Primary Slate Set
Five candidates for mayor, seven candidates for City Council and 10 candidates for school board: Harrisburg voters will have three very competitive local races to consider come the May 16 primary.
For mayor, incumbent Eric Papenfuse will face off against former council President Gloria Martin-Roberts, former city police officer Jennie Jenkins, newcomer Anthony Thomas Harrell and former candidate Lewis Butts in the Democratic primary. No Republicans submitted petitions to run.
Notably, two candidates who stated an interest in the race did not submit petitions for the primary: former state Assembly candidate Gina Roberson and former council candidate Chris Siennick, who has indicated that he may run as an independent in the general election in November.
For council, three incumbent Democrats filed for four, four-year seats: Wanda Williams, Shamaine Daniels and Ben Allatt. They will face four challengers: former council candidate Jeremiah Chamberlin, school board member Ausha Green, activist Angela Kirkland and Dauphin County Young Democrats leader Dave Madsen. No candidates filed to run on the Republican side.
The Democratic roster for four, four-year seats on the school board includes incumbents Judd Pittman, Danielle Robinson and James Thompson and challengers Brian Carter, Carrie Fowler, Richard Soto, Gerald Welch and Cory Williams. Newcomer Percel Eiland is the only candidate running for the board’s sole two-year seat. Thompson also filed on the Republican side.
Incumbent city Treasurer Dan Miller and incumbent city Controller Charlie DeBrunner are running unopposed in the Democratic primary. There is no Republican challenger for either office.
Because Harrisburg is overwhelmingly Democratic, the primary is typically the most significant election in selecting the city’s office-holders.
School Report Mixed
The Harrisburg School District is showing improvement financially and academically, but significant challenges remain, according to a recent report.
The report, a mid-year update to the amended HSD Recovery Plan, ranked the district’s initiatives on a scale of complete, in progress and not completed. Of the 85 initiatives, 50 have been completed, 31 are in progress and four have not been completed.
“I was encouraged because I know how far we have come,” said school board President Danielle Robinson. “We still have a lot of work to do, but I was encouraged to see the growth and the movement.”
Chief Recovery Officer Dr. Audrey Utley, with the assistance of PFM, a Philadelphia-based consulting group, prepared the report using information from the district, financial reports and interviews with district staff.
Major gaps remain for the academic goals. If these goals are not met or have not shown advancement, the district risks having a state receiver appointed.
“If the District fails to meet these targets or show significant progress in each building toward the goal by the end of the Plan period, the CRO and the [State] Secretary of Education can take steps to appoint a Receiver effective for the 2018-19 school year,” according to the report.
The phrase “significant progress” saves the district from entirely having to meet academic targets, Robinson said. This phrase, added in the amended recovery plan in May 2016, means that the district will exit recovery next year “as long as there’s growth toward these numbers,” she said.
“We fought to make sure the language was in [the amended recovery plan],” Robinson said. “It’s always under review how can we can make this better.”
The recovery plan’s academic goals challenge the district to “eliminate the gap” or “close the gap by 50 percent” between the district’s testing, attendance and graduation metrics and state averages by June 2018, according to the report.
Gaming Funds Released
Harrisburg’s two fire stations will receive a $250,000 grant to update the 1980s-era facilities, part of $5.6 million in gaming grants announced last month by the Dauphin County commissioners.
The money is earmarked to renovate Fire Station #2’s roof and the dormitories in Fire Stations #1 and #2, both built in 1980.
The current dormitories lack privacy, said Fire Bureau Chief Brian Enterline. Right now, 16 beds sit in large, square rooms in each fire station. The renovation plans include adding walls to divide the space and installing locker rooms, he said.
“We are trying to utilize the most space possible so we don’t have a ton of wasted space,” he said. “Right now, we have a ton of wasted space.”
This will be the first major change to the dormitories since the stations were constructed, he said.
The roof renovation for Fire Station #2 includes incorporating aspects of Capital Region Water’s community greening project, an environmentally friendly way of managing stormwater runoff.
The commissioners awarded grants to 48 other projects derived from slot revenue at Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course, including:
- $350,000 to Dauphin County Parks & Recreation for Detweiler Park acquisition
- $163,236 to Susquehanna Township for public safety building debt reduction
- $151,000 to Lower Swatara Township for bridge replacement and fire apparatus debt reduction
- $140,650 to Paxtang Borough and Central Dauphin School District for school building safety improvements
- $217,100 to Lower Paxton Township for a park playground project, Penn Colonial Pool improvements and Linglestown Fire Co. building improvement
- $39,250 to Steelton Borough for firefighting equipment replacement
- $110,154 to Swatara Township for water rescue response boat and vehicle and Reliance Hose Co. station improvements
- $55,000 to Penbrook Borough for Elm Street Park improvements
- $43,152 to Highspire Borough for firefighting equipment
- $30,000 to Dauphin County Human Services to purchase a van for a transportation program
- $200,000 to Dauphin County Court Administration for the construction of MDJ buildings
- $127,000 to Dauphin County Conservation District for an agricultural stewardship project
- $69,001 to Dauphin County Land Bank Authority to renovate two vacant homes
- $100,000 to PinnacleHealth for an addiction and substance abuse urgent care clinic
- $33,000 to Dauphin County General Authority for maintenance equipment acquisition
- $35,000 to Steelton Borough/Homeland Center for upgrades to an emergency back-up generator
- $70,000 to the Salvation Army for a new headquarters and services facility
- $50,000 to Steelton Borough/Boys & Girls Club of Harrisburg for John Hall Clubhouse renovation
- $50,000 to Steelton Borough/Monumental AME Church for HVAC upgrade and boiler removal
- $26,204 to Susquehanna Township/Jewish Family Services for headquarters renovations
- $35,000 to Susquehanna Township/American Literacy Corps for Books in Barbershops program
Home Sales Still Strong
Despite rising interest rates, home sales remained strong in central PA in February, according to the Greater Harrisburg Association of Realtors.
