Corman relaunches effort to transfer Rockview land to CBICC

By Nick Malawskey

State Sen. Jake Corman, R-Benner Township, and the Centre County Industrial Development Corp. (a part of the Chamber of Business and Industry of Centre County) are giving a state land transfer in Benner Township another go with Senate Bill 862.

The bill, introduced earlier this month by Corman, would transfer a parcel of Rockview prison land to the IDC so it can align an access road for the Benner Commerce Park with the driveway to the county jail.

The bill, currently in committee, is one of the final hurdles standing in the way of developing the second phase of the business park.

A little less than a year ago, the project hit a speed bump when a similar bill was vetoed by Gov. Ed Rendell. Rendell did not object to the Benner Township transfer, but to amendments attached to the bill concerning a land transfer in Philadelphia.

CBICC President John Coleman has recently said that he is confident the bill will pass this time around, which should pave the way for construction to begin before the end of this year.

That in turn will open up the commerce park to development and — we can hope — much needed employers.

Take time to D(e)-Stress

If your in-laws visiting have you stressed out this weekend, the D-Stress company in Boalsburg might have just the ticket. The company is holding an open house this weekend, coinciding with a food drive to benefit a local food bank.

A few pieces of nonperishable food will buy a discount on a 10-minute massage from one of the company’s trained staff members.

Not a bad deal, really.

A ton of community help

So what do 10 tons of blueberries, 10 college scholarships and a “Blueberry Hotline” have in common?

They’re all wrapped up in the Kiwanis Club of State College’s annual blueberry sale, which is under way.

For the third year, the club is asking interested community members to purchase a 10- pound box of fresh-picked blueberries for $25 a box. The proceeds from the sale are used to fund scholarships for State College Area High School seniors, at $1,000 each.

Last year, the group sold 1,600 boxes and, with a goal of 2,000 boxes this year, hopes to raise enough funds to furnish 10 scholarships at $1,000 each.

The berries will be delivered on July 7, at the Penn State Ag Arena. Anyone interested in purchasing a box or two can leave a message for the Kiwanis at their “Blueberry Hotline,” 861-2822.

If they hit their goal of 2,000 boxes at 10 pounds each, the group will have sold 20,000 pounds of berries, or 10 tons — and that’s a lot of jam or pies, however you slice it.

Nick Malawskey can be reached at 235-3928 or nmalawsk@centredaily.com. He also writes a business blog at www.centredaily.com.