I read your special edition on the Convention Center and especially noticed the role played by High Construction. You did a great job on that report. But what really puzzles me is why you aren’t equally upset by what High is doing now to ram their Crossings development through the MT Commissioners before the end of this year.
I am also upset by High’s use of federal earmark money to pay for the changes to Harrisburg Pike that the Commissioners have said must be made. Also, High is listed as a lead developer for additional millions in a new US DOT stimulus program. Why aren’t you looking into that?
High is again trying to get federal transportation stimulus funds (that’s taxpayer money) to pay for the changes to Harrisburg Pike that Manheim Twp. Commissioners are requiring as part of their conditional approval for the Crossings. He is also rushing the process in order to get it approved before Simpson and Downing are off the board (they were 2 of the 3 commissioners who voted in favor of giving approval to the project in the split 3/2 vote). High twice got MT to change the zoning to High’s specifications and also got them to amend their flood zone ordinance to allow High to build closer to the creek than was permitted in that ordinance. In short, what High wants, High gets.
EDITOR: The convention center involved all sorts of conflict of interests, deceits, and perhaps conspiracy with the presumed guardian of the public interest, the Lancaster Newspapers, Inc., conflicted because of its partnership interest in the project hotel. With the Crossings, High is basically working the system. That doesn’t mean that we agree with their requests for government funding (we don’t). The fault lies with our general system of campaign finance. We will discuss that in detail in the near future.
