2-Way 2nd Street Debated

More than 100 residents attended a public meeting last month to learn how a proposal to return N. 2nd Street to two-way traffic will affect infrastructure and traffic flow across the city.

The $6 million project already has grant funding from Impact Harrisburg and PennDOT. Preliminary plans call for changing traffic flow over a two-mile stretch of 2nd Street north of Forster Street, leaving its three northbound lanes in downtown Harrisburg intact.

As residents learned at the meeting, 2nd Street was originally built as a two-way road. Harrisburg officials converted it to a one-way, three-lane mini-highway in the 1950s to accommodate commuter traffic.

The meeting addressed two major questions:

• Where will displaced commuter traffic go after the conversion?
• What’s the best use for the extra space that will result from eliminating a traffic lane?

Planners and engineers expect much of the evening commuter traffic on 2nd Street to flow north on 3rd Street instead, said Adam Vest, associate engineer at the planning firm Kittelson & Associates. Other cars will go to 6th and 7th streets.

Overall, engineers expect that 70 percent of traffic between 4 and 5 p.m. on weekdays will be diverted to other roads. About 1,400 cars travel down 2nd Street during rush hour each day.

Outside of those five hours each week, however, the traffic volume on 2nd Street is usually low enough to travel in a single lane northbound lane without much displacement, Vest said.

Mike Hughes, who lives on the 2200 block of N. 2nd Street, wasn’t too worried about displacing commuter traffic.

“Ultimately, commuters are going to have to change routes, but they don’t live here or pay taxes here,” Hughes said.

Like many other residents at the meeting, Hughes was more concerned about reducing vehicle speeds along 2nd Street.

Traffic study data show that vehicle speeds on N. 2nd Street increase as cars travel north out of the city. Cars approaching Verbeke Street travel an average of 33 miles per hour—already well over the 25-mile per hour speed limit. That speed rises to 35 miles per hour as cars approach Maclay Street and hits 38 miles per hour just south of Schuykill Street.

Over the course of the two-week study, 93 percent of drivers exceeded the 25-mile per hour speed limit, Vest said.

“With those speeds, nobody wants to be on 2nd Street,” he said. “We’re trying to make a street people want to be on.”

During an hour-long breakout session, residents debated the merits of bike lanes, angled parking, traffic circles and sidewalk expansions—all options on the table for a two-way 2nd Street.

Trimicka Crump-Joseph runs an after-school theater program for youth at 2nd and Reily streets. She said that vehicle speeds endanger children walking or being dropped off at class.

“I need traffic to slow down because right now, I’m only zoned for 10 children,” Crump-Joseph said. “I could have more, but want it to be safe for kids to walk or get dropped off.”

New Pavilion at Italian Lake

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

City officials and local activists expect a better outcome in 2019, as last month they unveiled a new pavilion that shields the park’s stage from the elements.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

HU Buys Land for High-Rise

Harrisburg University has completed the purchase of four parcels of land in downtown Harrisburg, bringing it a step closer to starting construction of a new academic tower and hotel.

In mid-October, HU bought 24, 26 and 28 S. 3rd St., as well as 222 Chestnut St., for a total of almost $3.2 million, according to Dauphin County property records. As the new landowner, the university soon will begin going through the city’s planning and zoning processes, said HU President Eric Darr.

If all goes according to schedule, HU expects to begin clearing the site, which includes demolishing three small, 19th-century-era buildings, in late spring, and initiate actual construction in the early summer.

Darr said that he expects a two-year construction timeframe for the building, now projected to be 19 stories tall, with completion expected in the summer of 2021. Originally, the university had planned for the building to rise more than 30 stories, but the size was scaled back due to higher-than-anticipated costs.

“The cost of the project exceeded what we felt comfortable with,” Darr said.

As now envisioned, the 280,000-square-foot building will have two main components. An academic portion will house HU’s health sciences programs, as well as several other disciplines, including advanced manufacturing and interactive media. An on-site boutique hotel will include 190 rooms, Darr said.

HU, Darr said, is currently “in negotiation” with its hotel partner, which will operate the hotel privately. He added that he’s confident that Harrisburg easily can absorb a new hotel, as, already, the university attracts a large population of visiting students, who often must stay in hotels outside the city.

The original project plan included space for student housing, which, Darr said, remains a critical need. However, HU now expects to convert some underused downtown buildings to housing, which would be a less expensive alternative.

“We’re evaluating other properties close to us to retrofit for student housing,” Darr said.

The revised plan also eliminated parking from the project, which, Darr said, shouldn’t be an issue as the site is near several parking garages. The plan also calls for a first-floor restaurant.

Demotion Affirmed

The Harrisburg school board voted unanimously last month to affirm a previous decision to demote a former business manager, months after a county judge ordered it to reconsider its action.

