Author: SPY

Columbia Market House hosts United Artists Behind Bars exhibit opening Friday

About Town

Far too many photos of our town over the last week…
An eclipse watcher?
No, a Pokemon Go watcher!
 Pokemon Go players periodically congregate in various areas of town in pursuit of the game.

 Here they are at South 4th & Locust.

And here are more at the clock plaza at North 5th & Chestnut.

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The mayor recently discussed cracking down on uninspected, unregistered, or abandoned vehicles in the borough. Here are a few:

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 The secret way to Manor Street School. For some reason, students would get in trouble with the teacher if caught using these steps to enter or leave school.

 Today’s eclipse created a weird, white, LED-type light, seen here at places on the surface of the bridge.
(This photo was taken about an hour after peak.)

 The bright glare is seen here also, as this tank truck driver took a water sample.

Gargoyles on Locust
(An eagle, too.)

 Taping a crack at North 3rd & Locust

 Staring heavenward

 Atop the former Columbia News building

 Backless and strapless

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Council considered approving the purchase of the following two properties – 400 Locust and 166 Bridge Street (including a portion of 185 North Front) – at last week’s borough council meeting. Each motion failed due to the lack of a second. The seller proposed a purchase price of $125,000 for the Locust Street lot. A purchase price of $375,000 was requested for the Bridge Street property.

400 Locust Street

166 Bridge Street

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 New sign at Columbia Life Network

 Video Pipe Services: For doing a colonoscopy of your pipes.

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The following eight photos show a heron on a fishing expedition at Columbia River Park.  Photo #5 shows him catching something.

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Censored!

 This hulk, possibly named Cerberus, blocked the sidewalk on the 400 block of Locust the other day. Although leashed, he was allowed enough leeway to stand in a TREE well.

 New nail salon in town

 427 Locust Street

 About those trucks cruising through the center of town…

 Reflecting on flies

 Low ri-der

 By God, here comes another one!
Wasn’t that 441 bypass supposed to keep these things out of here?

 CLOSE CALL!

 New fashion?

 Photo essay on the 200 block of Locust.
Nice pics, but they were attached to a poster board that was attached to the outside of a shop window.

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This building and the mobile home shown below might be getting “demoed” soon to make way for an apartment building. More on that story later – stay tuned.

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 A little furniture and a bike – what else could you possibly need?

 In the golden light of morn

 This varmint must not have seen the sign when he knocked over the trashcan.
(Actually, high winds the night before probably did the job. The squirrel was just taking advantage of the opportunity presented to him.)

 Another ghost sign – This one’s on Bridge Street.

 The top reads “KEYSTONE.”

 Really?

 So, is someone supposed to mow the alley?

 We often see these markings spray-painted on borough streets prior to digging or drilling.
Here’s what the colors signify:

 This notice is posted on the door of the house near the church at North 6th & Chestnut. This is the house with the consistently overgrown, unkempt yard.

 This mattress has been here a while, so it’s probably good and infested by now – if it wasn’t before. 
(400 block of Avenue I)

 Ordinances are passed.  Some are enforced. Others just fade away.

 Shoo-mac!

 And here’s a secret “arboretum” on the 300 block of Avenue I.

 It’s time for this to be fixed.
(200 Block of Avenue I)

SHOO-MAC!!!

 Downed horse – a result of high winds

 Another feral. Back in the day, they were called alley cats.

 Progress on the Front Street storage bins

 They’re a bit behind schedule. The goal was for completion in late July/early August.

 But contractors always have an excuse…

 Supply shortages, manpower shortages, plagues of locusts, etc.

 A part of Shawnee Run

 The secret lair of the borough vehicles

 Pipes for the new LASA plant.
Projected completion date: March 2018.
Think they’ll make it?

 Under the railroad bridge at the bottom of Plane Street.
We used to call this “the tunnel.”

 Patriotism on display along Rink Row

 Sunflower shining down

 On Plane Street, a tribute to veterans

When items become obsolete, they sometimes become objets d’art.

38-pounder is the winning catch in "Catch the Fat Cat" tournament

Columbia’s first annual “Catch the Fat Cat” catfishing tournament was “a great day for Columbia,” according to organizer Chris Vera. 22 boaters and 11 shore fishermen launched from Columbia River Park Saturday afternoon in search of the big one, following a send-off from Vera.

A 38-pound whopper was the linker winner, with a 35-pounder to follow. Team Benedict and Shultz caught the big one. “There was a nice crowd for weigh-ins,” Vera said. He added that boaters were pleased and will be returning for next year’s tournament.
The prizes were as follows:

Grand Champion – $500 and trophy (for biggest cat)
First place – $1,000 and trophy (for boating champion with 3-fish weigh-in)
Second place – $750 and trophy
Third place – $500 and trophy


Tournament organizer Chris Vera

A close-up of a tournament trophy


Columbia students will not have indoor recess during eclipse

At last Thursday’s school board meeting, Superintendent Dr. Robert Hollister addressed the district’s plans for the upcoming solar eclipse on Monday, August 21. Hollister announced that students in the Columbia Borough School District will not be held inside for recesses, unless parents make such a request. Hollister said the danger of looking at the eclipse is the same as looking at the sun on any other day. “There’s no significant danger to students if they’re outside,” he said.  Students will be dismissed at the normal time on Monday.

According to the website timeanddate.com, a partial solar eclipse will begin in Lancaster County on Monday, August 21, at 1:18 p.m. It will reach maximum at 2:42 p.m. and end at 3:59 p.m., for a total duration of two hours and 41 minutes. The website also features an animation simulating the eclipse.