Aug. 2-8 will be Pittsburgh Steelers Week in Unity, according to the township supervisors.
The supervisors proclaimed the upcoming observance in the hope of attracting fans of the team, even though the players themselves won’t be traveling to the township for summer training on the local campus of Saint Vincent College.
For the second year in a row, Steelers officials said NFL protocols are preventing the team from holding the longstanding summer camp in Unity.
While plans for the week are in their infancy, Supervisor Mike O’Barto said the township intends to reach out to local restaurants and stores to encourage special menu items or other promotional efforts aimed at drawing visitors to patronize the businesses.
“This is the second year in a row our community is not going to have Steelers camp in the Greater Latrobe area,” O’Barto said. “It does affect our restaurant community as well as our small businesses.
“We’re trying to come up with ways to create a little enthusiasm. I hope we’ll have some give-aways and get our business community involved.”
He said the township plans to coordinate its Steelers Week with the neighboring City of Latrobe, which, also for the second year, will miss hosting the Steelers for a charitable Friday Night Lights ticketed practice at Memorial Stadium.
City Manager Michael Gray said plans are underway for Latrobe officials to issue a similar Steelers Week proclamation.
