Author: SPY

 This week’s photos of Columbia 

Click on photos to see larger, sharper images. 

It was Stu Huggens’ turn to perform downtown. 

Vintage baseball games were held at Janson Park on Saturday. 

*****************

Rumor has it that Columbia might be getting a used tire outlet. 

Here’s Jesse the Computer Guy’s contact info.

One of two cherubs at the former Masonic center on Locust Street. 

Here’s the other one.

Here’s a $79 angel with a cracked jaw at the Re-Uzit Shop, possibly from a brawl. (This is Columbia, after all.)

More progress at the innovation park site

This device sets the height of the blades/shovels on the excavation equipment, according to a worker on site. 

There’s also a chipper on site.

These are the remains of the trees that were taken down.

So are these mulch piles.

*****************

This is the side of a trailer whose driver stopped on the highway for several minutes to check for directions while blocking traffic.

A spider web that caught some morning raindrops. 

A “redder than red” hibiscus 

Artist’s supplies for a work-in-progress at the State Theatre Vintage Emporium 

The finished mural by @anndope

*****************

This might work. 

Rivertowne Trolley shuttled passengers from St. Paul’s to Columbia Crossing for a funeral reception.  

There’s Waldo!

A “flower bed” full of old cardboard and cigarette butts—

What could go wrong?

A new park bench?

A new trash truck in town 

It has separate compartments for trash and recycling.

All the information and rules and regulations you could ever need for an enjoyable day at Columbia River Park . . .

*****************

Just visiting 

Either he’s back, or he never left.

Renovations on the 200 block of Cherry

New creatures in Avenue H 

*****************

That green cap on South 4th is for sale.

The Habitat for Humanity Linden Street Build project is behind schedule. According to a release from Lancaster Lebanon Habitat for Humanity, here’s why:

“If you’ve been following along with our current construction projects, you’ve probably read about the more than 1,000 tons (!) of rock we’ve removed during the excavation phase of our Linden Street Build. The extended excavation process, along with heavy rain in July, set our construction schedule back and has forced us to shift some upcoming volunteer plans for the site, including, most notably, our Women Build Lancaster week.

Last week we announced the postponement of our Women Build Lancaster event (which was originally scheduled for September) at our Linden Street Build in Columbia. It has been rescheduled for November 4-8. The Women Build Lancaster event will still be held at our Linden Street Build, located across from the Turkey Hill Experience, but the new November dates will allow us to set the foundation, have the houses framed and start on siding and exterior work for Women Build Lancaster as we originally intended.”

Garage sale at the market house

The heart of our community 

The driver of this rig was attempting to turn from Locust Street onto Bank Avenue. 

He made it . . . eventually. 

Get vaccinated at CVS.

Open-door policy at the Haitian Maranatha Church

A heron that’s way out there

Church on the 400 block of Locust 

That’s what it’s all about. 

The bridge inspectors were back this week.

Todd Stahl took this great shot, as well as the following four . . .

*****************

That watchdog is still on the roof at Beauty in the Beast Grooming. 

Coming in September 

Sunflowers in decline

A bunny with bright ears

Lotsa flags

A few views of the former Cookman Church

###

Coffee & Cream, 101 N. Front St., Columbia, Aug. 14. Pass. Observed an accumulation of grease on the fume hood.

Rising Sun Nutrition, 50 Lancaster Ave., Columbia, Aug. 14. Pass. Food facility does not have available sanitizer test strips or test kit to determine appropriate sanitizer concentration for quaternary ammonia.

Brad Chambers

JAXON WHITE | LNP State Capitol Reporter

Democrat Brad Chambers on Wednesday announced that he’ll mount a second bid for the state House next year, likely setting up a rematch against GOP state Rep. Brett Miller for the 41st District.

Chambers, a 34-year-old Columbia resident, ran unsuccessfully against Miller last year in what was the most competitive state House campaign in Lancaster County.

“I want to show people that things are moving in a different direction in Lancaster County,” Chambers said. “And if you want to be part of that, you should get involved with my campaign and support me for the 41st.”

Chambers, a labor administrator, said if he wins the seat, he’d use the position to advocate for improved access to affordable housing, increasing education funding and implementing universal health care coverage.

Last year, Chambers leaned heavily into canvassing efforts to spread the word about his candidacy. According to Chambers, he knocked on more than 26,000 doors.

He also had the backing of the state’s top Democrats, including Gov. Josh Shapiro, state House Speaker Joanna McClinton and House Majority Leader Matt Bradford.

But come November — in an election where Republicans down the ballot nationwide benefited from President Donald Trump’s name at the top of the ticket — Miller won with 56% of the vote, while Chambers obtained 44%.

