The Harrisburg Community and Economic Development Committee recommended adding Resolution 82‑2024 to the next legislative session and endorsed a plan to convert the former office building at 315 North Front Street into eight apartments, two of which will be designated as affordable to city residents.

The recommendation came after Jeffrey Knight, planning director for the city of Harrisburg, briefed the committee on a land development application submitted by Vernon Jones of Front Street Lofts LLC. "The application before council tonight is a land development plan for the internal conversion of the former office building at 315 North Front Street into an eight‑unit apartment building," Knight said.

Knight told the committee that six units will be in the primary building and two will occupy a carriage house at the rear of the property. He said the applicant is providing 10 total parking spaces: two in a courtyard between the primary building and the carriage house, two on the first floor of the carriage house, and six spaces leased in the River Street parking garage. The planning commission recommended council approval with conditions, Knight said, including submission of a formal land development plan set, addressing department comments, and obtaining a certificate of qualification under Chapter 12, §101 of Title 12 before recording with the Dauphin County Recorder of Deeds.

Vernon Jones, owner of Front Street Lofts LLC, told the committee the two affordable units will be one‑bedroom units and that work would start once approvals and permits are secured. "We plan on starting work as soon as we get approvals," Jones said. He said the property has been vacant about three years and may now be approaching four.

Council members generally expressed support. Councilman Jones said he commended the applicant and called the project a step in the right direction for bringing business and jobs to the city. President Bowers asked for clarification on the affordability standard; Jones said the units will be affordable "to the city, to the people who live in the city of Harrisburg, versus Dauphin County." Knight also noted that if exterior alterations beyond those already proposed are later requested, the applicant must apply to the Historic Architectural Review Board for a certificate of appropriateness.

The committee chair, Councilwoman Daniels, moved to add Resolution 82‑2024 to the next legislative session and recommended approval of the project. The committee's recommendation included the planning commission's stated conditions; no formal council vote on final adoption of the resolution was recorded during the work session.

If acted on by the full council, the proposal would adaptively reuse a vacant office building, reestablish residential use on the site and add new residents who, planners said, could help support nearby businesses. The planning director also asked that the applicant coordinate with the department of public works to update utility account billing to reflect the change in use.

The committee's recommendation will be considered at the council's next legislative session; the council did not record a final vote or adopted ordinance during the work session.