Shelter from the Storm: New pavilion at Italian Lake Park officially opens

Harrisburg Mayor Eric Papenfuse cut the ribbon today to officially open the new pavilion at Italian Lake Park.

Last summer, inclement weather forced the cancellation of numerous outdoor concerts at Italian Lake.

City officials and local activists expect a better outcome next year, as today they unveiled a new pavilion that shields the park’s stage from the elements.

“This is a tremendous improvement to the value of Italian Lake,” said Jeb Stuart, a board member of the Harrisburg Parks Foundation. “Now, we’ll be able to make more events happen here.”

The foundation was one of several groups to contribute money for the $36,800 project. First National Bank (FNB) donated the bulk, with a $25,000 contribution. The foundation, the city and a group of business people led by activist Mike Trephan filled in the remaining funding gap.

Kennett Square-based Recreation Resource USA built the pavilion, which was completed last month.

The 90-year-old, 9.5-acre manicured park in Uptown Harrisburg has experienced something of a renaissance in recent years.

Several years ago, the ornate fountains were restored, and the community group Friends of Italian Lake introduced several swans into the lake during the warm weather. In 2015, Harrisburg Young Professionals spearheaded a renewed summer concert series, which had been suspended for several years after Harrisburg entered its financial crisis.

At the ribbon-cutting today, Trephan said that the idea for a pavilion took root two years ago after the U.S. Marine Corps Band (“The President’s Own”) had agreed to play at the park, but cancelled after learning there was no shelter on the stage, which is a requirement for them to perform. Therefore, he began to tap into his network of business people to raise money for the project.

“It’s an honor to be part of what the city has done for the last seven years,” he said. “But we know that the city doesn’t have the funds to do everything that it wants to do.”

Community activist Peggy Grove said that Friends of Italian Lake would like to raise another $5,000 to finish the project, which would include an overhead fan, an improved sound system and the refinishing of the concrete stage.

“I’m just so glad that this pavilion has been built,” she said. “Now, people can perform despite the rain.”

Mayor Eric Papenfuse said that the city would like to see additional improvements to the park, such as the rehabilitation of the bench seating and the restoration and reopening of the restrooms.

“This is just the beginning of what we hope will be a greater upgrade of the park,” he said.

Papenfuse also praised the cooperation of so many groups that were part of raising money for the pavilion project.

“What is exciting is that it represents the best of public/private partnerships,” he said.

Continue Reading

Harrisburg accepting applications for Youth Commission

Are you a young person (or know one) who cares about Harrisburg and issues affecting the city’s youth?

Then consider applying for the Harrisburg Youth Commission.

The Youth Commission will advise local government officials on matters relating to city youth and offer recommendations to resolve issues.

To apply, you must be between 11 and 18 years old, a city resident and a current student.

You can find applications and all requirements here, in PDF and Word formats. The deadline is Dec. 14. Best of luck!

Youth Commission App

Youth Commission Application

 

Continue Reading

Weekend Roundup with Sara Bozich

Happy Weekend!

Well, that month (year?) zoomed by. We’re over here planning for 2019 like mad (with some big changes on the horizon, at least in terms of looks), and this weekend, let’s see, my goals are: cook some stuff? I have minimal plans but some good ideas.

For instance, you could get a head start on your holiday shopping at the HBG FLEA, or the *brand NEW* Stash + Midtown Dandy storefront in SoMa, or check out Little Bits & Pieces Boutique in Camp Hill, where shopping also will also do some good.

For my beer + art lovers, you’re gonna wanna hit ZerØday today for a chat with the Australian artist behind the Johnny Romeo can art, ahem, Johnny Romeo.

Sunday = brunch, and Grand Illusion in Carlisle isn’t messing around. You also can enter to WIN $50 towards brunch right here.

PSA: Daylight Saving Time – this is your reminder this phrase has no second “s” in it, and also it ends on Sunday. Snooze accordingly.

 

What are you doing this weekend?

(more…)

Continue Reading

As teacher drain continues, Harrisburg school board members ask: why no exit interviews?

The names and job titles of the 136 teachers who resigned from the Harrisburg City School District last year are all public record, but the reasons why they quit their jobs may never be known.

