311 Help Desk
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City of harrisburg logo

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 29, 2022
Contact: Melissa Mesones-Ortiz, Deputy Communications Director
[email protected], (717) 255-6584

HARRISBURG — Camp Curtin YMCA and Capital Region Water broke ground Friday on a stormwater management project, called The Big Green Block, for its Camp Curtin Campus and surrounding Cornerstone Neighborhood.

“The environment is important, and what our kids see every day, and what our community sees every day in this community right here looking around is unacceptable,” Jamien Harvey, Harrisburg YMCA Executive Director said. “We will change this, and The Big Green Block is a big part of that, and the Cornerstone Uptown project is a big part of that. As I walk these streets every day, I will fight, and I am continuing to change this neighborhood.”

Why is stormwater an issue in Harrisburg?

Over half of Harrisburg’s sewer pipes are part of a combined sewer stage, where polluted stormwater runoff and sewage are conveyed. Stormwater flow exceeds system capacity, discharging the mixture into Paxton Creek or the Susquehanna River.

One solution: Community Greening

The City Beautiful H2O (Program Plan) is CRW’s responsible approach to addressing a combination o system-wide infrastructure deterioration and failure with high priority water quality compliance activities.

“The Big Green Block will provide multiple benefits to the community,” said Charlotte Katzenmoyer, Capital Region Water CEO. “The project will protect the health and safety of the public by catching rainwater before it gets polluted by sewage in our combined sewers beneath the streets.”

Sarah Peace, Community Ambassador, added, “I am very excited. I don’t think our community really understands the significance of this. Mr. Jamien [Harvey] talks about our environment. We are a micro-climate here in Harrisburg, and our environment is very different, so this whole infrastructure that we are putting in place will help our environment as a bigger piece.”

Construction on The Big Green Block will begin in May 2022 with scheduled completion by November 2022.