State College Casino Near Penn State Will Be Named Happy Valley
Posted on: May 30, 2025, 02:18h.
Last updated on: May 30, 2025, 06:00h.
- A casino in Pennsylvania will be called Happy Valley
- The casino will operate near Penn State University
- Happy Valley Casino is replacing a former Macy’s at the Nittany Mall
The casino being constructed at the Nittany Mall in Pennsylvania’s Centre County, just miles from the main campus of Penn State University, has a name.
SC Gaming OpCo, the LLC led by real estate developer Ira Lubert, a PSU alumnus and former chair of the university’s board of trustees, revealed this week that the $120 million gaming facility will be called Happy Valley Casino.
Happy Valley is synonymous with Penn State. The region encompasses State College and its five townships, including College Township, and Mount Nittany. Happy Valley is part of the larger Nittany Valley, enclosed by Tussey and Bald Eagle mountains.
The Happy Valley culture is dominated by PSU and its football program. It will soon additionally include slot machines and table games fewer than five miles from where the Nittany Lions play their home football games.
We feel that the name and logo pay homage to the rich history, picturesque landscapes, and enduring spirit of the Happy Valley community that we are proud to be a part of,” said Eric Pearson, CEO of SC Gaming.
In March, SC Gaming announced New York-based Saratoga Casino Holdings as the firm that will manage the forthcoming casino. Saratoga was brought in after Bally’s Corp. exited the development last September.
Retail Shopping Turned Casinos
Happy Valley Casino is a Category 4 casino that’s allowed to initially offer up to 750 slot machines and 30 live dealer table games. The property can also include a physical sportsbook, though at this time, SC Gaming officials say they aren’t interested in the small-margin sports betting business.
Happy Valley Casino is replacing Macy’s in an anchor role in the shopping center that has many vacant stores. Macy’s closed its Nittany Mall store in early 2020 following the exits of JCPenney in 2015, and both Bon-Ton and Sears in 2018.
Happy Valley, once it opens, scheduled for early next year, will mark the fourth Cat. 4 casino in Pennsylvania to occupy a former retail shopping space.
Hollywood Casino York operates in a former Sears at the York Galleria, while Live! Casino Pittsburgh operates in a former Bon-Ton at the Westmoreland Mall. Parx Casino Shippensburg is inside what was once a Lowe’s.
Unhappy About Happy Valley Casino
Older Penn Staters who drove northwest to State College from parts further south in Pennsylvania along US-322 might remember a roadside sign that warned that to get to Happy Valley, one must first drive through Death Valley. The section of road, then just two lanes through a deep valley bordered by the Juniata River, was where many deadly car crashes occurred until the road was expanded to four lanes in 2007.
Upon emerging from the two-lane highway at Lewistown, and Happy Valley on the horizon, it was indeed difficult not to smile for the legions of Penn Staters who traveled the route. The four-lane highway makes the trip quicker and safer but also a bit less nostalgic. A casino upon arrival is also something many Nittany Lions dread.
A considerable portion of the State College community is opposed to allowing a casino to encroach so close to where approximately 49,000 undergrad and graduate students are immersed in their studies. The Penn State Board of Trustees refused to take a formal position on the casino, but they did very recently elect Richard Sokolov to be the vice chairman of Penn State’s Board of Trustees, who is vice president of SC gaming.
College Township’s decision not to opt out of being a possible Cat. 4 location when it could have back in 2017 means residents have little legal recourse to block its development.
Pearson continues to stress that Happy Valley Casino will only benefit the region.
“We’re confident that once it is completed, we’ll deliver a premier experience focusing on fun, excitement, and hospitality that complements Happy Valley and serves as a catalyst for further exciting development of the Dale Summit region around the Nittany Mall,” Pearson said.
Last Comments ( 78 )
Eric Pearson, CEO of SC Gaming, is quoted as saying, "We feel that the name and logo pay homage to the rich history, picturesque landscapes, and enduring spirit of the Happy Valley community ...” Far from paying homage, the name strikes me as shameful exploitation. I suspect SC Gaming cares about as much for the health of this community as a snake owner cares for the health of the mice they're going to feed to their snake. Gambling is predatory, insidious, and profitable because of addicts. Without the inflated losses of addicts who ruin their lives and the lives of their families, the house's winning percentages on all the games would need to be so high as to greatly reduce the number non-addicted casual betters, and probably make the whole operation a bust. The gambling industry claims to discourage addiction and offer resources, yet all the while selling fantasies through seductive TV/Internet commercials. Add to these direct problems, the inevitable rise in related crime - because casinos attract criminals as much as they attract gambling addicts. Casinos are perfect for laundering money, even without the casino's knowledge. Indeed casinos have an incentive to turn a blind eye, because with the rise of internet gambling apps, the casino's money laundering function could be necessary for casino profitability. Like Ben Franklin said centuries ago - we must look ahead a few moves, as in a game of chess - and the future that a local casino offers may spell the end of "Happy" Valley.
A pox upon the casino that will be a blight upon our region. Against broad and sustained opposition, it is coming. Round 1 goes to the predatory industry. But launching a casino (especially where it most definitely doesn't belong) is one thing; making a go of it is another. Whether a slow death or a rapid one, our hope is that it fails and dies. That will settle the issue for good. How ironic..the casino itself is one big throw of the dice, a high-stakes gamble, a bet that our area will "show them the money!" Snake eyes. Sensible people know that gambling is a losing proposition.
