Beaver County working to fight declining population

BEAVER COUNTY, Pa. — It’s a topic Beaver County Commissioner Jack Manning keeps preaching.

“We know there are some basics that we need to do to ensure that everybody gets a quality of life standpoint,” Manning said.

It’s all about retention and recruitment when it comes to Beaver County’s population, a changing job market has crushed the numbers.

“When the airlines started shutting down that contributed almost as much as the steel mills closing down,” Manning said.

As those residents left, County Commissioners are left with what can be done to bring people back especially young families.

“We’ve been spending a lot of money on our parks, recreation, ball fields. Arts and entertainment we are really trying to bring in concerts not just traditional Maple Syrup festival but supporting our legacy riverfront towns like Bridgewater and what they’ve done with restaurant row,” Manning said.

But it’s an uphill battle not just for this county. If you look at new numbers from the state, population is expected to decline across the region by 2050 with Beaver County dropping nearly 10 percent. That’s why part of the county’s plan is to grow the workforce by investing in infrastructure and development.

“Almost half of the $92 million ARPA that we got went into infrastructure projects whether it was municipal projects or broadband. Things we know will help to attract people and attract businesses,” Manning said.

While the Shell Cracker Plant may have gotten off to a rocky start, Manning said the data doesn’t show people are leaving the county because of it and it does bring employment. Just up the river from there, he said other businesses and manufacturing firms are looking at further commercial projects.

“They want that balance, and there are a lot of things we are trying to do but also a lot of things just outside our control that are important factors too,” Manning said.

Schools are another big contribution to a successful county, but outside the county commissioner’s control. There are currently studies underway to determine different options to make districts more attractive that could help them in the future.

To view the results of the study, click here.

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