Executive Director of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, Rich Fitzgerald, joins Larry Richert in the KDKA radio studio each Wednesday morning.
 
On this week’s show, Bob Kerlik, Director of Public Affairs at the Allegheny County Airport Authority was on to talk about the airport modernization program. Kelsey Ripper, Executive Director of Friends of the Riverfront dialed in to discuss a recent kayaking event through a lock on the Allegheny River.

View the full story at audacy.com.

The Butler Transit Authority board voted in August to apply for up to $2.6 million to purchase up to four new buses to increase the number of trips available in the five local routes.

The application is being made to the state Department of Transportation, which will rule on whether or not to grant the $2.6 million request.

John Paul, executive director of the transit authority, said Friday, Aug. 30, that he will request a study from the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission which will help determine how much money the authority will need. Paul said the transit authority has six buses for the local routes, and additional buses would not only give riders more frequent route departures, but could expand routes as well.

“Right now they make trips about every hour; if we could put a bus out in between, then service people would be able to use it every half hour, which would drive ridership and add convenience,” Paul said. “I’m going to look at morning and afternoon service to East Butler, and then use those buses midday and later in the day to have expanded service locally.”

Paul said he does not know how long it will take for the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission to complete the study, so it may be a while before the authority actually submits its funding request to PennDOT.

According to Paul, more time options for trips has been a frequent request from riders of the local service.

“That’s always been a request here for the service,” he said.

View the full article at butlereagle.com.

Executive Director of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, Rich Fitzgerald, joins Larry Richert in the KDKA radio studio each Wednesday morning.

On this week’s show, Beaver County Commissioner Jack Manning was on to talk about the Hookstown Fair and Big Knob Grange Fair. Westmoreland County Commissioner Doug Chew dialed in to promote the Westmoreland County Fair.

View the full story at audacy.com.

The following the second installment of a first-person account from Armstrong County Commissioner Anthony Shea regarding his recent bike trip from Washington D.C. to Pittsburgh:

In my last article, I told of my bike trip starting in Washington DC and ultimately finishing 334 in Pittsburgh, PA using the C & O and GAP Trails. The goal of this series of articles is to highlight how bike trails reinvigorate the towns they traverse, and to promote our county’s own Armstrong Trails.

We left off in our last article finishing the day in Williamsport, MD completing 99 miles of the 334 mile bike trip.

We will now pick up the thread on day four.

Day four

July 25, the morning started with breakfast at the Waffle House next to the Williamsport Red Roof Inn.

After breakfast, it got real interesting, I agreed to do a live radio interview on 1020 KDKA AM and 100.1 FM hosted by Larry Richert and Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC) CEO, Rich Fitzgerald.

In our interview, I talked to Larry and Rich about the bike trip to that point, plus our plans for the upcoming day.

I also explained how the towns along the C & O Trail had truly benefitted from the trail, becoming conduits for business activity.

All in all, the interview went well.

This day would be an easy one for us, my wife, Kerry, daughter, Abby, and I, only had 24 miles on the itinerary to get from Williamsburg to Hancock, Md.

The C & O Trail again followed the old canal towpath with its familiar locks and aqueducts.

In places, the canal water was very green with algae; I truly hoped we did not have to purify this water in a pinch.

While biking, I received a call from my wife, Kerry who was a little behind us; she said she was stuck. I asked if she had an issue with her bike, a flat tire perhaps.

She said, “no, there’s a snake on the trail”.

I said, “just ride around it”. She said it was big enough to cross the entire width of the trail.

Eventually, the snake moved on and Kerry was able to proceed.

We arrived in Hancock, Mile Marker 124.1, relatively early in the day.

As we entered Hancock, we saw a large bike outfitter, C & O Bicycle, based right along the trail.

The business offered many services, and was a magnet for the passing bikers.

One of the services offered was a shuttle; Kerry and Abby opted to skip the 60 mile bike ride the next day and reserve a shuttle from Hancock to Cumberland, Md., instead.

Being saddle sore, I purchased padded bike shorts and a Cloud 9 bike seat; the seat supposedly sported the widest girth available at the shop.

