Harrisburg school board takes first steps to find new solicitor.

December 10, 2018 | by Lizzy Hardison

Harrisburg school board solicitor Samuel Cooper (far left) and board president Danielle Robinson (second from left) at a Nov. 2016 board meeting.

For the first time since 2015, the recently reorganized Harrisburg school board is fielding applicants for a new district solicitor.

A legal notice first published in the Patriot-News last week invites licensed attorneys to apply to represent the Harrisburg school district as general counsel, a job title used interchangeably with solicitor.

The district and the board currently receive legal guidance from Solicitor Samuel Cooper. Cooper was appointed as in-house legal counsel for the district and board in August 2015, after a motion to appoint former Harrisburg Authority board member James Ellison failed on a 4-4 vote, according to meeting minutes.

A review of public notice archives shows the district has not advertised for a new solicitor since then.

During his tenure with the district, Cooper has remained an employee of the Dilworth-Paxson legal firm and bills the district hourly for his services.

Board president Danielle Robinson said today that the board is not trying to oust Cooper, who is welcome to participate in the new bidding process. But she said that any new general counsel would ideally be hired as a district employee with a base salary.

Asked if Cooper would have to resign from Dilworth-Paxson to take a job with the district, Robinson said, “It would be up to him.”

Cooper did not respond to requests for comment today.

Robinson explained that since the solicitor is an appointed position, the board should issue a call for applicants every year. Board members have not done so in the past since they are satisfied with Cooper’s work, she said.

This year, however, the district is trying to find new cost-cutting measures after emerging from a difficult budget cycle, Robinson said. She hopes that hiring a salaried solicitor could reduce bills from out-sourced legal work.

“If we had an in-house solicitor with a base salary, we wouldn’t be putting out so much work [to outside firms],” Robinson said.

Robinson added that Cooper was trained as a bond lawyer before he joined the district. Though he’s learned about Pennsylvania school code on the job, Robinson also thinks the district could reduce its outsourced workload if it had an in-house expert in school law.

Robinson could not provide an approximate salary for the position, which would come out of the district’s existing legal budget.

Even though she does not expect the district to perform all of its legal work in-house, she estimates that hiring a salaried employee could save hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees.

The board approved payment of more than $31,000 in fees to Dilworth-Paxson in November, according to check resisters. While Cooper is the district’s primary counsel, old invoices show he is not the only attorney at his firm billing the district.

The board is not required to vote publicly to issue a Request for Qualifications (RFQ,) which must run in newspapers for three weeks. In an email dated Dec. 4, Robinson asked business manager Bilal Hasan to publicly post an RFQ that was sent to the board at a prior date.

Robinson’s request came just one day after a board reorganization meeting where she replaced Judd Pittman as board president. Board director Lola Lawson, who was appointed to the board in August, was named vice president.

The reshuffling was seen by some as a repudiation of Pittman, who has long called for the board to govern with more transparency and fidelity. Pittman also led the effort this spring to conduct a nationwide search for a new district superintendent, which was ultimately quashed by a 5-4 board vote in May.

In an email, Pittman told Robinson that the RFQ should move through the board’s human resources and budget and finance committees before being publicly posted.

“As with other important items over the last year and in consistency with goals established by the board, the RFQ for a solicitor should move through the committee structure,” Pittman said. “I am in full support of a competitive process but want to make sure we have all the data and evidence on services to have a clear understanding of the skills and services we would want in the in-house council.”

Pittman did not respond to requests for comment today.

Neither Pennsylvania school code nor Harrisburg school board policies say that advertisements for bids must move through board committees, though it is common practice for most board actions.

Robinson said today that the majority of the board agreed to issue the RFQ, even though they did formally vote on it.

Once the Dec. 21 deadline for bids passes, the board will review applicants and possibly issue a separate request for proposals (RFP) to those who meet their desired qualifications.

The board could also abandon the search process altogether, Robinson said.

“Right now, this is just a request for candidates,” Robinson said. “It’s not saying we’re replacing anyone.”

Burg Review: Romp around the Christmas tree at Gamut’s holiday frolic.

December 10, 2018 | by Amy Mastrangelo

Clark Nicholson, Melissa Nicholson and Thomas Weaver offer a night of holiday-themed laughs in Gamut’s “Every Christmas Story Ever Told (and Then Some).”

It’s a Christmas miracle, of the theatrical kind.

Such was my thought as I watched “Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some),” which debuted over the weekend at Gamut Theatre.

