A new 107-room hotel is in the works along Benner Pike. Here’s what we know so far
Editor’s note: This story has been updated after a county official said there was an error on the plan regarding the number of proposed rooms.
Developers are planning to build a new four-story hotel along Benner Pike in Benner Township, according to preliminary plans shared before Centre County officials on Tuesday.
The proposed 14,538-square-foot, 107-room hotel property is expected to take up the back half of a 4.3-acre vacant lot along Amberleigh Lane and Benner Pike. Developers have not submitted plans for the lot’s other half, according to Christopher Schnure, Centre County’s subdivision and land development planner.
Property owner SAI 21 LLC acquired the land, situated between Penn State Federal Credit Union and Klaban’s Home Furnishings, for about $1 million in October 2021. SAI 21 LLC will work with State College’s PennTerra Engineering, Inc. on the project if it moves forward, Schnure said on Tuesday.
During a meeting Tuesday morning, Centre County’s commissioners heard from Schnure, who briefly presented a preliminary/final land development plan for the project, which showed the lot’s subdivisions and approximate size. Commissioners agreed to add a memorandum of understanding to next week’s meeting agenda that would ask the project’s developer to reimburse some review fees.
“It’s great to see all the private sector investment in the greater Bellefonte area,” Commissioner Mark Higgins said during Tuesday’s meeting.
Plans for the new hotel are still in early stages. Sharon Royer, the township secretary, said the project still needs to move through a land development process, among other regulations, before construction could begin. On Tuesday, she said the project is expected to come before county officials more formally in late July.
Royer said the project’s developer can’t yet disclose the planned hotel’s name.
The proposed Benner Pike hotel is unrelated to the Bellefonte Waterfront Project, which plans to construct an 80-room boutique hotel along Spring Creek. Most recently, the borough council approved a zoning amendment to the Bellefonte Waterfront Business District that would allow the long-planned hotel and restaurant to include a “rooftop experience.”
In late April, project developer Tom Songer said he hoped construction on the Bellefonte hotel would begin this summer. Challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic have delayed plans over the past few years.
This story was originally published June 21, 2022 at 3:48 PM.
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