April News Digest

April 30, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

Free Downtown Parking Weighed

Free parking may stay on the menu in downtown Harrisburg, as City Council last month considered a measure that would extend complimentary street parking for another year.

The resolution would offer free street parking in most of downtown after 5 p.m., an arrangement that has been in effect since April 2018.

The current, one-year agreement actually expired on April 1, but the parties involved agreed to extend it through the month, until it could be renewed for another year, said Mayor Eric Papenfuse.

Technically, the resolution would allow the city to enter into an agreement with Dauphin County and the Harrisburg Downtown Improvement District (HDID) to split the $270,000 price tag. The city’s share would be $110,000, with Dauphin County, which has already approved the agreement, also kicking in $110,000. HDID would cover the remaining $50,000.

That money would be paid to Trimont Real Estate Advisors, the asset manager for the parking system. Trimont, along with operator SP+ (locally, Park Harrisburg), took control of the city’s municipal parking system as part of a debt-restructuring plan in 2014. The $270,000 sum represents the total revenue that SP+ had collected from meters and enforcement fines between 5 and 7 p.m. in the HDID zone, which ranges roughly from State Street to just past Chestnut Street.

Papenfuse said that the city has already accounted for the expected expense as part of its 2019 budget, with the money originating from its share of parking revenues.

HDID’s Executive Director Todd Vander Woude said that he enthusiastically backed another year of free evening street parking. HDID members, many of whom are restaurant owners, have reported increased happy hour and dinner business over the last year since the free parking went into effect, he said.

“I’ve heard very positive things from businesses and customers alike,” he said. “There’s been an increase in downtown business. It’s all been very positive.”

The resolution also requests a city contribution to continue another parking program—the four hours of free street parking on Saturdays enabled by using the code “LUV HBG” for users of the ParkMobile app.

That code went into effect more than four years ago to try to help businesses that said they were being harmed by the $3-per-hour charge for Saturday street parking, which had been free when the city ran the parking system.

Trimont had never requested payment before for revenue allegedly lost through use of the app. However, according to the resolution, it now is requesting $90,000 for the next year.

At press time, council had yet to vote on the “Free After 5” resolution and take into consideration the LUV HBG payment request.

Lobbyist Contract Renewed

Harrisburg City Council last month approved a contract with Maverick Strategies for a second, one-year consulting contract.

After a two-month hold, council passed the $60,000 outlay by a 5-2 vote. In February, council tabled the proposed 2019 agreement with the Harrisburg-based lobbying shop, asking for detailed billing statements for the city’s prior contract, which ended Dec. 31.

Mayor Eric Papenfuse has credited Maverick for helping the city marshal legislation through the state legislature that will enable it to exit Act 47 while retaining its current, elevated levels of taxation for five more years.

The city, he has said, continues to need professional representation before the state legislature, including for renewing the annual $5 million appropriation to the city to support the provision of emergency services to the Capitol complex.

New Director for Broad Street Market

Joshua Heilman last month was named the new executive director of the historic Broad Street Market in Harrisburg.

Heilman, of Harrisburg, bested more than 80 other applicants, according to Amy Hill, president of the nonprofit’s board of directors.

Hielman replaces Beth Taylor, who left the position in December to become general manager of the Millworks restaurant and brewery.

In addition to overseeing market operations on a day-to-day basis, Heilman will help launch a new community program, Friends of the Broad Street Market, and also will be encouraged to identify funding opportunities through grants, Hill said.

“We needed someone who could help us launch our community engagement mission,” she said. “It was a tough decision. There were many, many qualified candidates.”

Brown Appointed to School Board

Joseph Brown Sr. has been appointed to a vacant seat on the Harrisburg school board.

Dauphin County Judge Scott A. Evans selected Brown, a former board member, even though he did not petition for the seat.

The seat became empty following the December death of Melvin Wilson. Subsequently, the city school board could not decide on a replacement, which threw the decision to the court.

Four candidates informed the court of their interest in the seat. Evans, however, selected none of them, opting instead for Brown, who served on the board during the 1990s.

HU Selects Hotel Partner

Harrisburg University last month announced that it had selected a city-based company as its hotel partner for the 17-story mixed-use building it plans to construct in downtown Harrisburg.

HHM, also known as Hersha, has its headquarters on Front Street in Harrisburg. It will operate the 197-room hotel attached to HU’s academic tower at S. 3rd and Chestnut streets.

“We couldn’t be more excited,” said HU President Eric Darr. “Obviously, they’re committed to the region and to the city of Harrisburg. They’ve been long-time supporters of the university.”

HU plans to break ground in July on the $135-million project, which will include a restaurant in addition to the hotel and academic portions. The educational space will house as many as 1,000 students and a health science education center for nursing, pharmaceutical sciences and other health-related programs. It also will have classrooms and training space for advanced manufacturing and interactive media programs.

