It’s no secret that Penn State football is a key driver of the region’s economy, generating a $12 million boost on big weekends.
But there are many weeks each year when there is no major event like a home football game, graduation, or parents weekend to fill the region’s hotels and restaurants.
That’s where Eric Engelbarts comes in.
Engelbarts just finished his first year as executive director of the Happy Valley Sports & Entertainment Alliance. The alliance was launched last year by the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau to bring more events here, increase the area’s visibility and boost the economy.
“It’s kind of an abstract concept: What do we do?” Engelbarts says with a laugh. “Ultimately, it’s representing Happy Valley and our region nationally, to be able to raise our hand and say, ‘We want to welcome you to our community.’ And as you welcome these events in the community, they bring money. That helps our lodging industries, that helps our restaurants, that helps small business.”
Engelbarts attends trade shows that aim to match events with destinations. If there is a fit (dates are particularly important in this relatively small community, to avoid conflicts), the alliance works with event organizers to line up venues, and volunteers if needed, and to ensure that participants have a good experience here.
Engelbarts came to State College in April 2023 after leading the Michigan Sports Alliance, where he created the State Games of Michigan, which hosted 10,000 participants in more than 50 sports.
Among other efforts, Engelbarts in mid-March was closing in on a bid to bring 8,000 to 12,000 athletes to Happy Valley in 2026 for the State Games of America.
Engelbarts and Jake Morelli, the alliance’s sports services manager, are also gearing up to help the region host the Ironman 70.3 triathlon scheduled for June 30. Last year’s inaugural event here drew 2,400 athletes from 42 states and eight countries, generating an estimated $4.4 million in economic impact for the region.
On the more immediate horizon is the Hoppy Valley Brewers Fest, which takes place May 11 in Beaver Stadium. In cooperation with Penn State leaders, making greater use of the stadium outside of football season is a goal for the alliance.
“There will be other initiatives, yes,” Engelbarts says. “It’s got to be the right event because you are playing in a huge stadium. Even when you’re looking at NCAA opportunities, whether you’re hosting the national lacrosse championships or something along those lines that would fit in that venue, does the governing body want to be in a venue that’s so vast? You’ve got to be picky and choosey in what you’re looking at. But I was completely floored, humbled by the interest to be in that stadium and be on that field when the Hoppy Valley Brewers Fest social media was posted. It’s definitely a draw and we’re just so happy from the athletics standpoint that they’re clearing the way for events like this to happen.”
Here’s more from our conversation:
When you’re at trade shows trying to sell event organizers on coming here, what are the best assets Happy Valley has to offer?
Engelbarts: We have a great mix of outdoor recreation as well as major facilities. Obviously, Penn State is a highly recognized brand and university throughout the country, so that makes my job identifying the area easy. One of the things I like to stress to these events rights-holders is our drive time from major markets. Whether you’re pulling from New York City, New York in general, Washington, D.C.—all are within a four-hour drive; you can bring in a lot of people.
And then if you really want to hone down into just the state of Pennsylvania, we’re in the center. In working with the [Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association], for example, we brought in the spring sports festival. We have great facilities, you’re drawing from Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, you’re bringing them to the middle; they’re playing out their state championships and it just makes a lot of sense.
There are people from all walks of the community on your board, including several in leadership at Penn State. How important is that partnership?
Engelbarts: If you’re gonna move the needle, the university needs to be on board. So, the startup of the Sports & Entertainment Alliance almost comes at a perfect time where [Penn State has] a new president in Neeli Bendapudi and a new athletic director in Pat Kraft. They have a different mindset than the previous administrations. It’s opened up a bunch of opportunities where, in our board meetings, Dr. Kraft is like, ‘How can we use Beaver Stadium more than seven times a year?’ We also have leadership from the Bryce Jordan Center and just actually had a meeting with campus recreation, talking about utilizing some of their venues; they oversee a vast majority of venues that are important to our initiatives. It’s refreshing to see the university want to welcome events on the campus. It’s got to fit; it’s got to be the right thing. And we’ve got to make sure it works.
What are the biggest challenges of locating events in Centre County?
Engelbarts: I think it’s no surprise that our airport is lacking, the fact that you can’t bring major planes into the airport, plus then the amount of service. If you really want to see sports tourism grow from a national standpoint, [more air service] would be a help. And then, the number of hotel rooms always comes up. [There were about 2,500 rooms as of mid-March.] The size of the venue compared to the hotel community is definitely something that you have to be aware of. … Longer term, there are some projects on the books that will help loosen that grip.
What would be an ideal number of rooms for the kind of events you want to host in this area?
Engelbarts: The reason there’s not as many hotels as you would anticipate is because you have to have demand during the week; you have to be able to fill them up in the non-busy periods. And that’s why the market is where it’s at. If we could loosen it up by another 1,000 [rooms], that would be awesome; 3,500 would be a great start. When you look at some of these other Big 10 cities, they’re at 5,000 hotel rooms.
This area is very sports-focused. It’s probably less known as an entertainment destination. Is that something you’re working on?
Engelbarts: I have a strong sports background. This is a sports community. So obviously, that’s front and center. But with the facilities that we have in this area, you can literally take an artist to basically any point in their career — from starting up, into a local theater, all the way up to a Beaver Stadium concert; you can really see them through the entire spectrum. That’s unique and that’s exciting.
One of the first initiatives we did was establish an entertainment and arts committee, and we’re getting that committee up and running to help determine how we can move forward. With sports, you really look at the visitor coming in. Entertainment is a little bit different. We consider the visitor but it’s also those that live in this area that may travel elsewhere for concerts or shows.
Consider that you buy tickets to the show, you’re probably going out for dinner, and then you’re going to go to the show, or you’re going to do something downtown before you go to that show. That’s important to factor into this economic equation when we’re hosting. It’s those that would have been displaced and had to go to other markets to see whatever they’re looking for, or the fact that now we’re driving people in the restaurants before they go to the show is also important to consider.
What’s coming up in the year ahead that you’re excited about?
Engelbarts: We have some big announcements coming up that I haven’t got the go-ahead [to reveal, as of mid-March] from some of the events rights-holders. And we’re working on a big one for 2026. It’s called the State Games of America. This comes from my previous role and relationships. I served as the president of the National Congress of State Games. This is their largest event. It could be 8,000 to 12,000 athletes, plus spectators coming in. We held it in Grand Rapids [Michigan] in 2017. We have a shot at hosting here in 2026. We’re feverishly working on that bid. I’m hoping we might be able to make those major announcements coming up. T&G
Mark Brackenbury is a former editor of Town&Gown.
