Today we were able to go on a site visit to Connellsville and hear about the work that the Fayette County Cultural Trust does toward economic development in that area. Connellsville is located just along the river and is a very popular tourist stop for those who are biking on the trail! The town has a population of about 7,000 permanent residents, and one challenge that Connellsville faces is the seasonality of the trails- as there aren’t very many individuals who choose to bike through the snow in January. So, the town has recently installed a venue that allows for weddings, award ceremonies, funeral dinners, meetings, and more, the venue has only been open for around seven months, but there are already many bookings. The venue was installed next to the hotel that is near the river and the bike trail, and the venue was built in hope that during the offseason, there would still be income from those who rented the space. The Fayette County Cultural Trust has done a wonderful job taking on various projects to increase the tourism scene in Connellsville. For example, they have taken advantage of the popularity of biking, and they have installed bike racks, bike tools, e-bike charging stations, as well as items to clean bikes- all in hope that they will gain a few more tourists They have been leveraging their location along the river and the bike path in order to support local businesses, and they have created a very nice and welcoming atmosphere. While they may draw tourists initially from the allure of rest, they also host groups who are interested in history. The Fayette Country Cultural Trust boasts its collection of Native American Artifacts and World War Two era artifacts, and it offers an additional appeal to bikers and other travelers.

Connellsville is a prime peer study for Carrigart, as there are many similarities: they rely on tourism, they have very high peak season revenue, and a very low offseason revenue, they either have or are installing biking trails, and they are working to support their local businesses while maintaining to keep the population. We can utilize Connellsville as a peer group to see what works and what we might change for a smaller town like Carrigart.