Change feels constant these days in Happy Valley, both at University Park and among those two familiar blocks that run the length of downtown State College. Construction and renovation projects are underway at prominent spots across campus, and the parade of new high-rise apartment buildings continues its downtown march. All of which tends to make the recognizable buildings and businesses that haven’t gone anywhere feel more reassuring than ever.
Take, for example, the big white and blue building at the intersection of College Avenue and Allen Street. Not all change is bad, of course, as anyone who’s eaten at the venerable Corner Room recently can attest. The most famous business in downtown’s most familiar building has seen a number of upgrades in recent years, part of the overhaul that Mike Croce ’04 Bus and Jeff Sorg ’99 Bus began after their company took ownership of the Hotel State College & Co.—seven distinct establishments, including The Corner Room—back in 2019. From the beginning, they understood that they had to balance whatever improvements they brought with a respect for the tradition those businesses represented for generations of alumni.
Tradition is front of mind for Croce, Sorg, and everyone affiliated with the once-again-thriving Corner Room this summer, when the restaurant plans to celebrate its 100th birthday with a community block party on Friday, July 3. As much as it’s a celebration a century in the making, it was also hard to envision even five years ago, when the then-new owners graced our cover during the (relatively) early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Like so many businesses, they were losing money and struggling to maintain their staff. But, as Croce told us at the time, “Everybody has the belief that when we get to the other side of this, we have something special.”
If you’re in town on July 3, you can meet them at the corner to see just how right they were.
Ryan Jones ’95 Com | Editor
ryanjones@psu.edu | @RJPennStater
P.S. As you’ve probably heard by now, Reggie Bustinza was recently announced as the Alumni Association’s new CEO, beginning July 6. You can read a bit about him on p. 23, and we’ll have more on Reggie’s path to Penn State in our Sept./Oct. issue.
More Online
THE CORNER ROOM: For the full story on how new owners rejuvenated the local businesses run by the Hotel State College while staying true to their shared history, check out the cover feature from our March/April 2021 issue.
RUNNING FOR LOVISA: Penn State Ph.D. student Matthew Hollingham began his epic two-month “Arctic to Africa” triathlon on May 31. You can read his story, follow his progress, and learn how to support his worthy cause here.