The 41st District covers East and West Hempfield townships, Columbia and Mountville boroughs and a portion of northeast Manor Township.

MORE:

https://lancasteronline.com/news/politics/democrat-brad-chambers-announces-early-second-bid-at-state-house/article_3c131dbc-cca5-4fbf-b071-74d47cc87b08.html

K. Scott Kreider / LNP Correspondent

When: Columbia Borough school board meeting, Aug. 14.

What happened: Superintendent Ashley Rizzo unveiled a back-to-school headquarters online, which has a wealth of information on registration, calendars, logistics, meals and much more for new and returning students.

Where to find it: The back-to-school headquarters can be found under the “About Us” tab on the district’s landing page.

More: Rizzo encouraged families to use this centralized resource, as well as a new “Rooms” communications platform that has new features like multi-language automated translation.

https://lancasteronline.com/news/regional/columbia-borough-school-district-rolls-out-back-to-school-headquarters-online/article_d58c3b5a-83b1-4ce0-a059-edb42c582237.html

LANCASTERONLINE | Staff

A Columbia man who was convicted in June for his role in a 2023 armed carjacking in the borough is also charged with shooting a man to death during a drug robbery in Pittsburgh three years ago.

Sammie Edward Lane Jr. waived his preliminary hearing on homicide and related charges on Aug. 1 in Pittsburgh Municipal Court in the death of Tayrod Ford. 

Lane had been scheduled for sentencing on Monday in Lancaster County Court, according to his docket here in the carjacking case. He was convicted June 13 of robbery, simple assault and related charges.

In that case, according to prosecutors, Lane, 37, Destiny Delgado-Diaz, and Alexander Ethan Delgado-Diaz, lured a man to Columbia on Dec. 31, 2023, began strangling him, threatened him with a handgun, and stole his Dodge Durango SUV and items he had in the vehicle.

Destiny Delgado-Diaz, 23, of Columbia, is serving a 27-month to 10-year state prison sentence after she pleaded guilty on May 1 to robbery and related charges.

Alexander Ethan Delgado-Diaz, 25, of Columbia, is awaiting resolution of his case. A status conference is scheduled for Oct. 2.

According to charging documents filed by Pittsburgh police, on Aug. 14, 2022, Lane and another man, Kevin Rivera, of Wilkinsburg, planned to rob Ford of drugs. During the robbery, Rivera shot Ford once in the shoulder and Ford told the men to take whatever they wanted and begged for his life.

Lane then shot Ford once in the head and the men fled, charging documents said. 

The documents said Sadie Watson, of Pittsburgh, told police that Lane said he wanted to kill someone. She is charged with conspiracy to commit robbery and evidence tampering; police said she, Rivera and Lane discussed robbing Ford via text, then deleted the messages.

The day after Ford’s death, Lane took a bus to Harrisburg, police said. 

Pittsburgh detectives interviewed Lane at Lancaster County Prison, where he was being held in the carjacking case, on March 3 and filed charges on March 6. He is being held at Allegheny County Jail without bail.

https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/columbia-man-convicted-in-lancaster-county-carjacking-shot-man-to-death-in-pittsburgh-police/article_7da5bc01-8844-49c7-99ca-294e3d9d2a34.html

https://www.yorkdispatch.com/story/news/local/2025/08/18/wrightsville-columbia-york-lancaster-susquehanna-river-route-462-lincoln-highway/85713234007/

Jackson Thomas J. III, Jackson Lauren conveyed 622 S. 12th St. to Koontz Rick, Moser Karissa for $187,000.

Amir George conveyed 247 N. Second St. to Zook Property Holdings LLC for $187,500.

Jeretta M. Sadler conveyed 1242 Staman Lane to Wardecker Matthew, Wardecker Alyssa for $203,000.

 This week’s photos of Columbia 

Click on photos to see larger, sharper images. 

Apparently, a biker gang was in town. 

Dedicated to all

Bagged

Mobile home

You can’t go back anyway, unless you have a TARDIS.

Superman’s still in town. Rumor has it he’s gone “woke.” Not sure about Krypto, though. 

A piano at Coffee & Cream . . .

. . . looking not unlike an LSD hallucination

One of these does not belong.

Time to scrub this marker

A curious cat

He wasn’t camera-shy at all.

Green cap on South 4th 

This car is presumed to be the one involved in the rollover accident on Route 30 east on Friday. 

*****************

The 500 block of Chestnut Street is being milled–again.

*****************

USGS was at Columbia River Park on Thursday. 

*****************

More free stuff–on the block of North 5th.

