Council voted 5-2 to hire York-based marketing agency Gavin to handle messaging around the borough's potential purchase of the vacant McGinness Airport property. Council members Sharon Lintner and Howard Stevens were opposed to hiring the marketing firm. "I don't understand why we can't communicate with our public. ... Why do we have to pay someone to communicate with them?" Lintner asked.
In a phone conversation after the meeting, Borough Manager Mark Stivers said the borough is considering the purchase in order to create a small industrial park development or something similar, with various businesses on the property. When asked for environmental assessment records after the meeting, Stivers said they were not yet available to the public.
Borough solicitor Evan Gabel is working toward a purchase contract. Stivers said the property would be paid with a bond taken out in 2016 for a different project that did not occur. He said developing the property would greatly increase its taxable value, reducing the tax burden on citizens.
Stivers said Borough Council will publicly discuss more specifics of the redevelopment plan for the McGinness property at the Nov. 5 meeting.
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The boro should not be into real estate, industrial park i dont believe people or buisness is beating the door down to get into columbia, or is columbia looking to buy the property for don murphy to develop??? If a developer hasnt been interested in buying it why should the boro??
ReplyDeleteI seen a boro sign in the basement it read Don Murphy Industrial Park
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