LOTS OF CHOICES
With so many high rises going up, one thing is clear: State College has arrived in the 21st Century.
These buildings not only allow for greater population density in the downtown, but provide much-needed student housing near campus. These facilities often include retail space and parking on the rear levels.
Recent projects such as The Fraser Center (opened 2016) and The Metropolitan (opened 2017) have paved the way for current and future developments. Upcoming projects like Here at State College, a 12-story high rise currently under construction, challenge the idea of what new-builds can do for a community. This unique complex, like others, will have commercial space on the ground floors and apartments above, but its design is focused on an outdoor public gathering space. The building will also be home to the new Penn State Hillel community center, the heart of Jewish life at Penn State. The building has an expected completion date of 2020.
Projects like Rise at State College and The Edge have also recently opened, with others like The Icon and The Standard set to follow suit. Another unique project, the State College Town Centre, is in the works. Possible uses for this downtown complex include a boutique hotel, a restaurant incubator, and even the Discovery Space museum and playcenter.
STATE COLLEGE BOROUGH
If you're looking to call this thriving borough home but don't want to live downtown, you still have many choices. Notable neighborhoods to consider are Amitie, College Heights, Holmes-Foster and State College Southwest.
College Heights is one of the older neighborhoods in the borough, springing up in the 1880s. This neighborhood had growth periods in the 1920s and ‘40s, and offers shaded streets with a variety of home styles, including colonial revival, Tudor revival and bungalow/craftsman-style. College Heights is a National Register Historic District, and includes Radio Park Elementary School and Sunset Park.
Another popular historic neighborhood is Holmes-Foster, part of the Holmes-Foster/Highlands National Register Historic District. Within its boundaries is the borough’s oldest park, along with a variety of home styles, ranging from small bungalows built for students long-ago, to large stately homes owned by notable community members.
There’s also a number of contemporary neighborhoods in the borough. Take Amitie, for example, a six-acre complex near amenities like the YMCA, Orchard Park, Welch Pool and State College Area High School. This neighborhood was built in the mid-‘70s and offers apartment-style condos in a variety of floor plans.
Another neighborhood offering an abundance of apartment-style living options is State College Southwest, which includes popular residences like Briarwood, Lion’s Gate, Imperial Towers and The Retreat. This neighborhood is conveniently located near the YMCA and South Hills School of Business & Technology. There’s also a variety of townhomes here, including Maple Village, Roundhay Court and Shamrock Townhomes.
Many great neighborhoods for single-family homes exist in the region, including a number in the borough, like Greentree, Nittany Hills, Vallamont and Way Subdivision.
ABOUT OUR TOWN
Despite a wide variety of housing stock to choose from in 2019, that wasn’t always the case.
With the founding of the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania in 1855, State College got its start.
For 40 years the little settlement around the school had been "the town with no name." Around 1900, a controversy began over choosing a name for the town. Instead of choosing one honoring prominent citizens, the majority chose to continue calling the town after the college as had been done in the past. In 1953, the school was renamed to The Pennsylvania State University. At that time there was a referendum to change the name of the town too, but it did not pass, so the town remained "State College."
From those humble beginnings, the borough has matured into a bustling small metropolis complete with all the amenities you might expect from a borough this size. Great schools, top notch medical facilities, fine dining and the arts have all found a home here.
The borough is the county's economic hub, with its top employer, Penn State, employing upward of 26,000 employees. Other notable State College employers include Mount Nittany Medical Center, State College Area School District, AccuWeather and CATA (Centre Area Transportation Authority).
Housing stock in the borough is varied. Unlike many surrounding areas, there's a large selection of townhomes and condos. Also prominent are all-inclusive developments, assuring low-maintenance living, year-round.
Kissinger Bigatel & Brower has had a hand in the development of the region, and we welcome the opportunity to help you become a part of this great community.
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