Mari Potis: There’s a lot of things if you come to Scranton that you would like seeing Dunder  Mifflin stuff or the iconic buildings that are in the opening sequence, but no Dunder Mifflin does not exist. As someone who has the largest chamber of commerce in Northeastern, Pennsylvania, it is not a real business. I promise you that.

 

Amanda Ellis: That’s the voice of Mari Potis, Director of Membership and Events at the Scranton Chamber of Commerce in Scranton, Pennsylvania, sharing what it was like for her community to be the setting of NBC’s Emmy award-winning sitcom, The Office. 

 

I’m Amanda Ellis, and you’re listening to Livability: Inside America’s Best Cities, a brand new podcast for chamber, economic development and talent attraction professionals. We bring you insights from America’s most promising places on how your community can be a better place to live, work, and play. To learn more about this podcast, visit livabilitymedia.com, where you can also sign up for Livability’s monthly Let’s Talk Talent, talent attraction newsletter. 

 

Now let’s jump in. 

 

Mari, thank you so much for joining us today on the Livability podcast. We are really excited to hear from you on how The Office, show that we all know and love, especially those of us who work in the office world ourselves, and how the show has had a positive impact on real life Scranton, which is, of course, the setting of the show, and how it’s impacted your local economy. I know that you were actually an official liaison for The Office.

 

Mari Potis: Yes.

 

Amanda Ellis: Providing authentic local info and business products on the show. So, I actually used to work for a chamber formerly myself, so I know it’s a running joke in chamber world that you never know what you’ll end up doing. Did you ever think that you would end up doing this, of all things?

 

Mari Potis: No. Never in a million years, never knowing what is on the other end of the phone call when you answer your phone. Been at this chamber of commerce for 25 years. All of a sudden, one day I get a call and some guy’s asking me for a membership plaque and I’m the membership director, because they have to build a set, because they’re going to do a TV show that’s based in Scranton. So, it was the crazy start of a long, fun road of nine years for us.

 

Amanda Ellis: So, I know that most of our listeners are probably familiar with The Office, but just in case, can you just briefly describe the premise of the show?

 

Mari Potis: Well, it’s basically an office that would be in anywhere America. The happenings and what goes on, people working in your middle America office, except this was a paper company in Scranton. So, that’s the basic, it’s just more the relationships and what happens. Scranton is really just the backdrop for it, but wound up playing a little bit bigger role in the end.

 

Amanda Ellis: Yes. And the paper company is fictional, right? It’s not a real company.

 

Mari Potis: No, Dunder Mifflin does not exist. No, everybody tries in one way or another. I’m pretty sure NBC Universal has that locked down in every copywritten way they possibly can, or Greg Daniels does. But no, there’s a lot of things if you come to Scranton, that you would be like seeing Dunder Mifflin stuff, or the iconic buildings that are in the opening sequence. People have taken upon themselves to put Dunder Mifflin signs on things to draw tourists to their location. But no, Dunder Mifflin does not exist. As someone who has the largest chamber of commerce in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it is not a real business. I promise you that.

 

Amanda Ellis: So, you talked a bit about, that initially Scranton was just this setting, and that it ended up becoming a little bit bigger than that. So, can you talk a little bit more about that?

 

Mari Potis: Yes. So Scranton, it really was just the backdrop. This is supposed to be like, you could pick this show up and drop it anywhere, any city. And then, in the beginning, when I got that original phone call and it was the prop master, actually, Philip Shea, and he’s like, “We’re building out this set and we need stuff.” Of course, was like, “Hi, sure, no problem.” And he’s like, “Can you send me more stuff? What would you see? You work in Scranton. What is in your office? What kind of stuff would people have on their desks from Scranton and that kind of thing?”

 

So it became, “Okay, let’s ship them a bunch of stuff that we have here,” and then that, the first season was what, six episodes plus the first one? So, we just built on it. And then it became, the more people saw, when they would get a script and the producers, everybody wanted a little bit more authenticity. So, “Let’s drop a name in there of a real business in Scranton.” And then people really started picking up on it, like, “Ooh, that’s a real business in Scranton.” And the internet became powerful because actually, as the actors were on set during season one, their computers were live and they were blogging, before blogging was really super cool and a big thing to do.

