Cultural, political in spotlight as “Don’t Touch My Hair” returns to La Cultura

April 30, 2019 | by Yaasmeen Piper

“Don’t Touch My Hair” returns this weekend to La Cultura in Harrisburg. Photo by Jelani Splawn.

Take a barbershop and hair store, mix it with an art gallery, then add a pinch of vendors and you have La Cultura and Art Can’s “Don’t Touch My Hair” event.

This Sunday, inside of the Verbeke Street building in Harrisburg, natural hair gurus will present twist out demos, barbers will flex their hair cutting skills and vendors will sell hair care products, art, clothing and more.

This is the group’s second time hosting “Don’t Touch My Hair.” According to Elyse Irvis, founder of La Cultura, aside from a few new vendors, the concept of the event is unchanged.

“Don’t Touch My Hair is a cultural and political discussion,” Irvis said. “This event is a way to have that dialogue through art, live performances and retail shopping, all geared toward people of color and health and wellness.”

This month’s lineup includes The Natural Pick, Melanin Essentials and Iced By Renya for your hair, skin and body care needs. The event will feature goodies from Zwild Vegans and Jersey Sweets and clothing and accessory options from Fit 2 U and Eight6 Boutique.

According to Irvis, the event combines everything La Cultura was made for: pop-up shops, art and community.

Irvis and the creatives behind Art Can, a local art collective, chose the hair-themed event because it is a staple in the black community.

“The salons, the barbershops–so much goes on there, we share a lot of resources there,” Irvis said. “ [Don’t Touch My Hair] is a more modern way of doing that, of being in that kind of space.”

Shane Gallup, founder of Art Can, sees the event as more than just a celebration of hair. According to Gallup, the event promotes creative thinking and serves as a network for local businesses and artists.

“Art can serve as a bridge,” he said. “It brings people together and exposes them to different things.”

An artist himself, Gallup will display some of his paintings in La Cultura, but he says that won’t be the only element of art.

In Gallup’s eyes, every vendor, barber, stylist, cook and so on is an artist.

“[Art Can] doesn’t tend to look at art as two-dimensional. A lot of people are artists,” he said. “Whether they look at themselves as artists or not, the world benefits from them watering the seeds of creativity and creative vibes.”

Gallup and Elyse first came across each other at an art show called “Blackout” hosted by Bryan Hickman. According to Gallup, he and Elyse discussed their business ventures and brainstormed ideas on how they can collaborate.

Their first “Don’t Touch My Hair” event in January had more than 30 attendees and 10 vendors. This year, they expect even more participants. Can’t make it this Sunday? Don’t worry. Irvis promises “Don’t Touch My Hair” will happen again and again and again inside the newly awarded Friends of Midtown “Middie” Business of the Year.

“We need a space to bring money back into the black communities,” she said. “La Cultura is that space.”

“Don’t Touch My Hair Part II” is Sunday, May 5 from 1 to 4 p.m. in La Cultura on 214 Verbeke St., Harrisburg. To purchase your tickets for the event or for more information on La Cultura and Art Can visit their Facebook pages at @LaCultura717 and @hbgartcan.

Midtown Scholar plans 3rd Street expansion for book annex

April 30, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

The long-time home of Fornwald’s is slated to become an annex for Midtown Scholar Bookstore.

Midtown Scholar Bookstore is expanding once again, as the owners have purchased a nearby building to house a retail annex for discounted books.

Last month, Harrisburg Mayor Eric Papenfuse and his wife, Catherine Lawrence, bought the long-time home of Fornwald’s Window Shades, a 3^rd Street window treatment business that recently closed.

The new storefront, which will feature marked-down inventory, will allow Midtown Scholar to free up space in its main building for more new releases and “our favorite backlist titles,” Lawrence said.

“The bookstore is always growing,” she said. “Community-centered, independent bookstores are thriving nationwide these days, and the Midtown Scholar is part of that resurgence of local retailers.”

Recently, Midtown Scholar bought out the contents of the century-old W.H. Allen used bookshop in Philadelphia. About half of the retail space in the new annex will house that inventory, which includes about 40,000 secondhand books, Lawrence said.

The single-story building at 1324 N. 3^rd St. was constructed in 1948 to house a dress shop. In 1986, James Fornwald bought the 1,576-square-foot building at tax sale for $1, according to Dauphin County property records.

According to Lawrence, over the years, Midtown Scholar and the Fornwald family had spoken several times about buying the building. A deal was made after the Fornwalds decided to close their shop, and, in March, Papenfuse and Lawrence purchased it for $30,000.

The building requires renovation, but Lawrence said that she expects to open the space in time for the next Harrisburg Book Festival in early October.

“It is a great early 20^th-century shop building, and we are looking forward to fitting it out for book browsing,” Lawrence said.

Midtown Scholar has grown considerably since opening its first retail location on the 1500-block of N. 3^rd Street. A decade ago, the bookstore moved into much larger space at 1302 N. 3^rd St., then expanded into the corner building next door.

Papenfuse and Lawrence also own several other buildings along the 1300- and 1400-blocks of N. 3^rd Street.