In this show, the audience experiences all of its favorite Christmas characters and themes in one, two-hour frenzy: the Grinch, Frosty, a certain green-nosed reindeer (yes, green not red), all in a delightful romp in a play by Michael Carleton, James FitzGerald and John K. Alvarez.

The Gamut production features a cast of three players (core company members Clark Nicholson, Melissa Nicholson and Thomas Weaver), who bring to life everyone’s favorite Christmas stories, songs and traditions.

With minimal set pieces and few costume changes, the acting is what really shines. The facial expressions, postures, accents and voice inflections go a long way when switching between all of the many different characters. Comedic timing is key, and this trio nails it.

The play begins with the actors set to perform the classic Charles Dickens tale, “A Christmas Carol.” Poor Thomas is eager to give the performance everything he’s got, but Clark and Melissa are not having it. They eventually convince him to abandon all Dickens, which is when the real fun begins.

The enthusiasm and energy from the cast and audience will lift your spirits, leave a song in your heart, and melt away your stress. The contemporary jokes, fruitcake-themed game show, holiday spoofs and pop culture references offer consistent laughs.

One of my personal favorite “beloved holiday classics” (referred to as “BHCs” in the show) is “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” So, I enjoyed watching Melissa and Thomas dance around the stage with alternating feet and arm motions just like Sally and Linus.

The costumes were delightfully appropriate, as Melissa wore an ugly Christmas vest with tinsel, and Clark was dressed to the nines in a Christmas tree suit jacket.

But the fun didn’t stop there. In between skits, the intrepid trio found time to read to the audience, providing insight into Christmas traditions around the world.

Despite everything going on, Thomas persists in his quest to perform his favorite BHC,“A Christmas Carol.” Does he get what he wants? A slight twist in his plan results in a mash-up of two Christmas classics, which is not to be missed.

Younger kids will enjoy the high-energy shenanigans but will not understand all of the references, which, like many holiday programs and shows, conceal winks and nods to adults.

As a special holiday treat, Gamut Theatre presents “Cabaret Carols,” which features a different talented singer each night before the show. Enjoy live music with a cup of Christmas cheer before the show. Then sit back, relax, and laugh the night away.

“Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some)” runs through Dec. 23 at Gamut Theatre, 15 N. 4th St., Harrisburg. For more information and tickets, call 717-238-4111 or visit www.gamuttheatre.org.

Report: Harrisburg’s IT system riddled with risks.

December 6, 2018 | by Lizzy Hardison

As cyber security experts put it, becoming the target of a cybercrime or data disaster isn’t a question of “if,” but “when.”

That was one of the messages for Harrisburg city officials in a new Harrisburg University report, which assessed the city government’s aging IT infrastructure and its ability to respond to cyber attacks, natural disasters and even simple records requests.

Researchers said that, while Harrisburg has taken important steps to modernize its IT resources in the past several years, there remain many risks and shortcomings in the city’s current systems.

“The current course is untenable,” researchers wrote. “It’s only a matter of time until some event causes a major impact to the city’s IT services.”

Without safeguards, that event could bring serious costs for the city and its taxpayers.

Most of Harrisburg’s applications run on an aging mainframe connected to an independent internet network. Any disruption could obstruct the city’s access to its insurance claims system, police field reports, billing systems for real estate taxes, and the software it uses to issue codes licenses, permits and health inspection records.

Harrisburg expects to modernize its mainframe in 2020—a project that could carry a $2 million price tag, according to 2017 budget documents.

But right now, scads of data are stored on a mainframe server at city hall. That leaves the city at huge risk in the event of a disaster, researchers said, since there’s no off-site backup.

“It’s no exaggeration to say that, without IT, lines of business across the city would grind to a halt,” the report reads. “Unfortunately, this potentially disastrous situation is a real risk.”

The report pointed out that the city’s mainframe server is located in a flood plain and connected to a 31-year-old power supply. Also, the onsite generator for the city government building isn’t tested on a regular basis.

Those factors alone could jeopardize the integrity of city applications and data in the event of a natural disaster. But since the city hasn’t adopted a disaster recovery plan, employees have no clear course of action in the aftermath of an emergency.

Harrisburg is also at risk for cyber attacks, which researchers say are affecting municipal governments with increasing frequency. TheBurg reported in April that Harrisburg does not have a formal cyber-security policy or a written strategy to recover from breaches.

