When Anna Ferrari-Akl, general manager at the Days Inn Penn State, looks out of her office she sees a park and a few downtown shop windows. But she isn't looking outside. She's looking inside at the hotel's newly renovated lobby.

"I love what they've done," Ferrari-Akl said, referring to the hotel's newly renovated atrium that now looks like a downtown State College street.

The idea to renovate the lobby came from Mark Morath, president of the hotel's Hospitality Asset Management Company.

"I've wanted to do it for a long time," Morath said. "What we attempted to do was create a streetscape that picks up the architecture of downtown State College and created a park environment."

Morath said the hotel invited downtown shopkeepers to display their wares in the six windows.

The new additions complement the skylight, waterfall and plants that were already in the lobby, Morath said.

Instead of taking elements from downtown and reproducing them exactly, Morath said the hotel combined certain architectural elements, such as the windows from one building and the awning from another to create their "very own" streetscape.

"We don't want people to say, 'Oh they just copied so and so,' " Morath said.

The project is not fully completed since elements such as street lamps and a clock still have to be added. Morath hopes the project will be completed within the month.

Although the lobby still needs a few finishing touches, Morath said initial guest reactions have been very positive.

"The guests love it, especially the alumni, as they see those elements of downtown State College brought inside the facility," he said. "A few brides-to-be have already started planning their photographs."

Construction began at the end of December. The local companies involved in the construction include Whitehill Lighting, 1524 N. Atherton St., and Daulby and Son's Painting and Drywall, of Coburn, Pa.

The hotel staff also contributed to the project. "A lot of work has been done by the Days Inn Maintenance staff," Morath said.

Ferrari-Akl also said that long-term guests especially like the new renovations.

"It's very relaxing in the atrium. You feel like you are downtown. You feel like you are outside," she said.

She also said the guests are not the only people that are pleased with the new lobby.

"More employees like to break in the lower atrium instead of our employee lounge," she said.

Marsha Stewart, a front desk clerk, is one employee who is happy with the new improvements.

"It's so nice in here now. Before it was a darker color. Now it's bright and cheery," she said.