Tag Archives: Commonwealth Court

Commonwealth Court rules against tolling of I-83, other bridges in PA

The South Bridge, from Riverfront Park in Harrisburg

A plan to toll the I-83 and other bridges around the commonwealth has run into a major roadblock, as a state court has ruled against the PennDOT proposal.

On Thursday, a panel of Commonwealth Court judges sided with three towns in western PA that sued the PA Department of Transportation over its Major Bridge P3 Program, which proposed tolling nine interstate bridges, including the I-83, or South Bridge, over the Susquehanna River at Harrisburg.

The decision, signed by Judge Ellen Ceisler, quashed the plan because, she wrote, PennDOT violated “provisions and guidelines set forth in the P3 Manual.”

Specifically, PennDOT did not state which bridges it would include when it sought authority to proceed with its tolling plan. Therefore, affected municipalities and the public lacked the opportunity to oppose the proposal or otherwise offer input, according to the order.

Last month, the Commonwealth Court had issued a temporary injunction against proceeding with the tolling plan.

Locally, the proposal has been widely panned by elected officials, a rare point of agreement across the city and suburbs, across levels of government and across political parties.

Officials cited numerous downsides to tolling the South Bridge, including economic hardship for local drivers, less commuting into Harrisburg from the suburbs and gridlock on city streets as drivers try to bypass the toll bridge.

The commonwealth had hoped to use toll revenue to help pay for a replacement of the failing, 62-year-old South Bridge, which PennDOT states has reached the end of its serviceable lifespan. PennDOT is currently planning a $1 billion new span with a construction start date of 2024.

Several local officials expressed satisfaction with the court’s decision.

“We are grateful for today’s decision and thank the municipalities and businesses who have worked toward this day,” said Harrisburg Regional Chamber & CREDC President & CEO Ryan Unger. “While tolls aren’t the answer to the necessary repairs for the 83 bridge, we will continue to work with our business and community partners and the state government to establish an equitable, community-centered funding solution that works for all.”

Read the Commonwealth Court decision here.

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Proposed PA STEAM Academy faces more delay, as Harrisburg school receiver appeals court decision

Midtown 2, where PA STEAM Academy would like to locate

For months, the proposed PA STEAM Academy has been waiting for a date to take its case before the state’s Charter School Appeal Board.

It appears the proposed charter school’s supporters now will need to wait even longer.

At Monday night’s school board meeting, Harrisburg school district Receiver Dr. Janet Samuels approved a resolution starting the district’s own appeal, specifically an appeal of a lower court’s approval of signatures supporting the proposed school.

On Aug. 2, Dauphin County Judge John McNally issued an order stating that PA STEAM had collected enough valid signatures so that the proposed school could now move forward with mounting an appeal to the state Charter School Appeal Board.

“The required number of signatures (1,000) were properly obtained and presented to the Court . . . ,” McNally wrote in his decision.

Samuels now is appealing that decision to the Commonwealth Court. Asked about the issue on Monday night, Samuels declined comment.

However, during the meeting, she said that the Harrisburg district stood ready to compete with charter schools, and she even encouraged district parents with children in brick-and-mortar and cyber charter schools to consider returning to the Harrisburg school system.

“I want to be very clear about, here in the Harrisburg school district, we are ready in a very bold and courageous way [to compete] with all charter schools in this area,” Samuels said.

Reached by phone on Tuesday morning, Dr. Carolyn Dumaresq, chair of the PA STEAM Academy’s board of directors, said that she was disappointed with Samuels’ action.

“It’s kind of a mystery to me that the receiver says she wants to compete with charter schools, but then doesn’t allow any to open,” said Dumaresq, who served as state secretary of education under former Gov. Tom Corbett.

In fact, PA STEAM had submitted petitions with 1,844 signatures, far exceeding the 1,000-signature threshold, making it unlikely that the district’s appeal will succeed, she said.

“To challenge the signatures—isn’t there a better use of taxpayer money?” she said.

Originally, PA STEAM Academy had hoped to open for the 2019-20 school year in the building now known as HACC Midtown 2, previously the Evangelical Press Building, at N. 3rd and Reily streets.

However, in February, the Harrisburg school board unanimously denied their charter application. Charter school supporters then collected signatures as a first step in the appeals process. With the petitions approved by McNally, school founders believed that they were free to continue their appeal to the state Department of Education’s Charter School Appeal Board.

PA STEAM Academy now must mount another hurdle—defending their signatures before the Commonwealth Court.

“You would have to prove that these people (who signed the petitions) don’t live in the city, and they do,” Dumaresq said. “It seems like just more delay. It’s sad.”

Dumaresq said that PA STEAM now hopes to open in time for the 2020-21 school year. The founders envision starting with 120 students in a K-2 school, adding a grade level each year until it becomes a K-8 school.

“I think this appeal is such a misuse of taxpayer money,” she said. “But are what are you going to do?”

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Mayor: Judge to delay Harrisburg’s Act 47 deadline until October.

A decision by a Commonwealth Court judge could give Harrisburg until the end of October to adopt an Act 47 exit plan and continue a lobbying campaign in the statehouse, Mayor Eric Papenfuse said on Thursday.

The new deadline would allow city officials more time to negotiate with state lawmakers once they return to the Capitol in September. Harrisburg is asking them to pass a bill that would let the city keep its current taxing authority and make a sustainable exit from the Act 47 state oversight program.

“This clears the stage for the legislature to act,” Papenfuse said. “Hopefully, we’ll get the legislative change we want.”

According to Papenfuse, Commonwealth Court Judge Bonnie Leadbetter indicated at an Aug. 14 conference that she would exempt the city from a statute in Pennsylvania’s Municipalities Financial Recovery Act, which says that a city has 45 days to adopt an Act 47 exit plan drafted by a state-appointed coordinator.

Papenfuse said that city officials did not want to adopt a three-year exit plan until lawmakers could consider House Bill 2557, which is co-sponsored by Rep. Patty Kim, D-Dauphin County, and Rep. Greg Rothman, R-Cumberland County. The House finance, local government and urban affairs committees will hold a joint public hearing on the bill on Sept. 25.

The house returns to session on Sept. 5, and the Senate on Sept. 12. The bill, which Papenfuse announced on July 10, is not yet published in the state’s legislation database.

If the bill passes, Harrisburg will be able to keep its current local services tax (LST) and earned income tax (EIT) rates, which bring in a combined $11.8 million of annual revenue. The Act 47 law has allowed Harrisburg to pass provisional hikes on both taxes. Harrisburg doubled its EIT in 2012 and tripled its LST in 2016.

