desert, aiming to provide primary care, mental health services, dental care, and an in-house pharmacy. Council members expressed strong support for the initiative, citing the critical need for local health access, particularly for residents in the 16503 zip code, while noting the project's reliance on pending state and federal funding sources.

Consent Calendar

No specific items from the consent calendar were discussed or listed in the provided transcript.

Public Comments & Testimony

Olivia Hybox (CEO, MEDS): Expressed full support for the project, stating it is critically important to invest in the Parade Street corridor and build neighborhoods of the future. She highlighted that the organization sees patients regardless of their ability to pay, often charging a nominal $20 fee or waiving it entirely.
Matt Harris (VP, East Side Renaissance): Expressed strong support for the project as a key component of economic development and health equity. He emphasized that the 16503 zip code is a healthcare desert where 56% of residents make less than $19,000 a year. He noted that driving just 10 minutes from the city to a wealthier area results in a 10-year difference in life expectancy.
Council Member: Supported the project as a response to decades of disinvestment, calling it a vital investment for the community's well-being and tax base.

Discussion Items

Project Scope and Services: MEDS outlined plans for a facility at 908-912 Parade Street (demolishing a non-salvageable portion at 908 and renovating 910-912). The facility will house primary care, ophthalmology, speech pathology, mental health, physical therapy (PT), occupational therapy (OT), and a dental office. An in-house pharmacy and a community conference room were also planned.
Workforce and Demographics: Olivia Hybox reported that 86% of MEDS staff speak a language other than English as their first language, addressing the 90% of patients who are served in a non-English language. The project is projected to create approximately 50 new jobs and hire locally.
Financials and Capital Stack: The project cost was stated as $4.8 million. The capital stack includes pending funding from the state budget, the Federal CRIS program (for infrastructure/demolition), and a request for a $1 million low-interest loan from the City of Erie (via the Chris Grohner program) intended for 2026.
Accessibility and Infrastructure: Bosworth Design presented architectural plans to install an elevator and stair tower to ensure accessibility. Danielle Mina noted the need for roughly five parking spaces within a 500-foot radius and discussed potential collaborations for street trees and lighting.
Healthcare Impact: Council members questioned the impact on ER and ambulance utilization. MEDS confirmed that increased primary care access reduces ER visits, though specific data on ambulance usage reduction was not currently tracked by the organization.

Key Outcomes

No Formal Vote Recorded: The transcript indicates the council members offered verbal support and

Meeting Transcript

Everyone's here. It's on his way. And just for formality. Let's introduce ourselves. And then I'll turn it over to Councilman True. I get that too. Okay. Okay. Mel with a spoon, member of Council. Tyler, I guess, member of God. Kathy Shaff. Here. I'm Danielle Mina. I'm project manager with Bosworth Design. They have Brandon the partner at Costco Design Partnership. Matt Harris, Vice President of East Side Renaissance. Olivia Hybox, CEO, Multicultural Health Evaluation Delivery System. Jasmine Forrest, City Council. Thanks, Mr. President. I'd like to thank Mr. Harris and the rest of his team for coming down today. Talk about a project that they mentioned to me, and I thought it would be great for the rest of the city council to hear about it. So with that, I'd like to turn over to your team. Thank you. I appreciate that. Councilman Troop and thank everyone at City Council for letting us to letting Eastside Renaissance and the Meds team come over and explain what we think is an important project that's going to be taking place and has been taking place on the Parade Street corridor. This capital improvement project has been in the works for the last couple years. We presented to in your handout, you'll see some information, kind of an overall white paper describing the program in detail, some of the supporters there. And so I figured I thought this capital stack that we've secured thus far. You'll see that in the document that we are here in a request for a million-dollar uh loan. Chris Grohner, I thought was going to be here. I've been talking with Chris for the last two years. Chris and his program supported um, I think 250,000 with the 901 uh kitchen with the um Taste of Love Kitchen for us. And so we would come back and talk to Chris about um a million dollars regarding this project. You'll see the capital stack once again there. We understand that there's gonna be a transition with administration, and so 2026, we're not expecting anything before that, but we felt that it was important to update city council um and what's coming in 26 with this project, and we have uh our team here to talk about that. So for sake of being redundant with the information you see here, and I don't want to take time because I want to leave time for QA. Uh I'm gonna turn it over to Olivia, who's the CEO of Meds, and she can go into a detailed explanation of what meds is about and the importance of um this happening along the Parade Street corridor. And I think she has a PowerPoint presentation to talk about. Are you gonna do okay? And the next slide, please. So this project is really about we talk about building neighborhoods of the future, healthcare access on the lower east side. Um it's critically important that we continue to invest in the parade street corridor, but building attractive neighborhoods, part of that is having doctors that people can go to. Um and meds is committed to investing in this neighborhood. Next slide, please. A true story. Next slide, please. Nope, I should have taken that slide out. We are invested.

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