Mar 10, 2011 By Alix Kunkle For The 2 min read

BROWNSVILLE – After a three-year hiatus, the Brownsville Area Chamber of Commerce voted Tuesday to bring back the Monongahela River cruise after a fellow chamber approached them to co-sponsor the cruise.

The cruise, which was hosted solely by the Brownsville chamber, will be put on by the Brownsville and the Fayette Chamber of Commerce out of Uniontown. Each chamber will be responsible for selling tickets and splitting the cost of the cruise.

Chamber President Frank Ricco said he met last week with Fayette chamber officials, and that their chamber proposed the idea.

“In the past, they didn’t want to interfere,” he said. “But they approached us about bringing it back.”

The event would feature an honoree from both chambers; the honoree would be a member of the community with strong contributions to the borough.

Members of various Monongahela River communities teamed up in 2009 and 2010 for a resurrection of the cruise, but Ricco said that the cruise wasn’t the same as the Brownsville-sponsored cruise.

“I didn’t know anyone on that boat,” he said.

“You could go on that boat (Brownsville’s cruise) and you knew everyone on there,” he said.

Ricco said that the cost of obtaining the boat would be roughly $3,800. He also said that the cost would not increase to reflect fuel consumption or other expenses.

Tickets for the cruise would be between $65 and $70. The cost would include “everything but drinks,” Ricco said. The boat will have a cash bar.

The tentative dates for the cruise are July 18 and 19. Ricco said that he already contacted the Gateway Clipper, and that the dates are available.

The chamber also reported that they had purchased an aerator for the pond at Patsy Hillman Park, and that it would be delivered by April 1.

“We’ve been trying to get this for over two years,” John Moores said. The aerator will be located on the side of the lake with two hoses extending out from the device.

“Hopefully, this will make the fish better,” Moores said.

He added that the aerator should be operational by mid-April.

The Brownsville Area Revitalization Committee also reported that they planned to feature an exhibit during the National Road Festival on May 21 and 22, displaying some of the historic photographs they received earlier this year.

The exhibit will be located in the Rose House, located at the corner of Market Street and Fourth Avenue.