TheBurg

NEWS | All stories by eBurg staff Harrisburg City Council ended its 2021 session last month with a lengthy agenda, including the approval of a budget and substantial development projects. Council took a step in the city's budgeting process, passing a 2022 budget that will serve as a placeholder until Mayor- Elect Wanda Williams takes office and likely reopens the spending plan. e $79.2 million general fund budget, which includes no property tax increase, essentially mirrors the 2021 budget. e administration proposed the placeholder budget in anticipation of Williams reopening it in the new year. e final budget must be adopted by Feb. 15. Additionally, council gave the go-ahead to two large development projects in Harrisburg. Developers Chris and Erica Bryce, along with Matt Long of Harrisburg Commercial Interiors, can begin work on their mixed-use building on the 1600-block of N. 3rd and Logan streets. It includes a community center and 12 apartment units. ey also plan to construct eight townhouses nearby. e project is one phase of many planned by the developers for the Midtown area. A plan for the historic Hudson building on N. 6th Street in Camp Curtin was also brought before council. Developer Adam Maust plans to transform the long-empty building into e Atlas, which may include office and retail space for local, specifically Black-owned businesses, he said. However, city Solicitor Neil Grover stated that the project technically already had received automatic approval. A vote by council on each land development plan is required within 120 days of an application being submitted. According to Grover, a series of delays on the city's part led to the project not going to council for a vote until after that deadline, rendering it legally approved. Many council members were not happy with that result. "How did we let something with so much public comment slip through the cracks?" council member Ausha Green asked. "It's completely ridiculous." Although the project was deemed approved, council still voted on it, passing the land development plan by a vote of 6-1, with council member Shamaine Daniels voting against it. e Harrisburg School District has a few new faces in office. At a virtual reorganization meeting last month, the district swore in six board members, four of whom took their seats for the first time. Dauphin County Magisterial Judge Sonya McKnight led the swearing-in of the following board members, who were elected last month: • Brian Carter, 4-year term (re-elected) • Danielle Robinson, 4-year term (re-elected) • Roslyn Copeland, 4-year term • Jaime Johnsen, 4-year term • Terricia Radcliff, 2-year term • Ellis R. Roy, 2-year term "is is an incredible time to work together to really support the students, families and staff members of the Harrisburg School District," Receiver Janet Samuels said. "I'd like to encourage the board members to step out there and to make a difference." Board members voted for Brian Carter for president of the board and Steven Williams for vice president. e average Harrisburg water and sewer customer will pay a few dollars more a month in 2022, as Capital Region Water approved new rates for the year. In late November, CRW passed its 2022 budget, which includes a 3% increase for drinking water and a 4% hike for wastewater service. Under the new rate structure, drinking water rates will rise from $10.04 to $10.34 per 1,000 gallons. Wastewater rates will increase from $8.23 to $8.56 per 1,000 gallons. According to CRW, the average Harrisburg customer who consumes 45,000 gallons of water annually will pay about $2.60 more per month. e stormwater fee, first imposed in 2020, will remain the same at $6.15 per month for most residential customers. CRW also stated that it is targeting two sources of new federal funding to help pay for improvements to the city's aged, combined sewer infrastructure. First, it expects to pursue some of the $1.4 billion that Pennsylvania will receive for water projects under the recently passed federal infrastructure bill. It also hopes to receive some of Harrisburg's $48 million allocation under the American Rescue Plan Act, approved by Congress in March. "With water and sewer infrastructure projects as an eligible use of funds, investments to reduce pollution just make environmental and financial sense," said CRW board Chair Marc Kurowski, in a statement. CRW is under a preliminary agreement with the federal government to slash pollutants that flow into area waterways, including some 800 million gallons of raw sewage mixed with stormwater that enters the Susquehanna River each year. To do so, it plans to spend about $315 million for system improvements and for green infrastructure, which captures stormwater before it enters the sewer system. CITY BUDGET OK'D, MAY BE RE-OPENED SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS SWORN IN WATER/SEWER RATES RISE An outdated Harrisburg planning document has finally been updated and replaced following a seven-year-long process. In late November, Harrisburg City Council approved a new comprehensive plan, capping years of effort to bring the plan into the 21st