Butler County could soon have more friends on the other side of the globe.
For the past four years, the Cranberry Sunrise Rotary Club has been trying to get a sister-city relationship with a town in China where Butler County-based Westinghouse Electric is building its nuclear plant.
Butler County Tourism Director Jack Cohen says their efforts will soon be realized.
“We finally made some contact and folks from the government of Haiyang, China are going to come visit with us in September,” Cohen said in an interview with Butler Radio.
This wouldn’t be the first sister-city relationship for Butler County. The borough of Saxonburg has a relationship with Muhlhausen, Germany. That connection was formed due to Saxonburg’s founder, John Roebling.
“If you think about it- we have several Butler County businesses that are international. It’s time our communities understand what’s in our own backyard,” Cohen said.
A contingent from the coastal city of Haiyang (which is in the Shandong province in eastern China) are scheduled to visit Butler County this September. Following that visit, a group from Butler will visit China.