HARRISBURG-LANCASTER-LEBANON-YORK | South Central, PA | Regional Development Thread

[EastSideHBG]

A VERY smart move!!!


SWATARA TWP.

Buses allowed back on bridge

Friday, October 14, 2005
BY MARY KLAUS
Of The Patriot-News

CAT will be back on the 63rd Street Bridge in Swatara Twp.

The Swatara Twp. Board of Commissioners on Wednesday voted 8-0 to issue Capital Area Transit a permit allowing its buses to use the bridge with some restrictions.

In return, CAT officials have agreed to accept liability for their buses' actions on the bridge.

The vote comes less than three weeks after township police issued a $105.50 fine and citation to a CAT employee who drove his bus across the bridge.

After decades of no bridge restrictions and years after Wal-Mart expanded into a Supercenter and traffic backed up on Grayson Road and the bridge, the township restricted use of the bridge to vehicles with four or fewer wheels. The bridge, officially named the Rudolph Dininni Bridge, is a major thoroughfare between the Rutherford and Chambers Hill sections of Swatara Twp.

For years, CAT buses crossed the bridge several times a day and left passengers at Wal-Mart and Verdelli Farms. After the CAT employee was fined, CAT buses dropped passengers off at 63rd and Derry Street, which officials agreed was unsafe.

The officials settled their differences during a meeting at the Capitol with state Rep. Rep. Ronald Buxton, D-Harrisburg, and John Payne, R-Derry Twp., and a representative from the office of state Sen. Jeffrey Piccola, R-Dauphin County.

"The key to getting CAT back on the bridge was CAT's agreeing to the indemnification and signing it," said Paul Cornell, Swatara Twp. administrator.

James H. Hoffer, CAT executive director, last week had suggested that CAT buses coming from Harrisburg on Derry Street turn up 61st Street, onto Huntingdon Street, then down 63rd Street and straight across the bridge into Swatara Square, thus not making a turn from the bridge.

Bill Simpson, CAT director of operations, said that CAT plans to be back on the bridge within a few days.

Commissioner Richard Bouder was absent from the vote.

[EastSideHBG]

Desperately needed...


HARRISBURG

Police site sought for Hall Manor

City councilman seeks federal aid

Friday, October 14, 2005
BY JOHN LUCIEW
Of The Patriot-News

Citing a rising tide of violent crime and rampant drug dealing in Harrisburg's Hall Manor housing project, City Councilman Otto Banks wants to re-open a full-time police substation there.

Banks, who is running for re-election this fall as a Republican, met with the regional director of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development yesterday in attempt to secure funding for a police station.

Guy Ciarrocchi, HUD regional director in Philadelphia, toured the housing project in South Allison Hill and met with residents.

He promised to review a city application to fund the start-up costs of a police substation in Hall Manor with "heightened sensitivity."

But he stopped short of promising the $400,000 Banks wants for the project.

"If we could do it for less, that would be good," Ciarrocchi said, adding that no decision would be made until a city application is received and reviewed, probably in 2006.

The HUD official also made clear that his department would not fund the salaries of police officers who would be based there.

Several years ago, Harrisburg closed a police substation in Hall Manor because of budget constraints.

Banks said he is exploring adding a fee to fines levied by police, with the money going to fund the substation.

"That way, you would have crime paying for a police presence," said Banks, who conceded that he must further research the issue.

In raising the idea, Banks said he was responding to what he called a recent wave of crime and violence in and around Hall Manor.

He cited a federal drug bust in August that netted 29 people accused of trafficking heroin in the housing project and a September 2004 incident in which a deadly shoot-out sent a victim's car crashing into a bus of preschoolers.

Ciarrocchi said the spike in violence in the housing project could merit special attention -- and additional funding -- from HUD.

"The last thing I'd ever want as a parent is a school bus driver telling my children to duck," Ciarrocchi said.

While Banks has been receiving support for his re-election from the Republican National Committee, Ciarrocchi said his visit to Harrisburg wasn't political.

"Why here?" he said. "An elected official took the time to write me. He is very persistent."

[EastSideHBG]

NEWS INFORMATION FROM THE OFFICE OF MAYOR STEPHEN R. REED
City of Harrisburg
King City Government Center
Harrisburg, PA 17101-1678
Telephone: 717.255.3040

FOR IMMEDIATE USE
13 October 2005

America’s Promise Alliance Names Harrisburg One of 100 Best Communities for Young People

America’s Promise – The Alliance for Youth today announced that Harrisburg is a winner of a first-ever national competition to identify 100 Best Communities for Young People. The winning communities – ranging from small towns to urban neighborhoods across America – are being celebrated for their commitment to provide healthy, safe and caring environments for young people.

Harrisburg is receiving the 100 Best honor, in part, because from birth through higher education, the city has a service system that offers support for each of its children as they develop. The city has health centers onsite at elementary schools, low-income dental services for children, and free innoculation programs. The city also offers full-day kindergarten for all five-year-olds, after-school programs, summer camps, youth councils, peer education programs and leadership programs so that its youth develop healthy and academically.

