Forever Young: At Market Square Concerts, a celebration of youth turns 20.

December 29, 2017 | by Lori M. Myers

Jasper String Quartet

Peter Sirotin, artistic director of Market Square Concerts, remembers growing up in the Soviet Union and discovering the challenge of being a young, aspiring professional musician.

While his violin-playing days began in his childhood, as it does for many musicians, the reach for that gold ring would demand quite a stretch.

“Russia had a much more rigorous pre-college professional music training,” Sirotin said. “The mastery of craft was always prioritized over artistic originality. You had to earn the right to introduce new ideas by mastering tradition.”

There, the path to a performance career was mainly through winning competitions. Here, he said, there are awards that offer professional performance opportunities for young musicians.

Which is why Market Square Concerts is one of eight presenting organizations nationwide, including Carnegie Hall and others in Michigan, Texas and elsewhere, which bestow the Cleveland Quartet Award on a promising young string quartet biannually.

This month, Market Square Concerts will celebrate the 20th anniversary of this award with a program featuring two former winners, the Jasper String Quartet and the Jupiter String Quartet, which have gone on to develop major international recognition. Both of these groups have garnered prestigious awards, commissioned new works, and expanded their teaching careers through residences at various universities.

“All of the past winners of the Cleveland Quartet Award have blossomed into a major presence on international stages and some have won Grammy awards,” Sirotin said.

The award is not only a way to honor and promote a rising young string quartet, but it also assures the quality and legacy of chamber music so that young performers may continue to perfect their art for the enjoyment of current and future audiences.

Notably, the January concert features a sort of “youth” theme in its musical choices. One piece, the String Octet, was composed by Mendelssohn when he was 16 years old. Another, Mozart’s D Minor String Quartet, was inspired by the birth of his first child.

“You could definitely say that it is consistent with the youthful theme because Mendelssohn created one of the most exciting and intricate works in chamber music using eight instruments to expand expressive range to orchestral richness and brilliance at the age of 16,” Sirotin said. “Mozart’s music in general has a youthful energy even though it is often deeply insightful and wise. The D Minor String Quartet was written while his wife was in labor with their first son in the next room. This piece combines emotional intensity and depth with classical elegance and poise—a true masterpiece of the classical era.”

The Jasper and Jupiter quartets will also join forces to perform Debussy’s groundbreaking String Quartet in G Minor, which represents, Sirotin said, “a young composer’s rebellion against the constraints of generally accepted rules of composition in his day. The piece is widely considered to be a watershed moment in the history of chamber music.”

If you’re not familiar with chamber music, this Market Square performance is the perfect way to experience a program of classical, romantic and modernist styles. The performance will introduce audiences to up-and-coming talent and have them experience a variety of moods. The music is intimate, like having a conversation with a few close friends, Sirotin said.

Sirotin knows what he’s talking about when it comes to chamber music. He recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of his own chamber ensemble, the Mendelssohn Piano Trio, which has performed more than 500 concerts and recorded 15 CDs.

He remembers his trio’s start when every performance offered a learning opportunity that proved invaluable. The Cleveland Quartet Award and the Market Square Concert featuring the Jasper and Jupiter string quartets does just that by giving them and future chamber music quartets the chance to grab that gold ring.

The Market Square Concert featuring past Cleveland Quartet winners, the Jasper String Quartet and the Jupiter String Quartet, takes place Sunday, Jan. 21, at 4 p.m. at Market Square Presbyterian Church, 20 S. 2nd St., Harrisburg. For more information, visit www.marketsquareconcerts.org.

Student Scribes: “Terry Cloth Robe”

December 29, 2017 | by Sally Choueka

Philadelphia looks busy through the window glass. It is a strange thing, she thinks, to be in a city with nowhere to go. There would be commuters and students and officers patrolling the streets at this early hour, no doubt on their way to someplace. She decides to wait, an hour or two, until they are completely gone.

She sips coffee slowly from a ceramic mug with the hotel name on its side. She considers. If she had a job, she would be walking through a marble atrium, heels clacking on the floor. There’d be a security turnstile and a guard, nodding her through with the simple flash of a badge. She’d done an internship once, and she had worn deep maroon jeans and tops with v-necks.

“What do you want to do?” A driven person had asked her this question, many years ago.