“So a darkened, bell-clanging casino with hidden cameras and beefy bodyguards evokes our Happy Valley landscapes? Come on. What a crock.” — well put, Gina Leon.
I too oppose the casino opening up here in our mall.
I do not want this horrid casino
Casino profits depend on deliberately and systematically identifying, exploiting, and destroying the addiction-prone among us. An accurate name for this casino would be "Unhappy Valley." That will be its legacy.
I continue to be opposed to the casino coming to State College. I have lived here for years and I think this will ruin our community not only because of the addiction but also the overall issues that can come from this type of environment,
Ew. Please leave our name off of it. We have been fighting this from the start. We do not want it, we do not need it. It should not be here. This is a major MAJOR mistake. I'm so very disappointed in our local leaders that have allowed this to happen to our area. The town already has a huge problem with student drinking. Now we're giving them a reason to drink and drive and also gamble. Bad move. BAD MOVE.
I am tired of people overusing euphemistic speech (like when the Borough says that adding new parking meters that accept credit cards will "enhance your parking experience") -- similarly, saying "the name and logo (of the new Happy Valley casino) pay homage to the rich history, picturesque landscapes, and enduring spirit of the Happy Valley community that we are proud to be a part of..." (Eric Pearson, CEO of SC Gaming) is a bit much. Really? So a darkened, bell-clanging casino with hidden cameras and beefy bodyguards evokes our Happy Valley landscapes? Come on. What a crock.
Makes me sick when they say that happy Valley casinowill make it wonderful. Our happy valley will not be happy. No more. Mr. Lubert has already got rid of the casino to another company and they don't care one woot about happy Valley College Township really makes me sick that they would not Let our Township vote on the casino. They just bypassed us praying that something happens that the casino will never be completed.
Happy Valley Casino will make a lot of our students unhappy when they become gambling addicts. And it will make a lot of parents even unhappier when they find out that the children they sent to be educated were turned into addicts instead.
The casino's developers have completely ignored the single point of eventual failure the casino will experience about six months after the grand opening. The community members of State College do not want a casino just four miles away from the main campus of Penn State University. Strong community opposition unwavering since 2021 and it remains that way today. See for yourself at the SayNoCasino website. The future reason for empty chairs in front of the slot machines is the same reason the parking lot will be consistently vacant. Penn State students will continue to enthusiastically bet on sports and casino games with their phones. They are not about to spend their evenings in front of a slot machine at the ill-conceived and unpooular "Happy Valley Casino" built inside a former Macy's department store. Their Penn State student peer groups will predictably roll their eyes immediately so don't expect to see Penn Staters rolling the dice. "Seven out, line away!" They gotta learn all about that before approaching a craps table. Anyone betting their hard-earned money at a slot machine better become familiar with random number generators and near misses. If they plan to spend hours playing slots they better be subject matter experts and completely conversant about random number generators. Just watch as this all becomes an inconvenient truth. Trust me, it will.
Parents of prospective Penn State students will not be impressed by the presence of a casino just a short bus ride away from the University's main campus - especially when the leaders of the University's board stand to personally benefit from students gambling in it.
If Saratoga Casino Holdings did their due diligence before partnering with Ira Lubert, they would have first thoroughly reviewed the SayNoCasino org website. Over 100 local Letters to the Editor are included there. Happy Valley does not want or welcome a 24/7 gambling venue in State College. The Happy Valley Casino developers forgot to factor in the simple truth that the residents of our community know better than to throw away their hard-earned money by spending hours at casino table games and charming slot machines. Table game minimums of $10 or more per hand will discourage the folks who drive five miles to save a dime on a gallon of gas. On weekend nights those $10 table game minimums might be dialed up to $25 per hand of blackjack or spin of the roulette wheel. Nobody has yet mentioned that before in our college town. Within two years after the casino's grand opening that eventual financial downfall of the Happy Valley Casino will be attributed to competition from the 24/7 online gambling we see continually advertised on television every day. That assured failure of the casino will definitely happen because we can use our phones 24/7 for those same slot machine and table game thrills without friends and family members even knowing. Folks gamble online daily with their phones, even from work during their normal working hours. An unanticipated but inevitable surprise will be visibly realized by early 2027 when the Happy Valley Casino floor becomes a vacant ghost town between the hours of 2 am and 2 pm daily. In Happy Valley, casino patrons need to go to work in the morning. Make a note of this now and then anticipate watching it all unfold in 2027. Happy Valley has very little in common with Saratoga Springs, New York. Just watch for everything described here to unfold in State College right on schedule.
Casinos built in the vicinity of college campuses have a small positive effect on per capita income and job growth, but a large negative effect on gambling behaviors and addiction, alcohol use, and other risky behaviors. Penn State is already known for high rates of serious problems with alcohol and related issues; rates could foreseeably increase even further. There is also concern that the surrounding areas, which are much more in need of economic supports, are unlikely to directly benefit from a casino. In other similar cases, casinos have not led to the large increases in funding for schools, employment, industry, and other economic benefits that were promised. I know of no justification for an establishment that potentially exacerbates those problems and, certainly, there are alternative means of boosting the economy in State College that do not have potentially adverse residual impacts.