A complete list of winners can be found at www.americaspromise.org. Members of America’s Promise Alliance — including United Way of America, the U.S. Conference of Mayors, Junior Achievement and the YMCA and many others — took leading roles in the 100 Best competition. 100 Best Communities for Young People was launched in partnership with Capital One Financial Corporation.

America's Promise Founding Chairman General Colin Powell launched the competition in May and Harrisburg applied for a place on the prestigious list. Harrisburg and the other winners were chosen by a distinguished selection panel of civic, business and nonprofit leaders, including United Way of America President Brian Gallagher, U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue, former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala, baseball great Cal Ripken Jr. and former Denver mayor Wellington Webb.

The selection panel evaluated 100 Best entries that required detailed information about each community’s efforts to fulfill five essential promises critical to the well-being of young people: caring adults who are actively involved in their lives; safe places in which to learn and grow; a healthy start toward adulthood; an effective education that builds marketable skills; and opportunities to help others.

“We have had an amazing response from hundreds of communities, large and small, from Alaska to Florida,” said Marguerite W. Sallee, President and CEO of America’s Promise – The Alliance for Youth. “Our purpose for launching this competition is to appeal to America’s competitive spirit to encourage communities to become great places to grow up. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, we have seen some inspiring examples of what can happen when communities across the country pull together to help people in times of urgent need. In the 100 Best communities, we have witnessed that same spirit at work in making the well-being of their children an urgent priority. Their outstanding efforts – to measure how well their children and youth are doing, to put more resources in place, and to form cross-sector partnerships – provide shining examples of what it means to keep America’s Promise for our young people.”

“It is wonderful to learn first-hand how outstanding communities are making a difference in people’s lives – especially their young people,” said Steve Messner, local America’s Promise executive director. “We are committed to helping communities across America follow the examples provided by winning communities and adopt similar programs that will help our nation’s young people succeed in life.”

“We are proud to be a part of this important effort to highlight the innovative efforts taking place in communities throughout the United States to create healthy and supportive environments for our children,” said Capital One’s Executive Vice President and General Counsel John Finneran. “Like America’s Promise, Capital One recognizes that helping to build strong and healthy communities – good places to do business and good places to raise families – benefits us all.”

To honor the 100 Best communities selected, the America’s Promise Alliance will hold a special event November 2nd in Washington, D.C. This celebration will be dedicated to the children affected by Hurricane Katrina, highlighting outstanding community initiatives across the country that are providing displaced children with the services and support that they need to thrive no matter where they are. All proceeds from this event will go toward helping the children impacted by Katrina.

The Alliance will also sponsor a yearlong celebration including a special day in each of the winning communities and a series of regional forums across the country that will enable communities to share their success stories and learn effective strategies from one another that will further enrich the lives of their young people.

“The applications revealed communities that care about their kids and are working together to make their futures better. We saw leaders and people genuinely engaged and full of pride in their towns. Together, they have strengthened my faith in our great country.”

For more details about the 100 Best competition and the winners, please visit www.americaspromise.org.

About America’s Promise America’s Promise is a broad-based alliance whose members work together to ensure the well-being of children and youth. Alliance partners focus attention and resources to help every child receive the Five Promises essential to success: caring adults who are actively involved in their lives; safe places in which to learn and grow; a healthy start toward adulthood; an effective education that builds marketable skills; and opportunities to help others.

Founded by retired General Colin L. Powell, following the Presidents’ Summit for America’s Future in 1997, the America’s Promise Alliance includes nonprofit, corporate and community groups as well as individuals across the nation. Alma J. Powell currently serves as chair.

America's Promise grew out of the Presidents’ Summit for America’s Future in 1997, where Presidents Bush, Carter, Clinton and Ford, with Nancy Reagan representing President Reagan, challenged the country to make children and youth a national priority. President George W. Bush affirmed his commitment in 2001.

[wrightchr]

^ bravo

[EastSideHBG]

I must say that I have now gotten to a point where I sinply cannot stand Lower Paxton Twp. or CD School District, and I am sooo happy I no longer live in that area. Let the sprawl continue!!!


LOWER PAXTON TWP.

Farmland sale spurs debate over development

Monday, October 17, 2005
BY JACK SHERZER
Of The Patriot-News

It's all but certain that yet another one-time family farm will, in the coming years, yield a bumper crop of houses.

Last week, almost 300 acres of the whimsically named Stray Winds Farm in Lower Paxton Twp. was auctioned off, with two developers buying the lion's share of the land.

And the perceived nearness of the bulldozer's breath again is fanning the fires of the debate over development versus preserving open space.

It's to be expected this would be a hot topic in Lower Paxton, where conflict over limiting commercial buildup on Route 22 -- sparked by plans for a Wal-Mart -- have made the debate a discussion staple.

Township officials stress there are no plans on the table and residents need not fear a sudden surge of houses. Officials with Central Dauphin School District say they're prepared to deal with increased growth.

