Saturday night on Second Street
Crowds enjoying the bars and restaurants of second street in Harrisburg. (Daniel Zampogna | dzampogna@pennlive.com)
On Tuesday I chatted with readers about urban renewal in the city of Harrisburg.
Just a bit of context why we chose this topic this week...looking over the past chats, there have been some direct comments about gentrification, but there also have been some implications and innuendos about residents being pushed out by the current economic development projects and trends in Harrisburg.
This conversation can — and has a bit — lead to a topic we've discussed in this forum before, and that's "racism." But of course, "gentrification" typically is a "classism" issue.
cogitobsw: I think the first question is whether gentrification is currently happening in Harrisburg. I tend to agree that there is a surplus of properties throughout the city and that it does not seem as though long term residents are being displaced, but that, for the most part, blighted and/or abandoned properties are being rehabilitated and filling in gaps.
If true, I can't see how this could be anything but a positive for Harrisburg right now.
However, if this momentum continues, there would be a very real possibility of gentrification. The key is to anticipate that problem and address it now before it becomes an issue.
Nick Malawskey (PennLive): I'd have to agree. I tend to look sideways at people who think Harrisburg is 'gentrifying.' I don't live in the city, so maybe I'm missing something, but the development that is occurring seems to be (like you noted) filing in gaps or rehabs.
TLA: Why do you think "urban renewal" in Harrisburg gets categorized as "gentrification?"
cogitobsw: Ignorance or thinly veiled racism.
TLA: Interesting response.
I think it begs another necessary question in this discussion — "who" is calling such urban renewal/rehabilitation in Harrisburg "gentrification?"
Nick Malawskey: Or because most of the big, visible development that we see occur is done by a select few individuals or businesses, who, — whether true or not — are seen as doing something to a neighborhood, as opposed to for or with the neighborhood.
TLA: Yes, the use of the word "gentrification" in the City of Harrisburg indicates a decade-long distrust of Harrisburg's "urban renewal."
The Reed Administration talked a lot about what was going to happen along places like North 6th Street or the historical revitalization of South Allison Hill.
Some people have heard about "making Harrisburg better" for a very long time.
What seems to be obviously happening is what you remark on.
It's a tough perception versus reality challenge.
uptownphrogg: In 2008 I bought a run down, condemned house on a block in Uptown. At the time there were three others like it. It took me a year to replace all the plumbing, electrical, dry wall, etc. I moved in, and in the past 3 years the other abandoned houses were purchased and fixed by a rental companies.
There are more kids playing on the street now, less visible trash and many of the neighbors started flower gardens to make the homes pretty.
I think home values have increase a bit — not much — basically because there are no longer abandoned buildings with rats and what not.
Is this gentrification?
cogitobsw: I don't believe that is gentrification, as it does not seem as if anyone has been displaced. I'd call that urban renewal, which may be a precursor to gentrification.
TLA: My personal situation is similar and when I was preparing for this conversation, Don Gilliland and I arrived at the same point — is my rehabilitation of a blighted, condemned house gentrification?
Previously, my house was divided into five units and from what neighbors say, there was a revolving door of tenants who contributed crime, trash, and risk to the block. The blight displaced them, not our purchasing of the house.
Yet as Don pointed out, my fixing up of this house did raise the property values on my street.
So, there's a tinge of "gentrification."
However, no one was/has been displaced by my investment here. Nor by the investment that has happened in and around Engleton such as HACC Midtown.
But that does not eliminate the perceived tensions of the people who lived in the neighborhood before my arrival ("us") and me moving in ("them").
dabadude: From my perspective, no one in their right frame of intellectual mind would ever move their "family" into an inner city neighborhood to expose them to rampant crime, congestion, pollution, racial animus, poverty and exorbitantly high taxes. It also then cascades into the public school district and it's standing in the community. Sad to say...but the Harrisburg School District stinks from Pre-School Head Start to Grade 12. If I ever put my kids in that school district, I would condemn them from having a viable educational experience that would prepare them for adulthood.
TLA: I appreciate you brought up the issue of the school district in this talk.
"Gentrification" discussions typically touch upon schools. An improvement in the schools of a "gentrified" neighborhood is often cited as a benefit to every resident in the neighborhood.
Perhaps that falls back to the "urban renewal" side of the scale.
uptownsatnite: In my view, gentrification, in the form of deeply disparate and distinct societies has long been a part of the Harrisburg culture.
The law firms and businesses downtown employ few people of color, do little (in comparison with other cities and entities within those cities where poor folks comprise a visible and significant component of the population) in relation to the city schools or culture. They take but give back very little.
I am talking about large institutions here, such as Pinnacle, expressing their view of the value of the city and actively employing folks from the region.
It doesn't happen, in part because there has never been an incentive to do so.
The banks here: same thing. The law firms and engineering firms: same thing. The deep class and racial divisions of this city are profound.
When I moved here not so many years ago only certain people lived in certain areas. The vestiges of that remain and seem to have a half-life here.
I have lived through gentrification and I see it happening here. It is easy. There are so many people here who are poor, and broke, and poorly educated, and the dominant culture has a handout system that is designed to keep them that way, and also out of the way.
