COLUMBIA SPY

  LINK

https://townlively.com/honoring-heroes-in-columbia-2/  

 

Beginning immediately, the Columbia Borough Police Department and Columbia Borough Codes Department are cracking down on people who throw household waste into public trash receptacles. MORE: https://lancaster.crimewatchpa.com/columbiapd/10552/post/residential-trash-notice-columbia-borough  

  This audio is being posted as a public service, since borough officials have not posted a recording of the meeting to YouTube as promised. Details will be posted later.

The estate of Richard S. Mimnall conveyed 284 S. Fourth St. to Patricia A. Mimnall for $1. Mina Stahl and Wilhelmine Stahl conveyed 639 Manor St. to Greystone Enterprises 401K Plan and James F. Schmucker for $1. Beth C. Siegrist, Joel M. Siegrist and Ryan S. Siegrist conveyed 840 Walnut St. to Nathan Curtis Eck and Alyssa Marie Leister for $225,000. James Wildon conveyed property on North Sixth Street to BML Real Estate LLC for $120,000. David A. Wise and Kelli A. Wise conveyed property on South Third Street to Christ S. Smucker for $179,900. The estate of Saranne Lydon conveyed 911 Walnut St. to Jared A. Keim and Alexandra C. Lydon for $1. The estate of Edna May Williams conveyed 479 Manor St. to F&R Romas LLC for $45,000.

This week's photos of Columbia (Click/tap on photos to see larger, sharper images.) A state police officer who was monitoring the Veterans Memorial Bridge prevented a truck driver from taking his rig across. Currently, there's a 10-ton weight limit due to deterioration. The officer then apparently informed the driver of the proper route to take.   No ticket was issued this time, and the officer continued monitoring. Will the bridge hold out until the 2025 rehab begins? Should the town be returned to its original name? Flags a-fluttering Locust Street Park Empty seats at the August 22, 2023 Columbia Borough Council meeting. Council voted to spend $1.4 million that evening. When it comes to our local government, if you don't pay attention, you'll just keep paying. A recording of this meeting still has not been posted to YouTube, as was promised.  So much for transparency from a body that's devolving further into secrecy. Water main replacement project on the 500 bloc...

  Members of Boy Scout Troop 35 were busy scraping, painting, and stenciling curbs around town this morning, Saturday, August 26. The endeavor is part of an Eagle Scout project undertaken by scout Derick K.  Older brother Travis and Rebecca W. helped out by providing stenciling for the freshly painted curbs.

 In this case, 1 minute and 8 seconds.

The Columbia Borough Board of School Directors remains committed to providing a positive, safe, and supportive environment in our schools. We continue to invest by upgrading our facilities with safety features, regular safety trainings, and allocating resources. At the August 24, 2023, Regular School Board meeting, the board voted to hire a District Safety and Security Manager. In addition, the District will post two safety officer positions to serve as security resources in each of our schools. These steps were necessary because: The Columbia Borough Police Department will not provide a School Resource Officer (SRO), a service which is commonly provided by local police departments, to all surrounding districts. Due to the police department not providing an SRO, the District worked with the Borough to hire a Community Safety Officer (CSO) for the Hill Campus location. At the June 13, 2023 Columbia Borough Council meeting, less than one year later, the Council voted (6-1) to terminate t...

 

The board approved a change in school district policy to allow commercial advertising in schools. In a 6-0 vote, the board codified a contract with Market Street Sports Group to sell advertising/sponsorship rights to local businesses for the district's sports teams. The school district receives 70% of net proceeds in a two-year agreement. No local advertisers have signed on with Columbia Borough schools yet. Sports facilities will not be part of the naming rights. The district plans to use proceeds to fund future athletic programs. MORE: https://lancasteronline.com/news/regional/columbia-borough-school-board-oks-commercial-advertising-in-schools/article_4129fb38-4126-11ee-8b88-c7ea2c54d3f3.html  

Local governments in Pennsylvania might soon have the option to hire professional firms to be municipal managers, a change that proponents say could improve local government services while saving taxpayers money. Three sets of bills in the legislature would amend the governing laws for Pennsylvania boroughs, second class townships, and third class cities — classified by population sizes — and provide an alternative municipal management option. First class townships have had the choice since 2020. Under current law, Pennsylvania municipalities can only appoint individuals as managers, a rule that state Rep. Bob Freeman (D., Northampton) said can be particularly burdensome for smaller communities that are unable to pay the salary and benefits of a full-time administrator or manager on their own. MORE: https://www.spotlightpa.org/statecollege/2023/08/pennsylvania-legislature-local-government-management/  

Local government accountability involves everyone. In January, Spotlight PA hosted a virtual panel on Pennsylvania's fragmented system of local government and how that setup affects municipal oversight. Spotlight PA held a follow-up panel on Aug. 3 to discuss how Pennsylvanians can be better involved in local government and what to do when problems arise. Here are five takeaways from the conversation, which can be viewed in full on spotlightpa.org . Throughout the discussion, the panelists stressed the need for the public to pay attention to local government, and emphasized the influence residents can have on municipal transparency. They lamented the decline of local news outlets, which had a long tradition of keeping residents informed. Without newsrooms, residents and officials can be further alienated from each other. For local governments to be accountable, Elia said elected officials should try to make public information easily accessible to constituents and listen to them eve...

  Three sheriffs' vehicles and several officers, including a K-9 officer, were seen in the area of South 3rd & Cherry Streets Tuesday morning (8/22/23), shortly before noon. No further information is available at this time. [Submitted photos]

  The meeting packet is  HERE .