Summers On Allen Postponed Due To Coronavirus
Well, some of you got what you wanted. Even after Summers on Allen withstood efforts from certain community members to cancel it, a pandemic ended up being the thing to do it.
The Summers on Allen initiative that would’ve created a pedestrian plaza on South Allen Street’s 100 block for eight weeks starting next month has been postponed, the Centre Foundation and the Downtown Improvement District announced in a joint statement Thursday.
“Due to the unpredictability and the seriousness of the current health crisis, we cannot in good conscious plan a community outdoor event for May and June,” the statement said. “We want to thank everyone who contributed their time, energy and support to this project—particularly the borough council and staff, Knight Foundation, the downtown business owners and employees, and the hundreds of community members who attended our workshops, volunteered their time, sent us emails, and stopped us on the street.”
Although the 2020 event has been postponed after being canceled at the last minute in 2018, there are still plans to resurrect efforts later this year in hopes of bringing a pedestrian plaza to State College for the summer of 2021.
“We continue to believe in the vision of a vibrant pedestrian plaza downtown that brings our community together and celebrates its vitality,” the statement said. “Later this year, we look forward to begin working with our downtown business community and local leaders to consider the best way to move this vision forward in 2021.”
The fate of Summers on Allen appeared to be up in the air as it was scheduled to begin May 11, but Borough Council canceled all special events until at least May 10 due the coronavirus pandemic.
After originally being rejected in the fall due to safety and commercial concerns, Summers on Allen passed in January when a new Borough Council started its term. Even after it passed, there was strong pushback within the community, including a lawsuit filed against Borough Council by four businesses, a Facebook group fighting the initiative, and one Instagram geotag intended to do the same.
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