For more information about Midtown Scholar Bookstore, visit www.midtownscholar.com.

The Price Is Right: And so is essentially everything else.

April 30, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

Illustration by Rich Hauck.

Recently, the Washington Post ran a story in its weekly real estate section with the following headline:

“Looking to buy a home for $200,000? Here’s what you can expect to find.”

Among the offerings: a 550-square-foot efficiency in Southwest D.C. (with a co-op fee of $819 a month), an 896-square-foot, two-bedroom duplex in drab Landover, Md., and a 451-square-foot studio (with a Murphy bed!) in Alexandria, Va.

Hmm.

So, I scurried over to my Realtor.com app and undertook the same exercise for this area.

Last month, for around $200,000, I could buy a fully renovated three-bedroom, three-bath, 2,100-square foot Victorian-era townhouse with river views in Harrisburg; a four-bedroom stone stunner (another Victorian) a few blocks east of downtown Lancaster; or a gorgeous 2,100-square-foot, three-bedroom Queen Anne near Dickinson College in Carlisle.

Suddenly, I felt like a rich man.

Yes, I love D.C., lived there for many years. But, at this point in my life, I really don’t want to live in a place where, with a little stretch, I can touch my bed, my kitchen table and my bathroom sink all at the same time.

Now, one could argue that, fortunately, I don’t have to. I have a job here. So, I can be all smug in my spacious rowhouse down the street from the state Capitol.

Yeah, but the thing is—so could a lot of people. Plenty of workers in the D.C. area telecommute, and some could swap their government, professional or services jobs for similar ones here. They may earn less on average, but probably not that much less.

Let’s look at some numbers.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2017, the Harrisburg/York/Lebanon CSA (combined statistical area) had a median housing unit value of $184,100 and median household income of $63,296—a differential of less than 3x.

In contrast, the Washington/Baltimore/Arlington CSA had a median housing value of $363,100 and a median household income of $89,181—a differential of greater than 4x.

But even these numbers understate the difference between the two areas.

The sprawling DC/Baltimore/Arlington CSA reaches far outside the core metro area to include portions of West Virginia, western Maryland and, for some reason, Franklin County, Pa.—much lower-priced areas that drag down the median housing value.

In fact, inclusion in the same CSA may be the only thing that Chambersburg and Chevy Chase have in common.

What I’m saying is this: I see a misalignment of the market—the market for people.

Just down the road from here, there’s the D.C./Baltimore metroplex, which is a fantastic place. But it’s incredibly congested and wildly expensive.

But not far away, on the other side of the Mason-Dixon line, the lower Susquehanna Valley is neither congested nor expensive. It doesn’t have a big city, but it has several charming small cities, lots of countryside, scenic mountains and even some nice suburbs, if that’s your thing.

So, why aren’t more people here?

My inkling is that folks simply don’t know about this area—it’s not on their radar. It sure wasn’t on mine. I lived in the mid-Atlantic my entire life and, before I moved here, I couldn’t have told you the difference between Harrisburg, Harrisonburg and Hattiesburg.

I’m not certain who’s to blame for this information gap, but I’ve often thought that the six or seven counties of the lower Susquehanna should combine forces to brand the area—let the world know that it exists and that it offers a high quality of life.

A friend of mine—a big baseball fan—recently drove up from the D.C. suburbs to take in a game on City Island. While watching the Harrisburg Senators play, he told me that he was making plans to retire from his long-held job with a U.S. government contractor. In retirement, he didn’t want to stay in crowded, sprawl-y northern Virginia.

So, he was looking for a cute, walkable college town, somewhere in the mid-Atlantic, with good craft beer, affordable housing and easy access to the outdoors. He was considering Charlottesville, Va.

“No,” I blurted out. “You want to live in Carlisle.”

“Where’s that?” he asked.

I told him. So, on his way back home, he took a detour off I-81, walked around the historic town and fell in love.

Alternatively, I suppose, he could retire in the gentrifying D.C. neighborhood known as Hill East, which is also a nice place. There, a new, white-walled condo building just went up. Prices start at $679,000 for a one-bedroom unit and go to $2.9 million for two bedrooms (condo fees, $626 to $1,500 monthly).

It’s located right over a busy hardware store.

Lawrance Binda is editor-in-chief of TheBurg.

Silver Is Golden: HBG Jewish Film Festival celebrates 25 years in many languages, on many themes.

April 30, 2019 | by Barbara Trainin Blank

In “Working Woman,” one of the offerings of this year’s Edward S. Finkelstein Harrisburg Jewish Film Festival, Orna, a mother of three, returns to the workplace to help support her family when her husband’s new restaurant is struggling. She gets a job with Benny, a former army superior who is now a successful real estate developer.

Under his mentorship, the talented Orna rapidly rises through the ranks. But there’s a price of success—trying to balance work and home demands. Even more insidious is the escalating sexual harassment from her boss.

Released in 2018, the Israeli film might have been ripped from today’s headlines. But Director Michal Aviad said that a woman whom she met more than a decade ago, who was similarly harassed, inspired her.