Following publication of the HU report in November, Mayor Eric Papenfuse has proposed allocating $700,000 in the city’s 2019 capital improvement plan to fund IT upgrades—double the amount forecast in long-term projections included in last year’s budget.

That budget includes a $235,000 allocation for a data redundancy system, along with $15,000 to store a duplicate data system at a secure, off-site location.

Papenfuse is also following a recommendation to hire a new GIS administrator. Departments across city government, including public works, crime analysis and engineering and planning, rely on GIS programs to build maps and visualizations. None of these systems are integrated, and their data is stored in multiple locations.

Researchers implored the city to simplify its mapping technology by transitioning to a single software platform and a central repository database.

The IT bureau will also use its 2019 budget to evaluate records management systems.

HU researchers recommended that Harrisburg centralize its records, which are currently scattered across many electronic and physical filing systems.

Not all of the city’s records are indexed or properly categorized, making their retrieval a tedious chore.

“Staff need to go from building to building, closet to closet, and box to box searching for information which already may have been discarded,” the report reads. “[This] has resulted in staff spending hours tracking down records when they could be allocating their time more appropriately to serve the citizens of Harrisburg.”

The lack of a centralized records system is particularly problematic for the city’s law bureau, which administers the Right to Know law. City Solicitor Neil Grover told researchers that his staff spends valuable time tracking down non-indexed records.

Since state laws govern the retention of municipal records, failure to procure one for an audit or records request could subject Harrisburg to fines and legal penalties.

The 44-page IT assessment report was jointly sponsored by Harrisburg University and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Papenfuse said. It was compiled by IT professionals enrolled in an HU professional certificate program, including Harrisburg’s deputy director of IT, Eric Collins.

Papenfuse said that the city has commissioned other IT assessments in the past, which often recommended improving staff capacity. Since the city hired a deputy director last year, it’s now able to bolster its infrastructure with forward-thinking initiatives, he said.

City Council will hold public hearings on the 2019 proposed budget Dec. 11 and 12 at 5:30 p.m. in city hall.

Weekend Roundup with Sara Bozich

December 6, 2018 | by Sara Bozich

Happy Weekend!

I’m ready for the weekend this time around, folks. It’s been a week. On Friday, a girlfriend and I are going to revisit an old haunt in Harrisburg. Saturday is for Market and hopefully finishing Christmas shopping. Sunday, the Steelers game is inconveniently blacked out, so guessing the guys will go to the bar.

Next week: Grab a FREE ticket to our Holiday Pop-Up Happy Hour at Strawberry Square. Includes a free drink, thanks to Harristown, plus food and good cheer (and more)!

What are you doing this weekend?

(more…)

Following standstill, Harrisburg plans to continue debt negotiations in 2019.

December 5, 2018 | by Lizzy Hardison

A nine-month effort to reduce interest rates on a large portion of Harrisburg’s debt looks likely to continue into the new year.

City Council is expected to vote this month on a new contract with Marathon Capital Strategies, a New Jersey-based financial advisory firm that represents Harrisburg in discussions with creditors.

The city hired Marathon under a $75,000 contract in March. Since then, the firm has negotiated on Harrisburg’s behalf with Ambac Financial Group, which insured bonds that Harrisburg issued in 1997.

When Harrisburg defaulted on those bonds in 2012, Ambac paid out $21.5 million to the city’s bondholders over four years. The city must pay that sum back at a 6.75 percent annual interest rate.

Harrisburg could avoid those costly rates by paying Ambac ahead of schedule with cash. But the city can’t fork over $21.5 million of its own money without depleting its cash reserves. Since it’s shut out of credit markets, it also can’t borrow a new, lower-interest loan to wipe out its debt to Ambac.

But reducing the interest it pays to Ambac could save Harrisburg tens of thousands of dollars over a decade-long repayment period, according to city officials.

Twenty percent of the city’s annual budget currently goes to debt service. The less money Harrisburg spends on interest, the more it can funnel back to salaries, programs and capital improvement projects.

Under its repayment agreement with Ambac, Harrisburg could pay a maximum of $5.4 million per year to them in debt service from 2023 to 2032. The real figure will likely be lower because Harrisburg didn’t draw on its all available credit from Ambac, but it could be lower still if Marathon secures better interest rates.

Marathon initiated talks with Ambac in April and continued them through July, according to consultant Dan Connelly. He told council last night that they haven’t reached a resolution yet, but he thinks they can with a little more time.

