Downtown State College Improvement District Reauthorized for 10 More Years

The organization responsible for many downtown State College events and programs, along with supporting and promoting the borough’s business community, will continue its work for at least another decade.

State College Borough Council on Monday unanimously approved the renewal of the Downtown State College Improvement District through Dec. 31, 2036.

The district includes 498 properties approximately bounded by College Avenue, Highland Alley, Atherton Street and Sowers Street. It was last renewed for five years in 2021.

Pennsylvania’s Community and Improvement Act allows for the establishment of neighborhood improvement districts and for municipalities to levy assessments on commercial properties within its boundaries to fund their work. The assessments in State College’s renewal — which are unchanged — are 3 mills for residential properties, 4 mills for commercial apartments and 5 mills for commercial properties.

Following a public hearing on June 1, property owners within the district were provided with the proposed Reauthorization Plan and given a 45-day period to file formal objections. State law requires that if 40% of property owners object, an improvement district cannot be renewed.

Owners of only seven properties, or 1.4% objected, the lowest in the DSCID’s 24-year history.

“We are incredibly grateful for the confidence and support shown by our property owners and Borough Council,” Lee Anne Jeffries, DSCID executive director, said in a statement. “Having a low level of opposition demonstrates that the work we’ve accomplished over the past five years has been meaningful and valuable to the people we serve. We look forward to building on that momentum and continuing to invest in the vitality of downtown State College over the next decade.”

Established in 2002, DSCID organizes and manages myriad events and programs, such as First Friday, Fall Festival, Sips & Sounds, Light Up Night, Live After 5 and more, as well as promoting other downtown events and attractions. It also spearheads placemaking initiatives such as East End Social, the pocket park on Hiester Street that just wrapped up its first season, and public art like the Looking at US collaboration with the Palmer Museum of Art and other downtown murals.

It contributes significantly to downtown beautification efforts, such as employing its own Clean Team, holiday decorations, the Calder WalkWay lighting display and securing grant funding to support business facade and signage improvements, among other endeavors.

DSCID provides and coordinate initiatives like the downtown business gift card and parking validation programs, and provides support for existing business and efforts to attract new ones.

In the last two years, the district hired a retail and commercial business advocate, developed the Calder Way Pop-Up for entrepreneurs to get a taste of brick and mortar retail and created the Retail Launch Assistance Program to help local business get started and thrive downtown.

It has also secured $400,000 in grants and in-kind support for downtown projects and programs this year alone.

Ben Margolis, principal director of economic development for MIG, a national planning firm contracted to consult on the DSCID reauthorization and the update to the borough’s Downtown Master Plan, said that the district is a resource that would be difficult to replicate in its absence.

“Downtown needs an organization focused on it every day,” Margolis said at a Borough Council meeting in May. “That organization delivers services, events, business support, marketing, advocacy and implementation capacity every day of the year. It also brings resources, partnerships and day-to-day focus that are not part of the borough’s normal service model. Without reauthorization, that capacity goes away at a very important moment in downtown’s growth story.”

The Reauthorization Plan identifies multiple short-term and long-term goals and accompanying strategies. Near-term action items identified for 2027-28 include

• Pursuing Main Street designation that would open a new funding avenue through a state program.
• Securing near-term funding to retain the commercial and retail advocate position.
• Developing a wayfinding plan and implementing priority wayfinding improvements.
• Advocating for design priorities for key streetscape projects on College Avenue, Calder Way, the Allen Street promenade and Beaver Avenue.
• Framing and advancing the Property Improvement Grant Program for all downtown property owners.
• Piloting temporary activation features on the Penn State campus lawns that front College Avenue.
• Evaluating outcomes of the Momentum pilot program to understand Downtown business trends.
• Updating the Art Walk Guide.
• Better documenting the DSCID’s programs and initiating an update of the DSCID Communications Strategy.