“Most of the time, the harassment was a constant unspoken threat. This woman was dependent on the job and believed she could handle it,” said Aviad. “Orna wants the job, and needs it. Benny doesn’t appear to Orna or to us as a plain villain. He’s generous and appreciates her work. It is confusing, but reality is full of complex villains.”

“The Last Suit,” a 2017 Argentinian film written and directed by Pablo Solarz, sets a very different tone.

At 88, Abraham Bursztein seems to be at the mercy of his grown children. They’ve sold his Buenos Aires residence, prepared his move to a retirement home, and disagree about how to handle his fading health. But Abraham, a curmudgeonly Holocaust survivor who made a successful life in a foreign land, has his own ideas. He empties his bank account, buys a one-way ticket to Poland, and sets out to fulfill a promise made 70 years earlier—to find the man who restored him to life after the horrors of the war.

“But I was not interested in an unfolding a series of events,” Solarz said. “I wanted people to feel the same as the characters—to feel the importance of telling one’s story to ‘die in peace.’”

Along the way, in a comic, yet poignant, late-in-life road movie, Abraham experiences the kindness of strangers. Viewers are unlikely to emerge dry-eyed at the movie’s end.

“This year’s slate [of films] is quite eclectic, and we hope that our increasingly diverse audience is well met, with pictures that highlight World War II and the Holocaust, the #MeToo movement, LGBT issues, the Israeli/Palestinian divide, and even the 2017 World Baseball Classic,” said Julie Sherman, executive director of the film festival.

“The Tobacconist,” a German drama by Nikolaus Leytner based on the best-selling novel, is a coming-of-age story of innocent, 17-year-old Franz, who arrives in Vienna shortly before Hitler’s annexation of Austria. As apprentice to Otto, a tobacconist, Franz becomes enamored of regular customer Sigmund Freud, whom he consults about his infatuation with unattainable goddess Anezka.

“The Tobacconist” is the subject of the annual “Book Club Film and Breakfast” event.

Several films explore facets of Israeli life.

In the comedy-drama, “The Unorthodox,” (by Eliran Malka), a Sephardic printer who has grown tired of feeling like a second-class citizen in an Ashkenazi-dominated country takes on the establishment in quintessential underdog fashion.

“Inside the Mossad,” a documentary by Duki Dror, explores the inner workings, achievements and moral dilemmas of the foreign intelligence organization.

One of the two LGBT-themed Israeli feature films is “Family in Transition,” about a long-married man who comes out as transgendered.

From Mexico comes “Leona,” directed by Isaac Cherem. Ariela, a young Jewish woman in Mexico City, is in no hurry to marry, yet she falls in love with a man guaranteed to meet with her family’s disapproval—in a close-knit community with one of the world’s lowest rates of assimilation.

Cherem will conduct a Q&A about his directorial-debut movie.

Films also come from many European countries, Canada and even South Korea.

Closing the festival is “If You’re Not in the Obit, Eat Breakfast,” an American documentary by Danny Gold, which explores the secret to living into your 90s—and loving every minute of it. Writer-comedian Carl Reiner tracks down fellow nonagenarians—and a few others over 100—who are living happy, rewarding lives in their twilight years. Among them are comic actors Betty White and Dick Van Dyke.

Most films will be shown at the Midtown Cinema, though the festival will open at the PA State Museum and close at the Harrisburg Jewish Community Center.

“One secret to our success of the film festival is our relationship with Midtown Cinema and its members,” said Sherman. “It is expanding our audience, and a lot of these people are true cinephiles—just incredibly open to new and different film experiences.”

With its silver anniversary, the festival can claim success on many levels.

“Twenty-five years is a real milestone for the film festival,” Sherman said. “It’s been a great opportunity to consider—and be proud of—how we’ve grown, and to imagine what we can do going forward. It’s a very exciting time.”

The Edward S. Finkelstein Harrisburg Jewish Film Festival opens May 5 at the PA State Museum, 300 North St., Harrisburg. It continues May 10 to 16 at Midtown Cinema, 250 Reily St., Harrisburg. It concludes on May 16 at the Harrisburg Jewish Community Center, 3301 N. Front St., Harrisburg.

Screening times, film trailers, special events and other details can be found at www.hbgjff.com.

Act 2 Lancaster: Ranked first nationwide for retirement, the Red Rose City offers seniors fun, opportunities, second careers.

April 30, 2019 | by Don Helin

Ann Willets landed in Lancaster almost by accident.

Willets worked for years as a new product engineer for a large tech company in her home state of North Carolina. After a successful career, her company merged with another, and she lost her job.

“I talked with a friend who also had been downsized,” Willets said. “We agreed to start a bed and breakfast.”

And just like that, a second career was born. But where?

Her partner had grown up in New England, so they drew a line halfway between. Willets had been in Lancaster a few years before and enjoyed the area, and her partner liked the Amish environment and country living. So, the pair found the perfect B&B, King’s Cottage, just east of the downtown.

