Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023
Lewistown, PA—D1
The Sentinel
Long-awaited Town Centre taking shape BY GREG WILLIAMS Sentinel reporter
gwilliams@lewistownsentinel.com
A
project in the works for years might finally have a completion date.
The developer for the long-awaited Town Centre in State College disclosed details for the commercial redevelopment project, including a tentative timeline – at a borough planning commission meeting in May. Planned for the 200 block of South Allen Street, plans for the Town Centre include a 160-room Canopy by Hilton hotel with two restaurants and bars along with 15,000-square feet of commercial space in an H-shaped building. That structure will wrap around the existing Jeramar Building, 228 S. Allen St., which will remain.
The goal is to open the nine-story building in September 2025, the project architect told the borough planning commission. The building will be constructed on the sites of the current Allen Street municipal metered parking lot and the former Verizon building at 224 S. Allen St., which most recently housed Penn State’s Happy Valley Lunchbox. The 32 spaces in the Allen Street parking lot will be replaced with a new municipal lot, although the details are still being worked out. For years, State College officials
have envisioned a public-private redevelopment project and selected Highland Holding Group in 2017 to oversee the project. Canopy by Hilton is a relatively new brand, according to the company release, which has been around six or seven years now. “It’s a lifestyle brand created by Hilton that really tries to fit in with the neighborhoods and be unique to the property rather than being a cookie-cutter hotel that looks like the same wherever you stay in the country.” Not only does Canopy by Hilton highlight its neighborhoods with local art and furnishings, but its very food- and beverage-focused. The developer is currently working to finalize the operator for the restaurants, which will be located at the street level and on the top floor of the hotel. The hotel portion of the building will rise to 95 feet on the Allen Street parking lot site and offers 35 feet of commercial and retail space front on Allen Street. Plans call for the first through third floors of the hotel to include a parking deck with 172 parking spaces for hotel guests and staff. Electric vehicle charging stations will also be included, along with bicycles that will be made available to guests. The fourth through eighth floors of the hotel will offer guests unobstructed views toward Allen Street and the Penn State campus. The ninth floor will house a 4,268-foot restaurant and bar, additional guest rooms and two tiered rooftop terraces. The developer has not identified specific tenants for the commercial portion of the building.
Renderings courtesy of STATE COLLEGE BOROUGH
Top, a design rendering shows the State College Town Centre on the 200 block of South Allen Street as viewed looking east. Image by Nehmer via State College Borough; above, a design rendering of the State College Town Centre shows an aerial view looking east.
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D2—Lewistown, PA
Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023
The Sentinel
PROGRESS-CENTRE COUNTY
Road Project aims to improve downtown Plan prepares pedestrian-friendly area By BROOKE CROUSE Copy Editor
bcrouse@lewistownsentinel.com STATE COLLEGE — The borough tentatively begins its multi-million dollar Calder Way Project in January 2024. According to the borough website, this project will improve the downtown corridor into a more pedestrian-friendly area and reduce vehicular traffic. “We are delighted to present the Calder Way Project, a focal point within the esteemed Downtown Master Plan,” the borough website states. StateCollege.com reported that the borough has $6 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds for sanitary sewer system upgrades. The borough also received a $2.44 million loan from the Pennsylvania Infrastructure
Investment Authority for stormwater management infrastructure replacement. According to the borough website, the project fund also includes: Pursuit of state and federal grants
for forthcoming project segments, A SEDA-COG award of a $60,000 grant (with a $90,000 Borough contribution) for the Calder Way Infrastructure Feasibility Study, and Study provision of comprehen-
sive insights into the project’s scope and costs, informed by construction endeavors. This project, according to the borough, aims to replace conventional curbed sidewalks with
“captivating artistic measures,” enhance streetscapes from Hiester to Burrowes, and improve utilities including sanitary sewer, storm sewer, water, and electric systems. State College officials planned the project in five phases, each phase will be tentatively executed from 2024 to 2027. Phase one (2024) includes a utility replacement from South Atherton Street to McAllister Street. This phase will also implement stormwater replacement work between South Fraser Street to South Pugh Street. Future project phases involve utility replacements in the remaining segments of the project area and the addition of streetscape elements integrated post-utility replacement from Hiester to Burrowes. The Borough consulted businesses in the Downtown State College area to inform them of project updates and the scope of the project. Further information may be found at https://statecollegepa.civilspace.io/en/projects/calder-way-improvements-projects or by emailing ehayes@statecollegepa.us.
