Berea Tourism invests in community projects

In a special called meeting of the Berea Tourism Commission last week, officials voted to invest in public resources for the community, whether it is shared use trails, new bathrooms at Berea Community Park, and even pickleball courts.  

At last Wednesday’s meeting, Interim Tourism Director Dani Gift went down the list of proposed line items for the commission’s 2026 budget. The items included: 

• Raising grant awards from $10,000 per year to $100,000 per year. Said Gift: “That will give us a lot of great opportunities to give back to community projects that help everyone.”

• $200,000 will go for building improvements, half of which will be earmarked for the rehabilitation of the Honeysuckle Vine barn, which is owned by the city. 

• $215,000 will be budgeted for the Scaffold Cane Shared Use Path project, $75,000 of which is carried over from the previous fiscal year. 

* $137,500 is allocated for pickleball courts, which are to be located in the Berea Community Park annex, near the skate park. 

* $125,000 is set aside for new bathrooms at the entrance of Berea Community Park. 

* Investment in city beautification will be increased from $35,000 to $100,000, extending efforts to beautify Berea beyond Old Town, including expenses for flowers, Christmas decorations, and permanent banners and signage. 

*Funds will also be allocated for flower boxes, tables and benches, and replacement of trashcans. 

At the meeting, Berea Tourism Commission Chair Bill West explained that the other $100,000 reserved for building improvements is also set aside for contingency items, such as allowing for the possibility of an emergency repair/replacement project, such as a failed air conditioner.   

Tourism’s budget will be included in the city’s 2026 spending plan, and the fiscal year begins July 1. 

The proposed 2026 allocations are part of a strategy by the city to use tourism funds to create improvements benefiting both local citizens and visitors. The most recent examples are the Silver Creek Bike Park, Berea Gallery and Event Center, and $200,000 to help defray repair costs for the Berea City Pool.   

The city is preparing to celebrate the ribbon cutting for the Berea Gallery & Event Center on May 13 at 2:45 p.m. An open house at the facility will be from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. The multi-use gallery/event space is designed to be a venue for small conventions and private events, an art gallery to display local work, a teaching venue for LearnShop artisan classes, as well as offices for city Tourism Department staff.