MARIETTA — Communities across Southeast Ohio will take turns cutting ribbons this fall as Buckeye Hills Regional Council hosts a series of ceremonies celebrating projects built with help from the Appalachian Community Grant Program. The council announced the schedule on Wednesday, Oct. 14, inviting residents, local officials and project partners to join the events in towns spread across the region.
The run of celebrations starts in Monroe County, where the Ecotone Amphitheater in Sardis, at 37800 State Route 7, will be formally opened at 3:30 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 19. The following morning, Tuesday, Oct. 20, attention shifts to Meigs County for the Pomeroy Riverfront Revitalization ceremony at 9:15 a.m. at Court Street Commons in Pomeroy.
On Wednesday, Oct. 21, the series moves to Hocking County for the Logan Streetscape ribbon cutting at 2 p.m. at 1 South Market St. in Logan. Two more ceremonies follow in November: the Underground Railroad Museum in Morristown, in Belmont County, at 2 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 13, and the Southeast Ohio History Center in Athens at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 20, at 24 West State St.
Together, the projects cover a wide range of local priorities, from riverfront improvements and downtown streetscapes to cultural heritage sites and arts venues. Council leaders say the common thread is that each project builds on something the community already values — its river, its history or its main street — rather than starting from scratch.
The Appalachian Community Grant Program was created to support transformative projects in Ohio’s Appalachian counties, helping smaller communities pay for investments that would be difficult to fund from local budgets alone. For towns like Pomeroy, Sardis and Morristown, the grants have turned long-discussed plans into finished places that residents can now use.
Buckeye Hills Executive Director Chasity Schmelzenbach described the program as a historic, once-in-a-generation investment in the region. She said the projects are creating lasting change and opening doors for future generations, and she credited the partnership between state officials, local leaders and community groups for bringing the work to completion.
For residents, the practical payoff is close to home: a revitalized riverfront gives families a reason to spend time in Pomeroy, a finished streetscape makes downtown Logan easier to walk and shop, and new and expanded history sites give schools and visitors more to see in Athens and Morristown. Tourism officials across the region have long argued that such amenities help keep visitor spending in local businesses.
Buckeye Hills Regional Council, based in Marietta, serves communities across Southeast Ohio and works with local governments on planning, development and grant-funded projects. The council is encouraging anyone interested in the projects to attend a ceremony in their area, meet the partners behind the work and see firsthand what the Appalachian Community Grant Program dollars have built.