 

So, it became an internet thing, where people were fact checking everything on the show. And the second there was the misstep of anything that wasn’t in Scranton, it was called out like nobody’s business, like the Benihana episode. I don’t know, it’s not called the Benihana episode. That’s what we called it, because it became like, there’s no Benihana in Scranton. I’m like, “Well, I know that.” I’m like, “Yeah, I told him to use Osaka, but nobody listened to me.” It kind of became a thing that, “Okay, let’s pull Mari into production meetings,” and I’d be phone called into production meetings. And it’s like, “Oh, well we have this company,” or, “This is that one,” or, “This is our local rental.” We wanted everything as local Scranton as they can get, and it became really cool in season two. And then after they won the Emmy, and everyone started really fact checking and looking for that authenticity, it really became a thing, which was really awesome for our businesses, and made Scranton just a little bit cooler.

 

Amanda Ellis: Yeah, what a cool part of your job to get to be involved with. It’s pretty neat.

 

Mari Potis: It became another full-time job that I technically wasn’t paid to do, but I always believed. I’m one of those dreamers. In season one, it was really hard to get people to give me stuff to be on the show, because nobody had seen the show. Nobody knew what it was. Even my own boss here at the chamber was like, “They’re going to make fun of us.” A lot of people thought that. It wasn’t as easy as people might think in season one and two, until they won the Emmy and it was like, “Whoa, this could be something.” I would always sell it to people, even the mayor, like, “Hey, we might be the next Seinfeld. Let’s take a chance,” because they want, of course, NBC Universal would want you to sign your life away to have your product appear on the show.

 

And people really were hesitant, and so worried that Scranton was going to get made fun of as that old coal mining town. So, it was real interesting, the dynamics of how it did happen, and then, it started building the momentum, and then once they won the Emmy, everybody was like, “I want to be on the show, I want to be on the show.” It was bandwagon-jumping like nobody’s business.

 

So, it was a lot easier. But it was my job here as director of membership and events. It wasn’t written into my job description, but it was just something I did on the hopes that it became an unofficial membership benefit to, beyond, possibly get on the TV show, The Office.

 

Amanda Ellis: That’s so cool. And I see what you’re saying, because it’s easy for us to look at it, now that we know what a success this show was, and what the vibe was, it’s so cool. But of course, on the front end, everyone didn’t have all that context.

 

Mari Potis: No, no, no, no. Season one. And then, even when I saw the pilot, after all season one was filmed and I was like, “Oh, I don’t know about this.” I didn’t know if I liked it, because it’s not everyone’s humor, and it certainly wasn’t back then as popular as it is now. Syndication blew it through the roof. It just took it to the next level, and it is top show of the 2000s, but it wasn’t even back then in 2007, everything like that. We were trying to do an Office convention here in Scranton, local people were like, “Well, I don’t know. They think it’s something more that it’s going to be, or is.” So, it was real interesting, some of the obstacles we had to get through, and it was a really good gamble in the end, because I mean, now it’s gold. It really is gold for Scranton.

 

Amanda Ellis: Yeah. I mean, you’re right it’s a certain kind of humor. I know for me, let’s see, 2005 to 2013 was the run years, I think. And so, it was just starting to get popular when I was still in school, still in high school, getting into college, and I never got it. I never started thinking it was funny until I’d had a couple of internships, and then I was like, “Oh. I get why it’s so funny.”

 

Mari Potis: Lots of people didn’t pick it up. Some of my best friends and stuff like that. And people apologize to me and they’re like, “I’m sorry. I just don’t like it.” And I’m like, “It’s okay. I don’t like every TV show there is either.”

 

Amanda Ellis: And you’re like, “It wasn’t all my idea.”

 

Mari Potis: Yeah. It’s like, I just defaulted into being a little tiny part of it. But yeah, it’s really, really crazy. And now, I think, well, you’re talking about, going back there, my children were being born during this. There’s a hole in props because when I left from maternity leave for three months, I had people lined up and everything like that, and they’re like, “Yeah, no, we’re good.” It was a tremendous amount of trust with me, with the producers, with the prop team, with the wardrobe, all the different departments that I worked so closely with, and making sure we got everything. It was so funny. And now, my kids, my daughter’s the biggest fan. Whenever I have to do anything, she’s like, “Oh, I’m there. I’m willing to help.” And she’s going to be 16. And her and her friends, I can get them to do anything if I pay them in Dunder Mifflin swag, The Office swag. It’s truly amazing.

