Charleroi study aims for area revitalization
Nicole Janosik
Restoration of the Coyle Theater is one element of efforts to revitalize downtown Charleroi.
CHARLEROI – An inventory of vacant, historic Charleroi storefronts is being completed under a plan to market them to artists to revive the once-booming downtown.
Student Conservation Association fellow Nicole Janosik is leading the effort and also reaching out to the owners of the buildings to determine how many of them would be interested in using the spaces for gallerias and artist studios, said Cathy McCollum, who works for a nonprofit organization working to improve towns along the Monongahela River.
“We’re looking for people who see value to a building that needs tender love and care,” said McCollum, a consultant with the River Town Program, which strives to find ways for communities to recognize the river as an asset.
“The concept is in the early stages,” she said.
Janosik, of Brownsville, will serve until the spring in Charleroi for the conservation association, which offers stipends and other incentives to its fellows. River Town also might seek another intern from the group to take her place, McCollum said.
“The project has been much needed for quite some time,” Charleroi Councilman Larry Celaschi said.
“It’ll be a great tool.”
The inventory is part of other efforts, including using a $227,000 grant to improve boat launches in Monongahela and Charleroi, create a new one in Fredericktown and begin a riverfront plan in West Brownsville, she said.
The work also involves cleaning riverbanks, clearing corridors and erecting signs “for people to know how to get to the river,” McCollum said.
In addition, Janosik is working on a plan to make improvements to Charleroi’s parks.