Otherwise, an Act 47 exit would force Harrisburg to lower its tax rates to their former levels. City officials say they can’t provide basic services if they lose almost $12 million in annual revenue.

Harrisburg’s Act 47 designation expires in September. In March, its coordinator, Marita Kelley, recommended the city stay in Act 47 under a one-time, three-year extension.

In order to secure an extension, however, Harrisburg officials must adopt a state-approved exit plan.

Kelley published the first draft plan on July 9. She had a month to collect public comments and make revisions, but Harrisburg officials faced a September deadline for its final approval.

Residents and city officials excoriated the first draft document, which called for doubling property taxes over three years to offset LST and EIT revenue losses. The second draft deferred the property tax raises for three years, but recommended steep hikes in 2022 if the city does not persuade lawmakers to grant it augmented taxing power.

Members of the Papenfuse administration and City Council agree that Harrisburg can’t balance its books under the current state tax code. They say that Harrisburg deserves special taxing provisions as the state capital city, since it supports large swaths of untaxable land and more than 30,000 commuters a day.

Harrisburg began making that argument to lawmakers in January, when it entered a 12-month, $60,000 lobbying contract with local firm Maverick Strategies. Since then, Papenfuse and his staff have convened dozens of meetings with state legislators.

Their effort soured in June, after Papenfuse clashed with house Speaker Mike Turzai. The next day, Turzai blocked a special provision for Harrisburg from coming up to vote.

The general assembly recessed hours later, forcing Harrisburg to begin the months-long Act 47 exit process. Papenfuse is optimistic that there is enough will in the legislature to pass a bill this fall.

If the legislature fails to act this fall, the mayor hopes that the city can develop an agreeable Act 47 exit plan and continue lobbying into the new year.

As of Friday, Leadbetter had not filed a formal response to Harrisburg’s application for relief. Harrisburg Solicitor Neil Grover, who was present at the Aug. 14 conference, declined to comment on Ledbetter’s decision until it was filed.

Want to learn more about Harrisburg’s financial recovery? Check out TheBurg’s guide to Act 47.

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“Dead On Arrival”: Harrisburg mayor, state representative reject, vow to fight proposal to double city property taxes.

Harrisburg city hall

A proposal to raise Harrisburg’s property taxes by 105 percent over three years would lead the city into financial ruin and “state-assisted suicide,” Mayor Eric Papenfuse said on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters after a ribbon cutting for a building in Uptown Harrisburg, Papenfuse said that he would not support the enormous property tax increases that the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) proposed in a report issued yesterday.

The tax hikes were one of the measures that DCED said could help Harrisburg ease its exit from Act 47, a state-run financial oversight program. The proposed increases would affect only the city portion of a property owner’s total property tax burden.

Papenfuse and state Rep. Patty Kim said that the proposal would burden constituents and stifle growth in the city. They agree that Harrisburg can’t afford to lose the $11.8 million in revenue that the city generates under Act 47.

The oversight program enabled Harrisburg City Council to double the earned income tax (EIT) in 2012 and triple the local services tax (LST) in 2016. Unless state law changes, the city will have to lower those tax rates when it leaves Act 47 in 2022.

Kim is co-sponsoring a bill with Republican Rep. Greg Rothman that would codify Harrisburg’s current tax rates, allowing it to leave Act 47 and regain financial independence.

The bill measure would eliminate the longstanding structural deficit that plagued the city before it entered Act 47 – the result of Harrisburg’s small, largely impoverished tax base supporting large swaths of tax-exempt property.

“We can say it until we’re blue in the face, but it’s true,” Kim said. “How can you survive when 50 percent of your tax base is tax-exempt and 30,000 commuters come into the city every day?”

The local services tax, in particular, is essential to Harrisburg’s financial future, Papenfuse said, because it taps revenue from the city’s large commuter class. Property tax hikes would shift the burden of funding the capital city back on to its 49,000 residents, a large portion of whom live at or below the poverty line.

Kim, who served on City Council for seven years, called DCED’s exit plan “dead on arrival.”

Combined with anticipated hikes in Harrisburg’s water/sewer rates and school taxes, property tax increases would likely drive out existing residents, she said.

“Nobody would come to Harrisburg,” Kim said.

Papenfuse said that the state legislature will have 10 working days to pass Harrisburg’s tax provision in September, since council must approve a final recovery plan late that month. He said he would veto any plan that raises property taxes.

If the state fails to act, the mayor believes that the city could find recourse through the state judiciary.

The LST and EIT increases were approved by Commonwealth Court rulings, and Papenfuse said that a judge may uphold the current rates if the city could prove that public safety was in jeopardy.

Among DCED’s proposals for limiting Harrisburg’s expenditures was the consolidation of the Harrisburg Police Bureau into a regional police force. The exit plan also says that the city will unlikely be able to hire new police officers over the next three years.

Papenfuse said both those proposals are untenable, given a lack of regional cooperation and the city’s already-low levels of police manpower.

The mayor also rejected the option of adopting a Home Rule charter, which would allow the city to set its own tax rates. Papenfuse does not believe it would succeed in Harrisburg, or that the city would pass a charter in time to avoid an Act 47 exit plan.

Home Rule would also not allow the city to keep its current LST rate. Home Rule charters only set tax rates for residents of a home rule municipality, but the LST is paid by commuters as well as residents.

Papenfuse urged Harrisburg residents and property owners to comment on the DCED plan through July 24.

“We’d like everyone to say that the plan doesn’t work and we need legislative change,” he said.

Written comments can be submitted through the city website, and residents can also offer oral comments in a public hearing on July 24.

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10 for ‘16: Our editor picks his top Harrisburg news stories for the year just past.

Five years ago, when I started my annual list of top Harrisburg news stories, I remarked that I was surprised that each one of my “Top 10” was positive.

Not this year, which is ironic since the city was in far better shape in 2016 than it was in 2012. But, sometimes, that’s the relative nature of the big news. Overall, 2016 was, in my opinion, the most promising year I’ve experienced as a denizen of Harrisburg, but, along the way, there certainly was no lack of highs and lows.

Illustrations by Rich Hauck.