Pa.’s largest art museum relocates, expands By SIERRA BOLGER Reporter
sbolger@lewistownsentinel.com UNIVERSITY PARK — The Palmer Museum of Art at Penn State is the largest art museum collection between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia and the most significant academic art museum in the state of Pennsylvania. This free-admission museum just celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2022. In early 2023, the Palmer Museum began its transition with plans to open their new location in spring of 2024. The museum will directly neighbor the H.O. Smith Botanic Gardens in The Arboretum at Penn State and will be the only Big Ten museum fully integrated with a full scale arboretum. The new 71,254 square foot museum will substantially boost accessibility to the university’s art collection for students, faculty, staff and the public. It features 19 galleries on two levels as well as indoor and outdoor courtyards. The Palmer Museum of Art has outgrown its current building as its art collection continues to expand. Thanks to an increased number of generous philanthropists, more than $20.2 million has been raised in support for the new building’s $85 million budget through Penn State’s current fundraising campaign. “The new building will feature countless robust and critically meaningful opportunities for Penn State students, and all visitors, to engage with the arts, design and the natural environment through the extraordinary work of 21st century architecture,” said Stephen Carpenter II, Dean of Penn State’s College of Arts and Architecture. Through its world-class objects, programs and outreach, the Museum is a welcoming, inclusive and vibrant forum for authentic arts experiences and a site for cultivating meaningful dialogue about today’s most potent ideas and pressing concerns. “As a leading arts destination and cultural gateway to the university, The Palmer looks forward to sharing more of its exceptional works and to fostering greatly enhanced opportunities to experience art, nature, connection and inspiration through the visionary new building,” said Erin M. Coe, director of The Palmer Museum of Art. “We are profoundly grateful to the Penn State leadership, the Palmer family and all the museum’s generous supporters for bringing us to this transformative moment.” Penn State selected Allied Works Architecture to design the new Palmer Museum of Art. Known for its sensitive and elegant bridging of nature and architecture, Allied Works was chosen based on its deep expertise in the design of arts and educational facilities and for its interdisciplinary and collaborative approach. Allied Works explores and integrates all aspects of a building’s environment and expression, from urban design and broader site response to the design of finely tuned interior environments, graphic design,
Submitted photos
The Palmer Museum of State College is in the process of moving to a new location. furniture and diverse applied art pieces. The museum holds more than 10,000 works of art including American art, contemporary studio glass; ceramics from a range of global cultures and eras; African art; Asian art; European Old Master paintings and sculptures; drawings; prints; and other works on paper; and modern and contemporary art. The new building will also feature a site specific art installation by internationally acclaimed artist Dale Chihuly. Lupine Blue Persian Wall was commissioned in honor of Penn State President Emeritus Eric Barron and his wife Molly Barron, and funded through the generosity of donors. Eric Barron, the 18th president of Penn State, who retired in 2022, was instrumental in the vision to make the new Palmer Museum of Art at Penn State a reality. The Lupine Blue Persian Wall will anchor the feature staircase in the museum. “For decades, Dale Chihuly had defied the boundaries of traditional glass sculpture, creating astonishing works that dazzle the eye of
the beholder while evoking a sense of joy and wonder,” said Palmer Museum of Art Director Erin M. Coe. “For the new Palmer building in the Arboretum, he has created a tour de force installation for the feature staircase that fulfills our goal for a significant and stunning work celebrating the intersection of art, architecture and nature. We hope this installation will inspire the imagination of all who see it.” Chihuly is an American artist who transforms spaces with experiments in color, light, transparency and form. He is known for his exhibitions and large scale architectural installations around the world and for revolutionizing the studio glass movement. Chihuly works with a variety of media including glass, paint, charcoal, neon, ice, Polyvitro and his work is included in more than 200 museum collections worldwide. “Having previously presented exhibitions at the Palmer, I am thrilled to create a new installation for the new museum building,” said Chihuly. “I hope that the students and visitors who pass through the space will find
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beauty in the work.” As an expansive 21st century teaching museum, the Palmer is a beacon for advancing the arts and humanities on Penn State’s University Park campus and throughout its diverse communities. The museum is dedicated to catalyzing groundbreaking research,
scholarship and publications and providing impactful, object based learning for Penn State and K-12 students. The innovative new museum will allow Palmer to foster academic collaborations and strengthen student engagement through handson learning in a purpose designed classroom space and
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in spaces like the Teaching Gallery, designed for innovative cross disciplinary programs. “We are at a transformative point in the history of the Palmer Museum of Art, as we look toward a bright future in our new state of the art building,” said Coe.
Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023
Lewistown, PA—D3
The Sentinel
PROGRESS-CENTRE COUNTY
Centre Co.’s Beaver Stadium packs house but will also proPenn State stadium vide an economic impact for our community and lobrings big cal businesses. the combinanames to region tion“Weof know this unique oppor-
BY GREG WILLIAMS Sentinel reporter
gwilliams@lewistownsentinel.com UNIVERSITY PARK – More than 107,000 die-hard football fans packed Beaver Stadium for each of the seven Penn State Nittany Lion home games in 2022. That average was the fifth-best average in program history and its fans’ highest turnout since Penn State’s Big Ten championship season in 2008. Nationally, the Nittany Lions ranked second in all of college football, behind only rival Michigan. While Penn State fans delivered a big year for football ticket sales, school officials are hoping that translates into other events. Fans filing through the turnstiles mean big bucks for parking and ticket revenues, along with concession stand sales. They’re going hard-core country to find out as singer Luke Combs will bring his Growin’ Up and Gettin’ Old tour to Beaver Stadium next year. Combs will perform on Saturday, April 27, 2024. “We are thrilled to have Luke Combs make the iconic Beaver Stadium part of his Growin’ Up and Gettin’ Old Tour in 2024,” said Dr. Patrick Kraft, Penn State vice president for intercollegiate athletics. “Not only is this a tremendous way to showcase our
tunity and it being Luke’s only concert in the state of Pennsylvania in 2024 that his fans will show up and make this one of the biggest concerts in the country,” Kraft added. “In addition to having the greatest game day environment in college football, we hope this marks the first of many concerts and other major events that we will host in the iconic Beaver Stadium in the coming years.” Combs, a two-time Country Music Association Entertainer of the Year, will be joined by Jordan Davis, Mitchell TenPenny, Drew Parker and Colby Acuff. If you haven’t bought your ticket yet, good luck. The show sold out in August. In its opening weekend alone, Combs’ stadium tour broke a record by selling one million tickets. Sixteen of the tour’s 25 scheduled shows are sold out, including Beaver Stadium. Other sold-out shows include more well-known venues like Los Angeles’ SoFi Stadium, East Rutherford’s MetLife Stadium, Santa Clara’s Levi’s Stadium, Milwaukee’s American Family Field, Buffalo’s Highmark Stadium and Cincinnati’s Paycor Stadium. Could Beaver Stadium, which will soon be undergoing a massive renovation, be mentioned in the same breath? Officials are hoping for some day. This will only be the second concert in history held at Beaver Stadium. The
AP file photos
Above, Country star Luke Combs performs on stage. Right, Penn State football fans fill Beaver Stadium during a home game against the Iowa Hawkeyes on Sept. 23 first was in 2017 with Blake Shelton and Big and Rich. To keep Penn State and the rest of Centre County in the spotlight for marquee entertainment, the Happy Valley Sports and Entertainment Alliance was formed. The organization announced its first board of directors in mid-September. The 19 directors include a mix of Penn State representatives, sports and entertainment industry experts and business and community leaders. “Happy Valley is poised to capitalize in greater ways on its proud sports tradition to become a premier sports and entertainment destination,” said Eric Engelbarts, who was appointed HVSEA executive director in April. “Careful consideration went into putting together a board necessary to further move the needle and
successfully compete for higher level sports and entertainment offerings.” Announced in 2021 by the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau, the HVSEA operates as a 501(c)3 non-profit organization with HVAB staff helping to support the Alliance’s work. In addition to the Luke Combs’ concert, the Ironman 70.3 Pennsylvania Happy Valley triathlon will return for its second year on June 30, 2024.
