Councilman Matt Herndon
@mattherndon.org
Father, bike rider, and State College Borough Council Member focused on safer streets, housing affordability, sustainability, and including all who want to live here.
Views expressed are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the full council.
Views expressed are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the full council.
Last Friday staff presented the proposed 2026 budget to Council. This budget includes an 8 mill tax which would raise our property tax to 30.88 mills 35% above current levels. There've been many questions/concerns about this in the community and I'll attempt to answer them in this thread. 🧵
November 10, 2025 at 10:25 PM
Last Friday staff presented the proposed 2026 budget to Council. This budget includes an 8 mill tax which would raise our property tax to 30.88 mills 35% above current levels. There've been many questions/concerns about this in the community and I'll attempt to answer them in this thread. 🧵
Today's election day. I wish there were more offices up for a vote, but the ones that are really matter. Retaining judges is key to ensuring our votes are actually counted in future elections. We also need good members on school board, their opponents literally spoke against playgrounds and solar!
November 4, 2025 at 11:52 AM
Today's election day. I wish there were more offices up for a vote, but the ones that are really matter. Retaining judges is key to ensuring our votes are actually counted in future elections. We also need good members on school board, their opponents literally spoke against playgrounds and solar!
As an elected member of the State College Borough Council I have sworn to support the Constitution of the United States. Today I was happy to join my fellow citizens at our local No Kings protest to call on our Federal government to honor their oaths as well and uphold our Constitution. #NoKings
October 18, 2025 at 7:39 PM
As an elected member of the State College Borough Council I have sworn to support the Constitution of the United States. Today I was happy to join my fellow citizens at our local No Kings protest to call on our Federal government to honor their oaths as well and uphold our Constitution. #NoKings
@geoffrushton.bsky.social does a good job summarizing the discussion of a potential road diet on Atherton East of the intersection with Westerly. Obviously neither council nor PennDOT is fully decided on this. I hope everyone will take some time to learn more about road diets and see the potential.
PennDOT Completes Road Diet Study for Next Phase of Atherton Street Work. Here's What It Recommends
PennDOT is considering reducing the number of travel lanes as a safety and traffic calming measure on one section of South Atherton Street as it plans for
www.statecollege.com
October 15, 2025 at 4:52 PM
@geoffrushton.bsky.social does a good job summarizing the discussion of a potential road diet on Atherton East of the intersection with Westerly. Obviously neither council nor PennDOT is fully decided on this. I hope everyone will take some time to learn more about road diets and see the potential.
Last week Council met 3 times to discuss our new #zoning. With our 9/15 and 9/24 meetings that adds to over 14 hours discussing this. New zoning has many changes that can improve our town and I'm working on a summary of them, but if you'd like to chat about it in person my office hours are tomorrow.
October 14, 2025 at 5:58 PM
Last week Council met 3 times to discuss our new #zoning. With our 9/15 and 9/24 meetings that adds to over 14 hours discussing this. New zoning has many changes that can improve our town and I'm working on a summary of them, but if you'd like to chat about it in person my office hours are tomorrow.
State College Borough Council discussed residential zoning again last night. I've been pushing to allow more homes in our residential districts. A Council Member from Falls Church (@justineunderhill.bsky.social) has made a wonderful video explaining how this can both increase value and lower costs.
The High Cost of "Low-Density" Zoning
YouTube video by Justine Underhill
youtu.be
September 25, 2025 at 3:05 PM
State College Borough Council discussed residential zoning again last night. I've been pushing to allow more homes in our residential districts. A Council Member from Falls Church (@justineunderhill.bsky.social) has made a wonderful video explaining how this can both increase value and lower costs.
We'll be discussing more zoning during tonight's borough council meeting. The focus tonight will be on our residential zones, which are crucial. This new draft does a lot to increase housing opportunity in our residential zones and with a few small tweaks it can really help with affordability here.
September 15, 2025 at 7:08 PM
We'll be discussing more zoning during tonight's borough council meeting. The focus tonight will be on our residential zones, which are crucial. This new draft does a lot to increase housing opportunity in our residential zones and with a few small tweaks it can really help with affordability here.
Last night Council got a great start on finishing our zoning update. After the draft had been transmitted to us I gave a short speech at 1:48:07 addressing community concerns that have been raised around zoning and further explaining why this update is so urgently needed. Please give it a listen.
9/8/25 State College Borough Council
videoplayer.telvue.com
September 9, 2025 at 6:24 PM
Last night Council got a great start on finishing our zoning update. After the draft had been transmitted to us I gave a short speech at 1:48:07 addressing community concerns that have been raised around zoning and further explaining why this update is so urgently needed. Please give it a listen.
