With State Patty’s Day approaching this Saturday, campus and community leaders are working with downtown bar and restaurant owners to limit the “profoundly negative aspects” of the student-created holiday, Vice President for Student Affairs Damon Sims said via email Monday.
Sims, who co-chairs the Campus-Community Partnership on Dangerous Drinking with State College Borough Manager Tom Fountaine, said he and Fountaine met on Friday with owners of local bars and restaurants to discuss their plan for State Patty’s Day.
Sims said the group had a “constructive conversation” about limiting alcohol sales on Saturday and that everyone there was concerned with the negative aspects of the holiday.
State College Tavern Association President and Director of Operations at Dante’s Inc. Jennifer Zangrilli confirmed that she met with Fountaine and Sims Friday to discuss a strategy for State Patty’s Day.
A final agreement has yet to be reached, though they hope to come to an agreement soon, Zangrilli said.
“Although the focus of the meeting was of how Tavern owners and managers can address the negative consequences that State Patty’s Day brings, there is a larger strategy that the partnership has been pursuing with many other organizations,” Zangrilli said. “We are just one part of the whole picture.”
Aisha Jamal-Zupan, assistant manager at Kildare’s Irish Pub, 538 E. College Ave., said that Kildare’s — which is part of the State College Tavern Association — will be open Saturday and serving food, but not alcohol.
Jamal-Zupan said, however, that this plan is unofficial and that the decision to not serve alcohol may change in the next few days.
Tim Crockett, who works in the special events department at Levels Nightclub, 420 E. College Ave., said his club will be open on Saturday but no decision has been made regarding alcohol sales.
Levels management has been discussing not serving alcohol on Saturday and a final decision may be made Tuesday afternoon, Crockett said.
Sims also said the discussion with downtown bars and restaurants is only part of a much larger plan which includes fraternities limiting or eliminating social events, limiting guests in on-campus residence halls and participation in alternative campus and community events.
Part of the plan also includes “a significantly more aggressive posture by the local courts vis-a-vis summary alcohol violations,” he said.
Sims said the Campus-Community Partnership on Dangerous Drinking includes several student leadership groups and student organizations. Student leaders from these organizations have initiated many of the alternative plans for State Patty’s Day, he said.
Those who answered phone calls for comment at Café 210 West, Bill Pickles Tap Room, The Phyrst, the Gingerbread Man and Mad Mex deferred comment to the bar managers, who were not available to comment as of press time Monday.
