New Tenants Shake Up Retail Landscape at Nittany Mall

A major sporting goods store is moving into the Nittany Mall — filling a big hole that was left when the JC Penney store pulled up stakes last April.

According to Polly Welch, the mall’s general manager, Dunham’s Sports will be the new tenant.

According to its website, Dunham’s Sports bills itself as the Midwest’s largest sporting goods chain. It has more than 200 stores scattered across 19 states — from Minnesota south to Tennessee and from Iowa east to Pennsylvania.

The company boasts a full line of traditional sporting goods and athletic equipment as well as sports apparel and footwear.

A deal to lease the space was signed in May but wasn’t announced until Wednesday.

“They haven’t started construction yet,” says Welch adding, “they’re still in the permit process but as soon as everything is issued they’ll begin.

Duham’s plans to be open sometime in October and by Black Friday at the latest.

Welch believes Dunham’s will be a good match for the mall. “I think so. I definitely think so,” she says. “It’s a store that there is definitely interest in.

“They sell a little bit of everything. Obviously, all kinds of sporting goods, outdoor gear, hunting gear. They received their license from the ATF. They’ll be able to sell weapons and ammunition as well.”

Welch calls this a “really exciting time” for the Nittany Mall, noting that two other new tenants are in the process of moving in. That includes a restaurant called Soup’r Dogs that’s scheduled to open September 1 at the old Pretzels Plus location.

Also, the Centre Region Senior Center is moving from its South Fraser Street location to the mall. The senior center will temporarily occupy a 4,000 square foot space near Sears while a larger 7,000 square foot permanent home is constructed in that same area of the mall.