“[It was] a mixed bag, but I think we can be optimistic,” Connelly said. “Ambac was very clear that they want to continue negotiations.”

City officials and consultants said that negotiations this year were complicated by questions about Harrisburg’s long-term financial stability. Drafts of the city’s Act 47 exit plan published this summer called for reductions to local services and earned income tax rates, which would have strained the city’s operating budget.

The release of that report, coupled with the failure to guarantee special taxing provisions for Harrisburg in June, led Mayor Eric Papenfuse to declare a fiscal emergency and a freeze on hiring and spending.

The city dodged financial meltdown in October when state lawmakers passed legislation allowing it to retain its current taxing authority for five years under a newly formed oversight committee.

Connelly said that the legislation could provide additional assurance to Ambac that Harrisburg will meet its debt obligations.

“There’s things to work with now that put negotiations into context and that I think can drive a solution,” Connelly said.

Harrisburg spent just $40,000 of the $75,000 budget for Marathon’s services in 2018 budget. Consultant fees range from $175 to $275 per hour, according to their contract.

City officials want to appropriate another $75,000 for Marathon to continue talks with Ambac in 2019. They expect a larger bill this year, since they’re also asking Marathon to develop a strategy to improve the city’s credit rating.

That strategy will be included in the five-year financial plan that Harrisburg must adopt with its oversight board in 2019.

“Hopefully, in that plan, we can find a path back to the bond market, which is one of the things we all need to get back to normalcy outside of Act 47,” city Solicitor Neil Grover said.

City officials said that the five-year time limit on Harrisburg’s current tax rates makes it even more important that the city build its savings and credit score now, while it can still count on a healthy revenue base.

Any savings generated from a reduced interest rate will likely be returned to Harrisburg’s general fund, council budget and finance chair Ben Allatt said.

“Any debt resolution will help us put money back in our operating budget that we’ll need most likely in the future, when we’ll see a potential reduction in tax revenue,” Allatt said.

Lack of parking at new federal courthouse has local officials worried.

December 4, 2018 | by Lizzy Hardison

A rendering of the federal courthouse at 6th and Reily streets in Midtown Harrisburg.

As the construction of a long-awaited federal courthouse in Midtown Harrisburg inches forward, there remains one vital question that project managers haven’t resolved.

Where are patrons going to park?

Final land development plans for the $192 million project at 6th and Reily do not include proposals for any new parking structures. According to Mayor Eric Papenfuse, that’s a big problem.

The U.S. General Services Administration estimates that as many as 800 employees, jurors and other patrons will visit the courthouse on a given day.

They’re certain to strain nearby street parking, which is already in high demand among residents and some commuters.

What’s more, the construction of the courthouse will eliminate 60 existing parking spots in a surface lot, located on a parcel that was subsumed into the new building site.

The dilemma came up at a City Council work session tonight, where council members warned GSA representatives that the new courthouse could wreak chaos on Midtown’s parking supply.

Construction on the courthouse began in June and is expected to wrap in 2021.

Papenfuse explained that GSA won’t build new structures because federal agencies don’t guarantee parking for their employees. Instead, they rely on private developers or parking authorities to meet demand.

That works in most cities, Papenfuse said, but not necessarily in Harrisburg.

“The city’s in no position to float bonds to run a parking garage, and nobody is guaranteeing any revenue suitable for a private developer to build a garage,” he said. “We really don’t have a plan.”

Unlike their federal counterparts, state agencies often do reserve employee parking by leasing out blocs of parking spaces.

Those leases are a boon for parking operators, who can count on reliable income for large chunks of their real estate. They’re also used to secure financing for the construction of new infrastructure.

Without a similar guarantee for the 200 staffers at the federal courthouse, or more economic activity near the site, developers may see the construction of new parking infrastructure nearby as a risky investment.

The average cost of each space in a new parking garage is $25,000, according to parking industry experts. Then there are annual operating costs.

“They’re not going to build a garage without a long-term commitment that meets the overhead,” city Solicitor Neil Grover said. “But the courthouse is a long-term thing, and eventually there will be enough things going on that a developer will be interested at some point.”

Since Harrisburg was shut out of the bond market during its financial crisis, the city has no choice but to sit and wait for a developer to emerge.

“If we had a credit rating, we would build a parking structure,” Papenfuse said. “We would assume that risk was safe. But we looked at the numbers, and there’s no possible way anyone will loan us the money.”

