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  #2521  
Old Posted May 27, 2008, 9:23 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chris.butcher View Post
Here's an observation about Harrisburg, that may be a bit "controversial", but valid, I feel: since John Vartan's death, it seems that the City has moved forward much better and much bigger and with more diversity in regard to development. I believed that Vartan held us back, even though he did do a couple of interesting projects early on. Now, WCI Partners, Struever Bros. and others can get a fair shot at development in the City. Anyone else feel this way?
I don't think Vartan held the city back, it was the politics around Vartan that did. He had some amazing projects and ideas (Forum Place for example, which was set to be one of the tallest buildings on the east coast at that time; look what you have now instead thanks to politics and petty squabbling). Vartan was very stubborn and so was the Mayor, so you always had these deadlocks that tied projects up and they never went anywhere. Then the tit for tat started with parcels of land...

With Vartan's passing, it opened the dialog back up again with his company which was desperately needed. It's a shame it took that to make it happen.
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  #2522  
Old Posted May 28, 2008, 12:36 PM
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Meadow to replace alley in Midtown
by LAUREN BOYER, Of The Patriot-News
Tuesday May 27, 2008, 3:00 PM

A block-long park and walkway will replace an alley near Harrisburg Area Community College's Midtown campus. Full of trees and greenery, the park will replace Boyd Street between the 1500 blocks of North Third and North Fourth streets.

C.J. Elder, president of the neighborhood development group Friends of Midtown, said the meadow will give a "sense of renewal" to the alley. "I'm a firm believer in greening up spaces," Elder said. "It's always better to add a tree than to add a parking lot."

Matt Tunnell, senior vice president of Power and Associates, said the meadow will be good for pedestrians. "It will make the street narrower, which will help to slow traffic down," he said.

Utility lines will be moved underground, Tunnell added. Trees, native grasses, bushes, benches, trash cans and decorative pavement will be put in.

The $750,000 project is to be finished this summer.
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  #2523  
Old Posted May 28, 2008, 2:38 PM
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Is HACC trying to turn that into a campus like atmosphere up there? To me it seems like all of the manuvering that HACC is doing that they are trying to set themselves up to move towards a university.

Who is paying for all of this?
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  #2524  
Old Posted Jun 4, 2008, 11:01 PM
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???????

I noticed that this project has been very sluggish.

Capital View Center in financial trouble
by DAN MILLER, Of The Patriot News
Wednesday June 04, 2008, 2:50 PM
Work looks to have all but stopped at Capital View Commerce Center, a $28 million building at Cameron and Herr streets that had been under construction since September, 2006.

Contractors on the project have filed liens seeking payment of a total of $3.3 million from Cameron Real Estate LP, listed as the owner of the center in documents filed in Dauphin County Courthouse.

David R. Dodd II, general contractor for the project, has not returned phone calls concerning the status of the 215,000-square-foot building. Dodd's printing company, Advanced Communications, was to occupy 115,000 square feet of the center.

The company is now in Penbrook.Herre Brothers of Enola filed two liens on May 7 seeking $1.2 million from Cameron Real Estate. The claims are for work Herre completed at the site through April 21. Herre stopped working on the site at that time, citing the lack of payment from Cameron Real Estate.

Rick McBride, president and CEO of Herre Brothers, today said his company has received no payment for several months from Cameron Real Estate.

McBride said he could not answer a question about the status of the project. He referred the question to Dodd.

"Most of the subcontractors have pulled off" the site, McBride said. McBride said he anticipates Herre's claim against Cameron will soon be updated to reflect that Cameron now owes the company more money than when the lien was first filed.

Today lights could be seen turned on inside the building. A few men could be seen walking around the building in hardhats and construction trailers remain on site. But there were no visible signs of any work being done on the building itself.

Other contractors who to date have filed liens against Cameron Real Estate are Weaver's Glass and Building Specialties of Harrisburg, H&R Mechanical of Middletown and Joseph Stong Inc. Fire Protection of Chester.

