When: Columbia Borough Council meeting Nov. 12. Mayor Leo Lutz was absent.
What happened: Columbia Borough may give away a home it owns, but there’s a catch. The new owner must pay to move the house from its current location.
Details: Council members voted to advertise the sale of and accept bids for 700 Franklin St., a 1,521-square-foot, three-bedroom home with one bathroom and a basement.
Quotable: “We’re willing to accept the best bid,” Heather Zink, council president, said in a Nov. 14 phone call. “If it is zero dollars, we’ll take it.”
Why it matters: The structure sits on land that will become part of the McGinness technology park, and the borough must either demolish the property or arrange for a new owner, who will move the house.
More: Real estate websites have estimated the house is worth between $238,000 and $239,000.
Timing: The borough had not yet publicly advertised the sale as of Nov. 14, Zink said during the phone call. During the meeting, Zink said she hoped council could open bids in late December. A new owner should move the property by April 1, Derek Rinaldo, borough engineer, said.
Budget: Sharon Lintner, a former council member, asked council to consider the stress the proposed 1 mill tax increase will have on some of the borough’s economically disadvantaged residents.
Background: On Nov. 7, council members agreed to raise property taxes by 1 mill in 2025 to help counter a proposed $1.5-million to $1.7-million budget deficit on an $8.81-million spending plan for the borough’s general fund.
Quotable: “We have a lot of poverty. We have a lot of Social Security recipients,” Lintner told council members. Combined with other cost-of-living increases, “It does add up and puts a burden on people when they have to write that check,” she said.
Cost to homeowner: One mill would net the borough $438,000 in revenue. An owner with property valued at $100,000 would see an annual tax payment increase from the current $800 to $900.
What’s next: Council will hold an additional public meeting Wednesday to hear comments about the budget.
Grant request upped: Council members voted to ask the state Department of Community & Economic Development for a grant for $300,000 instead of the planned $200,000 to make structural repairs to the Columbia River Crossings Trail Center. [SPY NOTE: The cost of repairs has been estimated at $400,000.]
Details: Zink said she proposed the lower amount with a 50% borough match to increase Columbia’s chances of getting the money. However, grants from the state’s Local Share Account don’t have strict funding rules, Rinaldo said.
Quotables: “I wanted to put skin in the game and make our application a little stronger,” Zink explained. Said council member Peter Stahl: “If we don’t ask for it, we won’t get it. It doesn’t seem like a huge risk.”
Museum application: Council members also voted to apply for a $200,000 Local Share Account grant on behalf of the National Watch and Clock Museum to replace its HVAC system. Grant applications are due Nov. 30, and the borough won’t know if money will be awarded until October 2025, Rinaldo said.
What’s next: Council will meet at 6 p.m. Wednesday for its special budget meeting. The meeting, which will occur at 308 Locust St., also will be available on the borough’s YouTube channel the next day.
Go to: youtube.com/@columbiaborough9899 to access the meeting.
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Columbia Spy 