Pop Up Ave outdoor market returns to downtown State College. Here’s what’s new
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- Pop Up Ave returns to Allen Street in State College on May 2.
- Vintage alley on W Foster Ave will showcase new and returning local vendors.
- The event features over 40 vendors, local eateries, and two breweries.
Pop Up Ave will return to downtown State College on Saturday, once again closing part of South Allen Street and featuring a new layout to showcase more than 40 vendors from across the state, along with local eateries and breweries.
A new addition is the “vintage alley” on West Foster Avenue, where new and returning local vendors including Bombass Vintage, Rackraider and Wknd Vintage will be located.
This year, returning local food vendors such as Dubbs Grub and Super Duper Cafe are relocated closer to the beer garden on the Bill Welch Memorial Plaza in front of the Municipal Building. The beer garden will feature Boal City Brewing and Antifragile Brewing Company, who will be serving drinks throughout the whole event.
Eventgoers are able to grab coffee throughout the day from the popular Idou Coffee Co. and a sweet treat with new dessert vendors such as Buzzy Bee Bakery and Darling’s Dipped Treats, making it a broad experience for different cravings.
This year will feature an eclectic mix of makers with returning favorites like SCK Glassworks, Shindig Alley and Dazzling Daisy Designs. New niche vendors include Whirl Pong, Lost Hair Clip and Gilded Giraffe Home Decor.
State College locals Brad and Andrea Groznik co-founded Pop Up Ave in 2016, where they started as a small community event located on a downtown parking lot that is now the site of The Maxxen student apartment building.
The event, which was held on Fraser Street for several years, took a break from 2020 to 2023. For the past two years, it has been situated on South Allen Street and occurs twice annually, once on a Saturday in the spring and again on a Saturday in the fall.
“It’s a great opportunity for us to give back to the community that we get to work in and play. So we love doing it,” Brad Groznik told CDT. “It’s also a great opportunity to just get to know the community. I’ve met so many people through Pop Up that I wouldn’t have an opportunity to meet otherwise,” he said.
The Grozniks also own a PR marketing company called Groznik PR where they’ve organized popular community events over the years such as Light Up State College in 2017, where they broke a world record for the most ice luminaries in a downtown, Brad Groznik said.
One of the projects they are currently working on is called Rediscover State College, a platform focused on attracting new residents to State College that is funded by the State College Borough and the Redevelopment Authority.
Pop Up Ave is sponsored by numerous local organizations including the Downtown State College Improvement District, which Brad Groznik points out as a key partner.
The DSCID is also hosting the East End Social, an event similar to Pop Up Ave in its goal of closing a street and establishing a community space. However, the East End Social will focus mainly on hosting events and will be open for a longer duration, from mid-May through early August.
“It’s been an idea to close down a string for the whole summer and just let the community come and play,” Brad Groznik said. “I’m thrilled they’re doing it and I have been talking with them about hosting events tied to my projects — it’s a great addition to the State College summer community.”
Pop Up Ave runs from 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Saturday.
