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  #781  
Old Posted Jul 21, 2005, 12:04 AM
Spudmrg Spudmrg is offline
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Ack!!!! No....we don't need CorridorOne, we just need 2 Billion bucks (estimated) to rebuild I-83 so it can cross the river with 8-10 lanes! Please note sarcasm.
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  #782  
Old Posted Jul 21, 2005, 4:40 PM
wrightchr wrightchr is offline
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^ most def
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  #783  
Old Posted Jul 21, 2005, 5:16 PM
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HARRISBURG

City dedicates pool site fixed with donated cash

Thursday, July 21, 2005
From staff reports

Residents and children in South Harrisburg have a new, improved place to play and cool off.

Mayor Stephen R. Reed yesterday dedicated and renamed a rehabilitated recreation complex at the end of South 18th Street.

The site, formerly known as the Cloverly Heights Pool and Playground, was renamed the Penn National Insurance Pool and Playground.

The complex is adjacent to the Harrisburg Housing Authority's Hall Manor Public Housing Complex.

Reed said the work cost $70,000, most of it funded by Penn National Insurance.

A $30,000 donation from the Children's Home Foundation was also used.

The fundraising was part of the Harrisburg Parks Partnership's continuing efforts to raise donations to improve city parks, playgrounds and recreation facilities.

Reed said the 3-acre complex is among the city's busiest, with more than 20,000 people visiting the pool alone during the summer season.

The work included all new playground equipment, handicapped-accessible walkways, new ground cover, landscaping and trees planted, fencing repaired and all new signs installed.
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  #784  
Old Posted Jul 22, 2005, 3:48 PM
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they moved the forum on us! what's up with that?
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  #785  
Old Posted Jul 23, 2005, 2:07 PM
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Authority to seek new bids on project

Friday, July 22, 2005
BY MEGAN WALDE
Of The Patriot-News

Progress on the first part of a $12 million transportation center in downtown Hershey is on time and under budget despite minor delays, but a busy building season has stalled the next step.

Only one general contractor bid on phase two of the project next to the former Poser's Department Store building on West Chocolate Avenue.

The Derry Twp. Industrial and Commercial Development Authority, which is managing the project, rejected the bids last night, saying some were too high and others too low.

The second phase of the project includes multi-level parking, a bus station on Park Boulevard north of the site and a pedestrian bridge connecting the two.

Bids for plumbing, electrical and other work were competitive, said Paul McNamee, president of project architect Buchart-Horn, but the total cost of the work was nearly $1.5 million over budget.

No minority- or women-owned contractors were included in the bids, either. That sticking point caused the board to refuse the first round of bids for phase one last fall.

The big disappointment this time seemed to be cost.

"It's apparent they understood they were going to be the only bidder and they did not sharpen their pencil," McNamee said.

Buchart-Horn estimated one portion of the work at $100 per square foot. The only bid on that portion was for $400 per square foot.

Board members said they were surprised that Lobar Inc., the general contractor on phase one, did not bid the rest of the project.

Lobar and three other contractors were set to bid on the work two weeks ago, McNamee said. But the board last week decided to leave the foundation of the adjacent Hershey Laundry building in place and put parking on and around it rather than build three levels of parking from scratch.

Lobar felt there wasn't enough concrete work in the project to make bidding worthwhile, McNamee said; other firms said they were too busy with other projects.

Board members said they would consider reconfiguring pieces of the remaining project to encourage small businesses to bid.

Meanwhile, Lobar says it can make the Oct. 31 deadline to finish phase one even though sinkholes and a subcontractor delay have been problems. A large sinkhole earlier this year cost $30,000 to repair, but the latest hole is smaller and shouldn't pose a problem, McNamee said.

McNamee said the project is $100,000 under budget.
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  #786  
Old Posted Jul 23, 2005, 2:11 PM
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Airport bid to buy homes raises fears

Friday, July 22, 2005
BY MARY KLAUS
Of The Patriot-News

With Harrisburg International Airport planes flying overhead, Highspire residents are used to noise.

But residents of this close-knit borough of 2,720 have made their own noise about offers from the airport to buy homes close to HIA.

About 500 homeowners near the airport could be eligible to sell their houses to HIA as a result of a study showing that they live within a federally established "noise annoyance" level.

Under a federal program, HIA could buy homes from residents who wish to sell, with most of the money coming from the federal government. But the local government must agree to participate.

