In the winter of 2013, Blairsville, Pennsylvania had an opportunity to reflect on several development projects that occurred at least in part as a result of a 2006 Citizens’ Institute on Rural Design workshop (then known as the Your Town program). A recent report produced by the Blairsville Community Development Authority and the Pittsburgh-to-Harrisburg Main Line Canal Greenway™ charts how the town responded to ideas that were originally generated during the workshop.
The report revealed not only the impact of engaging local citizens in planning and development, but also the often-overlooked significance of providing feedback to planning participants about the outcomes of their efforts. Below is a snapshot of the Six Years Later Report, courtesy of Laura Hawkins, the Pittsburgh-to-Harrisburg Main Line Canal Greenway Coordinator for Allegheny Ridge Corporation. The full report is available online at www.blairsville-pa.net.
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Have you ever been part of an ambitious planning process or event and later wondered, “What, if anything, came of all that?” For those who participated in Blairsville’s 2006 Your Town Workshop, the news is good. Because the answer to that question is: quite a lot!
The Blairsville Your Town Workshop was held in August 2006, and aimed to introduce rural decision makers to the role of design in community planning. More than 30 local community members and 25 local, regional, and state resource people participated.
The general theme of the workshop was “Creating Connections.” We wanted to look at how Blairsville could be better linked to the economic, transportation, and recreation activity around it, as well as how the community could become re-connected to the Conemaugh River that surrounds it. Specific design challenges like parks, gateways, vacant buildings, streetscapes, signage, and regional trails were examined. It’s important to note that Blairsville is located along a river system recovering from years of industrial abuse and flooding, has a layered but hidden heritage, and is ringed by regional trail systems that do not quite physically converge in town. A major transportation corridor, Route 22, bypasses the town.
At the end of the workshop, tasks associated with each of three focus groups—Gateways, River, and Canal/Trail Town—were prioritized. What follows is a brief summation of those priority tasks and the related achievements in each area over the past six years.
Several goals for the river were outlined during the workshop. Participants noted a need for improvements to the town’s Riverfront Park, and prioritized the selective clearing of viewsheds to the water, and getting the invasive knotweed plant under control. They also expressed a desire for the design and construction of a new boathouse. The river is part of a regional “water trail,” and the workshop aimed to enhance this by scoping out opportunities for interpretation and highlighting historic canal remnants. People also wanted to put together an RFP for developer proposals at the “17 Acre” park site, in order to identify and respond to demand for housing in the area.
Volunteers cleared select, small trees from the riverfront park area almost immediately after the Your Town Workshop, inviting the community to accept the river as an asset for the first time in decades. A new Kiski-Conemaugh Water Trail Map and Guide with a focus on river towns was financed by the Department of Conservation Natural Resources and the Colcom Foundation, coordinated by the Pittsburgh-to-Harrisburg Main Line Canal Greenway™. Developed with support from the Laurel Highlands Conservation Landscape Initiative and a Westmoreland County Tourism Grant, a mobile-site enhances the water trail experience with historic photos, businesses and services, points of interest, and natural features.
An Indiana County Endowment grant was used to fabricate and install interpretive signs in a kiosk along Market Street, illustrating 4 key assets: Blairsville’s Underground Railroad history; distinct transportation eras; Packsaddle Gap; and the Trans Allegheny Trails.
With grants totaling $15.9 million from PENNVEST and Pennworks, Blairsville and Burrell Township enhanced stewardship of the Conemaugh River with a massive stormwater separation and Water Authority project. The project eliminated of 8 of 13 combined sewer outlets and expanded the sewage treatment plant from a capacity of 360-375,000 gallons per day flow-through to 960-1.3 million gallons per day. The increased capacity of the plant keeps the development occurring along the Route 22 transportation corridor from negatively impacting the Conemaugh.
The community’s connection to the river was further improved through a Streetscape and Diamond Square Improvement effort. A roundabout at Blairsville’s historic bandstand was created, easing traffic flow and re-establishing the riverfront area as a focal point, with $2.1 million funding from PennDOT’s Community Transportation Initiative.
Vacant buildings have been demolished and an opportunity to redevelop the area with new housing at riverfront property now exists. The Blairsville Riverfront Village project was made possible by at $1.5 million investment from the Commonwealth’s Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program and the former Housing and Redevelopment Assistance program.
Participants in the Your Town Workshop were very interested in creating connections between the West Penn and Hoodlebug Trails that surround the town. The need to create a trail identity and wayfinding system was a related concern. Re-emphasizing the historic and cultural resources in the Market Street Corridor through historic building surveys and the development of an interpretive program was prioritized, as was expand neighborhood resources.