The 386,200-square-foot building is expected to take two years to complete, opening in time for the 2021-22 academic year. The hotel is expected to open at the same time as HU’s academic portion, Darr said.

The hotel will front Chestnut Street, and the hotel and academic portions of the building will be separated by an atrium in the first 10 stories of the building, according to HU.

The three portions of the building will be owned and financed separately, Darr said. The university will own and finance the academic portion, estimated at $100 million. HHM will own the hotel, projected to cost $33.5 million. The restaurant, expected to cost about $1.5 million, also will be owned separately, he said.

HHM operates about 125 hotels across the United States under a variety of hotel brands, including Westin, Hilton and Hyatt.

“This is a natural partnership for us,” said Naveen P. Kakarla, CEO of HHM. “We are honored to lend our expertise to this exciting project in the city where our company began.”

Apartments for Tracy Mansion

It’s been a long time coming, but a developer is set to complete renovations to the century-old Tracy Mansion.

Last month, developer Jack Kay received approval from the Harrisburg Architectural Review Board for several changes to the exterior of the property at 1829 N. Front St., including a new ADA-compliant ramp, outside steps, a landing and a covered canopy at the southern elevation of the building.

This will allow Kay’s company, York-based Susquehanna Real Estate, to begin converting the unused portions of the property to 13 market-rate apartments.

Industrialist David Tracy built the 30-room mansion as a private residence in 1918. In 1951, it became an osteopathic hospital and eventually a mental health facility.

Kay bought the property in 2005 with plans to convert it to an office condominium, adding a new, seven-story building in the parking lot next door. He received zoning board approval two years later, but the project died after the recession hit in 2008.

In 2012, Kay sold part of the building to Char Magaro, who opened the restaurant, Char’s Tracy Mansion, there. The restaurant, owned separately, is not part of the apartment project.

Kay expects construction to take up much of this year, with an anticipated opening in the fall.

Five two-bedroom and eight one-bedroom units are planned for about 12,000 square feet of space in the building. They will range in size from 750 to 1,200 square feet, and rents are expected to be about $900 to $1,500 a month.

“We are trying to create interesting spaces in the interior with all the modern conveniences,” Kay said.

Kay said that he undertook the project, estimated at about $2 million, due to the revival of both the city and the neighborhood.

“Over a period of time, we came to realize the interest in living in town, especially in a nice location, and that encouraged us,” he said. “With Midtown improving, we felt it was the right time to do this.”

Big Donation for HACC

The HACC Foundation last month announced the largest single donation in its history, a gift of nearly $1.3 million to establish the John E. Paxton and Gloria W. Paxton Fund for Excellence in STEAM.

This fund will provide access to programming and technology for HACC students enrolled in science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) programs.

“They could have given to any nonprofit, and they gave to us,” said Linnie Carter, executive director of the HACC Foundation. “That’s tremendous.”

The Paxtons lived in the Harrisburg area for much of their lives. John, a land survey engineer, was active in the Lawnton and Chambers Hill fire companies. He died in 2007.

Gloria was a member of the Humane Society of Harrisburg and the National Wildlife Federation. Her estate bequeathed the money to HACC following her death in 2017.

“The genesis of this gift is generosity,” said Mark Mateya, the Paxton family attorney. “The Paxtons had no children, but they were very involved in their community and were very good at saving money.”

According to HACC, the Paxton’s gift will provide for several STEAM programs and initiatives, including a mentoring program for underrepresented and marginalized first-time college students, a scholarship program, a fund to pay for textbooks, and the implementation of video classrooms.

So Noted

Capital Region Water last month said that it has started five water infrastructure projects that will extend through the early summer. The projects—four in Susquehanna Township and one in Harrisburg—may lead to road closures and detours until they’re completed.

HACC last month announced a tuition increase and pay freezes as it passed its 2019-20 budget. Under the $140 million spending plan, students from non-sponsoring districts will pay an average of 2.1 percent more in tuition, and salaries will be frozen for employees earning more than $40,000 per year.

Janetta W. Green was appointed last month as the acting chief executive officer for the Center for Independent Living of Central PA, a nonprofit organization with a mission to eliminate and prevent barriers that people with disabilities experience. Green, who has more than 34 years of experience working in the independent living movement, fills the position left vacant by long-time CEO Theo Braddy’s retirement.

Jessica Knapp has been appointed the new executive director for the central Pennsylvania affiliate of Communities in Schools of Pennsylvania. In this position, Knapp will oversee the long-term strategy and direction for the central PA affiliate, as well as development, partnerships and communications efforts.