Data obtained through a Right to Know request shows that the rate of teacher resignations from the district has increased in the past 10 years and reached an all-time high during the 2017-18 school year. But even as the district continues to bleed staff, it has not implemented a policy for conducting exit interviews.

The district’s current practice, an “open invitation” to departing employees to complete online exit interviews, has come under fire in recent months from some school board members, who say the low return rate doesn’t generate enough data.

Board President Judd Pittman, in particular, has asked the district for years to tighten its exit interview procedure. He says that honest feedback about working conditions could help stem the flow of teachers leaving the district.

Personnel documents show that the board has been asked to approve 42 resignations since the new school year began on Aug. 1.

Each employee has a reason for leaving, Pittman said, which won’t be known to the district without an exit interview.

“We have 18 opportunities to collect data on exit interviews and learn how folks feel about their time here in Harrisburg,” Pittman said at an Oct. 15 board meeting, just after voting to approve 18 teacher resignations. “I’m hopeful that we have an opportunity to do that.”

Pittman and board director Ellis Roy raised the question again last night, when the board approved eight resignations at a special meeting.

Interim Human Resources (HR) Director Barbara Richard told the board that the district has added an in-person interview option for departing staff, which is outlined in the letter that every staff member receives after tendering a resignation. Employees are also invited, but not required, to complete the online survey.

“We can’t force them to complete the form, but we can encourage them,” Richard said. “We do try to get them to complete that and meet with us.”

However, other districts across the commonwealth have codified exit interviews in policy. At Peters Township School District in Washington County, any employee who resigns or is terminated must complete an exit interview, just as they must hand in their keys and finalize their payroll paperwork.

The exit interview consists of a two-page form, which asks the employee to list the reasons for their departure and the working conditions they think could be improved. The completed survey is added to the employee’s personnel file.

The Kutztown Area School District also requires exit interviews for departing staff, according to its employee handbook. Under its policy, any employee who tenders a resignation letter must return building keys, review payroll paperwork, and schedule an exit interview the Human Resources Department.

Harrisburg’s board has dozens of employee policies, governing everything from dress codes to the receipt of personal gifts. But none detail the procedures for an employee resigning from the district.

Stuart Knade, director of legal services at the Pennsylvania School Board Association (PSBA), said there’s nothing stopping Harrisburg’s school board from adopting a policy requiring exit interviews.

“For most employers, exit interviews are just sound HR practice,” Knade said. “You can get some very honest feedback about the work environment and duties and job satisfaction that they might not tell you other times.”

While the district could theoretically compel an employee to complete an exit interview while they’re still on district payroll, Knade said any policy the board adopts would more likely be an accountability measure for administrators.

“If the board puts it in policy, it’s more of a directive to the HR system to make sure it happens, not necessarily a directive to employees to cooperate,” Knade said. “If you want to get honest feedback from employees, you have to incentivize it.”

According to Knade, a district could do that by making a positive job reference contingent on the completion of an exit interview. Any employee who didn’t complete one would get a neutral reference.

The district also has to make deep reassurances that there won’t be any repercussions for the information that departing employees reveal, he said.

At this point last year, 49 teachers had resigned from Harrisburg School District since Aug. 1, according to district data. The current tally of 42 resignations for the 2018-19 school year is slightly lower, but the district is still struggling to keep pace with attrition.

The district is planning a winter job fair to fill some of its vacancies, Richard said, as well as a recruiting campaign at college campuses.

A list of employee resignations since 2010, which the district provided to TheBurg under the Right to Know Law, shows that resignations increased to 137 employees last year from 102 employees during the 2016-17 school year. The district reported just 67 resignations in 2014-15.

Continue Reading

More Eagles Please: Team reporters to visit Harrisburg, sign books this weekend

Were you one of the hundreds of people who stood in the long line last June to meet Eagles quarterback Nick Foles?

Now you can live last year’s Super Bowl excitement once again as two Eagles reporters visit Harrisburg to talk about the team and the season and to sign some books.

On Saturday, beat reporter Zach Berman and sideline reporter Molly Sullivan will venture to Midtown Scholar Bookstore to discuss Berman’s new book, “Underdogs: The Philadelphia Eagles’ Emotional Road to Super Bowl Victory.”

