The Harvester grew over time, and the population along with it. As more mechanics were needed to fix and break down the ever-growing conglomeration of machinery, their everyday needs were being met by every sort of entrepreneur looking to stake a claim in the newfound economic center.
As shifts grew from weeks to months, peddlers and shop-keeps eventually stopped traveling off-site themselves and, just like the machinery before it, living quarters expanded in to communities, towns, even regions of their own.
While the "official" purpose of the colony remains locating and harvesting lost ships and space debris, as inter-planetary travel becomes more "in-demand" to the masses, and as the ship itself continues to increase its overall storage capacity, the long trips have come to double as "migratory shifts" for a vast number of the working class that can't afford the typical federation ferry costs.
The shifts last for months compared to the usual 3-4 days, and the working conditions are rough, if not downright dangerous, but for many these "Conglomerated Vessels" are the only way off their crumbling planetary ecosystems....and there's no shortage of overseer's willing to take on unregulated and cheap labor.