Monday night, the State College Borough Council heard from the community about plans to close down part of Allen Street for the Summer.

The local PR firm proposing the Summers on Allen plan, says it would bring business to Downtown State College, when things are slow in the Summer, but some worry that it will create problems.

Grozniak PR firm out of State College is proposing that the borough to shut down the 100 block of Allen Street for traffic, from May 11th to July 3rd 2020. They want to create an inviting spot for families.

They say a $100,000 raised by the centre and knight foundations would pay for expenses like turf, a playground, security and equipment and musical acts.

Some business owners say they think Summers on South Allen would help bring families and extra business to their stores once Penn State students and staff leave for the Summer.

“I think it’s another reason to come downtown, because it’s not just another street then, it’s a community space where kids can hang out and where you might be able to listen to music,” Brugler, said.

“June has become one of the slower months,” Bob Stienbach, Owner of Connections, retail clothing store, said. Maybe, you know it would just perk things up a bit, you know you can’t lose, it’s already very slow.”

At Monday’s borough council meeting, other businesses said the cons outweigh the pros.

Matt Kisenwether, Employee, Rapid Transit Sports)
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“We are against the street closure for a number of reasons, including traffic deliveries and parking concerns, but one of the bigger issues is that the street closure will make it harder for customers to get to our store,” Matt Kisenwether ,employee at Rapid Transit Sports, said.

And firefighters also say it could make it harder for them to get to a fire on that block.

Carmine Presti, Firefighter, Alpha Fire Company)
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“What will get in the way of us deploying hoses to put water on fire?”, Carmine Presti, firefighter for Alpha Fire Company, said.