Overall, residential sales totaled 552 units for February, versus 524 units in the year-ago period in GHAR’s coverage area. The median price increased to $157,500 versus $145,000 in February 2016.
In Dauphin County, 216 homes sold compared to 182, while the median price dipped to $132,750 from $134,950, said GHAR. Cumberland County saw sales of 182 homes compared to 175, while the median price rose to $181,000 from $169,900 in the prior February, according to GHAR.
In Perry County, 16 homes sold compared to 13, while the median price dropped to $93,000 versus $121,200, GHAR said.
GHAR covers Dauphin, Cumberland and Perry counties and parts of Juniata, York and Lebanon counties.
So Noted
Blackberry Technology Center officially opened last month at 316 Blackberry St. in downtown Harrisburg. The fully renovated brick building, once a hardware store and abandoned for about three decades, now houses three technology concerns, all affiliated with Harrisburg University.
Fresa Bistro opened last month in Strawberry Square in downtown Harrisburg. Fresa features a menu of sandwiches, panini, salads, wraps and soups and a 60-seat dining area, accessible from both inside and outside of Strawberry Square.
Kyle Wasilkowski began last month as the new sports and fitness coordinator for Harrisburg Young Professionals. Wasilkowski is a recent graduate of York College of Pennsylvania, receiving a bachelor’s degree in sports management.
Parkmobile, Harrisburg’s new parking app, went live last month, offering discounts and an easy-to-use interface. The app replaces the previous Pango app, which some users said was difficult to use and unreliable.
Phil Guarneschelli last month was named the new president and CEO of Harrisburg-based PinnacleHealth System by the board of directors. Guarneschelli, formerly the company’s chief operating officer, replaced Michael Young, who left suddenly.
Whitaker Center has announced the appointment of Ted Black as its new CEO and president. Black replaces Dr. Michael Hanes, who will continue as president emeritus and will serve as head of Whitaker Center Productions until his retirement in January.
In Memoriam
Lt. Dennis DeVoe, a Harrisburg firefighter, died last month after his car was hit while he was responding to a fire. The Uptown fire, preliminarily blamed on a faulty hoverboard, also killed two girls, 10-year-old Savannah Dominick and 2-year-old Ashanti Hughes.
Changing Hands
Adrian St., 2418: A. Graves to G. Brown, $52,500
Bellevue Rd., 2403: H. & F. Jespersen to K. & D. Brown, $145,000
Berryhill St., 2424: B. Pursell to PCONS Investments, $46,389
Boas St., 1716: D. & K. Edmonds to E. Ruth Sr., $36,000
Briarcliff Rd., 135: A. Sawyer to A. & J. Gant, $223,000
Calder St., 104: S. Knoble to M. Freeman, $90,000
Calder St., 108: R. Purtle & W. Nattress to W. Nattress & F. Hummert Jr., $70,600
Calder St., 205: K. Landes to Equity Trust Co. Custodian, $132,000
Cumberland St., 256: Bricker Boys Partnership to A. & L. Kanagy, $75,000
Derry St., 2200: K. & D. Culley to J. Chirdon & M. Gordon, $70,000
Forster St., 1844: S. Martin to J. Cuevas & I. Padua, $85,000
Grand St., 918: R. Line to J. James, $87,500
Green St., 2109: N&R Group to CWJK Holdings LLC, $317,752
Green St., 2230: WK Rentals to A. Manderino, $37,500
Kelker St., 429: R. Waibel to K. Hall, $40,000
Lewis St., 327: S. Lowe to L. Seidel, $54,500
Market St., 1239: V&F Inc. to C. Plata, $120,000
Mulberry St., 2007: R. Lewis & T. Bretz to K. Brann, $148,900
N. 2nd St., 804: US Bank National Association to E. & L. Sippel, $174,000
N. 2nd St., 906: Federal National Mortgage Assoc. to E. Neilson, $110,000
N. 2nd St., 1805: T. Nguyen to Keystone Properties Group LLC, $30,000
2nd St., 2507: D. Paterson to K. Aulenbach & A. Paradise, $125,000
N. 2nd St., 2319: G. & R. Warner to J. Crosset & M. Hochstetler, $62,500
3rd St., 3132: PA Deals LLC to D. Blumenthal, $78,900
N. 3rd St., 3210: K. Malesic to J. Yeatter, $112,000
16th St., 1202: K. Gilbert to D. Grant & D. Franklin, $94,000
N. Front St., 1525, Unit 311: C. Price Jr. to J. Eirkson, $135,000
Race St., 606: Kathy Y Marley Trust to K. Mash, $160,000
Rolleston St., 1027: D. Whittaker to R. Castillo, $67,000
Rudy Rd., 2017: Wells Fargo Bank NA to B. Meppurathu, $83,500
Rumson Dr., 2772: PA Deals LLC to MidAtlantic IRA LLC, $79,900
S. 19th St., 1336: Deutsche Bank National Trust Co. Trustee to Kuprat Property & Investments LLC, $38,964
27th St., 806: Wells Fargo Bank NA to PA Deals LLC, $36,874
S. 29th St., 738: S. Maurer to J. Guizado, $69,900
Front St., 625: Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. to Redheads Helping Property LLC, $80,000
Verbeke St., 262: J. Chapin to J. Reyes Lua, $135,000
Wayne St., 1712: D. & S. Shepler to T. & D. Patterson, $75,000
Harrisburg property sales for February 2017, greater than $30,000. Source: Dauphin County. Data is assumed to be accurate.
Author: Lawrance Binda and Danielle Roth
