Erie's Year in Review 2025

Erin Phillips

Erie's 2025 Year in Review looks back at all that Erie has experienced in the past year through politics, economics, arts, culture and athletics, education, climate and the environment, and hyper-locally, the changes we've seen here at the Erie Reader.

Goodness gracious, has 2025 seriously only been one single year long? These past 365 days have felt like 365,000, am I right? When inundated from every conceivable angle with injustice, unfairness, greed, violence, lies, corruption … It's hard not to let the daily deluge of flaming hot garbage take our eyes off of our community brilliance, helpful neighbors, and yes, even political wins we have experienced together.

And while nationally, the year in review is dominated with names like Trump, Musk, Noem, and Epstein, locally we're focused on names like Devlin, Woodard, Hagen, Vogel, and Gibbs to tell the story of our year. We've certainly had our ups and downs and we'll take a look at them all. So here goes nothing – let's review Erie's 2025!

Jump to a section:

Erie's Shifting Political Landscape

Erie's Growth and Economic Development

The Fun Stuff: Arts, Culture, and Athletics

Working Smarter and Harder: Education in Erie

Our Changing Local Climate

Our Erie Reader's Year in Review

Erie's Shifting Political Landscape

 Democrat Daria Devlin wins the election for Erie's mayor // Project CLEER opens at the Blasco Memorial Library // Christina Vogel trounces Brenton Davis to become Erie's next county executive // Marchello Woodard was shot and killed by his parole officer, with little progress made in the investigation (Contributed photos / Erin Phillips)

Why don't we just get the politics out of the way, shall we? In response to the daily, often hourly horrors of the Trump administration, Erie has been host to multiple well-attended, peaceful No Kings protests – part of a larger movement of No Kings protests nationwide. In both June and October of 2025, crowds of constituents gathered to show their disapproval of Trump's policies including but not limited to ICE raids and arrests of immigrants, refugees, and New Americans, deploying National Guard troops into U.S. cities, holding SNAP and ACA funding hostage, and so, so much more. Locally, activist groups have been gaining momentum including 50501 Erie, French Creek Indivisible, and Fair Districts PA – connecting with any of these groups will result in updates for future No Kings protests as they are organized.

We do have some political wins to celebrate locally. One such win is the unequivocal electoral annihilation inflicted upon our incumbent County Executive Brenton Davis at the hands of incoming Christina Vogel. This wasn't even close. This was a historically large landslide victory for the political newcomer Vogel, and her win speaks to Erie County's overall dissatisfaction with the county's direction over the last four years.

No need to dwell on the 2025 foibles of the former county executive, since he's out the door (BUT those foibles were embarrassing and many, including hijacking the Erie County Facebook page for personal political promotion, presenting a 2025 budget with so many errors, discrepancies, inaccuracies, and unauthorized transfers, the audit lit up like Clark Griswold's house at Christmastime, vetoing funding for literally any part of county government that that serves communities of color, including the Human Relations Commission, Booker T. Washington Center, the MLK Center, and Urban Erie Community Development Center, etc.). Additionally, Democrats remain in council majority – with a win for Jim Wertz who will be filling the seat of outgoing Andre Horton (who is moving over to city council in the new year).

Speaking of the city, we have a new mayor in Daria Devlin who will be inaugurated on Jan. 5 as the second female mayor of Erie and 49th overall. Devlin secured her win with 75 percent of the vote over Republican candidate Matthew Thomas. This came after Devlin successfully primaried out two-term incumbent Mayor Joe Schember. Devlin ran a wildly successful campaign, connecting personally with many constituents, and has filled her cabinet with a diverse group of folks who have been working in service to the community for years including (among others) Erin Carey (40 Under 40 class of 2025), Corey Cook (40 Under 40 Class of 2014), Amy Murdock (40 Under 40 Class of 2019), and Jenessa Norton (40 Under 40 Class of 2025).

The library has been a point of contention for basically the entirety of the Davis administration as the group "Keep Our Library Public" brought a lawsuit opposing the installation of Gannon University's water research facility Project Neptwne in the Blasco Library building. That suit has recently been settled, although the details of that settlement are not yet public. The first phase of Gannon's initiative, Project CLEER, has already been installed and is currently free and open to the public in the eastern corner of the main floor of the library. The display features interactive exhibits showing how natural and human phenomena impact our Great Lakes, as well as a local environmental art exhibit, and the centerpiece, "a room-sized, global display system that uses computers and video projectors to display planetary data onto a six foot diameter sphere, analogous to a giant animated globe." According to Gannon President Walter Iwanenko, "This is the 206th installation of this NOAA Science On a Sphere in the world and we have it, here in Erie. Kids can get on the kiosk and there are 600 different data sets that are available to interact with. One of our goals with this project is to bring more people into the library."