“I want to be a teacher.” She had answered too quickly. Too quickly to reconsider, too quickly to ask why.

“Oh.”

They were standing in a marble atrium of a New York City news corporation. She did not know where the nearest public school was or that she would ever care to find out. She held a spiral notebook with scribbled notes and had just filed her college major as “journalism.” But even then, it seemed to her in retrospect, even then she knew.

She knew by the shine of the marble and the smoothness of the escalators and the golden elevator doors. She knew by the TV personalities and the live cameras: the view was too blinding. There were moments late at night, post-show production, when she would lean her forehead against the glass, breathing deeply at the lights in the skyscrapers and the taxi cabs below. “It’ll all be over soon,” she whispered. Her breath came in spurts, and her heartbeat was fast.

Here in Philadelphia, she sits in a terry cloth robe for several hours. She sips more coffee and types keywords into his computer. His computer is the latest model, and she is his wife. She is the wife of a man with the latest model computer. The corners of her mouth turn upward at the thought. There are six hours to go until he returns.

“Just enough time,” she says aloud, to no one in particular. She looks for jobs at the Philadelphia museums. She looks for jobs at the libraries. She dares to glance through a list of reporting jobs, all of which require late hours and derring-do.

By the third hour of terrycloth and coffee, she has three potential jobs. All are to do with children, and none require late-night work. She imagines a 19-year-old version of herself sucking in her cheeks, pursing her lips, flapping her arms and making chicken noises.

“You don’t understand,” she whispers fervently at the 19-year-old, “I don’t want to be a reporter anymore.”

“What do you want to do?” The 19-year-old asks, dropping her imaginary chicken arms.

“I want to be a teacher.” Again, without thinking.

New York CIty rises like a mirage from the reflections on the Philadelphia skyscraper glass. In New York, there are more people and more buildings. She watches the multitudes rush to catch the trains, honk their horns and shout at pedestrians. The Philadelphians below try to do the same, but are more polite about it.

“Someone should write about that,” she thinks.

She imagines herself in front of a classroom. “You know,” she tells her future students, “you should write about that.” She twirls the belt of the robe, and glances down into an empty cup. Leaning her head back and counting the minutes, her breath comes in steady streams, and her heartbeat is slow. “You should write about that,” she murmurs.

Sally Choueka is a master’s student in humanities at Penn State Harrisburg.

December News Digest

December 29, 2017 | by Lawrance Binda and Lizzy Hardison

Harrisburg Finalizes Budget

Harrisburg last month passed a 2018 budget did not raise city tax rates, but added a number of new salaried positions and approved millions of dollars in capital investments.

The final budget did not differ much from that proposed by Mayor Eric Papenfuse in late November, which leveraged higher revenue from a growing tax base to increase the city’s operating budget from $61 million last year to $65 million in 2018. The city will also spend $9.2 million from its cash reserves, which will cover a $2 million debt payment and $7.2 million in capital improvement projects.

Expenditures in 2018 will increase in two main categories: personnel and capital projects.

On the personnel front, the city budgeted for $32.5 million in salaries compared to $31 million in 2017. That figure, which excludes healthcare costs, will create seven new management positions and two new sanitation positions. The budget permits the Fire Bureau to make five hires and the Police Bureau to recruit 20 new officers.

The additional personnel funds will also increase salaries for two positions in the law bureau and award raises to sanitation workers represented by the AFSCME union.

The city defines a capital project as any expenditure exceeding $5,000. In 2018, proposed capital projects include $1 million on new radios and patrol cars for police, $700,000 for work on the 15th Street police substation and $80,000 for police body cameras. About $450,000 will go towards renovating city playgrounds, and projects to renovate Reservoir Park will receive almost $1 million thanks to a last minute cash transfer by Council.

Composting Plan to Proceed

Harrisburg intends to move ahead with plans to build a composting facility in Susquehanna Township, despite continued opposition from some township residents.

Mayor Eric Papenfuse said that the city will apply for a facility permit with the state Department of Environmental Protection this month. If DEP grants the permit, which Papenfuse believes it will, the city will begin to convert the site to a compost facility.

City officials have campaigned to build a composting facility at 1850 Stanley Rd. since summer 2017. After they were met with fierce opposition from some residents in Susquehanna Township, they agreed to delay the permit application until they had more public support. Over the following months they hosted informational sessions and visits to comparable sites to teach residents about composting.

