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

[Spudmrg]

One minor point with the new court building.......it won't house all of the courts, just the Harrisburg offices. All 3 courts will continue to hear many cases in Philly and Pittsburgh (and still maintain offices in both places).

[wrightchr]

Originally Posted by EastSideHBG

My memory escapes me, Chris, but where exactly is this garge going to be located again? I know there was a lot of fuss over it because of the height and it being in a historic district and all, but for the life of me I can't remember where exactly this garage will go.

And does anyone know what is going on next to the Verizon building? They now have a construction fence up and a safety walkway built. I wonder if Verizon is adding an addition on to that bldg., as it would make sense because there was that empty lot there?

And I still have heard no word on what will happen w/ the empty lot that Belco created now that they aren't builduing their addition and moving their operations center out of the city.

i know it's in the area of a major bank on second street, but my memory escapes me as well Dave. it's going to be 12 levels right adjacent to state street. i'll have to go looking for it the next time i'm in town. i believe it will be the parking authorities 9th or 10 garage, an impressive statistic in itself.

[wrightchr]

Originally Posted by Spudmrg

One minor point with the new court building.......it won't house all of the courts, just the Harrisburg offices. All 3 courts will continue to hear many cases in Philly and Pittsburgh (and still maintain offices in both places).

that's true...from what i understand, the commonwealth has it's court offices scattered throughout the suburbs. the new building will consolidate them into one central location DT. i think the new building will be very grand and definately contribute something to the capitol complex and the aesthetics of the cities urban environment. i just wish i would have been designed a little taller...lets say 12 instead of 9 floors.

[wrightchr]

Originally Posted by Wheelingman04

I think Harrisburg needs one more big and tall blue glass skyscraper downtown like the Lexington Financial Center in Kentucky which is 410ft. tall. It should be placed right in the middle of the skyline. That would rock. Still, Harrisburg does have a good skyline;definately the 3rd best in PA.

What do you guys think? Could that be a possibility for the future?

i think it's definately in the cards for the future. forum place, which sits at 5th and chestnut, is 12 floors...but the structural foundation of the building was designed for expansion to 41 floors. that would make it one of the tallest in the state and definately harrisburg if it were ever built higher. there are several new prospective mid-highrise buildings planned and under construction, but none that would exceed the height of 333 market street (103m). once again i'll mention the regional rail project and it's perspective effects on DT. if the rail corridors are successfull and can handle large passenger volumes, it will pave the way for higher buildings in the CBD and adjacent areas. otherwise, we're going to run out of room by building more parking garages and traffic congestion is already bad enough. at some point, all this new development in the city peeks out at a level in which the infrastructure can support it. i think we're approaching that level.

[EastSideHBG]

I'm glad to see this getting built, as this area was in dire need for something like this!

Coming attraction

Friday, March 24, 2006

A 35,000-SQUARE-FOOT family entertainment center is under construction in Hampden Twp., on Saint John's Church Road near the intersection of Trindle Road.

The developer broke ground yesterday for The Coliseum. The center should be ready to open in early 2007, said Patrick Myers, president and CEO of The Coliseum Entertainment Group.

The two-story complex will have two restaurants, a Maggie Moo's ice cream parlor, an arcade and billiards lounge, video bowling and a sports area with about 40 large-screen televisions.

The Coliseum Entertainment Group is a corporation made up of private investors, said Myers, who lives in Hampden Twp. Financing for the $6.5 million project was provided by Members 1st Federal Credit Union, and eciConstruction of Dillsburg is the general contractor.

**********

And a good article about Reed and the money he has spent/is spending on artifacts:

http://www.pennlive.com/news/patriot...740.xml&coll=1

[EastSideHBG]

Originally Posted by wrightchr

at some point, all this new development in the city peeks out at a level in which the infrastructure can support it. i think we're approaching that level.

Nah, I still think we have a long way to go thanks to the Northern and Southern Gateway projects. Of course I am still in support of mass transit and think that is the way to go, though!

[danwxman]

Silver Spring site readied for retailing
By Joseph Cress,March 24, 2006

A sign warning “Stay Out” stands in front of a bulldozer guarding the entrance to what used to be a Sunday morning tradition.

