Tag Archives: Harrisburg City Council

Harrisburg sends $1 million to local shelters to expand capacity, service

Downtown Daily Bread in Harrisburg

Harrisburg has sent $1 million to two local shelters so they can expand services for the unhoused.

On Friday, the city announced that Downtown Daily Bread and Christian Churches United each received $500,000 to increase capacity at their overnight shelters and expand them from seasonal to year-round, starting on Nov. 1.

On Tuesday, City Council, by a 6-1 vote, approved a budget transfer that reallocated the money, which originated with the city’s share of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. In July, the city had announced its intention to offer this money to the two shelters.

“This money will be able to help address our city’s growing unhoused population immediately,” said Mayor Wanda Williams.

Previously, both downtown shelters operated only during the cold-weather months, from Dec. 1 to March 31.

“It has always been a hope of mine to be able to provide overnight shelter for our neighbors all year round,” said Corrie Lingenfelter, executive director of Downtown Daily Bread.

The city considered the shelter expansion vital as Harrisburg’s largest homeless encampment is situated on land that PennDOT expects to occupy as it replaces the South Bridge, starting next year. That encampment is underneath the current bridge and on adjacent property.

“We are grateful for this opportunity to be able to expand our services to those dealing with
homelessness,” said Darrel Reinford, executive director at Christian Churches United. “Providing a safe place for someone to sleep is essential to provide them with some measure of dignity and help them get back on their feet.”

The city has not spent most of its ARPA funds, with $31.5 million still slated for other programs, such as home repairs, affordable housing, a new pool, trash bill forgiveness and other projects.

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Harrisburg Council members, administration spar over emergency declaration for Broad Street Market

The brick building of the Broad Street Market

Harrisburg City Council and the administration are once again at odds over the Broad Street Market, this time over an emergency decree that helped jumpstart the stalled reconstruction of the brick building.

On Monday, three council members co-signed a letter questioning the July 23 decree, in which the city declared a health emergency, due to a report of rats inside the burned-out building.

“This declaration, made without prior public notice, has raised significant questions among the Council and our constituents, particularly regarding transparency and process,” states the letter signed by council President Danielle Bowers and members Lamont Jones and Jocelyn Rawls. “We believe the manner in which this emergency was handled may have circumvented City Council’s fiduciary responsibilities . . .”

The letter then lists seven questions that address such issues as when the administration first heard of the presence of rats, the specific threats to public health, how contracts were approved to mitigate the issue and why council was not asked to vote on specific contractors.

The market’s brick building partially burned down and was closed in a July 2023 fire. The historic building sat untouched for over a year until the emergency declaration, which launched a series of contracts to clean out the interior, perform shoring-up work and conduct lead abatement, among other projects, all performed without council approval.

In response to council members’ letter, the administration late Monday issued its own statement asking “members of Harrisburg City Council to stop coming up with ways to delay construction.”

“I find it disheartening that the same three members of Council who voted against starting work on the market in May, are continuing to do what they can to delay construction,” stated Mayor Wanda Williams. “The ability to expeditiously declare a State of Emergency at the site of the Market’s Brick Building allowed us to not only quickly address the rat issue, but start construction on a building City of Harrisburg residents wanted to start months ago.”

In her response, Williams did not say if the administration would, or would not, answer council members’ specific questions, but stated that she had the legal right, under the commonwealth’s Third Class City Code, to declare the emergency and thus suspend standard bidding rules.

In May, council rejected the first major contract relating to the market rebuild, a construction manager, before reconsidering and narrowly approving the hiring of Harrisburg-based Alexander Building Construction. It will need to approve many additional vendors, including a project architect and engineer.

Click this link to read the full text of City Council’s letter: Broad Street Market – Site Emergency Letter r

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The Week that Was: News and features around Harrisburg

Hamilton Health Center and local officials cut the ribbon on the new Steelton facility this week.

The July heat has been hitting Harrisburg hard, so we hope you’ve been able to find ways to cool off. If you’re heading to the pool or beach this month, make sure to take TheBurg along for a great beach read! While you’re here, catch up on our local news coverage from the week, below.

