Stephen Cline could have been nearly anywhere when his idea struck.
He could have been in a loud city with complex traffic patterns – or in an off-beat town of 500, where the pharmacist knows everyone’s first name, the gas station acts as a grocery store and the lone stoplight doubles as a police force.
But it so happened he was in Cincinnati, a city of nearly 300,000 people. There was business, there was culture and most importantly, there was topography, critical for a mapping ace like Cline.
He took a turn toward a street corner, in a neighborhood just like Midtown Harrisburg, and saw his inspiration.
It was a way-finding map, a detailed, thorough guide that put his finger on the tip of a neighborhood he knew nothing about. At that moment, Cline, who was set to graduate from Harrisburg University with a degree in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), knew what his final senior project would be.
Close up of Cline’s map design.
Five months later, Cline saw his hard work pay off. The 30-year-old GIS professional released six extensively detailed way-finding maps across different points in Midtown Harrisburg and the Greenbelt. The upright gray structures, which are anchored by 70 pounds of sand, colorfully display the locations of Midtown businesses and landmarks.
“I thought we would be a perfect use-case for it, because there are a lot of things in this neighborhood that people aren’t even aware exist,” said Cline, who resides in Midtown and now works for the Tri-County Regional Planning Commission.
“A lot of major cities have way-finding signage to help people get around,” said Cline, who added that Harrisburg currently has two out-of-date way-finding maps near the Broad Street Market and Front Street. “Unfortunately, Harrisburg didn’t have a lot of that, especially in Midtown.”
Ideas like this aren’t met without backing, though. From the very beginning, Cline had support from Friends of Midtown (FOM), a non-profit organization that develops initiatives to enhance the community.
“For a few years, Friends of Midtown had been hoping to make a similar map, but had been unable to successfully partner with someone to create them,” FOM President Shawn Westhafer said. “Steve approached FOM late last year…without knowing it was something that already interested us.”
But they also operated on a tight budget. The organization was willing to finance up to $1,800 for Cline, Westhafer said, but he didn’t want to take money away from the group. So, instead, he created a supplemental crowd-sourcing fundraising page on GoFundMe.com.
Cline initially prepared a budget of eight way-finding maps, but soon revised that plan, deciding to develop just six. He set a budget of $1,400. FOM, meanwhile, was in full support, nudging Cline in the right direction by promoting his mission on their website and by word-of-mouth.
It took just 20 days for Cline to meet his goal. He even went over it, finishing with $1,450. Soon after, he began work on the signs, which cost approximately $200 to produce – between the printing of the maps, buying of the sand and production of the gray structures.
“Between Steve’s friends and family and Friends of Midtown supporters, all necessary funds were raised, though we expect to expend funds for later map updates,” Westhafer said.
Few hurdles needed to be jumped for the signs to be placed on sidewalks. Cline said the maps were exempt from local public space ordinances due to their purpose – directional use for pedestrians.
Most of the signs can be found in Midtown – one, for instance, sits across from the Midtown Scholar Bookstore – but Cline also made sure to place a sign near the Capitol complex.
“My big goal was to help Midtown become pedestrian-friendly and help people become more aware of the great things that already exist in our city,” said Cline, who added that he hasn‘t dealt with much graffiti or theft of the maps. “There are so many good things that people can see in this area.”
A belief in forward progress defines Cline, who stands tall and lean at 6-foot-5.
A former NCAA Division I athlete at Penn State University who graduated years earlier with a degree in geography, Cline continues to evolve, learn and grow in this city. He picked up his second bachelor’s degree in May and is looking to fine-tune an idea that could have some legs.
“I do live here, and it’s a continual relationship,” Cline said of his way-finding maps. “For my next go-around, I was considering doing bus routes or even sub-neighborhoods.”
And even further, Cline said, perhaps a partnership with other local towns – like Carlisle or Mechanicsburg – which could implement way-finding maps in their areas.
His mind is always churning, searching for that next big idea. Whether it’s made in Harrisburg, on the west shore or in a small town of 500, really makes no difference.