  1. The Apartments

screenshot-2016-12-28-09-55-32My leadoff story of the year is a positive one. It didn’t get quite the ink (or, sorry, the pixels) as many other stories, but I included it because it indicates something new and potentially significant for Harrisburg. During the year, four new apartment buildings opened, three in downtown and one in Midtown, putting almost 100 high-end units onto the market in a short timeframe. In the end, I view this as a grand experiment, a test of whether, like in other cities, there’s demand for beautiful, if pricey, one-bedroom, apartments. Is there enough desire for $1,000/month units when there’s no lack of less-nice, but far more spacious townhouses for about the same price? According to the developers I’ve asked—so far, the answer seems to be yes.

  1. Full Impact

screenshot-2016-12-28-09-57-02Nothing seems to happen in Harrisburg without controversy, and so it was with Impact Harrisburg, a nonprofit set up to dole out about $13 million to help the city with its unmet infrastructure and economic development needs. It took years to get Impact Harrisburg off the ground. It then came under fire for a lack of openness, got sued by the Patriot-News and, naturally, took some verbal abuse from Mayor Eric Papenfuse. In the end, Impact Harrisburg disgorged its bounty in just a few months, despite expectations from the Commonwealth Court that its impact should last at least five years.

  1. 6th Street Awaits

screenshot-2016-12-28-09-55-21In its long history, N. 6th Street has been a working-class enclave, a depressing example of post-industrial decay and a big, long expanse of nothing. It’s now turning again. In April, the commonwealth announced it would build the new Pennsylvania State Archives building at N. 6th and Harris streets. Then, Rep. Lou Barletta (much to my surprise) began hammering through Congress funding for a new, $194.4 million federal courthouse at Reily Street. Could The Vartan Group’s big bet of anchoring its vast neighborhood holdings with The 1500 Condominium building actually work out? Well, there’s an old saying on Wall Street that being early is being wrong. However, if you have the rare luxury of patient capital, you might find yourself profiting handsomely in the long run.

  1. Flattened Tires

screenshot-2016-12-28-09-56-15Let’s say that, on some random Thursday, you’re busy at work when the world comes crashing down on top of you. That’s rather what happened to Howard Henry, the owner of a tire shop and garage on Cameron Street. After a springtime downpour, a concrete retaining wall holding back a hill collapsed, raining a mountain of dirt and the remains of a parking lot (including a Nissan Altima) onto the roof of his building. Seven months later, the entire mess remained, as PennDOT and the owners of the McFarland Apartments slugged it out over responsibility. Henry tried to remain open, but, eventually, was forced to close as he waited for someone to accept blame and pay for the disaster.

  1. Sudden Deaths

screenshot-2016-12-28-09-55-51From time to time, I’m asked why the news media treats some murders differently than others. This question came up again after the homicide of Steven Esworthy, who was killed in June after being hit on the head as part of an apparent robbery. Is it a matter of race, class or location? To some extent, yes but it’s often more a matter of the specific circumstances of the crime. In this case, Esworthy was walking home from a wedding in the wee hours of the morning when he was clubbed from behind, and random murders always seem more tragic and, thus, generate more press attention. The neighborhood’s reaction also was strong, which kept the story around. Likewise, the murder of John Carter, another random victim (and the nephew of the city’s police chief), received a lot of coverage last year.

  1. The Way of Weed

screenshot-2016-12-28-09-56-51If you judge a story’s importance by the volume of people attending meetings, the city’s pot law changes would have ranked first last year. Harrisburg held several meetings about reducing penalties for marijuana possession, attracting more than 100 people in all. In the end, City Council eased its possession laws, reducing fines, but the changes weren’t as dramatic as some activists had hoped.

  1. Bar Brawl, part 2

Who knew that such a little bar could create so much fuss? In the only repeat item from 2015, the battle between Mayor Papenfuse and the Third Street Café slogged through its second year. Once again, the corner bar emerging victorious as a Dauphin County judge ordered the city to issue it a business license. The administration appealed the decision to the Commonwealth Court, a case that should be heard later this year. And, in a big middle finger to the mayor, the business owners even bought the building next door, a bar that Papenfuse had successfully shut down a year earlier.

  1. Police Shooting

screenshot-2016-12-28-09-56-37Nationally, 2016 may be remembered as a year when relations between police and African Americans hit a troubling low. Harrisburg found itself in that controversy after the shooting death of 20-year-old Earl Shaleek Pinckney. Police said an officer shot Pinckney because he was holding a knife to his mother’s throat, an account that she denied. The shooting sparked marches, protests and a unity meeting, which was attended by both police and family members. Dauphin County District Attorney Ed Marsico later agreed with the police account, clearing Officer Tony Elliott of any wrongdoing.

  1. Presidential Visits

screenshot-2016-12-28-09-56-02Harrisburg may be the state capital, but it rarely finds itself rolling out the presidential welcome mat. That changed in 2016, as central PA emerged as a swing region in a swing state. Following the Democratic National Convention, Hillary Clinton rolled through town, practically shutting down the city with an outdoor rally in front of the Broad Street Market. A few days later, Republican nominee Donald Trump attracted a long line of folks in red caps to the PA Farm Show Complex. Even Vice President Joe Biden stopped by to offer a pep talk in the waning days of the campaign. However, as is his tendency, Trump made the biggest splash when, after a visit to the west shore, he remarked that Harrisburg looked like a “war zone” from his airplane, prompting criticism for this ridiculous remark from many local media (including TheBurg) for the man who will be sworn into office this month.

  1. Normalizing Harrisburg

screenshot-2016-12-28-09-57-33I didn’t grow up in Harrisburg, so have no nostalgia for the long-defunct businesses and colorful shop owners whose names pop up in places like the popular, “If You’re Really from Harrisburg, You Would Know,” Facebook group. However, I am quite familiar with Harrisburg as calamity, an essentially bankrupt city that seemed to have no future beyond lurching endlessly from crisis to crisis. This past year was the first I’ve experienced when Harrisburg felt like, well, a normal city, one that is fiscally solvent, competently delivers an acceptable level of service and offers enough stability so that residents and businesses can feel comfortable investing, operating and just being. Perhaps, in other cities, reaching “average” would be nothing to write about. However, given the recent history of Harrisburg, normalcy is an achievement indeed. Sure, this top news item may have a “Dog that Didn’t Bark” quality about it. But, unlike other media, I believe that news isn’t just about dysfunction, but about when things go well, which should be noted and applauded.

 

So, there you have it—my top 10 Harrisburg stories for 2016. It was tough to cull the list down from all the possibilities in this small, yet news-rich place. Should I have included the still-unsolved Civil War Museum thefts, the Papenfuse/Patriot-News cold war, the ongoing saga of fake student Artur Samarin or all the twists in the search for money to pay for sinkhole fixes? A case could be made for any of these. Certainly, the trial of former Mayor Steve Reed would have been a top news story if it had not been delayed until this month.