The Silver Spring flea market is history — razed to make way for a shopping center.

A parking lot once filled with cars every weekend now is storage for long segments of drainage pipe. An industrial-sized tub grinder reducing stacks of tree trunks to mulch has replaced the roar of engines from nearby Silver Spring Speedway.

And all that remains of the adjacent mobile home park are piles of wood and metal scrap, cinder blocks and vacant rectangular lots of chip stone.

14 demolition permits

Demolition work is virtually complete at the site of the future Silver Spring Square II retail center along Carlisle Pike.

This is the result of about 14 demolition permits that Silver Spring Township issued in January, says Bob Greene, building code officer.

As of Thursday, no building permits were issued, he said, and Regency Centers has yet to record its land development plan with Cumberland County.

Township Zoning Officer Jim Hall is not sure when that could happen but, in the meantime, Regency Centers has a stormwater land disturbance permit to move earth, put in curbing and install a drainage system.

Powell Arms is vice president in charge of investments for the Northeast Region of Regency Centers. He confirmed work is under way to install drainage and utilities as well as smooth out the rolling hills of the construction site.

Target date: March 2007

The plan is to break ground on the first buildings by mid-June with the grand opening of the center planned for March 2007, Arms says.

Hall says the developer submitted an application before the zoning hearing board for variances from the township ordinance governing the size and number of signs.

Best Buy, Bed Bath and Beyond, Ross, Target and Wegmans Food Market were listed in the application as stores seeking more signage than what is permitted, Hall says.

The zoning board granted some but not all of the requests, Hall says, noting he does not know if Regency has commitments from any of the retail chains.

Arms says Regency has not secured commitments from all the stores. “We are still working with them.”

He would not disclose any details on which stores have committed, preferring to let each chain announce its own plans for the site.

Arms says Regency is talking with three prospective restaurant chains to occupy free standing buildings and is still looking for tenant stores in the range of 20,000 square feet or less to occupy the retail center.

Last October, a spokeswoman for Wegmans confirmed the company plans to build a store there.

Communications Specialist Jeanne Colleluori said Wednesday the chain still plans to build a store in the township but the building site has yet to be prepared and delivered to Wegmans by Regency.

Wegmans anticipates opening the store sometime in 2007, Colleluori says.

The Rochester, N.Y.-based Wegmans is family-owned with 69 stores in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia.

Calls to Target, Best Buy and Bed Bath and Beyond were not returned by press time.

Ross not committed yet

Katie Loughnot is vice president in charge of investor and media relations for Ross.

She says her company would only confirm a location once a lease has been fully signed and executed.

As of Thursday, the company did not have any such lease for a location in the Silver Spring Township or Mechanicsburg area, Loughnot says.

She adds Ross is looking at several locations throughout Pennsylvania. Based in the San Francisco Bay area, Ross has 20 stores in Pennsylvania including one in Carlisle.

Eventually, Regency Centers will demolish several stores along Carlisle Pike, including the building at 6430 Carlisle Pike that since 1985 has housed Cremo’s Variety Outlet.

Owner Larry Cremo said Wednesday that construction began last week on a new location less than half a mile up the pike beside the Saturn auto dealership.

Regency Centers has been working with the family-run business, allowing it to continue to operate until construction of the new outlet is complete — possibly by late July, Cremo says.

“We have been giving them constant updates” about the new variety outlet’s progress.

Cremo adds this is a positive move for the outlet, which outgrew the old building about 10 years ago. “We will have more room to expand.”

[danwxman]

High proposes retail and entertainment center near Lancaster
A Lancaster County real-estate company wants to construct a retail and entertainment complex in Manheim Township. High Real Estate Group’s project, called The Crossings at Conestoga Creek, would be on an 85-acre site across from Long’s Park. The project would include up to 650,000 square feet of space for tenants such as a movie theater, restaurants and specialty shops. The project would feature an open-air, pedestrian friendly design to give it a warm and inviting ambiance, said Steve Evans, managing director of High Real Estate Group’s retail division. “It’s intended to be an experience,” he said. High’s plans also call for infrastructure improvements both on and beyond the property, including an enhancement to the Route 30 interchange at Harrisburg Pike. The estimated cost of the entire project is $100 million. - Christina Olenchek

Well, more sprawl for Lancaster county, but the "open-air, pedestrian friendly" design sounds interesting.

