Business expansion and more: What’s happening at these Centre County construction sites?

Winter has fully arrived in Centre County, but there are still some active construction sites out there — including some you may have been wondering about.

This year has been one of steady progress for some major projects that are underway, including the Interstate 80/Interstate 99 interchange, the Happy Valley Casino, Mount Nittany patient tower and Beaver Stadium renovation.

But not every project is as easily recognizable as the casino, for example, with the bright blue fencing that surrounds it at the Nittany Mall. There are other worksites that you may drive by that make you wonder, “what’s happening there?” or longtime projects you’ve been looking for an update on.

We’ve continued to round up such projects throughout the year, and have listed four new sites below. If you have questions about the sites, or if there’s one that you think we should include future stories, email jmichael@centredaily.com.

Cleveland Brothers expansion

A new 33,000-square-foot building is being constructed by Cleveland Brothers at 1025 N. Eagle Valley Road in Boggs Township, near the TA Travel Center — although right now, it’s just a massive metal frame.

According to township Supervisor Dave Veneziano, the new building will have two main uses — an office building, and a parts warehouse that will come complete with a number of service bays.

The township’s zoning officer was first approached with plans for the development in May 2024, Veneziano said, with the submission and approval of development plans coming shortly after.

Cleveland Brothers’ Corporate Communications Manager Kate Hartke told the CDT in an email that the building’s construction is estimated to be complete sometime in the coming year.

Hartke added that portions of the Cleveland Brothers’ pre-existing Milebsurg building — which is also located at 1025 N. Eagle Valley Road — would be demolished with the new building’s construction.

Home2Suites by Hilton

Work is underway on a development that will eventually be a Home2Suites by Hilton, located at 1764 E. Trout Drive in the Dale Summit area.

The plans for the hotel were approved unanimously by the College Township Council in August 2024, and include 115 rooms, 129 parking spaces (including seven American Disabilities Act-designated spaces), three electric vehicle charging stations and an indoor pool.

The hotel’s only access point will be along Shiloh Road, where drivers will then turn onto East Trout Drive, and then a newly-constructed road named “Kali Lane,” which will lead drivers to the hotel. Another access point could also be made available in the future once a neighboring construction site finishes its work.

The hotel broke ground in November 2024, with College Township Assistant Manager Mike Bloom telling the CDT in an email that the construction crew has been, and is currently, blasting at the site to prepare it for development.

At the groundbreaking ceremony, officials said that construction was expected to finish around April 2026. While Bloom said that an updated timeline for completion has not been provided, construction is now expected to occur “throughout 2026 and potentially into 2027.”

Benner Pike Wawa

At long last, ground has been broken on what will be the county’s first Wawa — a highly-anticipated project that will be located at the corner of Benner Pike and East Rolling Ridge Drive, in front of the Greystone Court Villas and directly across from the recently renovated Sheetz.

The 6,600-square-foot gas station’s plans were first submitted to Benner Township in July 2023, although they were only green-lit by the township’s supervisors in October. The plans show 16 gas pumps on eight fueling islands, along with access points on the Benner Pike, East Rolling Ridge Drive and the adjacent Dunkin’ parking lot.

According to Mike Lesniak, the township’s zoning offer, Wawa’s construction will take at least “five or six months” to complete, for a planned opening in late spring or early summer 2026.

Along with the Benner Pike location, Wawa has three more gas stations planned for Centre County. Two of the other three proposed locations were revealed through the submission of development plans, and will be located at the former Snappy’s in Centre Hall and the former Sutliff Buick GMC Cadillac dealership and Delaney Collision Center along West Aaron Drive in Ferguson Township.

The fourth proposed Wawa, to be located at the corner of East College Avenue and Squirrel Drive in College Township, was revealed at a Wawa community event in early September.

Penn State ARL Building

At the far west side of Penn State’s Innovation Park, the large frame of a new development can be seen — a development that will eventually become Penn State’s new Applied Research Laboratory building.

Located at 335 Innovation Blvd. in College Township, the four-story, 80,000-square-foot ARL building’s construction started earlier this year, with assistant township manager Mike Bloom writing in an email to the CDT that it would be completed in two phases.

The Penn State board of trustees approved the $91.1 million project in November 2024.

The first phase will be the construction of the building itself, along with the installation of several site improvements like parking, lighting, sidewalks utilities and landscaping. Bloom expects this phase to be completed in September 2026.

The second phase will include a full connection of the lab to Innovation Boulevard, and while a timeline for the second phase is less clear, Bloom wrote that it will be constructed within four years following completion of the first phase.

Once completed, the new lab will drive ARL’s research programs, promote talent recruitment and provide a secure location for operations that are being relocated from aging infrastructure on Penn State’s main campus, which is currently located in the southwest corner of main campus, directly across Steam Drive from the Walker Building.