Downtown Bellefonte has a new lodging experience.
Happy Valley Short Stay, two luxury loft condos in the century-old Keystone Building at 112 N. Allegheny St., recently opened for bookings. Building owner Barry Myers and interior designer Susan Brown spent the last year designing and renovating the two- and three-bedroom units in what had once been deteriorating apartments.
Myers purchased the building at 112-114 N. Allegheny St. last summer and approached Brown with an idea “to bring it back to life, give it some style with a commitment to sort of reinvigorating the downtown Bellefonte community,” she said. The initial concept was to create rental condos.
“As the process evolved, we sort of landed on ‘Wow it would be great if this was more of a short-stay concept where folks could really have a home away from home but not necessarily be in someone else’s home or someone else’s space, somewhere they could really land and they could stay for a couple days, a week, a month, whatever felt right for their needs,” Brown said. “It offers a lot of opportunity.”
The three-bedroom mezzanine level and two-bedroom penthouse unit are designed in an urban loft style with modern comforts while maintaining the historical character of the building.
“It’s really like a new space in an old building that’s been rehabbed, like you would see done in a big city where they’re rehabbing old buildings and bringing them up to current standards,” Myers said. “Everything in here is current standards or better.”
Living room areas are accented by brick and studs from the original building — “It was a nice discovery,” Brown says — but the doors and insulated windows are all new, for example. The building now has air conditioning and new wiring throughout. Guest-specific keyless entry and camera monitoring outside the building and in the parking lot provide a sense of security.
“We also put in a whole fire suppression sprinkler system for this building and the two buildings next to it, which I also happen to own, so that people who are staying here have the confidence to know that they’re not just staying in an old building, but really a building that’s modern in every way,” Myers said. “It just looks old at this point.”
Each unit has a distinct, but complementary style. Both have smart TVs in every room, electric fire places, kitchens stocked with new induction oven ranges, cookware, dishes and utensils, coffee and wine bars, two fully stocked bathrooms, laundry units and robes for guests in each bedroom.
Both have balconies with cafe sets for relaxing with views of downtown Bellefonte, and on the penthouse level an excellent view of the mountains.
The mezzanine level has a queen bed and two kings. The penthouse has two kings, one with a large walk-in closet. Different furnishings, decorations and bedding give each its own style.
“All of the furniture is a little different but it all sort of vibes together, so there’s sort of a synergy or story between the two units but they each have their own flair,” Brown said. “While the functionality of both of the spaces is the same, each is styled a little differently. Every bedroom is different. The gathering area is different in terms of the pieces and parts, the layers, the finishes, the textures of the loose goods. All of that was picked specifically for this project so it’s unique to this project.”
For guests who really like what they see, Happy Valley Short Stay works with Habby, a company founded by Brown and Donna Moy that is launching nationwide. Everything from linens to decor to furniture used in the units is also available for purchase through shophabby.com.
“If they love the sectional or they love the bed or the mattress or the linens they can go on shophabby.com and order it and have it sent right to their home,” Brown said. “If it’s a heavy goods item, it will be delivered white glove, so the luxury experience continues right to their home. So if they love a mattress or the love a chair or they love a light fixture, we’ll take care of it.
“A neat piece of it is that Habby partners with their partner venues in a way so there’s a great profit-sharing tool in place to allow owners of venues and their teams to make a commission on all of the sales so that they have another profit center, another way of generating revenue from their spaces.”
Property Management, Inc. (PMI) of State College is serving as property manager for Happy Valley Short Stay. Kristen Dzvonyicsak, division manager, said there is nothing else like the units in the area.
“It is unique,” Dzvonyicsak said. “It’s truly a luxury stay. You’re not seeing this in Bellefonte or in State College, unless you want to go to a hotel. But I think for people that are wanting to have that feeling more in their own home type of a space, this is truly it. This is the only thing you’re going to find in Centre County that is really like this.”
The condos have a two-night minimum stay, and were developed with a variety of clientele in mind. Bellefonte’s proximity to Penn State makes visitors to university events, “a big piece of the audience, for sure,” Brown said.
She added that it’s an exciting time to bring new projects to the historic county seat.
“What I love about Bellefonte is that there is a growing commitment to the reimagination while still honoring the history and character of what this community is,” Brown said. “I feel like there are a lot of great businesses that have begun to really reinvest in the community. So to be a part of that is really, really cool.”
Myers is also working to revitalize other spaces on the block, including the ground floor retail.
“He’s spent a great deal of energy refurbishing those spaces so that they are much more marketable and appealing to folks who want to bring a little business to town but with the street-level appeal,” Brown said.
One tenant is already moving in to the former Parrish Apothecary storefront downstairs at 114 N. Allegheny St., where the owner of Bellefonte Mart on West Lamb Street is opening another convenience store.
“He has high expectations since he’s been through this before and knows how to run something like that,” Myers said. “I’m hopeful that he’s going to be very successful there.
“It works out great with these units too, because if you’re staying here for a couple days and you forgot something, need to get something or you just want to buy a soda you can go downstairs. You don’t have to drive anywhere. It’s all right there for you. We couldn’t have asked for a better tenant to go in there.”
The convenience store will open soon, but Happy Valley Short Stay is ready to welcome guests. To check out the property and book a stay, visit happyvalleyshortstay.lodgify.com.