New Cumberland Farmers Market opens for the season on May 4. The market, which takes place at 4th and Bridge streets in the parking lot of Kelly Financial Services, will operate every Saturday through Oct. 26, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

TheBurg captured 16 Keystone Press Awards in the annual contest honoring the best in journalism in Pennsylvania, sponsored by the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association. TheBurg won for work completed in 2018 in a wide range of categories, including for reporting, writing, design and illustration.

Theo Braddy retired last month after 30 years as CEO of the Center for Independent Living of Central PA, a nonprofit that works to eliminate barriers for people with disabilities. He will continue his involvement as a consultant.

UPMC Pinnacle took its first step into Midtown Harrisburg last month, relocating about 40 administrative workers to the Campus Square building at Reily and N. 3rd streets. The relocation will free up more space at the main campus for patient services, according to President and CEO Phil Guarneschelli.

Urban Churn last month opened its first brick-and-mortar scoop shop at 1004 N. 3rd St., Harrisburg, selling ice cream and related treats The small-batch, craft producer plans to continue operating its stand inside the Broad Street Market, said owner Adam Brackbill.

Virginia “Ginny” Roth, president of PPO&S, a Harrisburg-based integrated marketing communications agency, has received the YWCA Greater Harrisburg’s Carolyne L. Smith Legacy Award for community service. Roth was recognized for her lifelong dedication to a variety of community causes focusing on women’s empowerment, community health and social justice.

Wakeen Enterprise has relocated into Harrisburg from Mechanicsburg, with its new office located at 2001 N. Front St., Suite 300. According to Wakeen, the larger, 5,000-square-foot space gives the marketing/communications/media company the ability to host workshops, better support clients and serve as a hub for its nonprofit entity, Connection Mission. For more information, visit www.wakeenenterprise.com.

Changing Hands

Barkley Lane, 2521: Truemac Homes LLC to C. & S. Posey, $90,000

Benton St., 541: F. Brown to B. Guerrero, $62,370

Boas St., 420: PA Deals LLC to K. & D. Borelli, $116,000

Chestnut St., 308: F. & L. DiNatale to Harrisburg Realty Improvements Corp., $132,000

Conoy St., 114: J. Harmon to W. McMartin, $101,000

Cumberland St., 264: C Peiffer to Z. Rance Bare, $128,000

Derry St., 2223: N. Nguyen & D. Dang to J. Bach, $125,000

Division St., 505: PA Community Investors LLC to J Elias Holdings LLC, $35,000

Dunkle St., 555: Members 1^st Federal Credit Union to J. Hayes, $61,800

Grand St., 912: D. & M. MacIntyre to M. Briner, $75,000

Green St., 2011: E. & S. Orndorff to D. & J. Zeile, $229,500

Green St., 3118: Hawk Vesta LLC to D. & M. Edmiston, $110,000

Greenwood St., 2516: R9 Holdings to KMM Development LLC, $44,000

Harris St., 443: E. Washington to Green Book Enterprises LLC, $115,000

Kelker St., 644: Dobson Family Partnership to EB Real Estate Holdings LLC, $53,000

Logan St., 1731: C. Auletta to L. Fernandez, $142,000

Manada St., 1946: E Street Properties to DHS Team LLC, $42,900

Market St., 2200 & 2300: Diocese of Harrisburg to William Penn Holdings Inc., $300,000

North St., 1930: Brey Ltd. LLC to Y. Abraham, $30,000

N. 2^nd St., 610: C. Delozier to Wyco Investments LLC, $175,000

N. 2^nd St., 1120: 2013 Central PA Real Estate Fund LLC to N. Hurley, $139,900

N. 2^nd St., 1929: G. & W. Banova to E. & A. Anderson, $148,000

N. 3^rd St., 1324: J. & M. Fornwald to E. Papenfuse & C. Lawrence, $30,000

N. 3^rd St., 1638: S. King & S. Williams to J. Frank & K. Mercado, $90,000

N. 3^rd St., 1814: W. & D. Balsbaugh to K. Lally, $77,900

N. 3^rd St., 2104 & 2106: J. Hwang & H. Chen to J. & D. Negron, $50,000

N. 3^rd St., 2206: S. & S. Peart to Grentals LLC, $138,000

N. 3^rd St., 3001: HBG Investments LLC to A. Sauer, $38,000

N. 4^th St., 2452: Lifeline F1 LLC to PropertyNet LLC, $53,000

N. 4^th St., 3117: S. Snyder to P. Hiciano, $106,500

N. 6^th St., 2935: J. Shearer to M. Thebes, $107,500

N. 18^th St., 74: Lenape Investment Group LLC to Declan Holdings LLC, $35,500

N. 19^th St., 1005: G. Neff & City Limits Realty to G. Graham, $35,000

N. Front St., 1103: L. Binda to S&A Merris LLC, $190,000

N. Front St., 1829, Units M1B, M1C, M2A, M2B, M2C, M2D, M2E, MBB, MBC & MBD: Cityscape Investors II LLC & WE Jackson to Tracy Partners LP, $300,000