Some residents fear that airport officials plan to seize their houses by eminent domain, or that they could be forced to sell their homes.

About 30 residents came to Highspire's council meeting earlier this week to discuss their concerns.

The airport has no plans to acquire any homes against their owners' will, said Fred Testa, HIA's director of aviation. But residents say they are concerned.

"I'm not bothered by the noise," said Jennifer Martindale of 567 Eshelman St. "I don't even notice it. But I am bothered by all the different stories we're hearing about what may happen to our homes."

John McHale, Highspire borough manager and police chief, expressed concern that if everyone eligible takes the buyout, it would be "the death of Highspire."

Testa said he has grown weary of speculation that the airport is trying to seize homes. He said that 21 Highspire homeowners gave him a petition saying they want to sell their homes to HIA.

"I'm tired of being the big, bad wolf here," Testa said. "I'm sorry we ever started the thing. We did the study after some Highspire residents complained about the noise. We wanted to find a program to give people a choice."

Testa said the ball is in Highspire Borough Council's court "because council has to vote on whether it will or won't support this federal program."

Testa said that over the past two years, the Landrum & Brown engineering firm of Cincinnati conducted a study on HIA's noise in Highspire, Middletown and Lower Swatara Twp. Only the 500 homes in Highspire, where noise is highest, would be eligible for voluntary buyouts.

"We don't want to own property all around Highspire," he said. "We don't want to produce vacant lots all over the place or own strip malls. We just wanted to give people a choice about staying in Highspire or moving."

Testa said that under a voluntary buyout program, the airport would pay the appraised value, plus moving expenses. In some cases, HIA would pay more.

"If a person in a $65,000 Highspire home with three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a 6,000-foot lot wants to move to Lower Swatara Twp. and finds a similar house for $85,000, we will pay the $20,000 difference if, and I emphasize if, it's a reasonable difference," he said. "They can't expect to move to a condo in Florida or a house in Camp Hill and have us pay the difference."

In a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration, McHale wrote, "The findings of the study and implementation procedures can also be used to remove most of the long-standing residential community for the purpose of bringing commercial and air cargo operations closer to the airport."

Testa said that won't happen. "We are not going to do dastardly deeds. We can't rezone; only council can. We can't sell 10 houses in a residential zone and say it's commercial."

Martindale, who has lived in South Africa, England, Belgium and several states, wants to stay in Highspire.

"I love my house," she said. "I love my neighbors. I've never felt a sense of community more than Highspire, which is why we bought here and want to stay here."

"People are getting stressed out over this," Councilwoman April Miller said.

"We're not a rich town, so if a lot of people leave and we have less tax money for services, it will hurt. And if four people on one block sell and their homes are torn down, the value of the other houses goes down. Council doesn't have all the answers."

"It's created controversy," said Mayor Wayne Shank, who has lived in Highspire for 72 years, of the study. "But it has people talking to each other."

MARY KLAUS: 255-8113 or mklaus@patriot-news.com
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  #787  
Old Posted Jul 23, 2005, 2:12 PM
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Theater plan given $30,000 by county

Friday, July 22, 2005
From staff reports
Of The Patriot-News

The Dauphin County Commissioners yesterday gave a $30,000 grant to the group working to save the historic Elks Theatre Building in Middletown.

The money was given to the Greater Middletown Economic Development Corp., which is trying to raise $350,000 to buy the building, which opened in 1911 as the Realty Theatre.

County officials said it is the oldest continuously operating theater in the country.
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  #788  
Old Posted Jul 23, 2005, 2:25 PM
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WITF begins work to build media center
Saturday, July 23, 2005

WITF Inc., the local public broadcasting organization of south central Pennsylvania, broke ground yesterday for a 72,000-square-foot Public Media Center on 12.7 acres in Swatara Twp.

The two-story, $12.9 million building will house WITF-TV, the WITF-FM radio station and the monthly magazine Central PA. It will be next to the Holiday Inn at Lindle and Keckler roads.

WITF will spend an additional $6 million on state-of-the-art broadcasting equipment for the facility.

The state is providing $7 million for the project, with the rest of the money to come from individual, corporate and foundation donations.

The new building will enable WITF to consolidate operations under one roof and provide about 50 percent more studio space, according to Kathleen Pavelko, president of WITF Inc.

About 20 WITF employees, mainly in sales, have worked in rented space on Derry Street in Paxtang for about 10 years, she noted. WITF expects to move into the new building in early 2007.

