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By: Elise Person, Tyler Jeski
0 seconds of 0 seconds Volume 90% HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHP) — It continues to be a black eye on the City of Harrisburg—the number of rundown, vacant and crumbling buildings in the city.
Elise Person is a Multimedia Journalist currently working for SBG Harrisburg. She has a background in lacrosse, having played at Long Island University, and is a Philadelphia sports enthusiast. Elise's reporting covers a wide range of topics, including local news, community events, and human interest stories.
Live Central Dauphin School District's School Board vote to approve purchasing three buildings across the district boundaries in order expand their kindergarten to an all-day program. (WHP) Purchasing these buildings is going to cost the district about $9.4 million. CBS 21 News asked on Facebook: “Are you for or against the decision, and why or why not?” Currently, all kindergartens across the district are a two-and-half hour morning or afternoon programs. Some commented and said they are in support of the move to all-day kindergarten, but why does the district need to purchase three buildings to expand the program? CBS 21 News sat down with the District's Superintendent Eric Turman to find those answers. He said purchasing these three buildings does two things for the district: brings an all-day kindergarten program and allows the district to meet the needs of a growing population. “In looking at where the district is going moving forward, even outside of doing full-day kindergarten, we were gonna run out of space,” Turman said. According to Turman, purchasing and renovating three buildings across the district boundary is the cheapest option that positively impacts the most families. “The alternative was to look at certain schools and expand those schools, which was gonna cost us probably about quadruple of what we're paying for now. Then on top of that, you would have to go and start to redo boundaries,” Turman said. He said construction to add on to just one school would cost the district between $30 million and $40 million. “And to build a new building is running anywhere between $50 and 60 million,” Turman said. He said the cost to purchase and renovate the three buildings will be about $36 million in total. As of right now, Turman said it's too soon to say what, if any, impacts this will have on taxpayers. “We are starting the budget process now. So, it would be premature for me to talk about it now without knowing where we're gonna be in a couple months,” Turman said. CBS 21 News spoke with one parent who said he would be willing to pay extra to get a full-day kindergarten model in the district. “I really feel like it's a positive thing because what if I get tied in at work,” Mike said. “Of course it's gonna come out of my pocket, but it's also gonna be positive.” According to Turman, Central Dauphin School District is the last district in Dauphin County without a full-day kindergarten option. “I can only imagine as a parent trying to figure out, you know my child's five years old, what do I do for the other day half day,” Turman said. The changes are set to be implemented in the school district during the 2026-2027 school year.">
Live The Hershey Theatre will close its doors for nearly a year starting in January for extensive renovations. (CBS 21) The Hershey Theatre, a cherished landmark in central Pennsylvania, will close its doors for nearly a year starting in January for extensive renovations. The final show before the closure will be "Pretty Woman," scheduled for January. Debbie DiNunzio, who has worked at the Hershey Theatre since January 1975, reflected on her nearly 50-year tenure. "Oh, I'm here every day, pretty much every day," she said. She began working for the theatre doing secretarial work. After that, she worked in wardrobe. Now, she works with the volunteers, such as the ushers. DiNunzio, described by some as the heart of the theatre, has seen hundreds of shows and countless visitors. "The first show I worked was... golly I can't even remember. I think it was with 'Give 'em Hell, Harry,'" she said. DiNunzio, a volunteer specialist for the M.S. Hershey Foundation, shared her favorite part of the job. "It's like when people go to New York City and they look straight up at the skyscrapers," she said. "They are smiling and they're showing their friends to look up, so that never gets old." Donald Papson, executive director of the M.S. Hershey Foundation, outlined the planned renovations. "We are redoing air conditioning, we're doing heating, we're redoing the electrical systems," he said. "We are looking at redoing the entirety of the 1,904 seats that are in the theater. We're looking at new carpeting and so many things are gonna be changed." However, Papson said when guests come back to the building, they won't notice much of a difference. "The building won't look that much different because we are maintaining the historical integrity of Hershey Theatre," Papson said. DiNunzio expressed mixed feelings about the closure. She said it's going to be strange having the theatre's doors closed for 10 months. However, she said she's already looking forward to the theatre's reopening in December 2025. "Just to see what shows will be booked after that and seeing the guests and the ushers again," she said. The first show after the renovations is yet to be determined, but the theatre is set to welcome back audiences on Dec. 1, 2025.">
Live Village of Lights (CBS 21) Kevin Freedman, the owner, said the display was created with the assistance of Christmas Décor of Harrisburg. Freedman explained that while the venue is typically popular for weddings, there is a lull in activity during the winter months. "We wanted to use the space as a place to bring the community together during the holidays," Freedman said. More Videos 0 seconds of 0 seconds Volume 90% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard Shortcuts Shortcuts Open/Close / or ? Play/Pause SPACE Increase Volume ↑ Decrease Volume ↓ Seek Forward → Seek Backward ← Captions On/Off c Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreen f Mute/Unmute m Decrease Caption Size - Increase Caption Size + or = Seek % 0-9 Next Up Village of Lights brightens Elizabethtown with holiday cheer https://local21news.com/news/local/village-of-lights-brightens-elizabethtown-with-holiday-cheer?video=WHP/2024-12-20T21:58:09.120Z/31ba4eee-b5ff-4bbe-b136-51a9d9744060/HLS/index Live WHP The Village of Lights offers a long walk through the light display, a wine garden, firepits, local vendors, and more. The event will be open through December 29, and tickets are required for entry. Tickets can be purchased online or onsite.">