century. e resolution passed 6-1, with council member Danielle Bowers voting against it. "I appreciate all the work of everyone on this council, and I'm glad we are at least able to get something on the books so that we can start moving forward," council member Westburn Majors said. e previous comprehensive plan was created in 1974, serving more than double its intended lifespan of 20 years. In 2014, Harrisburg began to discuss creating a new plan, but was faced with years of delay. A dispute between the city and a former consultant hired to draft the plan prolonged the process, as did extensions to the public comment period. e 246-page document is meant to help guide growth and development in the city. It includes topics such as land use, housing, mobility, parks, energy and cultural resources. Over the years, the city held numerous public hearings and meetings on the plan, generating comments from community members. Bowers explained her vote against the plan, saying that it was not accessible enough and lacked sufficient up-to-date public commentary. "I don't understand how a document is supposed to accurately reflect a city today when a majority of the public engagement is already dated and occurred five or six years ago," she said. "I do not believe this document works for the city of Harrisburg." Other council members agreed that the plan could use improvements, but stated that it is a "living document" and could be updated on a regular basis in the years to come. "is isn't the best, but it is way better than a 40-plus-year-old document," Majors said. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN PASSED Harrisburg area home sales were generally flat in November, though prices showed continued strength over the three- county region. For the month, 724 previously owned houses sold, just eight fewer than in November 2020, while the median sales price shot up to $231,000 compared to $215,000 in the year-ago period, according to the Greater Harrisburg Association of Realtors (GHAR). In Dauphin County, both sales and prices were up, as 371 homes sold versus 353 last year, while the median price rose to $208,500 compared to $185,750 the prior November, GHAR said. Cumberland County had sales of 299 housing units, a decrease from 327, but the median price increased year-over-year to $245,000 from $238,000, according to GHAR. In Perry County, sales totaled 46 homes, an increase of 10, while the median price rose to $204,950 versus $165,000 the previous November, GHAR said. Houses were also selling relatively quickly, as the "days on the market" dropped to 20 days compared to 26 days in November 2020, according to GHAR. HOME SALES FLAT, PRICES UP Two new shops arrived last month in downtown Harrisburg, as Strawberry Square filled up its 3rd Street retail spaces. e first, AMMA JO, features boutique handbags, accessories, clothing, jewelry and other items for women, as well as a men's section. For several years, AMMA JO was located in retail space inside Strawberry Square, but that location has been closed for some time. "We are returning to the downtown because we just loved our experience in Strawberry Square, and we feel that the energy is coming back to the downtown experience," said owner Amma Johnson. "We want to be a part of that!" Johnson is neighbors with Sarinity Beauty Bar, which opened next door at 5 N. 3rd St. Sarinity offers skincare, spa service and beauty treatments. "I am ecstatic to provide affordable spa services to the downtown and surrounding areas," said owner Arian Romaine. With these new shops, Strawberry Square has leased all the retail spaces in its "Shops on 3rd at Strawberry Square," said Brad Jones, president and CEO of Harristown Enterprises, which owns the mixed-used building. "Shops on 3rd has really become a fantastic collection of unique fashion boutiques, restaurants and health and beauty services for this outstanding downtown corridor," Jones said. 2 NEW SHOPS FOR STRAWBERRY SQUARE Dauphin County will hold the line on property taxes again this year, as the commissioners last month finalized the 2022 budget. In a unanimous vote, the three commissioners passed a $278.5 million budget, which is 2.5% less than the 2021 budget. e county portion of the property tax will remain unchanged for a 17th consecutive year at 6.876 mills. "is was truly a team effort," commission Chair Mike Pries said, in a statement. "Our residents demand accountability. We go over line by line and make tough cuts where we have to." Despite the good news for county taxpayers, the commissioners warned of "looming challenges" ahead. Commissioner George Hartwick said that human services departments are struggling to recruit and retain staff because salaries are not competitive. Commissioner Chad Saylor mentioned unfunded mandates. As an example, he cited changes to the commonwealth's voting processes that caused the county's budget for its Voter Registration and Elections Office this year to double. "We cannot continue to hold the line without some funding from the state," Saylor said. DAUPHIN COUNTY PASSES BUDGET

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