After a good amount of contention, and jam-packed public comment dockets, Erie City Council voted unanimously to transfer ownership of the Erie Zoo to Erie Events. This move was largely supported by zoo management, with president and CEO of the Erie Zoo Roo Kojancie saying, "We encourage everyone to continue to be on board with this – it's a fantastic opportunity for the zoo, for the city, and for the region."

One cannot speak about news and politics in the City of Erie in 2025 without contending with what has been an increasingly frustrating and slow process of seeking justice for Marchello Woodard, an unarmed Black man, a father, partner, and volunteer, who was fatally shot by his parole officer in July. As of this writing, the name of the shooter has yet to be released publicly, no arrests have been made, and the family and friends of Woodard, as well as the community at large, are left to grapple with his death without answers or support from state law enforcement. One advocate involved with the "Justice for Chello" movement Cyndi Treiber stated, "I think the Brown and Black community are feeling dismissed. They feel that this would not have happened if the roles of race were reversed. Unfortunately, when you have a lack of transparency, people feel unheard and then they get angry and that's where people are right now." Continued protests for those seeking answers in the case continue at both the site of the shooting and at city and county council meetings.

Erie's Growth and Economic Development

(Clockwise from top left) The Olds Norman House was literally moved from West Seventh to West Sixth Street // The EDDC breaks ground on the Flagship City Commons project // The Historic Erie Preservation Trust completes work on a number of historic buildings including Herb and Honey Bakery // The Erie All Stars performed a set of Beatles songs for Celebrate Erie

(Photo Credits: Dave Tamulonis, EDDC, Erin Phillilps)

Not sure if you've noticed but there's been some pretty disruptive construction literally everywhere, but most notably on the Bayfront Connector. What is an eyesore of an inconvenience now will eventually pay off when the bayfront becomes more efficient for commuters and safer for pedestrians and cyclists. Hopefully, you've all settled into a 12th Street (or other alternate) routine route for any necessary cross-city traffic, as we all anticipate a clearer path forward in 2027.

Also, not sure if you noticed, but a whole-ass house was moved early this fall. The 4,500-square-foot Queen Anne-style mansion known as the Olds Norman House now has a new address after spending 141 years in one place. When the time came to say goodbye to Wehrle Hall, a mid-century dormitory that Gannon President Walter Iwanenko described as at its "end-of-life," the university found itself at a decision point regarding multiple historic buildings that were in need of extensive, expensive restorations. At that point, "Mr. Hagen wanted to have a conversation." And it was during that conversation that the discussion of physically moving the house started to become a reality and the Historic Erie Preservation Trust (HEPT) became involved.

So, after Kidder Architecture and Jefferys Construction did some shoring up of the building's exterior brick work, Wolfe House and Structure Movers were hired to do the enormous job. Using mostly robotic technology controlled through a single device, the house was jacked up on beams, spun 180 degrees, and resettled from Seventh Street to Sixth in an incremental process that, due to unforeseen weather-related circumstances, took about 7 hours (when it was initially estimated to take 60 to 90 minutes). Come fall, once all the renovations are complete on the Olds Norman House, the university will hold a dedication ceremony to welcome the newest old addition to the West Sixth Street Historic District.

The HEPT will be leasing this home along with the recently restored Carter Shannon House (on the corner of Sixth and Sassafras) and the fresh-faced Jarecki House to Gannon for the foreseeable future. The Olds Norman house will be utilized by the university as guest lodging for visiting lecturers, interviewees, alumni, and other visitors. While the Carter Shannon building is housing for 10 lucky students, the Jarecki House will serve as a space for university advancement offices as well as meeting and gathering space for Gannon alumni.