The building is being designed with educational tours for the public in mind, including flat-screen displays and glass-walled technical spaces, Pavelko said.

Hayes Large Architects of Harrisburg and Gensler Architecture of Washington, D.C., are working on the project. High Construction Co. of Lancaster is the construction manager.

The WITF building on Locust Lane in Susquehanna Twp. is on the market for $1.2 million.
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  #789  
Old Posted Jul 23, 2005, 3:34 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wrightchr
they moved the forum on us! what's up with that?
Yeah I was a little surprised when I saw the thread was moved. The first thing I thought of was, "Oh no, they did some Spring cleaning and deleted us!!!" I'm happy for the move, though, as it does fit much better here...

As for the other stuff, yeah, good news!!!
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  #790  
Old Posted Jul 24, 2005, 2:48 PM
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Area realty sales set record

Midstate agents doubt region is seeing 'bubble'

Sunday, July 24, 2005
BY ELLEN LYON
Of The Patriot-News

Keith Sealover has been selling real estate for 29 years, and he calls this "the strongest seller's market of my career."

The numbers back him up. That's good news if you are selling and cashing in some equity. But if you are buying, that could mean competing with other bidders to get the house you want.

Local residential real estate sales broke a record in the second quarter of this year, both in terms of number of sales and average home price.

Realtors sold 2,573 units for an average price of $172,456, said Don Krieger, executive director of the Central Penn Multi-List, which tracks home sales in Cumberland, Dauphin, Perry and northern York counties.

In addition, properties stayed on the market an average of 48 days in the second quarter, a significant drop compared with five years ago.

February through June is typically the most bullish time of year in the real estate market, with May 1 being the peak, said Sealover of Jack Gaughen Realtor ERA.

The vigorous local market mirrors the national scene.

The National Association of Realtors recently revised its forecast to predict that home sales will hit an all-time high in 2005.

Citing continuing low mortgage rates and high employment, the association projects that existing-home sales will increase 2.8 percent, to 6.97 million, and new-home sales will increase 3.2 percent, to 1.24 million.

David Lereah, the association's chief economist, predicts the national median price for an existing home will jump 9.4 percent, to $202,600, while the median price for new homes will rise 5.8 percent, to $233,900.


Local Realtors weren't surprised at this area's performance in the second quarter .

Dan Piscioneri, broker/owner of Century 21 Piscioneri, called it a "frenetic market."

In his 22 years of selling real estate, May was his strongest period for getting houses under contract to sell.

June followed as his best ever for sales that went through to settlement, Piscioneri said.

"It is really a challenging market for agents and buyers, because we're still dealing with multiple offers," he said.

Sealover has noticed more interest in local property by well-financed national builders such as Ryan Homes and Toll Brothers and land-development companies.

Sealover predicts their entrance into the market will drive up land prices even more and make it harder for local developers to compete.

With some markets in California, New York and elsewhere seeing home prices appreciating as much as 80 percent, some economists are warning of a real estate bubble that could burst and lower values. Piscioneri and Sealover doubt that a bubble is forming here.

"Our prices are so far below the marketplaces where they say there could be a bubble," Piscioneri said. "Our area is very far below the national average. ... Our prices over the last 30 years, that I know, have always been behind the rest of the country."

In part that's because this area, as the state capital, has always had a lot of public-sector jobs with lower salaries than areas with heavy concentrations of corporate jobs, he noted.

Piscioneri also disputes that investors in real estate could be headed the way of investors in overvalued technology start-ups just before the tech bubble burst in the late 1990s.

"There's a difference, because people are out buying sticks and bricks rather than promises of [companies'] future profits," he said.

While most of the sales in the Northern York County School District are tracked by the Central Penn Multi-List, a handful of them are reported to the Realtors Association of York and Adams Counties.

RAYAC's figures for the second quarter of this year also reflect a record for that school district: 12 sales at an average price of $188,742, compared with nine sales at an average price of $177,656 in the first quarter. In the second quarter of last year, there were eight sales at an average price of $151,575.

Lebanon County real estate sales are tracked by the Keystone Multi-List Network.

Second quarter sales there were down, with 450 units sold, compared with the same quarter last year, when 492 units old.