Norwood St., 905: O. Messmer to F. & R. Ahmed, $40,000

Parkside Lane, 2926: L. & B. Williams to J. McKeithan, $138,000

Penn St., 1615: R. Straub to B. Waltz, $130,000

Putnam St., 1617: H. Nguyen, J. Le & K. Ly to J. & R. Morales, $109,900

Reel St., 2467: V. Rivas to G. Garcia, $70,000

Reel St., 2469: V. Rivas to M. Garcia, $70,000

Reel St., 2733: P. & D. McClenahen to J&G Estates LLC, $30,000

Regina St., 1628: R. Bryant to JOG Investments LLC, $30,000

Reily St., 306: T. Canady to Red Boat LLC, $115,000

Rolleston St., 1113: C. Pastula to R. Gerhards, $69,500

Rudy Rd., 1927: P. Malseed to T. & R. Dantzler, $83,000

Schuykill St., 227: Tassia Corp. to K. Braddock, $54,500

S. 19^th St., 1141: 929 Holdings to 1141 South 19^th LLC, $60,000

S. 26^th St., 627 & 2611, 2613, 2615 & 2617 Duke St.: M. Tucci to T. Brooks, $106,375

State St., 1408: R. & A. Sharp to H. Cabrera, $96,000

Susquehanna St., 1618: Secretary of Housing & Urban Development and Information Systems Networks Corp. to M. Bekelja, $40,001

Sycamore St., 1506: D. Marshall to J. Elias Holdings LLC, $35,000

Sylvan Terr., 124: Reussi Group LLC to K. Zoubiri & F. Abdallahoum, $65,000

Vernon St., 1317: M. Nichols to J. Baugher, $30,500

Vineyard Rd., 212: A. Miller to E. Kawa, $160,000

Washington St., 113: J. & C. Kuntz to W. & M. Hammerstein, $111,900

Whitehall St., 2025: Roberta L. Daniels Trust to Wells Fargo Bank NA, $58,169

Challenge & Triumph: Joel Burcat just published his first novel. But first he had to deal with losing his eyesight.

April 30, 2019 | by Harvey Freedenberg

For first-time authors, the road to publication is often filled with potholes.

But as his debut novel, “Drink to Every Beast,” is published, retired Harrisburg environmental attorney Joel Burcat can look back with satisfaction on the unique challenges he’s had to overcome to bring his literary work into the world.

Dressed in a gray pullover and blue-striped shirt, the bearded Burcat is relaxed and cordial as he sits down to tell that story at the dining room table of his comfortable home in Uptown Harrisburg.

Following graduation from Vermont Law School in 1980 and three years as an attorney at the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources, Burcat entered private practice. For the last 17 years, he’s been a partner in the Harrisburg office of Saul Ewing Arnstein Lehr LLP.

Burcat always harbored ambitions of becoming a writer (he’s co-edited two texts in the field of Pennsylvania environmental law), but it wasn’t until 2008 that he committed himself seriously to fiction.

“All I had to do was give up watching TV,” he said, of the decision to dive into writing while continuing his busy law practice.

Most evenings when he got home, he would retire to a cozy, third-floor writing room, where he’d work for two or three hours, at first producing short stories and then turning to the longer form.

“Writing would give me a total second wind,” he said.

In a good session he could churn out 3,000 words or more.

“It’s almost as though the characters are whispering in your ear, and it’s a very cool thing when that happens,” he said.

Very Unexpected

Burcat has always enjoyed thriller writers like Lee Child and Harlan Coben. With his environmental law experience, he thought a novel like John Grisham’s “The Pelican Brief” was a comfortable fit.

The result was “Drink to Every Beast,” the first in a series of four novels he’s written featuring Mike Jacobs, a young environmental lawyer working for the commonwealth. It’s a fast-paced tale centered on illegal toxic waste dumping into the Susquehanna River in northeastern Pennsylvania.

After finishing the novel in 2010, Burcat tried for several years to land a publisher through the traditional route—by securing a literary agent to represent his book. Although, in the early days he kept fairly good track of his efforts, he said that he lost count of the number of rejections he received.

But Burcat’s most serious obstacle, it turned out, wasn’t disinterested agents.

In July 2016, he was diagnosed with non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), a loss of blood flow to the optic nerve, which caused a progressive and significant impairment of vision in his left eye. About 10,000 Americans contract the condition each year. So, it isn’t sufficiently widespread to attract much research interest and, for now, there is no proven cure.

