Photos, 'resource wall' highlight region's attractions at Arnold Palmer airport near Latrobe

No matter when travelers arrive at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Unity, the terminal’s new decor always will be in season.

On Tuesday, airport officials and staff of GO Laurel Highlands, the destination marketing organization for Westmoreland, Fayette and Somerset counties, unveiled more than 40 large-scale photographic prints installed inside the terminal.

The display transformed several of the building’s walls with images reflecting points of interest ranging from Historic Hanna’s Town to the Flight 93 National Memorial. There also are scenes of seasonal pastimes including wintertime skiing and warm-weather kayaking.

Many of the images are in the lower level of the terminal, in a newly expanded secure passenger holding area. Others are arrayed around the baggage claim area on the terminal’s main floor.

The photos serve a dual purpose, according to Ann Nemanic, executive director of GO Laurel Highlands.

For area residents who come to the airport to catch an outgoing flight, rent a car or eat in the restaurant, the images are reminders of things “they see each and every day,” she said. “It’s to provide them with a sense of place, but secondly, really, a sense of pride.

“For visitors, it serves a purpose of welcoming. If you come to a place once, it plants the seed for you to return, but it also plants the seed that you might want to relocate here, you might want to raise a family here and open a business here.”

Many of the colorful images were drawn from entries in the annual Laurel Highlands photo contest, set to enter its 17th year.

“I would say probably at least 75% of these images are from the photo contests,” said Kristin Ecker, senior director of marketing for GO Laurel Highlands.

The photos and related displays were created by Blue Sky Sign Co. of Greensburg and were installed in the terminal during a marathon nighttime session last week. The work was squeezed between scheduled flights on Spirit Airlines, which connects the Unity airport with Myrtle Beach and destinations in Florida.

“We’re very proud to be the palette for the artwork of the Laurel Highlands,” said Gabe Monzo, executive director of the Westmoreland County Airport Authority, which operates the airport. “This is a fantastic representation of Westmoreland County.”

The baggage area also includes banners representing three iconic Westmoreland places — Fort Ligonier, Saint Vincent College and Idlewild & SoakZone. One of the county’s newest attractions, Live! Casino Pittsburgh at the Westmoreland Mall, also is depicted.

One wall of the room is filled with a large Laurel Highlands map, helping visitors plan a route to any of the area’s featured attractions. Another houses a tourism brochure display as well as a “resource wall” that allows smartphone owners to scan QR codes to access information from the GO Laurel Highlands website about dining, golfing, enjoying the outdoors, attending special events and arranging accommodations.

The new terminal displays cost less than $25,000, with funding generated through the county’s lodging occupancy tax. Nemanic said her organization hopes to follow up next year by installing additional displays in the two bridges passengers use to board and disembark from flights.

County officials noted the new display is an appropriate complement to recent improvements to airport facilities and infrastructure. In addition to adding the second passenger bridge and increasing space in the passenger holding area, the airport authority widened the runway and updated parking.