A developer who did want to build new parking would have limited options for real estate. Much of the neighborhood is zoned for residential use, which precludes the construction of parking garages.

Unless Harrisburg granted a zoning variance, a new garage would have to go the nearby commercial or industrial zones, which are both in walking distance to the site, Grover said.

Papenfuse said the construction of new parking infrastructure near the courthouse would not violate the city’s contract with its private parking operator.

Standard Parking leased Harrisburg’s parking assets under a 40-year deal in 2013, but that agreement did not preclude the construction of new infrastructure to meet increased demand in the city, Papenfuse said.

Council members tonight were adamant that GSA and the city address the problem before it stressed an already-tight parking supply.

Council member Westburn Majors also expressed a preference for a multi-level parking garage. The anticipated demand for parking would require a vast expanse of real estate for a surface lot, he said, which could displace existing properties.

Project managers said that they continue to study options for off-site parking. Garages south of the courthouse, including ones in downtown Harrisburg, could be feasible sites if there was a shuttle service, according a representative from Dawood Engineering.

They could become feasible options if GSA provided shuttles to the courthouse.

City planning director Geoffrey Knight said Harrisburg could also help by building new bus stops and bike-share stations near the courthouse.

Council is slated to vote on the final land development proposal at its Dec. 18 legislative session.

More Local, More Organic: With federal grant, Radish & Rye eyes expansion in Midtown Harrisburg.

December 4, 2018 | by Lawrance Binda

Julia and Dusty James outside the future home of Radish & Rye Food Hub in Midtown Harrisburg.

In life, good fortune sometimes takes you by surprise.

Julia and Dusty James had long planned to open a seven-day-a-week grocery store, building upon the success of their stand inside the Broad Street Market.

But, a few months ago, their project accelerated unexpectedly after they learned that they would receive a substantial, three-year federal grant, which took effect almost immediately. Now, they had to make their plan happen—right away.

“It did make us move faster than we thought we would originally,” said Dusty.

So, yes, the pressure is on now, but that’s OK with the Jameses, who are eager to convert their storefront on the 1300-block of N. 3rd Street into a second location for Radish & Rye Food Hub.

If all goes according to plan, the store should open this summer following a complete renovation of the 2,800-square-foot space, which will be split almost evenly between front-end retail and back-end production and storage.

Notably, the new store will include a full kitchen, which will produce baked goods and an array of prepared and semi-prepared meals. Otherwise, customers can expect to find the same types of local, organic and seasonal food sold from the cozy stand at the Broad Street Market, which will continue to operate.

“We think that, in order to be a viable option for people’s grocery shopping, we need to be open more than three days a week,” said Dusty.

That realization occurred to them quickly after they opened Radish & Rye in 2015. So, Dusty began checking out the storefronts near the market, occasionally walking into a building and seeing if the owner might be interested in selling.

In June 2017, they closed on a deal to purchase the retail and apartment building at 1308 N. 3rd St., which, on the ground floor, had housed many businesses over the years, including JM’s Thrift & Vintage. The idea was to rent out the location until they were ready, in a few years maybe, to open their own brick-and-mortar.

“We knew we wanted to be in Midtown,” Julia said. “Proximity to the market meant more parking in the area and access to our established customer base.”

Then, in September, the U.S. Department of Agriculture notified them that their application had been approved for a $333,410 grant under its “Local Food Promotion Program.” According to the USDA, only about 16 percent of applications for the grant program are funded.

After the initial surprise wore off, the couple began planning out the details for their store and helped their tenant, Alyce & Tre’sures Hair Gallery, find a new spot for her salon just two doors up the street.

The federal grant will go a long way toward getting the new location up and running, paying for such things as equipment, marketing and some wages. The Jameses are responsible for a one-third match of the grant amount, and the grant money does not cover building renovation costs, which will be substantial. Because Dusty is an experienced builder, he plans to act as his own general contractor, which will help both logistically and financially.

Dusty and Julia said that they’re optimistic that the community will embrace their new grocery. Yes, they expect to offer the organic and sustainable goods from the Pennsylvania producers they already feature—names like Apple Valley Creamery (East Berlin), North Mountain Pastures (Newport) and Calicutts Spice Co. (Hershey). But they believe that they can reach a lot more people with a seven-day-a-week schedule, greatly expanded options and prepared foods.

“Each day gets busier and busier (at the market),” said Julia. “Given our limited space and hours there, it feels more and more that we are at capacity.”