“We toured the city picking out the best restaurants, galleries and shops so we could provide tips to our customers,” Willets said. “We sold our customers, as well as ourselves, on this being a great place to live.”

And thus began Willets’ “retirement” job. Evidently, she did so in the perfect place.

Lancaster is the best place in the nation to retire, according to a recent ranking in U.S. News & World Report. The news magazine considered six factors: housing affordability, desirability, retiree taxes, happiness, job market and access to quality health care.

Maureen Leader sees many retirees each year in her position as public relations and communications manager at Willow Valley Communities, a 55-plus community just south of the city.

“Just because you are retired from paid work does not mean you are retired from life,” Leader said. “Our residents engage in a full life on our campus and in nearby Lancaster.”

Armand Weller, a minister, spent 17 years with a church in Florida before he retired seven years ago. Both he and his wife missed the beauty of Lancaster County and didn’t like the heat of Florida or the constant threat of hurricanes. So, they headed back north.

“My biggest fear was that I would retire, then after two weeks, go crazy from boredom,” Weller said.

That definitely didn’t happen. Like Willets, he found an unexpected second career.

Weller volunteered at a welcome center outside of Lancaster, where he was invited to fill in at a photo shoot. One of the models asked which agency he belonged to. That night, after talking to his wife and daughter, he decided to contact an agency.

“I called and, two months later, I had my first modeling job,” Weller said. “Now, I’m doing commercials, a documentary brochure and advertisements. For me, Lancaster has all of the excitement of bigger cities such as Philadelphia and New York without the traffic and crime.”

Ross Fairweather attended school in the Philadelphia area, then moved to Raleigh, N.C., as a sales representative for IBM. She was delighted to be selected to build a call center in Atlanta supporting sales of all products, from PCs to mainframes.

“After a 36-year career, I was caught in a downsizing operation, so moved back to the Philadelphia area before being laid off,” Fairweather said. “Tired of home ownership, I moved into an over-55 community in Lancaster because it had residents from a diversity of states.”

Fairweather joined a local church, which operated a breakfast program for students. Her involvement led the church to ask her to be the volunteer coordinator at a local school to recruit mentors for students, a program that continues to grow.

“I love the city.” Fairweather said. “Plus, I feel helping needy families is my calling.”

Betty Price has been in service nearly all her life.

After finishing college, she joined the Air Force, eventually obtaining a master’s degree in East Asian studies, which resulted in a career in military intelligence. As an intelligence officer, she served in a wide variety of duty stations, including the Pentagon and Korea.

When she retired from the Air Force, Price worked for MITRE Corp., a defense contractor. During this time, she moved to an over-55 community in Loudoun County, Va., and started her own company as a personal trainer.

“Washington, D.C., is an exciting place,” Price said. “But to get to the things I like, such as wonderful galleries or the Kennedy Center, I needed to fight traffic or take the Metro.”

So, she moved to Lancaster to retire, slow down the pace of life and pursue other opportunities.

What’s the secret to Lancaster’s No. 1 ranking? It seems to be a combination of urban living, historical charm, plenty of parks, lots of culture and nightlife and a chance to do something entirely new later in life.

“I love Lancaster because, like D.C., it has restaurants, art galleries and theaters, but all within a few minutes commute,” Price said.

“Ragtime” Reinvented: Open Stage of Harrisburg showcases a melting pot of stories.

April 30, 2019 | by Laura Dugan

Photo by Haley Harned.

A woman struggling to find her identity as a wife and mother. A black couple facing racial tensions in their community. An immigrant and his daughter trying to better their lives in America. A wealthy young man swept up in a political movement, learning to fight for what is right.

These themes are all explored in the Tony Award-winning “Ragtime,” coming to Open Stage of Harrisburg in late May. The sweeping musical mixes fictional characters with real-life historical figures, resulting in a melting pot of American stories.

Traditionally presented with a cast of 40, large sets and vivid costumes, “Ragtime” Director Rachel Landon is taking a simpler approach in her direction, focusing on the basics needed to tell the story.

“With musicals, we can get lost in the spectacle,” said Landon. “Our approach will enable people to identify with every single character and the struggles they are going through. When you remove those elements often associated with a large-scale musical, you’re left with the story and characters.”

James Oronoz, who is playing Coalhouse Walker, Jr., is excited about the changes that are being made to the presentation of the show.

“What I love about the entire show is every song feels like it’s a finale,” said Oronoz. “It’s so grand and big and so beautiful. But, ultimately, why I love doing theater is telling stories. The changes being made are steps forward in an ever-changing world and will bring more strength to the piece.”

To accomplish Landon’s vision for “Ragtime,” actors will portray multiple characters, costumes and sets will be kept simple, and a small pit orchestra will provide the music.

“Presenting the show in a different way allows actors to play characters they may not have been able to play,” Landon said. “There will be modern and anachronistic elements that will support that choice. The music is so epic and boiling it down to a ragtime feel will add an additional element of Americana to the show.”

Based on the novel of the same name by E.L. Doctorow, the musical was adapted by Terrance McNally, with music by Stephen Flaherty and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens. The plot of “Ragtime” focuses on one question: “What is the American dream?” Set in the early 1900s and told through the daily lives of three different and diverse families, the story’s themes are timeless.