The Broad Street Market fire was one year ago this month. In his column, our publisher shares some reflections on what has happened in the months since the tragedy.

In a Community Comment, Broad Street Market Board Chair Eric Hagarty discusses the challenges of the past year following the market fire, but also the ways the community has supported the market. 

Fourth of July fireworks were cut short in Harrisburg after police apprehended multiple people with guns in the crowd, our online story reported. City officials addressed the incident at a Monday morning press conference.

Hamilton Health Center cut the ribbon on its new Steelton location this week, our online story reported. The health center will officially open to patients on Monday, July 15, offering a full spectrum of family care to men, women and children.

Harrisburg City Council denied a proposed demo for 1511 N. Front Street, our reporting found. Council expressed concerns about taking down a building in the city’s historic district and replacing it with parking.

Home sales were generally lower in June, but prices were up, our online story reported. For the three-county region, 593 homes sold compared to 659 in June 2023, as the median sales price rose to $290,000 from $273,000.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Harrisburg announced Zach Benjamin as its new president and CEO, our online story reported. Benjamin will officially assume the position in mid-August.

Pride Festival of Central PA returns to Harrisburg on July 27, our magazine story reported. This year, the festival will bring back its Pride Parade after years off.

The Residences at Governor’s Square in Harrisburg has several bidders and interested parties for the apartment complex, but none have yet received required federal approvals, our online story reported. The owner, Uptown Partners, has been in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, searing for a buyer for months.

“River City Stories,” a film by Harrisburg residents Paul Hood and Wallace McKelvey, highlights the city’s diversity, our online story reported. The movie will premiere at Midtown Cinema on July 19 and 20 as a part of the Harrisburg Fringe Festival.

Road repaving began this week in Harrisburg, our reporting found. Over 25 stretches of road in many of Harrisburg’s neighborhoods will receive new pavement this summer and fall.

Sara Bozich has a list of all the best activities to fill your weekend, here.

The Weekender Festival will return to Hall Manor in Harrisburg on Aug. 9 and 10, hosted by the Harrisburg Housing Authority, our online story reported. The event will feature a range of activities aimed at bringing the community together through entertainment and economic empowerment.

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The Week that Was: News and features around Harrisburg

Veterans Outreach of Central Pennsylvania and local officials cut the ribbon on Veteran’s Grove.

This week may have been shorter due to the holiday, but there was still plenty of news in Harrisburg. Find all of our local coverage, below, and make sure you snag a copy of our June issue of the magazine, which dropped this week. 

Artist Julia Mallory cut the ribbon on her new studio and community gathering space, Ten Oh! Six, our online story reported. She plans to host creative workshops and classes, as well as featuring local artist’s work. 

Broad Street Market board members and vendors are asking the community to help name the new temporary structure, our online story reported. Community members are invited to reflect on what the market means to them and submit a creative name for the tent, through June 22. 

City Council member Crystal Davis announced that she would reconsider her previous vote rejecting the city’s selected construction manager for the Broad Street Market, our online story reported. Later, another member of council, Ralph Rodriguez shared the same sentiments in a press release.  

Harrisburg City Council re-voted on its decision to reject the city’s chosen construction manager for the Broad Street Market and approved the contract, our online story reported. Many community members spoke publicly during the meeting, as well as several council members who still opposed the resolution, saying the selection process was unfair. 

The Harrisburg School District proposed its 2024-25 budget of $211.7 million, our online story reported. The budget did not include a property tax increase. 

High school students from Dauphin County Technical School, along with Brethren Housing Association, built a house for a family transitioning out of homelessness, our online story reported. The project not only helped students gain hands-on experience, but helped provide affordable housing in Uptown Harrisburg. 

June events will be kicking off soon in the Harrisburg area. Find all of this month’s happenings, here. 

Our publisher introduces the June issue of the magazine, highlighting the Juneteenth-focused cover image, the new Family Time section and the many summer fun stories, in his Publisher’s Note. 

A puppet show theater, Imaginary Friends, opened in Strawberry Square in Harrisburg this week, our online story reported. The theater will host shows during the summer months. 

