Penn State Poised to Sell Two Closing Campuses

A Penn State Board of Trustees committee on Thursday recommended approval of the sales of two Commonwealth Campuses slated for closure at the end of the 2026-27 academic year.

Pending approval by the full board on Friday, the university will sell the 12.74-acre Shenango campus in Mercer County to JCL Development LLC for $1 million and the 57.31-acre Wilkes-Barre campus in Luzerne County to HGC Development LLC for $5.25 million.

They represent the first real estate divestitures for the seven campuses approved for closure by the board in 2025, which also include DuBois, Fayette, Mont Alto, New Kensington and York.

“Penn State has worked, throughout this process, to strike a responsible balance between stewarding the University’s resources and honoring our commitment to each campus community, including Shenango and Wilkes-Barre,” Renata Engel, vice president for Commonwealth Campuses and executive chancellor, said in a statement following the Finance and Investment Committee meeting. “Both proposals outline a vision for preserving the community-facing qualities of these properties while building on the educational impact the campuses have had for decades, and that’s an outcome we’re pleased to see reflected in each plan.”

For Shenango, JCL Development, a Sharon-based community developer focused on adaptive reuse and restoration projects, plans to redevelop the campus as a “hub for education, workforce training, economic development and cultural enrichment,” according to the university. It is intended to support ongoing reinvestment in downtown Sharon and the surrounding community.

“For the past 15 years, ‘Team JCL’ has worked to revive the spirit of our community, one project at a time,” JCL partners Jim Landino and Jen Krezeczowski said iin a statement. “While the Penn State Shenango campus wasn’t originally on our radar, we are excited to embrace this opportunity. We plan to bring new energy and innovative ideas to honor its rich history and continue our efforts to strengthen the Shenango Valley.”

The acquisition will include Shenango’s 12 buildings and related infrastructure. Sara Thorndike, Penn State senior vice president of finance and business, noted that the $1 million sale price is less than the property value, but said other factors went into reaching the agreement

“The university considered a variety of factors when evaluating the financial offers that we received, including… the benefits to the community and their needs, appraised values, deferred maintenance and ongoing operating costs if we would have a need to retain the campus longer than June 30 of next summer, Thorndike said.

At the Wilkes-Barre campus in Lehman Township, HGC Development, a subsidiary of the nearby Huntsville Golf Club, plans to repurpose the property as a multi-use site. It will include a complementary golf club, an event and conference venue and an educational hub centered on a partnership with Misericordia University.

The sale includes the campus’ 17 buildings and infrastructure.

“We see this as an opportunity to preserve something important to Northeastern Pennsylvania and maintain the current nature of the property,” Angelo Terrana, attorney representing HGC Development LLC, said in a statement. “It offers new opportunities for an exciting future.”

Misericordia intends to lease all of the academic space, about 50% of the total property “to support a range of possible educational initiatives, including academic programming, graduate and post-baccalaureate studies, workforce-development activities, and expanded experiential learning opportunities,” according to a release on Thursday from the private university located about 5 miles north of Penn State Wilkes-Barre.

No timeline has been set for the programming, but it is not expected to begin until 2028.

“This opportunity reflects the kind of innovative partnership that can benefit students, employers, communities, and the regional economy,” Misericordia President Daniel J. Myers said in a statement. “We believe the continued educational use of this campus represents a positive outcome for Northeastern Pennsylvania and aligns closely with Misericordia University’s mission and strategic priorities.”

Thorndike said that after Penn State decided to close the seven campuses, the university arranged meetings with campus advisors, local, county and state government groups, chambers of commerce and community organizations and foundations to gather feedback and hear concerns about the future of the properties.

“In both cases with Shenango and Wilkes-Barre, we connected with the potential buyers very early on in the process, and because of this there were not as many meetings in these particular communities as some of the others,” Thorndike said. “Throughout the process, however, we did provide updates and discussions and planning that necessitated a variety of outreach within the communities.”

She added that each of the campuses is “on its own path and its own timeline.”

“There are still very, very active conversations ongoing with the five remaining campuses, and lots of progress that is being made there as well,” Thorndike said. “Our goal is to find a positive path forward. Again, even though that may be different for each campus, several campuses and their communities have opted for more public processes. Some have leaned into local organizations to help advance a process, and several have identified opportunities early on, like Shenango and Wilkes-Barre, which did not necessitate as as robust of a public dialogue.”

All seven campuses will remain open through the completion of the current academic year, “with previously announced pathways and support for students and employees in place.”

Penn State acquired the Shenango campus over multiple transactions from 1967 to 1997 and the Wilkes-Barre campus over transactions between 1965 and 2007.

Pennsylvania lawmakers in July removed a deed restriction that required the titles for Penn State properties built and maintained with public funds to revert to the commonwealth if the university stopped using the land for educational purposes, Spotlight PA State College reported.

The restriction protect taxpayers’ investment, but applied to only portions of each campus and would have prevented Penn State from selling the entirety of a property. At Wilkes-Barre, less than an acre would have returned to the state, and at Shenango it would have been about 4.5 acres.

“The deed restrictions limited the transfer of pieces of the campuses and in some cases, just singular buildings, and therefore limited the ability of these campuses to be put back into productive community uses as soon as possible,” Kate Flessner, communications director for state Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R., Indiana), who sponsored the amendment to remove the restrictions, told Spotlight PA.

While the amendment to a larger real estate bill was met with pushback, it passed the Senate by a 46-4 vote and the House 105–97.

Committee Recommends Other Real Estate Sales

The Finance and Investment Committee also recommended approving the sale of property at two campuses that are not closing.

At Penn State Harrisburg, the university plans to sell the 57.5-acre Meade Heights in Lower Swatara Township to AREG Industrial Acquisitions for $19.4 million.

The company plans to develop the property for industrial logistics and e-commerce distribution, “which is very consistent with the other areas adjacent to this particular property,” Thorndike said.

The university originally purchased the property — which was formerly a housing area for Olmstead Air Force Base — from the federal government for $1.175 million in 1968. Penn State Harrisburg used it for student housing from 1970 to 2002, when the facilities were demolished. It has been vacant since then.

Thorndike said AREG still needs to complete rezoning and subdivision approvals, and closing is expected in 18 to 21 months.

At Penn State Behrend in Erie, the university plans to sell the 99-acre (80-usable-acre) former Kanty Preparatory School and Lochbaum Estate properties to Gladstone West LLC for $1.325 million cash as is.

The company is planning a mixed-use development with residential, office and retail space, which Thorndike said would “be beneficial to the campus and the community” and could create more development in the area.