NEWS INFORMATION FROM

THE OFFICE OF MAYOR STEPHEN R. REED
City of Harrisburg
King City Government Center
Harrisburg, PA 17101-1678
Telephone: 717.255.3040

FOR IMMEDIATE USE
10 May 2004

$2 MILLION RENOVATION PROJECT SET TO BEGIN AT MORRISON TOWERS IN DOWNTOWN; ALL PUBLIC HOUSING UNITS TO UNDERGO EXTENSIVE ENERGY CONSERVATION PROJECT; SAVES $12 MILLION FOR TAXPAYERS IN 12 YEARS

Harrisburg, PA—Mayor Stephen R. Reed and Harrisburg Housing Authority (HHA) Board Chairman Leon J. Feinerman today announced two major rehabilitation projects that will significantly improve public housing in Harrisburg and provide extensive energy cost savings into the next decade. The projects include the $2 million rehabilitation of the Morrison Towers building, and the implementation of an agency-wide system-wide energy conservation program that will realize more than $12 million in energy cost savings to taxpayers over the next twelve years.

Reed said improvement work at Morrison Towers, a major senior housing center at 351 Chestnut Street in the downtown, will commence soon and includes an expanded first floor and improved entrance area, repairs to the building’s façade, replacement of the existing concrete walkways and curbing, repaving of the building’s parking areas, and an upgrade of the existing landscaping.

The Mayor said the redesigned first floor will allow for a substantial increase in the services available to tenants. New retail space, fitness center, unisex salon, community room, nurse’s suite, kitchen facilities, manager’s office, lobby, lounge and maintenance office and shop are all planned. Additional enhancements will include the upgrade of the building’s communications and internet systems, the Mayor noted.

“This is a very significant revitalization project that will produce long-term benefit to the tenants of Morrison Towers,” said Mayor Reed.

The Mayor and Feinerman also announced plans for an extensive energy conservation program that will be implemented throughout HHA’s 1,740 public housing units. Each of the city’s housing communities will receive new energy efficient lighting fixtures, high efficiency refrigerators, faucet aerators in all bathrooms and kitchens, low-flow shower heads and toilets, new energy-efficient hot water heaters, new individual unit temperature controls, and improvements to the boiler systems in the various housing complexes.

Other improvements will also be implemented at various facilities, including weatherization treatments to Jackson, Lick and Morrison Towers, new steam traps at Day, Hoverter and Hall Manor, new radiator control valves at Day, Hoverter, Hall Manor, and the Jackson and Lick Towers, and the replacement of the HVAC system and all windows at Morrison Towers.

XXX