But there are concerns.

"I think there is such apathy in Lower Paxton Township because of the concentrated development that people have just given up" arguing against it, said Patricia Olenick, co-chair of the Lower Paxton Residents for Responsible Growth.

The 60-member organization was formed to fight the proposed Wal-Mart supercenter at Route 22 and Blue Ribbon Avenue, now in litigation between the retailer and the township, which rejected the plan. Now, Olenick said, she expects the group to expand its horizons and address other development issues.

Though the township recently completed its comprehensive plan to address future growth, Olenick said many residents didn't participate at the time and would like to have input.

"There is not that much farmland left in the township for open space," Olenick said. "I just really want to stress they don't make land anymore."

At Tuesday's auction, John and Mark DiSanto of Triple Crown Corporation spent $9.2 million for the largest tract, 218 acres that includes the main farmhouse and barn on McIntosh Road. Florino Grande of Grande Construction in Berks County spent $4.1 million for the second-largest tract and said he intended to build homes in the $250,000-to-$450,000 price range.

The "low density residential zoning" on the land limits construction to no more than two houses per acre, and George Wolfe, the township manager, pointed out there are also other constraints on development.

Under an agreement with the Swatara and Harrisburg sewer authorities, the township is limited to adding no more than 175 connections per year. In the Paxton Creek area, where the farm is located, that limit is no more than 60 connections a year, Wolfe said.

Developers also need to submit plans through a review process, which includes studies on the proposal's impact on the surrounding area.

Wolfe said he's received calls from people concerned about development. But last year, 100 acres a quarter-mile off Route 22 at Devonshire Road was sold, and no eyebrows were raised, though it is zoned for a higher residential density than Stray Winds Farm.

Almost 36 percent of the township -- more than 6,000 acres -- is undeveloped but buildable in some fashion, Wolfe said.

"This Stray Winds Farm tract, of course, has been one that's been notable in the community because of the auction and because of its location," he said. "But we have a large number of sites in Lower Paxton that have been going through a similar development process, and that process is one that began many years ago and is expected to continue into the future."

Supervisors Chairman William Hawk said he thinks the township has planned as well as possible for development, which, he said, a municipality is limited in its ability to control.

Hawk said he is satisfied with the low-density zoning covering the area. "The calls I've gotten is from people saying they don't want to see a lot of high density and they don't want to see big box stores, shopping centers, things of that nature."

Ironically, if residents are worried about property taxes, they should crave commercial development.

A 1997 Penn State University study showed that, on average, for every dollar a municipality receives in taxes, fees and other revenue from residential development, it spends more than a dollar in services -- mainly because of the impact on school districts.

Timothy W. Kelsey, professor of agricultural economics, who did the study, cautioned against making generalizations and said that higher-priced homes might not be the same kind of drain on resources.

"The general rule of thumb is the more bedrooms in the house, the more cost," Kelsey said. "That's because the biggest impact residential properties have on local taxes is the school district."

Officials with Central Dauphin School District aren't sounding the panic button.

Superintendent John Scola said the district will soon get a report from the Pennsylvania Economy League looking at projected housing growth in the area. In addition to Lower Paxton, the district covers Middle Paxton, West Hanover and Swatara townships and Dauphin, Penbrook and Paxtang boroughs.

"Currently, we feel that we have the capacity to house our students," Scola said. "Actually, you can look at it as a positive, that developers and people are choosing the Central Dauphin School District to buy land and purchase a house and send their sons and daughters to our schools."

Board member Garry L. Esworthy agreed, saying that the district's size allows it to fairly spread out the costs of increased development on the district.

"I'm glad people are coming to Central Dauphin," Esworthy said. "It says we offer a quality education to people -- developers don't purchase property without looking at the school district they are coming into."

[EastSideHBG]

City settles on a home for black history museum

Wednesday, October 19, 2005
BY JOHN LUCIEW
Of The Patriot-News

Harrisburg will pay about $575,000 for the Historic Harrisburg Association building in midtown as one of two adjacent structures to house a planned African-American Cultural Center.

"We now have a home for the project," said Fred Clark, chairman of the task force developing the museum at Third and Verbeke streets, across from the Broad Street Market.

The city controls the abandoned, five-story Furlow building next door, which with the Historic Harrisburg site would comprise the museum and cultural center focusing on black history.

Clark said the building acquisition, which is expected to be approved this week by the Historic Harrisburg board, means his attention will shift to fundraising.

With a request for state funds pending, Clark said the museum board must raise the cash for the building purchase on its own.

To do so, Clark has laid out an ambitious goal, calling for raising the first $200,000 by late December and the remainder by the middle of next year.

"Without a site, we were in no position to raise funds," Clark said. "This makes the project a reality, and we can now begin the process."

Clark has sent letters to more than 200 potential donors and is planning a fundraiser at the Hilton Harrisburg & Towers on Dec. 16.

"Without support, it simply will not happen," he said of the project. The group has about $50,000 on hand.