Extra real estate for this part of the body, in the form of a padded seat, is a good thing.

That night, we stayed at a Super 8 in Hancock.

Luckily, there were no hills getting to the hotel. We had dinner that night at the close by Potomac Grill on U.S. Route 522.

Day five

July 26, Kerry and Abby parted ways with me in the morning taking the shuttle from Hancock to Cumberland, as I started my 60 plus mile bike trek to Cumberland on the C & O Trail.

The weather was perfect this morning with zero humidity and cool air.

The trail was perfect, albeit very remote, and I was moving along just enjoying the scenery.

That all changed in an instant when at about five miles into the ride, my back tire blew out.

Fortuitously, I broke down next to a picnic bench, if that is a consolation.

I easily took off the tire and changed the inner tube and re-inflated it.

The problem came when I tried to re-attach the back gear mechanism; I hope only the trees heard some of the expletives that I blurted out in the heat of the moment.

Right in the middle of wrangling with the chain, I received a call from my colleague, John Strate, who wanted to ask how the trip was going; I guess timing is everything.

I also received a call from my daughter, Abby who saw that I had not moved in almost an hour on her family locator.

She called to ensure I was alive and not in a ditch somewhere along the trail with buzzards circling over the carcass.

I finally got the bike all back together, though the wheel looked somewhat crooked.

It reminded me of the car repair scene in the National Lampoon’s Vacation movie where Clark Griswold jumped the family truckster and had it repaired at the shady garage.

Since I was able to proceed, I made my way down the trail.

The big casualty in all of this were my hands and arms up to my elbows were completely black with bicycle grease.

When I came to one of the hand pumped water wells (non-potable water), I tried to pump the water and wash up.

Let me tell you, using the pump for this type of operation is a two person job.

This would have been quite comical to watch if it weren’t me.

I also realized I did not have any soap, so I tried using dirt as a substitute with no success.

Things got worse when I wiped the sweat from my face as I biked down the trail and the dirt and grease also transferred to my face as well.

Luckily, there are no pictures.

Nonetheless, I proceeded onward and the miles passed quickly as I biked toward Cumberland; it seemed like I was biking through a green tunnel at points, with views of the Potomac River appearing every once in a while through the rare breaks in the foliage.

Every so often, I heard the distant echoes of train whistles from across the Potomac River but was never able to see any actual trains.

I saw a beaver climb out of the canal and jump right back into the water after taking a look at me; I’ll try not to draw any conclusions here.

I saw hundreds of turtles basking in the sun on the various logs that came out of the green canal water; they all stuck their heads straight up in the air.

It seemed like the biggest turtle got the top spot on the log.

I guess everyone wants to be the top dog, or turtle in this case.

I also saw a box turtle and a snake on the trail.

The next point of interest was the Paw Paw Tunnel at Mile Marker 155.2.

The incline on the C& O Trail increased as I got closer to the tunnel’s entrance.

Also present in this area were many tourists walking to and from the tunnel on either side of it.

The 3,118 foot long tunnel itself was very dark, with air cool wafting through it, with a rough walkway that paralleled the unseen canal below in the darkness.

Water dripped from the ceiling in places with the echoes amplified by the acoustics of the tunnel.

I used my I-phone’s flashlight app to guide my way through the tunnel.

I came upon a sign for the town of Oldtown, MD at Mile Marker 166.7; the town sort of reminded me of Templeton from Armstrong County.

Looking up the road into town, I saw a hand painted sign advertising food and drinks; I almost missed it.

I pedaled up to an old elementary school now turned restaurant/market and walked inside.

I am sure I looked very rough at this point with my grease stained face, arms and hands, plus not having shaved for a week.

The sweet older lady behind the counter did not even seem fazed one bit by my appearance as she took my food order (bless her soul).

I was finally able to clean up in the restroom while my food was being cooked.

The air conditioned room, coupled with being cleaned up and eating a good meal were like nirvana at this point.

Other bike packers came and left as I ate.

I relaxed for a while in the cool air.

With approximately 18 more miles to go to Cumberland, I got back on the trail. The C & O Trail still had its typical locks and aqueducts.

