Plan for elk visitors' center on track

Plans to establish a major visitors' center in the heart of Pennsylvania's elk country remain on course. That was the message delivered during Saturday's annual banquet of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation's (RMEF) Elk County Chapter.

RMEF's Rawley Cogan updated members on the status of the "Pennsylvania Wilds Elk Country Visitors Center," a 245-acre property being developed at the former site of the Betta Christmas Tree Farm near Benezette.

Cogan explained that"ecotourism" is rapidly growing in Pennsylvania.

"We are well positioned to take advantage," said Cogan. He added that there are 46 million people living within a six-hour drive of Benezette.

The center will be an attraction where individuals can learn about elk, as well as other wildlife in the region. Cogan said the center will have a strong conservation theme. Although there's no guarantee, the odds are good that visitors will also be able to see grazing elk in the wild when they stop at the center.

The center is a joint project of the Pa. Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources and the RMEF. A 7,000 square foot elk-viewing and education center will be accompanied by interpretive exhibits, wildlife trails and viewing blinds, along with restrooms and parking for vehicles and buses.

Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation has put up $2 million for the purchase of the land and the center's exhibits. The organization has also committed another $5.6 million over the next 30 years toward the center's operation.

A design plan is being developed, with the center opening scheduled for early- to mid-2009.