Papenfuse made his final pitch at a township board of commissioners meeting last month, at which several township residents expressed opposition. Nonetheless, he said he believes the project has won enough support in the community to proceed.

“There’s a handful of people from the neighborhood who oppose it, but it’s not overwhelming,” he said.

Papenfuse told the crowd that composting leaves and lawn waste—which essentially involves letting the material decompose into the ground—does not carry any risks to humans, soil or water sources.

Some residents claimed that the facility would create odors or mar neighborhood views. Others worried about noise from the machinery and increased traffic from the Public Works Department trucks that transport the waste.

Papenfuse assured residents that the site would be unobtrusive when it opens. Public Works vehicles will use mostly Harrisburg roads to get to the site, and employees will operate the machinery on a limited, set schedule.

Allison Hill Substation

The Harrisburg Police Bureau is on track to open a police substation in Allison Hill in late summer 2018, but officials said last month that it would not be open around the clock.

During a hearing on the 2018 budget, Police Chief Tom Carter and Capt. Derric Moody told City Council that the substation will not operate 24/7 or have civilian staff when it opens in August.

Police may expand operations at the substation as they grow their ranks. The city hopes to hire 20 new officers and a community policing coordinator next year.

“Our goal is to have full service there, but, realistically speaking, we can’t currently achieve that with the manpower we have,” Moody said.

The plan is to use the substation as a staging area for specialized police units and an outpost for officers responding to calls in Allison Hill. The 1,600-square-foot building on S. 15th Street will include a space for police trainings and community meetings, as well as a squad room, break room, equipment room and locker room with showers.

It will also have an area for a receptionist, though there are currently no plans to hire one. Members of the public will be able to enter the substation for public meetings or interviews with police officers, but will not have access the same administrative services as the Public Safety headquarters downtown.

“We’re trying to provide a central location for officers,” Moody said.

Act 47 to Continue

Harrisburg is likely to spend another three years in the state’s Act 47 program for financially distressed municipalities, according to a state advisor who oversees the city’s finances.

Marita Kelly, Harrisburg’s Act 47 coordinator for the state Department of Community and Economic Development, last month praised the city’s “many achievements” since it entered Act 47 in 2011.

However, she believes that the city will not be able to afford to exit the program at the end of 2018, when it becomes eligible. While it would regain independent financial oversight, it would stand to lose some $13 million in revenue without the extra taxing authority allowed under the program.

Kelly added that Harrisburg has avoided some of the problems that plague other third-class cities across the state, such as difficulty financing legacy payments—healthcare and benefit payments for current and retired employees.

Bruce Weber, the city’s budget and finance director, reported that two of the city’s pension accounts are fully funded, but a third fund for police pensions is causing some concern.

“We only have one that’s slightly in distress,” Weber said. “We are contributing to it every year.”

Kelly will make a formal recommendation for Harrisburg’s Act 47 status in March. The only condition that would enable the city to exit the program would be a change to the third-class city code or a set of special taxing provisions for the city approved by the state legislature.

County Taxes Hold Steady

The Dauphin County commissioners last month passed a 2018 budget that keeps property taxes steady for a 13th consecutive year.

The three-person board passed a $241 million budget that contains no increase in the county portion of the property tax, which will remain unchanged at 6.876 mills.

The county does expect to spend more than it takes in for 2018, but plans to use as much as $12.5 million in reserve funds to make up the shortfall. The county stated that it still expects to have a reserve fund balance of about $25 million by the end of 2018.

Last year, Dauphin County also balanced its budget by dipping into its reserve fund. It estimated that it would spend $12.5 million in reserves, but will only spend about $5.2 million by year-end, according to current county estimates.

The county stated that it will add funds to the county coroner’s office in 2018 to deal with the rise in opioid-related deaths. Last year, there were 85 overdose deaths in the county, but the coroner expects more than 100 by Dec. 31.

Sewer Projects Begin

Capital Region Water began a new round of sewer replacement and improvements last moth, affecting several neighborhoods in Harrisburg.

Andrew Bliss, community outreach manager, said CRW is staggering the $700,000 project through the end of January. In all, CRW will repair more than 800 feet of aging and broken sewer mains and manholes at five locations.

