Locals seem to have a problem with crossing the river. The same river that connects us all divides us too. It’s a little more obvious to people who are not from here. For those who’ve grown up here, the stereotypes run deep.
What’s up with the West Shore turning up its nose at the Capitol’s downtown on the East Shore? Ask Lancastrians if they’ve heard about all the cool stuff in York, and they’ll look at you like they’d rather die than go there.
A couple years ago, there was a tongue-in-cheek newspaper feud going back and forth across the river—Red Rose City versus White Rose City. The English competition dating back to the War of the Roses in 1485 transferred into a usually friendly rivalry this side of the Atlantic in its namesake towns.
The beer-drinking, blue collar, White Rose cousin compares himself to the snobby Lancastrian, who is so “special” and hip and drinks wine from grapes fertilized with unicorn poop—while pointing out that the city does in fact have its dirty little secrets, like the porn shop right in the Central Market District. And Lancaster—like York, Harrisburg and all cities—has hurdles to overcome to get people to come downtown after reading horrifying news of drug crime-related stabbings and shootings. But that’s the thing: most of these crimes are drug-related, not aimed at random tourists and locals.
All three cities are working hard to overcome these obstacles. There’s much to celebrate in each region in terms of revitalization and growth. More and more people are coming to the downtown districts. And many are moving there too.
LIVE, WORK, PLAY
The more people who continue to move to our downtowns—whether young professionals, downsizing boomers or families who stay and raise their children—the more demand is created for things to do and places to dine.
In fact, according to Todd Vanderwoude, executive director of the Downtown Improvement District of Harrisburg, “over 100 new apartment units have been added to the immediate downtown area” this year, and the latest study of the downtown area indicates “we can accommodate over 300 new apartments due to demand. This will lead to an increase of restaurants and retail opportunities, as these new residents will be looking for new and fresh amenities close to home.”
Lancaster has seen exponential growth and interest in downtown dwelling. “We are running out of warehouses to convert to residential, hotel and office uses, so we will soon be seeing cranes as we start to rely on new construction for continued growth,” explains Marshall Snivley, president of Lancaster City Alliance. More than 330 new housing units (apartments, single family homes, condominiums, etc.) of all types and at all price points (including market-rate and affordable) have been constructed and completed in the city since 2000 (primarily downtown and in the city’s northwest). There are currently over 125 new housing units under construction citywide, and an additional 350-plus are in the planning stages, according to Lancaster City Alliance.
Snivley cites Lancaster’s greatest achievement as “the extraordinary growth we are seeing in the city. The number of boutiques, bars, restaurants, cultural and entertainment establishments continues to climb.”
Across the river in York, Silas Chamberlain, chief executive officer of Downtown Inc., notes: “During the last three years, we have added more than 90 new businesses in our downtown and seen more than $300 million invested in development projects, but I think our greatest achievement has been adding new, market-rate housing to downtown and attracting new residents to the city. In 2015, we set a goal of adding 500 new residents to the downtown by 2020, and—thanks to partnerships between Downtown Inc., the City of York, and our private development community—we are already approaching 75 percent of that goal. Just in the last year, we added 50 new units at One West Market and eight units in REVI Flats. An additional 29 units will be completed within the next few months, and a major developer is considering a large residential project as the first phase of redeveloping the Northwest Triangle. Attracting new residents downtown creates a demand for retail and restaurants and generates foot traffic that activates and sustains downtown businesses. The availability of high-quality housing is also a great recruiting tool in our efforts to bring more large employers into the city.”
Booming Business
In Harrisburg, business appears to be booming with over 500 new business licenses issued in 2016, including 18 new restaurants. As of May, York saw 18 new business ribbon cuttings just this year. Twenty new restaurants have opened, plus four breweries.
Downtown events in all three regions draw big crowds—and their wallets—to local businesses.
Downtown Inc.-run Restaurant Week drew patrons who spent more than half a million dollars in only its 7th year in York City. In fact, more than 58,000 people attending Downtown Inc. events, like York’s First Fridays and others, had an economic impact of over $1 million in 2016.
The Kipona Festival held on Harrisburg’s City Island and Front Street, for example, draws 50,000 people downtown. July 4th will bring more than 20,000. And Harrisburg Restaurant Week has become the largest dining event in the city, produced and organized by the Downtown Improvement District.
In the past 10 years Lancaster City has seen a net number minus those that closed of 155 new, expanded and renovated businesses in the areas of retail, services, restaurants, entertainment and more. According to the Lancaster City Alliance, since June 2015, over 36,000 square feet of new retail and restaurant space has been constructed and completed citywide. An additional 80,000 square feet is currently under construction, with an additional 100,000-plus square feet in the planning stages. A majority of this growth is downtown. Lancaster, making national headlines as a leading sanctuary city earlier this year, offers a taste of its diversity in its spring and fall Lancaster City Restaurant Week offerings from more than 50 restaurants representing the globe—from Australian, Ethiopian and Mexican to Thai, Vietnamese and more.