The scenery changed as I got closer to Cumberland with the trees opening up to sweeping views of the Potomac River, the city of Cumberland, and mountains in the distance.

Ironically, about five minutes out from my destination point for the day, the YouTube account on my iPhone spontaneously started, and randomly played the live version of Neil Diamond’s song “America”.

It seemed kind of fitting, so I cranked up the volume as I finished up the 184.4 mile C & O Trail portion of the trip.

Waiting on the trail at the C & O Terminus were my wife, Kerry and daughter, Abby. It was good seeing them.

I think they were taking bets on whether I would make it or not.

We walked into the Fairfield Inn which was right off the trail.

The hotel was fully equipped to accommodate bike packers.

The town of Cumberland appears to have fully embraced the C & O and Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) Trails.

From bike shops to restaurants, all the businesses around the trails appeared to cater to the cyclists.

There were many bike racks around town, and even bike lockers.

We later ate dinner at the Crabby Pig Restaurant.

Multiple folks kept recommending this restaurant as we biked up the C & O Trail.

We all had their specialty, crab cakes and lobster bisque soup.

Even with the padded bike shorts, I was reminded of my saddle soreness sitting on the hard wooden seats at the restaurant.

As we left the restaurant, a concert was playing in the park adjacent to the hotel.

We listened to it for a while in the waning evening sunlight and warm summer breeze.

Day six

July 27, Kerry and Abby drove back to Leechburg in the morning, as I started my journey on the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) Trail from Cumberland to Meyersdale, PA.

The trip out of Cumberland on the GAP Trail was literally uphill for the first 24 miles to the Eastern Continental Divide.

Cumberland is at 605 feet above sea level and the Eastern Continental Divide 2,392’ above sea level for a 1,787 feet elevation gain.

Without fail, folks on E-bikes asked if I were “ok” each time I got off my bike and walked for a few minutes here and there; I held back my sarcastic comments and just re-assured them I was good to go.

The first notable milestone on the GAP Trail was the Bone Cave at Mile Marker 4.0.

During the excavation of this section of railroad, 44 different types of mammal fossils were discovered, of which, 16% of them are now extinct.

A couple of the now extinct fossils found at the site were the Pleistocene cave bear and saber toothed tiger cat.

Some of these fossils are on exhibit at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC.

Tourist used the adjacent railroad tracks by this section of the GAP Trail to take some type of pedal powered rail car back down the long hill.

Mile Marker 15.5 offered a trail access point into Frostburg, MD; the parking lot here overflowed with cars with bike racks.

The GAP Trail crossed the Mason Dixon line at Mile Marker 20.5.

The Mason Dixon Line is the pre-Civil War demarcation line between Pennsylvania and Maryland.

Many of folks here were snapping pictures of the marker.

The trail had a couple smaller tunnels, such as the Brush Tunnel and Borden Tunnel; but, the longest tunnel on the bike trip was the Big Savage Tunnel at 3,294.6 feet long.

Again, the tunnel seemed to draw a lot of tourists to it.

The trail close to the Continental Divide offered many sweeping views of the valleys and mountains in the distance under a cloudless sapphire blue sky.

Many large windmills could be seen churning on distant mountain tops.

I found all of this truly awe inspiring.

One of the main milestones for the day was crossing over the Eastern Continental Divide at Mile Marker 23.7.

The Eastern Continental Divide is the point where water east of it goes to the Atlantic Ocean and west of it flows into the Gulf of Mexico.

At this point, the GAP Trail was all downhill for the next eight miles to my stop for the night in Meyersdale, PA (Mile Marker 31.9).

This area of the GAP Trail had a boreal forest feel to it, with its thick canopy of Canadian hemlocks and rhododendrons lining the trail.

I pulled into Meyersdale relatively early for the day at about 12:30 p.m.

Adjacent to the GAP Trail in Meyersdale was a refurbished train station turned museum and tourist center.

The center had a lot of pictures and artifacts from the early railroad days.

The museum also had a room with a large miniature railroad train display.

The train station was a hub of activity for promoting Meyersdale tourism.