While on the subject of the HEPT, their work continues on and off Sixth Street, including the new spot for Herb and Honey bakery within the restored former Sophia's Tavern on Fifth and Cherry streets. The group has also completed work on two other homes in that area at the Walker-Filer house (555 W. Sixth St.) and at 621 Cherry St. while work continues on the 409 W. Sixth St. rowhouses, the Spencer Townhouse apartments (527-529 West Sixth St.), the Whittier House (530 W. Sixth St.), the Rindernecht House (512 W. Sixth St.), the Albert Jarecki House (520 W. Sixth St.), the Robert Jarecki House (558 W. Sixth St.), the Thayer Thompson House (605 W. Eighth St.) and neighboring Griffith O'Brien English House (613 W. Eighth St.), as well as the aforementioned Olds-Norman House. That's a whole lotta old houses getting millions of dollars of investment in the City of Erie.

While the HEPT takes care of a number of antique buildings in the West Sixth Street Historic District, the Erie Downtown Development Corporation continues work within the State Street Corridor, which also happens to be in the process of becoming its own nationally registered historic district. With the completion of the massive parking facility on Fifth and Peach streets also came the new home for Dave's Diner (sic), while the Cashier's House space is now home to a legacy Erie restaurant in Serafini's Trattoria. Construction has begun in the open space left vacant by the demolition of the former Greyhound Bus Station on North Park Row for what will eventually be Flagship City Commons, "a versatile building, combining both office and commercial spaces, designed to foster community and economic growth in this vibrant district."

Our other downtown champion, the Erie Downtown Partnership (EDP) has been working all year long to bring meaningful events and resources to our downtown district including helping to create another successful Celebrate Erie this year, which was headlined by Gym Class Heroes and Russell Dickerson, and concluded with an Erie All Stars tribute to the Beatles, a nod to our outgoing Mayor Schember who cites the Fab Four as one of his faves. Additionally, the EDP facilitated multiple outdoor movie nights, weekly local bands in Perry Square, helped to expand access to the Pay-What-You-Can farmers markets, held weekly sunrise yoga classes, and their annual fall fest along with local small business bolstering, mutual aid projects for our downtown neighbors, and just generally continuing to work to make Downtown Erie a cleaner, more welcoming, fun, inclusive destination for everyone in Erie.

The Fun Stuff: Arts, Culture, and Athletics

 (Clockwise from top left) Erie Blues and Jazz Fest celebrates in Frontier Park // The Erie SeaWolves become the Moon Mammoths with John Oliver's help // Basement Transmissions becomes Centennial Hall // The Hagen History Center's Girard campus planted 1.2 million sunflowers (Photo credits: Erin Phillips, Mulnah Dovat, Hagen History Center)

If Erie is defined by anything in 2025, it has to be the color purple. Hopefully as many of our readers as possible made it to one of four Moon Mammoth games this season. In case you've been living under a Pleistocene rock, John Oliver of Last Week Tonight solicited submissions from Minor League baseball teams from across the country who would be open to having the show rebrand their team. And among 47 total submissions, Oliver chose our very own Erie SeaWolves to overhaul, citing reasons such as the SEAwolves in fact play nowhere near the sea. After some research, the show decided on the name the Moon Mammoths, as a nod to local fisherman William Moon's 1991 discovery of mammoth fossils in Lake Pleasant. Shortly thereafter, a giant purple mastodon named Fuzz E. Mammoth was welcomed with open arms to the Gem City.

If you were one of the record-setting 7,070 fans in attendance at the Moon Mammoth's inaugural game on July 19, perhaps you saw Oliver himself throwing out the first pitch or leading a rousing version of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh inning stretch. It was pure joy, as minor league baseball should always be. In an interview at UPMC Park, Oliver said, "Minor league baseball is one of the great things that America has. If you are lucky enough to have a minor league team anywhere near you, support it. You won't regret it."

The SeaWolves/Moon Mammoths came within a game of bringing home a three-peat Eastern League Championship this year, but we truly won something greater than a championship this season: the feeling of our community fully embracing a wacky idea and letting the joy of rooting for our team bring us all a little closer. Thanks for that, John Oliver.

I suppose, if purple isn't the defining image of Erie in 2025, alternatively it's sunflowers. Was there literally anyone in anyone's newsfeed that didn't visit the epic sunflower field at the Hagen History Center's Girard campus? Didn't seem like it and for good reason – it was an awe-inspiring spectacle of natural beauty. The vastness of 1.2 million sunflowers is difficult to wrap your mind around without witnessing it. And hopefully we'll all get another chance in 2026.

