William Penn High School
Demolition plans for the William Penn school building in Harrisburg will come to a halt for now.
Harrisburg School District Receiver Dr. Lori Suski announced at a press conference on Wednesday that she would reconsider alternatives to demolishing the long-vacant high school building.
In late June, Suski approved a $6.8 million proposal from the Gordian Group to demolish the building, built in 1926. At the board meeting, she explained that the building was increasingly being vandalized and causing financial strain on the district. The district also was having trouble obtaining property insurance for the building.
However, in front of William Penn, located next to Italian Lake Park, Suski told members of the press that she was “not personally comfortable with moving forward” with demolition at this time.
“I really took a step back and asked myself, ‘Is this the right decision for the Harrisburg community and the Harrisburg School District?’” Suski said. “As a result of that, I wanted to put a pause on the situation.”
Suski said that, in recent weeks, many community members have met with her and shared their opinions and desires to preserve the building. She has taken that input into consideration and wants to grant the community additional time to weigh in, she explained.
“I feel that it’s important to weigh the thoughts of the community, to weigh the thoughts of different experts, and I believe that there is a lot of information that the administration has yet to bring forward,” she said.
At the district’s Aug. 22 board meeting, Suski charged Superintendent Eric Turman, along with other district officials, with bringing forth a full proposal for the future of the property, including how a portion of it may be preserved and what the district would do with the large, empty 27.75 acres of land, should the building be demolished.
At that meeting, slated for Sept. 12, Suski said that community members will have a chance to ask questions about the proposal and share feedback, which could influence a change in plans.
Receiver Dr. Lori Suski speaks to the press in front of William Penn.
“There was no opportunity given to the public to share their ideas, their thoughts, their opinions about this monumental decision to destroy this majestic facility,” she said. “I believe that opportunity needs to be provided.”
In the meantime, the district will not move forward yet with executing the contract to demolish and, instead, explore all possible options for the future of William Penn.
That future could include selling the building, keeping it and securing it, or possibly partnering with an organization to open a vo-tech school or job training facility, Suski explained.
Demolition is still on the table, Suski shared, but before making a decision, she would like to hear a more robust plan on how the façade of the building may be preserved as well as the artifacts inside the building, should she decide to demo.
“In the end, I’m the only one right now who would be able to make that decision, and I can tell you right now that my gut is telling me to take a step back and really re-evaluate and reconsider all options before going in that direction,” she said.
Suski also stated that she gets the sense that many of the school board members do not support the halt to the demolition. At the June board meeting, several board directors expressed their support for demolition, despite their regret that the building had fallen into such disrepair.
However, Suski holds the sole vote while the district is under state receivership. School board directors hold no voting power, besides a vote on the district’s property tax levy.
Reached by phone, school board member Jim Thompson said that he thinks the board’s opinions on demolition are mixed.
While Thompson doesn’t see the need for more classroom space for the district at this time, he said that the building could be useful in the future. However, he’s also open to the idea of shuttering and securing it or demolishing it. Overall, he is willing to hear alternatives for William Penn, but a non-negotiable for him is keeping the land.
“Tear it down, keep it, adaptively reuse it, just don’t sell the land,” he said.
Suski estimates that it may take two or three months for the district to weigh alternatives. She hopes that the district will be able to obtain property insurance to buy them some additional time, as well.
“After you demo a building, you can’t go back,” she said.
The Sept. 12 board meeting will take place at 6 p.m. in the Lincoln Administration Building, 1601 State St., Harrisburg. For more information about the Harrisburg School District, visit their website.
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