Combined Efforts Bring New Life to a Neglected Street

6th and McClay, Fair Housing Council Building, Harrisburg, PA
Combined Efforts Bring New Life to a Neglected Street
June 13, 2009

Drive through the city on a daily basis and your emotions stir with concern that there is much work to be done. Blocks doubling as trash receptacles, a deprivation of pride, and a loss of hope. Are the wrong values instilled in our neighborhoods? Can we breathe life back into them? Where do we begin? Answer: At the Beginning.

On June 13, Harrisburg Young Professionals (HYP) joined with the Harrisburg Fair Housing Council, the City of Harrisburg Police Department, and Classic Landscaping to answer the call that many internalize as they tour city streets. The 2100 Block of North 6th Street has been a victim of neglect for many years, complete with tire dumps, piles of trash, overgrown weeds, and graffiti. We set out to bring a new look and life into this block and I assure you it was no small task.

Our landscaper, Classic Landscaping, brought the arsenal and HYP brought the troops. Armed with weed eaters, pitch forks and the like, we began to tear down the old façade and start anew. The group trimmed hedges, whacked weeds, and pulled trash from hedge beds and tree boxes. It was a display of team work that took on a momentum of its own.

Within 1 hour we had filled countless bags full of trash and piled the weeds high. Team members came and went as the day progressed, but the spirit was intoxicating as new members jumped in, sweating profusely, to dig up ripe-smelling trash by hand.

Our efforts were nearly complete after just three hours, and the amazement settled in as the team broke for lunch. Enjoying freshly prepared burgers and hot dogs with all the trimmings, we began to reflect: We accomplished so much in such a short period of time that we began to ask, honestly, how much time would it take to clean up more blocks and continue revitalizing these areas cast into forgetfulness?

Fresh off a break, the team quickly returned to the final tasks of the day. The worry that we might lose momentum to the glut of lunch was quickly stifled. With jobs soon completed, mulch spread, trash piled neatly, and fresh paint over graffiti, we passed around the "High 5s" and gathered for a final photo."

As we parted ways, we knew that our efforts marked "The Beginning."

Matthew W. Crocker
CROSSGATES, INC.
470 Friendship Road, Suite 150
Harrisburg, PA 17111
717.561.1200 x612 Office
717.315.1275 Cell
717.561.0500 Fax