All of the firms filing claims had stopped work at the site before or by May 8. The companies entered into contracts with Cameron Real Estate in October 2007, according to court documents.
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  #2525  
Old Posted Jun 5, 2008, 12:58 PM
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I thought I was imagining things. Guess things are "slowing" down, as in stopped. Wonder what's going to happen here...there is quite a structure there. Will they just let it sit?


Quote:
Originally Posted by Mrmidtown View Post
I noticed that this project has been very sluggish.

Capital View Center in financial trouble
by DAN MILLER, Of The Patriot News
Wednesday June 04, 2008, 2:50 PM
Work looks to have all but stopped at Capital View Commerce Center, a $28 million building at Cameron and Herr streets that had been under construction since September, 2006.

Contractors on the project have filed liens seeking payment of a total of $3.3 million from Cameron Real Estate LP, listed as the owner of the center in documents filed in Dauphin County Courthouse.

David R. Dodd II, general contractor for the project, has not returned phone calls concerning the status of the 215,000-square-foot building. Dodd's printing company, Advanced Communications, was to occupy 115,000 square feet of the center.

The company is now in Penbrook.Herre Brothers of Enola filed two liens on May 7 seeking $1.2 million from Cameron Real Estate. The claims are for work Herre completed at the site through April 21. Herre stopped working on the site at that time, citing the lack of payment from Cameron Real Estate.

Rick McBride, president and CEO of Herre Brothers, today said his company has received no payment for several months from Cameron Real Estate.

McBride said he could not answer a question about the status of the project. He referred the question to Dodd.

"Most of the subcontractors have pulled off" the site, McBride said. McBride said he anticipates Herre's claim against Cameron will soon be updated to reflect that Cameron now owes the company more money than when the lien was first filed.

Today lights could be seen turned on inside the building. A few men could be seen walking around the building in hardhats and construction trailers remain on site. But there were no visible signs of any work being done on the building itself.

Other contractors who to date have filed liens against Cameron Real Estate are Weaver's Glass and Building Specialties of Harrisburg, H&R Mechanical of Middletown and Joseph Stong Inc. Fire Protection of Chester.

All of the firms filing claims had stopped work at the site before or by May 8. The companies entered into contracts with Cameron Real Estate in October 2007, according to court documents.
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  #2526  
Old Posted Jun 5, 2008, 1:51 PM
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Originally Posted by MidtownMike View Post
I thought I was imagining things. Guess things are "slowing" down, as in stopped. Wonder what's going to happen here...there is quite a structure there. Will they just let it sit?

This sucks, I haven't been by the building recently. Is the facade up? I assume that the building will be sold. There is quite a structure there the last time I was by in the fall. If significant work has been completed someone could get a very nice building at quite a discount.
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  #2527  
Old Posted Jun 5, 2008, 10:01 PM
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Wow, another failure on that lot (but truth be told, at least this project got much further than the others). I still think this was a TOTAL waste of a nice parcel of land...I saw something like Pittsburgh's Station Square there. Just imagine...imagine...
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  #2528  
Old Posted Jun 12, 2008, 8:42 PM
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This is an unfortunate email I received today from a friend of a friend. I figured it was worth posting here so you guys can be careful and on the lookout when out and about!


Hi *****,

Just to let you know, I was mugged last night at about 2300hrs at Penn and Boas. We felt something was not right, tried to avoid a situation, but they were waiting for us.

I was shoved against a building and had what only I could assume was a gun being pressed against the back of my head. The culprits, 2 male african americans (one about 6' 3", the other about 5' 10") wearing light colored clothing and driving a dark (presumably black) older american made sedan made away with about $80, an ATM card and my house and car keys.

My buddy escaped the situation and was able to call 911. After a 1/2 hour wait for the police to show up we were interviewed...

Just thought you'd like to know and spread the word.