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Special to the Sentinel Happy Valley has a hidden adventure sure to make exploring Centre County more unique than ever before. Geocaching, a hunt for hidden objects using GPS, leads people on a 58 cache tour around the area. Geocaching challenges individuals to enjoy a treasure-hunt-like activity. It is versatile and can be enjoyed as a group or as an individual activity, and depending upon skill level, trails and clues can range from novice to expert alike. Geocaching is well-suited for an employee team building outing too. The Visit Centre County GeoTour has been available for geocaching enthusiasts since 2000. It was created by Centre Region Parks and Recreation and community volunteers that love the hobby. The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau assisted financially through its annual Tourism Grant program, conducted in partnership with Centre County Commissioners. The goal of this tour is to highlight local history, outdoor recreation opportunities, Penn State University ties, and national resources. This program was started to put a spotlight on all of the wonderful things Happy Valley has to offer in an interactive way. To begin the hunt, participants must download the Geocaching app, then acquire a geocaching passport, either by downloading it or by picking one up at the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau office. There
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ilies and friends to explore. One incentive to the tour is the opportunity to earn a custom geocoin by finding at least 45 of the 58 caches. “The hopes of all trails and tours such as this, is to See Geocache / Page A4
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D4—Lewistown, PA
Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023
The Sentinel
PROGRESS-CENTRE COUNTY
Sports alive and well in Centre Co. BY KENNY VARNER
Sports correspondent BELLEFONTE — The only thing constant is change. Change has been something that numerous Centre County athletic departments and teams have had to deal with over the last calendar year. In the spring, the Bellefonte baseball team as well as the Bald Eagle Area softball and baseball teams turned out the lights, ending an incredible journey for the now extinct Mountain League that has been around for decades. With a declining membership, the league and the teams in it, decided to combine to build a mega conference with the Laurel Highlands. When the league folded after its legendary runs, the teams that moved into the Laurel Highlands were Bald Eagle Area, Bellefonte, Penns Valley and Philipsburg-Osceola. Eight teams from the Mountain League merged with the original 13 Laurel Highlands teams and Bellwood-Antis merged from the Inter-County Conference. They are; members include Bald Eagle Area; Bedford; Bellefonte; Bellwood-Antis; Bishop Carroll Catholic; Bishop Guilfoyle Catholic; Bishop McCort Catholic; Central; Central Cambria; Chestnut Ridge; Clearfield; Forest Hills; Greater Johnstown; Hollidaysburg (with the exception in football); Huntingdon; Penn Cambria; Penns Valley; Philipsburg-Osceola; Richland; Somerset; Tyrone; and Westmont Hilltop. Bishop Carroll Catholic co-ops with Bishop McCort Catholic in football. The group now stands at 18 sports in the 22-member league. The teams cover quite a variety of districts in the conference. They are District 6, 5 and 9, which spreads over seven counties. Going into the season, many Centre County coaches were looking forward to the merger, citing the jump in competition and the less stress in trying to fill their schedule. One such coach was Bald Eagle football coach Jesse Nagle. In a preview coming into the season, Nagle was excited about the level of talent that the new league possesses as well. But it won’t affect the way his team prepares for the season. “This is business as usual. I think our biggest thing is for us the last couple years we’ve had a really,
Submitted photos
Above, Submitted photo - Penns Valley blocker Josh Lieb attempts to keep defensive lineman, Nathan Benner, from tackling running back, Ty Watson, while Bellefonte lineman, Carter Johnston, looks on. Left, Bellefonte’s Sydney Miller brings the ball up field during their contest against Penns Valley.
really hard time finding opponents. We really welcome the competition. I think we start with Bishop Guilfoyle. BG of course is a powerhouse,” said Nagle in an early preseason preview. “We’re excited to be in that conference. They bring a lot of high quality teams that we are used to. So we’re definitely ready for the challenge. It’s also nice we don’t have to go looking for these hammers, the 4A or 5A teams saying they want to play us. So, it’s nice to have the high level com-
Geocaching Continued from Page 3
bring geocaching enthusiasts from all over the world to visit and enjoy Happy Valley. The benefit is to help the local economy as well. When catchers visit, they get the opportunity to learn about our area by visiting restaurants, shopping at local stores and staying overnight. GeoTours such as these can bring a nice economic boost to our county,”
petition so close. We’re pretty excited about not having to worry about the schedule anymore. The goals for the team are simple but lofty.” Another positive thing the Laurel Highlands brought to the table is that the travel will be minimized by separating the conference into sections for each sport. Sectional play will also allow geographically close schools to ensure yearly contests to maintain the traditional rivalries. Every fall sport will have its own championship to battle for.
said Josiah Jones, Chief Administrative Officer for The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau. The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau supported the GeoTour through its grant program for the past three years, but now the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau is taking on a bigger role. The plan was to end the Visit Centre County GeoTour after three years. The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau did not want to see the GeoTour come to an end. The Centre Region Parks & Recreation, alongside the group of volunteers,
agreed to allow the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau to take ownership of the tour this past summer. The plan is to create a professional passport, promoting the GeoTour and spreading the word. Moving forward, The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau will be funding this program through its fiscal budget. “We are very grateful that the volunteers agreed to keep the GeoTour open for business. The volunteers help us maintain the caches and keep them active,” Jones said.