 

Amanda Ellis: Cool mom cred.

 

Mari Potis: Yeah, really.

 

Amanda Ellis: A perk that you did not know you were going to get.

 

Mari Potis: Yeah, you did not know. And it’s really crazy, is people, I’ll share this fun fact with you, people do not realize what we’re talking about here today and the true involvement. There are people all over the world that don’t really think this all happened like this. My daughter did a TikTok video of me working in our kitchen at my island, and then it’s like, all pictures, all the autographed swag and stuff I have in our home, and down in the rec room. She got 200,000 views in a weekend, and the comments were alarming, like, “This is not true. Nobody did that. That’s not how things happen. They have…” I had to stop watching the things cause I was like getting super defensive. I’m like, “Oh my God, I did all that stuff. Why would they say I didn’t?” Yeah, it was really funny. But, yeah, it’s really amazing how the littlest thing, there’s such a massive following for it. It’s really amazing.

 

Amanda Ellis: You got to show me that TikTok now. Definitely want to see it.

 

Mari Potis: Oh, I want to say she deleted. I hope she didn’t delete it, because it was really funny. It’s my claim to fame, I tell her.

 

Amanda Ellis: So, I know there’s some pretty big name celebrities in the show, but maybe they weren’t as much when it came out. I guess my question is, it sounds like there was some initial hesitancy, which I guess make sense, but did that allay any concerns? It wasn’t just, I don’t know, totally random show, totally random people. But maybe when it started, it was more?

 

Mari Potis: I mean, I didn’t know. I didn’t know many of the characters. Steve was just becoming a superstar at that point, Steve Carell, because that was, let’s see, when I was on set in 2007, that’s when Evan Almighty… So, 40 Year Old Virgin, I feel like, just came out when this show was being filmed and stuff like that. So, he was just on the cusp of his A-lister status. And because I remember, I was on the set for 2007, he was just launching Evan Almighty, I think, was his movie. But yeah, so he’s the one I knew. I didn’t know John Krasinski.

 

I just didn’t know any of them, your atypical A-list superstars. And I think most of them have risen to a level as a result of this show. I mean, Steve, he was there, he was contracted for, what, the seven years he was under contract for, and then he was out. But Rainn wasn’t the star that he is either. When Steve left the show, Rainn became the front man, at least when you’d be on set or something. He was the big dog that would greet everybody and that kind of thing. So, it was kind of cool. But no, I don’t think, they certainly weren’t as famous as they are now.

 

Amanda Ellis: Got you. Yeah, I tend to be a little lacking on the pop culture knowledge front, so I was like, “I’m probably not the best person to judge that.”

 

Mari Potis: When they came to Scranton for the Office convention in 2007, it was amazing. Greg Daniels, I remember him even saying, he didn’t realize Craig Robinson’s potential, because it was a little crazy. The convention got a little nuts. There was a lot of fun, but the Saturday night, it was a huge party. People from all over the world in Scranton. And next thing you know, Craig Robinson’s up on stage with the band singing like crazy, and I was sitting with the producers. They’re like, “Who knew?” Who knew he had this like craziness and fun and could sing and do all of this? Ed certainly wasn’t. He was, God, a C-lister when he was here, Ed Helms, in 2007.

 

Amanda Ellis: A C-lister.

 

Mari Potis: Oh yeah. I believe I had words with him.

 

Amanda Ellis: It’s just funny wording.

 

Mari Potis: Well it is. It’s like, well, look at him now. He’s starring in movies. But now, I mean, when they can run around Scranton with all these mega fans of theirs that they didn’t realize were mega fans, because you didn’t really know who they were, back then. And for producers of shows, not to even realize… They knew who they were, but the potential. And even look at Craig. Craig’s doing pretty good these days himself. So, I think the show had a lot to do for, God, all of them.

 

Amanda Ellis: Yeah. So, as far as what it did for you all, for Scranton, I definitely want to hear about the economic impact that you’ve seen during and after.

 

Mari Potis: Well, it’s interesting. Like I said, I’m born and raised in Northeastern Pennsylvania, just north of Scranton here, and I’ve worked at this chamber for 25 years. And it’s really amazing to see what this show has done and is doing for our town here. Scranton, the old coal mine town, and red light district, whatever, all the old names were, and oh, we’re Electric City because the electric cars and all that kind of stuff. That’s cool, but it wasn’t as cool as hit TV show. Let’s be honest.