****
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  #2529  
Old Posted Jun 13, 2008, 5:39 PM
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I guess Midtown isn't 100% turned around yet.
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  #2530  
Old Posted Jun 13, 2008, 6:42 PM
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I doubt the situation at Harrisburg international will improve considering the airline industry is heading towards catastrophe

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2008/06/09/focus1.html?b=1212984000^1645577

Harrisburg's ultra-modern airport operates at half capacity with 100 daily flights

Pittsburgh Business Times - by Kim Lyons

Despite its barely 4-year-old, ultra-modern airport, Harrisburg still struggles to take off with some businesses.

The proximity of Pennsylvania's state capital to other major northeast cities is a draw for some companies to put offices there, and many businesses say doing business in Harrisburg, with its low cost of living and relatively stable economy, is pleasant enough.

But the airport's lack of reach poses a challenge, enough that many make the hour-and-a-half drive to Baltimore-Washington airport in Maryland, rather than try to make a connecting flight out of Harrisburg.

"You can get flights anywhere in Pennsylvania easily, but most of the time, I drive to Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, or Baltimore-Washington," said John Quain, co-managing shareholder of the Harrisburg office of Pittsburgh law firm Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC. "There's not a lot of availability and variety of flights out of Harrisburg."

It qualifies as an international airport because it has a daily flight to Toronto, and has U.S. Customs facilities on site. Its $80 million, post-Sept. 11 overhaul has seven major airlines that fly about 100 flights daily, spokesman Scott Miller said. But Harrisburg International only offers flights as far west as Dallas/Fort Worth.

"We could handle twice the amount of traffic, but we need a partner who understands and realizes that," Miller said. "With a little break, we have the potential to really grow."

Harrisburg was the first airport to open after Sept. 11 with new government safety standards in place.

The new airport opened in August of 2004, two and a half years after the renovation project started.

However, Harrisburg International still lags behind its neighbors in terms of passenger volume.

The slashing of flights to Pittsburgh by US Airways -- it used to have six a day, now it has two -- didn't help, Miller said.

On average, the Harrisburg airport has about 2,500 departing seats per day, compared with 50,000 at Philadelphia International, Miller said.

Last year it handled between 1.2 million and 1.3 million passengers, he said.

One problem might be fares.

Looking at Harrisburg's top 15 domestic destinations for 2007, Harrisburg fares are, on average, 34 percent higher than those at BWI, according to FareReport.com.

The average one-way fare from BWI to Chicago is $129, compared with $239 from Harrisburg.

But Chris Detweiler, a Realtor with the Harrisburg office of Howard Hanna Real Estate Services Inc., said he doesn't see the airport as a detriment.

"I might if I had a job where I had to travel all over the country," Detweiler said.

But he said he and his wife are regular leisure travelers, who don't mind finding connecting flights at other airports to Europe.

"If I hit traffic on the way to Pittsburgh (International Airport), it may take longer to get there than just flying out of Harrisburg," he said. "There's never any lines, and it's really a breeze to get out of there easily."

Detweiler said the affordable housing in the region more than makes up for whatever trouble the airport might cause.

But Miller said the Harrisburg region appears to suffer from a bit of an identity crisis; while Harrisburg's official site refers to itself as the Center City area, the state's tourism office bills the eight-county region surrounding Harrisburg as "PA Dutch Country."

Miller said that designation may be great for Lancaster County, which seeks to attract tourists who want to see Amish people driving horse-drawn buggies, but probably is not as appealing to large companies doing business in Downtown Harrisburg.

"One of the challenges we face from a marketing standpoint is the perception: Central Pennsylvania isn't all farmland and rolling hills," Miller said. "When you look at all its ZIP codes, this is a 150,000-person city."

Miller also thinks a lack of cohesion among the counties surrounding Harrisburg hurts the airport's chances of becoming the economic engine it could be.

Thinking regionally doesn't come as readily to residents in the eight-county region surrounding Harrisburg as it does to Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, Miller said; he sees the area as somewhat parochial, which makes marketing the area's collective amenities difficult.

"You would think the Susquehanna River was the Great Wall of China," he said.


klyons@bizjournals.com | (412) 208-3827
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  #2531  
Old Posted Jun 13, 2008, 9:10 PM
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Those quotes in bold are DEAD ON!!!

