COLUMBIA SPY

Tuesday, July 25, 2023

Columbia Borough is done with livestreaming - and maybe transparency

At the June 27, 2023 Columbia Borough Council meeting, Council President Heather Zink announced that borough meetings will no longer be livestreamed due to issues with Comcast and Facebook. Instead, meetings are to be recorded and posted on the borough's YouTube channel the next day. However, the July 11, 2023 meeting, held two weeks ago, has not been posted, and neither has an explanation. Fortunately, Columbia Spy has posted an audio recording of the meeting HERE.

(To be fair, a video recording of the first meeting under the new procedure (July 6, 2023) was posted, although a day late.)

Without livestreaming, residents will no longer be able to view meetings in real time, unless they attend in person, and not everyone is able to do so. Posting video recordings is a second best option, but one that residents might be left with - if only borough officials would do it in a timely manner. Otherwise, transparency will take another hit from an already secretive borough government.

Donegal Substance Abuse Alliance opens Columbia location

When Stacy Emminger helped form Donegal Substance Abuse Alliance (DSAA) a few years ago, she knew she wanted to someday expand the program beyond its Mount Joy location. That someday is now.

DSAA will open a satellite location in Columbia on Tuesday, Aug. 15. It will be located inside the Columbia Market House, 15 S. Third St., and will be open on Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m

MORE:

https://townlively.com/read/columbia-hellam-wrightsville/

Columbia School Board: No tax hike, attendance is up, security discussed

When: Columbia school board meeting, June 15.

What happened: The school board unanimously approved the adoption of the final budget for the 2023-24 school year beginning July 1.

By the numbers: The $31.36 million budget comes with no tax property increase. The board also passed a resolution for the commitment of the June 30 fund balance; the resolution determines the area where money within the budget will be allocated throughout the year. The real estate tax millage rate will remain unchanged at 26.46, or $26.46 in taxes for every $1,000 of assessed taxable property valuation. The homestead and farmstead exclusion will reduce tax bills by about $430.93 per qualifying property.

Attendance: Columbia High School’s attendance rate increased from 87% to 91%, with a goal of 95% during the past school year. In addition, Columbia Middle School Taylor Campus’ literacy rate jumped from 3% in the first quarter to 29% by the end of the school year based on the rate of students scoring proficient or higher on Text Dependent Analysis exams.

School security: Columbia Borough Council reached out to the school board to discuss a potential new community service officer agreement.

Quotable: “Dissolving this agreement would be abandoning our children and their safety during these turbulent times, not only in our country but in our backyards, here in Columbia, where crime and violence continue to increase,” board President Charles Leader expressed a written statement to council and school board members.

Morgan Huber For LNP | LancasterOnline

When will the mayflies swarm in Lancaster County?

And so it begins. Mayflies have begun hatching in the Susquehanna River.

Columbia recently began darkening the lights on the Veterans Memorial Bridge between Columbia and Wrightsville to stave off accelerated mayfly hatches caused by recent hot weather.

The typical hatching period is late June to early July, said riverkeeper Ted Evgeniadis.

In previous years, hoards of mayflies have swarmed manmade structures near the Susquehanna River -- including the Veterans Memorial Bridge that connects Columbia to Wrightsville.

https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/when-will-the-mayflies-swarm-in-lancaster-county/article_b65fd660-8ba0-11e9-a0ed-03383608fdac.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=email&utm_campaign=user-share

Agenda - Columbia Borough Council Meeting - July 25, 2023

The meeting packet is HERE.

Monday, July 24, 2023

Deeds Recorded - Columbia Borough - July 24, 2023

Abby Smith and Abby M. Aston conveyed property on Staman Lane to John C. Kiebach and Avril R. Kiebach for $275,000.

The estate of Charles L. Bink Jr. conveyed 823 Locust St. to Highmount Properties LLC for $161,500.

Stephen S. Perry conveyed 432 Chestnut St. to Michael Earl Hochwind for $435,000.

Delgiorno Investments LLC and Nicolas Delgiorno conveyed property on South Second Street to Caleb L. Onasch, Molly M. Onasch and Robert W. Bruner for $180,000.

The estate of Carl A. Manley conveyed 430 Manor St. to One Stop Property Group LLC for $83,500.

Timothy Slaymaker conveyed property on North Eighth Street to Natnael Amanuel Thehaye for $249,900