[wrightchr]

^ both of these are interesting...thanks danwxman.

[EastSideHBG]

Thanks for the info, danwxman, and I am glad to see you posting here. The HBG group keeps on growing!

[chuikov]

Originally Posted by EastSideHBG

Thanks for the info, danwxman, and I am glad to see you posting here. The HBG group keeps on growing!

Yup. I think I'll post a little photo line-up of the projects in progress in Cumberland Co. I noticed at least 7 or 8 last week just driving around for work. I'll take a closer look at some of them tomorrow.

BTW: I just spent the last 2 days in Morgantown, WV. That place is booming more than ever!

[Wheelingman04]

^ Morgantown is a cool University town. I wish Wheeling had a growing economy and population like Morgantown does.

[EastSideHBG]

VENTURE CAPITAL

Regional investing activity increases

Sunday, March 26, 2006
BY DAN MILLER
Of The Patriot-News

Central Pennsylvania isn't Silicon Valley, but that's not necessarily bad for someone who wants to start a business.

"In large part, you are better off being here than in other places" because competition for venture capital isn't as "cutthroat," said Jan Rumberger, an area venture capitalist. "We also have investors here who are willing to fund many kinds of companies, not just the latest high-tech things."

Venture capitalists invest in companies in return for an ownership stake. An institutional venture capitalist firm usually is a group of investors who pool their money.

Last year, institutional venture capital firms invested $49.5 million in three separate deals in the 17th Congressional District, according to the PricewaterhouseCoopers MoneyTree Venture Capital Profile. This was the first such investment in the 17th District -- which includes Dauphin County, Lebanon County and parts of Perry County -- since a firm reported a $10 million investment in 1999.

The investments in 2005 included $3.2 million by Chicago-based Thoma Cressey Equity Partners. An effort to reach the company for comment was unsuccessful.

Penn Venture Partners of Harrisburg also made an equity investment in the 17th District last year, working with Journal Publications Inc., also of Harrisburg. Dean Kline of Penn Venture Partners would not disclose the amount. Penn Venture typically makes investments of $500,000 to $2 million in companies that have annual revenues ranging from $1 million to $25 million, Kline said.

The survey reported that no companies in the 19th Congressional District, which includes York County, Adams County and parts of Cumberland County, have received institutional venture capital funding since $500,000 invested in 2002.

Kline said the survey probably gives an incomplete picture for the region, as individual "angel" investors are not as likely to report their investments as are institutional venture capital firms.

Kline sees the area as poised for steady, if undramatic, progress when it comes to the availability of more venture capital. One reason is the state's role in seeding venture capital growth.

Kline said his fund and the Life Science Greenhouse likely would not exist without the state Department of Community and Economic Development and Ben Franklin Technology Partners. But local governments and economic development agencies must become more proactive in steering companies toward opportunities, he added.

Rumberger said the region needs "a critical mass" of home-grown companies to stay and spawn new ones. He sees promise in the proposed research park that Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center wants to build in Derry Twp. The park "is going to be a magnet for bio-tech companies. We may also draw companies from Maryland and other areas," he said.

The midstate is the third-largest recipient in the nation of research dollars from the U.S. Department of Defense, said Kelly Lewis, president and CEO of the Technology Council of Central Pennsylvania. "What we're trying to get better at is turning that federal research dollar into the development of products and solutions," Lewis said. "When we get Lancaster, York, Harrisburg and State College working together we are a very strong region."

Jill Edwards, executive director of the Ben Franklin Venture Investment Forum, said there is a gap in venture capital funding for area companies with annual sales of $1 million to $10 million. The companies have reached the limit of what individuals and small groups here can invest, but they aren't big enough to attract large investors.

Lewis said outside acquisition can provide the investment a company needs to stay and grow in this area.

In 2005, a Canadian company bought Perfect Order, a midstate technology services business. The company has a new name -- Versatile Inc. -- but "is growing by leaps and bounds and adding staff in Mechanicsburg," Lewis said.