HIA is a nice airport but always pretty dead, will now be even more so and I'm not even sure it was ever worth having unfortunately...
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  #2532  
Old Posted Jun 15, 2008, 2:00 PM
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Yeah, HIA is pretty useless. My mom never flies out of there - always BWI, or with the price of gas/convenience, Philly these days.
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  #2533  
Old Posted Jun 16, 2008, 3:52 AM
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PNC Bank's May 2008 economic forecast for Metro Harrisburg:

https://www.pnc.com/webapp/unsec/Req...Harrisburg.pdf
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  #2534  
Old Posted Jun 16, 2008, 4:38 PM
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I would imagine that less traffic would make things better for the travelers?
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  #2535  
Old Posted Jun 17, 2008, 1:56 PM
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Xeelee, I like the low traffic volume. Same reason I like BWI over Dulles, the two airports I used to frequent before I moved to Harrisburg. I dropped off a friend once 30 minutes before his flight cause we got stuck in a massive citywide traffic jam from the south and within 10 minutes I was home to my house (using more local roads) and he was on his plane awaiting takeoff. I can get a cheap taxi ride or bum a ride to the airport. when I figure in gas and parking fees at another airport the 34% increase isn't that big of a deal. You have to remember it is 34% on a pretty cheap ticket as like the article stated they aren't long flights.

Evergrey, very nice read... Much of what I expected.

In Today's Patriot News (print adition):
- City buys new cop cars, expects 37% savings in fuel prices on cars. It is adding 53 vehicles and will be navy blue with gold lettering. article didn't specify the current number of cars to be retired, but stated that there would be more patrols on street and lower response time on calls
-Front pages news was the attack EastSide spoke about above
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  #2536  
Old Posted Jun 23, 2008, 2:17 PM
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CENTER'S WOES
City project awaits solution for money problems

Monday, June 23, 2008
BY DAN MILLER
Of The Patriot-News

Capitol View Commerce Center was touted as the cure for a blighted property on one of Harrisburg's busiest roads.

The sparkling $28 million office complex was to replace a 10-acre brownfield at Cameron and Herr streets that had been vacant or underused since Tropical Storm Agnes in 1972.

Now, the project is in jeopardy of becoming an eye-sore.

Construction has come to a halt at the center, which is about three-quarters complete. Contractors left the site in May, leaving behind prominent signs of unfinished work for passing motorists -- jutting steel beams, garish white and yellow insulation and a glass wall that resembles a fighter missing a few teeth.

At last count eight contractors have filed liens in Dauphin County Court, claiming they haven't been paid for months by center owner and developer David R. Dodd II.

No signs are evident that work will resume anytime soon.

Amounts sought in the courthouse liens by contractors against Cameron Real Estate LP, of which Dodd is general partner, range from nearly $75,000 to more than $1.2 million.

Dodd did not respond to a request for comment.

The center has public funding commitments totaling about $17 million, including federal money from U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The state has pledged $6.8 million, and Dauphin County has extended a $3 million loan.

Commerce Bank/Harrisburg is providing bank funding.

On June 12, a meeting was held between Commerce and Harrisburg officials to try to restart the project. The city had been a conduit to manage the flow of project dollars from the various sources to Dodd, so Dodd could pay the contractors.

City spokesman Matthew Coulter, in an e-mailed statement Friday, said the city and others involved in the center are awaiting information on a possible bridge loan from Commerce to resume the project.

Rory G. Ritrievi, market president for Commerce Bank/Harrisburg, confirmed Commerce's role as providing funding. Beyond that he said little else, citing privacy regulations governing the bank-client relationship.

"All the funding sources are working together to try and get this project completed and to have the contractors paid what is owed them. Whether that happens or not is still up in the air," Ritrievi said. "It's not a matter of Commerce taking charge or responsibility for the project. We just have a seat at the table."

