What to know before the next public hearing on the State College Area Connector Project
The estimated cost of the preferred State College Area Connector route has climbed to between $843 million and $1.06 billion, up about 20% from the most recent projection by PennDOT. A draft environmental impact statement released this month details the project’s scope, and a public hearing is set for April 7.
FULL STORY: State College Area Connector’s upper estimate tops $1B, public hearing scheduled
Here are key takeaways:
• The new estimate is up from PennDOT’s December range of $700 million to $900 million. In 2019, former Gov. Tom Wolf pegged the cost at about $670 million, which adjusted for roughly 29% inflation would land at about $864 million today.
• PennDOT Assistant District Executive Eric Murnyack said the agency is only about 30% through the design phase, and the cost could change as planning gets more detailed.
• The project would build an eight-mile, four-lane limited access highway from Mount Nittany Expressway near state Route 45 to U.S. Route 322 at Potters Mills, mostly through rolling agricultural land in Harris and Potter townships.
• Fifteen homes, two commercial buildings and Grace Church on Mountain Back Road would be displaced. Eighteen farms and about 140 acres of productive agricultural land would see “notable impacts,” and 15 acres of wetlands and roughly 3,800 linear feet of streams would be lost.
• The project is advancing with 100% state discretionary funding, though PennDOT and the Federal Highway Administration said federal funding opportunities will be investigated. Construction is expected to start in 2030 and wrap up in 2035.
• The public can comment on the 222-page draft environmental impact statement through April 20. A public hearing runs 5-8 p.m. April 7 at Calvary Church, 150 Harvest Fields Drive, with private testimony accepted starting at 4 p.m.
The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The full story in the link at top was reported, written and edited entirely by journalists.