DEVOTED TO SOUND FISCAL POLICIES
Harrisburg currently has the largest per capita debt of any municipality in the state, with each citizen owing roughly $9,500. (The next most indebted city is Philadelphia, significantly lower at $3,100 per person.) There are many things City Council can and should do to address this dire situation.
The key to a better, more prosperous Harrisburg is the continued redevelopment of our city. We must have an economic development plan that focuses on all of Harrisburg, not just the downtown districts. Currently, the Harrisburg Redevelopment Authority owns over 420 properties, while the city of Harrisburg holds another 140 properties, all of which are candidates for redevelopment. These properties currently languish, vacant, year after year, contributing nothing but blight to the city and its residents. The City Council should immediately encourage new development by recruiting businesses to refurbish these properties, at once bringing jobs and increasing tax revenue while also improving the quality of Harrisburg's residential life.
The city's zoning regulations also currently hamper development by their uneven application and antiquated nature. As a member of City Council, Eric Papenfuse will write new zoning legislation and revise existing ordinances so they better reflect the capital city's historic character while at the same time encouraging 21st-century "best practices" and fostering economic development throughout the city.
If City Council were to enact these types of business-friendly policies, the city’s tax revenue would grow significantly without increasing taxes on existing property owners and businesses. As the graph below indicates, 40 percent of Harrisburg’s revenue sources are from tax categories that would increase along with expanded economic development.
Such increased revenues are essential in order to pay down the massive debt caused by the failed incinerator deals. A further discussion of the problems surrounding the incinerator’s prospective sale and the workings of the Harrisburg Authority is included in Papenfuse’s campaign announcement. You can also watch him address City Council in 2007 about such matters, here. He presciently urged Council not to approve the decisive Covanta contract, which effectively prevents any competitive bidding until 2013 and thus starkly limits the City’s and the Authority’s current options.
In these uncertain, recessionary times, Harrisburg’s fiscal challenges are likely to grow all the more pressing, and the City’s economic standing become all the more precarious. Only a comprehensive economic development plan, including the judicious re-evaluation of the city’s budget and an ongoing focus on exploring alternative revenue streams, will make it possible to restore the City’s financial health. With his diverse business experience and proven financial acumen, Eric Papenfuse stands ready to take on this challenge. And with a keen understanding of how the costs of economic recovery are likely to be borne most heavily by city residents, he is certain to be the people’s staunch advocate throughout the process.
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