As we enter the new year, I have a resolution that directly pertains to news in Harrisburg. I resolve that TheBurg will strive to do a better job than ever before in covering what happens around here. We have a commitment to this community that we take very seriously and, as we enter a local election year, the time is right for us to up our game.

Lawrance Binda is editor-in-chief of TheBurg.

Illustrations by Rick Hauck.

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A Tale of 2 Bars: Third Street Cafe Owners Buy Former Taproom

BarsWeb

The owners of the Third Street Cafe have bought the bar next door.

The owners of an embattled Midtown bar have bought the bar next door, adding another wrinkle to their long conflict with the city.

Last Friday, the owners of the Third Street Café, Tony Paliometros and Frank Karnouskos, closed on the purchase of the former Taproom, according to the Dauphin County Recorder of Deeds. The bars are located directly next to each other along the 1400-block of N. 3rd Street in Harrisburg.

Chris Wilson, attorney for the Third Street Café, characterized the purchase as an opportunistic investment. He said that his clients’ plans are not yet firm, but, at some point, they hope to knock down the interior wall separating the buildings to expand their business.

Wilson added that Paliometros and Karnouskos would like to make substantial improvements to the former Taproom as part of the expansion.

“My clients are interested in investing and making the property better and the business nicer,” he said.

The Third Street Café has been locked in conflict with the Papenfuse administration since March 2015, when the owners received notification that the city was revoking their business license. The city then refused to issue the bar a 2016 business license.

The bar owners appealed both the license revocation and the denial to the Dauphin County court. Several months ago, Judge Andrew Dowling rejected the city’s argument that the bar was a magnet for trouble. He also said that state laws trump local regulations for establishments that hold liquor licenses. He then ordered the city to issue the Third Street Café a business license, a decision the city has appealed to the Commonwealth Court.

Coincidentally, the city also revoked the Taproom’s business license last year. Owner Dave Larche did not appeal and closed down his business at the end of 2015. Several months ago, he put the property on the market for $129,000, eventually selling it to Paliometros and Karnouskos for $92,000.

Wilson said that the building’s new owners hope to work with the city as they go about renovating the property. He acknowledged that the long-dilapidated block is undergoing rapid redevelopment, which may lead his clients to rethink their business model, possibly expanding food and drink options.

Last year, the sleek, new Susquehanna Art Museum opened directly across the street and, this year, ModernRugs.com began renovating two large, long-blighted buildings on the block—the former home of the local Volunteers of America and of Midtown Paint & Hardware. Just yesterday, Mayor Eric Papenfuse received permission from the Harrisburg Architectural Review Board to begin façade improvements to the properties that he owns on that block at 1421-23 N. 3rd St.

Papenfuse declined comment for this story.

Author: Lawrance Binda

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Almost History: This year’s U.S. Senate race sparks a remembrance of what might have been.

Screenshot 2016-10-31 10.42.46As this year’s U.S. Senate race in Pennsylvania has unfolded with Katie McGinty as the Democratic nominee, many residents have been surprised to learn that, if she wins, she will be the first woman elected to the Senate from this state. That’s right, starting with William Maclay and Robert Morris in 1788, there have been 58 senators from Pennsylvania, and every single one has been a man.

There was one race, however, when we came oh-so-close to having a woman in the Senate. In 1964, a Harrisburg resident named Genevieve Blatt came within 1 percentage point of making history.

Blatt was actually a native of Clarion County, but spent much of her adult life living on North Street in Harrisburg. And she was very much part of the community here. As an altar boy at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, I would always see her sitting in the front pew for 6:45 a.m. Mass.

She was a woman way ahead of her time. She was the first woman to ever gain statewide office when she was elected secretary of Internal Affairs in 1954 by a 52 to 48 percent margin. (The closeness of her races became such a constant in her career that she was given the sardonic nickname “Landslide Blatt”). Later in her career, she became the first woman to serve on the Commonwealth Court.

And she was one of the first Pennsylvania politicians to grasp the growing importance of television. For years, she hosted a Saturday morning TV show called “Coffee with Genevieve,” in which she interviewed Pennsylvanians famous and not so famous about aspects of life here. (She once had my brother and his friend, Jerome O’Leary, both grade-schoolers at the time, on the show to talk about the various rocks to be found in the state).

And so, in 1964, she set out to break another glass ceiling by running for the Senate. To put the endeavor in context, remember that women had not been granted the right to vote until 1920, and no woman was elected to the Senate until Margaret Chase Smith won a seat in Maine in 1948.

But, feeling herself more than qualified, Blatt announced her candidacy—and was completely ignored by her own state party. The Democrats had their own man, a flamboyant Supreme Court justice named Michael Musmanno. He quickly received the party endorsement.

Musmanno was an entertaining figure who was proud of his Italian heritage and was the author of many books, including one called “Columbus Was First,” which he wrote to refute claims that other Europeans preceded Christopher Columbus to America. (A sought-after speaker, Musmanno agreed to speak to my father’s Knights of Columbus council if they agreed to buy copies of the book to be re-sold to council members. Boxes of the books sat unopened in our attic for years afterwards.) A fervent anti-Communist, Musmanno once demanded that the Cincinnati Reds change their nickname.

The lack of the party endorsement did not dissuade Blatt, and she ran anyway. In one of the many similarities to this year’s race, there were three candidates for the Democratic nomination that year. The third, performing the role that John Fetterman played this year, was a massive man from Allegheny County named Dave Roberts. Roberts would have a key role in the race by taking votes from Musmanno.

Musmanno had the support of virtually every Democratic power broker except Blatt’s patron, U.S. Sen. Joe Clark.

The race was perilously close, even by Blatt’s standards. On election night, she emerged with a 491-vote edge over Musmannno. Sort of.

Musmanno challenged 5,600 votes in Philadelphia because of faulty ballots. In a precursor of the Bush-Gore fight over Florida, the court challenges dragged on for months until the state Supreme Court finally ruled in Blatt’s favor on Aug. 21, and her general election race could finally begin.  

The late start would have been a challenge under any circumstances, but Blatt’s Republican opponent was an entrenched incumbent named Hugh Scott. Not only had Scott served six years in the Senate, but he had been in the House for 16 years before that. And, while Blatt was badly underfunded, Scott had access to resources from around the country.