But the average sale price was higher: $138,797 this past quarter, compared with $134,924 in last year's second quarter.
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  #791  
Old Posted Jul 25, 2005, 6:45 PM
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Craigslist.org offers Harrisburg page among its many Internet sites

Monday, July 25, 2005
BY DAVID DeKOK
Of The Patriot-News

Craigslist.org has come to Harrisburg.

The company's description of Craigslist is: "Local community classifieds and forums -- a place to find a job, housing, goods & services, a social life, advice and just about anything else."

In June, Harrisburg became one of 170 Craigslist sites in 34 countries, as did Jerusalem; Bangkok; Dayton, Ohio; Grand Rapids, Mich.; West Virginia; and a bunch of other places. Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Allentown also have sites at www.craigslist.org.

"They've grown very quickly and proven themselves very successful in markets out in California," said Tim Williams, executive director of the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association, a trade group that monitors trends in the newspaper industry. "I think they have like 28 employees."

All Craigslist pages look the same, but the number of ads, which are free in most markets, and their content differ greatly by city.

The two categories that tend to draw the most ads are the help-wanteds and the personals. San Francisco-based Craigslist charges for help-wanted ads in a few large markets, but not Harrisburg. That's how it makes its money.

Some of the text and photos in the Craigslist personal ads can get graphic, including photos of male private parts on the "Men seeking Men" and "Casual Encounters" pages.

In the "Missed Connection" section, people try to hook up with that man or woman they spotted across a bar. Or the "Rants and Raves" section, which has several running arguments, one of which is on whether Harrisburg is an OK place to live -- or not.

Some of the classified ads compete with those that run in newspapers such as The Patriot-News; others do not. Craigslist is said to have seriously hurt the classified-ad revenue of the San Francisco newspapers, in particular.

"Newspapers will have to look at changing their current model for classifieds," Williams said. "They may have to reduce prices, or post online ads for free. Or maybe make them totally free for private parties."

Most newspapers in Pennsylvania also have Web sites that include paid classifieds, including The Patriot-News site at www.pennlive.com.

Although the newspaper industry has adapted to the Web, it does so slowly, Williams said.

"The Internet has had a powerful impact on newspapers," Williams said. "As an industry, we probably didn't move fast enough to change our business model to incorporate it."

Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster says fraudulent postings -- from Nigerian money-laundering scams to solicitations for multilevel-marketing pyramids -- represent less than one-tenth of 1 percent of listings. But the New York section, for example, has been found rife with con artists.

Craig Newmark, the founder of Craigslist.org, no longer runs the operation but remains one of three board members.
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  #792  
Old Posted Jul 26, 2005, 7:24 PM
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At a time when there is a box office slump, the HBG area decides to suddenly go haywire on theatres?!?


Retail center plan boosts cinema choices

Retail center plan supersizes cinema, grocery

Tuesday, July 26, 2005
BY ELLEN LYON
Of The Patriot-News

Lately, it seems, movie theaters around here are growing faster than state legislators' pay.

The developer who is planning a shopping center at Interstate 81 and Wertzville Road in Hampden Twp. says it will include a 16-screen cinema, which would be the area's largest.

The 325,000-square-foot Hampden Town Center also calls for a 90,000-square-foot Giant supermarket that would be the chain's second-largest store in the area.

Mark Caldwell, of Caldwell Development Inc. of Wormleysburg, isn't daunted by the midstate's recent surge in new and planned multiplexes, even though movie box office receipts are anemic throughout the nation.

Caldwell said he thinks the area can support a theater that would beat the current largest theater -- the 14-screen Regal Harrisburg Stadium in Susquehanna Twp. -- by two screens. The Regal is just a few exits north on I-81 and across the Susquehanna River from the proposed Hampden Town Center.

Caldwell noted that the area lost a theater in December when a Regal theater complex in the Capital City Mall closed.

The owner of the Camp Hill Shopping Center scrapped plans for a multiplex in favor of a fitness club shortly before the 12-screen Cinema Center opened nearby in Hampden Twp.

The owners of Harrisburg Mall in Swatara Twp. recently announced plans for a multiplex there with at least 12, and possibly 14 screens.

In addition, three theater complexes are planned in the Lebanon area.

"I just think that whole segment is already getting overstored," said Bob Gorland, vice president in the Matthew P. Casey & Associates office in Lower Paxton Twp. Gorland is a retail-site-selection consultant.

However, an existing theater interested in expanding might relocate to Hampden Town Center, he suggested.

