Great Allegheny Passage gives Connellsville residents hope for new golden age

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Things used to move fast along West Crawford Avenue, Connellsville’s main street. Trolleys shuttled people to and from the Youghiogheny River. Crowded shops lined the sidewalks. A handful of theaters kept people entertained. And five railroads brought cargo and passengers from around the region.

That was a century ago, when, according to town lore, Connellsville had more millionaires per capita than any other city in the U.S.

Today, the trolleys are gone. Many buildings have been vacated and windows covered. Only one railroad still operates. A single theater remains. And the city population, at around 7,500, is half what it once was.

Service industries have replaced “actual industries,” according to Carmine Molinaro, who has practiced law in Connellsville for 51 years. “Accounting offices that would’ve been on the second or third floor are now on the first floor.”

But city officials and business owners are optimistic about a renaissance, thanks in large part to the Great Allegheny Passage, a 334mile bike path linking Pittsburgh to Washington, D.C. Completed in 2013, the route runs alongside the Yough, through the heart of Connellsville. “We’ve gone from an industrial town to a tourism town,” city clerk Vern Ohler said.

The 54-room Cobblestone Hotel and Suites, built along the bike path, opened in 2017. Less than a five-minute ride away, Kickstand Kitchen, a modish bike-themed sandwich shop, opened in June in a formerly abandoned building just feet from the trail.

“This location inspired everything else,” said Kickstand coowner Jill Ferguson. She said she and her fiance, Jeremy Wentzel, neither of whom is from Connellsville, saw promise in the town.

Rita Smith, 34, similarly said she sees reason for optimism. Born and raised in Connellsville, Ms. Smith left home for college and work but returned in 2014 to take advantage of the low cost of living. She