Volunteers fielded questions that ranged from the history of the area, to places to eat and stay.

I personally pre-reserved a room for the night at Yoder’s Bed and Breakfast.

Check-in at Yoder’s was very simple.

I talked at length with one of the co-owners of the B&B, a husband and wife team; he said the trail accounted for about 85% of their business which lasted from spring to fall with the winter months being slow.

With my wardrobe limited, I chose to eat at the Take Six Pizza & Subs restaurant versus the fancier White House restaurant in town.

This is where we will end this installment of the trail series.

The last installment will detail the GAP Trail from Meyersdale, PA to its terminus at Point State Park in Pittsburgh to include my guest riders on the last day.

Additionally, I will detail both the current state, and future plans for the bike trails in and around Armstrong County.

View the full article at leadertimes.com.

Politicians, environmentalists, engineers and outdoor enthusiasts gathered Friday to kayak through the Highland Park Lock and Dam, a nearly century-old structure on the Allegheny River. Employees with the Pittsburgh District Army Corps of Engineers were on hand to operate the system and answer questions.

“So as you’ll see as you go through, our infrastructure is getting a little bit older,” said the deputy chief of the Pittsburgh district’s operations, Greg Turko. “The locks that you’re about to go through were built in the ‘30s.

“So we’re going on about 95 years in operation.”

The second-largest inland port in the U.S., the Port of Pittsburgh is home to 17 locks and dams along the three major rivers that converge at Pittsburgh. Over the last decade, about 30 million tons of freight passed through the port each year — 70% of which was coal.

But as that industry declines, so does funding that supports maintenance of the infrastructure.

The port’s public relations manager Matthew Pavlosky also pointed out the number of registered recreational boaters in the Pittsburgh region is one of the largest in the United States.

To that end, Friends of the Riverfront, the Port of Pittsburgh Commission, and the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission along with other community partners hosted this “lock-through” kayak paddle.

“The economic impact and the quality of life impact of investing in our rivers and our locks and our dams is important,” said SPC’s executive director and former Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald. He said the paddling event is an important way to reorient decision makers with often overlooked logistical realities in the region they serve.

Once locked inside the gravity-powered Highland Park Lock (also known as Allegheny River’s Lock No. 2), Pennsylvania leaders, including Fitzgerald, state representative Mandy Steele, and state senator Lindsey Williams were collectively lowered in their kayaks about 12 feet.

Williams said she has ‘locked-through’ before with the Fish and Boat Commission, “but I’ve never done it in a kayak!”

Williams, who sits on the Port of Pittsburgh Commission, pointed out the lock hours of operation have been shortened. “Especially with the closing of the Cheswick power plant and the reduction in commercial traffic on the Allegheny River, we want to make sure that we don’t lose access so that people up here at the top of Allegheny County can get in their boats or their kayaks and go all the way down into the city, maybe catch a Pirates game or whatever.

“We want that access to continue to be available to everyone.”

“It’s kind of a little bucket list day,” said Kate Zidar, a board member with the Three Rivers Waterkeeper. Zidar said she came to experience the lock-through because it sounded like a fun, unique experience and because she wants to promote “swimmable, fishable water. That’s what we need.

“If you live on the river and you touch the water, it should never make you sick.”

All told, about 30 staff members from federal, state, and local representatives’ offices, as well as members of local nonprofits and businesses like Three Rivers Outdoor Company (which provided boats, gear and guidance), paddled together downstream to better understand the economic, environmental, and recreational importance of maintaining the locks and dams on the Allegheny River.

View the full story at wesa.fm.

Rich Fitzgerald, fresh from a two-hour kayak trip from Springdale to Harmar on the Allegheny River, reflected on the river’s importance for business and recreation.

“It’s important to the whole region,” said the former Allegheny County executive who became executive director of the 10-county Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission at the beginning of the year.

“It’s important for property values; it’s important for businesses. It’s important to the quality of life for residents because its navigable, safe, healthy.”