Doctors told him that he had only a 30-percent chance of developing NAION in his right eye, as well. However, while reading on a business trip to Oklahoma in January 2018, he discovered he belonged to the unfortunate minority.

A few weeks after he returned to Harrisburg, he and his firm’s management decided he should go on short-term disability. At the end of September, when he realized he “was going to have to learn how to practice law all over again, as a blind person,” that leave became permanent.

Burcat went through a couple of difficult months as he contemplated the “very unexpected” end of a long and successful legal career. But he decided he “wasn’t going to let the disease take over control of my life,” as he produced the draft of another novel in a seven-week burst of writing and recommitted himself to publishing “Drink to Every Beast.”

At the suggestion of fellow thriller writer Don Helin, he had connected with Headline Books, an award-winning independent publisher that accepts submissions from unrepresented authors. In August 2018, he received an email from Headline’s founder, Cathy Teets, informing him that she would publish his novel. Burcat credits a professional edit by local publishing consultant Jason Liller with substantially improving the quality of the manuscript he submitted to Headline.

Critical & Honest

Legally blind as a result of his eye disease, Burcat no longer drives. He’s also forced to restrict his reading to e-readers. But employing dictation software and a large, ultra hi-definition computer monitor, he’s able to continue his active writing schedule.

Asked for the best advice he’d offer aspiring fiction writers, Burcat replied without hesitation.

“Absolutely, positively, you have to write every day,” he said.

Many people claim they want to write, he said, but they don’t back up that avowed commitment by making it a priority.

Another of the important lessons Burcat has learned is that, no matter how much support your publisher offers, unless you are Stephen King, most of the responsibility for promoting your work will fall to you. He’s spent the last few months educating himself on effective marketing tactics, and he’s plotted that campaign as carefully as he has the thoughts and actions of his characters.

And now, like any new author, Burcat awaits readers’ reception for “Drink to Every Beast” with mixed feelings of excitement and anxiety.

“I’ve been working on it so long and so hard that I’m eager to share it with the world,” he said. “On the other hand, there’s anxiety because, until now, the book has only been read by family and friends, who might not be so critical. Now, it’s going to read by others with whom I don’t have any relationship—people who may be much more critical and honest.”

“Drink to Every Beast” is available online. For more information about Joel Burcat, visit www.joelburcat.com.

Set to Sail: Pride of the Susquehanna ready to launch for 31st year

April 29, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

The Pride of the Susquehanna riverboat at its City Island dock

An annual rite of spring in Harrisburg is slated to take place on Wednesday, as the Pride of the Susquehanna Riverboat launches for its 31^st season.

The riverboat typically leaves dry dock in April, but the launch was delayed due to continuing high water on the Susquehanna River, said Jason Meckes, executive director of the Harrisburg Area Riverboat Society.

“We were a little bit extra cautious after last year,” Meckes said today. “But now we an see that the water levels have tapered off.”

According to the National Weather Service, the water level at Harrisburg should be about 6-feet in depth on Wednesday, far below the 8 to 9 feet that begins to cause problems for riverboat operations.

Last year, the Pride lost about one-third of its sailing days due to high water, which both flooded its docking area and made sailing conditions dangerous.

With so much lost revenue, Riverboat Society members questioned whether they could continue to operate. Therefore, they repeatedly appealed for financial support and, according to Meckes, the community responded, donating nearly $90,000 to ensure that the Pride would continue to sail.

“People stepped up to the plate and made a difference,” he said. “A lot of people love this riverboat and wanted it to return. It means a lot to a lot of people.”

That level of giving was far above average, as one-time donations ordinarily range from $16,000 to $20,000 a year, he said.

Meckes hopes for a more normal season this year, with a minimum of lost sailing days.

Dinner cruises and special events begin this weekend, with daily public sightseeing cruises starting over Memorial Day weekend. Right now, some 400 cruises are planned for the season, Meckes said, and advanced bookings already have exceeded last year’s level.

In addition, the Riverboat Society is working to expand its educational outreach, with hundreds of students from the Harrisburg school district signed up for free River School educational voyages, Meckes said.

“All indications are that it’ll be a heckuva year,” he said.

The Pride of the Susquehanna is located on City Island, Harrisburg. For more information, call 717-234-6500 or visit https://harrisburgriverboat.com.

Context of Cardboard: New exhibit emphasizes crisis of homelessness

April 28, 2019 | by Robert MacGinnes

Cardboard is a material with many uses. It can be used for packaging, for storage, even as a plaything.

When adults and children living on the street rely on that same cardboard for shelter, it also becomes a home, which too often is the harsh reality in our society.

