Section of Atherton Street Expected to Temporarily Reopen This Weekend

A section of South Atherton Street in State College that’s currently closed for construction is expected to temporarily reopen to traffic for the weekend before closing again on Monday, according to PennDOT.

All lanes of Atherton between West College and West Beaver avenues will remain closed through Friday, but PennDOT anticipates the block will be opened to traffic before Saturday morning.

The section will close again from Monday until Sept. 6 while contractors continue work on upgrades to the sanitary sewer system as part of PennDOT’s multi-year Atherton Street project. The Beaver Avenue intersection, which has been closed since Monday, will remain open during that time.

Because the Beaver Avenue intersection will be open on Monday, local detours will replace the longer routes currently in place this week.

Starting Monday, the following detours will be in effect. Drivers of non-commercial vehicles who are familiar with the area may opt to use alternate routes

• Atherton Street (Downtown) Eastbound Detour: North Atherton Street to West College Avenue, West College Avenue to Buckhout Street, Buckhout Street to Beaver Avenue, Beaver Avenue to South Atherton Street.
• Atherton Street (Downtown) Westbound Detour: South Atherton Street to Beaver Avenue, Beaver Avenue to High Street, High Street to East College Avenue, East College Avenue to North Atherton Street.

“We have had some reports of motorists speeding on the side streets, so we encourage anyone that’s using those side streets to keep their speed down, be aware of their surroundings, especially if they are coming in and past the project,” Marc Maney, PennDOT construction manager for the $31 million project, said earlier this week. “Be aware of the work that’s going on. Go slow. Be alert.”

Pedestrian detours also will be in place.

Overall work on the latest phase of the Atherton Street construction will span from the Curtin Road intersection on North Atherton Street to Westerly Parkway on South Atherton Street will include roadway reconstruction, drainage improvements, water and sewer lines, concrete curbing, sidewalks and detectable warning surfaces, pavement markings and traffic signals and supports.

The project, which is expected to conclude in late 2024, began in earnest on Monday, which was Penn State’s first day of fall semester classes. PennDOT officials said this week they originally planned for the street closure to take place during the summer but were hindered by supply chain issues that have delayed material deliveries.

Delaying the sewer line work another year would have pushed anticipated completion of the overall project to 2025. PennDOT also didn’t want to move the work to later this fall when it would throw a wrench into Penn State football traffic.

After the road closure is lifted, traffic largely will be managed with single-lane closures and flagging, Maney said. Short-term detours are expected for sewer replacements at intersections from West Nittany Avenue to West Hamilton Avenue. Some night work may also take place.

Work will not occur during Penn State home football weekends, but some lane closures may still be in place.

PennDOT expects work to continue until December and resume in March.

HRI, Inc. of State College is the contractor for the project.