Council votes YES on LASA

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In a 4-2 decision, Columbia Borough Council voted at tonight's Committee of the Whole meeting to sell its wastewater treatment assets to the Lancaster Area Sewer Authority. Voting for the sale were Councilpersons Ford, Murphy, Gable, and Barninger. Weisser and Beury voted against. Councilman Jim Smith was absent.

Tonight's vote follows last week's 4-1 vote for the sale by the Columbia Municipal Authority and eliminates the final barrier to the sale.

After continued deliberation at the meeting by the council and other officials, as well as input from citizens, it seemed the matter would be delayed indefinitely. Councilman Barry Ford stated his wish to move forward with the issue. Councilman Kelly Murphy cut through the Gordian knot by making a motion for the sale, which Ford seconded, and a vote was taken.

LASA Executive Director Mike Kyle addresses Council at the Meeting of the Whole

Comments

Anonymous said…
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
June 23, 2014 at 8:44 PM
Anonymous said…
Agree, enjoy the victory for those who chose to back this decision. In the future enjoy the tax hikes from this municipality to offset the salaries
June 23, 2014 at 8:57 PM
Anonymous said…
Can you sensor comments like the one just posted tonight. Obviously some people cannot look at a situation rationally regardless of which position they are in favor of.
June 23, 2014 at 9:06 PM
Joe Lintner said…
I don't necessarily believe in censorship, but in the one case above, I'm considering it.
June 23, 2014 at 9:19 PM
Anonymous said…
Its called unemployment
June 23, 2014 at 9:46 PM
Anonymous said…
I hope Jim Smith had a good reason for not being there, because if he didn't show up because of a tough vote than he should resign from council. These are decisions that a council faces & needs to make.
Kudos to Barry Ford for making the decision that was right for the future of Cola.
He really does have pride in this town & is trying to do what's right for its future
June 23, 2014 at 10:01 PM
Anonymous said…
Yes it sounds like Barry Ford actually weighed all the facts with an open mind. Clearly Kelly Murphy took a leadership role at the meeting last night. It was time for a vote. Council often appears unprepared and even confused at meetings. They need to do their homework before going public. If councilman Smith's absence was a ploy to buy more time then he needs to step down.
June 24, 2014 at 5:59 AM
Anonymous said…
Sitting at the meeting last night waiting for other topics to be discussed besides LASA, I got the impression that certain council members, despite their efforts to say that the money received in the sale of the wastewater plant to LASA would not be spent unwisely already have the monies spent on their own agenda. Why were they the only people who showed up for meeting concerning LASA were the members of the Columbia Market House Trust. We all know that the market house is in a terrible financial mess and obviously the people on the trust cannot run a business, but they would be the first to say they are business minded. Isn't it odd that a councilman's wife is on the trust and he kept saying how the money won't be spent unwisely? My feeling is that people who keep saying the same point over and over are either hiding something or have their own agenda. Is the market house or even shall I dare say the councilman getting a kickback from the LASA deal?
June 24, 2014 at 7:55 AM
Anonymous said…
This is not constructive. Make sure you take time to get facts before accusing. The LASA sale was a good business decision gor Cola
The markethouse has competition in towns with more to offer around them. This endeavor will only be successful when we can improve what's around it. The LASA sale was one thing that can help bring other businesses into our town, because now we are on equal ground with sewer rates which are huge to bringing in restruaunts & othee big water users.
Now we have to work on the real estate taxes.
June 24, 2014 at 1:18 PM
Anonymous said…
The way I heard it at the meeting last night:
Kelly Murphy favored placing some of the money in an account where it could not be touched for an extended period of time. This makes sense, time to think about what the money could be used for and time to compromise. The failing market house cannot be blamed on any one person, nor did it did not happen overnight.
June 24, 2014 at 2:43 PM
Anonymous said…
The money is ALL going to the RIVER PARK. Its a gold mine down there!!
June 24, 2014 at 3:43 PM
Anonymous said…
And the whole town won't benefit from the river park only a select few. No need to have alcohol in the building down there either unless the sign is changed to allow it down there. That's asking for trouble if someone has too much and lands in the river.
June 25, 2014 at 9:00 PM
Anonymous said…
The trust took over a Market House that had already failed and was being propped up by vendors that were already loosing money. This Trust is the best bunch of people ever to run the Market House. They live here and work here and they have some really good ideas . It is high time that the Borough steps up to the plate and gives the Trust some money to work with for marketing, advertising, and interior renovations instead of just dumping millions in to making the outside of the building look pretty
June 25, 2014 at 10:04 PM
Anonymous said…
That is too funny, because Renae Sears had it near full capacity and was in the black. The attendance was almost triple the amount of consumers when she ran the market house
So when you speak of the best it has ever been ran, check your facts. But of course we do not work together in Columbia because we think it is a compition or someone does not like someone else.
Do you want this town too succeed? If not, then sell your home and harass the next town you live in.
June 26, 2014 at 12:09 PM
Anonymous said…
Like Renea did ? .....
June 26, 2014 at 3:09 PM
Anonymous said…
Harass ? , what..., with another blog like this one ..... You're speaking to the choir
June 26, 2014 at 3:16 PM
Anonymous said…
seriously??? the Market trust is one of the most ridiculous groups of people ever. They have NO idea what they are doing. At least when Renae had it ...it was a thriving Market...not a old building with 3 stands. Renae always has an interest in this town.... it's a shame some of you don't.
July 30, 2014 at 12:43 PM
Anonymous said…
this council is a J O K E. i have absolutely NO respect for any of them. what a sin. they will go down in history as ruining this town. and rightly so.... the ONLY moneymaker in this town and they sell it..for what? $8.6 mil of which they have a $5 mil debt PLUS a $ 20 mil bond....it just doesn't make any sense.....wrong, wrong wrong. D U M B...this all should be kept on the front page of every blog and newspaper...along with the school district and the high taxes, etc. and the boro for doing NOTHING to encourage or assist bussinesses.
July 31, 2014 at 7:25 AM
Anonymous said…
I have to say I agree that this council will go down in history as being the complete idiots who gave this town its death sentence! and rightly so. there goes the money maker. if they only have a millionth of a brain they better get the codes dept on the straight and narrow or get rid of the dept. period. such an embarrassment! this should be on the front page of every blog, newspaper, online news, etc. this is and will be the biggest mistake in Columbias rich history. it's a sad day. time to try to sell my house, along with the thousands of others.
August 2, 2014 at 9:38 AM
Anonymous said…
this current council WILL go down in history FOREVER for handing the Boro its death sentence and for doing the WRONG thing....money talks! sad thing is...the boro will blow that money within 1 year on some frivalous BS.
August 3, 2014 at 11:24 AM
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