This week, the HFL Corporation, a major local real estate firm, railed against the State College Borough Council, calling them aloof and "anti-business."
HFL had a reason to be mad: In September, the State College Planning Commission voted not to rezone the 200 block of East Beaver Avenue, where the company had just bought up a building, 256 E. Beaver Ave., which includes Canyon Pizza and SoZo.
By not rezoning the block, a decision which the council is expected to confirm at a meeting this evening, HFL cannot follow through on its intention for buying the building in the first place --to turn it into a 250-resident student apartment building.
The decision speaks to a larger trend within the council that seeks to discourage the construction of more downtown student housing.
This should not sit well with Penn State's student body. As the student population in State College has grown to unprecedented heights in recent years, the availability of on-campus housing options has not kept up.
Eastview Terrace has been a nice addition for upperclassmen, but its price range may be out of reach for some.
However, Council President Cathy Dauler has defended the borough's negative attitude toward student housing, saying that community input indicates most people don't think there is a shortage of student housing.
Instead, she says the council is focusing on "diversity of housing," which, based on efforts like the Fraser Street complex, can be interpreted to mean housing for young professionals.
Where are these young professionals the borough is trying to court? State College is a college town with a service-based economy. There are 40,000-plus students, and if companies want to focus on our demographic, they should be allowed to.
The other concern Dauler points out is the additional costs for police, fire and ambulance services incurred student housing.
If this true, why not support student housing in the downtown area that HFL's newly-purchased 256 E. Beaver Ave. is located on?
That way, the borough can focus on one area of town, instead of having to clean up our mess elsewhere.
In the future, the council should remember that State College formed around the university and keep in mind the needs of the largest demographic of the State College population -- Penn State students.
