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Westmoreland commissioners allocate majority of hotel tax revenue to parks

By Amy Fauth afauth@heraldstandard.Com 5 min read
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Pictured is the entrance to Mammoth Park in Mount Pleasant Township in Westmoreland County. The park will receive additional funding for upgrades.

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The giant slide at Mammoth Park in Mount Pleasant is going to be replaced. Westmoreland County commissioners are using hotel tax funds to upgrade various parks across the county.

If you spend it, they will come. And if they come, there will be more dollars to spend.

That is the idea at the core of Westmoreland County’s annual tourism plan with the Laurel Highlands Visitors Bureau, which was approved by the commissioners on Thursday.

Last year, the first year of the county’s tourism plan on how to spend more than $800,000 raised through increasing the county’s hotel tax from 3 percent to 5 percent, the commissioners took a very conservative approach and only allocated $45,000 for various improvements at county parks. This year, the allocation has grown substantially. The commissioners allocated more than $778,000 of the $1,094,530 available for distribution.

“Last year was our first year with this,” said Commissioner Gina Cerilli. “We wanted to make sure we had cash on hand.”

Commissioner Ted Kopas added that last year was more of a test run and the 2018 tourism plan is really the first year.

“I hope it’s the start of something that will eventually get bigger,” said Kopas. “The goal is to maximize the great assets we have here and to draw folks to them. The whole point is finding creative ways to bring people here – not just for a visit – but hopefully to stay. The more folks who come here for an event and the more people who stay overnight, that keeps the program working. A small investment can turn into a much bigger one if we get more people here staying overnight and continually add to the pool of funds that would be eligible for next year.”

According to Cerilli, the big-ticket item this year is $250,000 for the construction of a new education and visitor’s center at Historic Hanna’s Town, the site of the first English court west of the Allegheny Mountains and the first seat of Westmoreland County. Today, the reconstructed village consists of a tavern/courthouse, three log houses a reconstructed Revolutionary War fort, and a wagon shed with an 18th century Conestoga wagon.

Initially, the commissioners had committed to $50,000 per year for five years for the project, but Cerilli explained that with construction costs and acquiring loans, it was just a better option to allocate the money in one lump sum.

At the meeting, the commissioners approved three change orders related to the project, including $17,756 additional for Masscon Inc. for general construction, $6,074 additional to Limbach Company, LLC for plumbing work and $13,070 additional to Miller Corp. for electrical work.

The attention this year will remain on parks, which Cerilli said is one of the county’s top assets. The commissioners have allocated $11,190 for the construction of bleachers with seating for 104 people at the David R. Peach Dek Hockey Rink. Currently, there is no seating available for spectators at the hockey rink.

Other park projects earmarked for funds included:

n $15,400 for handicapped drinking fountains at Twin Lakes, Mammoth and Cedar Creek parks

n $5,194 for to replace a triple side-by-side slide at Twin Lakes Park, which is heavily used by visitors

n $2,656 to replace a swing exceeding standard height at Twin Lakes Park

n $7,500 for repainting of lines and preparing the tennis and basketball courts at Northmoreland Park

n $6,500 for maintenance and upkeep of various walking/hiking/biking trails as needed

n $180,000 to replace the famous Mammoth Park giant slide

In addition, the commissioners allocated an in-kind match of $165,000 in support of the annual Westmoreland Arts & Heritage Festival, a four-day event held on the weekend closest to the 4th of July at Twin Lakes Park.

Cerilli said they are anxious for the public to offer feedback on how to improve parks in the county.

“We are welcoming the public’s input and suggestions on how to grow our parks system,” said Cerilli. “You know that’s one of the best assets Westmoreland County has. That’s where we would like to focus.”

In addition, $93,750 also been allocated for the popular Westmoreland County Air Show, which routinely attracts more than 100,000 people to Westmoreland County every year. The funds represent a 25 percent match to the $375,000 expenditures for the 2018 airshow.

This year, the airshow has been moved to the end of July to coincide with another big event in our county – Pittsburgh Steelers Training Camp at St. Vincent College in Latrobe, which begins on July 25. The airshow is being held July 28 and 29 at the Arnold Palmer Regional Airport, located just across Route 30 from the college. Cerilli said it’s going to be exciting to see Steeler alumni and current players among the crowds at the airshow.

The program also has allocated $38,981 to the Westmoreland County Airport Authority for an office located on the ground floor of the airport dedicated to an individual who serves as a concierge for the airport, Westmoreland County and the Laurel Highlands.

Another $2,000 has been allocated for the airport authority to attend a travel and tourism convention to showcase the airport, its amenities (including the free parking) and its convenient, central location in the Laurel Highlands.

The commissioners are still holding back a big portion of available funds that Kopas estimated is “hundreds of thousands of dollars.” Cerilli said they are waiting on the completion of the Westmoreland County Comprehensive Plan before deciding on how to spend additional funds moving forward on marketing the county. The plan is currently in the public comment/public meeting phase.

Commissioner Charles Anderson said spending the tourism funds in the appropriate place is key.

“The whole idea is it’s all going to go in the right spot – something positive for Westmoreland County,” said Anderson. “We want to make sure we get the biggest bang for our buck.”

Tourism is important to the county. According to Anderson, tourism is second, only behind agriculture as far as bringing income into the county.

“So, this really is a big deal,” he said.

“I expect this to keep growing bigger, bigger and bigger,” said Kopas. “If we’re going it right, it should.”

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