The individual projects are:

– Mid-December to early January
S. 13^th Street, between Market Street and Howard Street
New manhole, 18 feet of new sewer pipe

– End of December to early January
Cameron and Market streets
Spray on concrete liner, 18-inch sewer pipe

– Early January to end of January
Magnolia Street between Cameron and 12^th streets
New manhole on Cameron Street, pipe lining

– Mid-January to end of January
Derry Street between 13^th and 14^th Streets
New manhole, 13 feet of pipe, pipe lining

– Mid-January to end of January
Fulton and Hamilton streets
New manhole connection

Potential impacts of the construction include street closures, parking restrictions, construction noise and temporary sewer service interruptions. When the pipe replacement is complete, the road will be temporarily patched until final street restoration is completed in the spring of 2018, Bliss said.

Customers with questions can contact Capital Region Water by phone at 888-510-0606 or by email at [email protected].

So Noted

Harrisburg School Board last month tabled a motion on whether to search for a new school district superintendent. The board is expected to revisit the issue again later this year, as Superintendent Sybil Knight-Burney’s contract expires in June.

Harrisburg University of Science and Technology last month unveiled its new, expanded campus in central Philadelphia. HU is sharing the 38,000 square feet of space at 1500 Spring Garden St. with Hussian College.

Harrisburg Young Professionals last month selected Suzanne Patackis as president of the 2018 executive board, replacing outgoing President Joe Tertel. HYP also announced that Jeff Copus and Adeolu Bakare will serve as co-vice presidents, Brittany Brock as secretary and Jeremy Scheibelhut as treasurer.

UPMC Pinnacle last month named Dr. James Raczek as its new chief medical officer. In that role, Raczek leads quality and safety programs, medical education and medical staff relationships and contributes to strategic planning and implementation.

Changing Hands

Barkley Lane, 2502: US Bank National Assoc. to S. Vetock, $32,000

Barkley Lane, 2507: R.C. Medellin to R. Medellin, $48,000

Boas St., 406: A. Heisey to S. Higginbotham, $115,000

Briggs St., 270: M. Ennis to E. & A. Williams, $228,000

Brookwood St., 2435: R. House to I. & K. Mita, $56,000

Calder St., 262: J. Goldberg to R. Yaegle, $118,000

Calder St., 500: W. Tatar to S. Hoffman, $125,000

Conoy St., 115: A. & C. Stoudt to R. Rodino, $145,000

Conoy St., 121: A. Spisask to K. Russell, $92,500

Cumberland St., 214: D. & E. Zampogna to M. Santalucia, $141,000

Fulton St., 1709: J. Ganeva to C. Messner, $110,000

Green St., 1624: K. Lewis to P. & M. Rowan, $192,000

Green St., 1817: T. & L. Sopcak to B. Scelta, $129,000

Green St., 1826: D. & J. Kalbach to D. Ober, $165,000

Industrial Rd., 3300: Pennsylvania Terminals Corp. to 3300 Industrial Road Associates LP, $865,000