This weekend, an art exhibit began its run at the Carlisle Arts Learning Center employing cardboard as a way to emphasize the cultural crisis of homelessness, a national dilemma that also strikes close to home. On Friday, the exhibit in the Upstairs Gallery opened to a packed house of caring, compassionate citizens, nonprofit organization board members and art patrons alike.

Carrie Breschi is not your typical artist. Her installation demonstrates this in its unique take on the subject. Humankind, the exhibit demonstrates, is universal. We are all one people in that we live and breathe, yet life can impose hardships that, for some, are temporary and, for others, can last forever.

Breschi’s exhibit offers thought-provoking commentary, making the plight of homelessness all the more poignant as it is delivered with no photography or paintings but solely with the power of cardboard.

Facts aligned by each installation share the ramifications and realities of life within a box, on a box and outside the box. A stenciled park bench denoting “Home Sweet Home” sets the tone for the art display under the cardboard banner of “The Faces of Homelessness.”

The exhibit bleakly shows the ever-growing group of humanity who, out of dire necessity, has become scattered survivalists across America. A geographical map of the United States depicts detailed numbers state by state, chronicling the alarming rate of homelessness stretching from coast to coast.

Another vignette features discarded sleep mats of foam cushion, seven years old, donated by Community CARES, stacked like fallen soldiers one atop the other on the battlefield of life. Miniature cardboard houses form a birdlike phalanx of a migratory miasma as if a stiff wind could scatter them to the vagaries of fate.

Yet another installation spotlights a pup tent entitled “affordable housing,” which brings attention to a Florida program that determined that a basic housing unit cost $10,000 annually, far less than the $31,000 needed to keep a person on the streets.

In a chilling nod to Banksy, the maestro of graffiti art, a child’s silhouette in black and white shines a spotlight on the staggering number of homeless youth. All of this needs not only to be seen but digested, discussed and disentangled for the present day and into the future.

One of the agencies instrumental in aid to the homeless is Community CARES in Carlisle, under the direction of program director Beth Kempf. Their efforts currently house 39 women and children, as well as 35 men, both numbers beyond their capacity. Local churches have stepped up to accommodate the overflow. In the exhibit, ladders propped against a wall beg the question—what is the underlying meaning here? Are the homeless able to rise above their plight? The answer is a resounding “yes,” with organizations like Community CARES and Family Promise offering help and a start at a new life.

Thanks to Carrie Breschi, a topic that is often cast in the shadows of consciousness has been lifted to the foreground and main stage. So meaningful in its delivery, it is both translucent and transcendent. Who would ever think cardboard could pack such a wallop? When art connects with social commentary, the impact goes far beyond the exhibit itself and cuts to the very heart of why art exists in the first place.

“Home Sweet Home: The Real Face of Homelessness” runs through June 1 in the Upstairs Gallery at the Carlisle Arts Learning Center (CALC), 38 W. Pomfret St., Carlisle. For more information, visit www.carlislearts.org.

Harrisburg school district vows “full compliance” with state audit

April 27, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

The Harrisburg school district’s Lincoln administration building

The intergovernmental dispute that has rocked the Harrisburg school district may be coming to close, as the district on Friday night vowed to “fully comply” with a state-mandated financial audit.

James Ellison, the district’s newly appointed solicitor, sent a letter to state Secretary of Education Pedro Rivera vowing to offer “read only access” to the district’s eFinance financial system.

“To be clear, the District understands its statutory and regulatory obligations to fully comply with the audit process,” stated the letter from Ellison. “Indeed, we respectfully submit that compliance to date with 99% (313 of 314) of the auditor’s information requests evidences the District’s commitment to fulfilling those obligations faithfully.”

The audit was prompted by several recent incidents, including questions about the use of federal funds, the district’s unbudgeted hiring of 37 teachers and the continuation of health care coverage for 54 former employees. Moreover, the state’s less rigorous annual audit for 2017 identified numerous issues and deficiencies, including a budget forecast that was incorrect by some $4 million.

Earlier in the week, Rivera had threatened to cut off the district from $10.9 million in federal funds unless the district fully complied with Johnstown-based Wessel & Co., the department’s outside auditors, which wants remote access to the financial system.

The district had balked at the request, claiming that doing so would expose sensitive employee information. Later, union representatives said that they supported a full audit of the system, which, according to the letter, relieved the district of liability.

The letter, attached below, also laid out the district’s version of events, in which Ellison claims that school administrators have always tried to comply with the department’s demands. Nonetheless, a majority of the school board recently refused to endorse a resolution requiring district compliance.

The dispute has led some community and government leaders to call for state receivership, in which the state would take direct control of the district. Meanwhile, the issue has become the latest hot topic in the race for school board. In that race, eight challengers and four incumbents are vying for five seats in the Democratic primary, which is slated for May 21.