But Scott had a problem, too. The Republican candidate for president, Barry Goldwater, was considered too extreme for Pennsylvania, and Scott was doing his best to avoid any association with him. The best he could do was to say that he supported Republicans “at all levels,” a response that satisfied nobody.

In the end, Scott won by a little more than 1 percent, despite the Lyndon Johnson rout at the top of the ticket. His greater resources were too much to overcome. As an example, one night, the Blatt campaign staff received a frantic phone call from the candidate who was stuck in an airport because she did not have enough money to buy a plane ticket. Clark was called off the floor of the Senate, and he wired her the money.

There are only a few political veterans who remember that race. I am one of them because it was my first political campaign. I was 15, and my brother dragged me along some nights to the Blatt headquarters to stuff envelopes. It was only in retrospect that I realized how close we had come to making history.

According to her friends, Blatt never dwelled on what might have been. She went on to a distinguished career as a jurist. In perhaps her most famous case, she wrote the opinion demanding that the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association provide gender equality in high school sports. For that and her numerous accomplishments, she is honored by a historical marker in Riverfront Park at Liberty Street, close to building she called home for much of her life.

Sadly, though, but for a difference of 1 percent of the votes cast, Genevieve Blatt would have had another accomplishment on the marker—first woman U.S. senator from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Joseph Powers is a native of Harrisburg and an adjunct professor at Saint Joseph’s University.

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July News Digest

 

Housing Money Disbursed

Harrisburg City Council last month selected seven nonprofit groups to receive federal housing funds, but not before overriding a mayoral veto.

Council President Wanda Williams called members back from their summer recess to vote to override Mayor Eric Papenfuse’s first-ever veto.

Papenfuse objected to several parts of the bill, but especially opposed a lack of public input on changes that council made to his original bill.

“There was no public comment on any of these specific changes, many of which drastically altered the funding amounts requested by the sub-recipients,” he said.

Originally, Papenfuse proposed that the city retain all $1.9 million in federal Community Development Block Grant funds for its own needs. However, council unanimously decided to carve out $295,000 and distribute it to a handful of service organizations, as it has in past years.

The following groups received funds:

  • Habitat for Humanity of the Greater Harrisburg Area, $80,000
  • Heinz-Menaker Senior Center, $40,000
  • African American Chamber of Commerce, $30,000
  • East Shore YMCA, $30,000
  • MidPenn Legal Services, $30,000
  • Fair Housing Council, $25,000
  • Christian Recovery Aftercare Ministries, $25,000

MidPenn Legal Services was the only group that received all the money it requested, while others received considerably less. Council also awarded $35,000 to the Ferguson Group, which helps nonprofits with grant writing.

Papenfuse had earmarked $165,000 to restart a school resource officer program for the Harrisburg school district. Council, citing a lack of buy-in from the district, killed the proposal in favor of funding the nonprofits. Smaller amounts were taken from grant administration, housing rehabilitation and emergency demolition.

The city reserved the single-largest amount of money—$641,113—to repay a federal loan it backed for the once-bankrupt Capitol View Commerce Center, as well as for other federal community development loans dating back about 15 years.

The Papenfuse administration has sent a letter to Julian Castro, secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, asking for relief from the remaining balance of the Capitol View Commerce Center loan, as the developer, David Dodd, defaulted on the loan and was later convicted on federal fraud charges. At press time, no response had been announced.

 

Pot Penalties Eased

Harrisburg last month joined several other cities in Pennsylvania in reducing penalties for marijuana possession.

A unanimous City Council lowered the penalty for possession of small amounts of cannabis from a misdemeanor to a summary offense. The penalty for possessing marijuana paraphernalia likewise was lowered.

Fines were set at $75 for possession and $150 for use.

After a third offense, the penalty reverts to a misdemeanor, but only if all three citations occur within a five-year period.

The vote came after several public meetings in which dozens of residents voiced their opinions for and against lowering the status of possession. Many residents supported the change for recreational or medical use of marijuana, while others argued that pot can lead to the use of harsher drugs.

 

Gun Suit Dismissed

A judge last month threw out a longstanding lawsuit over Harrisburg’s gun ordinances.

Dauphin County Judge Andrew Dowling dismissed a lawsuit by a group called U.S. Law Shield, which had sued Harrisburg over five of its gun control laws. Dowling ruled that the plaintiffs lacked standing to bring the suit, as none lived in or had been cited by the city.

U.S. Law Shield filed the lawsuit after the state passed a law known as Act 192, which gave entities automatic standing to sue Pennsylvania municipalities over gun restrictions. The Commonwealth Court later declared that law unconstitutional.

Many municipalities had already repealed their gun control ordinances under threat of a lawsuit. However, Harrisburg and several other cities chose to fight the suits.

 

Sewer Line Cleaning

Capital Region Water has begun cleaning out major sewer lines in its service area, work that will continue through November.

Crews from CRW, Terra Contracting and CDM Smith will be accessing manholes along the lines, called interceptors, to perform the pipe-cleaning work, said Andrew Bliss, CRW’s community outreach manager. The project includes the Paxton Creek, Paxton Creek Relief, Hemlock Street, Spring Creek and Front Street interceptors.

Bliss said that disruptions to traffic flow are not expected, but that CRW would provide notification through social media if they do occur.

CRW interceptors are up to 60 inches in diameter and convey about 20 million gallons of sewage every day. Bliss said that initial analysis determined that some sections of the interceptors are 50-percent clogged by sediment, adding that the cleaning will remove about 2,300 tons of sediment.

According to CRW, there is no record of when the interceptors were last cleaned.

Bliss said that the $1.4 million project will allow for more storage in the interceptors, which will help reduce combined sewer overflows. Cleaning also will allow for a more detailed condition assessment of the interceptors, which will identify necessary repairs, he said.

 

Judge Sides with Bar

A Dauphin County judge last month ordered Harrisburg to issue a business license to the 3rd Street Café, allowing the embattled bar to stay open.

In his opinion, Judge Andrew Dowling stated that state liquor laws trump the city’s own restrictions, limiting the extent to which the city can regulate a business that serves alcohol. Dowling also criticized the cases cited by the city to support its contention that the bar serves as a magnet for crime, saying that most of the alleged criminal activity took place entirely outside of the bar, with few involving bar patrons.

Harrisburg had declared the 3rd Street Café a nuisance and refused to issue it a 2016 business license. Last year, it also revoked the Midtown bar’s 2015 business license, but a court injunction allowed it to remain open through the end of the year.

 

Parking Default Declared

Harrisburg last month declared the entities that run the city’s parking system to be in default of their complex, long-term leasing agreement.