Fitzgerald was part of a group of about 30 elected officials and river advocates who participated in a kayak parade through Allegheny Lock No. 3 to show off the many uses of the river. The commission, along with Friends of the Riverfront, Port of Pittsburgh and others, is part of a coalition called Save the Allegheny River that was started to improve financing for the critical locks and dams that allow business and recreational traffic to flow smoothly on the river.

Matt Pavlosky, public relations manager for Port of Pittsburgh, said because of the high recreational use the river is “the lifeblood of our communities.” State Rep. Mandy Steele, D-Fox Chapel, said access and improvements are “absolutely crucial to these river towns.”

But advocates are concerned because freight movement on the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio rivers has dropped from about 52 million tons 10 years ago to 20 to 24 million tons now, Pavlosky said, largely due to declines in the coal industry. On the Allegheny alone, tonnage averages between 750,000 and 2 million tons annually.

With locks around 90 years old and commercial use dropping, advocates are concerned that federal investment in the system will fall as well. That’s why they highlighted the river’s “other” use Friday and said they are pushing for a study to show how much the regional economy benefits from river recreational activities to convince federal officials to continue funding for river improvements.

Pat Fabian, chairman of the Armstrong County commissioners and the SPC board, said STAR is important to the future of river towns such as Freeport, Ford City and Kittanning in his county, as well as those communities closer to Pittsburgh. Many communities have brownfields along the river, and those won’t be redeveloped unless the river is open most hours of the day to move goods by water.

“If [STAR] does well, the communities like Cheswick and Freeport and Springdale will benefit greatly,” he said.

Trail expansion and recreation are improving along the Allegheny — state Sen. Lindsey Williams, D-West View, said she regularly hears from constituents who want river access — but improving conditions to move freight has been slow in coming. Upgrading the lock system will take “some big federal dollars,” she said, noting that the Biden administration’s infrastructure bill included $860 million for similar improvements on the upper Ohio River.

“We just need more dedicated sources of funding,” Pavlosky said.

View the full article at unionprogress.com.

On Friday, three regional organizations and two state agencies — Friends of the Riverfront (Friends), the Port of Pittsburgh Commission (Port of Pitt) and the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC), along with the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) and Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PA Fish and Boat) — jointly hosted an on-river outing for regional elected officials aimed at raising awareness around the Allegheny River’s economic and recreational impact on the region.

The on-river event, which consisted of invited attendees kayaking or riding on powered boats from Springdale borough to Harmar Township, while passing through the C.W Bill Young Lock (Lock 3), was an effort to demonstrate the potential for economic and recreational development on the river.

As the Allegheny River has had less commercial river traffic over the last few decades, the funding for needed infrastructure repairs and maintenance has also declined.

Most of the region’s locks, including the eight locks on the Allegheny, are well past their 50-year life span and some are approaching 100 years of service.

The locks on the Allegheny River see an average of about four million tons of activity per year, far lower than those on the Ohio and Monongahela.

As a result, locks on the Allegheny River are now considered “low use” or “low volume” facilities.

This status means that reductions in the hours of lock operation could occur.

A reduction in lock operation could mean watercraft might have to wait a significant amount of time to move between pools on the Allegheny River.

To address this, the Save The Allegheny River initiative, or STAR, was formed. The initiative counts SPC, Port of Pitt, Friends, the Allegheny Regional Development Corporation and many other community based organizations as members.

They have been working with federal legislators who are diligently working to support initiatives that benefit the region’s rivers.

The event featured several speakers, including Sen. Lindsey Williams, (38th district), Rep. Mandy Steele (33rd district), SPC Executive Director Rich Fitzgerald, Port of Pitt’s Public Relations Manager Matt Pavlosky and Friends’ Executive Director Kelsey Ripper.

Aside from the above, attendees included representatives from the office of Senator Bob Casey, State Representative Lindsay Powell (21st district) as well as from the office of Congresswoman Summer Lee (12th district), the office of Congressman Chris Deluzio (17th district), as well as many of boroughs and townships from across Allegheny County.

The Springdale to Harmar route highlighted an area that Friends of the Riverfront is currently developing as a new segment of the Three Rivers Heritage Trail and Water Trail.