The market stand, they added, proved their concept as a business. It also has prepared them well for this next step, in terms of sourcing, product mix, customer service and the knowledge needed to run a busy grocery.

“With this store, we can offer greater convenience to our customers by bringing more items into the city and keeping prices low,” Julia said. “We want to make [our products] as accessible as possible.”

Radish and Rye Food Hub is located inside the brick building of the Broad Street Market, Harrisburg, with plans to open next summer at 1308 N. 3rd St., Harrisburg. For more information, visit www.radishandryehbg.com.

Harrisburg officials see “a light at the end of the tunnel” as they conclude busiest year yet for demolitions.

December 3, 2018 | by Lizzy Hardison

Condemned properties at 335 and 337 Peffer St. are among the Harrisburg codes bureau’s demolition priorities in 2019. The city has identified a total of 41 properties it considers urgent candidates for demolition.

For years, Harrisburg’s fight against blighted homes has looked something like a game of Whack-a-Mole.

As soon as codes officers demolished one abandoned property, they’d be alerted to a different structure on the brink of collapse. A city-wide roster with hundreds of condemned and abandoned properties never seemed to get any shorter.

That changed in 2018.

Harrisburg demolished a record-breaking 42 properties this year, according to codes administrator David Patton, and is on track to raze two more before the end of December.

Combined with an uptick of private development projects this year, Harrisburg’s demolition rate has helped the city significantly reduce its stock of condemned housing, Patton said.

“We’re getting to a point where we see a light at the end of the tunnel,” he said. “We’ve reached a threshold where things are looking extremely good for the city.”

The codes bureau entered the year with more resources than ever for demolitions, thanks to a $250,000 allocation in the city’s 2018 budget. It also got $120,000 for emergency demolitions in June from the Community Development Block Grant fund.

The funds allowed Patton to double his in-house demolition capacity from the previous year, when crews tore down 24 buildings.

Mayor Eric Papenfuse pledged to keep the demolition budget steady in the new year. While the cost of demolition varies for each property, Patton hopes to match or exceed his demolition rate in the new year.

He’s already compiled a list of 41 priority properties.

Decades of suburbanization and migration out of the city left Harrisburg with more than 4,000 vacant residential, commercial and industrial structures, according to census data. The worst ones garner codes citations and condemnation orders, often after concerned neighbors lodge complaints with the codes bureau.

Patton said the city had as many as 700 condemned properties—those deemed unfit for human habitation—just a few years ago. Today, the tally stands at 388.

Some condemned properties can be saved with costly renovations. For instance, the Swallow Mansion on N. 6th Street, which been condemned since 2010, recently attracted the interest of a private developer who expects to spend up to $400,000 restoring it.

But the longer a property languishes, the more expensive its renovation becomes. Unsound structures are also liable to collapse or catch fire. It’s these properties that city officials target in their demolition program.

Codes officers inspect buildings daily and use a ranking system to determine which ones should be demolished, Patton said.

“Triage is very difficult because a lot of them are in equal levels of deterioration,” Patton said. “But I have an instinct when I look at certain properties. If we have to do something very quickly, we get it on the roster.”

Extreme weather or other emergencies can alter demolition priorities. Even so, Patton is trying to target this year’s efforts on areas with “extreme distress,” such as S. 18th Street, where seven properties are marked for demolition.

That’s good news to Gary Lenker, president of Tri-County Housing Development Corp., who said that a targeted strategy is the best approach to fighting blight.

“From a development standpoint, focusing on a block-by-block approach gets the most bang for your buck,” Lenker said. “You see the biggest results in a quicker fashion.”

Tri-County didn’t demolish any buildings in 2018, Lenker said, but did rehabilitate four homes on Hummel Street as part of the MulDer Square revitalization project. It has just one demolition planned for 2019.

Lenker said that the bureaucratic hurdles of demolition are often too cumbersome for a small nonprofit organization.

For each house the city demolishes, Patton has to get a “declaration of site emergency” from the mayor, ask utility companies to terminate service, and secure permits from the state Department of Environmental Protection.

He also has to obtain state clearances for properties with historical significance.

One such property is among Patton’s 2019 demolition priorities: the Biedelman House at 1225 Market St., which formerly served as the residence of the Pennsylvania lieutenant governor.

Patton also included the property on last year’s demolition list, in hopes it would pique the attention of preservationists and developers.

Though some prospective buyers visited the property this year, Patton doesn’t think any are prepared to salvage it.