"The national and international markets are recognizing that this area has strong intellectual capital, and that is being reflected in these purchases and partnerships," Lewis said.

[EastSideHBG]

HARRISBURG

Many see proposed ban on outdoor smoking as overzealous

Proposed ban on outdoor smoking seen as overzealous

Monday, March 27, 2006
BY JIM LEWIS
Of The Patriot-News

On Harrisburg's City Island, a cold spring day keeps away the visitors and the only sign that smoking is permitted in the park is a red bucket marked "butts" that sits on the platform of the miniature train ride.

But Gary Wright, a reformed smoker from Hershey, doesn't mind. He leaves his office downtown to walk around the park on his lunch hour, and it doesn't bother him if another visitor lights a cigarette.

While City Council considers a proposed ban on smoking in city parks and on other city-owned property, Wright sees the attempt to outlaw cigarettes outdoors as overzealous. "Personally, I think we're going a little overboard with the anti-smoking campaign," he said.

"I don't see people up in arms over smoking on City Island," Wright said. "Sometimes I think politicians create issues where none exists. There are pressing issues, but this isn't one of them."

Other park visitors say the ban would eliminate secondhand smoke and make city parks such as City Island, Reservoir Park and Italian Lake more pleasant.

Kyong Chong of Wormleysburg has cut his smoking habit from two packs a day to five filtered cigarettes a day. "I smoke, but I don't like it," said Chong, walking his fuzzy white dog in deserted Riverfront Park along the Susquehanna River. "When the weather gets warmer, a lot more people will come, and sometimes the wind blows heavy and smoke comes to me."

City Council introduced a bill recently that would ban smoking in parks, City Government Center offices and city firehouses, garages, maintenance sheds and vehicles. The bill was referred to the council's Public Safety Committee for discussion and public hearings.

If passed, it would forbid park visitors, firefighters, police officers and city hall workers -- including Mayor Stephen R. Reed, a smoker -- from smoking on city property.

Nine states prohibit smoking in workplaces, including restaurants and bars -- neighboring Delaware and New York are among them -- but the debate over the dangers of secondhand smoke typically focuses on smoking indoors.

Secondhand smoke is considered by the Environmental Protection Agency to be a known cause of cancer, causing about 3,000 lung cancer deaths and 35,000 to 62,000 heart disease deaths in adult nonsmokers each year, according to the American Lung Association.

Smoke is just as dangerous whether it's breathed in indoors or outdoors, said Deborah Brown, vice president of community outreach and advocacy for the American Lung Association of Pennsylvania.

"Any time you're exposed to secondhand smoke and breathe in those toxins, you're putting your body at harm," Brown said.

Some park visitors say they believe the fresh air dissipates the smoke, eliminating it as a nuisance.

"I figure if someone's sitting on a park bench here and smoking, I don't have to stand near them," said Roz Silverman, a nonsmoker, as she walked her dog along Italian Lake. "I think there's enough open space for smoke to dissipate. I don't know of a better place to smoke than outdoors."

Marla Smith, a smoker from Harrisburg, takes her two grandsons, age 6 and 9, to the playground at Reservoir Park every time they visit from Downingtown. "I don't leave cigarette butts on the ground -- I put them in my pocket, and I try not to smoke near my grandchildren," Smith said.

Still, she thinks a smoking ban in parks would be "sad." "I think it's a personal preference. To ban cigarettes, you're banning people from activities."

[wrightchr]

^ it does sound a little overboard to me. but i'm a non-smoker and i can definately understand why others get offended by secondhand smoke. this might sound dumb, but maybe they could allow smoking in specific zones. i know that seattle airport has similar anti-smoking regulations and specific zones where people are allowed to smoke. i'm not sure if the city is the same way. the fines for smoking outside the zones are pretty hefty as well. in this day and age, people should educate themselves about the effects of second hand smoke and that it has become the leading cause of cancer...especially in individuals who have never smoked. with all the advances in healthcare and medical research, we know today what we didn't know 10, 20, even 30 years ago. it amazes me that people still think it's ok to subject not only themselves, but others as well, to the toxic chemicals in the cigarettes they smoke.

