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Proclamation congratulating the Mon/Yough Trail Council upon the occasion of its 25th anniversary.
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WHEREAS, founded on January 1, 1991, the Mon Yough Trail Council (MYTC) will celebrate its 25th Anniversary this year; and
WHEREAS, the MYTC is an all-volunteer, non-profit 501(c)3 corporation that maintains a portion of the Youghiogheny River Trail extending south from the 15th Street Bridge in McKeesport to the Westmoreland County line, commonly referred to as The Boston Trail, which lies on the right-of-way of the former Pittsburgh & Lake Erie (P&LE) Railroad; and
WHEREAS, the P&LE, once the backbone of the Andrew Carnegie steel empire, carried coke from more than 50,000 coke ovens and coal from numerous coal mines in the Youghiogheny River Valley to the steel mills of Pittsburgh past; and
WHEREAS, today, a crushed limestone surface has replaced the railroad tracks, and the concrete mile markers and preserved rail cars in Boston and West Newton stand as silent reminders of the bustling commerce that was once the life-line of the Youghiogheny River Valley; and
WHEREAS, The Boston Trail hosts more than 750,000 regional visitors annually. Part of the Great Allegheny Passage (G.A.P.) that connects Pittsburgh to Washington, D.C., it has become a destination for trail enthusiasts from across the country and around the world;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that Allegheny County Council does hereby congratulate the Mon Yough Trail Council upon the occasion of its 25th Anniversary, and we thank the board, staff, volunteers, members and benefactors for maintaining and promoting The Boston Trail, which continues to serve us in the form of a ‘greenway’ that will benefit many generations to come.