“These characters have to make very tough choices as the landscape of America is changing faster than they are prepared for,” said Landon. “Although set 100 years ago, we still struggle greatly with our relationship with immigration and race. These are social themes where people will say, ‘That’s us, too. That’s America.’”

Even though the presentation of the show will be simplified, it is important to Landon that the original story and themes be honored. The through-line of “Ragtime” is told through the third person with a switch to first person for intimate and challenging scenes. Open Stage’s version will maintain that method of storytelling.

“We want to respect the words these characters have to share,” said Landon. “One of the reasons we picked ‘Ragtime’ in our ‘Coming of Age’ season is because it exemplifies the country coming of age. It also shows us that, in many ways, our country is still coming of age. Our version of ‘Ragtime’ will emphasize that, showing these are incredibly flawed people who don’t realize how greatly they are flawed until these events grow out of control.”

As “Ragtime” concludes the season, the musical will be the final show in the theater’s current configuration. Major renovations to the theater will occur over the summer, including a new entrance, technical upgrades and updates to all existing classrooms, dressing rooms and office space, leading in to Season 34, which is aptly themed “Metamorphosis.”

While many changes are coming to Open Stage, audience members will enjoy seeing a familiar face return to the stage in “Ragtime.” Stuart Landon, producing artistic director, will portray Tateh. He last appearance in a main stage show was “Sondheim on Sondheim” in 2016.

Whether or not audience members have previously seen “Ragtime,” Open Stage of Harrisburg’s version of the musical will offer an intimate look at life in America—both the good and bad—and how people can learn from the past to better their futures.

“I would love for everyone to come in with an open mind and open heart,” said Oronoz. “And get ready to be entertained.”

The “Ragtime” cast also features Brad Barkdoll, Benny Benamati, Stiles Colbert, TJ Creedon, Georgianna Hicks, Jonathan Hoover, Alex King, Pilisa Mackay, David Payne, Gretchen Sutton, Ian Wallace and Stacey Werner. Musical direction is provided by Nicholas Werner and choreography by Kelly Strange.

“Ragtime” runs May 25 through June 16 at Open Stage of Harrisburg, 25 N. Court St., Harrisburg. Tickets are available at www.openstagehbg.com. For information on Season 34, please visit the Open Stage website.

UPCOMING THEATER EVENTS
AT HARRISBURG’S PROFESSIONAL
DOWNTOWN THEATERS

At Gamut Theatre
www.gamuttheatre.org
717-238-4111

The Popcorn Hat Players Present
“Puss In Boots”
May 1 to 18
Saturdays at 1 p.m.
Select Wednesday and Thursday performances available by request and availability.
Call the box office for more information. 717-238-4111

KIDSFEST at Artsfest
May 25 to 27
Riverfront Park, Harrisburg

26th Annual “Free Shakespeare in the Park”
William Shakespeare’s “Much Ado About Nothing”
May 31 to June 15
Reservoir Park
Wednesdays to Saturdays at 7:30 p.m.

At Open Stage of Harrisburg
www.openstagehbg.com
717-232-6736

Musical Theatre Master Class
With Lara Hayhurst and Trey Compton
May 6 at 7 p.m.

“Ragtime”
May 25 to June 16
A breathtaking musical about what it means to live the American dream.

Slice of Tradition: Smoke & Pickles carves out a place in Mechanicsburg.

April 30, 2019 | by Stephanie Kalina-Metzger

Burg in Focus: Smoke & Pickles Artisan Butcher Shop from GK Visual on Vimeo.

David T. Mills has worn many culinary hats over the years.

He started as a dishwasher at 16 years old and quickly worked his way up the ladder to become an executive chef at the tender age of 19.

He then worked in food service and as a culinary arts instructor, while pursuing a certificate in brewery science at Tröegs Independent Brewing in Hershey.

He’s recently hit another milestone. Earlier this year, he opened Smoke & Pickles Artisan Butcher Shop & Kitchen, adding to the flavor of historic downtown Mechanicsburg, itself in the midst of a revival.

Ancient Practice

Many of Mills’ ideas for his shop originated with trips to Italy, Spain and France, journeys that were both eye opening and inspiring, he said.

“We ventured into a small town in Chianti in the Tuscany region [of Italy] called Panzano, where we visited a butcher shop,” he said. “It was an extremely busy place, and the butcher was blasting AC/DC as he handed me a water glass full of Chianti.”

It turned out that the butcher was the renowned Dario Cecchini, who’s been featured on many food programs, including in the Netflix documentary series, “Chef’s Table.”

Cecchini is an eighth-generation butcher, committed to doing his job in the traditional way. For instance, he uses all parts of the animal—an ancient skill that has been passed on through the family. This resonated with Mills’ sense of sustainability.

“When I returned to the states, I realized how broken the food system was,” he said.