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“Winning a conference championship in the LHAC will be a major accomplishment.” stated Scott Close, Executive Director of the LHAC in an early press release. “It will probably be more difficult to win the league title than a District title due to our league having teams from multiple districts and different classifications.” As the season begins to wind down there will be some exciting post season games that will be taking place. The conference will sport two different sections. They will be designated by East and West for football, splitting the 20 teams into a 10 team division. Then broken down by each division by a Southern and Northern division consisting of five teams each. Each team will play the other four teams in the region during the regular season and will be ranked accordingly by week nine. After that week, the final top two teams will play the other top two teams en route to the LHAC Championship. “This format will not only provide for a LHAC Champion, but will also allow all teams to have an equal matchup for the last game of the season.” remarked Close. Just to provide an example of the jump up talent
wise in the divisions. Volleyball will feature 22 teams in the Highlands this season. They also will be split in two sections like the football grouping. However, teams will play 12 section games and cross over for four games against the other section. The top two teams in each section will qualify to play in the LHAC semifinals and championship. In soccer, much is the same they also will follow a similar two section format for the 20 schools that sponsor the sport. The schedule will feature 12 section games and four games against the opposite section. Highlighting the contests will be a Cross sectional games will feature a girls/boys varsity double-
header on those evenings to promote support for both genders and ease travel for the longer trips. The season will culminate in the inaugural LHAC soccer championship which will be played between the top team from each section. Golf and cross country will feature three sections based on geography. A champion will be crowned for each section. In addition, a season ending championship will be held featuring all teams competing for individual and team LHAC titles in cross country and individual awards for golf. So far this season, the Centre County sports teams are finding much success as the season enters its midway mark and into the postseason. In the winter season there will be a Laurel Highlands wrestling tournament held. Many Centre County wrestlers will find themselves battling it out for individual titles. “The wrestling championships are one of the most largely anticipated benefits of the merger.” Close added. “The LHAC has numerous incredible wrestlers and we will get to see all of the league’s talent in one location for a weekend in the middle of the season.” Championships in basketball and swimming will also be used to determine league titles. The spring season will have baseball, softball, boys and girls track, and boys tennis. The LHAC track championships should feature over 1000 athletes competing for LHAC individual and team gold medals. Currently, mostly half of the Centre County teams are in line or have almost clinched a postseason berth with their play. Despite the loss of the Mountain League, it looks like the future of Centre County sports is alive and kicking in the Laurel Highlands Conference. *Some information for this story was provided by the Laurel Highlands Conference information department.
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Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023
Lewistown, PA—D5
The Sentinel
PROGRESS-CENTRE COUNTY
Mall gambling its future with arrival of mini-casino BY GREG WILLIAMS Sentinel reporter
gwilliams@lewistownsentinel.com STATE COLLEGE – Developers of a proposed mini-casino at the Nittany Mall hope its arrival will revitalize the Centre County mall as well as the surrounding region. With the fate of the mini-casino in the hands of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, the bigger question will be if there’s anything left of the Nittany Mall when a decision is finally rendered. Legal experts said in mid-September that it takes an average of 15 months for a case before the state Commonwealth Court to be resolved, meaning a ruling might come within a number of months — if not years. The project, which comes with a $130 million price tag, has been tied up by legal challenges. The move puts the state Supreme Court in position to have the final word about the project. “The Supreme Court is pretty picky about which cases they even want to review, except via statute. They can pick and choose what they want to review,” Attorney Frank C. Sluzis said during an interview with reporters about the status of the mini-casino. “This doesn’t happen all that often.” The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board voted unanimously in January 2023 to approve the license for the planned casino, but it cannot be issued until all appeals are resolved. The planned casino will be located in a 94,000-square-foot space that housed the former Macy’s store. Like many malls in
America, the Nittany Mall has struggled to keep tenants. In late July, Journeys, a retail chain that focuses on youth culture, was the latest retailer to shutter its doors after more than 23 years in business. The Nittany Mall was developed by Crown American and officially opened in 1968. Originally the mall had just two anchors, Grants and Penn Traffic, and about 30 smaller stores. It expanded in 1970 to include Sears, which relocated from downtown State College, and more than a dozen other smaller stores. Gee Bee took over the space from Grants when the chain closed in 1976. Penn Traffic was also sold to Hess’s department store in 1982 and it was rebranded. In 1989-90, the mall expanded again to add JCPenney. In 1992, Gee Bee became Value City as did Hess’s, which were sold to BonTon and changed names in 1994. Macy’s eventually took over the Value City space in 2006. The JCPenney closed in 2015 and was replaced by Dunham’s Sports. Sears closed in 2018 and Bon-Ton followed shortly thereafter, leaving the mall with only two anchors.