Trying to address our housing issues by deporting people is self defeating and this data shows it. The better way forward is to fix our antiquated zoning laws to allow more people to live where they want. State College's new zoning draft will be delivered to council tonight to help us do just this.
JD Vance said the government had to deport undocumented immigrants because they increase demand for and thus prices of housing for citizens. What they’ve actually accomplished is to decimate construction of new supply, which will definitely increase prices for everyone
America lost 7k construction jobs in August, and overall job growth in the sector is now at its worst pace since the pandemic
Over the last year, the US has lost 31k jobs in residential construction and only gained 78k jobs in nonresidential & civil construction
Over the last year, the US has lost 31k jobs in residential construction and only gained 78k jobs in nonresidential & civil construction
September 8, 2025 at 4:18 PM
Trying to address our housing issues by deporting people is self defeating and this data shows it. The better way forward is to fix our antiquated zoning laws to allow more people to live where they want. State College's new zoning draft will be delivered to council tonight to help us do just this.
On Monday 8/11 council discussed the Pugh garage replacement and without voting roughly agreed to maintain the existing garage for 10 years instead of 3. This article captures most of our discussion, but leaves out an important detail on long term costs that makes 10 year maintenance cheaper than 3.
State College Council Eyes Longer Timeline for Replacement of Pugh Street Garage, McAllister Deck
State College Borough Council is moving toward a plan that would extend the life of two aging parking structures for up to a decade before a replacement
www.statecollege.com
August 15, 2025 at 8:38 PM
On Monday 8/11 council discussed the Pugh garage replacement and without voting roughly agreed to maintain the existing garage for 10 years instead of 3. This article captures most of our discussion, but leaves out an important detail on long term costs that makes 10 year maintenance cheaper than 3.
A car drove right into a restaurant wall last night in College Township. This could have been tragic, but fortunately no one was in the restaurant at the time. We need stronger state laws and safer road designs to prevent crashes like this.
State College Area Restaurant Damaged After Driver Crashes Into Building
A Centre Region restaurant is temporarily closed for dine-in and takeout service after a driver crashed a car into its building early Tuesday morning.
www.statecollege.com
August 12, 2025 at 8:11 PM
A car drove right into a restaurant wall last night in College Township. This could have been tragic, but fortunately no one was in the restaurant at the time. We need stronger state laws and safer road designs to prevent crashes like this.
Tonight's council agenda includes discussing the Pugh Street garage replacement. Some are still pushing to tear this garage down ASAP and build a replacement. Back in June Council was informed that with proper maintenance this garage can last 10 more years with a far lower $/year than a new build.
August 11, 2025 at 12:54 PM
Tonight's council agenda includes discussing the Pugh Street garage replacement. Some are still pushing to tear this garage down ASAP and build a replacement. Back in June Council was informed that with proper maintenance this garage can last 10 more years with a far lower $/year than a new build.
Great to see that Whitehall Regional Park is finally open. It sure took a while, but the results are very impressive!
July 25, 2025 at 9:44 PM
Great to see that Whitehall Regional Park is finally open. It sure took a while, but the results are very impressive!
State College Borough Council has met 3 times in July. Most of our time has been spent going through the income, spending priorities and major planned spending for both the borough and COG. I'll go into some important sustainability related items we discussed in this thread. 🧵 🔌💡
July 23, 2025 at 9:26 PM
State College Borough Council has met 3 times in July. Most of our time has been spent going through the income, spending priorities and major planned spending for both the borough and COG. I'll go into some important sustainability related items we discussed in this thread. 🧵 🔌💡
June 16th's council meeting packed a lot of useful information in. I shared some graphs and maps about land use in Centre County, staff updated us on the solar power purchase agreement, and we also learned more about parking projects in the next CIP (Capital Improvement Plan) read on to learn more.
June 18, 2025 at 1:38 PM
June 16th's council meeting packed a lot of useful information in. I shared some graphs and maps about land use in Centre County, staff updated us on the solar power purchase agreement, and we also learned more about parking projects in the next CIP (Capital Improvement Plan) read on to learn more.
The first highlight from the new zoning I wanted to post was the new Cottage Courtyard use. This would allow 4 or more single family homes to be built around a shared communal space on a single lot. This seems like a great way to add housing, especially near our many wonderful, but underused, parks.
June 13, 2025 at 7:44 PM
The first highlight from the new zoning I wanted to post was the new Cottage Courtyard use. This would allow 4 or more single family homes to be built around a shared communal space on a single lot. This seems like a great way to add housing, especially near our many wonderful, but underused, parks.