Market St., 1923: K. Griffith to D. Thomas, $70,000

Mercer St., 2430: PA Deals LLC to R. Buehner, $63,900

Mercer St., 2464: C. Hobbs to T. & J. Knaub, $60,000

North St., 232: E. Finkelstein to G. Kramer, $125,000

N. 2^nd St., 812: A. Meoli to Diocese of Harrisburg, $212,000

N. 2^nd St., 2234: Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. to C. Eisner, $43,200

N. 2^nd St., 2527: GRSW Stewart Real Estate Trust to K. & D. Maltzie, $174,000

N. 2^nd St., 3211: E. & J. Daschbach to K. McRae, $99,900

N. 3^rd St., 925: D. Bobinchek & 921 Home LLC to 921 Home LLC, $105,000

N. 3^rd St., 2340: T. Wadlinger to D. & S. Houck, $168,265

N. 5^th St., 2736: PA Deals LLC to MidAtlantic IR LLC & Jennifer Fernandes IRA, $63,000

N. 13^th St., 139: Falco Inc. to Round the Horn LLC, $45,000

N. 16^th St., 914: J. & H. Wilbur to JB2 Properties LLC, $59,900

N. 16^th St., 916: PA Deals LLC to Z. Kissinger, $69,900

N. 17^th St., 1122: MBHH RE LLC to S. Garcia, $31,000

Peffer St., 228: N. & L. Chohany to B. Matuszny, $173,000

Peffer St., 263: Members 1^st Federal Credit Union to E. Patry, $49,900

Penn St., 1715: S. Dunn to BencMarq Holdings LLC, $77,001

Pennwood Rd., 3160: J. & M. Bush to T. Wylie, $150,000

Rumson Dr., 2983: C. Shenk to J. Jones, $69,000

S. 14^th St., 314: J. Reichwein to E. & B. Katz, $62,000

S. 14^th St., 1415: D. Fahie to City of Harrisburg, $47,000

S. 14^th St., 1419: H. & C. Pollard to City of Harrisburg, $50,000

S. 14^th St., 1439: R. & S. Dighe to City of Harrisburg, $50,000

S. 16^th St., 435: M. Bui to L. DiGiacomo & M. Ganci, $48,000

S. 17^th St., 140: Allison Hill Partners LLC to Hamilton Health Center Inc., $250,000

S. River St., 304: D. Havior to D. Ogden & Pear Tree Revocable Trust, $40,000

State St., 1406: R. & A. Sharp to JRC Properties, $80,000

Susquehanna St., 1614: J. & S. DeMuro to S. Brandon & L. Fisher, $152,000

Susquehanna St., 1701: R. Ambrose to R. Covington & T. Pean, $137,000

Susquehanna St., 1711: Susquehanna Valley Properties to N. DeMuro, $113,000

Harrisburg property sales for November 2017, greater than $30,000. Source: Dauphin County. Data is assumed to be accurate

Weekend Roundup with Sara Bozich

December 28, 2017 | by Sara Bozich

Happy Weekend!

Please excuse the abbreviated Weekend Roundup. I have a pretty good reason.

It’s a light week due to the holidays but hit me on IG or on the Facebook Group if you need a recommendation for New Year’s Eve.

Our tradition has been low-key long before baby: massages, pedicures, sushi and me falling asleep before midnight, followed by our annual New Year’s Day party, loaded with pork, kraut and hangover cures for our guests. Stay tuned for my post on this.

What are you doing this weekend?

(more…)

TheBurg Podcast: Budgets and School Board Edition

December 22, 2017 | by TheBurg Staff

As the year comes to a close and holiday indulgences beckon, TheBurg editor Larry Binda and city reporter Lizzy Hardison recap the week in news and look ahead to 2018. In this episode, they discuss the city’s finalized budget, which will make some exciting project possible in the new year. They also examine the debate surrounding Harrisburg City Schools superintendent Sybil Knight-Burney, whose contract is up for renewal in 2018. The School Board isn’t sure she deserves another term. Lizzy describes a showdown that took place at last week’s board meeting and explains why Knight-Burney drew fire for supporting a school voucher program in 2011. Plus, Lizzy and Larry round out the year’s top news stories.

Stream the episode on SoundCloud or download it in your Apple or Android podcast app.

Be sure to ring in the new year with the next issue of theBurg, which comes out Friday, Dec. 29.

Read reporting mentioned in this episode:

In the Books: Harrisburg Council makes a few tweaks, passes 2018 budget.

All Heat No Fire: Divided Harrisburg school board delays vote on superintendent’s future.

To Re-hire or Not? Pro-voucher video surfaces as Harrisburg school board considers Knight-Burney’s future.

Citing low manpower, police dial back plans for Allison Hill substation.

As Harrisburg finalizes its 2018 budget, officials hear a forecast for Act 47.

Exit Strategy: Harrisburg seeks assistance as it eyes leaving Act 47.

More Art, Music: H*MAC gets state grant to help complete Midtown facility.

December 22, 2017 | by Lawrance Binda

H*MAC partner John Traynor stands on the restored balcony overlooking the Capitol Room.

A major Harrisburg arts venue is the big winner locally in the annual competition for state redevelopment funds.

The House of Music, Arts & Culture (H*MAC) will receive $1 million from the Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP), a state program that provides grants for the acquisition and construction of projects deemed important for their cultural, economic, civic and historical significance.

John Traynor, a founding partner, said that the money will help H*MAC (formerly known as the Harrisburg Midtown Arts Center) complete the restoration of its building at N. 3^rd and Herr streets in Harrisburg.