The overseers have left, and now we have to fend for ourselves.
Donald Gilliland (PennLive): That's in interesting perspective, and I tend to agree with some of it, but I also tend to resist its underlying fatalism.
mbryanr: I agree with much of this. Too much of the business activity in the city is conducted by people who don't live here, for people who don't live here, using employees who don't live here. City residents (especially those with fewer job skills) then have to take buses out to the suburbs to work service sector and retail jobs. We could really use some help from our large institutions like Pinnacle, or the State Government, to train our city residents to work in our city's largest industries.
Donald Gilliland: And lets be honest: the bus system is less than ideal for matching up with where those jobs actually are.
TLA: That's a tremendous aspect of this discussion...of any discussion on Harrisburg's economic development — public transportation.
It's incredibly deficient. And limits very many residents in regard to opportunities and resources.
I wrote this a few chats ago, but in early Spring, I attended a lunch of a group of Harrisburg leaders and community. The guest of honor was Majora Carter, who is a community activist/organizer/consultant from New York City.
Currently she is working on "Harnessing the Power of Gentrification." Her goal is to create a model of gentrification that puts information, skill, and wealth in the hands of the residents of disinvested urban neighborhoods. She teaches real estate and economic development trends to residents so that they may be the ones revitalizing their neighborhoods so it's not just "outsiders" doing in.
It makes issues of communication and education to create opportunities.
cogitobsw: This is part of the reason that I was optimistic about Harrisburg University. I had hoped that it would provide educational opportunities for Harrisburg youth and allow them to enter into the higher levels of employment opportunities in Harrisburg. I'm not sure that's come to pass yet, but I also think that it's still a bit early to expect that kind of impact from a nascent educational institution.
Donald Gilliland: I agree with you there on both scores: it has great potential and has not been fully proven yet. As we all know there are some kinks in the finances there; if they can straighten them out, HU has real potential for lifting city students.
Mom with 2 kids and 2 degrees: Harrisburg U tuition is out of the reach of inner-city children.
Donald Gilliland: There are tuition assistance programs specifically for city children.
ree716: No one discussed anything like that when I toured with my son.
Donald Gilliland: That's interesting because it's clearly represented in their financials, and I know people have donated specifically for that purpose.
mbryanr: I'm afraid with the state the city is in, we are in no position to worry about gentrification, if anything we need to encourage higher income neighborhoods to provide the city with revenue to support city services for ALL neighborhoods. Frankly, I bristle at the notion that Midtown gets special treatment; in terms of city services, I don't feel this to be the case. The neighborhood is nice because the residents have made it that way. If I lived Uptown, or on the East Side, or on Allison Hill, I'd be cheering the arrival of wealthy people willing to live in the city and contribute financially to the city to ensure that projects to improve my neighborhood can be funded, whether it be lighting improvements, increased public safety, and improvements to the school system.
Every city has affluent neighborhoods that form the foundation of the city's tax base. We need more of this in Harrisburg, not less.
TLA: While I don't necessarily disagree with your comment, I do think that the perceived "invasion" is what becomes the issue. The City of Harrisburg has some very serious social tensions that include race, wealth, and education.
Looking at the city's history, the combination of post-WWII suburban sprawl, "white flight," and Agnes's havoc made for a desperate city setting. Residents who stayed when others left are fierce about Harrisburg as home.
"Outsiders" are looked at suspiciously and with great skepticism. "Born & raised" in Harrisburg can quickly become a rallying call against perceived threats.
And while those "outsiders" may bring common benefits, the distrust is very thick in Harrisburg.
Midtown, unfortunately, is perceived as the land of the outsiders by virtue of the expanse of "urban renewal" in previously blighted, vacant blocks.
That's the special treatment perceived — "they" got rid of their blight. "We" still live amongst it and have for a long time.
I do agree, too, that it comes down to this — residents working together to take care of their neighborhoods. If "good" citizens are moving in, that should be embraced & encouraged.
However, I think we too quick go back to the distrust so too often "good" is overlooked.
equinox.black: Exactly...why would wealthier, educated individuals wish to move to a location where they are not wanted or trusted and where it may not be particularly safe for them?
TLA: Having lived in the city for eight years in what I have heard referred to as a "transitional neighborhood" in Midtown, I have not felt unsafe. I stress that because I think it's one of those perception versus reality things. I feel confident that I take reasonable means to keep myself secure — just as I do anywhere I go.
But even though there is an inherent distrust of "outsiders" in Harrisburg that must be acknowledged, it is not impossible to overcome. And that's the dynamic potential of this city. We are building trust. We are building community.
equinox.black: Harrisburg and York...two peas in a pod.
When you look at a map and consider the surrounding geography, there is one thing that is painfully obvious.
When you highlight the positions of Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New York and Baltimore, you find that Harrisburg is right dead center in the cross hairs (figuratively speaking).
What does that mean? Drugs.
You get your PCP and LSD from Pittsburgh and Philly, your X from New York, and your heroin out of Baltimore. Throw that in with your home-cooked meth.
Before Harrisburg can be taken seriously, they need to crack down on drugs, illegal guns, and violence.
uptownphrogg: Are drugs a symptom of a lack of quality jobs and opportunity?
