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State College Town Center at Toftrees is a mixed-use development comprised of
lifestyle retail, entertainment, townhomes and 'game day' condominiums. |
State College Town Center Brings
Upscale Lifestyle Center to University Town
STATE COLLEGE, PENNSYLVANIA. – Where will 650,000 people, 42,700 Penn State University students and over 2 million direct visitors go to shop, eat, live and play in Central Pennsylvania? In August 2009, the answer will be at the State College Town Center at Toftrees, a 62-acre mixed-use development located in State College, Pa., the home of Penn State University.
Robert E. Poole, president and CEO of S&A Homes in State College and John M. Millar, executive vice president of Divaris Real Estate, Inc. in Virginia Beach, Va., have formed a team to develop a “College Town Center” at the center of a 1,250-acre planned community. The center will be part of a mixed-use real estate project in a Big Ten college town, one of the first of its kind in the country. The concept includes an upscale, retail lifestyle center surrounded by clusters of high-end condominiums, town homes and “game day” condos for visitors, alumni, and residents attracted to the sports, cultural and academic activities in State College and at Penn State University.
Both Poole and Millar believe that college towns will be at the forefront of growth for the next ten to 20 years, as the two largest segments of the U.S. population – the “Baby Boomers” and the college bound “Echo Boomers” – intersect.
“State College is a great place to live and work,” Poole said. “We chose it as the place for our business more than 20 years ago, and we’ve grown as the community has grown. We have the chance to do something really special here.”
Millar explained that the intersection of Baby Boomers and Echo Boomers (also known as Generation Y or Millennium Children) will converge at college towns. “More interestingly, these two population bubbles, coupled with the 2 million plus direct visitors to State College every year, represent three hidden economic engines for college towns that do not show up in the U.S. Census or any demographic research from data providers and demographers,” he added.
The 42,700 Penn State students come from households with average household incomes of over $100,000, while Penn State’s direct visitors (many from the 175,000 Penn State Baby Boomer alumni) are a highly educated, affluent group themselves. By 2010, the impact of the university’s students, the visitors and the Baby Boomer alumni will contribute over $1 billion to the State College economy, Poole and Millar agreed.
“With all that Penn State brings to the community, including a marketplace that draws 650,000 people from a 50-mile radius, State College is a great place to build this Town Center,” Poole said.
Poole and S&A Vice President Carol Herrmann had plans in the works to develop a town center in the master planned community adjacent to the Toftrees Country Club and Golf Course. When Millar approached them to express an interest in teaming up on the town center development, they agreed to work together on what they all believe will result in the largest lifestyle Town Center between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
“Our company has a lot of residential and commercial experience in multi-states, but the complexity of this Town Center is new to us,” said Herrmann. “We are in the process of developing the Town Center in concert with the residential components of the community and we are very excited about it.”
The Town Center portion of the master planned development will be built in three phases. Phase 1 is scheduled to open in August 2009 with 200,000 square feet of upscale, lifestyle retail and restaurants. The three phases of retail will comprise a 540,000-square-foot upscale, lifestyle retail center; an entertainment district with ten restaurants; and several hotels.
“State College Town Center at Toftrees is on target to open in August 2009 in time for Penn State’s fall semester, followed by the Christmas season, ensuring that our retailers will have a highly successful start,” said Millar. “It’s the optimum time to open!”
The master-planned community will consist of 4,690 residential units, including the six villages surrounding the Town Center with single-family homes, townhomes, “game day” condos and multi-family residential units. The topography of the site will allow upscale residences to overlook the golf course from a 200-foot elevation. According to Millar, it’s “an example of smart growth that reduces suburban sprawl.”
State College Town Center at Toftrees will also benefit from the completion in 2008 of the north-south extension of Interstate 99 (currently Routes 220 and 322), connecting to the east-west Interstate 80. The Town Center will have access from Interstate 99 directly into its site.
Herrmann notes, “We believe that our Town Center will be a great place for locals to live and enjoy themselves and for out-of-towners to visit. I think it will take State College to the next level, increasing the quality of life with new-to-the-market retailers and restaurants, while creating an environment for civic and cultural events. This will be important not only for State College but also for the whole of Central Pennsylvania. All those stars are coming into alignment to create an amazing destination for the State College community. In fact, I could easily see myself living there!”
Divaris Real Estate, Inc.
One Columbus Center, Suite 700
Virginia Beach, VA 23462
TEL: 757.497.2113 FAX: 757.497.1338
info@divaris.com