Letter to Secretary Pedro Rivera dated April 26, 2019

The Week That Was: A summary of news and events around Harrisburg.

April 26, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

What happened around Harrisburg last week? Here’s a summary of news and events that you may have missed.

Harrisburg Beer Week kicked off with the “First Sip,” launching a host of events that runs through May 5. So, what is Beer Week all about? What’s their signature “717 Collab” beer this year? Click here for the full story.

Harrisburg City Council officially approved a three-year renewal of the “Free After 5” downtown parking program. For the past year, the Harrisburg Downtown Improvement District, Dauphin County and the city have chipped in to offer free street parking in most of downtown after 5 p.m. Click here for the full story.

Harrisburg School Board hired long-time city operative James Ellison as its in-house solicitor. A split board opted for Ellison, who has served as district solicitor twice before. Click here for the full story.

Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority (ICA), Harrisburg’s new state-appointed financial oversight board, has named Jeffrey Stonehill as its executive director. The ICA also appointed counsel and a website developer. Click here for the full story.

Midtown Harrisburg is about to bear the full brunt of roadwork, as the 3^rd Street project hits the intersection with Verbeke Street. Motorists and pedestrians can both expect inconveniences over the next month in the heart of Midtown at the Broad Street Market. Click here for the full story.

Pennsylvania STEAM Academy has filed a court petition to try to overturn the decision of the Harrisburg school board, which rejected its charter school application in February. A court decree would send the issue to the state Charter School Appeal Board. Click here for the full story.

TheBurg published two editorials this week concerning the Harrisburg school system. The first criticized incumbent school board members for not participating in a series of candidate debates. The second urged immediate change in the district, given the recent vote to hire James Ellison as solicitor and the ongoing dispute between the district and the state over a financial audit.

Vivi on Verbeke is a must-stop in Harrisburg to enjoy pottery, photography and other art, as well as meet the fascinating couple that runs the shop. So says our arts columnist after a 3rd in the Burg visit. Click here for the full post.

What’s going on around Harrisburg this weekend? Check out the weekend roundup from Sara Bozich.

PA STEAM Academy files court petition in effort to overturn rejection by Harrisburg school board

April 26, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

The Midtown 2 building in Harrisburg

The board of a proposed charter school in Midtown filed a court petition on Friday to try to overturn the Harrisburg school board’s denial of its application.

The filing by the Pennsylvania STEAM Academy contains 1,844 signatures, far exceeding the 1,000 signatures required to appeal the denial, said Carolyn Dumaresq, president of the charter school board.

“We feel very confident that we have the sufficient numbers,” she said. “We are very pleased with the outreach and the response from the community.”

If the Dauphin County Court of Common Appeals validates the signatures and issues a decree, the matter will go to the state Department of Education’s seven-member Charter School Appeal Board, which will make a decision to affirm or overturn the school board’s decision.

Dumaresq said that she hopes that PA STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) will get on the state appeal board agenda in June or, at the latest, July. At the hearing, representatives from both the proposed charter school and the Harrisburg school district will get a chance to make their cases for and against, respectively, the PA STEAM application.

“I’m confident that we have a strong application and will get a fair hearing,” said Dumaresq, who served as state education secretary under former Gov. Tom Corbett.

In February, the Harrisburg school board voted down PA STEAM’s charter school application. So, for almost two months, school supporters have been gathering signatures at city events, the Broad Street Market and other gathering places.

One thousand valid signatures of city residents, 18 and older, were required to show sufficient community interest in the public charter school.

PA STEAM hopes to open in time for the fall semester with 120 students, grades K-2, in Midtown 2 at N. 3rd and Reily streets in Harrisburg. The 115,000-square-foot building is currently occupied by HACC, but the college’s lease expires in 2022, and it is slated to begin moving programs out of the building.

If they’re able to open, PA STEAM plans to expand on an annual basis, adding a grade level each year until it becomes a K-8 school. It also expects to grow horizontally, so that each grade level eventually would have 80 students.

Dumaresq said that the charter school plans to hold informational meetings in June and July for parents of prospective students. It also will begin to recruit faculty and staff, in the expectation that the state appeal board will rule in its favor.

“We’re proceeding as if we’ll get approved because the clock is running,” she said.

Burg Blog: Time Has Come

April 25, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

The scene at a recent Harrisburg school board meeting

“The state must be getting pretty tired of Harrisburg.”

So said a friend after I bumped into him yesterday downtown on 2^nd Street, as our conversation turned to the Harrisburg school district.

I couldn’t disagree with him.

In 2000, the state placed the district into a type of receivership, and, a dozen years later, did the same with the city government. And now, like a recurring nightmare, it may be the school district’s turn again.