Some of the area’s greatest achievements start downtown. The growth of tech companies in downtown Harrisburg strengthens the Educational Corridor—Harrisburg University (which partners with several of the tech companies), Temple University and Messiah College’s Harrisburg Institute. “Arts and culture continue to thrive,” says Vanderwoude, citing examples of Jump Street downtown and the expansion of Gamut Theatre. “3rd in the Burg events have doubled in size,” he adds.
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Much like Lancaster County is more than just Amish, York County is more than just the Factory Tour Capital of the World, and the greater Harrisburg region is home to more than just the Capitol, government workers and Hershey chocolate in neighboring Dauphin County. The rural tourist attractions are great for the economy and out-of-town guests. In fact, those businesses provide significant economic impact.
Tourists totaling 8.34 million spent $1.97 billion dollars in Lancaster County in 2015. This supports more than 24,000 jobs. Discover Lancaster, the county’s main tourism hub, touts two sides to the Lancaster experience with equal billing to the county and the downtown: the expected—farmlands, family-style feasts and the Amish—and the unexpected—city life, exquisite cuisine and contemporary art.
Visitors spent more than $923 million in York County in 2014, and the tourism industry employs 7,637 people, according to Explore York, of the York County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau. Whether exploring the Mason Dixon Wine Trail, going on factory tours, trying out the new Susquehanna Ale Trail in York, discovering Lancaster County by way of Amish Country and a simpler way of life, tasting the bounty of fertile farmland through globally influenced cuisine, hiking the Appalachian Trail or learning about history in Cumberland Valley, the Susquehanna River region is ripe with possibilities.
But the heartbeat of each region is its downtown. Where it all began. Our downtowns are what pump cultural vitality through the veins of suburbia and into our rural farmlands which in turn feed our restaurants. Places like The Appell Performing Arts Center, the Fulton Theatre and Broad Street Market (with its recent upgrades and renovations) were the cornerstones that built the communities. Developers can try to recreate town-like environments with new construction, but they will never have the history, architecture and authenticity of downtown Harrisburg, Lancaster and York. Along with that authenticity comes the good, the bad and the not always pretty, but those are all parts of the social fabric. These cities are not gentrified tourist versions of towns; they are real cities with real socioeconomic diversity.
WHAT'S NEXT
“Downtown York is at a tipping point, where the momentum we have built over the last decade is about to rapidly accelerate,” says Chamberlain. “The market district of our downtown is thriving, which allows us to turn our attention to neighboring downtown districts, such as Royal Square and WeCo, where there are still opportunities for transformational development projects,” he adds.
Vanderwoude expects the residential trend to continue in Harrisburg too, with the “remodeling and rehabbing of older buildings into unique living spaces.”
While suburban sprawl continues to threaten protected and vital farmland in the counties, there is much to celebrate downtown in terms of redevelopment. That redevelopment could be a leading example for existent shopping complexes sitting vacant throughout the townships.
Many in Lancaster are excited by Zamagias Properties’ $25-30 million plans to renovate the 200,000-square-foot Bulova building on North Queen Street, creating a mixed-use complex of offices, retail space and condominiums. The hope is to ignite the redevelopment of Lancaster Square, converting the run-down plaza into a vibrant center of urban life near the city’s center, which is thriving.
Lancaster City is now fortunately challenged with expanding past the successful downtown to the northwest, south and other key corridors.
“As part of Building On Strength, the city’s new Economic Development Strategic Plan and guide for growth over the next 15 years, we have made a commitment to see this growth continue to expand beyond downtown and into our neighborhoods throughout the city. Already, new housing and retail is under development in almost every quadrant of the city, and people can expect to see more,” says Snively. He adds, “Our entrepreneurial community is very collaborative and quickly expanding, and as we see them as the future of our city, they will play a lead role in the advancement, look and feel of Lancaster.”
Chamberlain agrees, as York works on its own expansion past the center of downtown. “The thing that excites me most about the future is helping these districts find their own niche in the downtown economy and watching their continued growth. The goal is that we continue to spread the success of the downtown outward through the rest of the city—first through our micro-districts, then along major image corridors and gateways, and finally into neighborhoods throughout the city—so that residents have a higher quality of life and visitors have a consistently great experience,” explains Chamberlain.
The future is bright for the river region cities, and entrepreneurs can benefit not only from the residents flocking to live downtown but also from the suburbanites and tourists seeking authentic experiences. And maybe, just maybe, we’ll start to see more locals crossing the mighty Susquehanna that unites us all.