 

And right before the show, we had the Red Barons, which were the AAA for the Philadelphia Phillies, and then that deal, everything changed and we got the New York Yankees AAA team, which, how cool was that, right? That’s super, until you get a TV show. 

 

Really, this show has done so much for this town. No matter where you go, you say you’re from Scranton. You could be at an airport across the world, people know who you are. And it’s not because I worked for the show. It doesn’t matter who you are. You say you’re from Scranton and everybody goes, “The Office, the TV show.” People want to come here. The amount of calls and requests I personally get myself because people, I don’t know, whatever they think I’m more than I am. But yeah, I don’t even know, really runs everything. But yeah, I literally am like, “No, I really am just a membership director of a chamber of commerce.” But it’s interesting because they want to talk. They come from all over.

 

I had a young man come in last year, he was coming up from Nashville to celebrate his 21st birthday in Scranton. He was having his very first alcoholic drink at Pub Richards. And that was his mission in life, because he was a die hard fan. I mean, the kid’s here on his birthday. Of course I got to spend some time with him and his dad because I feel guilty. To someone like that, for me to talk shop and tell the secrets and the little, whatever, share my pictures. People love that. But people like that are here every day now as a result.

 

So, there are dollars being driven in. The Office convention was one thing, but then the wrap-up party and the final season. That was insane. I don’t even know how many people were there. But since the show ended, there are super groups of fans, and they organize their own little conventions here in Scranton, and they bring people from all over the world.

 

Amanda Ellis: That’s awesome.

 

Mari Potis: They drive me crazy. I love them, but they drive me crazy, because they’re all like, “Oh, we got to call Mari Potis,” and then they come in. I’m like, “Okay, which group are you guys? Okay, you’re the New England group.” “Okay, you’re the California group,” or Australia, wherever they’re from. Because they come from all over the world. It is so crazy. So, it’s never going to stop. People bring their work conferences and conventions here to have it in Scranton, because they’ll do an Office theme. People have their weddings in Scranton so they can have an Office theme. You wouldn’t believe how crazy…

 

Amanda Ellis: I can’t say an Office-themed wedding is something I envision for my future.

 

Mari Potis: That was last year. There was one, and you can’t even make it up. I couldn’t make it up if I tried, and they just love it. They love getting into the real world. We are a real city that doesn’t have to be recreated at a theme park. This is their Universal, you know what I mean? Nothing against Universal Studios, but you compare it to a Harry Potter. They had to recreate it because it was a fictional world. We’re really Scranton, and anybody who comes here, they fit in. They get it, you know what I mean? They don’t have to worry, “Am I dressed right to go to Scranton?” You’re always just right to come to Scranton. You’re always going to fit in in Scranton, and people love that.

 

They can go have a drink at any of the establishments and they’re going to fit in. And I think that’s a comfort that brings the tourist, keeps bringing them back and making people want to be part of that, you know? So, it’s really special, but this show has definitely had an economic impact on this city. Just knowing the businesses. I like to keep my thumb on the pulse of the business community, especially our small businesses, what’s going on. And I will tell you, when there is something Office-themed going on, boom. They come out of the woodwork. They come out of every orifice of the country, the world, to be part of it. We just had one of the non-profits, an Office 5K, where they’re going to run through, dress up as your favorite character, run through the streets. These people get crazy. They dress head to tail, toe, in a character. In my world, I’m like, I don’t know, who does that? I’m like, whoa, there’re just nuts.

 

Amanda Ellis: I guess there are super fans of everything. I’m dying to know though what they did at this wedding to make it Office-themed.

 

Mari Potis: You know what? It’s in Scranton. Oh, a lot of them… Well, somebody destroyed my cutouts. I used to have all cutouts of the characters. So, I used to loan, just give them to people, let people use them. One time they never came back and they were very expensive. But people will go to every extreme, and depending on what kind of person they are, some people will go right into whatever the show set was, or if it was this, and maybe they gave out yogurt lids, people get crazy. I’m telling you, they will make their own things. “Oh, this was done in The Office on episode,” blah, blah, blah. They will give me the stats like nobody’s business, and I’m like, “Whoa, that’s so scary that you know that,” but that’s what they will do. They will maybe dress like Pam did for her wedding, or they will recreate things that happen in the show and implement it, or they’ll have a pretzel bar at their wedding. Seriously.