Sara Bozich’s Weekend Roundup includes the best music, arts and food events happening in the Harrisburg area.  

SusqueCycle, Harrisburg’s bike share program, replaced many of its bikes with new ones, our online story reported. The organization will donate its old bikes to local nonprofit Recycle Bicycle.  

Veterans Outreach of Central Pennsylvania cut the ribbon on its tiny home village, Veteran’s Grove, for homeless veterans, our online story reported. The project, which has been years in the making, features 15 tiny homes and a community center in south Harrisburg. 

White House official, Tom Perez, director of intergovernmental affairs for President Joe Biden, visited Harrisburg this week to tour recently built affordable housing developments, our online story reported. While visiting, with Mayor Wanda Williams, he touted the federal government’s efforts to increase housing opportunities across the country. 

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Harrisburg Council re-votes, confirms Broad Street Market construction manager

Harrisburg City Council meeting on Tuesday

A project to rebuild the Broad Street Market’s fire-damaged brick building can now take a step forward, following a contentious council meeting. 

Harrisburg City Council on Tuesday reversed its previous rejection of the city’s selected construction manager for the rebuild, allowing the project to move forward. 

Council voted 4-3 in favor of hiring Harrisburg-based Alexander Building Construction Co. as the construction manager to oversee the market rebuild, with council members Lamont Jones, Jocelyn Rawls and Danielle Bowers voting “no.”  

At a meeting two weeks ago, council voted down the contract, 5-2, several members claiming that the selection process was inequitable and that the selection committee was not diverse. Previously, council members Crystal Davis and Ralph Rodriguez voted against the contract, but changed their votes during the reconsideration on Tuesday. All other council members voted the same as they did previously. 

Following council’s original rejection of the resolution, the city administration objected to council’s claim, saying that the selection was fair. Officials also noted that they would need to restart the selection process, which could take anywhere from four to six months. Following the decision, Mayor Wanda Williams, the market’s board of directors and local state representatives, among others, spoke out against council’s “no” vote. 

Williams maintained her position when she spoke to council at Tuesday night’s meeting. 

“The process was not flawed,” she said. “I put who I felt is competent [on the scoring team]. I am the mayor, let me do my job.” 

With a construction manager now hired for the rebuild, the city can now move forward with hiring a general contractor, architect and other contractors for the market. Officials have shared that the brick building restoration will likely take around two to three years.  

“I’m excited and appreciative that City Council reconsidered their prior vote, and we’re looking forward to construction on the brick building getting underway,” said Eric Hagarty, chair of the market’s board. “Now the two-year clock on when doors can open begins, and we get to start planning for a future that includes having the brick building reopened.” 

Rodriguez said that he changed his vote on Tuesday to a “yes,” after meeting with city officials and community members to discuss the resolution. 

“The optics of the selection process seemed and appeared flawed,” he said. “Yes, the process should be transparent […] yes, the portion too should be fair and equitable, although, in my very own opinion, it’s not the step where we can really hold accountability up. That occurs in the next step with the actual selection of those who will do the work.” 

Rawls maintained her opposition to the resolution on Tuesday, stating that, while she does not oppose Alexander as the manager, she still felt the selection process was unfair. She also voiced concern that Karl Singleton, the city’s chief equity and compliance officer, wasn’t involved in the process.  

Singleton spoke during public comment in support of council’s equity concerns. 

“There is no one up here who wants this to be rebuilt more than me,” Rawls said. “But I will not allow you all to go down in mud […] because a process wasn’t full of integrity and honor and respect. The process was flawed and we need to change that process today.” 

During their previous council meeting, Rawls also took issue with inconsistencies found on her copies of the city’s scoring rubric that was used to score potential contractors. According to Williams, Rawls was accidentally given a draft copy of the rubric, which contained a typo that was later corrected.  

Williams also pointed out during the meeting that council unanimously passed at least eight prior city contract agreements this year that used the same scoring procedure. She also said that she will continue to use the same city employees on the scoring team. 

