There it is in black and white:
Shovel your sidewalk. At least three feet in width. Don't throw the snow into the street after the street has been plowed.
Up to $600 fine plus costs possible for non-compliance.
No parking at designated times, even if the sweeper is not running.
$treet $weeper.
ReplyDeleteWhat a joke. Name one other town in this whole state that runs street sweepers WEEKLY on ALL streets. Even Lancaster City doesn't. A real pain for people that work during 2nd or 3rd shifts and have to move their cars when the stupid thing only runs every 3 weeks on average.
I say let's send the street sweeper to Sahd's for scrapping. Who's with me?
--FMB
I love the system - because it makes cars that are camped out for days on end move and keeps the spaces opened up - although meters would do the same thing
ReplyDeleteWhy do we need to keep cars moving? It's not like moving cars actually creates space. It simply moves it to another location. On most streets (in non row-home blocks) moving cars frequently it is a waste of gas. There isn't anything for the sweeper to pick up, except ticket revenue.
ReplyDeleteMeters are for places with visitors coming and going to conduct business (and collect revenue from those people that are mostly forced to come). But downtown Columbia is dead. Downtown most places are dead. Ample free (in a sense) parking at malls and suburban stores works better. Stupid and expensive parking regulations that serve no purpose have helped kill downtowns. This is the automobile age... either adapt or step aside.
No sense for meters anymore.
--FMB
well - maybe it depends on your location to some degree. Let's at least assume that we want more business in downtown Columbia. If that's the case, moving from the square out in a number of directions we need more meters ! Areas including Second Street between Locust and Chestnut, Chestnut Street between Third and Fourth, Fourth Street between Chestnut and Cherry, Walnut Street between Front and Fourth, etc. These are mostly "row house" streets. As to "non row house streets", I think you are right that meters are not needed in the heavy residential areas.
Delete.As to "downtown Columbia being dead, you're dead wrong about this. Business in Columbia is growing quite rapidly. Just for example, stop by Burning Bridge on any given Saturday or Sunday mid afternoon, or the State Theater, or Tollbooth Antiques, etc., etc.. These places are much busier then they were three, two, and even one year ago and it's very obvious.
Meters and parking tickets should also be at least double in price from what they are now. It's a joke to get 30 minutes for a quarter. 10 or 15 is the norm.
Make it $1000 an hour. Nobody is parking there now, and won't as long as you have to pay.. I just don't see how overcharging for parking will convince businesses and people to come downtown. Parking is what you do after you are already attracting people. Nobody comes to see the meters. Does the meter cop still stalk patrons of Stover's? Talk about your business-friendly towns.
ReplyDeleteBut to your examples - Burning bridge has their own lot. So does tollbooth and the place in the tobacco warehouse behind Columbia #1. See a pattern developing? I know many planners love to espouse TODs and walking cities, but those people are a long ways away from reality.
Downtown Columbia is DEAD. Ding, dong, put a fork in it, that's all folks! And the problem will not be fixed until we accept the fact. A few antique shops will not save the town. If it did, then every town would be saved because that's all any of them have anymore.
--FMB
The issue with meters is to drive out long term residential parking in prime business areas. People coming to shop don't mind plugging meters with pocket change.
ReplyDeleteThe antique industry can save a town, and has jump started many including Columbia. Look at towns such as New Hope PA, Farmersville Virginia, etc.
Columbia is now known in the industry as being the best destination in the Central Penn area for wholesale and retail antique purchases, and we have more then " a few shops" I imagine that there are now over 500 vendors between all of the antique Malls, and five years ago there were less then 50 !
If you are seeing the growth, I imagine that you have not taken a stroll through the various antique markets lately on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon ?
Downtown Columbia my friend, is on the rise !, Less then five years from now the rental price on downtown store fronts will be triple what it is today - and no one will mind plugging meters with pocket change !
5 years, eh? I heard the same crap at least 10 years ago. Never happened. But hey, keep telling yourself the next 5 years will be different.
Delete--FMB
Too bad the street sweeper can't pick up the piles of dog feces left all over the borough.
ReplyDeleteToo bad the meter cops can't be given the authority to write tickets for dog feces. When was the last time anyone was fined in Columbia for dog feces ? If no one has been fined, then that means that it is just one of those old laws on the books that don't matter any more. I guess the bottom line is that we really don't mind dog feces in Columbia, because if we did - we would insist that our leaders give out citations, which obviously they don't.
ReplyDeletethis is a small town - if one person got a $50. fine for dog crapping on public land - the word would get out and people would stop letting dogs crap on public land
ReplyDeleteThen you had a certain former councilperson that used to take his/her dog to river park all the time (despite the signs).
Delete--FMB
if there weren't meters downtown...there would be NO Parking...you see ALL the rental properties tenants would park at every meter every day all day.
ReplyDeletei do think the Antiques is a big plus for downtown and also the Historic Museum is doing great things too!!
exactly ! - and at a quarter an hour - rental property tenants are still plugging meters ! - go to a quarter for 15 minutes and rental property tenants will park out side the prime business and take a short walk ( on no - the poor folk on welfare smoking a pack a day and eating tv dinner gotta walk three blocks twice a day ) - and the rich antique shoppers won't mind plugging for quarters for an hour - and Columbia Borough will make more money !!
Deletei think that every homeowner, renter, etc SHOULD SWEEP THEIR SIDEWALK and put that dirt, etc in with thier weekly trash.....weekly or as needed. yet again, it would need to be enforced. the street sweeper should NOT run during the winter months like say December 1 thru February 28. what a waste of gas, polution moving cars and for no reason. we must insist the boro either street sweeps every week or changes all the signs....to once every 6 weeks etc....WE are the ones who pay the taxes...again this boros mgmt does what IT wants to do instead of what the 10,000 plus residents want. its time to make our voices heard and attend boro council mtgs. seriously. maybe part of the problem is those in charge in this boro dont care
ReplyDelete