Van Troutman, executive vice president of Cinema Centers Inc., said his company would not consider locating a theater there because of its proximity to the Cinema Center in Hampden Twp. and the Regal in Susquehanna Twp.

Gorland said the proposed shopping center's location along I-81 is ideal for drawing local and regional traffic.

Caldwell said Hampden Town Center, which will cover 70 acres, will include four restaurants, multiple "mid-box" retailers and several smaller specialty and lifestyle retailers. Mid-box retailers are generally between 20,000 and 60,000 square feet.

"We're not at a point to really get into names of tenants," Caldwell said.


A sketch plan for the shopping center was submitted in May to the Hampden Twp. Planning Commission. It probably will be a year before the still-to-be-filed preliminary plans are approved, Caldwell said. He expects construction to begin in 2007, with an opening date in 2008.

Giant was interested in the shopping center because "that whole area is really, really growing. Our Enola store is doing very well," said Denny Hopkins, vice president of advertising and public relations for the supermarket chain.

The Enola store, which opened in 1999 at 55,000 square feet and was expanded last year to 66,900 square feet, would be a few miles from the new Giant.

"Our plans at this time are to keep both stores open," Hopkins said.

Giant believes there is enough growth in the area to support a new store without "cannibalizing" sales from nearby stores, he said.

Gorland, who headed Giant's site selection and location research department for eight years, said retailers sometimes build another store near a high-performance store in a high-growth area to take pressure off the existing store.
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  #793  
Old Posted Jul 26, 2005, 11:41 PM
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^ wow...well this area is really growing with development as well. new housing tracts are springing up all over northern Hampden and western East Pennsboro twps. both twps already have well over 20,000 residents and are continuing to grow steadily. there is a lot of land still left to develop in the area the of the wertzville rd interchange and it's within the beltway corridor for the most part, so i think this type of sprawl isn't bad. it will support the housing boom of the area and isn't unlike other commerical/retail tracts throughout the region. i really like the idea of another theater as well.

Dave, my wife and I recently had a daughter...we named her Madison Elizabeth. We also moved up to Pottsville in Schuylkill County for the short term, so she and the baby could be close to my inlaws. what a huge difference in that region, compared to Harrisburg. it's like going back in time, seriously! i was home for two weeks for the birth, but i've already returned oversea's and won't be home until february now...maybe. i might be going somewhere sandy and hot after this...who knows anymore.
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Old Posted Jul 27, 2005, 5:59 PM
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Shopping center signs L.A. Fitness
Wednesday, July 27, 2005

Cedar Shopping Centers Inc., owner of the Camp Hill Shopping Center, said yesterday that it has signed a lease with L.A. Fitness for a 45,000-square-foot facility on the site where a Giant supermarket is located now.

The supermarket will be torn down and replaced with a 91,000-square-foot Giant store expected to open in the fall.

The new Giant store, which will be the largest operated by the Carlisle-based supermarket chain, and the largest store of its kind in the Harrisburg area, sits on the site of the former Montgomery Ward store.


With the L.A. Fitness lease, Cedar Shopping said it has substantially completed its redevelopment of the former Camp Hill mall.

The first phase of redevelopment included redesigning the property as a strip shopping center and adding tenants such as Pier 1 Imports and Staples.

The second phase includes the new Giant supermarket and a free-standing, 40,000-square-foot medical building to be leased by the Orthopedic Institute of Pennsylvania.

The final phase will be the L.A. Fitness building, which should be competed in mid-2006. An additional 10,000 square feet of retail or medical space by the fitness center is available, the company said.

The fitness center site had been considered for a multiscreen movie theater, but that idea was scrapped months ago.

Cedar Shopping has spent up to $34 million to upgrade the shopping center. It bought the property in late 2002 for about $18 million.

L.A. Fitness, meanwhile, is holding a grand opening Saturday at its East Shore location at 5070 Jonestown Road in Lower Paxton Twp.

TOM DOCHAT / The Patriot-News
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Old Posted Jul 27, 2005, 6:06 PM
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Area biodiesel plant takes shape
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
BY JOEL BERG
For The Patriot-News

Race Miner initially scoffed at the notion of biodiesel, a fuel made from soybeans. Then, in 2002, he started pumping the stuff into his Ford F-250 pickup.

He was hooked. Three years later, Miner plans to build a commercial biodiesel plant in central Pennsylvania.

"Everything's lined up," said Miner, founder of Keystone BioFuels Inc., based at his home in Silver Spring Twp., Cumberland County.