A “free-range”chicken was on Walnut Street on Thursday morning.

An egret fishing

Caught one!

Going back for more

*****************

A newly arrived donation box on the 1200 block of Franklin

More progress at the Linden Street Build 

*****************

More progress at 1020 Manor 

*****************

Heavy trucks on South 4th

Time’s up.

‘Til next week!

###

JOE LINTNER | COLUMBIA SPY 

The Lancaster County District Attorney’s Office has applied to join Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s task force program, which would provide specialized training for one of its detectives, according to an August 15, 2025 LNP article. This move comes as part of a broader expansion of ICE partnerships throughout the county, with five other law enforcement agencies already approved for the program since the beginning of the year.

According to the article, Erik Yabor, spokesperson for the district attorney, explained that ICE officials reached out to encourage the DA’s office to apply because one county detective already participates in the FBI’s Violent Crimes Task Force. The office intends to train only this same detective through ICE’s program, with no current plans to extend training to additional personnel.

The certification process requires 40 hours of online training and is limited to U.S. citizens with at least two years of law enforcement experience. According to Yabor, the purpose is to ensure the detective “has the knowledge and awareness of current practices so they can understand how to handle such cases as the need arises.” Importantly, the trained detective will not be tasked with conducting immigration searches or raids.

Columbia Borough takes stand against sanctuary policies
Last year, Columbia Borough Council passed a resolution pledging cooperation with federal immigration enforcement, positioning itself as a direct response to Lancaster City’s “Welcoming City” ordinance. At the March 12, 2024 council meeting, a 6-0 vote (with one absence) made Columbia the first local municipality to adopt what officials call a “non-sanctuary” resolution.

Council President Heather Zink said that while Columbia has been cooperating with ICE all along, the resolution serves as a public declaration of “where we stand.” The measure doesn’t materially change existing practice.

The resolution criticizes Lancaster City’s February 2024 ordinance, which codified a long-standing policy prohibiting city officials and police from asking about immigration status except when required by law or court order. Columbia’s resolution claims such policies create sanctuary cities that experience increases in migrant crimes and financial strain on social services.

Scope and limitations of local immigration enforcement
Borough Mayor Leo Lutz and Police Chief Jack Brommer clarified that Columbia police lack the authority and intent to engage in proactive immigration enforcement; officers cannot stop individuals solely to demand identification or question their immigration status.

Instead, the department takes a reactive approach. When individuals are detained for criminal activity, traffic violations, or outstanding warrants, officers may refer cases to ICE if evidence suggests undocumented status. Chief Brommer noted that such referrals “do not happen often.”

“Our officers cannot just walk up to someone and demand to see their identification,” Lutz said at the March 2024 meeting.

Regional response and political divisions
Oneunitedlancaster.com noted that contrasting approaches between Lancaster City and Columbia Borough reflect broader partisan divisions on immigration policy. Lancaster’s council is entirely Democratic, while Columbia’s is completely Republican.

Columbia officials expressed concerns about potential spillover from Lancaster’s welcoming policies, worrying that immigrants might relocate to the borough for lower housing costs. “Lancaster city can’t handle it,” Lutz said. “They’re going to spread out somewhere.”

Lancaster City Council President Amanda Bakay expressed disappointment with Columbia’s resolution, arguing it’s based on misinformation about Lancaster’s ordinance. She defended the city’s policy, stating that “codifying that long-standing policy into an ordinance makes our city a better place because residents will not be afraid to report crimes or make other requests to the city government,” according to a March 14, 2024 oneunitedlancaster.com article. 

Growing county-wide movement
Since Columbia’s declaration, several other municipalities have adopted similar resolutions, including Pequea, West Earl, East Cocalico, and West Cocalico townships. This local trend is part of a broader trend of Lancaster County law enforcement agencies either joining ICE task forces or applying for training programs.

The debate reflects national tensions over immigration policy, with advocates arguing that sanctuary cities do not experience higher crime rates, while opponents say that noncitizens account for a disproportionate number of federal criminal arrests.

[Sources: LancasterOnline, OneUnitedLancaster, Columbia Spy]

Burger King No 2605, 531 N. Third St., Columbia, Aug. 7. Pass. Observed a tan, slimy residue on the deflector plate of the ice maker. Observed lids for sodas stored with food contact surface exposed to hand contamination. The food facility does not have the original certificate for the certified food employee posted in public view. A working container of degreaser was stored on the same shelf with food equipment in the dishwashing area.

Foresters of America, 201 Locust St., Columbia, Aug. 7. Pass. No violations.

Turkey Hill No. 68, 342 Chestnut St., Columbia, Aug. 7. Pass. No violations.