Prior to council’s re-vote, some community members urged council to reconsider and approve the construction manager, while others spoke in favor of council’s concern about fairness in the selection process. 

“You need to keep more of the money here,” said Earl Harris, a local pastor and Harrisburg resident. “If you’re going to build a community where 73% are Black and brown, where do we fit in this process? We need to be included.” 

Another Harrisburg resident, John “Joesmooth” Palmer, said that he just wanted to see the market restored as soon as possible. 

“All I want to know is what’s taking so long,” he said. “Let’s get this thing done, let’s not make any excuses. Ten months is too long.” 

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Harrisburg council member declares vote switch, says she’ll support proposed Broad Street Market construction manager

The Broad Street Market's brick building

The Broad Street Market’s brick building

Work to rebuild the burned-out brick building of the Broad Street Market appears to be one vote closer to starting, as a Harrisburg council member has announced a change in her position.

On Monday morning, Crystal Davis stated that she would switch her vote from “no” to “yes” on hiring Harrisburg-based Alexander Building Construction Co. to serve as construction manager for the lengthy project.

“I encourage my fellow council members to join me in voting ‘yes’ at Tuesday’s meeting because it is not fair to the market vendors or the people of Harrisburg to wait any longer to start construction on rebuilding the brick building,” Davis said, in a statement.

Davis’ vote alone is not enough to secure Alexander as project manager, the first step in a rebuilding process expected to take two to three years. Two weeks ago, council rejected the administration’s proposal to hire the company by a 5-2 vote, meaning that one more vote is needed, assuming that council members Ausha Green and Shamaine Daniels reiterate their “yes” votes.

Currently, a revote is not on the agenda for Tuesday’s council meeting, meaning the issue may need to be brought up from the floor during the meeting.

The initial vote to hire Alexander failed after several council members said that they believed the administration’s process for selecting a construction manager was not equitable or fair. The administration rejected that assessment, saying that the four firms in the running were judged based on a strict scoring mechanism.

After the “no” vote, the administration said that it would need to restart the search process from scratch, which, they stated, would take many months to complete. Already, the market’s brick building has sat untouched—charred, boarded up and largely roofless—for nearly 11 months, since the July 2023 fire, which displaced about two-dozen vendors.

The prospect of further delay brought widespread criticism of the “no” vote from Mayor Wanda Williams, members of the market’s board of directors and many residents.

“Local small businesses who were displaced by the fire will continue to go on without income and the community members who depended on the market for their groceries in an area otherwise defined as a food desert by the USDA will have to wait even longer now—despite on-the-record admissions by many members of Council that Alexander Building Construction Co. had the most qualified proposal,” said Eric Hagarty, chair of the Broad Street Market Alliance, following the vote.

Moreover, last week, Harrisburg’s two state House members issued a letter urging council to reconsider their vote, saying that the city would sacrifice potential state funding for the market if a construction manager were not selected before the next state budget cycle.

In her statement, Davis said that she also reached the conclusion that the project needs to begin as soon as possible.

“[Vendors] do no deserve to wait any longer,” she said. “The people of Harrisburg do no deserve to wait any longer. Work needs to begin today.”

Davis said that she remains concerned about the fairness of the city’s process for selecting companies hired by Harrisburg.

“We will need to continue to work with Mayor Williams’ administration to continue improving procurement procedures to ensure all companies who want to do business with the city of Harrisburg have a fair and equitable shake,” she said. “I have been assured these vital and hard conversations will continue.”

The construction manager helps to guide the overall project. However, the selection of other key positions, such as general contractor and architect, remains with the city.

Meanwhile, last week, the market’s temporary structure opened across the street from the market, more than 10 months following the fire. It houses eight vendors, including five displaced by last year’s fire.

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Burg View: Market in the Middle

The boarded-up shell of the Broad Street Market’s brick building

For over 10 months, the brick building of Harrisburg’s historic Broad Street Market has sat languishing as a burned-out shell, a sad, charred ruin of a once bustling market building.

Thanks to City Council, it will linger, untouched, roofless, blighted, wrecked for the foreseeable future.