His newfound knowledge led him to try to make changes in his small corner of the world in central Pennsylvania. He now serves on the board of the LEAF (leadership, education and farming) project in Carlisle, whose mission is to cultivate youth leaders through meaningful work in the food system. He also joined the nonprofit American Culinary Federation, where he currently serves as president.

“That [affiliation] gave me the opportunity to dive into what was next,” he said.

He’s since run into his Italian butcher/mentor stateside, as Cecchini has appeared at York’s Pullo Center, hosted by Caputo Brothers Creamery.

“I got wind that the same butcher I observed in Italy was slated to break down a hog on stage, while playing AC/DC, of course,” said Mills, with a chuckle.

Locally Sourced

Mills’ first task at Smoke & Pickles was to remodel the space on Market Street to accommodate several meat cases, a work area and a separate eatery, which includes seating for 27 customers.

Products for sale include pre-marinated steaks, roasts, farm fresh eggs, sausages, stocks, burgers, beef, pork, bacon, chicken, turkey, guinea fowl and duck, to just name a few items.

Those who prefer to dine onsite can choose from a variety of handhelds served on homemade rolls. Popular choices are the “Screamin’ Eagle,” prepared with boneless fried chicken, house-made sauce and slaw, and the “The Mechanicsburger,” made with ground beef and bacon and served with Bibb lettuce, red onion, garlic aioli and a fried tomato. “The Smoker,” another much-ordered option, features pulled pork, house barbecue sauce and slaw.

Customers can usually find Mills working onsite in the food preparation area. Both he and his staff are available to answer questions about the provenance of the products that he showcases each week.

“I visited every single farm,” he said, speaking about his products. “It is important for me to see how the animals are raised. You can tell how they are cared for, and, if you can smell the farm when you get there, they are not doing things how they should be.”

It’s also important to Mills that antibiotics are kept to a minimum.

“Most of them don’t use any,” he said, adding that he knows of one farm on his list of purveyors that has administered just four shots in the past decade. “That’s a testament to how he cares for the animals.”

Candace Bordner was one of the first customers to visit Smoke & Pickles. The Mechanicsburg resident, who dined onsite, said that she was impressed with the quality of ingredients used for food preparation and the fact that all the products are sourced ethically and sustainably.

“I love that they list where everything is from,” she said.

Owen Bower, Jr., drove from Halifax to purchase a bone-in prime rib for Easter and, while there, also bought pickles and a dry-aged, grass-fed tomahawk steak.

“My girlfriend lives in Mechanicsburg, and we were waiting for it to open,” he said. “I like the fact that everything is local. It’s worth the splurge.”

For Mills, opening an artisan butcher shop is the culmination of a dream, and he’s delighted that it has been received so enthusiastically.

“I’m just happy to revive the cozy, reputable, neighborhood butcher shop that meets all the traditional standards of the past, while breathing creative new life into the locally sourced food movement,” he said.

Smoke & Pickles Artisan Butcher Shop is located at 30 S. Market St., Mechanicsburg. Learn more by visiting their Facebook page or calling 717-795-4852.

Artist in Focus: Andrew Guth

April 30, 2019 | by TheBurg Editor

Do you own a Guth?

If you’ve been around Harrisburg awhile, you just might.

Artist Andrew Sedgwick Guth has been creating art in the capital city for more than a decade, formerly as part of the North Gallery and Mantis Collective and, now, as an independent artist with a studio in the Millworks in Harrisburg.

His painting and printmaking is eclectic in media and theme. One day, he might employ mixed media to create figurative art with a deeply personal message. On another, he’ll turn to abstraction. Then he’ll create whimsical representations of taco trucks, bears or parking meters. You just never know.

One thing you will know is that Guth’s art will be of high quality. His work has been shown regionally and nationally, and he has curated more than 125 exhibits throughout his career. His art has been showcased in such prestigious places as the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, the French Embassy in Washington, D.C., and the State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg, where, in 2017, his work on paper took a first-place award in the annual, juried “Art of the State” exhibition.

On this page, we include a small sample of Guth’s work. To see more, visit www.andrewsedgwickguth.com or, even, better stop by his studio in the Millworks.

Fruit Loop: Shopping in circles at the Round Barn.

April 30, 2019 | by Stephanie Kalina-Metzger

When you think of a barn, a certain type of structure almost certainly comes to mind—boxy, with a sloping roof and a huge front door.

It’s probably not round.

But near Gettysburg, there is a unique structure that draws people from miles around.

The Historic Round Barn, otherwise known as the Noah Sheely barn, was built in 1914 and later purchased by the Knouse family, who converted it to a farm market and wedding venue.

According to Charles Leik, past president of the National Barn Alliance, round barns were built with efficiency in mind.

“If you look at a cow from above, you’ll see that it’s a wedge-shaped animal, so you could array this cow around a central feeding trough,” he said. “You had your cows with the heads toward the silo and the business end in the larger circumference of the round barn.”

Additional benefits included an open floor plan where farmers could work in a continuous direction unimpeded by posts supporting the building.

According to Leik, the round barn had its share of detractors.

“Your neighbors would probably give you a hard time for building something so unusual,” he said. “And your local carpenter was probably not very excited to deal with an awful lot of geometry that he was unfamiliar with.”

