Historic train station to be named for PNC

The century-old Train Station at Greensburg, which serves as an Amtrak stop and houses a restaurant and professional offices, will become the PNC Station at Greensburg by the end of the year, the Westmoreland Cultural Trust said on Tuesday.

“We're pretty excited about it,” said Michael Langer, president of the Trust, a Greensburg-based nonprofit with a mission to stimulate cultural and economic development.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. of Pittsburgh, parent firm of PNC bank, was awarded the naming rights for a minimum of 10 years as a component of the PNC Foundation's $300,000 grant to the trust to promote learning among children and a greater appreciation of the arts, the trust said. That grant, which was announced in September, will be used to enhance the trust's arts education for more than 1,000 preschoolers in the region, bringing theater performances to children and exposing them to other cultures through International Christmas.

“PNC wanted to have a greater presence in Westmoreland County” and saw the naming of the train station as a way to achieve that, Langer said.

PNC Station signs will be installed after discussions with PNC, Langer said. The location of the signs has not been determined.

PNC, which is one of the nation's largest banks, provided the money in support of economic development in Westmoreland County and as part of Grow Up Great, the bank's $350 million multi-year bilingual initiative to help prepare preschoolers for success in school and life.

The possibility of giving PNC the naming rights to the Train Station was discussed earlier this year as part of the PNC Foundation's considerations for providing the Trust with the grant for children's programs, Langer said. The PNC Foundation is the philanthropic arm of PNC.

“We are honored to have this beautiful building named in recognition of our support of its (the Trust) commitment to preserve the community's cultural gems,” James Balouris, Southwestern Pennsylvania market manager for PNC, said in a statement.

The Train Station may not be the Westmoreland Cultural Trust's only property to be renamed. The Trust “possibly” may sell the naming rights to the Palace Theatre, also in downtown Greensburg, Langer said. He declined to comment further.

Joe Napsha is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 724-836-5252 or jnapsha@tribweb.com.