Macy’s left in 2020 and Gabe’s opened in the old Bon-Ton location in June 2021. In January 2021, Christopher & Banks, Hot Topic and Kozee’s Sports Emporium each announced through store signage and Facebook posts that they were closing their locations in the Nittany Mall. Women’s clothing retailer Christopher & Banks filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, while pop culture clothing and accessory retailer Hot Topic announced its Nittany Mall store will be shutting down and will not be relocating, according to a post on the local location’s Facebook page. Kozee’s Sports Emporium, which specializes in professional and college sports team merchandise, announced on Facebook it is closing only its Nittany Mall location in early 2021. The list goes on. Bradley’s Book Outlet shut down its Nittany Mall location in early 2021 as well as Dino’s Pizza, Express, Kay Jeweler, Victoria’s Secret and Rampage Room all closed in the Nittany Mall. Happy Wraps also closed its mall restaurant and moved to downtown Bellefonte and Emporium
Photos provided
Above, left, A rendering of the proposed mini-casino at the former Macy’s in the Nittany Mall, which has been tied up in legal challenges; top, right, the Nittany Mall sign stands in an exterior parking lot; above, the former Macy’s is being targeted as the home of a future mini-casino. Market moved from the mall to downtown State College. While three of the mall’s four anchor spots
are currently empty, Rural King is still planning to open in the former Sears location. The anchor spot formerly occu-
pied by Bon-Ton was used as a free COVID-19 testing site, sponsored by Centre County, at one point.
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D6—Lewistown, PA
Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023
The Sentinel
PROGRESS-CENTRE COUNTY
PennDOT aims to reconstruct South Atherton Street $30.7 million project continues into 2024 By BROOKE CROUSE Copy Editor
bcrouse@lewistownsentinel.com STATE COLLEGE — PennDOT will continue a $30.7 million project on South Atherton Street into 2024. According to PennDOT, this development began in 2022 to reconstruct South Atherton Street (State Route 3014), extending from Curtin Road to Westerly Parkway. In a press release, PennDOT stated that construction items include: Roadway reconstruction, Drainage improve-
ments (including pipes and inlets), Water and sewer lines, Concrete curbing, Sidewalks and detectable warning surfaces, Pavement marking, Traffic signals and supports, and Miscellaneous construction items. Construction activities will be phased using lane restrictions and flagging according to PennDOT. Short-term detours will be permitted for the water line, sewer line, drainage, and full-depth pavement reconstruction work. PennDOT urges motorists to pay attention to work zones and directional signage to enhance safety and keep traffic moving efficiently. Message boards alerting motorists to the construction zone and changing traffic patterns remain in place. PennDOT posts updates and detour information on
the Atherton Street project page weekly at www. penndot.pa.gov/AthertonStreet. PennDOT reminds motorists that intermittent traffic stops are possible for short periods during work activities and urges drivers to use caution when traveling through the work zone. The department also reminds drivers not to follow construction equipment into the closed lane and to use both lanes to the merge point to minimize traffic back-ups and shorten travel delays when approaching the work zone. Motorists can check conditions on major roadways by visiting www.511PA. com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay Graphic courtesy of PennDOT warnings, weather foreThis map indicates that drainage and repaving work will take place in 2023 in Zone casts, traffic speed information, and access to more C and in 2024 in Zone D. Also, drainage, repaving, and streetscape construction will than 1,000 traffic cameras. take place in 2023 in Zone B and in 2024 in Zone A.
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