State officials in Pennsylvania have announced a new plan for the revitalized future of the Department of General Services Annex, formerly known as the Harrisburg State Hospital.
The history of the site goes back to 1851, when Pennsylvania’s first mental hospital was built there.
At the time, it was called the Pennsylvania State Lunatic Hospital and Union Asylum for the Insane.
Capacity at the complex peaked at 2441 but eventually was whittled down by the development of new psychiatric medicines and deinstitutionalization.
The hospital closed in 2006.
Since then, most buildings have sat vacant, despite numerous attempts to redevelop the site.