Riverview Terrace, 33-unit apartment building at 132 Locust Street, was recently sold for $5,900,000 to Roman Empire Holdings LLC, according to public documents. It was previously owned by 789 Main Street LLC.
The building was listed for $8,200,000 in November 2022, shortly after construction was completed. In January 2023, the price was reduced to $7,900,000.
One prominent local development firm claims rising interest rates and restrictions on building and demolition in Lancaster city’s historic district – not internal financial issues – have led it to indefinitely shelve its plans in the city and Columbia.
Lancaster County-based Eberly Myers, which once proposed high-end apartments for young residents, has sold most of its real estate portfolio in the county after losing two properties to foreclosure by lenders.
According to one of the partners in the firm, the decision to sell the properties was motivated more by recent economic trends than the foreclosures. Benjamin Myers said recent increases in interest rates are “sucking the life” out of real estate development in general, which has led the group to indefinitely shelve its plans to develop apartments in Lancaster County.
PennDOT workers posted several signs at the entrance to the Route 462 Veterans Memorial Bridge today to remind drivers of the 10-ton weight limit currently in effect. PennDOT imposed the limit on Monday, July 17, after discovering deterioration at various parts of the bridge. The PennDOT press release about the issue is posted below.
PennDOT press release on Route 462 Veterans Memorial Bridge weight limit:
Weight Limit Posted on Route 462 Veterans Memorial (Columbia-Wrightsville) Bridge in Lancaster County
07/17/2023
Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) announced today a weight limit has been established on the Route 462 Veterans Memorial (Columbia-Wrightsville) Bridge over the Susquehanna River connecting the Borough of Wrightsville, York County and the Borough of Columbia, Lancaster County.
The bridge has not previously had a weight restriction. The new restriction will limit the weight of each vehicle to 10 tons except for emergency vehicles permitted by the Department. Vehicles exceeding the posted weight limit are suggested to use Route 30, an approximate 8.7-mile detour, or other alternate route. In addition to regulatory signs specific to this 10-ton weight restriction, the Department will enact a truck detour for Route 462 to assist in routing trucks safely across the river.
Trucks traveling eastbound from the Wrightsville (west) side of the river should take eastbound Route 30 to the Prospect Road exit, then turn right and head south to Route 462.
Trucks traveling westbound from the Columbia (east) side of the river should take westbound Route 30 to the Route 462/Wrightsville exit, then turn left and head south to Route 462.
The weight restriction was implemented after a routine inspection uncovered deterioration to the primary load carrying members of the open spandrel concrete arch spans along portions of the bridge. The Department is working towards interim repairs to the bridge and will re-evaluate the posting while repairs are being made.
Creating the weight restriction will reduce strain on the bridge and will preserve safe passage until more significant interim repairs can occur. Given the necessity to change the design scope of work on the bridge, now potentially including bridge deck, floor beam and column replacement, work on the bridge for the permanent condition is now not anticipated to occur until 2025.
The historic Route 462 bridge was built in 1930 and is classified as being in fair condition. Approximately 11,548 vehicles use the bridge daily, with 5%, or 601 trucks anticipated to be affected by this posting. The remaining 95% of traffic is anticipated to be below this limit and can continue to use the structure without restriction.
Motorists can check conditions on major roadways by visiting www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information and access to more than 1,000 traffic cameras. 511PA is also available through a smartphone application for iPhone and Android devices, by calling 5-1-1, or by following regional Twitter alerts accessible on the 511PA website.
Subscribe to PennDOT news and traffic alerts in Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Perry, and York counties at PennDOT District 8.
Information about infrastructure in District 8, including completed work and significant projects, is available at District 8 Results. Find PennDOT’s planned and active construction projects at PennDOT Projects.
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.
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
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
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.
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
Artemis. 1 year old cat last seen at home 100 block of S. 2nd St. She is very sweet, is up to date on shots and is fixed. Has extra toes on front paws. If seen or found please contact, text or call, 717-341-4704. Larry and Glenda
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Columbia Spy 