“I’m very, very pleased,” he said. “This grant is more than a grant to us. It’s a stamp of approval to all the hard work that’s gone into finishing this project.”

A decade ago, Traynor and two partners bought the dilapidated building at 1110 N. 3rd St., formerly the home of the Harrisburg Jewish Community Center and, later, the Harrisburg Police Athletic League.

They initially built out a small performance space and bar on the lower level and opened it as Stage on Herr. They later completed a restaurant and larger bar, the Kitchen at H*MAC, on the main level and then a larger performance space on the upper level now called the Capitol Room.

Traynor said that the RACP grant will allow them to finish restoration of the 10,000-square-foot basement level, turning it into a music school, studio and production facility that he likens to a “School of Rock” concept. It also would permit H*MAC to build a semi-enclosed bar and restaurant area on the roof of the building and complete patio and façade improvements.

“We believe this will be the gem in the crown of Harrisburg, “ he said, adding that this next phase of work would proceed through 2018.

H*MAC received only about one-third of the $3.3 million it applied for, though few projects that are awarded funding receive the full amount. Traynor said that he believed the grant could be leveraged to give him access to additional funds so that the center would be functionally complete.

When H*MAC is finished, Traynor expects to employ more than 80 people, compared to about 30 currently, he said.

In Dauphin County, only two other projects were selected in this round of RACP funding.

Hershey Towne Square received $750,000 for a three-story parking garage. It had requested $2.5 million for the project.

The Salvation Army, Harrisburg Capital City Region, was given $500,000 for its new 39,000-square-foot facility at 29^th Street and Rudy Road. It had requested $4.5 million.

“It wasn’t our full request, but we’re very happy to receive this grant,” said Kathy Anderson-Martin, director of resource development.

The grant also may help the Salvation Army leverage other matching funds, she said, raising more money.

Anderson-Martin said her organization has raised about $8 million of a total construction cost of $11 to $12 million. This should allow them to break ground on the facility in the spring or summer of 2018. Already, the site has been cleared and most design work completed, she said.

In all, there were 10 applicants in Dauphin County in this round. The eight applicants denied funding so far are:

The City of Harrisburg, $14.3 million for a bridge over the railroad tracks at Division Street
Harrisburg City Islanders, $5 million for a new stadium in Lower Swatara Township
Harristown Enterprises, $3 million to construct a six-story building at 21 S. 2nd St. in Harrisburg
Christian Recovery Aftercare Ministries, $650,000 for renovation of its Uptown Harrisburg building
Tri-County Housing Development, $1 million for Hummel Street redevelopment
Mulberry Street Properties, $322,311 for Allison Hill revitalization
Hawthorne SPE, $5 million for its Progress and Linglestown Traditional Neighborhood District project in Susquehanna Township
Whitaker Center, $5.5 million for a major renovation of its building in downtown Harrisburg

In Cumberland County, the Carlisle Family YMCA was the only successful applicant among five total, receiving $1.5 million, half of its request, for an addition to its facility.

Projects denied funding in the initial round sometimes receive funding in a later round or reapply for the following year.

In all, the state funded 149 projects for almost $188 million in this round, compared to requests for 399 projects worth $1.7 billion.

Weekend Roundup with Sara Bozich

December 21, 2017 | by Sara Bozich

Happy Weekend!

Please excuse the abbreviated Weekend Roundup. I have a pretty good reason.

What are you doing this weekend?

(more…)

In the Books: Harrisburg Council makes a few tweaks, passes 2018 budget.

December 19, 2017 | by Lizzy Hardison

Harrisburg City Council tonight as it discussed the 2018 municipal budget.

Harrisburg City Council voted tonight to approve a $72 million budget for 2018, which will hold tax rates steady and allocate millions of dollars to capital improvements in the new year.

The budget that passed 6-1 tonight largely resembles the one proposed by Mayor Eric Papenfuse in late November, though council did decide to withdraw an additional $714,000 from the city’s cash reserves for park and playground improvements. That will bring the city’s total reserve spending in 2018 to $9,234,000, since the original budget proposed withdrawing $2 million for debt services and $6.52 million for capital improvements.