The hulking building on the corner of Market and Evergreen streets has sat vacant for at least two decades. It now needs a new roof and an internal gut renovation.

“I had to make that effort to preserve it, but the last preservation estimate was $1 million,” Patton said. “Everything inside has deteriorated.”

Tearing down the Biedelman House could cost as much as $70,000, he said.

An array of factors affects the cost of a demolition, including the property’s location and material composition.

A demolition on a one-way street, for instance, may carry a high price tag if crews can’t park equipment outside.

Row home demolitions can also be costly. Adjacent properties have to be sealed off with new party walls, which are often more expensive than the demolition itself, Patton said.

Patton uses a combination of in-house and contracted labor to complete demolitions. City codes officers can easily demolish a freestanding property themselves for about $6,000, according to Patton.

The same project could cost $20,000 when done by a contractor.

Patton usually bids out row home demolitions, which can run up to $30,000 per home once crews construct party walls.

The most expensive demolition this year was a $59,000 project at 407 S. 13th St., where contractors tore down a row home with intricate brickwork and masonry arches.

The home was sandwiched between two occupied homes, Patton said. They each needed new stucco siding once the condemned property was carved out.

Patton said that he was sad to see the distinctive structure reduced to dust. But, as with many historic homes left abandoned for decades, he believed that there wasn’t an alternative.

“A lot of these areas do have unique architectural features, but the properties are just way past sell-by date,” Patton said. “There’s no administering first aid on these, and the only recourse is to demo.”

Danielle Robinson replaces Judd Pittman as school board president.

December 3, 2018 | by Lizzy Hardison

Danielle Robinson returned to her post as president of the Harrisburg School Board tonight, ousting incumbent Judd Pittman in a 6-3 vote at an annual reorganization meeting.

Lola Lawson, a board veteran who was appointed to a temporary seat in August, will serve as vice president.

A member of the school board since 2012, Robinson served as its president from 2015 to 2017, when she lost her leadership role to Pittman. She was subsequently elected vice president for the 2018 calendar year.

Robinson and Pittman found themselves in opposite factions throughout most of 2018, as the board decided whether to retain superintendent Sybil Knight-Burney or conduct a nationwide search for her replacement. The board frequently split along slim margins on questions related to Knight-Burney’s tenure and administration, with the majority supporting her.

Following the resignation of two board members earlier this year and the appointment of two board veterans to replace them, the majority that consistently supported Knight-Burney grew from five members to six.

The members of that faction — Robinson, Lawson, Melvin Wilson, Ellis Roy, Lionel Gonzalez and Patricia Whitehead Myers — all voted for Robinson tonight.

Board directors Carrie Fowler and Brian Carter voted for Pittman. Pittman also cast a vote for himself, even though he nominated Carter to serve as president.

Robinson assumed her leadership position as soon as the vote was complete and presided over the remainder of the reorganization session. She nominated Lawson to serve as her second-in-command.

Pittman again nominated Carter for the vice presidency and cast a vote for him, even though Pittman himself got a nomination from Roy.

Lawson ultimately won the vice presidency with five votes from her colleagues.

After the reorganization, Robinson said that her priority in the new year is to unify the board and restore order to its meetings, which at times this year devolved into shouting matches over questions of policy and procedure.

Robinson said that she hopes to make meetings more efficient so that directors do not have to deliberate or argue over agenda items. She said that the discord over the last year arose when board directors arrived at meetings unprepared to vote.

“We don’t hash things out publicly,” Robinson said. “You should be able to come to a decision. This is not a time to claim, ‘I don’t know.'”

But the Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act, which governs procedures for public meetings, requires all business by elected officials — including deliberation and votes on policy matters — to take place in view of the public. Only certain topics, such as litigation, negotiations on collective bargaining contracts and personnel actions, may be discussed in a closed-door “executive” session.

The topics discussed in executive session must later be disclosed at a public meeting.

Robinson said she was aware of the state’s Sunshine Act but maintained that board directors should come to public meetings ready to vote on agenda items. When asked if deliberation should take place in view of the public, she said, “Not at all. That’s for executive session. There should not be a board member asking about agenda items they don’t know about at [general meetings].”

Robinson conceded that the board’s committee structure can be improved to help board members prepare for general meetings. She also said that she’ll take a more decisive bent than her predecessor in contract negotiations, which are currently underway with the teachers union and Knight-Burney.

Knight-Burney is currently employed under the terms of her old contract, which expired on June 30. The board voted 5-4 this spring to renew it for a three-year term.

