Harrisburg, Pa., has begun advertising for a consulting firm to help lead the city's long-range comprehensive plan. The deadline to receive the proposals is 5 p.m. Nov. 28.
The comprehensive plan, part of the city's financial recovery blueprint, will be designed as a 20-year document with updates at intervals of five to 10 years.
Advertisements of the request for expressions of interest will appear in publications and on the city's website. The RFEI is the next step in the comprehensive plan process, following appointment of a committee representing diverse residents, business and community interests to provide input and guidance.
"This is the start of a months-long process that will help plan our city's growth for the next two decades," Mayor Eric Papenfuse said in a statement. "We are now actively seeking the right consulting firm to help us develop this important blueprint for our future."
The city is seeking a consulting firm with significant connections to the community. It is encouraging qualified local companies, as well as local minority-owned business enterprises and women-owned business enterprises (MBE/WBEs) to submit an RFEI.
Pennsylvania's 49,000-population capital narrowly avoided bankruptcy last year by crafting a financial recovery plan that erased more than $600 million of debt. Having received Commonwealth Court approval on the plan, the city exited state receivership in March, though it's still under state oversight through the Act 47 workout program for distressed communities.
