Developer submits new plan for former Autoport property in State College. Here’s a look
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Developer resubmitted the preliminary plan last week for the former Autoport site.
- Phase one would build a 6,538-square-foot convenience store with a 14-pump fuel canopy.
- Phase three proposes four retail spaces, a bank with an ATM and underground parking.
A preliminary land development plan resubmitted last week by the developer of the former Autoport property in State College revealed a slightly different mix of new commercial buildings that are to be constructed in four phases.
The project still appears like it would begin with the construction of a 6,538-square-foot convenience store with a 14-pump fuel canopy on the property’s southeastern side.
Phase two would include four retail spaces and three restaurants. The retail spaces would range from 1,500 to 1,800 square feet and the restaurants would range from 1,860 to 2,027 square feet. Two of the three would have a drive-thru. The original submission had called for one.
Perhaps the most notable changes in the resubmitted plan, which also included new renderings, come in what would be phase three. That step appears to call for four more retail spaces — two with 2,025 square feet and two with 4,050 square feet — and a bank with a drive-up ATM. Thirty-two underground parking spaces also appear to be in the works. In the new submission, the building would be positioned further from South Atherton Street.
The fourth and final phase still appears to seemingly spruce up an existing 3,548-square-foot storage building in the northwestern corner of the property. The plans also suggest 60 canopy trees and hundreds of shrubs would be planted.
Starbucks is expected to occupy a roughly 2,030-square-foot endcap that’s equipped with a drive-thru and patio. It would be the chain’s ninth location in State College, though one of few standalone coffee shops.
It is not yet clear what other businesses or restaurants intend to occupy the other spaces. The developer submitted its original preliminary land development plan in February, but put it on hold in March as they worked on the revised proposal.
State College senior planner Daniel McCombie told the Centre Daily Times the plan is tentatively scheduled to be presented to the borough’s five-member design review board at 2 p.m. July 14. The borough’s planning commission is slated to review the plans at noon July 15.
The historic Autoport was Pennsylvania’s oldest operating motel when it closed in December 2015. If approved, the plans would significantly transform the highly visible property that sits along a major corridor.
The developer, South Atherton Real Estate of the Lycoming County-based Welteroth Property Group, has not responded to messages from the CDT.
The Autoport, along the 1400 block of South Atherton Street, has sat vacant for more than a decade. Many trees were removed from the property in May 2024, marking the first signs of visible activity in years.
Its former owners declared bankruptcy and eventually sold the property. Four parcels were purchased $3.36 million.
Development appeared in sight for the property when plans for a new 122-room Home2 Suites by Hilton hotel were submitted in January 2020, but the project never materialized. The site was later posted for lease in June 2024.