After some debate on Thursday night and about three years of discussion specific to the West End Revitilization Plan, the State College Planning Commission decided to hold a public meeting on June 11 to allow residents to comment.
The plan calls for redevelopment of the western part of the State College Borough, which was formerly known as the Urban Village, for mixed commercial and residential uses.
Commissioners eventually decided an official public meeting would be worthwhile, although Planning Commission Chairman Evan Myers pointed out that every municipal meeting is open to the public.
"We've afforded people to make comments," he said.
However, he added that alloting more time to hearing public comments would make "the idea of getting this done by mid-June ... virtually impossible. So do we need to really invite people again after we've gone through everything?"
While commission members tossed around ideas including meeting with citizens at the State College Municipal Building and drafting a Frequently Asked Questions document, a public meeting in the neighborhood was eventually the only thing agreed upon. The meeting will be held at the Unity Church of Jesus Christ, 140 N. Gill St.
"I don't want to waste any more time, but I do think it's important to give something more substantive for the community to look at," commissioner Ann Bolser said.
Elizabeth Goreham, State College Borough Council president, said she supports the idea of a public meeting. She added that just as council members need to know the main issues the planning commission discussed, so do residents.
Goreham also said that now that the West End Revitalization Plan is more clear and less technical, citizens may show more interest in involvement.
"You're the experts in this," she said. "People have seen the entry point and now they want to see and need to see what's changed."
John Simbeck, a State College resident and owner of Gemini Enterprises, 601 W. College Ave., said he does not support advertising and holding a public meeting.
"After three years, adding more people and more ideas would be in poor taste," he said.
Simbeck and his wife have been actively involved with the revitalization plan for the past 19 years.