On Tuesday, council, by a 5-2 vote, rejected the city’s administration’s choice of a construction manager, sending the nascent rebuilding process back to square one.

This rejection is but the latest frustrating, dispiriting twist in a long saga that began last July 10, when the 150-year-old brick building was consumed in an early-morning blaze.

After the smoke cleared, city and state officials, including Gov. Josh Shapiro, stood with great resolve in front of the destroyed building, vowing to marshal all of the government’s resources to restore the market to its former glory—maybe even better—as soon as possible.

But, long story short, that’s not what happened. Instead, the project languished.
City Council’s rejection showed, in the starkest way, that the slow walk continues.

On Tuesday, several council members voted “no” to the administration’s choice of a construction manager by stating that they wanted to ensure equity in public contracting.

Administration officials countered that their months-long process for selecting the manager was fair, rigorous and data-driven, adding that the choice, Harrisburg-based Alexander Building Construction, is uniquely qualified to tackle a complex, historic restoration of this scale and sensitivity.

Stuck in the middle of this dispute: the community, the shoppers, the vendors and the Broad Street Market itself.

The people of Harrisburg need the brick building restored as quickly as possible, by the most competent managers and workers out there. This should be our elected officials’ No. 1 priority, above all else.

We simply cannot wait another six months for the selection process to run its course again, which would bring us to mid-winter, meaning that work wouldn’t start until spring 2025.

Such a delay also means that the city’s deal with Josh Kesler, who kindly donated his land for the temporary market, will certainly expire before the building restoration is done. As per the lease agreement, the no-rent deal is good for just two years. Starting in January 2026, the city is on the hook to pay Kesler $5,000 in rent per month for continued use of the lot — $6,500 a month after January 2027.

This isn’t the first time that City Council has failed the market. In the past, I’ve called on council to make a special appropriation to the market, as it does to many other nonprofits. Council hasn’t done so, even when, a few months back, the market descended into insolvency, unable to pay its bills.

Who did step up? The Harrisburg community. Hundreds of people generously donated their money, time and talents so the market could continue operating and so that the temporary market could be completed. Without this small army of volunteers, the temporary building, which is city-owned, certainly would not be opening next Thursday, which is the current plan.

In the end, City Council should reconsider its construction manager vote.

The Broad Street Market is not just another building. It’s a vital food resource, a historic city asset, a tourist destination and an important community hub, one of the few places here where people of all backgrounds gather to shop, eat and socialize. It’s the beating heart of Harrisburg and needs to be respected, restored and returned again to city residents as quickly as possible.

Lawrance Binda is publisher/editor of TheBurg.

 

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Harrisburg residents, groups host clean up to deter violence, address blight

Volunteers clean up trash in the Camp Curtin neighborhood.

A group of Harrisburg residents are hoping that a little cleaning up will go a long way toward making the community safer. 

Harrisburg City Council member Lamont Jones on Monday led a group of volunteers in cleaning up trash in an area of Uptown that has recently experienced increased violence and neglect.  

“We wanted to try and give this community hope,” Jones said. “It has to end. The senseless violence is a problem in our community.” 

The volunteers worked to pick up trash and debris and mow grass in the Camp Curtin neighborhood, near N. 6th and Forrest streets, an area that has struggled with blight and violence, Jones said. Just a block away on Woodbine Street, a homicide took place on May 3 at a corner grocery store.  

Jones and the volunteers also cleaned up near apartments that are part of the bankrupt Residences at Governor’s Square, which includes over 200 blighted properties, around half of which are vacant, facing hundreds of city code citations.  

“People are tired of seeing this in the community,” Jones said of the crime and blight. “The people of this city have to stand up together and unite.” 

Joining Jones were Harrisburg-based groups like Breaking the Chainz, PUSH Harrisburg and Men United Standing Together (M.U.S.T.). Harrisburg’s Public Works Department contributed supplies and equipment for the event, as well. 

Local resident Jaye Gibson said that he attended the cleanup to help create a safer environment, specifically for area youth. 

“We need to take care of our own community,” he said. “This is about taking accountability for our neighborhood.” 

