The Economics of State College, PA
As with most college dominated towns, State College's economy has "hidden economic engines" that do not show up in traditional research reports such as Claritas, ESRI, etc. State College has impressive demographic statistics within its 50-mile radius as Central Pennsylvania's "Central Place City." Those demographics of 650,000 people; 248,000 households; 79,500 households with annual incomes of over $50,000; and a average family household income of $57,929 are sufficient resources to support the 540,000-square-foot, upscale, lifestyle component of State College Town Center at Toftrees. Also, there are 81,430 people working full-time within a 10-mile radius of the State College Town Center at Toftrees.
However, the two hidden ecnomic engines: 42,700 Penn State students and over 2 million direct visitors are the icing on the cake with their affluent backgrounds. Penn State's student population comes from highly affluent households outside of State College, many from wealthy, major Northeast cities and suburbs. The households that PSU students come from are estimated to have average household incomes of over $100,000 with the top 20th percentile above $150,000. Their non-academic economic potential on State College was estimated to be $315 million in 2003. With the continued growth in student population in the 2006/2007 academic year at 42,700, their economic impact on State College is now estimated at over $375 million, spent primarily on clothing, restaurants, entertainment, electronics, etc. By 2010, the PSU student’s economic impact will be over $400 million.
The direct visitor market is driven by Penn State activities – academic and administrative conferences (State College is the main campus for a 24 Penn State campus system throughout Pennsylvania); cultural activities; college sports programs; entertainment events; alumni events (252,000 PSU alumni live in Pennsylvania); and significant University weekends (Parents, social weekends, graduation, student move ins and outs). In 2003, the direct visitors economic impact was measured at $356 million. In 2006, the estimate is over $400 million, spent primarily on lodging (9.4%); restaurants (28.3%); entertainment (13.0%); and merchandise (40%). By 2010, the direct visitors’ impact will be greater than $450 million.
See Charts for details on:
Direct Spending by Students
Direct Visitor Spending