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

The document adds greater detail to the charges and evidence brought against Medina last year, according to district Solicitor Samuel Cooper, and satisfies an August order from a Common Pleas judge that the district reconsider his case.

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

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

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

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

Medina filed a complaint with the Court of Common Pleas, leading Judge John Cherry to order the school board to hear Medina’s case.

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

The district has shared that adjudication with board members, who reviewed it before the vote. According to Cooper, a vote to approve the document “ratifies the actions the board had previously taken.”

Project Planned for Steelton

A major mixed-use development has been announced for Steelton, a project that envisions a restaurant, a grocery and apartments.

Wormleysburg-based Integrated Development Partners announced last month “The Steel Works,” which would include a brewpub, a 20,000-square-foot supermarket and more than 75 apartments. Five buildings would span 102-230 N. Front St., in the heart of the borough.

IDP bought the land earlier this year for $375,000 from the Steelton Economic Development Corp. after a prior developer failed to get financing for its project.

IDP expects to break ground in late 2019 or early 2020, with construction expected to take 24 to 36 months. 

So Noted

Friends of Midtown Community Dog Park officially opened in late October, marking the first public dog park in Harrisburg. The park, at N. 7th and Granite streets, will operate for at least two years under an agreement with the landowner, Vartan Group.

Harrisburg University last month unveiled new training and competition space for its e-sports team, The Storm, inside Whitaker Center. When combined with Whitaker Center’s two theaters, HU now has the largest e-sports campus in North America, according to the university.

Jackson Hotel, a historic Harrisburg property, last month got a new owner, who vowed to restore the dilapidated, circa-1884 building. Developer Matt Long purchased the N. 6th Street building, which once served as a rooming house and a hotel for African-American patrons denied service in the city’s whites-only hotels.

Michael Knill was named last month as the new athletic director for Central Penn College. A graduate of the college’s physical therapist assistant program, Knill previously served as athletic director of the Susquehanna Township school district and as an assistant football coach for Red Land High School.

Rep. Patty Kim last month won re-election to the state Assembly representing Pennsylvania’s 103rd legislative district, defeating Republican challenger Anthony Harrell by a margin of 15,393 to 2,933 votes, respectively. In the closely watched race for the 10th congressional district, Republican incumbent Scott Perry beat back a tough challenge from Democrat George Scott by a margin of 148,790 to 140,956 votes, respectively.

Changing Hands

Adrian St., 2435: S. Padrilla & M. Serrano to I. & K. Mita, $54,000

Adrian St., 2459: B. Rotta to A. Sloane, $70,000

Barkley Lane, 2511: K. Clement to R. & B. Martinez, $76,000

Boas St., 256: First Evangelical United to C. & R. Herr, $50,000

Briggs St., 1942: Jeremiah Property Holdings LLC to S. Dolph, $122,500

Brookwood St., 2408: Citizens Bank NA to M. Cedeno, $53,000

Brookwood St., 2466: PA Deal LLC to V. Sanghani, $65,900

Capitol St., 1220: C. Sullivan to M. Olds, $137,500

Chestnut St., 222: Musalair Trust to Harrisburg University of Science and Technology & D. Maun, $2,450,000

Derry St., 1252, 1254, 1312, 1330, 1629, 1631, 1633; 1333 Vernon St.: McFarland LP to A. Himalaya PA Properties LLC, $561,428

Derry St., 2401: M. Wijaya & I. Lim to S. & M. Mejia, $30,000

Derry St., 2514: H. Alcantara to Portal Enterprises Inc., $50,000

Green St., 1104: N. Hench to W. Eltringham, $203,171

Green St., 1310: M. Corbett to Panda Real Estate LLC, $76,000

Green St., 1324: W. Davis to A. Miller, $115,000

Green St., 1523: CJ MF Invest 1 LLC to Fratelli Property Investments LLC, $110,000

Green St., 2338: Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency to E. Chattah, $32,000

Greenwood St., 2124: G. Leo to A. Dascani & D. Colbert, $30,000

Greenwood St., 2600: Q. Long to A. Beck, $84,000

Hale Ave., 412: T. Tran to G. Romain, $69,900

Hale Ave., 435: E. Pereira to I. Yolov, $57,000

Herr St., 131: S. McGovern to J. Noonan, $122,000

Hudson St., 1131: A. Stephens to R9 Holdings LLC, $47,350

Hudson St., 1216: N. Brofee to R. Mesariac, $99,900

Industrial Rd., 4050, 4100: 283 Associates to Sygma Network Inc., $4,025,500

Kelker St., 222: J. & J. Corey to B. & A. Ennist, $154,000

Kensington St., 2417: P. & D. Bang to L. Upshur, $67,000

Kensington St., 2431: T. Dieu to K. McClaire, $67,500

Maclay St., 423: L. Ware Jr. to Tyrone Peoples, $80,000

Maclay St., 427: S. & T. House to S. Kelly, $60,000

Market St., 1847: 1847 Market St. to Harrisburg Homes Investment LLC, $45,000

Market St., 1845, 1849: Nish Properties LLC to Harrisburg Homes Investment LLC, $85,000

