About Town - May 4, 2025

This week's photos of Columbia

Click on photos to see larger, sharper images.

The SPCA was in town this week.

They left notices at a residence.

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Workers used a giant crane to hoist materials onto the roof of the National Watch & Clock Museum. 

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Trucks at the 4th Street truck terminal 

Saturday morning at the Market House 

Signs down!

Historic house on Chestnut 

Free landlord/tenant guides detailing renters rights and other topics are available at the municipal building, 308 Locust Street. The Spanish version (left) contains 97 pages, and the English version has 93. 

This is still in effect. 

Lights on at the bridge plaza

Cannon, partially hidden 

Bricks, partially hidden 

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It's that time of year.

Please don't litter.

Possum, not playing possum

Shawnee Run in the morning 

Hidden in plain sight

Out in the open

A formidable doorway at the former Cookman Church

 Now on the 600 block of Chestnut 

Five units are planned near 4th & Linden.

Meeting at Columbia Crossing 

Advertisement along Route 441

Black snake, apparently right after a meal

Two boneheaded beanie buddies

The Cathouse, Columbia, PA

Borough council members

Collection day

Up the highway and onto the sidewalk 

3-wheeler

On March 26, 2025, Manor Street Apartments LLC conveyed 745 Manor St. to WG Sponsor LLC, WG Manor I. LLC, WG Manor II LLC, WG Manor III LLC for $1,500,000. In the sale listing, Bennett Williams described the building as "a workforce housing apartment community..." - whatever that means. The listing also stated "the Property consists of 14 units with an opportunity to build an additional 36-60 new apartments." 

This structure at 1020 Manor is slated for demolition.  

It's wise to be prepared. 

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Here are a few from Todd Stahl:

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Low-hanging branches on South 4th

[Photo: Bull Warfel]

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Police forces in Lancaster County apply for ICE immigration enforcement program

https://local21news.com/news/local/police-forces-in-lancaster-county-apply-for-ice-immigration-enforcement-program-task-force-model-lancaster-sheriffs-office-northwest-regional-pennsylvania-pa 

CONTEST - COLUMBIA BOROUGH SCHOOL DISTRICT STUDENTS IN GRADES 7 THROUGH 12 | Columbia Borough Police Department

https://lancaster.crimewatchpa.com/columbiapd/10552/post/contest-columbia-borough-school-district-students-grades-7-through-12 

Community Action Partnership of Lancaster County Offers Diverse Anti-Poverty Programs

 

The Community Action Partnership of Lancaster County (CAP) continues to expand its range of initiatives aimed at addressing poverty in the region.

Recognizing that poverty is complex and its contributing factors vary, CAP has worked in recent years to develop innovative, person-centered initiatives to augment our many long-standing and successful anti-poverty programs.

Among CAP's service offerings is the Crispus Attucks Community Center, which focuses on improving quality of life for youth and families in Lancaster through programs that promote community prosperity and health while preserving African American heritage through cultural events.

For victims of domestic violence, CAP's Domestic Violence Services provides critical support including emergency shelter, transitional housing, counseling, free legal services, children's programming, and 24/7 phone and text helplines.

Families with young children can access Thrive to Five (formerly Head Start), which delivers comprehensive birth-to-5 programming throughout all Lancaster County school districts. The Early Learning Resource Center (ELRC) supplements these efforts by providing child care subsidies for income-eligible working parents or those in training programs, along with referrals to quality, affordable child care options.

Other family-focused initiatives include Parents as Teachers, a home-visiting program promoting positive child development through parenting education, and RISE (Resilience, Inspiration, Strength, Empowerment), which coaches individuals and families in assessing needs, setting goals, connecting to communities, and celebrating progress.

CAP also offers targeted support through Reentry Connections for individuals returning to the community after incarceration, and Senior Centers providing free meals, educational activities, financial education and wellness programming for members over 60 in Lancaster City and Columbia.

Additional services include Utility Assistance for income-qualified customers of PPL, UGI, and Lancaster City water, and the WIC (Women, Infants and Children) Nutrition Program, which offers nutrition education, healthy foods, breastfeeding support, and referrals to health and social services for pregnant and post-partum women and children up to age 5.

For more information about these programs, residents can visit www.caplanc.org or call 717-299-7301.

The Law on E-Dirt bikes and Electric bikes | Columbia Borough Police Department

https://lancaster.crimewatchpa.com/columbiapd/10552/post/law-e-dirt-bikes-and-electric-bikes 

Columbia's Hometown Hero banners return

 

Borough worker Chuck Wallick hangs a Hometown Hero banner on North 2nd Street Friday afternoon. 

It's that time of year, and Hometown Hero banners are going up around town again.

The current batch, from an order that closed in January, will bring the total to over 660. The banners honor Columbia's military veterans and active-duty personnel. 

On Friday afternoon, Columbia Spy caught up with Bob Smith and Chuck Wallick hanging a banner on North 2nd Street. Bob, who leads the project, notes there's a small challenge this year: PPL is in the process of replacing utility poles around town. That means that banners already hung on poles slated for replacement must be removed, and then rehung on the new poles. PPL has plans to replace several poles this year and routinely notify the borough of which ones will be replaced. “They call Jake [Graham, Columbia's public works manager] and give him the numbers of the poles they're replacing,” Bob says.

Bob Smith gets components from the work truck. 

Bob, who's been with the project for almost three years, says he's winding down his participation and that this year will be his last. He's thankful that the borough embraced the initiative from the beginning. “I'd like to thank borough workers and others for all their help on this project,” he said.