The corner of Rudy Road and 29th Street looks rather ragged.
With boarded buildings, forgotten vehicles and trash, it seems to be a place of great, if unrealized, potential. However, there’s hope for this corner of Harrisburg as the Salvation Army has big plans for it.
Recently, the Salvation Army, Harrisburg Capital City Region, began a capital campaign to create an “Oasis of Hope” with a new, 43,000-square-foot building and a 7-acre campus.
The proposed campus, the Salvation Army Service and Worship Center, would give the organization something it lacks at its current Midtown facility on Green Street—the ability to consolidate in one place—whether that’s serving 2,500 area youth, offering breakfast for 100 five days a week or assisting more than 20,000 people a year.
Currently, the Salvation Army uses 20 off-site locations just to run its youth programs. Kathy Anderson-Martin, director of resource development, said that, while the Salvation Army is grateful for access to churches and schools to house its programs, it “limits impact, and it’s hard to take your programs on the road.”
“We spend a lot of time coordinating logistics that wouldn’t be necessary in another space,” added Melissa Snyder, family services administrator.
The summer program, for instance, is located in a church that requires that all of the materials for 150 students be packed away each Friday—so that the space is useable for the church on Sunday—then unpacked again to start the week.
“For us, we will be much more efficient so our staff can be with clients and the people we serve,” said Jenny Gallagher-Blom, director of operations.
The lack of storage, absence of a loading dock, and presence of a small, gated parking lot prevent delivery of large donations of food. Many deliveries end up on the sidewalk for employees to transfer into the building themselves.
This lack of space is especially glaring for the Salvation Army’s annual Christmas gift distribution, when about 10,000 gifts are collected and stored in various areas of the building. They must be moved again if the space is needed for another purpose. Eventually, the gifts are shuttled to the 19th Street Armory, as the current facility lacks sufficient room to hold the event.
Where We Should Be
Besides physical space, the location is another impediment in reaching the community they serve. In recent years, the Midtown neighborhood where they’ve been located for many decades has changed.
“We’re not where we’re supposed to be,” said Anderson-Martin. “We should be near where the most people need us.”
The new location, she said, will better meet the needs of the community and allow for ease of access with a bus route on the property and proximity to local schools. Leaving the Green Street location will impact some local clients, but many of them already travel to get there.
Community leaders have been consulted about the planned move. Debra Cruel, spokesperson for the 29th Street Neighborhood Preservation Committee, said her group communicated the need for a community gathering space and green space.
The project, she said, meets these goals with a multipurpose center for events and acres of concrete transformed into basketball courts, a playground and a nature trail.
“Just as I believe the model for any community transformation, all of the stakeholders should have a voice in what’s happening,” Cruel said. “As far as neighborhood preservation is concerned, we feel very much a part of the entire venture.”
Holistic Solution
The new location also will have plenty of room for such needs as refrigeration, dry goods storage, a loading dock, a gymnasium and suites to house an education wing, nutrition education and family services.
With all of its programs under one roof, the Salvation Army can provide a holistic solution. Children can come to a youth program while their parents attend a nutrition class or self-sufficiency program.
“Increasingly, we are getting beyond that you come in for a bag of food every so often,” said Anderson-Martin. “We want to help you get to the point of self-sufficiency.”
Independence is important to the Salvation Army, as is good stewardship. Its commitment to responsible stewardship will not allow it to incur debt for any project. Instead, it will rely on donations and grants to fund the $9 million venture. Reserve funds allowed for the purchase of the land in May 2015. Demolition of the three structures on the property will begin this fall, but it will need to raise the remaining $5 million needed.
“The timeline [for completion] depends on the money,” said Anderson-Martin.
In partnership with the community, the Salvation Army hopes that, rather than rooms full of storage boxes, it will have rooms full of youth. Rather than a gymnasium used as a food pantry, the gymnasium will be brimming with ball players. And, instead of moving deliveries from curb to cupboard, pallet by pallet, they can spend their time building relationships with neighbors in need.
To learn more about the Salvation Army, Harrisburg Capital City Region, including how to donate to the capital campaign, visit www.pa.salvationarmy.org/harrisburg-pa.
Author: Susan Ryder
