Annual farm tour discusses 无毛视频榓gritourism,无毛视频� rural high-speed internet access
The trend of 无毛视频渁gritourism无毛视频� that is giving farmers a much-needed boost of income is also coming with unintended consequences as the growing industry meant for rural excursions is sometimes getting lumped in with other amusement attractions.
无毛视频淚t无毛视频檚 becoming very cumbersome,无毛视频� said Lisa Wherry, who is board president of the Washington County Farm Bureau. 无毛视频淭here无毛视频檚 becoming more and more regulations.无毛视频�
She said some farms that offer hayrides or other tours need special licenses, amusement permits or even inspections on the tractor hook-ups in order to operate, with the expectation that they fall under almost the same guidelines as fairs or carnivals.
Don Carter, who is a board member with the county无毛视频檚 farm bureau, said farmers are asking local, state and federal officials to help streamline regulations 无毛视频渢o guide us through this process无毛视频� as the agritourism industry takes off.
无毛视频淚t无毛视频檚 amazing to see how things have changed over the years (with) traditional farms that are expanding into other venues,无毛视频� Carter said. 无毛视频淚t无毛视频檚 becoming a bigger part of farming.无毛视频�
Several state representatives from Western Pennsylvania and liaisons for federal elected officials listened as farmers from across Washington County gathered Wednesday morning at R&L Cattle Company in East Finley Township for the farm bureau无毛视频檚 annual tour to discuss a variety of issues.
无毛视频淔or so many farms, it无毛视频檚 so hard; sometimes (agritourism) is the only way they can make a profit,无毛视频� said Jim Lindley, who owns a farm in North Bethlehem Township near Scenery Hill. 无毛视频淩eally, that无毛视频檚 the only thing making it profitable. The farm economy is tight (so) the people who are making it are finding those things.无毛视频�
State Rep. Tim O无毛视频橬eal, R-South Strabane, said there were changes to some amusement laws a few years ago that 无毛视频減ulled in farm tours,无毛视频� but he thought changes had been made to fix any issues. Upon hearing the renewed concerns from Wherry and other farmers Wednesday, he said he planned to revisit the topic to see if there remain cumbersome regulations for the industry.
无毛视频淲e无毛视频檒l have to look into it to see if a fix can be made,无毛视频� O无毛视频橬eal said. 无毛视频淚 don无毛视频檛 think it无毛视频檚 a super controversial thing.无毛视频�
Eric Cowden, a field representative for Republican state Sen. Camera Bartolotta, added that equine farms often have 无毛视频淓nter At Your Own Risk无毛视频� signs when visiting their properties, so there could be discussions about implementing similar rules elsewhere to 无毛视频渕imic无毛视频� those warnings.
State Rep. Bud Cook, R-West Pike Run, praised the concept of agritourism, and said agriculture and tourism were two areas that state officials targeted to 无毛视频渕erge these two worlds together无毛视频� to boost the economy.
无毛视频淲hen you merge these two and put them together, you无毛视频檝e got a home run,无毛视频� Cook said. 无毛视频淗ow many inner-city kids have ever petted a cow?无毛视频�
Kathy Logue-Ross and her husband, Bobby Ross, co-own the 330-acre farm with her father, Don Logue, where the farm tour was held. Logue-Ross is a fourth-generation farmer with the family owning the Logue Farm since 1901, and they are currently raising 250 beef cattle on the property along Route 231 just south of Claysville.
无毛视频淲e无毛视频檝e tried to stay true to what was here and keep it the way it was,无毛视频� Logue-Ross said.
She said they do not have any plans to expand to 无毛视频渁gritourism无毛视频� as a way to boost their income, but that could be an option one day 无毛视频渕aybe down the road无毛视频� if they need another source of revenue.
无毛视频淲e无毛视频檝e stayed away from it because we无毛视频檙e so busy with everyday farming (activities),无毛视频� Logue-Ross said. 无毛视频淲e have so many things 无毛视频� we无毛视频檙e overwhelmed.无毛视频�
Before going on a hayride tour of the cattle farm, the bureau无毛视频檚 members and elected officials discussed other pressing matters facing farmers, such as deer management, stormwater drainage and high-speed internet access in rural areas.
无毛视频淚t is still an issue we need to address,无毛视频� Carter said of the lack of high-speed internet service in many rural areas. 无毛视频淲e无毛视频檙e fortunate in Washington County that most, but not all, have access. Sometimes we take it for granted to have access to the internet. For farmers, it无毛视频檚 critical.无毛视频�
It无毛视频檚 also a safety concern for farmers working out in the fields who do not have cellular telephone service to call for help in an emergency.
无毛视频淚f you don无毛视频檛 have any phone service and something happens,无毛视频� Wherry said while trailing off.
Washington County Commission Chairman Nick Sherman said county officials worked tirelessly in the aftermath of the pandemic to use federal stimulus money to extend broadband internet services to many rural areas that didn无毛视频檛 have access before. While the pilot program was a success and initial steps to partner with telecommunications to extend service appeared promising, the cost of the program and its return on investment didn无毛视频檛 reach expectations.
无毛视频淭hen it got muddy,无毛视频� he said.
Over several years, the county spent about $30 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds and leveraged those dollars with the companies to extend delivery of high-speed services. But the cost per household was more than expected and the sign-ups didn无毛视频檛 reach the levels they initially hoped to see as customers gravitated to satellite-based internet providers instead.
With the ARPA money now exhausted and no federal money coming down the pipeline for broadband expansion, Sherman said the state is now taking the lead on initiating future projects through its Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment Program, better known as BEAD.
无毛视频淚n my opinion, the rural broadband initiative was a flop,无毛视频� Sherman said.