Another drawback was that the round barn was really only good for dairying. So, the farmer was locked into one business once the structure was built.

The popularity of round barns waned in the 1920s with the onset of prefabricated barns and the agricultural depression after the end of World War I.

Locally Made

The Knouse family bought the barn more than three decades ago.

“They built it to house cows, horses and mules, and it stayed in the same family until we purchased it in 1984,” said Kevin Knouse of Knouse Fruitlands, a multi-generational, family-owned orchard.

After a decade of renovations, the family opened the barn to the public and now operates it as a farm stand and wedding venue.

“We spent quite a bit of time doing work on the structure, which included replacing the roof,” said Knouse, adding that the current roof needs to be replaced again, with estimates in the $400,000 range. “It didn’t last as long as we anticipated.”

Those who visit the Historic Round Barn & Farmers Market today will not only find a large selection of produce, but other products. Some of the more popular items are sauces, spreads and salad dressings.

“Vendors make items like jellies and jams with our fruits,” said Knouse. “We pull in a lot of locally made products that you can’t find anywhere else.”

History, Food

Craig Nye often travels from Mechanicsburg to shop at the Round Barn. He said that, until his first visit, he had never seen a round barn, except in pictures.

“From an architectural standpoint, I find it interesting,” he said.

Nye said that he is impressed with the selection he finds there—from the baked goods to the produce to the arts and crafts. He recommends that visitors climb the staircase to view the inside of the roof.

“It’s interesting to see the upper part of the round barn from the inside,” he said.

Nye also enjoys the petting zoo, which includes pygmy goats, horses and donkeys, and likes learning everything he can about the Lincoln Highway. He was happy to see a nod to the old route on the property.

“It’s a painted gas pump that is one of many that were installed along the Pennsylvania portion of the Lincoln Highway in 2003,” he said.

Julie Rudisill is another frequent customer.

“I love the architecture, the history and the pies, sauces and other homemade food,” said the Lancaster resident. “Their barbecue sauces are also good, and the people are very friendly.”

With the popularity of barn weddings, the Knouse family recognized the opportunity to turn the place into a wedding venue, hosting their first about 12 years ago.

“In the past eight years, we’ve done additional work to make it a marketable venue for a wedding,” said Knouse, estimating that they average about 25 a year. “We offer the facility and rental items, and the families are responsible for everything else.”

Their woodland wedding chapel is a popular addition.

“There’s a view of the valley for miles, and we provide transportation from the barn to the wedding site,” he said. “But it’s within walking distance for those who prefer to walk.”

According to Knouse, people generally learn about the business via word of mouth.

“We also draw a large crowd from the Gettysburg tourism area,” he said.

Through all the challenges, including the expensive roof that looms large, Knouse said he loves what he does.

“Agriculture is a tough job, but being able to share my family’s heritage and passion for fruit growing, while continuing the family legacy, is extremely rewarding,” he said.

The Historic Round Barn & Farm Market is located at 298 Cashtown Rd., Biglerville. The farm stand opens the last weekend of April and runs seven days a week through October and weekends in November. To learn more, visit their website at www.roundbarn.farm.

Right Time, Wrong Place? Allison Hill stakeholders don’t necessarily object to a medical marijuana dispensary; it’s the location they don’t like.

April 30, 2019 | by M. Diane McCormick

Jeannine Peterson

Jeannine Peterson learned about a medical marijuana dispensary landing in sight of Hamilton Health Center’s South Allison Hill campus “the same way the public heard about it—in the paper.”

The Hamilton Health CEO had questions.

“Why did you decide to locate here in the first place?” she said. “They never asked anyone in the city. South Allison Hill has a very active community group. We could have told you all the plans already in motion for the businesses to come here and build up this community.”

Pennsylvania’s process for siting medical marijuana dispensaries reveals a slew of regulations tempered by a bit of art.

Many find their way to distressed areas because the Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Act incentivizes locating in Act 47 cities, which include Harrisburg. While dispensary owners claim economic benefit, some residents—at least in the case of the Allison Hill site—question whether the benefits stay in the neighborhood.

Those same Act 47 cities are usually home to clusters of schools and licensed day cares, and dispensaries must remain 1,000 feet away, unless they get a waiver through local and state officials.

Which is where the S. 17th Street facility might have encountered a snag. Two daycares with active licenses are within the restricted zone, according to Pennsylvania’s Compass childcare finder. Apparently, neither was cited in the dispensary’s permit application, which was approved on Dec. 18.

To seek a post-permit waiver of the 1,000-foot rule, applicants must obtain statements presenting the views of the city and the affected day cares or schools, said PA Health Department Director of Communications April Hutcheson. They must also demonstrate that they performed their due diligence in seeking out possible sites.

By mid-April, the department had not received a waiver application from Local Dispensaries, LLC, but Hutcheson said the company was “asking how to go about the process.”

The city, however, has already written the department verifying the nearby daycare, said Mayor Eric Papenfuse. The dispensary owner has seemed willing to move, Papenfuse said. However, he added, “I think there’s some issues with how these permits are being awarded.”