Our conversation happened in the midst of the latest escalation in the month-long battle between the school administration and the state Department of Education over a financial audit of the district. School administrators claim they’re cooperating with the audit; the state says they’re not.

On Monday, state Auditor General Eugene DePasquale threw down hard, threatening an undefined “new course of action” unless the district complied. Then, according to PennLive, state Sen. John DiSanto and Rep. Patty Kim came out in favor of receivership. And, yesterday, the state education department sent a letter to the school district, saying it was withholding nearly $11 million in grants until the district fully complies with the audit.

So, do we residents now face a massive property tax hike to cover for the cast of characters roaming around the Lincoln Administration Building?

Not surprisingly, then, support seems to be growing around town for another round of receivership.

About that.

First, be careful what you wish for. Back in 2000, the state turned the district over to former Mayor Steve Reed, who promptly did what he always did—lustily eyed all the beautiful new money he controlled, planned a few “special projects” and piled on the debt.

Moreover, the district has been in “receivership light” for years now, in the form of the state-appointed chief recovery officer, who was supposed to stop the incompetence and shenanigans. Then where was she when the district hired 37 teachers it hadn’t budgeted for or when an employee embezzled a boatload of public money? Meanwhile, student academic performance remains, on average, abysmal.

So, yeah, the state doesn’t have a commendable history when it comes to oversight of the Harrisburg school district.

Having said that—the current situation is ridiculous and unsustainable.

Monday’s appointment of James Ellison as solicitor was the proverbial final nail. For months, it’s been clear that the administration, and the school board majority in its thrall, have been hell-bent on hiring Ellison, perhaps the most controversial pick they could make. By doing so, they knew they were courting disaster, and yet they plowed ahead and did it anyway.

To me, the question has been—why? Why do something so provocative when you already have the state, the city and so many residents hot down your neck? Why do this when your very actions have served as a recruiting tool for a slate of fired-up school board candidates?

This obsession with hiring Ellison makes no logical sense, except in one way—another link in the chain of enablers. Maybe it’s as simple as that.

At some point, there comes a time when you have to change course, when the status quo has become intolerable. Whether through state action or through the ballot box, that time has come.

Lawrance Binda is editor-in-chief of TheBurg.

Weekend Roundup with Sara Bozich

April 25, 2019 | by Sara Bozich

Happy Weekend! Well — it’s here! Harrisburg Beer Week kicks off on Friday for 10 days of craft beer + community. Be sure to check out our top picks for the Week, and don’t forget to hunt down the #717Collab! And don’t worry, if you’re -gasp!- not into beer, there are a ton of spring-filled events going on now through Sunday. Read on.

What are you doing this weekend?

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Harrisburg’s financial oversight board names executive director, attorney

April 24, 2019 | by Lawrance Binda

Harrisburg’s state-mandated financial oversight board completed its organizational phase on Wednesday, appointing an executive director and legal counsel.

The board unanimously named Jeffrey Stonehill (pictured) as its executive director, meaning that he will oversee the day-to-day operations of the Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority (ICA).

Stonehill accepted the part-time, $50,000-per-year position pending the approval of his “loan” from Chambersburg, where he serves as borough manager, a position that he said he would retain.

““I think it’s important when you have two municipalities cooperating together,” he said. ”I believe as strongly as possible that I can help the city of Harrisburg. I’m looking forward to the challenge.”

Stonehill said that he became interested in the job because he has worked extensively with the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, which oversees the state’s Act 47 program for financially distressed municipalities.

Last year, the state legislature agreed to let Harrisburg retain its current, elevated levels of taxation for five more years, which will allow it to exit Act 47. However, the legislature also mandated the creation of the ICA to oversee the city’s finances and its continuing recovery process.

In addition to Stonehill, the ICA board appointed Jeffrey Engle of Harrisburg-based Shaffer & Engle as legal counsel and Dave Robertson, the owner of Harrisburg-based Factory 44, as its website developer.

David Schankweiler, ICA chairman, said that Stonehill had the best mix of knowledge and experience from the applications the board received for the position.

“We needed a good backroom guy who could get all the pieces together for us, and we then could lead out front,” he said. “Jeff can do that.”

Also at the meeting, Bruce Weber, the city’s budget and finance director, completed a presentation that he began at the prior meeting, recounting the city’s recent financial history and the challenges it faces going forward.

Harrisburg, he said, was in solid financial shape, due, in part, to careful budgeting and management, but also because, under Act 47, it has been allowed to impose higher earned income and local services taxes than otherwise would be allowed. Under current legislation, the city can only retain those taxation levels for another five years.

“The city operates very lean,” Weber said. “It doesn’t spend money on anything considered unnecessary or extravagant.”

Harrisburg, he added, is on track to present a draft five-year financial plan to the ICA board next month, a plan that must be finalized by late August.

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