‘Let’s rally.’ More than 2,500 sign petition to ‘save’ The Brewery in State College
More than 2,500 people have so far signed on to a Change.org petition that seeks to “save” The Brewery, a downtown State College business that the owners have said first opened on Beaver Avenue in the late 1960s.
Owners Ray Rockey and Jay Horgas — and much of the public — discovered Monday that State College Borough is looking to exercise eminent domain, or the right of a government to take private property for public use (with compensation), on two downtown buildings to provide future parking spaces. One building houses popular businesses such as The Brewery, Canyon Pizza and Music Mart and is owned by the same group that owns The Brewery; the other property on McAllister Street holds a rental house and is owned by Rodney Hendricks.
The ensuing backlash was swift, and the online petition was started soon thereafter.
“Let’s not erase the tales and memories that lie etched in the corners of The Brew,” petition organizer Harry Weidner wrote. “Instead, let’s rally, let’s raise our voices, and let’s ensure that future generations too can experience the magic of this place. For the love of tradition, for the sake of memories, and for the heart of State College, let’s save The Brew. For the students, past, present and future.”
This isn’t the first time State College Borough has sought to exercise eminent domain. It did the same in early 2004 for the 529-space Beaver Avenue Garage, without much pushback, although the displaced buildings at the time included an apartment building and a district justice’s office. This time, residents and Penn State students/alumni alike responded immediately.
They didn’t like that the owners weren’t notified ahead of Monday, a common legal practice but one council members apologized for. And they didn’t appreciate that local landmarks would be forced to move, even if the borough was committed to keeping those businesses downtown.
When asked to respond to the petition, or if State College Borough wanted to add anything about its plans, the borough issued a written statement Friday that said it invited feedback and reiterated it hopes to keep the businesses downtown.
“The Borough of State College welcomes all forms of engagements around this impactful capital project,” the statement read. “As stated previously, the borough is actively considering these concerns and seeks to address them in a thoughtful and holistic manner. The Borough of State College greatly appreciates the community’s concern, feedback and discourse around this topic. The Borough is committed to working collaboratively with the community and local businesses.
“This location has been identified as a replacement parking structure for the Pugh Street Garage, and the action on Monday, Aug. 7, by Borough Council was only an initial step in moving this project forward. The borough is dedicated to a collaborative effort with all the businesses and property owners to ensure a smooth transition and ensure the businesses remain a part of the Downtown State College Community for years to come. The borough will update the public as this project progresses and continues to welcome discourse from the community.”
The desire for exercising eminent domain came as a result of the 51-year-old Pugh Street Garage nearing the end of its useful life and needing to be demolished. Because borough officials concluded a new parking structure needed to be constructed before the Pugh Street Garage was demolished, that parking needed to come from somewhere — and the two aforementioned properties were identified as making the most sense.
There are no current plans for the Pugh Street site after the parking garage is demolished. However, a retired conductor has proposed a two-theater Nittany Performing Arts Centre, which remains in its very early stages.
Still, whatever the plans, plenty of residents and alumni have expressed anger and concern over the use of eminent domain. On the petition page, dozens of comments echoed the thoughts of many in Centre County:
We don’t need another parking garage. We need to keep some of the State College charm.
There will not be any character left in State College. Everything is being bought out and changed into big box stores, shopping, chain restaurants and bars.
Who needs more parking if there’s no businesses left to visit? This is idiotic on so many levels.
On Monday, The Brewery’s owners seemed to share a similar sentiment. Rockey told Borough Council that eminent domain is “not how America’s supposed to work,” not long before council voted 5-1 to approve moving forward with it. (Councilman Divine Lipscomb, who attended the meeting remotely, was not heard. But he told the CDT he would have voted no. Gopal Balachandran was the only audible nay vote.)
Councilwoman Deanna Behring said she was personally assured no business would be kicked out. Council President Jesse Barlow wrote similarly on Facebook, adding that future discussions with the property owners “will consider compensation, relocation during construction and permanent location after construction.”
As of 5 p.m. Friday, some 2,565 people had signed the Change.org petition.
Borough Council is next scheduled for a regular meeting at 7 p.m. Aug. 21 in the Municipal Building. A work session is set for noon Monday.