The city supports dispensaries at other locations, Papenfuse said. The issue, as he sees it, is a lack of consultation with the community.

“Hamilton Health didn’t even know,” said Papenfuse. “Clearly, the Department of Health did not do due diligence in reviewing the application. I don’t blame the applicant. They did what they were supposed to do.”

And this concern about neighborhood support and impact isn’t confined to Allison Hill. Some Uptown residents have complained they weren’t consulted about the second approved facility in Harrisburg—the planned location of Harvest of South Central PA’s dispensary into the former Camp Curtin Bar-B-Que on N. 6th Street.

“I don’t think it’s appropriate to be awarding licenses without the Department of Health having a conversation with the city,” Papenfuse said. “They really ought to have a requirement to have the immediate neighborhood’s support before awarding the license.”

Community Impact

As of press time, at least one affected childcare near the proposed Allison Hill dispensary had not been approached.

Debra Washington has operated Tiny Tears Day Care on Derry Street for 20 years. The inner city has “enough woes” without a medical marijuana dispensary, she said, as she wondered why the facility doesn’t locate downtown.

“The least they could have done was come and see why I object to it, but they never even bothered,” Washington said. “I guess they feel as though they can jump right over me, and I don’t think that can happen.”

Hamilton Health Center is also upset because its own planned day care center, approved by the city in 2017, falls within the 1,000-foot zone. However, land remediation issues have delayed construction, and according to Hutcheson, application reviews consider only existing facilities.

Peterson has told facility owners that Hamilton Health Center is “not opposed at all” to medical marijuana.

“We understand the efficacy of medical marijuana,” she said. “We just didn’t think that was an appropriate location for a dispensary.”

Dispensary applicants aren’t deliberately seeking low-income communities but, instead, look for “density of population” and ease of access, said Harrisburg attorney Judith D. Cassel, of Cannabis Law PA, which specializes in medical marijuana regulatory law.

“Inner cities often provide better mass transit, so the patients can get to them, as opposed to being out in rural areas,” she said.

Some Pennsylvania dispensaries are in higher-income areas, Cassel said. Hutcheson noted, for instance, that the dispensary in the Enola mailing address is actually in Hampden Township.

Dispensary permits are scored for criteria including security, business capacity and community impact. However, applications from the Dec. 18 round of permits are undergoing redaction and are not yet available for public review. Applicants can request that trade secrets be redacted, and, as Cassel noted, even a business plan’s community impact efforts can be shielded from rival dispensaries.

Local Dispensaries, LLC, received a community impact score of 93 out of a possible 100.

“How do you get a high score for community impact?” said Peterson. “What are the criteria? No one has been able to tell us that. They didn’t talk to anyone in the community.”

Peter Bio, listed in state documents as CEO of Local Dispensaries, LLC, did not respond to questions and messages sent to his contact information.

In a statement aired by ABC27, Local Dispensaries said that its primary goal “is to provide relief for the thousands of citizens of Harrisburg who previously had to find it through opioids, other pharmaceuticals or nowhere at all.” According to that statement, the company has been “in active dialogue with the department, Mayor Papenfuse and Hamilton Health Center” and expects to deliver “a project that will provide local jobs and inject $1.5 million into a previously vacant and disused lot.”

Not Helping

Wendy Scott, secretary of the South Allison Hill Homeowners & Residents Association, isn’t aware of any pre-application outreach to the community by dispensary owners. And she doesn’t see a shower of economic or health benefits for neighbors, especially because insurance doesn’t cover the costs of certification for medical marijuana use, state ID cards or product purchases.

“If it’s only for the elite, for those who can afford it, it’s not helping Allison Hill at all,” she said.

Medical marijuana dispensaries are not the head shops of old, said Hutcheson. Patients must be physician-certified with one of 21 approved medical conditions. Products are tightly packaged, and the department can “track the marijuana from the seed where it’s grown to the grower to the patient.”

“Only approved products can be sold at a dispensary,” she said. “Only approved patients can walk into a dispensary. It is very, very highly controlled and highly regulated.”

Papenfuse sees room for all perspectives.

“Bottom line is, the city does not have an issue with a dispensary coming into the city,” he said. “We just want to make sure that the location is correct and successful and has the support of the immediate neighborhood.”

Dispensaries must be operational within six months after permits are awarded, although extensions are possible. Hamilton Health officials know that the clock is ticking, said Peterson. But she sees “a perception that because we’re in a low-income community, that there’s no development going on, that they come in and they’re going to be the entity that creates economic development.”

In reality, she said, Hamilton Health Center has a $3 million expansion underway, new apartments are entering the market, and the Harrisburg Housing Authority and Tri County Community Action are among those pursuing redevelopment. The community really does “invest in ourselves,” she said.

“We take a lot of pride in what we do,” she said. “It’s not that we don’t want other businesses to come in. We do. Any time I get an opportunity, I’m encouraging businesses to come see what’s going on. We want businesses, but we want the right businesses, the businesses that can help our community to grow and thrive.”

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