The museum and cultural center is expected to cost $24 million. Early ideas for the center included a jazz club, a restaurant, shops and exhibits tracing black history from the slave trade to the present day.

Clark said a design firm, which has been hired, will hold public meetings to hear ideas and input from residents and community leaders.

"Everyone will play a role in this process," he said.

Historic Harrisburg is looking for new offices that would keep the preservationist group in a downtown historic district and preferably in another historic building.

The group has been in its current location, a former bank building, since 1993, Executive Director David A. Zwifka said.

He said the association was using just a portion of the 9,000-square-foot building and had planned to turn it over to the community for a "higher use."

"We feel the building is a community asset and it's being underutilized," he said. "We want it to be a bigger part of the community."

There is no timetable for when the African-American museum would open.

Mayor Stephen R. Reed, who has long dreamed of opening five city-run museums in Harrisburg, indicated he will first pursue revised plans for a National Sports Hall of Fame.

Reed wants to add at least three floors of prime office space to the hall-of-fame building planned for City Island to make the project self-sustaining.

No designs have been completed and no cost figures are available, but Reed said work on the project could begin next year.

The revenue stream created by the office space could allow Reed to use private financing, perhaps a bank loan, to match the $9.5 million the state has committed to the hall of fame, which could cost more than $25 million.

Reed said he would hold off on applying for the $9 million to $13 million in state money Harrisburg would need for the black history museum. He said that application will take a back seat to pending requests for state money to renovate Commerce Bank Park and reclaim a vacant lot in Allison Hill.

Harrisburg operates the $3.2 million National Fire Museum on North Fourth Street and the $33 million National Civil War Museum in Reservoir Park.

A fifth museum, the National Museum of the Old West, for which Reed bought $4.5 million in Western artifacts, is in limbo.

Reed said he will abide by the findings of an ongoing tourism study, which is expected to complete a master plan in December.

JOHN LUCIEW: 255-8171 or jluciew@patriot-news.com

OTHER MUSEUMS

Mayor Stephen R. Reed wants to run two other proposed city museums:

# National Sports Hall of Fame: Reed is pushing revised plans for a sports museum on City Island. Plans include three floors of prime office space, designed to make the project self-sustaining.

# National Museum of the Old West: The project remains in limbo. Reed bought $4.5 million in Western artifacts, but the project drew many critics.

[EastSideHBG]

It just goes to show how fast our DT is filling up when we need to make taller garages to fit more cars.


HARRISBURG

Parking authority wants to clear path for taller garages

Thursday, October 20, 2005
BY JOHN LUCIEW
Of The Patriot-News

Harrisburg City Council is considering zoning amendments that would clear the way for bigger, taller public parking garages in a portion of downtown.

More immediately, the change could remove the legal hurdles standing in the way of a 12-deck parking garage to be built at 220 South St. between Second and Third streets.

The 750-space garage, to be paid for by a $17 million bond issue, was approved by the City Council in June.

But since then, the garage has been challenged by the PMA Foundation, which owns a neighboring building at 225 State St. that houses the Pennsylvania Manufacturing Association.

Charles O. Beckley II, a lawyer for PMA, said the group filed appeals of the zoning hearing board's approval of the garage and challenged the board's authority to override the stricter requirements of the zoning district.

Now the Harrisburg Parking Authority, which would build and run the facility, is moving on two fronts to get the garage back on track.

The first is the zoning amendments being considered by the council. A public hearing on the issue is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. today in the City Government Center on Market Square.

The zoning changes would allow public parking garages of up to 125 feet in the city's so-called special intensity district.

The district extends from Locust Street to the south to a block north of Forster Street, west to Front Street and east to Third Street.

The changes also would exempt public parking garages from setback requirements and allow for more space to be built.

But Beckley is critical of the changes because he said they would apply only to publicly funded parking garages and would ruin the intent of the special intensity district, which serves to cap large-scale buildings.

"We feel the project is too big for the neighborhood," Beckley said. "We don't oppose parking garages, just ones that big."

But city engineer Joe Link said parking garages are special cases because they are crucial to economic growth.

The planned South Street garage would serve Belco Community Credit Union, which is expanding its headquarters and consolidating operations on the east side of 400 block of North Second Street.

"Belco wants to expand, but they can't do it unless they get more parking," Link said. He added that all the profits from the parking authority go back to the city.

The garage also would allow parking for the nearby Pennsylvania State Education Association building. It also could be open on weekends to serve churches, and in the evenings to provide overflow parking for patrons of downtown restaurants and clubs, officials said.

Belco and the PSEA are swapping parcels of land where the garage is to be built in exchange for 54 and 64 parking spaces, respectively.

Beckley said the value of the parking spaces amounts to a $2.5 million to $3 million windfall for the organizations.

While the council ponders the zoning amendments, the parking authority also is pressing its case before the zoning hearing board.

A meeting is set for noon tomorrow to once again approve the 110-foot garage in the special intensity district, where the height limits range from 45 feet to 70 feet.