The Harrisburg Parking Authority voted to send a default notice to the Pennsylvania Economic Development Finance Agency over nearly $1.5 million in payments the city claims it is owed.

Under the agreement, Harrisburg stands first in line for “waterfall” payments, which is money left over after operating expenses and debt payments.

However, in the agreement’s first two years, the system did not generate enough money from fees and tickets to pay the city’s full share. The sides are now in dispute over what happens when revenue falls short.

The parties have 90 days to resolve the issue. If not, the matter could be turned over to a judge to decide.

 

New Police Hires

Harrisburg last month swore in seven new police officers to replace officers who are retiring or have left the force.

The city has about 130 sworn officers, unchanged over the past few years. The budget allows for 141 officers.

Police Chief Thomas Carter said that his department has had problems maintaining manpower because some long-term officers are retiring, while others are departing for nearby jurisdictions that offer higher pay and a less stressful work environment.

 

Video Camera Database

Harrisburg police last month urged residents to register their video cameras as part of a new database aimed at battling crime.

Increasingly, businesses and even residents are setting up surveillance cameras outside their stores and homes. Police would like to know the location of these cameras as footage could help to investigate crimes that occur near them.

Separately, police unveiled a new crime-mapping website that allows residents to see where crimes have occurred and even offer crime tips to police. The website can be located at www.raidsonline.com.

 

Miller Sworn In

Long-time Harrisburg official Dan Miller took the oath of office last month as the city’s new treasurer.

A split City Council selected Miller in June over three other candidates: former city Councilman Brad Koplinski and attorneys Karen Balaban and Peter Marks. The position was open following the resignation of Tyrell Spradley, who served as treasurer for just 18 months.

Miller, a CPA who runs his own accounting practice, has previously served as city councilman and controller. Three years ago, he ran for mayor, but lost in a hard-fought race to Eric Papenfuse.

 

Housing Sales Up

Housing sales in the Harrisburg area continued their upward climb, according to the Greater Harrisburg Association of Realtors.

GHAR reported that sales totaled 1,101 units in June versus 905 in the year-ago period for the area that includes all of Dauphin, Cumberland and Perry counties and parts of York, Lebanon and Juniata counties.

The median sales price rose to $175,000 from $173,500, while average days on the market dipped to 65 from 79 compared to June 2015, said GHAR.

 

So Noted

Hershey-Harrisburg Regional Visitors Bureau last month launched the Hershey Harrisburg Sports & Events Authority to attract more sports tourism and large-scale event business to the region. The announcement was made during the kickoff to the 3rd Annual Mecum Auction at the PA Farm Show Complex. 

Harrisburg International Airport last month reached an agreement with Uber to allow the car-sharing service to operate at the airport. Uber expanded into the Harrisburg area early last year, but had been prevented from picking up or dropping off airline passengers. 

Raising the Bar bakery opened last month in the stone building of the Broad Street Market, offering a wide selection of freshly baked breads, cookies, muffins and other treats. Owners Casey Callahan and Timishia Goodson are veterans of Caio! Bakery in downtown Harrisburg.

 

Changing Hands

Balm St., 22: M. Kenny to B. Garrison, $45,000

Calder St., 109: A. Carlson to P. & J. Lawson, $150,000

Calder St., 111: C. & L. Adamson to C. Bailey, $128,000

Calder St., 508: PA Deals LLC to J. Tucker, $110,000

Chestnut St., 2312: W. Morgan & A. Winans to P. & J. Vander Kraats, $136,000

Conoy St., 117: Mannjeim LLC to Marjulisadan Enterprises LLC, $130,500

Division St., 609: G. Barone & L. Ambrosino to M. Della Porta, $189,900

Duke St., 2431: A. & V. Bruckhart to F. Zeray, $45,000

Green St., 1718: M. Matlock & M. Kauffman to A. Bargh & S. Moore, $163,000

Green St., 1931: WCI Partners LP to N. Condon, $209,900

Green St., 2238: LSF9 Master Participation Trust to S. Maurer, $258,900

Green St., 2345: J. & J. DeMarco to J. Chirdon, $68,000

Harris St., 437: Arthur Kusic Real Estate Investments to V. Lacerra, $65,000

Harris Terr., 2453: Santander Bank NA to S. Maurer, $30,800

Hudson St., 825, 835, 840 & 851 S. 19th St.: H&S Investment Co. & J. Diaz to Harrisburg Properties Associates LLC, $250,000

Kensington St., 2149: Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. to PA Double Deals LLC, $40,000

N. 2nd St., 1704: C. Goodhart to R. & A. Allan, $140,000

N. 2nd St., 2654: A. & C. Lang to U. Culpepper, $120,000

N. 2nd St., 3004: 8219 Ventures LLC to S. Jusufovic, $60,000

N. 2nd St., 3015: D. & A. Standish to A. Zecha, $182,500

N. 3rd St., 1519: Campus Bookseller LP & GreenWorks Development LLC to CPenn Patriot Properties Midtown LLC, $180,000

N. 4th St., 1432: D. Placide to D. Martin & N. Douglas, $60,000

N. 4th St., 1621: GWD Capitol Heights LP to B. Parfitt, $100,000

N. 4th St., 3213: Federal National Mortgage Association to A. Semancik, $40,000

N. 5th St., 1624: Fifth Third Mortgage Co. to B. Davis, $50,500

N. 6th St., 2013: Victor Ventures Inc. to Condor Ventures LLC, $75,000

N. 10th St., 125 & 137: H. Gordon to D&F Realty Holdings LP, $212,500

N. 14th St., 236: KAB Rentals LLC to Afterkey Property Solutions LLC, $32,900

N. 16th St., 1310: R. Floyd to D. & K. Scott, $65,000

N. Front St., 2837, Unit 402: M. Lane Jr. to F. Clark, $110,000

N. Front St., 2901: R. Edwards to C. & E. Bryce, $280,800

Peffer St., 417: Peffer Street Associates LLC to S. Maurer, $30,000

Peffer St., 434: D. & M. Watts to S. Maurer, $38,000

Penn St., 917: L. Ware Jr. to B. Fritz, $86,000

Rolleston St., 1031: V. Harper to M. Sanz

Rudy Rd., 2133: C. Duffield & K. Bertin to J. & K. Kio, $123,900

Rumson Dr., 297: A. Segiin to G. Cayamcela & N. Perez, $70,000

Rumson Dr., 2979: Z. Farber to Sangrey Properties LLC, $32,000

Showers St., 585: J. & J. Duthie to A. & K. Morris, $120,000

S. 16th St., 417: D. & K. Kaiser to M. Olshefski, $59,000

S. 20th St., 838: Leasing Solutions LLC to Harrisburg Properties Associates LLC, $320,000

S. Front St., 809½: B. Gabler & R. Foreman to Q. Chau, A. Chaplin & A. Nguyen, $90,000

Vernon St., 1306: Hancock Investments LLC to Sweet Properties of Philadelphia LLC, $58,000

 

Harrisburg property sales for June 2016, greater than $30,000. Source: Dauphin County. Data is assumed to be accurate.