Running more than 35 miles, mostly along Allegheny County’s riverfronts, the Three Rivers Heritage Trail is estimated to have had an economic impact of $26.5 million in 2023.

Senator Lindsey Williams said, “a decrease in staffing of the locks along the Allegheny River would be absolutely devastating to our river communities and to every Pittsburgher who boats, kayaks, takes walks with their families, or recreates in any way along Pennsylvania’s River of the Year.” The senator added, “at a time when the economic impact of outdoor recreation is only rising, we must at minimum maintain current staffing levels. I’m happy to be a part of the Save the Allegheny River coalition and enjoyed spending time with my colleagues on the water this morning.”

“Protecting the Allegheny River is one of the most important pursuits today. This river is the key to economic opportunity for our river towns in the Valley, and today was a valuable opportunity to see what is at stake, and why we must all work together to ensure that the Save the Allegheny Initiative is successful,” said Representative Mandy Steele. “As Representative of the Allegheny Valley, these organizations have my full support.”

“This kayak paddle event is a perfect example of our region coming together to better understand the issues that impact our rivers,” said Executive Director of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission Rich Fitzgerald.

“We had state agencies, elected officials, lawmakers’ staff members, and community organizations all represented here today to not only experience kayaking firsthand through one of the locks, but to talk about the ways we can continue to work together to support initiatives that will preserve and enhance the vitality of our rivers,” he added.

Executive Director of the Port of Pittsburgh Mary Ann Bucci pointed out that anything that impacts the Allegheny will reduce the benefits our region derives from the entire river system.

“The Allegheny River is an integral part of the whole river system. Everyone needs to understand the system’s full benefits, which include drinking water, hydropower, and recreational boating. They’re all important to our region’s economic growth,” she said.

Bucci added, “the rivers are a transit system. Take the Allegheny away, it’s like breaking a highway apart — it isn’t going to work.”

Kelsey Ripper, executive director for Friends of the Riverfront, emphasized that access to the Allegheny River is crucial to Friends’ vision — and the region’s economic future.

“We were founded to reconnect people to the rivers after decades of being separated from them by heavy industry. We have seen communities rebuild their relationships to the rivers and as a result, enjoy greatly expanded recreational opportunities that have themselves become a crucial part of southwestern Pennsylvania’s economic story.”

She added, “we’ve made so much progress, and any impact on the Allegheny’s infrastructure risks diminishing that.”

The Allegheny River drains more than 12,000 square miles, and runs for 325 miles.

In 2024, The Allegheny River was voted Pennsylvania’s River of the Year.

Friends of the Riverfront is a 501©3 dedicated to building and maintaining the Three Rivers Heritage Trail and Water Trail; the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission is a regional transportation and economic development organization; and the Port of Pittsburgh Commission was created to promote the commercial use and development of the inland waterway system.

The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) is a state department tasked with maintaining and protecting state parks, managing state forest land, providing information on the state’s ecological and geologic resources, and establishing community conservation partnerships to benefit rivers, trails, greenways, local parks and recreation, regional heritage parks, open space, and natural areas.

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is an independent commission that protects, conserves, and enhances the Commonwealth’s aquatic resources and provides fishing and boating opportunities.

View the full article at leadertimes.com.

Advocates of the Allegheny River hope getting state and federal officials into the water will emphasize the need for more attention and funding for recreation and commercial use on the waterway.

Local, state and federal officials paddled kayaks Friday morning from the Springdale to Harmar marinas, through Lock 3 on the Allegheny River in Plum, in an effort to raise awareness of the river’s economic and recreational impacts in the region.

“We’re about embracing the rivers, building these trails, having the recreation of the kayaks and all the things we do,” said Rich Fitzgerald, executive director of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission and former Allegheny County executive. “We’ve got to make sure we continue to invest.”

The trip was coordinated by Friends of the Riverfront, the Southwestern Pennsylvania and Port of Pittsburgh commissions, and the state’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and its Fish and Boat Commission.

Matt Pavolsky, public relations manager for the Port of Pittsburgh Commission, said locks along the Allegheny River are now considered “low use” or “low volume” because of a decrease in commercial river traffic over the past few decades.