“With the Eagles still fresh off their Super Bowl victory, we’re excited for Harrisburg to get the behind-the-scenes story from two of the best reporters in the business,” said Alex Brubaker, Midtown Scholar’s manager. “Our event with Nick Foles proved there’s a huge swath of central Pennsylvania that bleeds Eagles green — and doesn’t often get to experience events with Eagles players or reporters.”

Berman has covered the Eagles for the Philadelphia Enquirer for six years, while Sullivan works for the Eagles as a host and reporter.

The book takes fans on a journey through the season, which included the crushing injury to starting quarterback Carson Wentz and the unlikely rise of Foles. The season culminated in the underdog Eagles defeating the New England Patriots to win their first Super Bowl title.

In addition to the book signing, Berman and Sullivan will engage with attendees and hold a question-and-answer session, said Brubaker.

“Zach and Molly are such accomplished reporters, so we’re really ecstatic to promote Zach’s book to our community of sports fans,” Brubaker said.


Zach Berman and Molly Sullivan will speak and sign books on Saturday, Nov. 3, starting at 10 a.m., at Midtown Scholar Bookstore, 1302 N. 3rd St., Harrisburg. The event is free and open to the public.

Continue Reading

Second Chance: Public meeting slated as Harrisburg moves forward with 2nd Street conversion plan.

N. 2nd Street in Midtown Harrisburg

Harrisburg’s plan to return much of N. 2nd Street to two-way traffic is picking up speed, as the city has scheduled a public meeting next week on the proposed project.

The Nov. 7 meeting will give residents background on the project, present the results of a traffic study and ask for public input.

“The traffic study is done and has shown that [the project] is feasible,” said city Engineer Wayne Martin. “We now want to see what’s important to the corridor and to the neighborhood.”

The meeting will take place at St@rtup Harrisburg, starting at 6 p.m.

The study by Kittelson & Associates, a transportation and engineering firm, demonstrated that 2nd Street could feasibly be returned to two lanes—one northbound and one southbound—between Forster and Division streets, affirmed Mayor Eric Papenfuse.

“The traffic study has come back showing us that we can do it,” he said. “Now, we have the data to move forward.”

The study, Martin said, showed that motorists would have a “slight reduction” in convenience from the change, but that there would be significant improvements in walkability and in neighborhood safety.

Historically, 2nd Street was designed as a wide boulevard, with two, one-way streets. To accommodate commuter traffic, Harrisburg, in 1956, converted the local street into a three-lane roadway heading north. At the same time, it converted Front Street into a three-lane roadway heading south.

The changes, some have argued, turned Harrisburg from a place to live in to a place to quickly drive through, as the wide, busy streets created unsafe conditions, degraded property values and detrimentally affected quality of life.

Over the past few years, Harrisburg has been awarded grants both from the nonprofit Impact Harrisburg and from PennDOT to study the issue and begin the project. If the current timetable holds, design work would be completed next year, with actual construction taking place in 2020-21, Martin said.

The project would include many elements, including numerous new traffic signals, signage, striping and road work, which also would include changes and improvements to certain intersections along Forster and N. 7th streets, roads that would absorb some of the displaced traffic.

Papenfuse said that, at the public meeting, the city will seek input for features and amenities—such as bike lanes or a median—that could be incorporated into the final road design.

“This is going to be a major quality-of-life upgrade for the city,” Papenfuse said.

Papenfuse also offered updates on the many other infrastructure projects planned and in progress around the city:

  • After many delays, largely due to inclement weather, the 3rd Street corridor project is getting back on track, he said. Expect work to continue through next year.
  • Next year, the city will begin a two-year, $2 million project to repave many of the roads in South Harrisburg. Next month, City Council is expected to pass an ordinance that would authorize a revenue note for the project.
  • The city expects to announce its “rapid response” improvements to State Street, as per its Vision Zero initiative. These changes may include lane reductions and a sheltered bike lane, with work expected next year, Papenfuse said.
  • Harrisburg will begin work repaving the lower river walk following the Harrisburg Marathon, which takes place Nov. 11. However, most of the extensive repaving project will take place in 2019, which will limit access to the popular walking, biking and running path next summer.

The public meeting on returning 2nd Street, between Forster and Division streets, to two-way traffic will take place on Wednesday, Nov. 7, 6 to 8 p.m., at St@rtup Harrisburg, 922 N. 3rd St., Harrisburg.