Author: Lawrance Binda

 

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Slow Me the Money: Millions, just out of reach.

Illustration by Rich Hauck.

Illustration by Rich Hauck.

Welcome to Harrisburg, Pa., site of the world’s slowest gold rush.

In this case, the gold is not the glittery stuff measured in one-ounce bars, but a $13 million pot of cash controlled by Impact Harrisburg, a nonprofit set up as part of the city’s economic recovery plan.

It’s been nearly three years since the concept was unveiled, but Impact Harrisburg has yet to dole out a dime. Basically, it’s been a victim of its own awkward, cautious creation, which has resulted in a slow, bureaucratic creep that threatens to further delay the city’s recovery.

Back in 2013, Impact Harrisburg emerged as one of the more novel ideas of the state-sponsored recovery plan. The state receiver’s team rightly identified two areas—infrastructure and economic development—that could use additional, longer-term funding to get Harrisburg on track towards sustainable progress.

So, it took $13 million from the parking lease deal and dumped it into an account that would be controlled not directly by politicians, but by an independent, nonprofit corporation, which would make decisions on which projects to fund—and how much to fund them.

In theory, this sounded like a great idea, a creative way to avoid a Reed-style stranglehold over the city’s finances—and ensure that money that’s supposed to go to infrastructure and economic development actually does. In practice, however, things have not gone well, at least not so far.

The process of setting up the nonprofit, appointing the nine-member board of directors, getting the go-ahead from the Commonwealth Court and hiring an executive director ate up almost two years. Now, the group is undertaking the drawn-out process of creating application and decision-making guidelines. Once those guidelines are complete and publicized, it finally can begin accepting, considering and approving applications.

The delay wouldn’t be too disconcerting if the city didn’t need access to the money—its own money, by the way. But Harrisburg has decades of unmet infrastructure and other needs that are waiting to be addressed.

The city has identified several priorities for the money.

First, it wants $3.6 million for its ongoing, citywide streetlight upgrade. City Council approved this project last year to remedy the epidemic of streetlight failures, replacing traditional lights with long-lasting LED fixtures. Currently, the project is financed through a bank loan and backed by a guaranteed savings agreement with the contractor. The administration has said that paying for the project upfront would allow it to free up money that could be deployed elsewhere.

Secondly, the administration wants $3 million for matching funds that would allow it to access a larger, $6.7 million PennDOT grant. The nearly $10 million sum would fund a “multimodal transportation project,” which would improve several key roads in the city, including a few hazardous intersections on Allison Hill, and return much of N. 2nd Street to two-way traffic.

Lastly, the administration plans to ask for $6.5 million for buyouts and remediation on behalf of residents of the sinkhole-ravaged 1400-block of S. 14th Street. Interestingly, it plans to make this request from the economic development fund, not from the infrastructure fund, which already would be emptied by the streetlight and transportation projects.

Neil Grover, city solicitor and chairman of Impact Harrisburg, seems confident that the board can act quickly once its procedures are finally in place. He said that infrastructure money should be doled out before the end of this year. He also expects the economic development fund to be drawn down pretty quickly, by the end of 2018.

In general, I support Impact Harrisburg moving quickly to disperse funds once it’s finally able to do so. It’s particularly vital that it approve the $3 million match for the transportation project, which could be a game-changer for the city.

The lighting proposal is, in my view, of lesser concern, due to the city’s guaranteed savings agreement with the contractor. It’s a decent use of the money, but, honestly, those dollars could be used for countless other unmet needs, including water/sewer projects from Capital Region Water, which also is eligible to apply for funding from the infrastructure bucket.

The sinkhole remediation proposal is less convincing, as there’s little clear connection between economic development and turning a part of south Harrisburg into a grassy field. Nonetheless, the residents of S. 14th Street have a real need and a sympathetic cause. Perhaps that money could be split, with some millions going to help the sinkhole victims and the rest for shoring up city-owned assets, such as the Broad Street Market and City Island, which are indeed important attractions and economic generators for Harrisburg.

Back in 2013, Impact Harrisburg seemed like a good idea, as did the thought that its fund would last at least five years. Time, though, has worn away its allure. It now seems more like a bureaucratic slog, an indirect, tedious way of giving the city back its own money—only minus some significant administrative costs (such as $100,000 a year for an executive director).

“I find Impact Harrisburg to be one of the greatest failures of the Strong Plan,” Harrisburg Mayor Eric Papenfuse said recently.

That’s a strong statement, given the many now-evident shortcomings of that plan (parking revenue, anyone?).

Still, it’s a point well taken. What once seemed like a surprisingly fresh, innovative idea has not aged well, slowed to a crawl by process and procedure.

There’s gold in the hills of Harrisburg. Now, if only anyone could get his hands on it.

Lawrance Binda is editor-in-chief of TheBurg.

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January News Digest

Williams Named Council President

Wanda Williams will serve another term as president of the Harrisburg City Council, council members decided last month.

Williams was the only council member nominated for the position and received unanimous support.

Councilwoman Shamaine Daniels was elected council vice president by a 4-3 vote, narrowly besting Councilman Jeffrey Baltimore.

The vote was taken during the council’s reorganization, held with each new term. The reorganization followed the swearing in of three new council members: Cornelius Johnson, Westburn Majors and Destini Hodges. Baltimore, who has served for almost two years, took the oath for his first full term.

Council also announced the following committee chairmanships for the 2016-17 session:

  • Administration: Wanda Williams
  • Budget and Finance: Ben Allatt
  • Building and Housing: Shamaine Daniels
  • Community and Economic Development: Jeffrey Baltimore
  • Parks, Recreation & Enrichment: Destini Hodges
  • Public Safety: Cornelius Johnson
  • Public Works: Westburn Majors

 

Council Re-Opens Budget

The Harrisburg City Council last month began reconsideration of the 2016 spending plan passed in December.

The $60.7 million budget added 36 new positions, about half in a newly created Neighborhood Services Division, funded through city trash bills.