*************

Dauphin County seeks ways to improve business climate

Thursday, October 20, 2005
BY TOM DOCHAT
Of The Patriot-News

Five months after an economic development summit, Dauphin County commissioners are creating three task forces in an effort to improve the business climate in the county.

Members of the task forces were announced yesterday. Their reports are expected to be returned by late January or early February when the commissioners make their annual "state of the county" address.

The task forces will try to deliver "meaningful goals and objectives that we can accomplish," said Jeff Haste, chairman of the board of commissioners.

The focus will be on real estate and infrastructure, quality of life and business climate and work-force development.

Haste said task force members will "roll up their sleeves and come up with tangible things that the county can do to improve in those areas. We want an action item, not a study, not a booklet to look at and wonder what to do."

Haste maintained that this hasn't been done before.

"If it has, I'd like to see it," he said.

The county's efforts will not duplicate anything being done by the Harrisburg Regional Chamber to promote business development, according to Haste.

"Actually, we're working with the chamber on things," he said. "They're some of the ones that suggested that we ought to do this."

David Black, president and CEO of the chamber, said the county's efforts should "augment what we're doing." He said the commissioners evaluate issues from a county government perspective, while the chamber approaches matters from a private-sector perspective.

"Working together, the outcome is going to be good," Black said. "At the end of the day, we'll be better synchronized than we were in the past. So we support the effort that they're doing."

Each of the commissioners will serve on one of the task forces.

"We're excited about the possibilities that exist," Commissioner George Hartwick III said.

"We've got a lot of work to do to come up with goals and objectives that will make Dauphin County a better place to live," Commissioner Nick DiFrancesco added.

[Spudmrg]

Is the "Special Intensity District" designed to keep the view of the Capital Dome from the river? I'd have to see a picture of what this would look like after completion before I comment on the merits of the design. Too bad going underground is'nt an option here.

[wrightchr]

^ at 110 ft...it definately will be noticable from the river. it's position on south street shouldn't block the capitol though.

[EastSideHBG]

So...much...drama...


HARRISBURG

Codes officer made mistake

Permits didn't meet new state code, he says

Friday, October 21, 2005
BY JOHN LUCIEW
Of The Patriot-News

A Harrisburg building codes official conceded making a mistake in issuing demolition permits for three 1920s era homes on North Front Street.

City codes administrator David Patton, testifying last night at an appeals hearing about the permits, said he was unaware of new requirements governing building demolitions in flood-prone areas.

The new standards were adopted statewide in April 2004, and the disputed application was submitted a year later.

As a result, Patton said he erred in issuing the demolition permits April 7 to interior designer-turned developer Mary Knackstedt for the three brick and stone manors she owns between 2901 and 2917 N. Front St.

Knackstedt wants to build a five-story, $32 million condominium building with views of the Susquehanna River on the property.

Opponents of Knackstedt's project say Harrisburg would lose three irreplaceable mansions along Front Street and neighboring residents would lose their views of the Susquehanna River and have to contend with more traffic.

As proposed, Knackstedt's project would stand 57 feet high on a 23,445-square-foot footprint, with underground parking for 146 cars.

It was only after Harrisburg brought in outside legal counsel that Patton said he revoked the permits two weeks later because they didn't meet the stricter requirements of the statewide uniform construction code.

Knackstedt's attorney, Jane Alexander, criticized Patton's "gross oversight," saying it has cost her client months of delays on a multi-million-dollar project.

"Because of your lack of knowledge, my client's being penalized," she said.

Knackstedt's appeal of the permit revocations has been delayed since June, as the city needed to fill vacancies on the five-member appeals board and garner a quorum to hear the case.

Under its own ordinances, the city normally would have 30 days to hear an appeal.

The two-hour hearing did not result in a verdict last night.

Instead, the board will take a month to review the case, along with additional written arguments, and issue a ruling at its Nov. 17 meeting.

Knackstedt's project manager and engineer both testified that they had never before encountered such hurdles in securing demolition permits from the city.

But Daniel Altland, attorney for the city, pointed out that rules for demolitions in flood areas changed with the new statewide code. He indicated that Knackstedt's application was the first to be reviewed by the city under the new requirements.

"It should have never been issued in the first place," Altland said of the original permits.

Specifically, Knackstedt's application to the city should have contained a site plan showing the flood zone, along with grading and filling plans.

Knackstedt has submitted a second demolition application that includes the additional information. But the city will not consider the second application until the appeal of the first one is either ruled upon or dropped, officials said.

Meanwhile, Knackstedt has listed her block of prime riverfront land for sale, asking $3.5 million.

Her real estate adviser, Don Paul Shearer, said he continues to entertain interest in the properties, mostly from out-of-town developers. But he said most of the prospective buyers want the demolition permits cleared up first.

"I see no reason why we won't get those permits," he said after the hearing. "It's just a shame it has taken us seven months to get here."

[wrightchr]

^ boohoo...she should have done her own research before jumping into such a controversial project. drama indeed! granted the code officer should have known his stuff too. mistakes on everyone's part i suppose.

