A private contractor removed a swath of trees from the former Autoport property in State College on Friday, but if and when the long-dormant site will be developed is still uncertain.
Borough planning director Ed LeClear said he was surprised to see Cutting Edge Tree Professionals were clearing trees near the eastern end of the property on South Atherton Street. The property’s owner has submitted no new plans for that portion of the site, LeClear said, and the area where the trees were removed is not part of a land development plan for a new hotel submitted four years ago.
“We’ve had some dialogue with them about zoning, questions, et cetera, but they have not submitted anything,” LeClear said. “I get a sense that they’re getting reinterested in it, but they didn’t tell us they were going to be taking trees down. They’re under no obligation to do that, and they chose not to.”
The Autoport was Pennsylvania’s oldest motel before closing in December 2015. The owners faced foreclosure and auction since 2014 and declared bankruptcy earlier in 2015 before selling the property to South Atherton Real Estate 1 LP for $2.1 million.
Montoursville-based Welteroth Property Group, the real estate investment firm behind South Atherton Real Estate 1, did not return messages seeking comment on Friday.
In early 2020, the new property owner submitted a land development plan for an 80,000-square foot, four-story building at the west end of the site. It would include a 122-room Home2 Suites by Hilton and eight apartments, with one inclusionary unit, to be located between the Talbot’s plaza and the former Autoport restaurant and lounge building. Three existing structures — a small office building, a commercial building to the rear of the shopping plaza and one of the motel buildings — would be demolished for the project.
The plan was met with criticism from residents who said it exploited a loophole in a borough ordinance designed to expand the supply of affordable housing. By including the single inclusionary unit, which was the bare minimum required for eight total apartments, the developer was able to add an extra story on the building.
Borough Council subsequently amended the ordinance to close the loophole.
The hotel plan remains active but has not been approved and has seen no movement in years.
“They’ve never come back to us [about the hotel plan],” LeClear said. “They never finished the final plan process, probably because COVID happened and the hotel industry is challenging on the financing side these days. That’s still there. It’s active. Every 90 days we get an extension letter from their civil engineer. It’s technically on the books but they don’t have final approval yet.”
Through different LLCs and LPs, Welteroth Property Group owns multiple properties in the State College area, including the former Imperial Motor Inn at 118 S. Atherton St., which it acquired for $3.1 million in 2020, among others.
The 12-acre former Autoport property from 1401 to 1405 S. Atherton St. is listed on the company’s website as The Autoport District.
“It presents a unique opportunity to create a development of regional and local significance combining retail, hospitality, commercial, entertainment, and residential uses where they are valued most,” a description of the property states.