The administration also has proposed tripling the local services tax (LST) to $3 per week per worker. The Commonwealth Court must first approve the hike, which then must be sanctioned by council.

Council re-opened the budget to accommodate input from three new council members, who were sworn in last month. A vote on a revised budget is expected this month. 

  

Free Downtown Parking

The Papenfuse administration last month announced a novel plan to allow free, short-term parking in select loading zones in downtown Harrisburg.

Under the plan, people are able to park for 15 minutes for free in eight zones located on N. 2nd Street between Walnut and Pine streets. This will help customers who want to stop briefly to make a quick purchase or pick up food from restaurants, said Mayor Eric Papenfuse.

For the past two years, shop owners have complained that the cost of parking—$3 per hour—prevents customers from frequenting their stores.

The 15-minute time limit would be strictly enforced, said Papenfuse. After 15 minutes, parkers would face tickets with standard fines for parking in a loading zone.

 

Parking Breaks to Continue

An experimental plan that lowered some parking rates in downtown Harrisburg will continue this year.

Mayor Eric Papenfuse said that there are no plans to stop the program that lowered rates by $1 per hour on weekdays from 5 to 7 p.m. and provided four free hours of weekend parking through the Pango mobile app.

Papenfuse said that the changes were deemed successful because they didn’t lower meter revenue for parking operator, SP Plus.

Meanwhile, rates for garage parking for motorists without monthly passes increased last month to $9 for two hours, up from $8.

 

School Board Set

The Harrisburg school board is back to full strength as members last month selected community activist Alan Kennedy-Shaffer to join the body.

Members voted unanimously to appoint Kennedy-Shaffer, who also is a member of the Dauphin County Democratic State Committee. The seat was vacant after the sudden resignation in November of former board President Jennifer Smallwood.

Kennedy-Shaffer is a co-founder of the community group Harrisburg Hope and, last year, was forced to drop out of the primary race for City Council following a successful challenge to his nominating petitions.

 

Police Bureau Changes

A long-time Harrisburg police officer was promoted to captain last month, as five new officers also were sworn in.

Twenty-year force veteran Gabriel Olivera was named captain of the criminal investigation division, most recently serving as a sergeant in that division after rising through the ranks.

Mayor Eric Papenfuse also swore in the following new officers:

  • Christopher Palamara
  • Wesley Feduke III
  • Corre Sommers
  • Adrienne Monroy
  • Daren Sharp

 

Bar Denied License

Harrisburg denied a Midtown bar both business and health licenses last month, though the bar has remained open pending an appeal.

The Third Street Café appealed the denial to the city’s Tax and Appeal Board. Dauphin County Judge Andrew Dowling also issued an order so the city could not fine the bar for operating without a license until the board issues a decision.

The city last year ordered business licenses revoked for three bars it considered troubled. The Royal Pub closed immediately, and the Taproom shut on Dec. 31. The Third Street Café chose to fight the revocation of its 2015 license and now is opposing the denial of a 2016 license.

 

New Pumper Approved

The Harrisburg City Council last month voted to buy a new, $480,000 pumper for the city’s Fire Bureau.

The vote was unanimous, but made contingent upon receiving a matching grant from the Harrisburg Volunteer Firemen’s Relief Association.

To pay for the pumper, the city had previously allotted $160,000, and another $90,000 was made available last year through a budget reallocation.

 

So Noted

The Harrisburg Carriage Company vacated the carriage house on City Island last month following the receipt of eviction notices by the city. The city and the company could not reach agreement over long-standing issues such as the payback of five years of delinquent rent, making fixes to the dilapidated stable and properly accommodating several horses.

Harristown Enterprises last month began a three-month project that will replace the escalator in Strawberry Square. The $350,000 project had been in the planning phase for the past two years, with the Dauphin County Industrial Development Authority providing a $100,000 loan to help finance it, said Brad Jones, Harristown president and CEO.

Zeroday Brewing has expanded its hours as it enters its second year of operation. The Harrisburg-based brewery is now open Tuesday through Sunday and until midnight on Friday and Saturday.

 

Changing Hands

Alison Ct., 3: M. Malinov to D. Patrick, $69,000

Barkley Lane, 2511: V. & D. Rodriguez to K. Clement, $59,000

Boas St., 418: Newlands Asset Holding Trust to PA Deals LLC, $74,250

Chestnut St., 2405: T. & A. Sawyer to W. Majors, $140,000

Croyden Rd., 2778: Secretary of Veterans Affairs to PA Deals LLC, $38,000

Forster St., 1612: N. Combs to S. Mason, $82,900

Fulton St., 1405: A. Pagano to PA Deals LLC, $83,000

Green St., 1400: P. Misivich to S. Weiland, $118,900

Green St., 2245: Y. al-Refae to J. Smith, $56,000

Green St., 2952: S. Gassner & J. Morris to N. Williams, $185,000

Hamilton St., 271 & 275: W. Grace & J. Hadfield to K. Ayres & A. Gupta, $189,585

Herr St., 217: S. Grovers to K. & V. Land, $50,000

Industrial Rd., 3400: Exeter 3400 Industrial LP to Big Box Property LLC & Exeter Property Group, $17,600,000

Kensington St., 2153: Bank of New York Mellon Trust Co. NA to H. Marca, $31,000

N. 2nd St., 400: GSO Real Estate Inc. & Realty Management Associates LLC to Murphy & Laus Real Estate LLC, $240,000

N. 2nd St., 2127: J. Livingston to A. Graffius, $84,500

N. 3rd St., 1700, L57: Bank of America NA to J. Cody, $75,000

N. 6th St., 1408: Secretary of Housing & Urban Development to PA Deals LLC, $82,250

Norwood St., 947: C. & M. Morgan to PA Deals LLC, $32,000

Penn St., 1204: M. Mekilo & U.S. Bank N.A. to C. Wagner, $109,000

Penn St., 1317: L. Stickley to M. Wilkins, $62,500

Penn St., 1523: E. Jones & J. Lindgren to T. Smith & K. Leighton, $147,000

Reservoir St., 73: G. Neff to H. Rentas, $38,900

Rumson Dr., 353: A. Skillman to W. Assefa, $62,000

Rumson Dr., 2574: PA Deals LLC to R. Reeves, $80,000

S. Front St., 631: K. & A. Gulotta to A. Poindexter, $150,000

Harrisburg property sales for December 2015, greater than $30,000. Source: Dauphin County. Data is assumed to be accurate.

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