After 41 years, a final run for first woman to drive bus for Red Rose Transit
At the wheel of the Route 18 bus, Denise Smith, 64, departed Lancaster’s Queen Street Station with two riders at 12:10 p.m. Friday on a run to Elizabethtown that would prove routine in every way but one: it was her last after 41 years.
A pleasant, reserved woman, wearing a scarf, gray fleece and black facemask, Smith kept to a tight schedule on a winding, two-hour, 45-mile roundtrip through snow-blanketed Landisville and Mount Joy to Elizabethtown’s Amtrak station. Then she headed back the same way to Lancaster. All told, she transported 10 riders.
“Be safe out there,” said one as he got off in Mount Joy with a companion who used a walker.
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St. Paul’s Episcopal Church faces expensive fixes
Time has taken its toll on St. Paul’s Episcopal Church.
Built in 1885, the historical church building at 340 Locust St., Columbia, has weathered rain, snow and wind for over a century. Faced with a growing list of repairs and a lack of funds, the church is struggling to keep its doors open.
“The most urgent structural repair needing to be done is the roof,” says the Rev. Patrick Peters, priest at St. Paul’s.
If something isn’t done soon, he says, the building will need to be vacated due to safety concerns. He knows the roof protects the structure of the building and church artifacts as well as those who gather for worship. St. Paul’s leaking roof affects the interior as well as exterior of the building.
Peters says he’s seen a lot of upgrades to the church buildings in his almost 18 years as church rector.
The necessary roof repairs are estimated at $300,000, Peters says. This involves replacing ridge caps, flashings, valleys and gutters on the 135-year-old gabled slate roof. The main problem appears to be the masonry wall under the capstones on the roof peaks which will need to be rebuilt.
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About Town 12/13/2020
This week’s photos of Columbia
Some signs of Christmas about town:
“Joy to the World” on the 400 block of Chestnut
on Sunday afternoon, December 13, 2020
The singers were the LanCarolers from Lancaster’s Prima Theatre.
They travel in a trolley courtesy of Expressions Limousine of Lancaster.
Elsewhere in Columbia . . .
Testing at 7th & Maple a few days ago:
1898 Firehouse coming up for review:
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Columbia Crossing contains canoes and kayaks.
Clouds in the river
A Columbia tradition:
Parking your car in the street even though parking spaces are available
Parking for cookers only
Your speed is . . . LOW BATTERY!
Photos in the fog:
New ride:
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For all your liquidation needs
Welcome
Meanwhile, down at Floyd’s
That’s one way to keep your beer cold.
Sun, setting
Weather vane, with sky aglow
Colorful clouds
COLVMBIA TELEPHONE CO
Building blocks on Purples Lane
Tent at Coffee & Cream
Agenda – HARB Meeting – December 16, 2020
Download the 29-page meeting packet HERE.
No more indoor dining, casinos and theaters will close and new limits on retailers: Pa. Gov. Tom Wolf – pennlive.com
Gov. Tom Wolf announced new steps Thursday to combat the surge in coronavirus cases, including temporary measures to prohibit indoor dining in restaurants, the closure of casinos and theaters and a halt to scholastic sports.
In a news conference, Wolf said he is imposing other limits on all businesses serving the public, capping retailers, barber shops and salons and other businesses to 50% of indoor occupancy limits. Gyms and fitness centers can offer outdoor classes but cannot offer indoor operations.
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Columbia council OKs rezoning land for Luthercare expansion
Columbia Borough Council meeting, Dec. 8:
Council unanimously voted to authorize advertising an ordinance to rezone a parcel of land at 75 S. 12th St. from rural residential to institutional residential.
The parcel is included in the land development plans for a Luthercare development project. A rezoning ordinance initiated by the borough in 2019 overlooked the parcel, since it is next to another Luthercare property at 1200 Locust St.
Luthercare needs the parcel to be rezoned to expand onto the property.
The rezoning request will be sent to the county for formal review. If it’s approved, the borough then will advertise the ordinance.
Help for residents in need: Mayor Leo S. Lutz made a statement directed to borough residents struggling financially because of COVID-19, urging them to contact Columbia Life Network, a nonprofit that connects residents in need with food, clothing, shelter and other basic necessities. Lutz also urged local residents to continue taking precautions against COVID-19.
WRIGHTSVILLE COUNCIL PRESIDENT RECOVERS FROM COVID-19, DISPUTES ALLEGED ACCUSATION FROM WIFE OF COUNCILMAN
The president of Wrightsville Borough Council announced at the regular Dec. 7 council meeting that he had been hospitalized with COVID-19 in November, less than a week after attending a planning meeting.
Council President Eric J. White also accused the wife of a fellow council member of lying about when White had been diagnosed. In the Wrightsville Rants and Raves Facebook group, Mel McDonald, wife of council member Rick McDonald, said White attended the Nov. 16 planning meeting knowing he was positive for coronavirus.
On Dec. 7, White forcefully disputed a “public misconception,” saying he tested positive for COVID on Wednesday, Nov. 18, and was hospitalized on Friday, Nov. 20. He has since fully recovered.
“According to the doctors at Lancaster General, I am now the safest person in this room,” he said, explaining they said he can no longer contract COVID or give it to others.
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PROTECT YOURSELF AND OTHERS FROM CORONAVIRUS | Columbia Borough Police Department
DECEMBER 9, 2020
A REMINDER FROM THE COLUMBIA BOROUGH POLICE DEPARTMENT PROTECT YOURSELF AND OTHERS FROM CORONAVIRUS:
1. Wear a mask indoors and outdoors – whenever you leave home or have people who do not live with you in your space.
2. Keep your distance (at least 6 feet) from those you don't live with and avoid crowds.
3. Cover coughs and sneezes with your elbow. Do not use your hands!
4. Wash hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol based hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available.
5. Clean high-touch surfaces frequently, including countertops, light switches, cell phones, remotes, and other frequently touched items.
6. If you are sick – even if your symptoms are mild – stay home until you are feeling better.
Note: Download the COVID Alert PA mobile app to be alerted if you have been near someone who has tested positive, and to alert others if you test positive.
Information from the Department of Health: https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/disease/coronavirus/Pages/Coronavirus.aspx Source: Columbia Borough Police Department
Sourced via CRIMEWATCH®: https://lancaster.crimewatchpa.com/columbiapd/10552/post/protect-yourself-and-others-coronavirus
60 have died of COVID-19 in Lancaster County so far in December as overall death toll soars to 570 | Local News | lancasteronline.com
60 HAVE DIED OF COVID-19 IN LANCASTER COUNTY SO FAR IN DECEMBER AS OVERALL DEATH TOLL SOARS TO 570
COVID-related deaths in Lancaster County are rapidly accelerating, with 60 fatalities so far in December.
There were 62 COVID deaths in the county all of November.
A single nursing home — the Gardens at Stevens in Denver — accounts for the majority of the most recent deaths, Lancaster County Coroner Dr. Stephen Diamantoni told LNP | LancasterOnline on Wednesday.
The number of dead in Pennsylvania climbed to 11,762 Wednesday after the state health department reported 220 fatalities, the single-highest recorded over a 24-hour reporting period since the novel coronavirus first emerged 10 months ago.
“We have noted on numerous occasions that we often see an increase in cases, then hospitalizations lag a week or two later, and deaths a week or two after that,” Nate Wardle, a spokesman for the state health department, said in an email. “This appears to be occurring yet again, which is concerning.”
Between Dec. 1 and 7, the county averaged seven deaths a day, a pace at which, if sustained, could result in 217 COVID fatalities for the month.
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Columbia Spy 