“While we’re investing in public safety, blight and infrastructure, we’re also providing nurturing environments for children so they have spaces to grow and play,” Councilman Cornelius Johnson said. “These are lifelong investments that can benefit the citizens of Harrisburg.”

The additional cash withdrawal will finance a new chutes and ladders playground at Reservoir Park, which the city originally planned to build in 2019. The 2018 budget had also earmarked $250,000 for planting meadows at that park, but council reallocated those funds to the playground project. The Department of Parks and Recreation will also receive $450,000 for renovations at five city playgrounds: Norwood-Holly, Cloverly, Summit Terrace, Penn and Sayford and 4^th and Dauphin.

Council also authorized a $10,000 transfer from the city’s Host Fund to the Planning Bureau. Councilwoman Ausha Green motioned to reallocate the money so the bureau can hire an outside consultant to edit the city’s draft comprehensive plan. The allocation passed 7-0.

Councilwoman Shamaine Daniels attempted to strike down proposed salary raises for members of the city’s Law Bureau. Daniels said that the raises should be postponed until council considered a salary ordinance in the new year. Her motion to revert the salaries failed after none of her colleagues moved to second it. Daniels then cast the only vote against the budget.

In addition to salary raises for the Law Bureau employees, the budget will also raise salaries for managers in the Sanitation Department and create new pay grades for sanitation workers represented by the AFSCME union. AFSCME members came to Tuesday’s budget vote to advocate for council to approve the raises and the allocations for new sanitation equipment.

“Knowing that someone acknowledges your work and that you’re doing a good job, it makes you want to go to work a little more,” said sanitation driver Jason Jackson after the vote.

The 2018 budget forecasts $65 million in revenue, up $4 million from this year. Papenfuse attributed that increase to a growing tax base, since revenues from real estate, local services and earned income taxes all exceeded projections this year.

The city will end 2017 with more than $20 million in its cash reserve fund. A $7.2 million withdrawal from that fund will finance capital improvement projects in every department of city government. Some of the line items for those projects include:

$700,000 for the Police Bureau to construct a new substation on S. 15^th Street, which will open part-time in August 2018.
$250,000 for the Codes Bureau to double its in-house demolition capacity.
$80,000 for the Police Bureau to purchase body cameras.
$30,000 for the IT Bureau to host Harrisburg police video server
$1.2 million for the Fire Bureau to replace roofs at three stations.
$425,000 for the Public Works department to construct ADA-compliant wheelchair ramps throughout the city.

The 2018 budget anticipates a $1 million fund balance at the end of the new year. It also outlines priority expenses for 2019 and 2020, including $550,000 for an Uptown/Midtown police station and $1.3 million for Reservoir Park redevelopment.

The city will balance those priorities while planning for Harrisburg’s exit from Act 47, which could happen as early as 2019. In a budget hearing last week, however, Marita Kelly, a state overseer, told city officials that Harrisburg will likely need to seek a three-year extension to its Act 47 status.

Council members and administrators have acknowledged that the city cannot afford to give up the special taxing privileges that Act 47 confers.

All Heat No Fire: Divided Harrisburg school board delays vote on superintendent’s future.

December 18, 2017 | by Lizzy Hardison

The Harrisburg school board

The former president of the Harrisburg school board sparred tonight with the man who unseated her, alleging that he failed to inform her of a last-minute agenda item.

School board Vice President Danielle Robinson, who served as president until she was ousted in a vote last week, called for the board to table a resolution that would start the process of hiring a new superintendent.

Robinson said that the board failed to follow proper procedure and discuss the resolution in committee. She accused new board President Judd Pittman of adding it to the agenda without telling her.

“This board deserves the respect of not having something slipped in last minute, because you know everything else on this agenda has gone through a committee,” Robinson said.

She claimed that she heard about the resolution on social media before she heard about it from the board.

Pittman said he reached out to Robinson to discuss the matter. She called him a liar and said he never followed through to tell her about it.

The exchange foreshadowed the contentious debate that will likely take place this spring, when the board will consider renewing the contract of current Superintendent Sybil Knight-Burney. Her four-year contract, which carries a $179,208 annual salary, is set to expire in June.

The board can renew Knight-Burney’s contract for another four years or open the position to a competitive hiring process in which she can participate. The state public school code says the board must start the hiring process at least 90 days prior to the day her contract expires, but Harrisburg’s policy requires 150 days.