Last night's joint meeting is now up on C-NET. It shows how to navigate the zoning draft and provide comments on it. As I said at the meeting I am sure I'll have many comments as I read through it. I know most don't have time to read hundreds of pages so I'll be posting some highlights here.
SC_Planning_6-12-25_Joint_REDO
videoplayer.telvue.com
June 13, 2025 at 7:10 PM
Last night's joint meeting is now up on C-NET. It shows how to navigate the zoning draft and provide comments on it. As I said at the meeting I am sure I'll have many comments as I read through it. I know most don't have time to read hundreds of pages so I'll be posting some highlights here.
The new zoning draft has been posted! The ordinance update page is having some issues right now, but the new zoning can still be downloaded by directly hitting its links. Here's part c link which describes what is allowed in each zone district.
content.civicplus.com/api/assets/p...
content.civicplus.com/api/assets/p...
content.civicplus.com
June 12, 2025 at 7:11 PM
The new zoning draft has been posted! The ordinance update page is having some issues right now, but the new zoning can still be downloaded by directly hitting its links. Here's part c link which describes what is allowed in each zone district.
content.civicplus.com/api/assets/p...
content.civicplus.com/api/assets/p...
State College Borough has a housing affordability crisis. Updating our zoning won't fix everything, but it's a necessary first step. After years of working and waiting to make this a reality the new zoning draft will finally be revealed to council and the public tonight at 7 pm in council chambers.
State College has a draft for a new zoning ordinance. How to see it, offer input
The draft ordinance will be shown during a joint meeting between the State College borough council, planning commission and the zoning revision advisory committee Thursday.
www.centredaily.com
June 12, 2025 at 2:10 PM
State College Borough has a housing affordability crisis. Updating our zoning won't fix everything, but it's a necessary first step. After years of working and waiting to make this a reality the new zoning draft will finally be revealed to council and the public tonight at 7 pm in council chambers.
June 2's council is now live on CNET. Here's a quick summary though. We re-affirmed our commitment to inclusivity, learned about ways to extend the life of our existing garages, approved the Action Sports Park, Arts Fest updates and next year's CATA budget. Click into this thread for more...
6/2/25 State College Borough Council
videoplayer.telvue.com
June 3, 2025 at 6:14 PM
June 2's council is now live on CNET. Here's a quick summary though. We re-affirmed our commitment to inclusivity, learned about ways to extend the life of our existing garages, approved the Action Sports Park, Arts Fest updates and next year's CATA budget. Click into this thread for more...
Today's a good day to vote.
May 20, 2025 at 1:34 PM
Today's a good day to vote.
May 12th's council meeting was filled with information. You can watch the whole thing on CNET, but I understand that most don't have time for that so I'll try and summarize the highlights in this thread. 🧵
5/12/25 State College Borough Council
videoplayer.telvue.com
May 19, 2025 at 6:21 PM
May 12th's council meeting was filled with information. You can watch the whole thing on CNET, but I understand that most don't have time for that so I'll try and summarize the highlights in this thread. 🧵
Monday's council meeting included some well deserved praise for staff's handling of last week's strong storms. After that we were given the hugely disappointing news that our zoning rewrite will face another delay. The full announcement can be viewed at 1:55:06 in the C-NET meeting recording.
5/5/25 State College Borough Council
videoplayer.telvue.com
May 7, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Monday's council meeting included some well deserved praise for staff's handling of last week's strong storms. After that we were given the hugely disappointing news that our zoning rewrite will face another delay. The full announcement can be viewed at 1:55:06 in the C-NET meeting recording.
Here is a live view (updated every 5 minutes) of road closures in the area. It also has information on how to report issues. I'm so grateful to the amazing borough staff for putting this together so quickly and to the utility workers and first responders working to fix things safely.
ArcGIS Dashboards
ArcGIS Dashboards
statecollegepa.maps.arcgis.com
April 30, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Here is a live view (updated every 5 minutes) of road closures in the area. It also has information on how to report issues. I'm so grateful to the amazing borough staff for putting this together so quickly and to the utility workers and first responders working to fix things safely.
State College experienced another severe storm last night that has led to power outages and road closures. Borough staff have sent out a message detailing road closures here. I know not everyone is signed up for alerts though so I'm reposting it here.
notifications.civicplus.com/message/f86f...
notifications.civicplus.com/message/f86f...
CivicPlus Notification
notifications.civicplus.com
April 30, 2025 at 1:35 PM
State College experienced another severe storm last night that has led to power outages and road closures. Borough staff have sent out a message detailing road closures here. I know not everyone is signed up for alerts though so I'm reposting it here.
notifications.civicplus.com/message/f86f...
notifications.civicplus.com/message/f86f...