Job creation project could become reality through National Geographic Channel show
The National Geographic Channel is planning a new reality show and scouting communities along the Mid-Mon Valley for a possible setting for the show.
But the reality of the show is it would be bringing scores of jobs to the winning community.
Catherine McCollom of The River Town Program acknowledged she has been contacted by producers to help The National Geographic Channel with its search for the setting of the as-yet unnamed reality show. An investor from northern Maryland, who has ties to Ligonier, is proposing to open a light industrial manufacturing facility, which would employ “quite a few,” McCollom said.
The show would examine the opening of the plant and explore how that investment impacted the community, spurring the local community.
The show would follow the employees from the plant to their lives in the community.
“We’re hoping they’ll chose one of the Mon Valley River communities,” McCollom said.
McCollom said she is uncertain about the specific timeline for the project, but believes the producers may be looking to launch filming as early as the spring.
“Anything that supports business development would be positive and The National Geographic Channel would present it in a factual way,” McCollom said.
McCollom said the project could not only create business development but also create a major opportunity to attract business.
“This could potentially put the whole valley on the national map,” McCollum said. “These are close communities, connected by the river. What helps one helps most of the communities.”
McCollom cautioned that while the Valley is in the running, so are such areas as Cumberland and Hagerstown in Maryland as well as Wellsboro, W.Va.
But she said locally, the producers inquired about Charleroi, Monongahela, Allenport and North Belle Vernon. Fredericktown has also been looked at.
Joe Kirk, executive director of the Mon Valley Progress Council, acknowledged that he was contacted by a producer about the project. Kirk said he does not know the investor or how much capital he plans to invest in the new manufacturing site.
“You never know where it is going to go,” Kirk said.
One of the variables in choosing a site is that the plant would be located adjacent to a commercial district.
“We can we give the one or the other, but can we give them both?” Kirk said. “For example, they might like Allenport because of the big (former steel) factory, but there isn’t a commercial district there. Maybe TV could shrink that distance to, say, Charleroi’s business district.”
Kirk was cautious against raising expectations, noting National Geographic is still in the process of reviewing various possible locations.