Nehls says amphitheater opportunity slipping away
The lone opportunity to put the Great Meadows Amphitheater to good use may slip away soon due to legislative inaction, said Fayette County Commissioner Ronald M. Nehls, who adds that he’s never seen so many obstacles put in the path of an economic initiative. “It just baffles me that this project is not being embraced by everyone, as other projects have been in the past, because we’re all (supposedly) working to bring jobs and economic development,” said Nehls.
Fayette Films LLC wants to build a moviemaking and tourist facility on the site, but state deed restrictions must be lifted for the firm to get those plans off the ground. Although the county commissioners approved their part of the plan in November, six months later neither state Sen. Richard A. Kasunic (D-Dunbar) nor state Rep. Larry Roberts (D-South Union) have introduced the necessary bill, citing reasons that include the concerns of nearby Fort Necessity National Battlefield Park.
Fayette Films executive Jason Thomas has indicated he may pull the plug on the project as soon as May 12, leading Nehls to speculate it’s a “done deal” if the foot-dragging continues. Nehls said a state official told him in November that the “piece of cake” legislation should be passed within two months, given historic patterns on similar projects.
The slow pace of progress frustrates Nehls, who said he saw nothing like this during the five years he worked for Fay-Penn Economic Development Council before he became a commissioner in 2000.
“Never,” said Nehls. “Every bit of my economic development experience (with Fay-Penn) was that we tried to be as accommodating as we possibly could. In this case, several things appear to be different.
“One, people (in authority) are asking, ‘Will they be successful?’ And it’s not for county government or state government or neighboring entities to make that determination. Two, it doesn’t matter what kind of jobs they’re bringing – they’re jobs.
“It doesn’t matter if they’re full-time or part-time jobs, or seasonal jobs, or high-paying jobs. If they’re jobs, I want them in Fayette County. Finally, we’ve got a piece of property that is dormant, absolutely dormant … (and) the county commissioners have decided that they want to sell it. It’s out of our hands. It’s in the hands of the legislature. We really need the legislators to move on this immediately if we’re going to be successful.”
While admitting that he’s reluctant to believe so, Nehls said some people in his inner circle have raised the possibility that the amphitheater project may be falling victim to politics. All three incumbent commissioners, including Nehls, are up for re-election in the May 20 primary.
“I’ve had people say that,” said Nehls. “(But) how can we ever move this county forward if we continue to play political games? I’ll be extremely disappointed if we’re unable to convince our legislators that this is a good project for Fayette County.”
Kasunic and Roberts have said that Fort Necessity’s concerns must be addressed, given its stature as a prime historic site. Kasunic has also questioned Thomas’ claim of providing up to 600 full-time union jobs and has said he wants to see a site plan for the amphitheater property.
Nehls said the personally sent Kasunic, Roberts and state Rep. Jim Shaner (D-Dunbar) the company’s site plan weeks ago, which followed a Feb. 14 meeting where he stressed to the legislative trio the importance of getting some legislative movement.
“We gave them a site plan, which is to the best of my knowledge what they (Fayette Films) plan to do,” said Nehls. “I think that what they (the legislators) are saying is, ‘I want to protect Fort Necessity.’ Now they want to see what type of buildings they want to put up there. It’s frustrating, because every time we think they have a deal, something new comes up.
“I’m frustrated because this is a no-lose situation for everybody. (To) those people who think this business will not be successful, all we’re doing is giving them the opportunity to fail. (Even) if they fall on their face next year, the county will still have made money (from the lease) and there will have been jobs created for that period of time.”
Nehls said that as he makes the rounds on the campaign trail, people want to know what’s up with the amphitheater property and the jobs that putting it to productive use would provide.
“I have to say, ‘It’s out of my hands.’ And that’s frustrating,” said Nehls. “I’m frustrated because I can’t understand why we’re holding this up. I don’t know if we’re talking politics now, but those are the facts.”
Nehls, who has served as the in-county point man on the project, said he came into office in 2000 believing that everyone’s top priority in jobs-poor Fayette County was job creation and economic development. He said that delaying a potential employer that seeks to invest private funds doesn’t mesh with that oft-stated concern.
Nehls added that anyone could look at the Four Point Entertainment Web site – fourpointentertainment.com – to see where Thomas and his business partners have taken projects that Fayette County could have landed.
Subjugating that economic opportunity to the interests of Fort Necessity doesn’t make sense, said Nehls. “How can we put our future on something (Fort Necessity) that has been there so long and is mildly successful?” asked Nehls. “The last I heard, there are approximately 90,000 visitors (there) per year.”
Fayette Films plans to increase tourist traffic by a “sizeable amount,” said Nehls, who added that such an increased flow would profit the entire tourism industry, including Fort Necessity.
“It benefits everybody and that’s what we should be about in Fayette County,” said Nehls. “But we are far too many times enemies within our own camp.”