TLA: A few years ago, I was at a community meeting in South Allison Hill and the Harrisburg Police gave a presentation on the Harrisburg drug trade and gangs. What you point out about being centrally located was something they said, too.
And yes, I think the drug dealing and using is a symptom of lack of jobs & opportunity.
If someone feels they can't enter the legitimate structure of economic development, it seems reasonable to be enterprising other ways.
Also, Juelz Davenport —born and raised in the city, poet, musician, and speaker — told me that when he was young and growing up in Harrisburg, he looked around his disinvested neighborhood and thought, "No one cares."
When he went to school, he said there weren't books or supplies, and he thought "No one cares."
His mother worked multiple jobs and wasn't home much. His father was incarcerated. He was home alone a lot.
He said when he walked outside, on the corner was the guy dealing drugs. And he cared about Juelz. At least he pretended to. And that's where Juelz headed...to the guy who cared.
It's a telling tale.
Just this past week, HPD had two major drug busts in the city. The extra police officers brought in recently are enabling proactive police work to take place.
I also want to say that when we have blighted buildings and neglected neighborhoods, it's easier for the transients who are just going from one city to the next, possibly carrying drugs back and forth to live here and do their wrongdoing here.
That was the case on my block about seven years ago. A slumlord from New York owned three different properties on my block. She let a man wanted for homicide in NYC hide here. Fortunately, he got caught in an incredibly intricate police raid.
uptownphrogg: One of the big issues for existing residents that are either fixed income or low income is that they do not have the means to fix up their property. It degrades, or is condemned then bought up and fixed up by either rental company or a private citizen.
Nick Malawskey: If the property is bought up at all.
There are a lot of empty lots in Allison Hill (demo'd by the city) that owe taxes back a decade or more. They can be purchased for like $500. Problem is, no one wants to develop them.
mbryanr: There are programs through HUD that assist with home repair. My family benefited from these programs when I was a kid. They installed new windows, a new front door, and even a new fence for the front yard. I think the city has staff who work in conjunction with codes enforcement to connect residents to these programs. My sense from hearing a presentation from the previous administration was that they weren't doing a great job of spreading the word about these programs.
Nick Malawskey: That's correct. I've met a couple of people in Allison Hill who had no idea the programs even existed, or where to go for more info.
Allison Hill: I know at least two residents on my block alone that were able to get their porches reconstructed using the recently eliminated "front porch" grants. People also knew about assistance programs for other home repairs such as those which replaced water heaters and such. I know of at least one committeeperson who made sure the word was out in the neighborhood. The last administration did a poor job of administering these grants in a timely fashion, but eventually the funds were distributed as intended. The current administration used the lack of timeliness to say the funds weren't used and funneled the money away from community use as originally intended and into something else.
TLA: I'll have to follow up with City Hall to confirm the "front porch" program is re-instituted, but at the HUD public hearings the other week, the new administration presented its revival to City Council. It was/is called "Operation Front Porch."
I think the legislation passed on July 8th includes this program in the "House Rehabilitation Program–$300,000"
midtown_hipster: As I'm reading this, I keep hearing the same theme over and over again: that the outsiders moving into Harrisburg owe it to the current residents. That I, as a new young homeowner, should be doing everything I can to support people who haven't done anything about their situation for decades. That businesses should hire unqualified people because they have a "responsibility" to the community...
Why is it that everyone else needs to do stuff for the "community" except for the community? How come the community members themselves don't fix the crime in their own backyards? How come the community members themselves don't help their neighbors by fixing up homes or cleaning up trash? How come community members themselves don't stop the cycle of political corruption that has been seen in Harrisburg for going on thirty years?
I'm sorry that you feel threatened by me moving into your city and that you feel that I'm just another entitled white dude who will continue to push you out of your "community." But to be honest, your community created this mess and has done nothing to fix it.
Donald Gilliland: It's A LOT more complicated than that, and I fear you take what you perceive to be an entitlement attitude too far. I'm working on a story right now that shows how the standard assumption about "bad" homeowners can be incredibly complicated. Not at all simple. I suggest you read the Forensic Audit and the paper David Unkovic presented last year in providence before you start laying all the blame for Harrisburg corruption at the community's feet.
TLA: Yes, Donald is right. This about a place disinvested. It's challenging and impossible in some cases for community members to confront the problems and challenges Harrisburg has faced in its history. Bear with me, but especially as a "white dude" it's damaging to overlook what has happened to Harrisburg.
However, that being said, I do get your frustration, especially when we have community members with the perspective that all change in Harrisburg is "bad." That any "urban renewal" excludes the people who have long lived here. And then of course we enter the realm of racism, too.
But if we fight amongst ourselves this way, the City of Harrisburg is doomed. It's too small of a city for those battles.
Read the rest of the chat here and join me, Tara Leo Auchey, next Tuesday from 12-1 p.m. for another live Q&A.
Tara Leo Auchey is the creator and editor of the community-based online publication, today's the day Harrisburg, which focuses on the news, people, and projects of the City of Harrisburg. Follow on Twitter and on Facebook.