Record-breaking $1.15M in tourism grants awarded in Centre County. Here’s a look
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Centre County awarded a record $1.15 million to 91 projects.
- Grants ranged from $1,000 to $75,000 and some groups received multiple awards.
- Funding comes from Centre County’s 5% lodging tax and was announced at The Arboretum.
More than 70 local organizations are set to receive a record-breaking $1.15 million from the Centre County Tourism Grant program, with the aim to promote, enhance and market the area.
The recipients, which primarily include nonprofits and festivals, were publicly announced Wednesday morning in the overlook pavilion at The Arboretum at Penn State. A crowd of more than 100 — dressed in shorts and slacks, suits and T-shirts — looked on while Centre County Commissioners and officials from the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau explained the grants’ importance.
“All of Centre County, from the far end of the county in Philipsburg to the other far end in Aaronsburg, you’re all represented here. This is amazing,” County Commissioner Steve Dershem told the crowd. “This isn’t a Centre Region thing; it’s not a Penn State thing. It’s an ‘us’ thing.”
Every year, HVAB and the county commissioners announce recipients in the tourism grant program, which is funded by Centre County’s 5% lodging tax from hotels and similar businesses. Some $1,150,250 was awarded this year — nearly $50,000 more than last year and the second time the amount has ever crossed the $1 million threshold.
Some 91 projects were funded this year, with some organizations such as Historic Bellefonte and Nittany Mountain Biking Association receiving multiple grants for separate projects. Individual grants ranged in amounts from $1,000 to $75,000.
The biking association, for example, will receive $7,000 for a visitor marketing initiative. But it will also receive an additional $18,000 toward expanding Harvest Fields Community Trails by building a new beginner’s trail that’s about three-quarters of a mile long.
The association hopes to see the new trail completed no later than next spring.
“This is absolutely massive for us,” Nittany Mountain Biking Association board member Josh Stapleton told the CDT about the grants. “The entire trail system was built off local fundraising, and it’s all maintained by volunteers, which is hundreds of hours of work a year. So we need capital — we need dollars — to bring in things like building expertise, and that wouldn’t happen without foundational grants like this.”
Behind the scenic backdrop of the Arboretum, on a sun-soaked day complemented by choruses of birds, officials reminded those snacking on refreshments that promoting tourism can benefit the entire community. Improvements made with an eye toward tourism — such as $36,000 for a sound system at Philipsburg’s Rowland Theatre or $65,000 for audio console upgrades at The State Theatre — can sometimes improve the quality of life for residents, too.
“That is the power of tourism,” said Eric Engelbarts, president and CEO of HVAB. “When it is done well, it brings people here, supports local businesses, creates memories and leaves behind stronger community assets.”
Centre County residents should see an overwhelmingly positive impact from the grants. The Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts — a favorite of tourists and locals alike — received $25,000 to improve festival infrastructure. Likewise, People’s Choice Festival was given $30,000 to better market itself while Philipsburg Heritage Days was granted $15,000.
Fire companies were given four-figure funds to market their festivals, including Howard’s annual Punkin Chunkin Festival and Pleasant Gap’s Fall Fest. Local pools were awarded grants to improve their services, from $25,000 to upgrade Kepler Pool Bathhouse to $30,000 for Mountaintop Area’s pool expansion project.
For smaller organizations, every little bit helped. First-time grant recipient Sock & Buskin Theatre Company, an all-volunteer group, started four years ago with a collective $95 in its pocket. One founder said its $1,000 grant would prove even more helpful than it sounded.
“If you want to do something with very little money, low budget, ask a thespian,” joked Stefanie Austin, one of the founding directors of the community theater company. “... We will really make $1,000 stretch. We will be using it toward professional designs for our show posters and logos. We believe that is a really powerful way to spend the money because it really shows the quality of the production that we put on.”
Since 2003, more than $10.5 million in grants have been awarded to Centre County organizations. And, within the last decade, the annual grant pool has more than tripled to over $1 million.
That’s translated into grants growing both in number and in amount. It means more support for events like 4th Fest ($45,000 this year) and Centre Film Festival ($25,000), contributing to more renovations like at the Miles-Hume Mansion ($27,000) and improving more amenities like passenger service in the ticketing area ($6,000) at the Bellefonte Historical Railroad Society.