In turn, funding for infrastructure repairs and maintenance has declined.

Lock 3, in Plum’s Barking section, is nearly 100 years old. And locks on the Allegheny River average about 4 million tons of activity per year — a number “far lower” than those on the Ohio or Monongahela rivers, officials with Friends of the Riverfront said.

That’s where the increases in recreational use of the Allegheny come into play, officials said. Channeling the river’s recreational and economic impacts can make it more attractive for funding that would be a boon to river towns, Pavolsky said.

Friends of the Riverfront estimate the Three Rivers Heritage Trail, which runs more than 35 miles mostly along Allegheny County riverfronts, had a $26.5 million economic impact in 2023.

Allegheny County has the most boat registrations by county statewide, according to data from the Fish and Boat Commission. Westmoreland ranks eighth and Armstrong ranks 30th out of 67 counties.

“We’ve seen that expand, and we want to protect that use of the river,” said state Sen. Lindsey Williams, D-West View. Her district includes much of the Allegheny River valley, up to Harrison.

Keeping locks open for recreational boating has long been an uphill battle. An Armstrong County nonprofit group, Allegheny River Development Corporation, raises money and works with the Army Corps of Engineers to operate some of the river’s locks on weekends because cuts in federal funding for the Corps leaves it unable to staff those locks without outside help.

ARDC, Friends of the Riverfront, Port of Pittsburgh and the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, among other organizations, formed a group called “Save the Allegheny River” to advocate for federal funding to benefit the future of the river.

Williams said a decrease in staffing of the locks would be devastating to the communities along the river.

Among the 50 people who participated in the two-hour kayak were Fitzgerald and Williams, state Rep. Mandy Steele, and staff representing state Rep. Lindsay Powell, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio and Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato.

“We had state agencies, elected officials, lawmakers’ staff members and community organizations all represented here today to not only experience kayaking firsthand through one of the locks, but to talk about the ways we can continue to work together to support initiatives that will preserve and enhance the vitality of our rivers,” Fitzgerald said.

Steele, D-Fox Chapel, said the event gave her a better understanding of the importance of keeping locks and dams open for recreational boating.

“The economies in the river towns are dependent on people being able to move up and down that river,” she said. “Seeing the locks up close and personal really gives you an understanding for how important they are.”

She said there is a lot of opportunity at the state level to drive funding to river towns for economic development and recreation. She pointed to recently awarded funding for regional riverfront plans in Cheswick and Tarentum.

Kelsey Ripper, executive director of Friends of the Riverfront, said access to the Allegheny River is crucial to the region’s economic future.

“We were founded to reconnect people to the rivers after decades of being separated from them by heavy industry,” she said. “We have seen communities rebuild their relationships to the rivers and, as a result, enjoy greatly expanded recreational opportunities that have, themselves, become a crucial part of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s economic story.”

View the full story at triblive.com.

Elected officials and their staff members paddled their way through Allegheny River Locks and Dams on Friday.

The event was organized by the Friends of the Riverfront, the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission and the Port of Pittsburgh.

Some of the elected officials that participated were:

• Sen. Lindsay Williams
• Rep. Mandy Steele
• Rich Fitzgerald, Executive Director of the Southwestern PA Commission (and former Allegheny County Executive)
• Kelsey Ripper, Executive Director of the Friends of the Riverfront

Staff members from Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato, Rep. Lindsay Powell, Sen. Bob Casey, Congressman Chris Deluzio, and Congresswoman Summer Lee were also there.

They began paddling downriver at 10:15 a.m. until they reached the Harmar Fish and Boat Launch.

Organizers said they wanted to show officials just how important maintaining the lock and dam system is to the local environment and economy.

View the full story at wpxi.com.

Executive Director of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, Rich Fitzgerald, joins Larry Richert in the KDKA radio studio each Wednesday morning.

On this week’s show, Beaver County Commissioner Jack Manning was on to talk about the Hookstown Fair and Big Knob Grange Fair. Westmoreland County Commissioner Doug Chew dialed in to promote the Westmoreland County Fair.

View the full story at audacy.com.