In 2012, Blairsville acquired final design, secured approval from the Army Corps of Engineers, and constructed 1.7 miles of trail along the Conemaugh River! The Blairsville Riverfront Trail is part of the Trans Allegheny Trails, a network of 13 trails comprising more than 100 miles from Altoona through Apollo between the Allegheny Ridge and Allegheny River, working together as a regional trail system. In addition, a feasibility study financed by the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources was completed between 2010 and 2011, designating a preferred four-mile route from the Hoodlebug/Ghost Town Trails into town. An advocacy group is pursuing implementation of the recommended alignment, which includes the construction of a bike-pedestrian bridge over Route 22.
A Historic Preservation Action Plan was completed in 2011 by T&B Planning, Inc., financed by the Federal Preserve America program administered by Preservation Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania Historic and Museum Commission. Several of the plan’s interpretive and promotional recommendations are being implemented.
The Blairsville Community Development Authority secured $550,000 in Elm Street Program grants to administer a neighborhood revitalization program, implement a residential façade improvement program and help construct the Blairsville Riverfront Trail. To date, 70 façade improvement program grants have been awarded to local residents and/or property owners. Grant recipients provided matching funds, totaling over $300,000. These efforts resulted in improving the appearance of the Elm Street neighborhood, preserving historic building stock, increasing property values, and fostering community pride. Other projects launched through the Elm Street Program include an annual Community Clean-Up Day, an Adopt-a-Street program, a community garden and a Neighborhood Crime Watch program.
The enhancement of gateways to the town was a clear priority. Initial proposals included the rationalization of signage standards, including the provision of advance notice of the offramp to the town along Route 22), the identification of trailhead and river access at various points, and the creation of gateway gardens for beautification. A development and branding strategy was also on the list, and participants wanted the town to consider a range of types of visitors in creating it, from recreational uses to people interested in experiencing unique businesses in town. People agreed that a signage strategy was needed to link the functional concerns about navigation to and around the town to its branding efforts.
Blairsville Downtown had been selected as a branding identity some years ago. This format put the town’s name first, but also emphasized the downtown area for those who might not be aware of the traditional, historic town center just off of Route 22.
In 2012 a Signage Committee formed by the Blairsville Community Development Authority developed a gateway signage work plan. The Committee selected “Blairsville, A Greenway Community” as a descriptive brand for gateway signs. The Greenway concept brought together several components of Blairsville’s revitalization strategy. A Greenway Community is a town that embraces nearby natural resources and outdoor recreation opportunities like rivers and trails, and focuses on clean and green practices. Blairsville has its own Greenway – the 330 wooded acres that surround the borough with trails and river access. Blairsville is also part of a larger Greenway, the Pittsburgh-to-Harrisburg Main Line Canal Greenway, a 320 mile corridor of historic sites and hub communities linked by land and water trails.
In 2012 the Signage Committee designed, fabricated and installed a new gateway sign on Route 22 eastbound. That work continues.
Indiana County Parks and Trails built and installed an information kiosk at Blairsville Riverfront Trail head. A Trail Town map with businesses, services, and points of interest has been created.
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The accomplishments discussed here demonstrate how Blairsville has changed in the last six years. Another testament to Blairsville’s progress came in the form of a recent Community Transportation Excellence Award from 10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania for the Diamond Square Reconstruction Project, which “[Recognizes] leadership, demonstrating value of community transportation solutions in creating healthy communities.”
In November 2012 the Blairsville Community Development Authority conducted two community visioning sessions to gather input from residents, business-owners, municipal officials and other stakeholders to establish a vision to guide local development decisions and shape Blairsville's future. Dr. Dey W. Watts, from Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s Geography and Regional Planning Department, assisted with this effort. Nearly 40 residents and students participated in the sessions and a vision statement as crafted based on their input. Blairsville Downtown: on the river, on the move…a place where outdoor enjoyment is a way of life!
Blairsville’s success has been a motivator, and there is more to do: complete the trail links, complete the riverfront village, realize the vision of a healthy, stable community. Our confidence, as a town, as we tackle those challenges has been built on both the courage and leadership of municipal officials, and the input and engagement of local citizens. Blairsville’s story is as much about creating a place that citizens care about as it is about bricks and mortar improvements.
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Laura Hawkins is the Pittsburgh-to-Harrisburg Main Line Canal Greenway Coordinator for the Allegheny Ridge Corporation.