Robinson said that negotiations have stalled under Pittman’s leadership, and that “it should not have taken six months to negotiate a contract.”

The board’s annual reorganization came on the heels of news that test scores in the district declined during the 2017-18 school year, falling well below the benchmarks outlined in the district’s long-term recovery plan.

Data released by the state Department of Education last week show that John Harris High School, the district’s largest campus with 1,050 students, logged a 49-percent graduation rate, compared to a statewide average of 86 percent.

Only 16 percent of JHHS students demonstrated proficiency in English. 7.8 percent were proficient in math, and 10 percent proficient in science.

Knight-Burney addressed the state’s new school evaluation system at tonight’s meeting, but notably did not mention any specific data.

She did say that the performance of individual school buildings would likely garner them a new state designation: Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) schools, a title reserved for institutions that perform poorly on academic growth and proficiency indicators. The designation will qualify the schools for additional guidance from policy experts and educational experts.

Robinson said the district needed new strategies to improve performance in the coming year, but declined to outline specific proposals until she met with her colleagues.

And while she agreed that the district could “absolutely” improve its academic performance, she also lamented what she saw as incessant negativity from members of the public.

Robinson has been a subject of criticism this year from the citizen-led school reform group, Concerned About the Children of Harrisburg (CATCH), which emerged as an organizing force this spring while the board debated Knight-Burney’s contract.

CATCH members have made clear their opposition to Knight-Burney, who they say has been slow to improve student performance and teacher retention during her seven-year administration. They’ve also criticized members of the school board, including Robinson, who they’ve said are too protective of her tenure.

Robinson said tonight that CATCH could be an asset to the board, but that its members were too adversarial and even bullying in their calls for change.

“You can’t say you want to help the district if you’re constantly down on the district,” said Robinson, who added that her son, a student at Marshall Academy, was being intimidated by classmates whose parents supported CATCH.

Robinson said she is the only board member with a child enrolled in Harrisburg schools. That gives her a unique perspective among her colleagues, she said, and a vested interest in seeing the district perform at its best.

“What sense does it make for me to do something that’s detrimental to his education?” Robinson said. “There have been things we’ve tried that have not worked, but I know we’ve made progress as a district.”

She pointed to the establishment of the Cougar Academy cyber school and new career readiness programs as some of the district’s recent successes. She credited Knight-Burney with bringing fresh ideas and innovative STEM programs to the district and reiterated her belief that the embattled superintendent is the right person to lead Harrisburg’s schools.

“A lot of people don’t see her work and dedication,” Robinson said. “But because change isn’t instantaneous, people think she isn’t doing her job.”

Robinson also suggested that the challenges facing the Harrisburg school district — low attendance rates, flagging test scores and meager graduation rate — were endemic to districts across the state.

“We have the same problems as every other district, but we’re the state capital so whatever happens here will trickle down,” Robinson said. “We have to keep fighting.”

This story was updated shortly after publication to include additional information about the CSI designation for select Harrisburg schools.

TheBurg Podcast: Demolition Edition

November 30, 2018 | by TheBurg Staff

You may have already picked up a print copy of TheBurg Magazine today — why not chase it with a new podcast?

On this week’s episode, Lizzy and Larry recap the mayor’s annual budget presentation. Where is Harrisburg’s money going in 2019? They also discuss PennDOT plans to widen 1-83 in Harrisburg, as well as the article Lizzy wrote for this month’s magazine about the rise and fall of downtown retail in the city.

You can stream the episode here or subscribe to TheBurg Podcast in the Apple and Android podcast apps:

You can also read our coverage of all the topics we discussed in this week’s podcast. Lizzy’s retail story is also out in print today, as is Larry’s column — which jibes well with our discussion of the Broad Street Market at the end of the episode. Find a copy at one of our distribution locations.

Mayor proposes 2019 budget with no tax hikes, slight spending decrease from current year.

A 12-lane highway in Harrisburg? It’s possible in PennDOT plan for I-83.

Retail Therapy: More people are choosing to live, work and play in Harrisburg. Could a retail revival be next?

Let’s Talk: The nation’s “social infrastructure” may be withering, but Harrisburg’s is growing stronger.

TheBurg Podcast is released semi-monthly by TheBurg Magazine. It is recorded in the offices of Startup Harrisburg and produced by Lizzy Hardison. Special thanks to Paul Coolley, who wrote our theme music.

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