[EastSideHBG]

Call me optomistic, but I think this may pave the way for taller buildings overall.


Garage plan clears another hurdle

Saturday, October 22, 2005
BY JOHN LUCIEW
Of The Patriot-News

The Harrisburg Zoning Hearing Board ruled yesterday that it has the authority to grant zoning exceptions that would clear the way for a 12-deck parking garage on South Street.

Voting unanimously, the board rejected the arguments of lawyers for the PMA Foundation, which owns a neighboring building at 225 State St. that houses the Pennsylvania Manufacturing Association.

PMA has been challenging the 750-space garage, planned for 220 South St. between Second and Third streets, saying it's too big for the neighborhood.

One of the legal challenges focused on whether the zoning hearing board had the power to grant special exceptions for tall parking garages in a special intensity district zone, where the project is proposed. The zone is intended to limit large-scale development.

The zoning hearing board put off a decision on the overall project, granting PMA's request for a continuance until 6 p.m. Oct. 31.

The Harrisburg Parking Authority wants special zoning exceptions to build the 120-foot garage in the special intensity district, where the height limits range from 45 feet to 70 feet.

It is also seeking exemptions for larger lot coverage and floor area ratios.

Meanwhile, City Council is considering a zoning amendment that would permit bigger, taller parking garages in the special intensity district, removing the need for special exceptions altogether.

The district extends from Locust Street at the south to a block north of Forster Street, west to Front Street and east to Third Street.

[wrightchr]

i think allowing taller buildings is great, but maybe not in the area of this district. taller buildings would definately block out the view of the capitol from the river...which has historically defined harrisburg's image since it's conception. don't get me wrong, i would love to see some taller construction DT, but maybe more towards the heart of the CBD, the southern gateway, or further north along 6th/7th street corridor. i'm even pro-construction on city island...but setting a precedent for lifting restrictions in front of the capitol is a bad idea IMHO.

[wrightchr]

here's an article written by columnist Herb Field about CorridorOne. i couldn't have written it any better

CorridorOne roadblock
Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Harrisburg Patriot-News

In a move that is sad, disappointing and difficult to fathom, the Cumberland County commissioners have gone to extraordinary lengths to round up local opposition to the CorridorOne regional commuter rail project in hopes of sinking it.

They may well succeed. And we would do well to ask ourselves: At what price? Local support for the project is a critical element in gaining federal approval -- and funds -- for the 54-mile long system that would run from Lancaster to Carlisle (through Harrisburg) in three stages of development. But now the Cumberland commissioners say that the governing boards of 29 of the county's 33 municipalities have passed resolutions backing the county's opposition to the project.

It would be nice to say, "Fine, let's shift the effort to somewhere that wants it -- say, Dauphin County." But the federal government has provided millions of dollars to conduct studies and plans specific to the CorridorOne route. Abandon it, and the local sponsors, which include Cumberland County, are obligated to pay the money back. Besides, preliminary investigations indicated that CorridorOne was likely to have the best chance of succeeding in terms of ridership and generating the most benefits, such as reduced traffic congestion. Of course, that finding occurred when there was a regime running Cumberland County that was friendly toward -- indeed, an advocate of -- a commuter rail system.

The general view of those opposing CorridorOne, as I understand it, seems to center on fears that it will cost a bunch of money and won't benefit very many people. But the fact is that this $76 million project -- far less than many a local highway project -- has been the subject of various studies for more than 10 years. An independent look at the studies that provided the groundwork for recommending CorridorOne was conducted earlier this year by the Pennsylvania Transportation Institute at Penn State. It found that the project, while at the lower end of population density traditionally served by mass transit, is an "appropriate type of project to consider in the Harrisburg area," given the significant amount of undeveloped land and projected growth in population over the next two decades. OTHER ADVANTAGES include the fact that the existing rail infrastructure in the region would enable the creation of a CorridorOne rail service at a modest cost, versus what would be required to build new infrastructure. The project, this independent analysis found, also has the potential to improve both the region's economic development and environment.

With worsening traffic congestion and $3-a-gallon gas prices, plus the potential for much higher prices and even fuel shortages, the case for launching CorridorOne would seem, if anything, to be more compelling than ever. To their great credit, the commissioners in Dauphin County recognize this, despite the fact that their county does not stand to benefit from implementation of CorridorOne to the degree that Cumberland County would. Dauphin County Commissioner Nick DiFrancesco has called the project "critically important," adding: "There is no downside to doing it. We can only benefit from this."

In truth, this project is not so much about meeting today's transportation needs as it is about meeting tomorrow's. It also is about creating a transportation infrastructure less automobile-dependent, that serves to make aging communities more attractive to residents, offices and commercial establishments. It is about making a firm commitment to help channel future growth to areas where it is most desirable, instead of allowing unplanned growth to dictate the future of the region.

