River Towns project gaining momentum, support
BROWNSVILLE — The Greater Brownsville Area Chamber of Commerce has jumped on board the River Towns project designed to market six communities along the Monongahela River – including two in Greene County – for tourism and development.
Cathy McCollom, the consultant hired by the Pittsburgh Foundation, told the chamber that after seeing the impact of the Great Allegheny Passage Trail, a bike trail between Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C., the Pittsburgh Foundation wanted to see if river trails could have the same impact. McCollom said that within the first three years of the bike trail opening, 55 small businesses opened in six small towns, creating more than 200 jobs.
McCollom said that while it doesn’t compare to the past industrial job creation, it’s a start.
“Revitalization, as many of you painfully know, can take 15 or 20 years. Decline doesn’t happen overnight; revitalization doesn’t either,” McCollom said.
McCollom said the River Towns project encompasses Rices Landing, Greensboro, Brownsville, California, Fredericktown, and Point Marion. McCollom said the goal is to work with existing organizations such as the chamber, Rotary clubs and others, to form an action committee in each community. McCollom said it’s important for the communities to buy into the project for it to be successful.
“We’ll connect the community to the opportunities that are on the river. You have a wharf. How can we help market that effectively? Do you have signage for visitors? Do they know how to get to Brownsville?” McCollom said.
McCollom noted that the River Towns project is not conducting marketing studies, it is going to be implementing plans in each community as the community sees fit, working with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation regarding signs and establishing a core group in each community to keep things moving.
Chamber president Frank Ricco said the River Towns project is something the chamber definitely wants to be involved with.
“I think you’re looking at the people who are really interested in this community,” Ricco said.
“We’ve been here a long time. We’ve seen the highs and we’ve seen the lows, and we’d like to see the highs again,” Ricco said “I think we should jump right in right away.”
McCollom said there will be a regional River Towns meeting in Point Marion on March 5. Brownsville Borough Council’s Blueprints Communities committee, which is also focused on revitalization opportunities, meets on March 3 and it was suggested that interested chamber members could attend that meeting to further discuss the River Towns project prior to the regional meeting.