 

Amanda Ellis: That’s fascinating.

 

Mari Potis: It is. They go to every length, that’s what they like and what they love about this show. They take anything and everything and people do that in everything, when they come here. When company has a corporate retreat, they’ll put out, if they’re going to have it in Scranton, they’re going to do an Office one, and they’re going to put out the pretzel bar, or maybe they’ll have a fake chili cook-off over here. Anything that they can dub from the show to make it Office-related, they’ll do it.

 

Amanda Ellis: So, what advice would you have for other communities that might be apprehensive about embracing an opportunity like this? And I know you never know, of course, on the front end, exactly how it’s going to turn out, but what would you say?

 

Mari Potis: Well, my philosophy was taking a leap of faith, because, one, I’m dealing with NBC Universal. So, you know it’s going to be clean. I have high morals, and we’re working at a chamber of commerce, you always, every chamber does. We like to have fun, but we still have our high ground. And I think anyone who would be looking at something like this, you want to try to know as much as you can about it and how your community can play off of it in the end, because that’s what’s really important. Not necessarily monetize it, but what is it going to bring? That economic driver for your community is so very important.

 

And in our case, they won the Emmy, and that was the key piece there, and it was just a leap of faith beyond that, and a lot of stars aligned for us, because having someone like Greg Daniels at the helm saying, “Yes, let’s do everything as local,” where they could have just dropped generic pizza names in or generic this, or anything like that. But to have someone, like, hey, they’re doing a different show. That’s what this was all about. But why would you not want to have the chance to be the next Office community? You really have to look at that, and I’m really glad that I pushed it. Sometimes when you’re a little eager going up against the main people in this town, saying, “But this could be a really good thing,” and I’m like, “Oh God, if this is bad, I’m dead. I’m going to be unemployed. I’m going to be blackballed from Scranton.” Luckily it wasn’t, and it’s a great thing.

 

But as a chamber of commerce, I think you always have to look for the positive in things. Where can this make an impact with our businesses and our members and our community? And if it’s a TV show coming down, if it’s a show, you just have to make sure it’s the right fit for your community, is what it is.

 

Obviously there’s a lot of different ways to look at it, but that’s what I saw, and in our case, it was NBC Universal, so you know it was going to be on prime time. You know it’s going to be semi-clean, until I really started to see my daughter watching some of these and I’m going, “Oh, sweet Jesus. There’s more innuendos in this than I know what to do with.” I really didn’t realize. You just don’t know. But in the end, I hope they have the same luck.

 

Amanda Ellis: Yes. Well, it seems like it did an amazing job of bringing Scranton onto the radar and really putting out what’s unique and cool about you all to a way bigger audience, which is really what we’re all trying to do. So, that is awesome.

 

Mari Potis: Yeah, we did. What was really super nice is the appreciation the show and the producers showed for our businesses and this community in the end. It was great. All these businesses, they did get so much out of it. They still get everything, so much out of it, it’s insane. But when they came in for the wrap-up party, I drove the producers around, and they went and thanked the businesses that were major contributors, that would just constantly send them merchandise like Wegmans and Geritty’s, Gertrude Hawk, things like that. And we handed out Dundees to the businesses for their locations. So, they were actually authentic Dundee awards presented to businesses in Scranton, by the TV show, The Office, and the producers of the show.

 

Amanda Ellis: That’s so fun. Do you know anything else about why they picked Scranton and why that was their choice?

 

Mari Potis: Well, there’s a couple different stories, but to the best of my knowledge, Greg Daniels used to have Valentine’s when he was young, and on the back, they were made in Scranton, which was the Paper Magic Group, that was located right up on Mulberry Street here. And right across the street from the Paper Magic building, there is this little corner, it’s a Thai restaurant now, but there was a sign hanging outside that said The Office.

 

Amanda Ellis: What a good story.

 

Mari Potis: It is a cute story, but that’s supposedly it, but it was the Valentine that made him select it, and it is, again, that average America that people love. When you look at the show, they are your average people. You don’t think of Hollywood. They’re all beautiful people, right? But when you walk into an average office, people are average, and it’s okay. That’s what the world is.

