Author: SPY

Columbia Borough has announced a Request for Proposals regarding the Columbia River Park Phase III Master Site Development Plan.

The cover page reads as follows:

The Borough Council of the Borough of Columbia, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, is accepting proposals for a one-time contract to perform certain professional (consulting) services work for the Borough of Columbia involving the development of a Master Site Development Plan for an approximately 10-acre expansion (Phase III)
of Columbia River Park, Columbia Borough.

Attached is information relating to

submitting a proposal including specific requirements, the organization of the proposal, proposal evaluation criteria, and the proposed contract.

Sealed proposals must be received by the Borough of Columbia at 308 Locust Street, Columbia, PA 17512, no later than January 15, 2018 at 2:00 PM EST. If mailed, the proposal should be addressed to:

Columbia River Park Advisory Committee
c/o Rebecca Secrist Denlinger
Columbia Borough
308 South Locust Street
Columbia, PA 17512

A pre-bid meeting to discuss the project scope of work will be held at 5:00 PM on December 21, 2017 at Columbia Crossing River Trails Center, 41 Walnut Street, Columbia, PA 17512.

For additional information, please contact:

Rebecca Denlinger
Rising Tide Collaborative, LLC
717-468-8222
rsd@risingtidecollaborative.com

[The full document can be accessed HERE.]

The troubled building at 208-210 Locust Street might be getting a new lease on life thanks to an agreement between Columbia Borough and Brookline Builders of Lancaster. Borough Council recently approved $70,000 for the Lancaster County Land Bank to assist Brookline, a historic preservation company, with restoration of the property. Brookline’s budget for the project is $232,000. According to the agreement, the company will purchase the building for the token fee of $1 with the intent of restoring the facade and performing structural repairs. Brookline will then move its sister company, Lancaster Lime Works LLC, into the building where it will use the first floor as a showroom and offices. The top two floors will be rented out as a large, single apartment. Brookline has also requested that the borough set aside two parking spaces during regular business hours for use by Lancaster Lime.

The agreement, which is subject to solicitor review, stipulates that funds provided by the borough must be repaid in entirety if the property is sold within five years of occupancy. Council President Kelly Murphy said that the Land Bank estimated the cost of an alternative plan – tearing the building down and rebuilding – to be $350,000. Borough officials agreed that no developer would be willing to invest that amount to rebuild on the property.

The building, which was thought to be in danger of collapse in 2015, was later shored up and reinforced and the facade covered in Tyvek, for a total cost to the borough of $51,911.17. The borough placed a lien on the property for that amount, which it subsequently forgave in exchange for possession from owners Sam and Cynthia Bigler of Millersville.p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 36.0px Helvetica} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 36.0px Helvetica; min-height: 43.0px}

The backstory on the borough’s acquisition of the property is HERE.