Miner will use about 20,000 square feet in the former Quaker Oats factory in Hampden Twp. for this operation. He said Arnold Logistics is the anchor tenant in the building. He said he picked the site because of its existing infrastructure and access to rail lines.

Miner hopes to begin production this fall in a plant that can brew up to 1 million gallons of biodiesel per year. It would be one of the first biodiesel production plants in the state.

He plans to have five employees, including himself.

The cost of the plant will fall between $1.5 million and $2 million, Miner said. He is investing his own money, earned from previous business ventures in the Harrisburg area.

The plant would convert soy oil, extracted from soybeans, into biodiesel in a process known as transesterification.

Miner began using biodiesel while living in Colorado with his wife, Allison. The couple moved there after selling a Camp Hill-based technology company called Traffic Safety Solutions.

The Miners moved back to the Harrisburg area after the birth of their twin sons, Kyle and Ryan, now 2.

High petroleum prices are one reason Miner and other entrepreneurs are searching for alternatives, said Andrew Kleit, a professor of energy and environmental economics at Penn State University. However, the alternatives typically have trouble competing, he noted.

"There's a reason you use petroleum. It's the least-costly source of fuel," Kleit said.

Regular diesel fuel costs about $2.50 per gallon at the pump. For drivers who can find it, biodiesel generally is more expensive.

Jerry Clever of Chambersburg said he pays about $3.60 per gallon for pure biodiesel at a station in Maryland along the route of his commute to Washington, D.C. He uses the fuel in his Mercedes sedan, which also runs on vegetable oil.

The price of biodiesel should drop if production plants are built in Pennsylvania, said Dan Desmond, deputy secretary in the energy and technology deployment office at the state Department of Environmental Protection.

"I think the day's not that far off when it will become directly competitive with the cost of imported oil," Desmond said. "But we need some economies of scale. It's so hard to do when you're hauling it in from Iowa."

Nationwide, about 35 plants produce biodiesel for commercial use, according to the National Biodiesel Board in Jefferson City, Mo. Their annual output was about 25 million gallons last year. The total is expected to reach 50 million gallons this year with the addition of new plants, said Jenna Higgins, spokeswoman for the board.

Even at 50 million gallons, biodiesel represents a small fraction of diesel use in the U.S.

Vehicles used on and off the road consume 55 billion gallons of regular diesel every year, Higgins said.

Adoption of biodiesel is being fueled by a federal tax credit of 1 cent for each percentage point of biodiesel mixed in with regular diesel. A 100 percent biodiesel fuel would be worth a tax credit of $1. Most biodiesel is sold in blends starting as low as 2 percent.

The tax credit goes to the company that blends the fuel, Higgins said. The blenders are expected to pass their savings from the credit on to their customers.

The tax credit expires at the end of 2006, but backers hope Congress will move to extend it at least through 2012, Higgins said. Many of the plants are coming on line because of the credit, she said. "If that goes away, that would stifle production and use."

Companies in Pennsylvania that market and sell biodiesel must get the product from other states.

Worley & Obetz Inc., an energy company in Lancaster County, imports 1 million gallons of biodiesel a year from plants in Iowa, New Jersey and Virginia, said Len Zvorsky, compliance manager for the company. Worley sells fuel that is 5 percent biodiesel.

Zvorsky declined to disclose the prices at Worley's commercial fueling station, but he said they are competitive with regular diesel.

Worley & Obetz is participating in a venture to build a biodiesel distribution center in Lower Swatara Twp. The center, operated by a company called Independence BioFuels Inc., is expected to open in late August or early September, said Zvorsky, who consults with the firm.

Independence also is looking at building a production facility somewhere in the Harrisburg area next year, he said.
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  #796  
Old Posted Jul 27, 2005, 7:04 PM
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EastSideHBG EastSideHBG is offline
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Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Philadelphia Metro
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wrightchr
Dave, my wife and I recently had a daughter...we named her Madison Elizabeth. We also moved up to Pottsville in Schuylkill County for the short term, so she and the baby could be close to my inlaws. what a huge difference in that region, compared to Harrisburg. it's like going back in time, seriously! i was home for two weeks for the birth, but i've already returned oversea's and won't be home until february now...maybe. i might be going somewhere sandy and hot after this...who knows anymore.
Congrats, Chris!!!! I hope you are safe and sound wherever you go, good luck to you and please keep visiting this thread!!!

