Cranberry Township initiative provides mobile party to residents
CRANBERRY TWP — As one of the first people to move into the Laurel Pointe neighborhood — a residential development in the southeastern part of the township — Joanna Lewis-Creegan took it upon herself to get to know her neighbors.
She organized get-togethers and block parties since she and her husband, Matt Creegan, took up residence in 2022. However, it wasn’t until this year that they got help from Cranberry Township and an initiative made to encourage neighbors to connect with each other.
On Friday morning, Aug. 14, the township hauled one of its Block Party Trailers to a cul-de-sac in Laurel Pointe. It contained two cornhole boards, multiple tables and chairs and a 10X10 pop-up tent, plus trash disposal racks and bags. It helped provide the supply odds and ends the resident party planners needed to host a Saturday shindig.
“This neighborhood loves to gather,” Lewis-Creegan said. “We’re a new neighborhood, so this is how we got to know everyone.”
The Block Party Trailer has been offered by Cranberry Township since the end of 2017, when the township manager pitched it as a way to promote gatherings so residents new and old could meet one another.
Tina Fedko, director of communications for Cranberry Township, said the program was made possible through sponsorships, so it essentially paid for itself. Local businesses have also sponsored the trailers and some have their logos displayed on them, sometimes providing promotional giveaways for residents at these events.
The trailers are free for any resident within Cranberry Township to book, as long as one is available on a person’s desired date.
“Reservations are handled on a first-come, first-served basis through an online calendar where residents can see available dates and select the one that works best for their event,” Fedko said.
According to Fedko, the township gets a lot of requests to bring a party trailer to an event outside Cranberry Township. However, only residents can book one for their event. She added that the online calendar is meant to make it simple for residents to book their party date and check trailer availability.
The party buggies are deployed almost every weekend during the event season, Fedko said. Township Public Works crews deliver the trailer to a requester on Friday mornings, and return Monday mornings to pick it up. The trailer is secured with a coded lock. The resident who books a trailer receives the combination before the event.
Users are asked to simply “leave the trailer clean and in the same condition they found it so it's ready for the next reservation,” Fedko said.
Fedko said emergency response vehicles from departments within the township sometimes accompany a block party trailer, especially to events mainly for children.
“The kids absolutely love it — they come running to see the vehicles, meet first responders, and even climb aboard when appropriate,” Fedko said. “Those moments create memories while helping build positive relationships between young residents and the Township's public safety teams.”
While the party Saturday, Aug. 15, was somewhat of a routine gathering for the residents of Laurel Pointe, Lewis-Creegan and several other people of the neighborhood said they were happy to have the option for the Block Party Trailer. Because the Creegans were expecting a lot of people to attend — 70 people came to a summer block party last year — the items in trailer acted as a supplement to the supplies residents brought themselves.
Lewis-Creegan said many people in the neighborhood help with these get-togethers, including Trenton Shaffer, who creates flyers and passes them throughout the neighborhood, and Barb Pezze, who brings supplies and offers her yard as the host.
Pezze, who moved to Laurel Pointe in 2024, said she is happy to have and attend group gatherings in the still-developing neighborhood. It was built in 2022, so everyone living there now is still relatively new to the place. The availability of a Block Party Trailer sweetened the deal when it comes to parties.
“It’s free so why not?” Pezze said of the Block Party Trailer. “Everyone here wants to meet each other, there’s a desire to get to know people, your neighbors … The cul-de-sac is the perfect place to put it.”
Shaffer, who moved to the neighborhood in 2022, also said the residents’ penchant for parties was a positive element of the development. He added that he thinks it’s a positive for a township to promote the development of relationships through free party supplies.
“I think in this era of disconnect it’s great to have,” Shaffer said. “This forces you to slow down and get out and get to know your neighbors.”
Fedko said the Block Party Trailer program “has become a fun and meaningful way to bring neighborhoods together while connecting with Township staff and personnel.” She also said word of the block party trailer has gotten out across Pennsylvania, with municipalities throughout the Commonwealth asking how the township developed the program. Other municipal leaders ask what equipment is included in the trailer, how township officials promote it and how staff manages reservations.
“It's rewarding to see a Cranberry Township idea become a model that other communities want to replicate,” Fedko said.
While the trailer won’t be of much use for the winter party the Creegans host each year, Lewis-Creegan said she is glad to make use of the trailer and its supplies for summer gatherings. She said she plans to keep planning summer block parties at least once a year, and may book the Block Party Trailer for next year’s neighborhood event.
“The neighborhood continues to grow. You’ve got younger people, older people whose kids moved to the area,” Lewis-Creegan said. “I think it’s a great thing.”
Cranberry Township residents can find more information on the Block Party Trailer on the township’s website, cranberrytownship.org.
