Year: 2018

Columbia Borough Fire Department signs $1.3 million contract for new fire trucks

Fire company president Mark Fritz signs contracts Monday night as Glick sales representative Jake Bachman looks on.


The Columbia Borough Fire Department will be getting two new trucks – a rescue engine and a fire suppression engine – by next summer at a cost of $1.3 million.  The department deemed the purchase necessary since its current trucks are aging and becoming increasingly costly to maintain. Fire Company President Mark Fritz signed contracts for the new vehicles Monday night.

The final designs for the two new engines were presented by Glick sales representative Jake Bachman at the fire company building on Manor Street.  Firefighters gathered around a large table to view the designs and look on as Fritz signed the contracts.

The department received significant discounts by purchasing two engines at the same time. The rescue engine will cost $715,378, and the fire suppression engine is $594,229. The prices represent a combined savings of over $60,000. Pierce Manufacturing, Inc. will manufacture the trucks.

The new vehicles are expected to arrive in about eight months and will be driven the roughly 800 miles from the Pierce plant in Wisconsin to Pennsylvania. Upon delivery, the department will place three current pieces of equipment up for sale – two engines and a rescue truck.

Jake Bachman and Mark Fritz shake hands as firefighters hold drawings of the new fire trucks (shown below).
Drawing of rescue engine
Drawing of fire suppression engine
Firefighters hold a banner featuring the Pierce and Glick company logos. Glick Fire Equipment Company, Inc. is a Pierce dealer.

The units shown above are two of the three vehicles that will be up for sale when the new trucks arrive.

Crews respond to vehicle accident with entrapment, extricate driver

Emergency crews had to extricate a driver from a damaged vehicle this morning after it collided with another vehicle at Fifth and Maple Streets. The driver was transported by ambulance. The vehicle, a Dodge Caravan, and a Ford Explorer collided in the intersection, which has been the site of several accidents and near misses due to poor visibility as drivers approach the top of a hill.

Bits 'n' Pieces

A few takeaways from September’s committee meetings
Council is exploring the idea of having three council meetings per month and eliminating most committee meetings. (Planning Commission)


Northwest Bank and Union Community Bank are leaving Columbia. Northwest is relocating to the Columbia Shopping Center at 1786 Columbia Avenue in West Hempfield. (Finance Committee)

As of September 12th there were 34 condemned properties in the borough. (Safety Committee)

Two part-time code officers are gone because one resigned and one retired. Currently there are two secretaries who work just for the codes department. (Finance Committee)

Only three animals are allowed in any household (dwelling unit). Any combination of cats and dogs, with a maximum of two dogs. (Safety Committee)

Patches on streets after excavation are not final. Streets will be repaved. (Public Works and Property Committee)

There’s a slime issue on Grinnell Avenue resulting from water draining from a sump pump on a property bordering 11th Street. The highway department power-washed the street a few times recently. The water should be draining into a seepage pit on the property. The borough is looking into the issue. (Public Works and Property Committee)
Columbia Borough has an agility program with West Hempfield and PennDOT in which we exchange services and equipment. (Public Works and Property Committee)

Issues with the street sweeper may be caused in part by plastic bottles and similar objects in the gutters. The codes department will examine the borough’s landlord/tenant agreement for any stipulations about trash in the gutter or on the sidewalk at the property being the responsibility of the property owner. (Public Works and Property Committee)

The mayor said Columbia is not a dirty town, but the street sweeper is getting “beat up,” because it’s picking up plastic bottles an aluminum cans, and metal objects. There’s a lot of trash in the machine’s sweepings. (Borough Council)

The borough newsletter will most likely be mailed to residents by mid-October. (Community Development)

The redesign of the borough website is progressing. (Community Development)


McGinness property: Council is currently working with outside entities to help decide whether or not to purchase the property. Council President Kelly Murphy said council needs to step back from the issue for now. (Finance Committee)

Two entities have expressed interest in leasing the former No. 1 firehouse on Front Street. (Community Development)

132 Locust Street: The developers are currently working to attract additional equity to the project. (Community Development)

30th Annual Bridge Bust will temporarily close Veterans Memorial Bridge between Columbia and Wrightsville this weekend | WPMT FOX43

Admission is $2 for adults; children 6-12 are $1 and children 5 and under are free.Although this is an outdoor event, there are no pets, scooters or bicycles allowed on the bridge, organizers say.
MORE:

https://fox43.com/2018/10/01/30th-annual-bridge-bust-will-temporarily-close-veterans-memorial-bridge-between-columbia-and-wrightsville-this-weekend/

ROUTE 462/VETERANS MEMORIAL BRIDGE CLOSURES | Columbia Borough Police Department

The Route 462/Veterans Memorial Bridge between Columbia and Wrightsville will be closed temporarily on the following dates and times:

Friday, October 5, 2018 – Closed from 6:30pm-9:00pm for an event

Saturday, October 6, 2018 – Closed from 4:00am-6:00pm for an event

https://lancaster.crimewatchpa.com/columbiapd/10552/post/route-462veterans-memorial-bridge-closures