STATE COLLEGE — For years, conversations about creating a pedestrian-centered gathering space in downtown State College floated somewhere between a hopeful idea and logistical headache.
Now, after years of planning, debate and community input, the Downtown State College Improvement District is preparing to officially launch East End Social — a seasonal public gathering space along the 100 block of South Hiester Street designed to bring people together through live music, events, food, art and community connection.
A ribbon-cutting celebration is scheduled for Thursday, May 28, marking the first of four block party-style events planned throughout the summer.
Lee Anne Jeffries, executive director of the Downtown State College Improvement District, said the idea has been years in the making.
“We got the picture from the improvement district that the community really wanted this sort of gathering space,” Jeffries said. “And it’s been done in so many towns across the country.”
Jeffries said earlier discussions focused heavily on potentially closing Allen Street for public programming, but East End Social ultimately found a home on Hiester Street because of strong support from businesses and property owners in that area.
“We really started to see there was a lot of support within the business community,” Jeffries said. “And as far as my role goes and the mission of the Downtown Improvement District is really to make sure that the businesses are thriving, that we’re bringing feet to the street and that those cash registers are ringing.”
Sponsors including Family Clothesline, Student Book Store, Growing Tree Toys and the Chamber of Business and Industry of Centre County helped support the project and programming.
Jeffries said the space also provides an opportunity to spotlight businesses along the east end of downtown that sometimes receive less attention than the Allen Street corridor.
“The East End also has some amazing businesses and they don’t always see the love that the Allen Street corridor gets,” she said. “So it was a way for us to highlight some new businesses and to give people a reason to walk down to that end of town.”
The ribbon cutting itself will feature live local music, craft beverage vendors and remarks from local officials and organizers. Jeffries described it as both a celebration and an invitation for residents to experience the new space for themselves.
“We’re just inviting the community,” she said. “It’s an open invitation to come experience the space, if you haven’t already.”
East End Social will also host community-driven programming throughout the summer, including public events, watch parties, walking groups and gatherings organized by local clubs and organizations.
“We’ve got a lot of people interested in utilizing the space and we’re embracing kind of all of those requests,” Jeffries said.
One upcoming event already generating buzz is the Blue Moon Dinner on May 29, a ticketed community dinner event. Other activities throughout the summer are expected to remain free and open to the public.
Jeffries said success for East End Social would mean more than just crowded sidewalks.
“Success for me would look like increased foot traffic for the summer,” she said. “We’d love to see this be a boost to their summer business.”
But she also hopes the project reconnects people with downtown State College itself.
“If it brings people downtown that maybe haven’t come downtown in a while or haven’t found a reason to, if they come down and then maybe walk around the block and discover some new businesses they didn’t even know were here, that’s a win for me,” Jeffries said.
Part of the project’s charm may come from its smaller details.
An old The Centre County Gazette newspaper bin previously sitting unused in the area is now being repurposed into either a little free library or a community pantry through partnerships with local organizations.
“We thought, oh, that’s just the perfect idea,” Jeffries said.
Healthy Transitions has already expressed interest in helping sponsor and maintain a free pantry component, according to Jeffries.
The project itself was made possible in part through a Local Share Account grant awarded through the Commonwealth Financing Authority, which funded tables, chairs, planters and public art installations for the space.
Jeffries acknowledged the space already experienced some theft issues during its opening weekend but said organizers remain committed to creating an open and welcoming environment.
“This is a space we built for the community,” she said. “The last thing I want to do is chain everything down.”
Instead, she hopes residents will help protect and care for the area together.
“We want all types of people from the community to utilize it and treat it like it is their living room,” Jeffries said.