The independent music scene in Erie is breathing a sigh of relief after longtime owner of Basement Transmissions (music venue, art gathering space, and lighthouse to local original music weirdos) Bob Jensen decided to sell the building and it was quickly cradled in the open arms of Jensen's former bandmate Jason Lavery and wife Nicole, who are longtime friends. The entrepreneurs behind Lavery Brewing Company have renamed the venue Centennial Hall (a nod to both the formative former Forward Hall as well as a variety of hops used in their signature beers) and plan to continue the legacy of the indie venue while expanding on what Jensen built over the years. They plan to renovate and repair the building over this winter and reopen in April, as they host their first show back welcoming The Menzingers on the final date of their 2026 tour.

It's been an active year for our local nonprofits. Under the threat (and reality) of cuts to grant funding across the federal board, Erie has thrown tremendous support to our charitable organizations, making this the biggest year yet for the annual giving event Erie Gives Day. The numbers are jaw-dropping: $11,357,387 raised by 38,998 individual donations to 539 nonprofits. Among those nonprofits who benefited from our community's astounding generosity, we have some news:

Erie Arts and Culture welcomed a new director in Susannah Faulkner (40 Under 40 class of 2023) this year.

Erie Blues and Jazz Festival celebrated its second year of resurgence after missing out in 2023.

The Performing Artist Collective Alliance (PACA) has welcomed youth theater program Footlights under its collective umbrella, as it continues to bolster community theater in all forms while restoring, improving, and expanding their historic building.

The Barber National Institute held its last ever Beast on the Bay, a massively popular American Ninja Warrior-style athletic competition/fundraiser. I have to say, it felt weird having a "Best Athletic Competition" Best of Erie category this year without them, as they have been the favored winner of that contest for 11 years in a row.

The Sisters of St. Joseph Neighborhood Network has partnered with BikeErie to expand and improve the recently christened Erie Bike Co-Op, helping to get affordable bikes into the hands of those in Erie who need them most. Helmed by 2025 40 Under 40 alum Garrett Raszmann, the co-op continues to grow in aid to the community.

WQLN saw record numbers on Erie Gives Day, in response to massive federal funding cuts. While the official White House website might say they are "ending taxpayer subsidization of biased media," those who love WQLN/PBS/NPR's programming, children's educational shows, news, music, and cultural features see it differently and showed up to donate a record $213,714.57 between 1,208 donors. And while this can't truly make up the gap of millions of dollars of funding erased, it does speak to the dedication our community has for public media.

Working Smarter and Harder: Education in Erie

(Clockwise from top left) The Tall Ships festival returned to Erie // Dr. Natalyn Gibbs was hired as Superintendent of Erie's Public Schools // President Barack Obama spoke to a sold-out crowd at the Erie Insurance Arena // Dr. Chris Gray celebrates the growth of EC3 (Photos: Contributed, Jessica Hunter)

2025 welcomed a new superintendent for our City of Erie schools in Dr. Natalyn Gibbs, as she began her post in July, coming to Erie from Nashville, Tennessee and bringing along with her a vast amount of educational experience ranging from her positions as a teacher, an administrator, a principal, and a director. "My passion lies in empowering students to discover their unique talents and pursue their dreams. I believe that strong schools are the heart of a thriving community, and I am eager to partner with students, families, educators, and the entire Erie community to provide our students with the resources and opportunities they need to flourish," Gibbs shared in a public statement. "Together, we will build on the district's existing strengths and create a truly exceptional educational experience for all."

The Erie County Community College continues its exponential growth since opening in 2021 when they welcomed just 231 individuals into their budding program. EC3 now boasts enrollment numbers of 800+ students, meaning, as EC3 President Dr. Chris Gray put it, "one out of every 350 residents in Erie County is right now registered in class." Having just received a $50,000 grant from Empower Erie to offset unexpected, emergency costs among their student body, the community college is helping the whole student to flourish not only with education, but with a financial safety net that will allow them to focus on their education above all else.

The 44th President of the United States, Barack Obama was brought to the Erie Insurance Arena in September by the Jefferson Educational Society (JES) as part of their 17th annual Global Summit. The former two-term president spoke to a sold-out crowd of 8,000. Speaking on the current administration, ICE, AI, human rights in the U.S. and internationally, and more, Obama's message was, unsurprisingly, one of hope. Additionally, on the slate of events presented by the JES, Erie welcomed Neil DeGrasse Tyson, Mike Pence, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and Jim Kelly, among others.

