Plans by the Bellefonte/State College Kampgrounds of America to add 30 campsites have been approved by the Centre County commissioners, with construction to begin this spring.
“It is nice to see a small local business expanding,” said Commissioner Mark Higgins.
The KOA campground is located on Jacksonville Road, approximately 2 miles east of Interstate 80 in Marion Township. Owners John Dillon and Barb Saulsbury plan to add a bathhouse to go along with the 30 new RV campsites, said their son Casey Dillon. The grounds currently hold 96 RV sites, along with 35 tent sites and 18 cabins, and Dillon said the new sites will be on a separate part of the grounds and should not disturb guests while under construction.
“Hopefully, by adding the new sites and facilities, we will get more people on the grounds and thus have more participation for all our activities such as bingo, ice cream socials, scavenger hunts and more,” said Dillon.
The construction will continue through this summer and should be done by the end of the season in November. That would allow the new sites to be ready for use in the spring of 2019.
Dillon said the campground is usually at capacity every weekend in the summer and during summer holidays. Penn State football weekends and events such as Arts Fest and graduation weekend also bring in the crowds. The new sites will allow more campers a nice place to stay and not overcrowd the other guests, said Dillon.
He also said they hope to add a recreation facility to go along with the new sites in the future. When they start that project, they also plan to convert a hayfield into a solar field to provide enough electricity supply to whole campground.
The campground currently is closed for the season and plans to reopen Monday, April 9.
