A drive-thru coffee shop chain has more plans for expansion in the Centre Region.
7 Brew has submitted a preliminary land development plan for a store at 1272 N. Atherton St. in Ferguson Township, a property that was last home to Mario’s Italian Restaurant. The existing building on site, which has been vacant since Mario’s closed in 2017, would be razed for the new coffee shop building, Miles Zakos, Ferguson Township community planner, told StateCollege.com.
It is the third 7 Brew store planned for the State College area, joining the existing location at 1923 S. Atherton St. in College Township and another in the planning stages on the Nittany Mall property.
As with other 7 Brew locations, plans include a 510-square-foot, prefabricated building with a drive-thru and outdoor cooler. While the plan set was not yet made available, other 7 Brew stores have a dual lane drive-thru with a canopy where staff take orders from customers at their vehicles.
The plan is currently under review by township staff. It is tentatively expected to be on a Ferguson Township Planning Commission agenda in late July or early August, Zakos said.
7 Brew offers made-to-order beverages — including coffee, tea, Italian sodas, smoothies, shakes, energy drinks and hot chocolate — and no food. Its business is almost entirely drive-thru, with a walk-up window that accounts for less than 1% of sales and is typically used by first responders, company representatives have said during discussions of plans for the other Centre Region locations.
Pennsylvania-based franchisee Brew Team Group opened the area’s first 7 Brew location in December in the Hills Plaza on South Atherton Street. The company recently submitted a sketch plan to College Township for a store to be located in the parking lot adjacent to McDonald’s and across from the Happy Valley Casino at the western end of the Nittany Mall property.
Brew Team Group, which has been in the process of rapid expansion in Pennsylvania, was drawn to the State College market because of an “energetic vibe” that matches well with 7 Brew, Matt Peters, director of operations told StateCollege.com last fall.
He said at the time that the company was already eyeing another location in the Centre Region.
“Our impact is much larger than just the drive-thru,” Peters said. “We really aim and we hope that our brand, our energy, our name, our impact goes further than just our lot and that we’re able to impact the entire community in a positive and uplifting way, whether it’s with local organizations or beyond. But that we really saw an opportunity to to make a difference in State College.”