They have money for raises but none for this, hence now why The State Museum to Charge Admission Fees. My g/f and I were just there this past weekend and I just KNEW this was going to happen.
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  #797  
Old Posted Jul 27, 2005, 10:12 PM
Spudmrg Spudmrg is offline
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Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: I find myself surrounded by highways, fast food, and warehouses
Posts: 199
Sitting out in sprawl-ville right now, I find it "interesting" that few of these new projects are in "greyfields" or even inside the HBG urban core. For instance, this WITF project takes existing facilities out of the urban core (Paxtang and Sus. Township) and moves it out further for no apparent reason. Why could'nt they take that money and use the "Penn Center" (AKA Polyclinic hospital) or the State Hospital Grounds, or HACC, or any of the existing dense public service areas? I'm sure that there is enough room in all 3 of those areas to provide the communications gear required, and it makes more sense to me to be closer to where the major public events (Read: The capital complex) happen.
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  #798  
Old Posted Jul 27, 2005, 10:56 PM
harrisburger harrisburger is offline
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Location: harrisburg
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good news all around it seems...but i don't agree with that new hampden shopping center. i live about 2 miles away from 81, and i can already get to 4 giants in less than 10 minutes, not to mention karns. is there really a need?
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  #799  
Old Posted Jul 29, 2005, 9:16 PM
wrightchr wrightchr is offline
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Well in case you guys didn't hear, the first (East Mechanicsburg to Harrisburg to Lancaster) and second phase (East Mech to Carlisle) to CorridorONE recieved funding with the recent passage of the T3/Transportation Bill. Hopefully we'll start to see construction get underway soon. You can look at the entire list: CLICK HERE
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  #800  
Old Posted Jul 29, 2005, 10:47 PM
wrightchr wrightchr is offline
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Hecht's stores to be renamed
Retailer to convert to Macy's brand


Friday, July 29, 2005
BY TOM DOCHAT
Of The Patriot-News

The Harrisburg area will have two Macy's stores when the Hecht's department stores are converted to the Macy's name in 2006.

The change is part of the pending takeover of May Department Stores Co. by Federated Department Stores Inc.

May owns Hecht's and several other department store chains, including Kaufmann's, Strawbridge's and Filene's. Federated operates more than 450 department stores under the Macy's and Bloomingdale's names.

The name change was announced yesterday by Federated, which plans to convert about 330 May stores nationwide to the Macy's brand.

The process should be completed in the fall of 2006, in time for the holiday shopping season next year. When the change made, Macy's will operate about 730 stores.

Federated said May's Lord & Taylor name, now on 58 stores, will stay, and it's studying the Marshall Field's name.

"We have chosen to proactively announce our decisions as they are made so that our intentions are clear," said Terry J. Lundgren, Federated's chairman, president and CEO. "This decision to expand the Macy's brand was based on careful study and new research on customer preferences in May Company communities."

Kurt Barnard of Barnard's Retail Consulting Group said Federated is making a smart move to unite most of the May stores under the Macy's name. "It will save them a lot of money," he noted.

But Barnard said customers should notice more than a name change. "The stores will look much better than the stores looked before," he said. "They will be like new stores."

"Our customers tell us through research and from their behavior that what's inside a store -- the merchandise, the service, the people, the shopping environment -- is what matters most," Lundgren said. "And this is where Macy's excels."

As part of the conversion process, Federated said it has identified 68 stores in 66 malls that will be sold off in 2006. Nine May and Federated stores will be sold in Pennsylvania, none locally.

In the Harrisburg area, Hecht's has stores at Harrisburg Mall in Swatara Twp. and at Capital City Mall in Lower Allen Twp. Another Hecht's store is at West Manchester Mall in York County.

"Federated is a terrific retailer," said Cheryl Dougherty, vice president of marketing for Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust, owner of Capital City Mall. "We are very excited about the switchover. It's not just a name changing, it's a merchandise change."

She said Macy's, with 330 additional stores under its belt, will be in an even stronger position when dealing with vendors, something that should translate to better value and better selection for customers.

Dougherty said Federated and Macy's are well regarded with their private-label merchandise and have been "able to break through and resonate with shoppers."

Federated is spending $11 billion to acquire May. It expects the deal to be completed by the end of September, pending approval by the Federal Trade Commission. Shareholders of both companies have approved the deal.

TOM DOCHAT: 255-8216 or tdochat@patriot-news.com
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