The State College Borough is petitioning the U.S. Department of the Interior to recognize the College Heights and Holmes-Foster/Highlands areas as historic districts.

While listing districts in the National Historic Register would have "no legislative teeth" because it does not affect private property rights, it could help retain neighborhood character, State College Planning Commission member Jacqueline Melander said.

Parts of campus such as Old Main and Schwab Auditorium are already included in the register, said Greg Ramsey, a worker at the Bureau for Historic Preservation.

If those areas are included in the register, homeowners could benefit from a 20 percent rehabilitation tax credit if the property is income producing. The borough and non-profit organizations could also apply to the Keystone Grant Program for state funds to rehabilitate properties, Ramsey said.

In addition to some properties being built or landscaped by University faculty, the College Heights area -- bounded by Holmes Street, Sunset Road, Woodland Drive as well as Park, Ridge, Hillcrest and Mitchell avenues -- contains the oldest building, the 143-year-old John Krumrine homestead.

More recent dwellings include 200 mail-order homes that residents chose from the Sears catalog during the 1930s.

The Holmes-Foster/Highlands area -- bordered by Buckhout, High and Keller streets and Railroad, Highland, Irvin and Prospect avenues -- contains 726 contributing properties and could become the 16th largest historic district in Pennsylvania.

Among the properties are 639 single-family homes, one of which belongs to Mary Lou McEwen, 832 W. Foster Ave. Although McEwen now lives in the home, the original homeowner fought in World War I and embedded three helmets and a rifle in the fireplace.

McEwen started researching the house's history after receiving a survey from the State College Historic Resource Study Committee in 1992. The committee used the study to determine the community's historic resources and decided historic districts were the best way to recognize and preserve community heritage.

The Pennsylvania Historic Commission will review the petition on March 14 and the Department of the Interior usually replies within 60 days.