Business and community leaders on Tuesday celebrated the groundbreaking for a new hotel near Shiloh Road, a project that is not only the latest in a series of new lodgings in Centre County but also a sign of the burgeoning development boom in College Township’s Dale Summit area.
Hospitality Asset Management Company (HAMCO) is building a four-story 115-room Home2 Suites by Hilton on a 3-acre lot near the intersection of Shiloh and East Trout roads, next to Maxwell Truck and Equipment. The development is the first in an anticipated Shiloh Commercial Park on adjoining parcels owned by Ed Maxwell.
The hotel will have 129 parking spaces, and according to the Hilton’s website, Home2 Suites typically offer saline pools, one-bedroom and studio suites, in-room kitchens, free breakfast, pet-friendly suites, a market, gym and outdoor amenities.
“This is the third groundbreaking that we’ve done in Centre County for a hotel in the last few months,” Fritz Smith, president and CEO of the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau said. “And so that is indicative of a very strong hospitality and tourism industry. It’s indicative of a lot going on. It’s indicative of job growth. And it’s indicative of confidence in the business environment in this county.”
Construction of the Home2 Suites is expected to begin in earnest in March 2025 and be completed around April 2026.
Just down the road on Benner Pike near Bellefonte, construction began this summer on two other hotels. Ownership group SAI 21 broke ground for a dual brand Avid Hotels/Candlewood Suites along Amberleigh Lane, and work began on another HAMCO project, a Tru by Hilton situated behind G.M. McCrossin near Sheetz.
“We think we’ve picked another great site here in Centre County along with our Tru by Hilton that we’ll be building out on the Benner Pike,” HAMCO CEO Edward Tubbs said. “We like sites that are a little bit elevated. It’ll end up being a beautiful view when it’s all built, and we’re really excited to get it going.”
The Benner Pike and Shiloh Road hotels are among at least seven in some stage of development in Centre County. Those also include a Canopy by Hilton and a condominium hotel at in downtown State College; a long-term stay hotel on Fox Hill Road in Patton Township near State College Regional Airport; and the long-awaited hotel that will be part of the Bellefonte Waterfront Project, where site work is now expected to begin next spring.
“Our hospitality sector is definitely on the move here in Centre County,” Centre County Board of Commissioners Chair Mark Higgins said. “… It’s fantastic to see the continued growth of our hospitality industry in Centre County. It creates jobs; it provides economic development; and we all know it improves our quality of life. We’d like to thank the more than 8,000 workers here in Centre County who make our hospitality industry the great place that it is.”
The new hotel developments, along with the return of the Nittany Lion Inn to the local lodging inventory, have helped the county catch up to what tourism officials in the past have said was needed.
“Before we get an expansion of more rooms beyond what’s on the books right now, I’d like to see us get to about 6 million visitors,” Smith said. “So that would be a million more than where we are right now. I think the kind of X-factor that’s out there, is conference centers. If we were ever to get a very big conference center here, or another big indoor athletic facility, that could change the equation and necessitate the need for more rooms. And if you look at Penn State’s athletic success, that could change the equation too. If they continue on the path they’re on, then that adds to the demand.
“So I could see us needing to reassess in about a year or so. But I think right now we’re in a pretty good equilibrium in terms of the hotel rooms that are either planned or about to come out of the ground now.”
Dale Summit Poised for Major Development
A College Township native, Maxwell said he hadn’t thought about developing his land — which his family farmed when he was a boy then acquired when the previous owners retired — until HAMCO approached him about the possibility of constructing a hotel.
In advance of plans for the hotel, a portion of the properties was subdivided into three lots for phase one of the commercial park, with two fronting Shiloh Road and the third behind them, where the hotel will be located. A future phase is expected to create four more commercial lots further back on the property. But Maxwell said beyond the hotel nothing has been determined at this point.
“I’m not actively selling these lots, although we did a subdivision to accommodate the hotel,” Maxwell said. “We are still running our business here. So we don’t have any definite plans.”
He points across the road, though, where a long-in-the-works planned residential development is about to start gaining traction.
Burkentine Real Estate Group has submitted a tentative plan for a 48-acre development on the west side of Shiloh Road and north of Trout Road that would include more than 500 apartment units and 120 townhomes for purchase or rent. Plans for the development, which would be built in phases over at least a decade, also include 20 acres of open space and recreational areas, as well as a commercial development component.
“The development that’s going to go on on the other side of the road is really impressive,” Maxwell said. “This corridor in the next five years is going to be a different place. There’s a lot of fun things going to happen.”
College Township has been preparing for years for the coming development in the Shiloh Road area, with its available space and its proximity to both Interstate 99 and other commercial activity. Jersey Mike’s Subs’ decision to build a new store, which opened last week, on Shiloh Road wasn’t haphazard.
“This is a natural corridor. We talk about this area a lot, not only Centre County and not only the Centre Region, but specifically the Dale Summit area has gotten a lot of attention,” said state Rep. Paul Takac, D-College Township, who previously served on the township council “The Benner Pike Corridor is a natural area for development like this, and particularly to showcase the best that Centre County has to offer. This is an important opportunity to continue to grow the economy here in Centre County and in central Pennsylvania.”
O.J. Johnston, president of the board for the Chamber of Business and Industry of Centre County, said the new hotel and start of the Shiloh Commercial Park, mark a “significant step forward” for the county’s economic growth.
“It is yet another testament to our collective vision of the future and confidence in our community,” Johnston said. “Tourism and hospitality are essential drivers for our economy. And they are also core elements of our newly launched Centre County Economic Development Strategy. That strategy emphasizes strategic investments like this one that expand and support both our built and our natural environments. This groundbreaking right here in College Township is not only a celebration of an exciting new development but also a promising sign of Center County’s bright future.
