The sub-station, located at 17 S. 3rd Street, functions as a hub for private security officers contracted by the Downtown Improvement District.
Harrisburg soon will have more police closer to the action, as a new precinct is planned for Allison Hill while a substation opened downtown.
Harrisburg City Council this week took a step toward opening a precinct in Allison Hill, a key aspect of the mayor’s goal to implement a community policing strategy.
On Tuesday, council unanimously approved a resolution to work with SGS Architects Engineers of Carlisle for design and construction management. After a three-month design phase, the construction to complete the renovations will go out to bid, said Mayor Eric Papenfuse.
“This will make response times quicker and community feedback easier,” Papenfuse said.
This Allison Hill precinct on 15th Street is the second of three “full-time, fully staffed” precincts that the mayor aims to create. The Uptown neighborhood will receive its own precinct next, he said.
A Community Development Block Grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development will fund the construction.
Also this month, Harristown Enterprises and the Harrisburg Downtown Improvement District (HDID) opened a Security and Safety Sub-station on 17 S. 3rd Street near Strawberry Square.
The new “S-5” sub-station serves as a hub for unarmed security officers contracted by HDID to cover the district. Pairs of officers man the sub-station five days per week (Tuesday through Saturday) from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. to supplement the daytime presence of the Capitol Police, said Brad Jones, CEO of Harristown.
“We will have patrol units continue to canvas the DID to look for situations that are unsafe and, when appropriate, call in the emergency,” he said.
These unsafe situations could be a pedestrian in distress, a motorist having car troubles or a streetlight that went out. If an emergency occurs, the private security officers contact the Harrisburg police or the Pennsylvania Capitol Police to respond, Jones said.
“These are all good things that will make the city safer,” Papenfuse said.
Author: Danielle Roth
