PORT ALLEGANY — Two projects are underway in Port Allegany promote the borough for visitors.
On Friday, Linda Devlin, executive director of the Allegheny National Forest Visitors Bureau (ANFVB), visited Port Allegany to meet with Brenda Sawyer and Susan Carlson, directors of Serenity Glass Park and representatives for the Port Allegany Economic and Community Development Group (PAECDG).
Together, they reviewed two projects underway: an informational kiosk to be placed at the corner of Main and Mill streets and a promotional rack card.
The kiosk will be much like the ones in Kane, Bradford, Mount Jewett and Smethport, showing the attractions of the area with colorful photos and narratives promoting the history and important facts of the town. The funding for the kiosk was approved by the ANFVB board of tourism. The PAECDG supported to make the kiosk two-sided and voted to contribute $2,400 of the over $6,000 cost.
The rack card, also funded by the PAECDG, will feature Serenity Glass Park on the front and promote town attractions and businesses on the back including Lynn Hall, The Inn on Maple Street, Eddie’s on Main, and Trails End Realty owned by Pam Payne. The rack card will be distributed throughout the region and at Welcome Centers in Pennsylvania, also in a “birdhouse” on the kiosk.
Devlin took the opportunity to visit two new businesses in Port: Stitch in Time, with Carhart clothing, embroidering and T-shirt imprinting services; and the Mercantile — a variety store.
The tour continued south on Route 155 towards Emporium. Devlin was shown Postlewait Logging operation, whose staff is contributing material for the kiosk, and along 155 where much of the movie “Unstoppable” with Denzel Washington and Chris Pine was filmed, on to the Museum at Wrights, five miles out of town.
Clyde Johnson, the owner of the Museum at Wrights, led a tour of his extensive collection of history and memorability, featuring products made in Port Allegany throughout its manufacturing history including glass containers, glass blocks, buttons, Kewpie Dolls and much more. The group considered how to preserve this collection in the future.
