With a proven track record as a former Main Street Manager, Jonathan Desmarais leverages his skills and experiences to help local economies thrive and to help create and support quality places; places that are livable, walkable, desirable, and equitable. As a freelance consultant, he works with Jon Stover & Associates (Washington, DC), specializing in quality of place marketing and enhancements, community asset feasibility studies, impact analysis, and community strategic plans; and Spur & Sprout, LLC (York, PA), focusing on strategic planning and nonprofit marketing and brand implementation.As a passionate and committed community advocate and prolific walker, in 2019, he completed a personal project to walk the length of every city street (and alleyway) in the City of York, Pennsylvania; all 171 miles. As the former Director of Downtown Inc (Downtown York, PA) Jon led the organization’s connections to other regional and national Main Street organizations, implemented new downtown wayfinding signage, launched the distrx app, managed and expanded the downtown destination brand, helped grow and expand a thriving small business community in the midst of the COVID pandemic, secured a nationally-recognized company for downtown clean-up crew services, and further positioned Downtown Inc as a regional expert in Main Street revitalization. He was a featured speaker at the 2024 Main Street Now Conference in Birmingham, AL as well as the closing keynote address at the 2023 Pennsylvania Downtown Center Conference in Reading, PA.Along with his wife and son, he is a new resident of Pittsburgh, PA, where he seeks to explore as much of the city as possible, courtesy of his own two feet.