Ohiopyle is open for business, but closed because of construction
Alyssa Choiniere/For the Observer-Reporter
Jim Greenbaum, general manger of White Water Adventures, stands outside his business on Negley Street March 14. He said he cancelled a rafting trip that day because there was no access to his business for a PennDOT construction project.
Alyssa Choiniere/For the Observer-Reporter
The view of Ohiopyle’s construction project from Negley Street March 14, which was closed and forcing business owners to cancel rafting trips. The pictured area will be repaved to add parking areas and relocate Sugarloaf Road.
Alyssa Choiniere/For the Observer-Reporter
State Department of Transportation civil engineer and manager Bill Beaumariage speaks with Ohiopyle business owners about an ongoing construction project they say is hurting their businesses. At right is Thursa Trent Crouse, constituent outreach specialist with state Rep. Matt Dowling’s office.
Alyssa Choiniere/For the Observer-Reporter
State Rep. Matt Dowling R-Uniontown, left, speaks with business owners including Ohiopyle Trading Post and Raft Tours Owner Joel Means March 14 on Negley Street, which was closed for construction. Owners say the PennDOT project is hurting their businesses.
Alyssa Choiniere/For the Observer-Reporter
Portions of grassy areas are closed along the Youghiogheny River in Ohiopyle during a massive construction project, scheduled to break by Memorial Day. Business owners said the construction is hurting their businesses, preventing spring visitors to the park.
Ohiopyle business owners ramping up for spring tourists are thwarted by closed roads, traffic cones and construction materials piled high in parking lots.
A massive Pennsylvania Department of Transportation rehabilitation project is slated to break between Memorial Day and Labor Day for Ohiopyle’s busiest season, but business owners say they are feeling the impact now.
“The season has started,” said Pam Kruse, owner of Falls Market.
“Right now, it looks like we’re not open for business and we’re not going to be open for business for a very long time,” she said.
Business owners met with state Rep. Matt Dowling, R-Uniontown, recently and led him on a walk-through of the downtown area, then met with PennDOT officials about their concerns. Kruse said her deliveries were hampered by construction as she gears up for the tourist season. Meanwhile, Negley Street was closed for construction, blocking access to whitewater rafting tour companies. On the 70-degree day, business owners on Negley Street were turning away customers.
Jim Greenbaum, general manager of White Water Adventures, canceled a trip that day. Joel Means, owner of Ohiopyle Trading Post and Raft Tours, loses $1,000 to $1,200 every day the road is closed, he said.
“I can pave this street for what I’m losing, is my point,” Means said during the PennDOT meeting.
PennDOT civil engineer and manager Bill Beaumariage, who called the meeting with business owners, agreed to reopen the road but close it temporarily on weekdays for water taps, and for paving for one to 1½ weeks.
“It’s a temporary inconvenience for a permanent improvement,” he said.
The first phase of the project involves rerouting Sugarloaf Road and adding parking spaces. The total $12.4 million Ohiopyle Intermodal Gateway project is touted to improve safety and promote tourism by building a pedestrian tunnel, widening state Route 381, upgrading the bridge and increase parking, sidewalks and crosswalks. The project is contracted to Plum Construction of Greensburg.
By Memorial Day, construction will be completely stopped until the fall, and construction crews will clean the area for the season, Beaumariage said. At that time, Sugarloaf Road will be completed and the parking area across from the visitor’s center will be repaved, increasing parking.
“We’ve designed a lot of improvements to Negley Street, and we’re going to make the area, I feel, much better. We’ve put into the contract everything (the business owners) have asked for,” Beaumariage said.
He described the meeting as “very productive,” saying he has been in continual contact with business owners and will remain in contact. He agreed to send business owners a construction schedule updated weekly to prevent canceled trips, and limit closures Fridays to Sundays.
“I swear to God, I don’t want to hurt your businesses,” he said to the owners. “I want you to succeed and thrive.”
“We’re trying to survive,” Means responded. “It’s not about succeeding.”
The project has a completion goal of spring 2020. Business owners fear it will continue into a third year.
Business was cut by 50 percent during the visitor’s center project for about three years, Greenbaum said.
“Orange cones, for three years,” he said. “People would drive in, see the orange cones, leave and never come back.”
Business owners cannot sustain a 50 percent cut in revenue after two consecutive years of bad weather, they said.
“We can’t withstand a 50 percent loss in revenue. We can’t lose jobs,” Dowling said.
The business owners said they think the project managers misjudged Ohiopyle’s tourist season, saying visitors flock to the state park as soon as the weather clears in the springtime, and stay through the fall at festivals. Liz McCarty, borough council President and owner of Laurel Highlands River Tours and Outdoor Center, said visitor numbers spike during spring breaks and Easter. Greenbaum said April is a busy month for rafting trips.
“Clean it back up, and let’s make it look like the beautiful town that it is again for the tourist season so we don’t look like this disheveled mess,” Kruse said.