Kevin Ortiz, spokesman for the state Department of Community and Economic Development, said the state hasn't changed any of its funding commitments to the center.

Timothy Woolford, a Lancaster attorney, is representing H&R Mechanical. The Middletown-based company filed its lien in court on May 8 seeking payment of $1.2 million from Dodd. Woolford said nothing has happened.

"No payments have been made and we are becoming less confident that a source of funding is in place to pay past due invoices," Woolford said.

H&R's contract was at least 80 percent complete when the company stopped on May 7. Woolford said H&R won't return until the $1.2 million is paid and his client is assured of future payments "in a timely fashion."

Woolford said he cannot understand why the city didn't require Dodd, acting as his own project general contractor, to post a bond to guarantee payment to the contractors. Woolford said that is standard for publicly funded construction projects, although this project is a mix of private and public money.

Woolford last week filed more court papers intended to force a sheriff's sale of the center to compel payment.

DAN MILLER: 255-8440 or danmiller@patriot-news.com

©2008 The Patriot-News
© 2008 PennLive.com All Rights Reserved.
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  #2537  
Old Posted Jun 23, 2008, 2:48 PM
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I think a Sheriff sale might be the best thing for that property. at 75% complete I think it would be a compelling purchase for an investor. I would love to see that section of Cameron with a shiny new building. I would hope that having a completed office building would compell redevelopment of that section of Cameron. Cameron could turn into a very nice boulevard if it expirenced the right level of investment. It could cut a nice parallel to 2nd street and make "downtown" more than a one street affair.
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  #2538  
Old Posted Jun 23, 2008, 11:06 PM
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Wow, what sad news! I too think Cameron has a lot of potential but it does need an overhaul of sorts.
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  #2539  
Old Posted Jun 24, 2008, 1:16 PM
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True, The city could help by repaving the street to make it appear better, but there is a lot of other streets that are in much greater need of repaving. The city, state, and federal goverments all helped tremendously with this project. The developer needed to come up with very little of his own money.

I didn't write about it here, but there was a flap recently with the Council (who else) because the city engineer had changed the order of the paving of streets because the one dicatated to be done first by the council needed utility work that was to be completed later in the summer and he didn't want to dig up newly paved streets at additional cost (and ruin a nice new street) to the city. The council man's response was he wanted the job sites shut down till they could have a hearing. I mean I understand he probably had political motivations (probably the first sites were in his wards) but he has got to let some things go. The city is starting to turn a corner here finacially and he wants to drag it back. I think that the council should have to pay for all legal fees out of pocket when they do stupid shit...
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  #2540  
Old Posted Jun 26, 2008, 11:40 AM
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Hotel planned on Harrisburg's Chestnut Street

Quote:
by JOHN LUCIEW, Of The Patriot-News Wednesday June 25, 2008, 5:21 PM
An area of Harrisburg that has already attracted international student housing and new restaurants could soon get a 41-room boutique hotel.

Mayor Stephen R. Reed and South Third Street Development Corp., an affiliate of Harristown Development Corp. that operates Strawberry Square, announced plans today to renovate and expand properties at 312-314 Chestnut St. into what would be called the Harrisburg Arts Hotel.

The proposed $9 million project would be the latest addition to the area known as SOMA, meaning south of Market Street. No construction timetable was given. Harrisburg has two other hotel projects waiting to begin construction along the 200 block of State Street.

http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/ind...rrisburgs.html
I got up early to get you guys this one. In the print article they gave an update of the other 2 hotels proposed. The aloft is supposedly in process of finalizing contracts while the Barto Hotel, has just finished the engineering work. I assume now they need to find financing and a general contractor.

Maybe we'll see some construction on State Street by the end of the year. I don't know if we need 3 new hotels in Harrisburg, but I guess having 3 proposals means we should at least get one or 2. Pretty soon they will have to name it "Restruant and Hotel Row" This newest proposal sounds exciting because it would be the first higher end hotel in the region. It could add to the legitamacy of Harrisburg becoming the "small city" rather than a "large town"
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