Ways to improve infrastructure in Butler County and the importance of municipal cooperation were highlighted during the recent State of the County.

The program was hosted Thursday by the Butler County Chamber of Commerce and included an update on a range of topics, such as the Butler County Growth Collaborative, the Pittsburgh-Butler Regional Airport and enticing young people to call the county home, among others.

Mark Gordon, the county’s chief of economic development and planning, said the county has facilitated cooperative efforts with multiple municipalities. He said one example was a collective of 11 municipalities in southwestern Butler County that have joined together to address flooding in the area.

“They’re looking at ways to mitigate the flood risk, and they’re doing it together,” Gordon said.

Gordon said the county also has invested in multiple studies that could shape further development of core areas in the county. He said there are ideas regarding the revitalization of Butler’s Main Street and the Island neighborhood that are under review.

Joe Saeler, executive director for the Community Development Corporation of Butler County, said his organization focuses on the rehabilitation of brownfields, a property that potentially has the presence of hazardous pollutants or contaminants.

“We remediated the site from arsenic and other contaminants,” Saeler said.

Saeler pointed to the Victory Road project as an example of a property that has been turned around and now serves as functional space that adds to tax revenue.

Once a brownfield left in the wake of the exit of USX Sintering, the site now serves as the site for multiple companies. In April, Bayer, the pharmaceutical company, broke ground in the park for a 220,000-square-foot distribution center.

Both Gordon and Saeler also pointed to the former A.K. Steel Plant 2 as another such ongoing project.

County officials also fielded questions about the status of expanding broadband access throughout the county.

County Commissioner Leslie Osche said the issue of broadband access is being looked into, and commissioners have set aside money for those types of projects. She said it is important to spend that money as efficiently as possible, and right now, there are a lot of unknown factors involved with extending internet connectivity.

“We’re waiting for a final report to see where to spend that money,” Osche said.

But County Commissioner Kim Geyer said there still are some county residents who don’t understand the importance of extending that utility.

“We assume that everybody wants broadband,” Geyer said. However, she pointed out, there are people who “don’t want broadband services.”

Along with dedicating money to the goal, Geyer said, focus needs to be put on educating residents in rural parts of the county about the benefits broadband offers, not only as a means of accessing the internet but in maintaining or raising their homes’ value.

She pointed out that younger home buyers’ wish lists often include internet access.

“They expect public water and public sewer and broadband access,” Geyer said.

Elaborating further on young people, the panel agreed the county’s goals for economic development revolve around bringing and retaining young people in the community.

Osche said attention will need to be paid to what young people are looking for in a community. She said one aspect is housing and another is quality of life.

Osche said some communities are attracting young people and young families, such as Zelienople, Saxonburg and Slippery Rock.

“I refuse to leave office until Butler is the same way,” Osche said. “You can see it coming.”

She said she sees Butler as the next locale to draw renewed interest in people wanting to live there.

Gordon said surveys done on people in their 20s and 30s show that location and transit are some of the biggest factors they consider when choosing a place to live. Gordon said as part of marketing strategies, the county has been featured in advertisements and articles drawing attention to its potential.

“Those marketing pieces have gone across the country,” he said.

While Thursday’s event offered a large overview of projects and plans for the county’s governance, the county’s regular meetings will offer further insight and detail into the happenings of Butler County.

County commissioners meet publicly every other Wednesday at 10 a.m. on the fifth floor of the County Government Center, 124 W. Diamond St. Their next meeting is March 16. Other county committees and commissions also have public meetings, the dates and times of which are available on the county’s website, www.butlercountypa.gov.