I believe it was about 7 - 8 years ago, they upped the height allowance to 155' in certain areas.
Building boom in downtown SC...link
- Thread starter Richard the LIONhearted
- Start date
2011? There is a lot that you would not recognizemy youngest graduated in 2011 and I don't think I've been downtown since, but I hope they leave downtown alone
not all change is good, this once stood where Willard is now
Once this block of College Ave is converted into high rise .......even more so
Now that the dam has been busted (the high rises on Atherton, and along the College/Beaver side streets)....... It is only a matter of time - and probably not much time - until everything that one used to think of as "downtown" will be one solid chunk of "Beaver Canyon"
It's pretty much a fate accompli at this point
A few folks will make a fortune
Everyone else will lose what had been one of the few remaining, thriving "downtowns" in the state.
It is what it is
Traffic through College Heights was ok until the late 70's when PSU began to rapidly increase in size and more and more staff and students had to move further away from campus. This, and the newly enlarged stadium in '78, created an ever-growing amount of cut-through traffic that was not interested in slow and safe driving through a quiet residential neighborhood where every-other-house had kids. We tried stop signs at every intersection but that did not work, so the barriers went up and what a difference that made. As a resident at the time, I liked it even though I could no longer directly get to Atherton Street. Barriers are not that common but certainly not unique to State College.
The preferred solution to congestion on Park Avenue was, and still is today, the completion of a short amount of "Inner Loop" roadway from the soccer field at Park to Atherton in Overlook Heights. But the four entities involved - two townships, the Borough and PSU have not been able to agree and implement that solution for over thirty years. I believe PSU did not want to give up the land for the roadway. Now with the arboretum in place, it is unlikely we will see the Inner Loop completed in our lifetime.
Or until the commercial space in a mixed-use development begins to have problems and the developer/owner goes back to the municipality to renegotiate the deal. Another case where comedy and tragedy intersect and the local residents wind up paying for the entire fiasco. Wish I had that kind of downside protection in my business.
In Pennsylvania, planning commission members are appointed by elected officials. So guess how that works. Now, go somewhere in the Municipal Code Book, and look up, what qualifications one needs. Nada. Zip. Zero. None. Most don't even get paid. Well.....So everyone should be outraged. I have seen some real dufuseez, sit in these positions.
It's like having the kid who pumps gas at the old corner station, performing surgery......
Or, more often, having the guy who can profit from controlling the planning board ........... running the planning board.
Kinda like the PSU BOT guy who "recommends" construction projects
Barry, I don't disagree with you here. But, the owners of the current, old non-high rise structures which makeup downtown's idyllic setting are also a large problem.
The locally owned/managed places charge exorbitant rents to businesses and greatly jack up the prices after short periods of time. Sure, the high rises also charge large rent....but the problem goes both ways. Current ownership in the traditional buildings is not helping the matter at all.
Ever dealt with "certified planners?" Ever wondered what you need to become one? If you guessed a degree in engineering or architecture, you'd be wrong. If you guessed a background in sociology, economics, geography, history, or music, you'd be correct.
The houses aren't that expensive in the area. Have been checking out houses as my wife and I may accept jobs in the area in the 2019 timeframe
It all depends on perspective....and coming to State College from small town Pennsylvania, I can tell you real estate here is very expensive.
Well yeah I'm from a tiny rural town outside of York. I get that it's comparatively expensive. But it's cheap when you compare to philly, NY, or -- Boston where a small 2 br house runs 3k+. SC is a relatively safe small city with a lot to do, good public schools and jobs... that's what that COL money goes towards... but yeah, the students (parents) drive up the cost. You could try looking outside of town.
I do live out of town. On the salary that many staff positions pay, it is difficult to afford real estate anywhere in the area.
We all know housing is more expensive in major cities....State College is far from a major city....but much of Centre County's real estate is far more expensive than similar areas across the state.
The sooner the better for you. I just checked the zillow estimate on my house and it's 29% higher than our purchase price back in 2011.
Congrats for you and your wife. I truly believe that State College is a great place to live. However, the money I make from Penn State with a Penn State degree isn't enough. What few options I could afford (i.e. poorly constructed, over priced townhouses) aren't worth buying.
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As an example: I bought my townhome, a 3BR, 2.5 bath with a garage in 2014 for $168k. It was brand new; I'm the first to live in it.
Today, the exact same condo in a newly built block, is selling (very quickly I might add) for $185k. Staff positions at PSU pay as low as $24k to start, with non-administrator/director roles topping out around $50k. With those numbers, it's very tough to afford living in this area unless you buy a shit hole or closet in Bellefonte.