Continue Reading

Shop Small

Proud Supporter of Small Business

Continue Reading

Harrisburg School Board stands by decision to demote former business manager.  

The Harrisburg School Board voted unanimously last night to affirm a previous decision to demote a former business manager, months after a county court ordered it to reconsider its action.

At a sparsely attended special meeting, board members voted 7-0 to approve an adjudication document defending the district’s demotion of Kenneth Medina, a business manager who was reassigned with a pay cut following allegations of professional misconduct last year.

The unanimous vote was a rare show of unity from the factious board. For the past year, many of its decisions have split on a 6-3 or 5-4 vote.

Board directors Carrie Fowler and Melvin Wilson were absent from last night’s meeting.

Following the board’s decision, the district will send the new adjudication to Medina. The document adds additional detail to the charges and evidence brought against Medina last year, according to district solicitor Samuel Cooper, and satisfies an August order from a Common Pleas judge that the district reconsider his case.

Since the document is not yet public, it’s unclear if it addresses the central complaint in Medina’s case against the district: that administrators did not follow the procedure for removing a business manager as set forth in the Pennsylvania School Code.

Medina said on Wednesday that he would not comment on the board’s decision until he conferred with his lawyer.

Medina was hired as Harrisburg’s Business Manager in April 2016 at a salary of $120,000. He was reassigned to a grants manager role at a salary of $60,000 last October, after Harrisburg Superintendent Sybil Knight-Burney placed him on administrative leave due to allegations of professional misconduct.

According to Knight-Burney, Medina had failed to notify the district of a vehicle loss, submitted budgets to the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) with incorrect figures, failed to schedule building inspections at John Harris High School, and failed to make arrangements for mail service at district properties.

Medina denies those allegations. He says his reassignment came after he started raising questions about consultant contracts and other practices in the district’s long-troubled business office.

But when the district held a due process hearing in August 2017, a hearing examiner prepared a report concluding that the allegations against Medina were credible. The board voted to adopt the examiner’s recommendations, leading to Medina’s reassignment and salary cut.

Medina filed a complaint with the court of common pleas, which heard his case in July. Judge John Cherry ordered the school board to re-hear Medina’s case one month later.

Last night, Cooper said the district fulfilled the court’s mandate by preparing a more detailed written decision justifying Medina’s reassignment.

The district has shared that adjudication with board members, who reviewed it before last night’s vote.

According to Cooper, a vote to approve the document “ratifies the actions the board had previously taken.”

With the board’s approval, the district will send the adjudication to Medina before making it public, Cooper said.

In an email on Monday, Medina said he fully expected the board to vote on a retroactive adjudication. He said he’ll continue to ask for full reinstatement of job title, salary, and benefits, and that he has applied for the positions of chief financial officer, business manager and assistant superintendent that are posted on the district’s website.

The district has operated without a full-time, permanent business manager since Medina’s demotion, despite a stipulation in its state-approved recovery plan that it appoint one. Bilal Hasan, who was Medina’s assistant business manager, has served as acting business manager since January.

In a June letter to the superintendent, Pennsylvania Education Secretary Pedro Rivera said that Hasan did not meet the qualifications for his role. Rivera ordered the district to hire a new business manager, and to replace its part-time chief financial officer with a full-time one.

Last night, board President Judd Pittman questioned why the district has not yet complied with PDE’s mandate.

“We either need to move forward with the recommendations that have been put forward or we’re negligent of our duties,” Pittman said. “And we need to do so in a timely fashion.”

The hiring has been delayed in part because human resources Director Curtis Tribue (who Medina called “a central witness” in the case against him) was placed on administrative leave last month.

Interim human resources Director Barbara Richards told the board last night that her office is focused on hiring a CFO first, since the business manager will report to that person. She said HR has fine-tuned the job description for the CFO and posted it on multiple job board sites.

This article was amended on Wednesday to add comments from Medina and to remove a statement that Medina has relocated to Seattle.

Continue Reading

Marathon Made: 100 runners shared a training program; their time has arrived.

Members of the Fleet Feet Running Club train for the Harrisburg Marathon.

Trailblazing runner Kathrine Switzer, the first woman to compete in the Boston Marathon, once said, “If you are losing faith in human nature, go out and watch a marathon.”

