More customers will be able to eat, drink and dance at Cafe 210 as the bar and restaurant begin building a new addition that should be completed by summer, said its co-owner.

The cafe, 210 W. College Ave., plans to begin construction after May graduation, and will be completed by the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts, said co-owner David Nevins.

The project will involve doubling the size of "The Club" room, which will create a bigger dance floor, and increasing the size of the back deck so it will run the length of the building's rear, he said.

"We need a lot more room . . . every night we have entertainment," Nevins said.

A few years ago the nightspot was packed mainly on weekends. But weekday nights are now becoming extremely crowded, he said.

Paul Hamilton (senior-hotel and restaurant institutional management), a waiter at Cafe 210, agreed. "We're becoming more established because everyone knows we have bands playing," he said.

"Many times its hard to get a table unless you get there two hours before the entertainment begins," Lynne Hartman (senior-communication disorders) said.

"Every night we have a full line of people out front," Hamilton said of the College Avenue gathering place.

Nevins said expansion costs will not be much of a factor because the bar's business has grown to satisfy many requests for catering and private parties.

Actual construction site plans for Cafe 210 have yet to be submitted to the borough's Design Review Board or the State College Planning Commission, said Planning Secretary Cynthia Hanscom.

"The concept plans have just gone to the design review board . . . it will be a while before site plans will be made," she said.

Prior to 1983, Cafe 210 was named Arthur's, Nevins said. Nevins and Ivan Segal bought it as co-owners in 1983 from Kurosh Ostovar. They added "The Club" room in 1987.

"Everybody here at the Cafe is very excited about the expansion," said Assistant Manager Jackie Martino.