The Tall Ships festival returned to Erie's waterways in 2025. And while the U.S.S. Brig Niagara was notably absent from the festivities this year (due to ongoing repairs), the Port of Erie welcomed vessels like the Pride of Baltimore II, the Appledore IV, and the St. Lawrence II, among others. While the construction on the bayfront may not have provided the most beautiful backdrop to the incoming tall ships, our gorgeous bay and waterfront certainly made up for the dust.

Our Changing Local Climate

(Clockwise from top left) Neel Singh, Erie's civic engagement coordinator for Penn Future, contributes this section // Riparian restoration of Cascade Creek // The proposed IRG plastics recycling plant vacates Erie plans // The former Erie Coke site is being redeveloped by the Erie Port Authority (Photos: Contributed, Nick Warren)

Last year, I invited local environmental advocate Jenny Tompkins (40 Under 40 class of 2024) to fill us in on our local and regional climate change situation, as having someone with intimately close knowledge of legislation, actions, inactions, etc. was helpful in seeing the bigger picture. This year she suggested I contact Neel Singh, who joined the regional environmental activist organization PennFuture in the summer of 2025 as Erie's civic engagement coordinator, a position created to expand environmental and conservation volunteer activities and coalition building in the Northwest. Take it away, Neel!

Erie is known for its resilience. And when it comes to fighting for conservation in the face of environmental adversity, we don't pull any punches. Local advocates are happy to celebrate some wins this year, while federal and state hurdles provide plenty of opportunity to continue the fight. So, in 2025 our work is varied and vast, and includes:

Riparian Restoration! The Cascade Creek project coordinated between the City of Erie, the Erie County Conservation District, SONS of Lake Erie, PA Sea Grant, and Lake Erie Arboretum at Frontier Park (LEAF) has made huge strides in restoring the health of a critical watershed on the west side of our Gem City. Riparian ecosystems are a massive benefactor in native wildlife returning to Erie. Check it out the next time you're in Frontier.

A new chapter is unfolding for the former Erie Coke site. Now in the hands of the Erie Port Authority, it remains to be seen what lies in store for the boundless acres of the former facility. A waterfront boardwalk is popular among constituents, but the cleanup of the former site could take decades. In large part due to the efforts of advocacy group Hold Erie Coke Accountable (HECA), Erie Coke's CEO Paul Saffron was ordered to pay a fine of $700,000 after decades of environmental negligence. Advocates call it a slap on the wrist, but thanks to the tireless work of HECA and local activists, there is now acknowledgment that harm was done to Erie.

The state budget hiatus finally came to an end… at the cost of Pennsylvania's involvement in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). RGGI would have implemented a cap on how much carbon power plants were allowed to emit. Governor Shapiro has proposed his own cap-and-trade program called PACER, as well as the Lightning Plan, which could increase renewable energy in the state. These are pieces of legislation to watch in 2026.

A proposed plastic waste facility was canceled in April. The facility, spearheaded by International Recycling Group, would have crushed waste plastic into smaller pieces and sent them to Gary, Indiana to be burned – PennFuture opposed the project as it posed a significant threat to Erie's air and water safety.

Erie is getting a massive boost for wastewater and runoff infrastructure in the form of a nearly $30 million fund from state-run PENNVEST. This announcement was made this past summer.

Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania, PennFuture's strategic environmental partner, has started to make inroads into Erie and northwestern Pennsylvania as a whole. Statewide, they are pushing for solar-ready warehouses and proper stormwater management alongside PennFuture in the state legislature.

Thanks for that update, Neel, and for spearheading the absolutely most important work that there is. While the country continues to divide along ideological lines, the planet really doesn't care. Earth will survive us. And we'll all go down together, no matter what side of the political aisle we're on unless we act with the prudence and tenacity of groups like PennFuture.

Our Erie Reader's Year in Review

(Photo: Erin Phillips)

This year has been one of both big and small changes here at the Reader. We've officially vacated what has been our home for the past 10 years on the 13th Floor of the Renaissance Centre, as the new owners prepare to renovate and repurpose the building. We'll sorely miss the stellar views of Presque Isle and the SeaWolves stadium that our offices afforded, but we look forward to whatever space the future holds for us. For the time being, if you need to send us anything, use PO Box 10963, Erie, PA 16514.

