Welch Plaza Dedication, Partner-Registry Celebration Planned in State College

State College borough officials have scheduled a Saturday-morning ceremony to dedicate the borough Municipal Building plaza in honor of the late Mayor Bill Welch.

Other community activities later that day will include the annual Downtown State College Fall Festival and a celebration of the borough’s domestic-partner registry.

The plaza dedication will spotlight the legacy of Welch, who served as State College mayor for nearly 16 years. He was 67 and running unopposed for reelection when he died Sept. 4, 2009, from medical complications after leg surgery.

In December 2010, Borough Council members voted 6-0 to name the brick plaza in front of the Municipal Building, 243 S. Allen St., the Mayor Welch Plaza. Saturday’s dedication ceremony will help formalize that name change, as a permanent plaque there in Welch’s honor will be revealed.

The public event is slated to begin at 9:30 a.m. Saturday on the plaza.

Some public art to honor Welch’s legacy is planned for the plaza space, as well, though it’s still in the planning phases. A private fundraising effort is expected to finance that endeavor.

Shortly after the plaza dedication, the borough will host a separate ceremony to celebrate the creation of the State College Domestic Partnership Registry, the borough administration noted. That public service is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Saturday on Mayor Welch Plaza.

Saturday will be the first day when couples will be able to take advantage of the registry, according to a news release. It offers a means by which unmarried couples in committed, familial relationships may document those relationships with ‘proof to employers, hospitals and other entities,’ the news release reads.

‘Mayor Elizabeth Goreham will be present to publicly recognize domestic partnerships and present the uniform declaration-of-domestic-partnership certificate to those participating in the ceremony,’ it goes on.

Any couples wishing to receive a domestic-partnership certificate on Saturday should contact the Office of the Assistant Borough Secretary no later than Wednesday to complete the required registration information, according to the borough.

Finally, the Downtown State College Fall Festival, put on by the Downtown State College Improvement District, will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday on South Allen Street. It’s to include the sixth annual Community Resources Fair, the Best of Happy Valley Desserts Competition, and America’s Day for Kids. (For entry information about the dessert contest, head over to www.downtownstatecollege.com.)

Earlier coverage

• State College Council Agrees to Name Plaza for Welch (See coverage low in the story) (Dec. 7, 2010)

• State College Council May Honor Welch in Plaza Name (Nov. 22, 2010)

• State College Council Approves Domestic-Partner Registry (Aug. 2, 2011)