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Harrisburg weighs options for addressing uptick in ghost gun use

Brandon Flood, deputy director of government affairs for CeaseFirePA, spoke to Harrisburg City Council about ghost guns at a meeting on Tuesday.

Harrisburg is taking aim at an issue involving illegal gun use. 

At a work session on Tuesday, Harrisburg City Council discussed the possibility of enacting legislation to target the making and distributing of ghost guns, which are increasingly being used by youth and those who aren’t legally allowed to own a gun. 

At the meeting, Brandon Flood, deputy director of government affairs for CeaseFirePA, an anti-gun violence organization, shared information about the growing crisis of ghost guns getting into the wrong hands and how Harrisburg could attempt to help. 

Ghost guns are firearms created using build kits purchased online, sometimes even incorporating parts made with a 3D printer. These guns do not have serial numbers and are untraceable.  

Flood presented a proposal for a city ordinance that would require those in Harrisburg who purchase or sell unfinished gun kits or use a 3D printer to make gun parts to have a Federal Firearms License (FFL). These licenses allow people to engage in the business of selling, manufacturing and dealing guns. 

“This is a rampant issue,” Flood said. “Not only is this an issue generally, but it’s more pronounced when it comes to our youth that are in possession. With this ordinance, we at least want to make a dent.” 

According to information from the Harrisburg Police Bureau, over 50 ghost guns have been seized in the city in the past few years.  

CeaseFirePA is also working with York and other cities in the commonwealth to institute similar ordinances, modeled after one that Philadelphia put in place. The issue of ghost guns is currently in front of both the PA and U.S. Supreme Courts. Flood sees instituting local ordinances as a way to address the issue in the meantime. 

“I consider this to be a stopgap measure,” he said. 

Flood also explained that enforcing the ordinance could include creating a task force in the city to monitor the issue.  

Council weighed the proposal, but no city ordinance has yet been officially proposed or approved.  

“This is a growing issue in a lot of communities in Pennsylvania,” council member Lamont Jones said. “This is a way we can get in front of it and build an ordinance around it.” 

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The Week that Was: News and features around Harrisburg

Broad Street Market temporary structure

This week in Harrisburg, we covered news about new businesses coming to the city, updates from the art world, community initiatives and city government happenings. If you missed any of it, find all of our stories linked below.  

The Abbey Bar is back and once again hosting live music, our magazine story reported. Events are being coordinated by Moon Peak Productions and held in the large space above Appalachian Brewing Co. on N. Cameron Street in Harrisburg. 

Bob’s Art Blog highlights artists at The Millworks and the new Ten Oh! Six art studio in Harrisburg. Click here to read his art world update. 

Broad Street Market officials announced that three new vendors will open in the market’s temporary structure, our online story reported. Cookie company Taylor Chip, produce and flower grower Diaspora and local chocolatier Cherished Treasures will join seven other vendors in the tent when it opens. 

Dauphin County Library System operates each of its local branches differently to fit the community’s needs, our magazine story reported. Soon, the library system will offer more resources to help caregivers, those with disabilities and others in the community. 

The Great Harrisburg Litter Cleanup is happening this weekend, and Tri County Community Action is looking for volunteers, our online story reported. The event aims to help beautify the Midtown, Uptown and Allison Hill neighborhoods in the city. 

Harrisburg City Council weighed a proposal by a local developer to construct an apartment building for seniors, as well as a park project planned for Allison Hill, our online story reported. At the same meeting, council also discussed spending several million dollars in federal COVID relief funds. 

Harrisburg officials identified their choice for a construction manager to oversee the rebuild of the Broad Street Market brick building, our online story reported. However, City Council, which needs to approve the decision, has concerns about the fairness of the selection process.  

The Harrisburg Singers are celebrating their 40th anniversary, our magazine story reported. To celebrate, the Singers will perform a weekend of concerts later this month, with locations on both the east and west shores. 

Rosemary loves garlic. In her column, she offers suggestions for how to cook with it and shows you how to roast it. 

Sara Bozich has you covered with lots of fun events for the whole family this weekend. Find them, here. 

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