[chuikov]

The City has more right to ban smoking in the parks than it does in privately owned bars.

Designated areas within the parks would be a good solution. There's really no need for people to hang around crowded areas or swing sets smoking. But banning it outright is going too far.

For the most part, I agree with Mr. Wright. Politicians are going overboard with it because they think it will make them more popular. They ought to spend time on more important things rather than sucking up to nanny staters.

BTW: I quit smoking a while back (and I can breath better now).

[EastSideHBG]

I totally agree, guys!

It's nice to see some progressive thinking:

Supervisors create team to plan growth

Tuesday, March 28, 2006
BY JEFF McGAW
For The Patriot-News

Anticipating a new era of development in Perry County, Penn Twp. supervisors yesterday created a team to help their township cope.

The supervisors met with local and regional planning experts, then voted unanimously to create an "impact support team." It will be steered by the Penn Twp. Planning Commission and will include township and county officials as well as paid development consultants.

The group will examine current regulations and explore ways those regulations can support sensible growth, officials said.

Three large developments are proposed in the southeastern part of the county. A New Jersey developer has proposed to build 936 residential units on 1,155 acres of Cove Mountain near Perdix and adjacent to the Susquenita School District's property in Penn Twp.

The development would consist of single family homes, town houses and condominiums, and would increase housing in the township by about 75 percent: from 1,242 housing units to 2,178.

"I'm a firm believer that if you own the property you can do what you want," said Supervisor Robert Shaffer, who organized yesterday's meeting. "We're not saying it's wrong. We're saying 'Let's do it right.'"

A 122-unit in Penn Twp. and a 325-unit development in Marysville also are in the planning stages.

Planners and residents have raised concerns about additional traffic along Route 11/15 and stress on utilities and infrastructure.

"There is no plan to resolve all of the traffic concerns [on Route 11/15] in Perdix," said James W. Szymborski, executive director of the Tri-County Regional Planning Commission.

[EastSideHBG]

Hershey medical research center nears reality

Tuesday, March 28, 2006
BY DAVID WENNER
Of The Patriot-News

North Carolina's famed Research Triangle Park began with one building, Jay Moskowitz noted.

A building soon to be built in Derry Twp. could have a comparable impact on central Pennsylvania, the dean of research at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center said.

The Hershey Center for Applied Research will combine high-tech business ventures with laboratories and other services and the support they need to develop and manufacture their products.

The goal is to spawn and attract businesses that eventually will create a local economy driven by high-tech companies that provide thousands of high-paying jobs. That is what happened more than a generation ago after community leaders pooled resources to create Research Triangle Park.

"It could be the most significant project in the next decade for us," said David Black, CEO of the Harrisburg Regional Chamber and the Capital Regional Economic Development Corp.

Construction of the 80,000-square-foot building is to begin in mid-April on land owned by Hershey Trust Co. The center is expected to open in about a year.

The first phase of construction also will involve converting a nearby farmhouse into a marketing office and installing utilities for two more buildings. The research complex someday might involve a dozen buildings, Black said.

Likely tenants include:

-Businesses started by people at the medical center seeking to commercialize their inventions.

-Ventures that received startup help from the Life Sciences Greenhouse of Central Pennsylvania.

-Ventures that received startup help from the Life Sciences Greenhouse of Central Pennsylvania.

-Companies from outside the area that want to be near a research-oriented medical center.

The Hershey Center for Applied Research also is attractive because of nearby highways, railroads, Harrisburg International Airport and a proposed commuter rail line that might connect Lancaster, York, Harrisburg and Carlisle, he said.

The first tenants are signed up: the medical center's pharmacology department and technology transfer office, which will relocate there; and the Life Sciences Greenhouse of Central Pennsylvania.

The purpose of the technology transfer office is to enable medical center research to be commercialized by outside firms. The presence of the pharmacology department will give outside firms access to research and expertise that could promote development of new drugs.

Moskowitz said much of the activity at the center probably will involve products related to biology and medicine, but it also is open to ventures related to information technology, which has a growing role in health care.

The first phase is expected to cost $70 million. The project recently received $5 million in state grants and loans.

