This was an upbeat, fun day for Columbia. A great turnout and everyone seemed happy.
Anonymous said…
Happy until they see the costs to the boro come in. As a business person, I just can't see this building coming close to covering its costs. Way more building than was needed for the job.
They will be renting the building out on Mondays and Tuesdays in addition to anytime after 5pm every other day of the week.
Anonymous said…
The Borough Website's listing of grant funding for this, and other projects, suggests that everyone in the state paid for the project with taxes.
Grant funding comes through tax revenue. http://www.columbiapa.net/projects/ http://www.columbiapa.net/category/projects/
In 2012, the 2nd phase, also supported through Keystone funds, was completed and connected the Borough’s downtown business district to Riverfront Park, incorporating façade and street improvements, ADA access across the existing railroad tracks, and a trail width sidewalk which connects the park to Lancaster County’s Northwest River Trail. The park serves as the southern trailhead of the Northwest River Trail. In 2013, the borough acquired additional Keystone funding for the construction of the Park & Trail Services Building.
Anonymous said…
The boro is responsible for the operating costs of this monstrosity. The heating & cooling, electric, insurance, security,& many other maint issues that WILL arise. WAY MORE BUILDING THAN WAS NEEDED. I didn't see Rapho put a building on the other end.
Anonymous said…
Yes. Exactly. Tried to inform all Borough Mgmt of this about 8 years ago.....no one listens. The bldg while beautiful is out of place....1 smaller bldg would have been sufficient. No green space left. The architiect was not a good choice and should have been left go before it even got to the final plans/blueprints. She definitely had NO idea. Yes it will cost the Boro $$$$ for janitors, electric, heat, cooling, security, clean up AND advertising.
Chris Vera [Columbia Spy file photo] The following information is excerpted from a December 6, 2025 LNP Watchdog article by LNP | LancasterOnline reporter Jade Campos. Still reeling from an abrupt firing from his role as head of the Columbia Market House in March, Chris Vera was surprised to get a letter in the mail from a Columbia Borough attorney two weeks later telling him he was banned indefinitely from borough property. The letter gave no reason for the ban. Nine months later, Vera, who has served as president of the Columbia Historic Preservation Society for more than a decade and has helped with the borough’s comprehensive plan, is still banned from borough property. He believes the ban includes borough parks, which is part of the reason he moved his annual Albatwitch Day festival, which celebrates the myth of a local cryptid, to Wrightsville. Vera said he’s not sure why the borough went to such lengths to keep him away from public spaces given his termination from the borough s...
NATHAN WILLISON | LNP Staff Writer An East Donegal Township man is facing criminal charges after police say he struck a 13-year-old with his truck and fled the scene last month. Derek Scott Mohr, 28, is charged with causing an accident involving death or injury without a license, failing to stop to render aid, driving at an unsafe speed and related charges. Mohr had been driving a 2013 Chevrolet Silverado through Chestnut Street in Columbia around 8 p.m. March 20 when he struck a 13-year-old boy riding a motorized scooter and continued driving, according to charging documents filed by police. When police arrived, they found the boy with a broken leg and a cut to his forehead. His scooter was lying nearby, its handlebars completely snapped off. Another teenager who witnessed what happened described the truck to police and said that the driver made no attempt to stop after striking the boy. Surveillance footage collected from the area shows the truck striking the b...
GUEST COMMENTARY [Name withheld by request out of fear of retaliation] For two decades, Leo Lutz has occupied the mayor's office in Columbia, and his supporters are quick to credit him with every positive development in our borough, but leadership is a two-way street. If Mayor Lutz is going to accept praise for Columbia's successes, many of which, frankly, he had little direct involvement in, then he must also be held accountable for our failures. The facts paint a troubling picture. Despite the mayor's repeated assurances that our streets are safe, we've witnessed a disturbing rise in assaults, shootings, and vandalism. His promises have fallen by the wayside: the foot patrol we were promised never materialized, nor did the bike patrol that was supposed to increase our sense of security. Fiscally, the situation is equally dire. Taxes have increased at least twice during Mayor Lutz's tenure, yet the borough now finds itself millions of dollars in debt. This isn...
Comments
Grant funding comes through tax revenue.
http://www.columbiapa.net/projects/
http://www.columbiapa.net/category/projects/
In 2012, the 2nd phase, also supported through Keystone funds, was completed and connected the Borough’s downtown business district to Riverfront Park, incorporating façade and street improvements, ADA access across the existing railroad tracks, and a trail width sidewalk which connects the park to Lancaster County’s Northwest River Trail. The park serves as the southern trailhead of the Northwest River Trail. In 2013, the borough acquired additional Keystone funding for the construction of the Park & Trail Services Building.
I didn't see Rapho put a building on the other end.
Yes it will cost the Boro $$$$ for janitors, electric, heat, cooling, security, clean up AND advertising.