Mar 24, 2005 2 min read

Gov. Ed Rendell has already invested $3.5 million in Uniontown. He’s now thrown nearly $1 million more into the pot. The governor last week came with a check to continue Uniontown’s revitalization and with smaller checks to spur improvements in Connellsville and Hopwood. What the governor needs in exchange is poured concrete and bustling stores by this time next year. Rendell will stand for re-election then and needs to show that his program to invest tax money in small- and mid-size cities has paid off in job creation.

Uniontown stands to be the best example because there is an investor larger than the state with more to gain. Fayette County Commissioner Joe Hardy has funneled many of the millions earned through his 84 Lumber and Nemacolin Woodlands holdings into the downtown. He has bought up much of the central business district, completed facade work and is now working on interiors and recruiting of small businesses.

The city still has its work to do. Uniontown has not moved as quickly as Rendell or Hardy. But it appears city leaders are finally on track. This week they hired an engineer to design a parking garage.

If the city adheres to the timetable, the garage will be complete in about a year. A ribbon cutting would serve as just the kind of campaign backdrop that Rendell would like.