Dershem, one of the few speakers who didn’t glance at notes, reflected aloud on just how much has changed in his lifetime. Standing at the dais in the Arboretum, while a cool breeze hit visitors in a space that didn’t exist 20 years ago, the county commissioner opined on how little has stayed the same — but how special Centre County remains.
The grants, he intimated, only help visitors come to the same realization.
List of Tourism Grant Recipients
Here is a full list of the 2026-27 grant recipients, as provided by the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau:
- 3 Dots Downtown - $5,000 for immersive events venue marketing
- A Soldier’s Hands - $3,000 to market A Walk to Remember our Fallen
- A Way to Help (Way Fruit Farm) - $7,500 to market Art in the Orchard
- AAUW State College - $3,000 to market the State College Used Book Sale
- Art Alliance of Central PA - $1,500 for Art Alliance marketing
- Bellefonte Art Museum for Centre County - $15,000 for the 2026-27 exhibition and programming schedule
- Bellefonte Arts & Crafts Fair - $6,000 to market the Arts & Crafts Fair
- Bellefonte Historical and Cultural Association - $12,500 to market Civil War Weekend in Bellefonte
- Bellefonte Historical Railroad Society (Enhancement) - $6,000 for passenger service enhancements to the ticketing area
- Bellefonte Historical Railroad Society - $10,000 to market railroad excursions
- Boalsburg Village Historical Society - $4,000 to market Boalsburg Hometown Christmas
- Boalsburg Village Historical Society - $5,000 to market Memorial Day “A Day in Towne”
- Borough of Philipsburg - $15,000 to market Philipsburg Heritage Days
- Bryce Jordan Center - $30,000 for BJC marketing
- Burning Ma’am - $15,000 for marketing Burning Ma’am 2027
- C3 Sports and Event Center - $20,000 for a regional tourism growth and event attraction marketing campaign
- Central PA July 4th, Inc. - $45,000 for Central PA 4th Fest
- Central PA Tasting Trail -$18,000 to market the craft beverage trail
- Central PA Tasting Trail - $10,000 to market the Outdoor Adventure on Tap event
- Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts (Enhancement) - $25,000 capital improvements to festival infrastructure
- Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts -$75,000 to market Arts Fest and First Night State College
- Centre County Grange Encampment and Fair - $25,000 to market Grange Fair
- Centre County Historical Society - $35,000 for the Explore Centre County: Heritage marketing initiative
- Centre County Library and Historical Museum (Enhancement) - $27,000 to complete renovations to the Miles-Humes Mansion
- Centre County PAWS*** - $2,500 to market PAWS-tober Fest
- Centre County United Way*** - $5,000 to market Taste of the Town
- Centre Film Festival - $25,000 to market the festival
- Centre LGBT+ - $10,000 to market State College Pride
- Centre Region Community Tennis Association*** - $2,500 to market the State College USTA Junior Tennis Tournament
- Centre Volunteers in Medicine - $16,500 to market the Centre County Cornhole Classic, Nittany Valley Half Marathon, and Centre Cycling Classic
- ClearWater Conservancy - $9,000 for Centered Outdoors Season 10 marketing
- Columbus Chapel & Boal Mansion Museum - $5,000 for museum tour and special event promotion
- Constitution Day Centre Inc. - $2,500 for Constitution Day promotion
- Discovery Space of Central PA - for Gorinto Productions - $10,000 for Secret Planet marketing
- Discovery Space of Central Pennsylvania - $30,000 for year-round marketing to families, Maker Faire Happy Valley, Winter Market at The Rivet
- Downtown Bellefonte Inc. - $20,000 for Experience Bellefonte campaign, year two
- Downtown State College Improvement District - $20,000 for Fall Fest 2026, Holiday Light Show and Sips & Sounds 2027
- Freedom Rising USA*** - $3,000 for Central Pennsylvania Independence Day Parade
- Friends of Egg Hill Church** - $1,000 for America250 at Egg Hill Church
- Friends of the Pennsylvania Military Museum** - $7,000 for museum outreach
- Haines Township - $6,000 for the 50th Annual Dutch Fall Festival
- Happy Valley Improv, LLC -$18,000 for the Sixth Annual Happy Valley XL Improv Festival
- Historic Bellefonte Cruise - $25,000 to market the Cruise
- Historic Bellefonte Inc. - $5,000 to market the Arts & Crafts Fair
- Historic Bellefonte Inc. - $10,000 to market Bellefonte Victorian Christmas
- Historic Bellefonte Inc. - $3,000 for America250 celebration/Hometown Hero banner program
- Howard Volunteer Fire Company – $5,000 for the annual Punkin Chunkin Festival
- Jana Marie Foundation - $3,000 to market the Hobby Horse Derby
- Juniata Valley Council, Scouting America -$4,000 for website refresh and media campaign
- Latin Vibe - $5,000 to market the sixth annual Happy Valley Latin Festival
- Lemont Village Association -$1,000 to market Lemont Village Association events
- Moss Farm - $2,500 to market the Moss Farm Film & Arts Invitational
- Mount Nittany Conservancy - $5,000 to promote Hike Mount Nittany!