We've continued to build on our subscription model. You can subscribe to the Erie Reader for $15 a month, which means you get our monthly print issue sent to your preferred address, you get a monthly exclusive newsletter, you get subscriber-only giveaways of local concert, theater, and sports tickets, and you get the satisfaction of knowing that you're helping to support local print media. With everything everywhere becoming increasingly over-digitized, clickable, AI-ified, and the like, doesn't it feel good to hold a physical paper written by actual human beings in your hands? The Reader will always be free to read in print and online, but, as we've mentioned before, it is definitely not free to make. Your support really helps. Click the donate button at the top of our website to learn more.

We've added a host of new regular columns to our publication this year and we couldn't be happier with them! Shout out to contributors Edwina Capozziello (who pens "Edwina Tries…" each month), Mary Birdsong (bringing us a "Bird of the Month" while inspiring the budding birders of Erie), Jeff McCullor (taking his beers for walks and teaching us some stuff along the way), and Dave Tamulonis (making our small city feel a little smaller).

Additionally, you might have noticed a bit more local government coverage lately. That's due in part to your generous donations – we've been able to bring on a part-time local government correspondent in Alana Sabol. Alana has been attending every single city and county council meeting since February, writing up a summary of the meetings for our website under the heading The Reader Beat, and then including a recap of these meetings in each monthly print issue. This kind of regular coverage of local government has effectively gone away within the local news universe, so Alana's presence at these meetings, and her thorough reports of them, is unquantifiably important. The way our local elected officials vote, act, budget, respond, behave, etc. directly affects our daily lives in Erie, and being able to hold them accountable to their constituents is paramount.

Our Erie Reader Book Club turned one year old in April. It has been such a joy to run – to read incredible books (each selection corresponds with the monthly theme of the Erie Reader issue) and to get to know our Reader readers a little better. It's so interesting how we (being the editors) can get a certain impression of our readership from social media and the online universe, but being able to connect with the actual people who pick up our paper every month and appreciate it without public comment has been enlightening and refreshing. Each coming month, I look forward to meeting with everyone, including our OG members Vicki, Vicky, Victoria, Niki, Steve, AJ, Kathy, Pam, and my co-hosts Ally Kutz and Kyle Churman. Werner Books and Coffee is the most welcoming, cozy place, and our discussions always leave me energized. I deeply appreciate everyone who helps make that monthly event so thought-provoking and special.

In July, we welcomed 40 new folks to Erie's 40 Under 40 club, and they were such a stellar and impressive bunch. We had folks from all fields, all walks of life, all viewpoints – and their work in the community is always so inspiring to learn about. Unfortunately, we lost our planned venue mere weeks before our annual 40 Under 40 Experience, so rather than attempt to pull off a shoddy pivot, we had to cancel it this year. Rest assured, 2025's class will get their time in the spotlight as we plan an even bigger and better event in 2026!

Our yearly Best of Erie contest has gotten a facelift this year, as we've streamlined and simplified both nominations and voting. We had nominations open through October and into November, then those who earned the top five nomination spots made it onto our final ballot. That final ballot is open now and voting closes on Monday, Dec. 15! So make sure, when you put down this paper, you head over to bestof.eriereader.com and vote for your favorite people, places, and things then stay tuned for our January issue, hitting newsstands on Thursday, Jan. 15 to see if your picks won.

What a year it has been! There is something to be said for leaning into your community when times are bleak, and we here at the Reader are so honored and thankful to be able to support the Erie community through our arts and music coverage, our bolstering of local businesses and entrepreneurs, and for lifting up the voices of our writers, editors, photographers, contributors, and artists who make the Erie Reader what it is. Be sure to check the masthead on the first page regularly and get to know the names of the folks who really bring this paper to life – they're such a special group of people that I am honored to call colleagues and friends.

More than anything, though, we couldn't be us without you, our Reader readers, who loyally pick up our paper, click on a link, vote in a contest, share your thoughts, and generally help make our little local alt-news print media experiment a success. Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, and happy holidays. Here's to 2026!

Erin Phillips is looking forward to continuing to offer her thoughts and words in print in 2026 and is perpetually thankful and honored to have the position of managing editor for such a cool publication. She can be reached at erin@eriereader.com