Robinson also argued that the board should take its time with the resolution for the sake of three members who were sworn in last week. Robinson said that they needed more time to make an informed decision about Knight-Burney’s tenure. Board member Matt Krupp objected.

“It’s unfortunate that this board did not discuss this prior, but I think our members are all well informed and all pay attention enough to vote on this,” Krupp said. “We don’t need to wait.”

The board voted 6-3 in favor of Robinson’s motion, moving the resolution into a committee for discussion. Board members will determine then whether or not to include the item on a future agenda.

The board also tabled a resolution concerning sanitation employees who are represented by the AFSCME union. The resolution would “provide the district with the option” to transfer sanitation workers from the district payroll to the payroll of Aramark, a contractor. AFSCME representative Nichelle Chivis claimed the resolution would violate the collective bargaining law.

“If this goes through, I will file charges,” Chivis said. “The district is attempting to circumvent its responsibilities under the collective bargaining agreement.”

Interim Chief Financial Officer Jim Snell said the item was meant to apply only to AFSCME employees who left the union and sought part-time employment with Aramark.

“I will readily admit that it’s worded very awkwardly, but the intent is the intent,” Snell said.

Board member Percel Eiland motioned to send the resolution back to the Budget, Finance and Facilities Committee to amend the language and avoid a contractual violation. The motion passed 8-1.

Also today: Video surfaces of Superintendent Sybil Knight-Burney speaking at a pro-school voucher rally.

To Re-hire or Not? Pro-voucher video surfaces as Harrisburg school board considers Knight-Burney’s future.

December 18, 2017 | by Lizzy Hardison

Harrisburg School District Superintendent Sybil Knight-Burney speaks at a 2011 pro-voucher rally at the state Capitol, with then-Sen. Jeff Piccola (from a screen shot)

Should the leader of a struggling public school district support a student’s choice to leave it?

That’s one of the questions facing the Harrisburg School Board of Directors and Superintendent Sybil Knight-Burney, who, in 2011, made remarks at the state Capitol supporting a school voucher program. Knight-Burney’s contract with the district is up for renewal in 2018, and the board is meeting tonight to consider her future with the district.

A YouTube clip from 2011 shows Knight-Burney, then the acting superintendent of Harrisburg schools, at a rally in the Capitol Rotunda for Senate Bill 1, a limited-school voucher program. The bill would have allowed low-income students from poor and failing school districts to obtain vouchers to attend private schools. It passed through the Senate but was struck down by the House later that year.

Proponents of school voucher programs say they expand access to private schools and allow low-income students a path out of failing districts. But critics, which include most public school educators and administrators, say they exacerbate problems in under-resourced schools by depriving them of state and federal funds.

At the 2011 rally, Knight-Burney acknowledged that her position on the bill put her at odds with most of the public school community. She addressed a cheering crowd while flanked by school students, lobbyists and legislators, including then-Sen. Jeffrey Piccola, who sponsored the bill.

“This is not about pitting private schools against public schools or saying one is better,” Knight-Burney said. “It’s about providing opportunities of choice for all parents as they seek out educational alternatives… it’s about empowering families to make the best choice for their families.”

Knight-Burney went on to say that the schools have an urgent need to raise student achievement levels. As an educator and a mother, she said, she knows that parents care “more than anyone” about their child’s education.

“Parents and children are consumers of education and should be free to choose the educational product that works best for their child,” she said. “This opportunity should be affordable to all parents no matter what economic level they are categorized in.”

In school choice programs like the one proposed in SB1, a student who is dissatisfied with her public school district can apply to obtain a voucher – essentially a coupon that represents the money that child’s school district would have spent to educate her in public school. The child’s family can then apply the voucher to tuition at another school, including a religious or private school.

The value of the student vouchers is proportional to a school district’s spending-per-pupil. In the Harrisburg school district, that spending is close to $17,000 per student per year. The voucher does not take any local funding out of the district, but does divert the state and federal dollars used to educate the child.

That means that, in Harrisburg schools, almost half of the dollars used to educate a student could leave the district. The school district received 40 percent of its revenue from local sources and 48 percent came from state funding in 2015, according to data from WHYY. Voucher amounts would also be adjusted for the income level of the student’s family.

Knight-Burney was not available for comment on Monday.

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