 

Amanda Ellis: Yep. For most of us.

 

Mari Potis: That’s most of us.

 

Amanda Ellis: It is.

 

Mari Potis: Absolutely. Absolutely.

 

Amanda Ellis: Well, so, you know I have to ask, do you have a favorite episode or a favorite funny moment from the show?

 

Mari Potis: Oh God, I honestly don’t even know. Okay, probably my favorite would have to be the first time I was on set, and I almost drove into the set when I was going to the location, not realizing, because it’s not on a stage studio, where they filmed it. It was actually like in an office park, right? So, I’m in California, not knowing.

 

Amanda Ellis: It fits the theme.

 

Mari Potis: Yeah, it really was. Anybody could have drove up to where they’d film The Office. And I almost pulled into the filming of the episode. I think it was season three, episode one, where, well, Steve’s character, Michael Scott hits Meredith, the rabies walk or whatever. Literally, I almost drove into the cars sitting there. It was so funny.

 

I watched Steve do that scene 40 times, and every time he jumped out of the car after he hit her, he said something else, and you have to be quiet and not laugh. And it was the funniest thing, because he is an amazing actor to watch in person. And he’s such a sweetheart, he’s such a nice guy. But it was like, you never knew what was going to fly out of his mouth. And although, I don’t know if it’s necessarily my favorite entire episode, it was just one that stuck with me. It was so cool to watch actors in action and to see him and to have that ability to ad lib. They let him go on things because he really is good when he’s on his own, you know what I mean? I mean, the writers are brilliant and stuff like that, but he was really funny. So, I would have to say that one. And, it was, I think, at season three, the start of something bigger, for the show, for Scranton. It really was something special.

 

Amanda Ellis: Well, that is so cool for you and your chamber and Scranton and all of the above. Thank you so much for the insights and for sharing a little bit with us about it. That’s almost all our time, but before we wrap up, I always wrap up our interviews by asking about a bucket list item that anyone who visits your city should be sure to do. So, what do you think? It doesn’t have to be Office-related, but it can be.

 

Mari Potis: Don’t come to the chamber of commerce building. It’s locked. I’m kidding. No, I think people do need to take a walk around the town, and I think that’s important, because we’re only an eight block downtown. People don’t realize that. So, you really could get some amazing architecture. But if you want something super cool, you need to go down in the coal mines, because the coal mine tour, it’s really remarkable. I mean, to go down there, and it really makes you pause and appreciate what generations, how they used to work years ago, underground, in these spaces. You understand a lot about the heritage and what people went through in our area.

 

Amanda Ellis: Yeah. I didn’t know that’s something you could do. That sounds really interesting.

 

Mari Potis: Yeah, it seems like a ride at first, and then they’re like, “Okay, now get out. Now you’re going to walk through the coal mines.” And you’re like, “Ooh, it’s cold down here.” And then it’s all like propped up, where you can see where men would be in this narrow 18-inch space digging coal out. It makes my heart stop when I think about it. I’ve done it twice, literally my entire life, because it makes you almost sad to think this is how they put food on their table.

 

Amanda Ellis: Yeah.

 

Mari Potis: And there’s still coal mining going on in the world, but in Scranton that was the way of life. They would be down there, for those 12 hours a day, and when you see it, it really does make you pause. So, I think the coal mine tour. Steamtown is another one. The trains were definitely another thing. We have a wonderful museum right here in downtown Scranton that connects to our marketplace. And again, that’s within the downtown footprint. So, there’s a lot of cool things people can check out beyond The Office.

 

Amanda Ellis: Well, those are some great bucket list items. Thank you so much for joining us on our show today, Mari. I know our listeners will be really excited to hear a little more background on a show that’s probably made them laugh a whole lot.

 

Mari Potis: You’re welcome. Thanks for having me.

 

Amanda Ellis: Thanks for listening to the Livability podcast where we take you inside America’s best cities. At Livability, we highlight the unsung awesomeness of small and mid-size cities across the country. We also partner with communities to reach their target companies and potential residents through digital content and print magazine programs. If you enjoyed this episode, please follow, rate and review this show wherever you listen to podcasts. You can learn more about us at livabilitymedia.com. 

 

Have an idea for an upcoming episode, email me at [email protected]. Until next time, from Livability, I’m Amanda Ellis sharing the stories of America’s most promising places.