COLUMBIA SPY

Council President Heather Zink: The borough may consider fining property owners up to $600 a day until they comply with a violation. [File photo] What happened: Council members have started work on changing the way the borough deals with residential landlords who fail to fix property issues, such as trash accumulation, pest infestation, overrun weeds and more. What's new: The borough may consider fining property owners up to $600 a day until they comply with a violation, Zink said in the call. What would change: Council members approved a "quick ticket" ordinance in 2014 that allows employees to issue tickets to property owners for neglecting routine upkeep. Fees start at $25 for the first violation, $50 for the second violation for the same incident and then $100 for the third time. Problems: Some property owners, however, would rather pay the fines than perform maintenance, Zink said Aug. 28. In addition, landlords may appeal each quick ticket, which could draw out the ...

When: Columbia school board meeting, Thursday, Aug. 29. What happened: The school board approved a five-year contract with current Superintendent Ashley Rizzo, effective July 1, 2025. By the numbers: Under this new contract, Rizzo will earn a salary of $199,000 for the first year, plus a $7,000 stipend if she fulfills the responsibilities of the human resources director. The contract includes potential annual raises based on her workload and performance, Keith Ramsey, business manager, said Friday. Rizzo's current salary is $178,652. Details: Columbia Borough and Eastern Lancaster County school districts share some personnel positions, including the technology director, business manager and human resources director, Ramsey said Friday; however, the agreement between the districts is up at the end of 2024-25. Donna Prokay, human resources director,  will only continue with Columbia if the board renews the contract with ELANCO or if it passes a new one, Ramsey said. MORE: https://...

Photo of a fire at an apartment building at 209 Walnut Street, August 21, 2024. Columbia Borough Fire Chief Scott Ryno said recent fires in the borough are not suspicious in nature. "It's an unfortunate chain of events," he said at Tuesday’s borough council meeting. He said the fires were due to unsafe practices rather than arson. Ryno added that although the fires were accidental, they were also preventable. Ryno highlighted issues at fire scenes that contributed to fires, including hoarding and electrical problems. He noted unsafe practices such as connecting an air conditioner to a power strip, then to an extension cord, and finally to an outlet. Ryno also noted a growing hoarding problem in some rental properties. "We're seeing deplorable living conditions," he said, in which there are “too many people” living in a particular property. He also cited "doubling up," where one family moves in with another, adding to the fire load situation.

At Tuesday night's Columbia Borough Council meeting, Mayor Leo Lutz said that police have stepped up enforcement of ordinances governing e-bikes and e-scooters. Riders have been cited for various traffic infractions. “The guys are stepping it up, and there have been citations,” Lutz said. Currently, bicycles aren't permitted on sidewalks, according to borough ordinance. Councilman Peter Stahl noted Police Chief Jack Brommer's recent reminder that e-scooters are prohibited on borough streets and sidewalks. Stahl said scooters are permitted only in designated areas such as [certain] parks. The Pennsylvania Vehicle Code "prohibits the use of electric scooters, electric skateboards, and electric unicycles on public roadways."

 Columbia Borough, PA Alert:    The Columbia Water Company will replace a water main on South Third Street Between Locust and Cherry Streets beginning September 3, 2024.  The work is expected to be completed by October 11th.  Parking and traffic flow disruptions are expected.   

Police have charged a Columbia man with kidnapping a woman in Lancaster city Saturday. Lancaster city police charged Jvian Mendez-Gonzalez, 18, with felony kidnapping for trapping a woman in his car and driving at a high speed while threatening her. According to a criminal complaint, the woman told police she met up with Mendez-Gonzalez in Holly Pointe Park, near the Conestoga River in southeast Lancaster, around 1 a.m. Saturday. The woman told police that, after conversing in Mendez-Gonzalez's car for several hours, he became irate after seeing a promise ring on the woman's necklace. The woman told police he pulled the $200 necklace from her neck and threw it out the window into the park. She then got out of the car to look for it. Police say that Mendez demanded the woman get back into the car and threatened to follow her if she tried to walk away. When the woman got back in the vehicle, Mendez-Gonzalez refused to take the woman home and drove over 100 mph on Route 30 west, a...

  The meeting packet is  HERE .

When: Columbia Council meeting Aug. 13. What happened: Although council unanimously approved two zoning exceptions for a proposed residential project at 750 S. Ninth St., members discovered three days later the borough failed to comply with its municipal planning code by not notifying nearby property owners or advertising and holding a public hearing on the matter. [Note: The issue came into question when former council member Sharon Lintner asked how the neighbors had been notified.] Quotable: “A mistake was made,” Heather Zink, council president, said during an Aug. 19 phone interview. “We have since rectified it.” Solution: A public hearing will happen during the Sept. 3 meeting, after the borough notifies property owners and advertises the matter twice, Zink said during the phone call. Details: The company planning the rental development could have proceeded to build, but Eli King, who owns Valley View Capital LLC in Strasburg, said in an Aug. 21 phone interview that he wanted to b...

McBride Michael P, McBride Erica J. conveyed 128 N. Eighth St. to Giger Tylor Scott for $255,000. Fritz Ronald W. Jr., Fritz Michelle M. conveyed 434 Manor St. to Edwin P. Daughenbaugh Jr. for $75,000. Valley View Capital LLC conveyed 216 S. Fifth St. to Proverb Realty LLC for $120,000. Andreas Heisey conveyed property on Poplar Street to Tmmt Holdings LLC for $685,000. Benjamin E. Otterbein conveyed 123 N. Eighth St. to Wandell Faith, Dunn Andrew for $280,000. Mannino Guiseppe, Mannino Filomena conveyed 429 Locust St. to 429 Locust St. LLC for $150,000. Vera Carol A, Benedict Scott D. conveyed 220 River Front to Carol A. Vera for $90,000.

  This week's photos of Columbia   (Click/tap on photos to see larger, sharper images.) At least four people climbed across a stopped train to enter or exit Columbia River Park Friday morning. A woman leaving the park narrowly avoided tragedy when the train began moving as she was crossing. Here's why you shouldn't try to cross a stopped train. Another train could be traveling on the track beside it, as happened here. The train was stopped for about an hour. According to a post by the Columbia Borough Police Department, the train became disabled and stopped for repairs. Police arrived to monitor the situation. Adding to matters, a second train had stopped behind the first. At about the same time the train incident was happening, a tree in front of the Lloyd Mifflin House up the street was damaged by a vehicle. According to witnesses, a moving van delivering furniture hit the tree. The photo above shows the result after the Columbia Borough Public Works crew cut the damaged ...