William Penn
Harrisburg’s William Penn building is no longer slated for demolition.
At Tuesday’s Harrisburg School Board meeting, Receiver Dr. Lori Suski officially reversed her previous decision to raze the vacant, blighted school building.
In June, she approved a contract with the Gordian Group to tear down the building, at a cost of $6.8 million. However, since then, community members voiced opposition to the decision, causing Suski to halt the demo and form a task force to discuss alternative options.
The task force has met a handful of times, starting in October, with a final meeting scheduled for Jan. 18. At a previous meeting, task force members voted on a motion to recommend to Suski that the building be saved.
Tuesday’s board meeting solidified that plan, with Suski instead approving the Gordian Group to clean out debris and remove asbestos from the building. The agreement also incorporates constructing a fence along the front façade to protect the public from falling debris.
A fire, determined by the city’s fire bureau to be caused by arson, damaged William Penn in December. As part of the proposal, the Gordian Group will also clean out and secure the fire-damaged area.
Also discussed on Tuesday was a recommendation to the receiver to ratify an agreement with St. Moritz Security Services to provide 24/7 security at William Penn. The district started utilizing the company on Jan. 1, at a cost of $1,200 per day. While the receiver still needs to formally approve the agreement, the security service has already taken effect.
The district has also recently boarded up many areas of the building, and new security cameras have been installed.
With Suski saving the building from demolition, task force members will continue to come up with a recommendation for future use of the property.
For several weeks, community groups, businesses and nonprofit organizations have pitched their proposals to the 25-member task force for consideration. Those presentations included ideas like creating a career and technology school, indoor sports complex, a medical facility and affordable housing for seniors, among others.
At the task force’s previous meeting, members voted on various concepts for the building to focus in on a recommendation for its use. Receiving the most votes from members was a proposal from the Harrisburg Bureau of Fire to create an emergency services and public education facility. According to Fire Chief Brian Enterline, the facility would include an emergency services station, as well as classrooms and programming for students interested in career pathways within the fire and police bureaus, as well as with LifeTeam EMS and 9-1-1 Dispatch.
Members also favored proposals including creating a career and technology school and recreational and sports facilities.
The task force will eventually make a recommendation to Suski for the use of the property. However, she will ultimately have the final say on the project.
For more information on the William Penn Task Force, visit the district’s website.
If you like what we do, please support our work. Become a Friend of TheBurg!