If there is any sense of vision of what the future might look like in the Cumberland commissioners' opposition to Corridor-One, I don't see it or understand it. BUT IT IS fair to say this, that if they are successful in blocking the development of commuter rail in these parts it will be a quarter-century or more before there is likely to be any prospect of correcting their incredible error in judgment.

And to be sure, it will be future generations that pay for any failure to act now in timely fashion to build a better transportation future, rather than depend on one tied to already overloaded highways and a predictably increasingly onerous price to pay at the gasoline pump.

HERB FIELD is a Patriot-News editorial writer: 255-8441 or hfield@patriot-news.com.

http://www.pennlive.com/columns/patr...521.xml&coll=1

[EastSideHBG]

/\


And to support that editorial even more is stuff like this: more sprawl = more traffic. When will the Cumberlan County Commissioners wake up and see that the area as a whole desperately needs projects like CorridorONE?!?!?


Developers request variances for Woodland Hills proposal

Sunday, October 23, 2005
BY DIANA STRICKER
For The Patriot-News

The owners of the proposed Woodland Hills development in Middletown hope their plans for a 311-unit housing complex will be approved by the end of 2006.

"That would be our optimistic hope," said Thomas Kile, one of the owners of the 167-acre tract north of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

The property was purchased for $642,500 in March 2004 by H-T Partners of Landisville, which is owned by Kile, Greg Kile and Howard Boyd.

The developers discussed their new sketch plan and requests for modification waivers at a planning commission meeting Wednesday night.

The proposal calls for 205 single-family houses, 62 duplexes and 44 town houses. Kile said a pricing range hasn't been set. He said that although the houses will be in the borough they will have a rural atmosphere.

"This is going to feel more like a suburban development. We're trying to maintain the wooded aspect," Kile said. "It's a beautiful site."

The proposal, which has undergone several changes since it was submitted more than a year ago, faces a lengthy approval process.

The planning commission will review the requests and continue the discussion next month before presenting its recommendations to Borough Council. The developers must then prepare and submit subdivision plans to the planning commission and council.

Frederick Van Name, director of project management for Lake, Roeder, Hillard & Associates in Lancaster, said the developers are requesting several variances from standard borough ordinances.

The proposal calls for reducing the sight distance at intersections in the complex from 250 feet to 150 feet, because the posted speed limit will be 25 mph instead of 35 mph.

The developers are requesting that minor streets be 28 feet wide and that parking be restricted to one side, rather than the typical 34-foot width with parking on both sides.

They also are requesting permission to construct walking trails instead of sidewalks.

Several residents asked questions about parking and the walking trails.

Van Name said extra parking areas would be provided throughout the complex, in addition to garages and driveways at each residence. He said the walking trails would maintain the rural character of the site and would link the homes and extend through the wooded area.

SPECIAL MEETING

The Middletown planning commission will meet at 6 p.m. Nov. 9 to continue discussions of the 311-unit housing development in the Woodland Hills area. Residents may submit written comments to the borough office. The panel will make recommendations to the council before the next council meeting Nov. 14.

[EastSideHBG]

Entertainment site still planned for land

Zoning variances denied for project

Sunday, October 23, 2005
BY PHYLLIS ZIMMERMAN
For The Patriot-News

Developers say they still hope to build some sort of entertainment complex in South Hanover Twp. despite township officials denying zoning variances last month for a water park and five-story hotel.

Developers have proposed a $4 million family-oriented restaurant and entertainment complex called "Jungle Joey's," with bumper cars, laser tag, rock-climbing walls, games and rides on Route 39 just north of the Derry Twp. border and Hersheypark.

The project developers, Nick and Jodi Pendolino of South Hanover Twp. and Don and Kim Walker of Harrisburg, are moving forward, although they admit some plans are going to change.

"It's not like we can't do something there at all," said Nick Pendolino. "We still want to build some sort of entertainment complex."

The developers don't intend to appeal the denial of the zoning variances. "That would take up time and money," Pendolino said.

The original plans by the developers -- operating as Pendo & Walker, LLC -- comprised three phases that included a 25,000-square-foot water park and a five-story hotel. But the South Hanover Twp. zoning board denied two necessary variances.

One variance would have increased the lot's impervious coverage -- concrete and blacktop -- to 65 percent, 25 percent more than allowed by township codes. The other variance would have been for the hotel's height.

On Oct. 11, township supervisors unanimously approved a waiver request by the firm regarding a proposed 6.7-acre subdivision behind Pumpkin World on Route 39.

Supervisors approved a waiver to allow developers to submit preliminary and final plans for the subdivision as a combined plan. Developers based the waiver on the fact that the subdivision, if finalized, would create only one new lot requiring no additional township streets.

Pumpkin World's main land track is owned by Earl Rutherford Jr., but the proposed subdivision is contracted to Pendo & Walker.

Pendolino said a waiver of this type is fairly common and is meant to simplify the review process.

A subdivision plan is under review by South Hanover Twp. Planning Commission and will be forwarded for the supervisors' consideration.

Supervisors also approved last week a nonbuilding waiver for the proposed subdivision. That means developers won't construct anything until they submit a land development plan to the township.

