'Jewel in the Rough'
ZELIENOPLE — The vision statement for the borough's downtown revitalization plan calls the borough a “jewel in the rough.”
The phrase is used by officials because although much work needs to be done to upgrade the area, it has rich assets including unique architecture, historic buildings, parks and special shops and restaurants.
If executed, the plan “will create a strikingly attractive and welcoming sense of place where people want to do business, to shop, to walk, to have fun, to live,” according to the vision statement.
After working hard to get funds through several grants in the past two years, officials now plan how that money will be used in the first phase of the project.State, federal and county grants for the first phase total $3.4 million. The borough also has the ability to borrow up to $1.8 million because some of the grants require matching funds.The biggest funding is from the state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program, which awarded the borough $3 million for Main Street and the restoration of the Kaufman House.State and county officials were on hand in September when the borough hosted Alan Walker, secretary of the state Department of Community and Economic Development, who they hoped to convince to support its grant application.Borough officials thought it had been passed over but were surprised when it was included in an additional round of announcements in late December 2014.Since then, members of borough council and volunteers with the nonprofit group Zelienople PA Revitalization have been working with consultants EG&G to determine what money can be used for what parts of the project.
At a recent meeting, Councilman Mary Hess said business owners on Main Street were supportive of the plans when she talked about possible changes to parking.“The community is really pulling together to work with us. The growth is right at our doorstep,” she said.“You either embrace it and control it, or if we don't, we'll be steamrolled,” Hess said. “And we don't want that to happen.”The tentative plans for the first phase include acquisition of several properties to build a parking lot on South Clay Street and to make road improvements to parts of Main Street.The transformation of the street itself will include new sidewalks, new street lights, new crosswalks and landscaping.Borough officials have also been investigating the cost of relocating utility lines either underground or to the rear of Main Street buildings.One priority of the project is to create more parking spaces.Once a budget is in place, officials will work on acquiring properties and hiring contractors to tear down buildings and get started on the new lot, Hess said.Some of the grants have a deadline for the money to be used, so some of the construction work will need to begin this year while other parts will need to wait until 2016.
Another component of the revitalization project is the restoration of the historic Kaufman House, which has been closed since 2011 after it was damaged by a fire.The Butler County Tourism and Convention Bureau is helping with the purchase, renovation and reopening of the Kaufman House into a boutique hotel and restaurant.Tourism bureau President Jack Cohen said it has met with the Pennsylvania Restaurant Association to seek a company to buy the restaurant.The tourism bureau is contributing $500,000 from its own budget and will have $400,000 as part of the Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program Grant. The company that buys the restaurant will operate it as a for-profit business and repay the tourism bureau over time.The Kaufman House will be used by Butler County Community College as a training facility for culinary studies and hospitality students.The restaurant in the center of downtown at the intersection of Main Street and New Castle Street will not only create jobs, but it will also bring more people to the borough, thus helping other businesses in the area.Cohen said, “This is one of the biggest things we've ever done at the tourism bureau. I thought the Jeep festival was a big deal, but this is even more important.”
<i>Eagle Staff Writer Jared Stonesifer contributed to this report.</i>