Muench St., 234: WCI Partners LP to A. Fortune, $115,000

North St., 208: Pennsylvania Heritage Foundation to K. MacNett, $112,000

N. 2^nd St., 618: Chattah Family Trust to Qiu Zhen 618 LLC, $313,000

N. 2^nd St., 3218: D. Henry to K. Prestia, $114,900

N. 3^rd St., 1700: PA Deals LLC to E. Shelly, $126,900

N. 3^rd St., 2014: R. Heath to S. & C. Payson, $213,550

N. 3^rd St., 2200: J. & M. Cross to D. McCoy, $70,000

N. 4^th St., 1320: Sapanvi LLC to Harrisburg Home Investment LLC, $30,000

N. 4^th St., 3229: E. & K. Mundy to Willowscott Investments LLC, $46,000

N. 5^th St., 2743: Investment Specialists LLC to S. Salleb & M. Aziz, $52,000

N. 6^th St., 2400: Resting Place to Sent Ones Inc., $39,000

N. 6^th St., 2401: Investment Specialists LLC to Marl Investments LLC, $175,000

N. 6^th St., 2937: S. Driscoll to KMM Development LLC, $59,000

N. 6^th St., 3113: S. Householder to F. Pizzoli, $54,100

N. 6^th St., 3149: Asset Management Services LLC to A. Salame, $32,000

N. 14^th St., 1330: D. Lopes & J. Wright to T. Stokes, #137,000

N. 18^th St., 57: MSP Associates Inc. to KS Homes of PA LLC, $50,000

N. Cameron St., 10, 22: K. & I. Newkam to Great Scott Productions LLC, $470,000

N. Cameron St., 1217: San Pef Inc. & P. Peffley to CDG United Investments LLC, $1,065,000

N. Front St., 1525, Unit 612: J. Eirkson to M. & N. Hameed, $181,000

Penn St., 1502: H. Lord to A. Fortune, $110,000

Penn St., 1724: T. Howarth to K. Mohn, $108,000

Penn St., 1802: G. Link to M. & C. Freeman, $74,000

Penn St., 1935: WCI Partners to R. Solano, $134,900

Pennwood Rd., 3139: L. Ciambotti to A. & M. Burnett, $126,900

Pennwood Rd., 3143: T. Marhon to E. Cortes & E. Roman, $117,000

Regina St., 1611: J. & F. Burgos to I. Bakare, $35,000

Reily St., 213: P. Donahue & P. Chaves to E. Brantner, $111,000

Reily St., 253: R. & A. Gallagher to R. Wodele, $112,500

Rolleston St., 1020: E Street Properties LLC to DHS Team LLC, $49,900

Rudy Rd., 2245: M. Saluhdin & P. Williams to E. Brown, $155,000

Rudy Rd., 2258: K. Hoffman to M. Brossman, $151,350

Schuylkill St., 664: MSP Associates Inc. to KS Homes of PA LLC, $32,500

Showers St., 608: D. Wiedemer to R. & W. Fellinger, $155,000

Shoop St., 1443: S. Khan to K. Nashed & R. Mahrous, $40,000

S. 3^rd St., 24, 26, 28: Dauphin Land Co. to Harrisburg University of Science and Technology & D. Maun, $730,062

S. 13^th St., 225, 229; 1408 Vernon St.; 1627 Derry St.: Woodlayne Court LP to A. Himalaya PA Properties LLC, $1,110,000

S. 14^th St., 1449: B. Price Jr. to City of Harrisburg, $54,500

S. 17^th St., 424: Yovany LLC & Rivas Property Investments LLC to R. Feliz, $49,500

S. 17^th St., 831: Crist Holdings LLC to S&P Property Holdings LLC, $140,000

S. 18^th St., 1100: J. Edrington to S. Savage, $85,000

S. 25^th St., 604: M. Clea to I. Yolov, $57,000

S. 25^th St., 620: D. Staub to C. Grant & M. Rinaldi, $55,000

State St., 1510: TW Property Management & Rentals LLC to J. Ansell, $43,500

State St., 2007: Deuce & Mike Properties LLC to Ephraim Slaughter American Legion Post 733, $585,000

Susquehanna St., 3115: K. & M. Baum to A. & J. Mazer, $109,000

Swatara St., 2006: K. & F. Yocum to A. Shah, $38,000

Swatara St., 2040: Crist Holdings LLC to J. Crawford, $47,000

Zarker St., 1917: DC Investments LLC to C. & N. Carr, $39,900

Harrisburg property sales for October 2018, greater than $30,000. Source: Dauphin County. Data is assumed to be accurate.