[EastSideHBG]

This just goes to show how much this area has changed. A total catch-22 IMO, though.


GOING FOR A MILLION

Sunday, October 23, 2005
BY ELLEN LYON
Of The Patriot-News

A few years ago, the real estate market in central Pennsylvania reached a million-dollar milestone. That's when several local real estate agents and builders started seeing their first seven-figure sales, spurred by steadily appreciating values on existing homes and soaring construction costs for new ones.

Since then, million-dollar homes are being built on scattered sites and in tract developments from Hershey to Carlisle.

"There are homes of that price plateau on the market just about all the time," observed Keith Sealover, a real estate agent with Jack Gaughen Realtor ERA in Camp Hill. He said he sold his first million-dollar home about four years ago.

Patrick Smith of The Homestead Group, who said he sells million-dollar homes "on a pretty regular basis," sees a shift in mind-set.

"This Pennsylvania Dutch mentality that permeates our area has never advocated showing your wealth," Smith said. But now "you're seeing more and more people who want their economic position to be readily known."

Smith also has noticed a shift in the age of these well-heeled homeowners. It's dropping from the 50s to the 40s and even the mid-30s, he said.

Although some younger buyers are "stretching their income to get one more status [level] up" others are choosing to invest their "deeper assets" in real estate rather than the stock market, Smith said.

With interest rates and stock market returns falling at the same time, "it was like the stars became aligned," observed Don Farinelli of Farinelli Construction Inc. in Upper Allen Twp. He just finished a $1.4 million remodeling job on a West Shore home, he said.

Million-dollar home buyers can still be frugal.

Smith said he has seen some migrate from the East Shore to the West Shore, where property taxes tend to be lower because of the newer infrastructure.

"They want to know what the tax rate is in a particular area more than they used to," he said. "They're saying I can pay off my mortgage. I can't pay off my taxes."

The midstate is following a national trend when it comes to rich real estate.

A recent Census Bureau survey found more than a million homes worth at least $1 million in the United States. There were 595,441 homes worth that in 2002 and only 394,878 in 2000.

Several local builders have developed reputations in the high-end home market.

W. Lee Roland, Builder, achieved its million-dollar milestone three years ago, according to partner Rosalie Roland.

The Upper Allen Twp. company generally builds 17 houses a year, Roland said. Last year, three of those homes sold for at least $1 million. So far this year, four have sold at that level, she said.

"I think people want something different, and they're willing to pay for something ... that's customized to their liking," Roland said.

Typically, Roland said, it takes a year to plan a million-dollar custom home with the buyer and a year to build it.

W. Lee Roland homes in that price range generally include architectural features such as turrets, a custom kitchen "with all the extras," walk-in closets in every bedroom and lots of vaulted ceilings, she said.

Stan Custer, president of Custer Homes in Susquehanna Twp., said he hit the million-dollar home mark about five years ago.

Custer, who usually builds 12 to 18 custom homes a year, said he averages about one million-dollar home a year now, typically for a middle-aged or older couple with grown children.

These homes have "higher end products from the foundation up" and have included such features as indoor pools and gyms, Custer said.

A builder for 24 years, Custer said several factors are driving up the cost of home building, including rising land and development costs.

"The cost of construction over the last five or 10 years has gone up drastically in every category -- lumber and steel and concrete," Custer said. "It costs a lot more today to build than it did a year ago or five years ago."

And just changing some of the materials -- like going from vinyl siding to brick or going from carpeting to tiled or wood floors -- can raise a home's price $100,000 or $200,000, he noted.

Farinelli said he builds homes primarily in the $500,000 and above price range, including a few million-dollar homes each year.

When he started 17 years ago, he could build a nice home for $70 a square foot, Farinelli said. Now that same house would cost about $140 a square foot.

The number of options available to home buyers also has exponentially increased.

"People fall in love with stuff sometimes that's a lot more expensive," Farinelli said. "There's a lot of construction that's being built for people who have done well."

[Spudmrg]

In regards to that "entertainment complex" that's proposed for PA-39, why must it be built in that location, which is'nt exactly well suited for heavy traffic, when they could build it in some of the less-used "big box" lots off of I-83/US-22? Seems that they just wanted to build off of Hershey and this was the closest location.

As to the 1 Million houses, try land values some other places... haha.

[wrightchr]

^ i believe their thinking in regards to the entertainment complex, was to build off of traffic from Hersheypark and other nearby tourist traps. putting something like this off of I-83/I-81 or US 22 would mean it would need to be more self sufficient and draw crowds on it's own...which may be harder to accomplish. currently there is a study to widen all of PA 39 from Linglestown to Hershey, due to the current and future demand of the route. hence the increase in property values and the movement of some to pursue building along the route before it becomes cost prohibitive.

[Spudmrg]

I agree with you as far as the motivation goes, through I'm somewhat doubtful that enough $$$ is around to expand PA-39 before the area is completely built up. As for the business model in question, I don't know if it will work or not.