- Mountaintop Area Swimming Pool Association (Enhancement) - $30,000 for pool expansion continuation project
- New Ground Orchestra Festival - $4,000 to promote the 2026 New Ground Orchestra Festival
- Nittany Knights - $2,000 to market the annual show
- Nittany Lion Rugby Association (Enhancement) - $1,000 for the Art of 7s Rugby Tournament
- Nittany Mountain Biking Association (Enhancement) - $18,000 for Harvest Fields Community Trail expansion to support larger events
- Nittany Mountain Biking Association - $7,000 for Harvest Fields Community Trails visitor marketing initiative
- Nittany Multisport, Inc.*** - $7,500 to market the Tussey Mountainback 50 Mile Relay and Ultramarathons
- Nittany Valley Joint Recreation Authority (Enhancement)*** - $25,000 for Kepler Pool Bathhouse improvements
- Patton Township’s Happy Valley Comic Con - $20,000 to market Patton Township’s Happy Valley Comic Con
- Penns Valley Pedals and Pints - $4,500 for 2026-27 season marketing
- Pennsylvania Chamber Orchestra - $5,000 for a digital marketing campaign
- Pennsylvania Chamber Orchestra - $5,000 to market the orchestra’s 2026-27 season
- Pennsylvania Environmental Council - $2,500 to market the Public Lands Ride
- People’s Choice Festival Inc. - $30,000 to market the festival
- Philipsburg Revitalization Corporation - $17,500 to market PRC community events
- Pleasant Gap Fire Co. - $2,500 for the Pleasant Gap Fire Co. Fall Fest
- Rhoneymeade Inc. - $2,000 for general marketing
- Rowland Theatre Inc. (Enhancement) - $36,000 for a sound system
- Schlow Centre Region Library - $1,500 to market Bookfest PA
- Seasons of Rothrock Adventures - $16,000 to market Seasons of Rothrock races
- Sock & Buskin Theatre Company - $1,000 to market the fall 2026 and spring 2027 seasons
- State College Choral Society - $3,500 for audience expansion marketing efforts
- State College Youth Ice Hockey Association*** - $3,000 to market the Happy Valley Youth Hockey Tournament Series at Pegula Ice Arena
- State College Youth Ice Hockey Association*** - $1,000 to market Happy Valley Elite Skills Clinic
- Tempest Productions Inc. - $12,000 to market the Central PA Shakespeare Festival
- The Makery of Central Pennsylvania - $3,750 to market Makery Magic
- The Nittany Valley Symphony - $6,000 to market the 60th anniversary season
- The Orpheus Singers - $1,500 to market the 2026-27 season
- The Pennsylvania State University – Arboretum - $12,000 to market The Arboretum
- The Pennsylvania State University - Center for the Performing Arts - $18,000 for 2026-27 season support
- The Pennsylvania State University - Centre Stage - $22,500 for 2026-27 season support
- The Pennsylvania State University - Palmer Museum of Art - $30,000 to market exhibitions and programs
- The Pennsylvania State University - Shaver’s Creek - $7,000 to market the Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center
- The Roland Curtin Foundation for the Preservation of Eagle Furnace (Enhancement) - $5,000 for an Eagle Forge interpretive scale model
- The Roland Curtin Foundation for the Preservation of Eagle Furnace - $13,000 for marketing and program enhancements
- The State Theatre Inc. (Enhancement) - $65,000 for audio console upgrades
- The State Theatre Inc. - $30,000 for marketing and artist support
- Wildlife For Everyone Endowment Foundation - $4,500 to market the Great Outdoor Picnic
**Awarded funding but have since rescinded request ***New Tourism Grant Recipients