The developer is Wexford Science &Technology, a Maryland firm that will own the buildings and be the landlord. The chamber, CREDC, the life sciences greenhouse and the Milton Hershey School and Hershey Trust were involved in pulling the project together.

[EastSideHBG]

Site near HIA to be cleaned up

Tuesday, March 28, 2006
BY DAN MILLER
Of The Patriot-News

The Susquehanna Area Regional Airport Authority, owner of Harrisburg International Airport, has hired a company to clean up the inside of the old Crawford Station power plant near the airport.

Environmental Abatement Services Inc. of Export was awarded a contract to do the job for $1.1 million. The company had submitted the lower of two bids. Altchem Environmental Services of Southampton had bid $1.53 million.

Authority spokesman Scott Miller said Environmental Abatement Services will remove asbestos from inside the power plant, which is at the eastern edge of HIA in Middletown. The company also will remove hazardous materials and drain water from the basement.

The work should start in May and be finished in October, Miller said.

The authority plans to use $450,000 from a state grant to help pay for the work. HIA also has $337,000 from the state Bureau of Aviation and will provide $307,500 in matching funds.

The authority wants to demolish the former power plant. Miller said 2007 is the earliest that will happen, pending the receipt of more outside financing for the demolition work.

Once the building is razed, the property might be used to provide more space for the 193rd Special Operations Wing of the Pennsylvania Air National Guard, which is based at HIA.

A project already under way will enable the 193rd to park all of its aircraft on its own ramps without interfering with the civilian part of the airport, said Maj. Eric McKissick, executive officer of the unit.

That project is being funded with $5 million from the 2006 federal budget.

The 193rd has "no immediate plans" for the Crawford site, although it is "attractive" as an option for future expansion, McKissick said.

Jeff Stonehill, Middletown borough manager, said the Crawford land is zoned for commercial use. He said the borough has not received development plans for the Crawford property.

[EastSideHBG]

Check this out, Chris. Speak of the devil, eh? This garage will have a decent impact on the skyline, and the end of the article shows just how much interest there is in living/working DT!

HARRISBURG

Ground broken for 750-space parking garage

Thursday, March 30, 2006
BY JOHN LUCIEW
Of The Patriot-News

The city has finally broken ground on an oft-delayed 12-story parking garage at 220 South Street in downtown Harrisburg.

At a ground-breaking ceremony this week, Mayor Stephen R. Reed said the 750-space garage would help ease downtown's parking crunch and promote business development and retention.

But the slow pace of the project, which was delayed because of legal challenges, wasn't in time to save the Belco Community Credit Union.

Once intent on remaining downtown, Belco switched gears and decided to move its headquarters and most operations to a former AMP Inc. building in Swatara Twp.

The credit union plans to begin shifting workers to the new office by early 2007. When the transition is complete, only about 20 employees will remain downtown to run a branch office and a division that offers financial planning.

Belco had hoped to expand its home in the 400 block of North Second Street and stay in the city. But the expansion depended on the timely construction of the parking garage, the start of which had been delayed nearly a year.

The $14 million garage was approved last June, but the project was challenged by the PMA Foundation.

PMA owns a neighboring building at 225 State St. that houses the Pennsylvania Manufacturing Association. The organization maintained that the project was too big for the neighborhood.

As a result, the city was forced to reattain all approvals for the project, securing zoning exceptions to build the 120-foot-tall garage in the city's special intensity district, where the height limits range from 45 feet to 70 feet.

The project also needed exemptions for larger lot coverage and floor-area ratios.

The City Council also passed zoning changes that applied specifically to public parking garages downtown.

That cleared the way for the concrete parking garage, which will be cast on site. Construction is expected to take about 16 months, with a planned opening of July 2007.

Reserved spaces will lease for $165 per month, and unreserved spaces will cost $120 per month. Hourly parking will be available at daily rates of $3 to $18.

Belco officials are pondering whether to market portions of the downtown property or sell the whole site and lease back space for its branch.

Reed said Belco has a deal to lease multiple spaces in the garage, as does the Pennsylvania State Education Association.

The garage would ease a 500-person waiting list for reserved parking downtown, Reed said.