County begins demolition at Ligonier Beach

Ligonier area residents are saying goodbye to the remnants of the Ligonier Beach property.

With the support of federal funding, Westmoreland County has officially started demolition at the Ligonier Township property in accordance with the countywide movement to fight community blight.

The township applied for a blight remediation grant through the county in 2022. The attraction opened in 1925 as the Ligonier Valley Bathing Beach and operated for more than 90 years before it was closed in 2018 after flooding damaged the pool’s water pumps and the restaurant’s furnace on the 10-acre parcel east of Ligonier.

“We took a look at those buildings, and anything that we decide to do with that site, those buildings needed to go either way,” said Ligonier Township manager Michael Strelic. “There are or were holes in the roof of the restaurant.”

Through this program, county officials are in charge of the demolition process.

“As much as I would’ve liked to be in charge of that here at the township, we take these funds where we can get them and they were through the county using federal funds,” Strelic said.

In January, township officials announced that they would be conducting a feasibility study using a $50,000 Community Conservation Partnership Program Grant. Since then, Friends of Ligonier Beach provided a 50% match to the grant. Once agreements are finalized between the township and the two groups, the study will begin.

The results will determine a master site development plan and determine the feasibility of having a pool on the site. Residents previously shared their hopes for the property. One person suggested a dog park and another said they hoped to see an amphitheater to be added on the land.

“I’m hoping it becomes a park,” Strelic said. “I hope it becomes a really large regional park with a lot of amenities or a passive park with a couple of benches. The study will determine that for us I suppose.”