People from far and wide contribute to a multi-million dollar tourism industry in Butler County, but that industry will take a hit as the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread across the nation and state.

“The biggest issue of all of this is to be safe,” said Jack Cohen, president of the Butler County Tourism & Convention Bureau.

Cohen said restaurants are staying active because they are allowed to continue serving through a drive-through and offer take-out options. The tourism bureau now includes information on its website featuring restaurants that are offering curbside service, take-out and delivery options and open food markets.

He said other businesses like hotels, event venues and many other tourism-related businesses will struggle.

“It's a terrible time for all of our tourism-based businesses,” Cohen said.

The tourism bureau's own staff is working remotely for safety concerns.

Cohen said the bureau remains active and continues to work for its members and the community.

“We're very busy,” he said. “Some of these events are canceled. It's up to us to try to get them rescheduled to a later date.”

In addition to events, another big factor in tourism is the multitude of natural areas and parks throughout the county, headlined by Moraine State Park and Lake Arthur.

More than 2 million people visit Moraine State Park and its 16,725 acres each year.

Gov. Tom Wolf ordered social mitigation efforts across the state, and since then, some government services have closed, including some aspects of state parks.

Cindy Adams Dunn, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) secretary, announced Monday that all facilities at state parks and forests will be closed for at least two weeks.

Visitors can still access all the features of the parks, such as trails, lakes and picnic areas, but it is suggested for passive and dispersed recreation, like a family hike.

Closed facilities include park offices, visitor centers, overnight accommodations and restrooms. All public programs, events and trainings will also be closed. Some staff has been retained to assist in emergency situations.

It is also suggested that people don't recreate in groups and bring hand sanitizer along.

“If you are sick, stay home,” said Dunn.

These closures will affect all of the 121 state parks and 20 forest districts, so trying a different park won't work.

“People will have access to state-owned open spaces to continue to enjoy the healthful benefits of recreation and being outdoors,” Dunn said.

Antique show cancelled

Yolanda Cypher, president of the General Federation of Women's Clubs Intermediate League of Butler, said their planning committee's decision to cancel this year's Antique Show and Sale was difficult.

“(Last) Friday, I called an emergency meeting of the committee,” she said.

Cypher said the committee thought about postponing the show to later this year, but ultimately it was better to cancel for the safety of their vendors, members and patrons, who fall into the demographic that would be highly susceptible to the virus.

She said the decision meant the organizers had to cancel the security team, cancel shuttles, speak with sponsors and discuss the cancellation with all 42 vendors.

“It's a show with many moving parts,” Cypher said. “We all had to take responsibility to contact all the different aspects of it.”

Cypher said they had also been planning a lot of special features to this year's event due to it being the 70th anniversary of the event. She said the entire celebration will happen at next year's event.

“We were going to have a nice celebration of that,” she said. “We're going to carry through on all the nice things we were going to have.

Cohen said this is a troubling time for many, including the tourism industry, but he is optimistic about the community's ability to bounce back in the future.

“We will come back,” Cohen said. “We know we're strong, and we know we're a pretty resilient group.”