Harrisburg-area residents can do exactly that this month when the 44th Annual Harrisburg Marathon winds through the city. Behind every one of Harrisburg’s 1,300 to 1,400 runners there’s a story—a motivation, a goal, perseverance in the form of months of training equaling hundreds of miles. It’s all done in pursuit of the one race that matters—the 26.2-mile marathon.

To understand the dedication and motivation propelling runners to the starting line, I joined the marathon-training program offered by Fleet Feet Mechanicsburg and owner/coach Fred Joslyn, which launched in June. Twice a week for the past five months, about 100 runners—50 in the marathon program, combined with 50 in the half-marathon program—gathered and ran under Joslyn’s guidance.

“One of the biggest things is camaraderie, being around people with like-minded goals,” said Joslyn. “They want to achieve something, you want to achieve something—that is contagious and motivates people in a positive way.”

From a home base of City Island, the Fleet Feet Running Club (FFRC) met at 7 a.m. every Sunday for long runs—starting at distances around eight miles and gradually working up to distances of 18 and 20 miles, usually winding around the Capital Area Greenbelt.

Wednesday evenings, meeting at Fleet Feet, runners launched into speedwork, drills and hill work—yes, that would be repeatedly running up hills. And yes, sometimes runners questioned their sanity.

Additionally, everyone ran on their own several days a week, following Joslyn’s spreadsheet training plan. As part of the training, Joslyn provided weekly tips on topics like endurance, hydration, fueling (eating) while running, positivity and more.

“My goal, when writing training plans, is to make it unique and engaging for people who have done it before and consistent enough that it will work,” said Joslyn, 34, of Mount Holly Springs.

The former college coach is an accomplished runner himself, winning the Harrisburg Marathon as recently as 2015 and numerous other races. He even represented the United States as part of the six-man World Championship-winning 50K team in 2016.

“He helps people whether they are brand new to running, giving them the regiment and training, or if someone is already advanced and wants to beat their PR (personal record),” said Tom Gifford, race director for the Harrisburg Marathon, which is organized by the Harrisburg Area YMCA. “He has the expertise.”

 

Very Positive

Most runners don’t win the first marathon they enter, but that’s exactly what happened to Greg Johnson of Dillsburg.

The 26-year-old (he’ll turn 27 the day of the Harrisburg Marathon) is a Fleet Feet employee and FFRC coach, former high school teacher and cross-country coach who won the Harrisburg Marathon in 2016 (his first) and again in 2017.

His 2018 goal is to win once more, possibly breaking his PR of 2:26:18. That’s two hours, 26 minutes and 18 seconds, which means he averaged a 5:59 pace—just under six minutes per mile.

Joslyn and Johnson have similar personalities—they are both accomplished runners yet very humble, which meant that some of their achievements had to be dragged out of them.

“There are many misconceptions about running—lots of people say they can’t do it but they probably could,” said Johnson. “People would surprise themselves.”

Michelle Howe, 51, of Dillsburg, started running 12 years ago in order to be fit at the age of 40. She lost about 60 pounds in the process and gained hundreds of running friends.

Howe, along with runner Mike Percherke, founded the informal, social group River Runners.

“Basically, so that nobody would have to run alone,” said Howe.

The Facebook group now includes a community of nearly 2,000 area runners.

Howe has completed four marathons, but that was before FFRC came to the area.

“I got injured in 2013 using a marathon training program pulled off the computer—not with a coach,” she said. “I don’t want to get injured again, and I want direction.”

This fall will mark her first marathon training cycle since her injury.

On a warm, humid morning, Howe and FFRC runners increased their “long run” distance to 16 miles along the Greenbelt.

“It was my longest run in five years, and I feel very positive,” Howe said.

Her Harrisburg Marathon goals?

“I would like to get a PR under 4:45, because I think I’ve gotten stronger,” Howe said. “But beyond that, I just want to finish and feel good.”

 

Supportive

John Adams, 49, of Mechanicsburg, began running three years ago to lose weight, keep up with his growing sons, and get back to a healthier lifestyle. Now, 50 pounds lighter, he’s one of FFRC’s first-time marathoners.

“If I’m going to do a marathon before I’m 50, it’s now or never,” said Adams.

He makes a similar joke about his marathon goal.

