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There are a lot of reasons to look forward to Spring and even more so this year as we all want to make it to the other side and get past 12 tough months of the pandemic.
Clinton County event organizers are moving forward! We've already seen two of about a dozen scheduled trail races in 2021 -- the Frozen Snot in February, which lived up to its name, and a great new 10K race called Fire on the Rocks earlier this month. Between the two, more than 500 runners participated and continued to praise organizers for putting on some of the very best trail challenges, bar none!
April 3 marks the start of trout season. We'll see an influx of anglers to local creeks and streams -- always a welcome sight! There are two trail races in April, the Eagleton Trail Challenge on April 10 and the Hyner View Trail Challenge -- Clinton County's largest race -- April 24. Check out the Visitors Bureau tab on the CCEP website, ClintonCountyInfo.com for more information on local events, activities and attractions.
Here are of few other priorities and projects we're involved in:
-- The Tourist Promotion Agency/Visitors Bureau is in month three of a year-long promotional campaign on social media that encourages people to "Explore Clinton County, PA." To date, three Facebook advertisements have appeared in 14 targeted eastern cities (all within about a four-hour drive) and have been viewed directly by more than 10,000 people. We've also ramped up posts on our "Explore Clinton County, PA" Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn platforms.
-- We received 25 applications for funding from the Clinton County Tourism/Recreation Grant program, the highest number ever. We have $50,000 earmarked and expect to announce the grant recipients very soon.
-- We continue to work with various groups to further develop recreational opportunities. For example, we're an active partner in the Central Mountains AVT Association's NorthCentral PA ATV Initiative to expand the number of ridable miles between Clinton County and the New York border.
-- We are having conversations with several groups that are planning national-level events in Clinton County this summer, including: the Durty Dabbers Motorcycle Club, which expects to host a national mototrials event in Farrandsville June 19 and 20; several short-wing Piper Cub chapters are planning a convention during the Sentimental Journey Fly-In the week of June 21; and the Tiadaghton Elm Race Committee plans to host a national canoe/kayak/stand-up paddle board race series in Lock Haven August 10-15. In addition, we're working to again bring a group from the Antique Auto Club of America to Clinton County the week of July 11 for one of their road trips.
-- The City of Lock Haven has again facilitated the closure of a two-block section of Main Street for a pedestrian mall this summer. The pedestrian mall -- extremely popular last summer -- allows restaurants and retailers to expand their operations out into the streets. It will be overseen by Downtown Lock Haven, Inc. and is again expected to include a Saturday morning Farmer's Market. The street will be closed Friday afternoon through Saturday evening every weekend in May and September, and every other weekend during June, July and August. In addition to downtown concerts every Friday night, the River concerts are being moved to Saturday nights this year and held every other Saturday night throughout the summer.
-- We have been gathering information on events for our 2021 Clinton County events booklet but have held off publishing the booklet to give event organizers a bit more time to finalize plans amidst ongoing uncertainties. Our plan is to have something published by the end of April.
And a final point that while it might be the last, is the most important: The Clinton County Economic Partnership continues to be a reliable source of accurate and timely information on what is a constantly-evolving landscape of grant programs, guidelines and restrictions, new regulations and informational resources. Our team has worked hard and is a trusted resource as the local business community strives to successfully make it through this pandemic. After all, that's the ultimate goal -- to have secure, steady businesses providing secure, steady employment and economic vitality for all of Clinton County.