Westmoreland tourism grants top $300K

Stephen Huba | Friday, January 17, 2020 3:33 p.m.

Stephen Huba | Tribune-Review

Marilee Pletcher, executive director of the Stahlstown Flax Scutching Festival, shakes hands with Westmoreland County Commissioner Douglas Chew on Friday. The festival received a $7,644 marketing grant from the county.

From an indoor ax throwing business to art museums, and everything in between, Westmoreland County tourist destinations were seeing dollar signs on Friday.

Festival organizers, hotels, parks and theaters all benefited from the latest round of tourism grants announced by the Westmoreland County commissioners and the Laurel Highlands Visitors Bureau.

“We are the No. 3 emerging (tourist) destination in the world, and you are part of that,” bureau Executive Director Ann Nemanic told the gathered grant winners at The Palace Theatre on Friday.

The Laurel Highlands earned that designation from TravelLemming.com through voting by top travel bloggers and a readers’ poll, spokeswoman Anna Weltz said.

“We know visitors have choices, so being able to support and strengthen our tourism product provides true economic impact and growth for Westmoreland County,” Nemanic said.

The annual tourism grants are funded by the county’s hotel room tax, a 3% tax that became effective in 2003. A third of the annual revenue generated by the tax goes toward the grants, with this year’s amount totalling $368,042.

“This program … is not something that is available in every county across the commonwealth,” Nemanic said, noting that most of the grants support marketing and promotion efforts.

Three grants this year will go toward capital improvements — the Fred Rogers Center at Saint Vincent College, Friends of SummerSounds and West Overton Village & Museum.

The five-member grant review committee received 66 applications and approved awards for 42 tourism-related businesses and organizations.

Among the first-time winners were the Downtown Greensburg Project, the Fred Rogers Center, Hot Shots Indoor Sports Arena, the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art (SAMA) and Valhalla Indoor Axe Throwing & Archery.

“I think we are a true gem that really needs to get out there,” said Kristin Miller, Ligonier Township site coordinator for SAMA. The oldest satellite museum system in the country, SAMA will use its $4,143 grant to promote the Ligonier Township site and two special exhibits scheduled for this summer.

Among the biggest award winners were Fort Ligonier Days Inc., Latshaw Productions, Westmoreland Cultural Trust/The Palace Theatre, the Westmoreland Museum of American Art, the Westmoreland Arts & Heritage Festival, the Westmoreland County Historical Society and Westmoreland Heritage — each of which received a $17,000 marketing grant.

The grant funds must be used within calendar year 2020.