“Because the time limit is six hours, I joke that 5:59 is my goal,” he said. “But, honestly, I’ll just be happy to finish.”

He admitted that much of the FFRC training was tough, especially considering the heat and humidity through the summer into the fall.

“I wouldn’t have the discipline or motivation to train on my own, but if anybody can want to make you run 18 miles, it’s Fred,” said Adams. “I mean the guy has won every local marathon, and he still makes himself available to everyday runners like us, to help and answer our questions.”

Being a part of FFRC goes far beyond the technical training, he said.

“With running, you compete against each other, but yet everybody is supportive of each other,” he said. “In what other sport does that happen?”


The Enders Harrisburg Marathon takes place on Nov. 11. For more information, visit www.ymcarun.com.

Continue Reading

Chillin’ in November: Add some spice during this cool month.

I am one of those people who are always reaching for that jar of little red pepper flakes.

I find a way to sneak them into soups, pastas, marinades for grilled foods, vegetable dishes, and salad dressings. Well, at least it’s not ketchup! I especially love the kick that red pepper gives to two classic Italian dishes—pasta arrabbiata and pasta with seafood fra diavolo.

But lately I have been reading a lot of recipes that call for Calabrian chilies. So, I went searching at my favorite gourmet food stand at the West Shore Farmers Market—Peggy’s Silver Spoon. From imported olive oils and pastas to unique sauces, condiments and spices, I can usually find culinary treasures there. To my surprise, I discovered she is selling a little collection of Calabrian chili products from a company called Tutto Calabria.

Calabria is the region of Italy that occupies the “toe of the boot,” the very southernmost part of the Italian peninsula. It is a warm, dry and sunny place where tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, basil and all the Italian produce we love thrive in the arid climate.

The Tutto Calabria website explains that the Calabrian chili has an official name: “Peperone Picante Calabrese”—the Spicy Pepper of Calabria. It is a small fruit about the size of a cherry that matures to bright red in color. A spicy and smoky pepper, it can be found dried, pickled, stuffed or packed in oil.

But back to the market. I bought a jar of Calabrian chilies packed in olive oil, vinegar and spices, along with a jar of whole, peeled plum tomatoes. I envisioned making a simple pan sauce of peppers, tomatoes, olive oil and perhaps a little basil.

This is what I cooked up.

 

Ingredients:

  • Extra virgin olive oil—several tablespoons for the pan and extra for finishing
  • A large can or jar (24-28 oz.) whole, peeled plum tomatoes (San Marzano, if you can find)
  • 1 medium sweet onion (Vidalia or candy), chopped
  • 2-3 cloves fresh garlic, chopped
  • A jar of pickled Calabrian chilies
  • Several tablespoons chopped fresh basil
  • A pinch of sugar and salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 lb. buccatini or other long pasta (like spaghetti or linguine)

 

Directions:

  • Gently heat olive oil in a large sauté pan or other pan deep enough to hold the cooked pasta.
  • Sauté the chopped onion until it becomes soft and golden in color. Add the chopped garlic and cook for just about a minute.
  • Take the plum tomatoes and squeeze them between your fingers right into the pan. Reserve the juice to thin the sauce later if needed.
  • Add a pinch of sugar and some freshly ground pepper (save the salt until last).
  • Cook the tomato/onion mixture down until it is thickened, almost like jam.
  • Add the jarred chili peppers along with their oil and vinegar and break them up with a wooden spoon.
  • Over low heat, simmer the sauce until it thickens again and then add the chopped basil. Season with a little salt if desired.
  • Cook the pasta in boiling salted water until al dente and reserve a cup of the cooking liquid.
  • Drain the pasta and add it to the sauce in the skillet. Cook over medium-low heat turning the pasta with tongs and thinning it with a little pasta water if needed.
  • When the pasta is nicely coated, add a little more olive oil to coat the strands until they glisten.
  • Serve in bowls with lots of freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Not much could be simpler than this spicy Calabrian pepper and tomato pasta. I served it with a green salad and didn’t feel I needed any meat to accompany it. It was perfect for a cool fall evening.

Now that I’ve discovered Calabrian chilies, there is no end in sight. Perhaps a few hiding in the Thanksgiving stuffing might be perfect.

Continue Reading