Olean, NY (Tri-County Arts Council) Olean features a newly renovated Main Street with a series of roundabouts through its entire primary commercial corridor that makes for easily accessible fun for walking and exploring with some great restaurants and shops that are famous in these parts as they say. The Tri-County Arts Council sits just on the street from Saint Bonaventure in Olean and is a great example of the sheer amount of artists and interest in the Arts here in the area. Tri-County reprents artists form Cattaraugus, Chautauqua and Allegheny. The clay studio here is universally available for anyone who wants to use it for their classes and for Tri-County members and is a welcoming open space. Members are allowed to use this space as they need for their medium anytime. The store here allows artisans in the Tri-County area to sell their work and represents over 40 regional artisans. The Fanny Bartlett House sits just a few blocks away around the corner from the Arts Council and was originally built in 1881 with Frank and Fanny Bartlett purchasing the home a decade later. They hired a half dozen artisans over the next few years to create the incredible detail work in the house that proudly still retains the charm, grace and intricate incredible beauty at that period. The house is open Wednesdays and Fridays from one ‘till five for tours as well as being available for rent for events and parties. The combination of a resurgent, economic cultural engine like Olean along with Allegany as it's not-too-cool-for-school companion, really makes a compelling case to take the short drive down the road here to explore all that this beautiful region has to offer. ~A.A.

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