Columbia Spy

Municipal Brief by GAYLE JOHNSON for LNP | LancasterOnline

When: Columbia Borough Council meeting, April 25. Council member Todd Burgard was absent.

Borough officials expressed surprise after learning that volunteers working to repair the broken fountain in Town Square park replaced its pump and turned on the water before council members voted to approve their actions.

More: Members ultimately approved a motion to allow the Columbia Town Gardeners to fix the fountain, but with caveats. First, volunteers may maintain the fountain for up to a year before going before council again. Also, council members must approve all repairs and any gardening work in Town Square park before they occur.

Why it matters: Allowing anyone to start a project without approval or permits sets a bad precedent and sends the wrong message to Columbia businesses and residents, said Heather Zink, president.

Quotables: “I’m really torn,” Zink said about approving work after completion. “We have people who don’t have permits, and we have to penalize them, and now we’re doing the same thing,” she said. “That group is under the impression they have more authority than they have,” said Mark Stivers, borough manager.

Other comments: “I do appreciate the enthusiasm behind it, but I did not expect to see it running today,” Elizabeth Andrews, who chairs the borough’s parks & recreation advisory board, told council members.

Detail: Barbara Fisher, a council member who previously served on the advisory board, asked fellow members to allow volunteers to maintain the fountain and the park for a year. Peter Stahl, another council member, said the volunteer group’s actions would have been shocking had they replaced the fountain entirely instead of plugging in a new pump.

Background: Council members recently considered removing the broken fountain until volunteers offered to restore it and maintain the water feature as well as the surrounding park. The borough will incur no expense for the fountain.

Columbia Pizza and Italian Restaurant, 429 Locust St., Columbia, April 22. Pass. Onions stored directly on the floor in the back area rather than 6 inches off the floor as required. Capicola, deli ham, salami, provolone cheese and sliced tomatoes were held at 51-52 F for an unknown amount of time in the bain-marie rather than 41 F or below as required. The ambient temperature of this unit was 61 F. Temperature-control-for-safety foods are not permitted to be stored in this unit until it maintains a temperature of 41 F or colder. Portable fans in back food preparation area had an accumulation of dust. Rags stored in the hand-wash sink in the front service area. Lights are not shielded or shatterproof over the sandwich preparation area in the back. Side door in the food preparation area is not self-closing and is being propped open. No sign or poster posted at the hand-wash sink in the front service area to remind employees to wash their hands.

One Stop Property Group LLC conveyed 430 Manor St. to Roxanna Santiago Vazquez for $205,000.

M&M Realty Co. conveyed 125 N. Third St. to 125 N. 3rd LLC for $375,000.

This week’s photos of Columbia

(Click/tap on photos to see larger, sharper images.) 

The fountain at the town square has been repaired.

These photos were taken before it was fully operational.

Here’s one in living color.

This creature lives there, too.

Repointing and other mortaring was being done this past week.

There’s even a receptacle for butts.

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The Wright’s Ferry Mansion

There are many detour signs in town due to the bridge project in Washington Boro.

Meanwhile on our bridge, this hapless truck driver didn’t see the State Police traffic officer sitting there, until it was too late.

The 10-ton weight limit is still in effect.

Apparently, sediment is being removed from the Columbia Water Company.

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New paint for a cannon at the bridge plaza

Here’s a “before” view.

Ventilated chair for enjoying the view

Tuesday was Primary Election Day.

A remnant of the Civil War Bridge?

Or the subsequent railroad bridge?

Or the one in between?

The first block of North 6th was shut down on Thursday so that Doug’s Tree Service could remove a tree in a backyard.

It was a BIG tree.

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What’s left of the Cherry Street demo project

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The Habitat for Humanity project is almost ready for prime time.

Declining chick population

Haitian Maranatha Bible Church

Just walk under that particle board.

Nothing can go wrong.

Ongoing

For rent

The Haunted Manor

United Methodist

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Erin Go Bragh!

At Kindred Collections

Stars and stripes

Gnarly driftwood at Tollbooth

A long view of Saint Paul’s Episcopal

Bus, with a side of parking tickets

Universal Techs is gone . . .

But Henry the Horse is still there.

A mossy cover . . .

On the announcment box

According to a recent LNP article: “The [PA] Supreme Court decided against the municipalities’ argument that the commission has failed to regulate where gas companies place their meters — inside or outside historic homes. The municipalities say the PUC gives too much control to gas companies in determining meter placement, which can affect the aesthetic of a historic community.” So, the PUC won, and municipalities, including Columbia Borough, lost. 

But what in the hell happened here on North 3rd Street (in the historic district)?

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Afternoon song

Did anyone call ICE yet?

Chinooks flying over

Here’s a closer look at one of them.

Some have taken to calling this building “Columbia Crossings.”

In his poem “Crow Testament,” Sherman Alexie says, “The Crow God as depicted / in all of the reliable Crow bibles / looks exactly like a Crow.”

Be kind

[Photo: William Schnaekel]

Mike Splain and Zachary Biceuskis from the Columbia Borough Fire Department completed water rescue training. [Photo: Todd Stahl]

This weekend, two members of the Columbia Borough Fire Department, Mike Splain and Zachary Biceuskis, successfully completed a water rescue training course conducted by WhiteCap Water Rescue Training. 8 rescue students representing Columbia Borough FD, Lancaster City FD, Rohrerstown FD and the host Blue Rock Regional Fire District took part.

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Black Olive Family Diner, 1506 Lancaster Ave., Columbia, April 18. Pass. Open beverage containers for personal consumption were on a shelf at the mechanical dishwasher and the other (twist-cap variety) on a food preparation table. Food employees preparing food not wearing beard covers. Raw beef and raw liver stored above raw fish in the small cooling unit. Raw chicken stored above tubes of raw beef in the walk-in cooler. In-use knives stored between table edges or between tables, an area not easily cleanable and sanitized. Tilapia, vacuum-packed and received frozen, in the small cooling unit is completely thawed and still in original packaging, which is not a proper thawing method according to package instructions. Time in lieu of temperature being used in the food facility to control ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous foods (raw eggs) without written procedures or documentation to verify disposition of food. Old food residue on the slicer. Opaque residue on the deflector plate of the ice maker.

Andy’s Market Inc., 310 11th St., Columbia, April 17. Pass. Food employees in the front preparation area wearing bracelet and watch. Food employees in the front and back food preparation area not wearing a beard cover. Thirteen packs of Woodland All American Jerky being offered for sale from a facility that is not federally inspected. Raw shell eggs stored above ham in the reach-in cooler in the back food preparation area. The hand-wash sink in the front area was blocked by many boxes and not accessible at all times for employee use.

Griddles Malt Shoppe, 315B Locust St., Columbia, April 17. Pass. No violations.

Our Lady of the Angels School/Holy Trinity Church, 404 Cherry St., Columbia, April 17. Pass. An irreversible registering thermometer or thermal labels are not available for monitoring the rinse temperature of the mechanical dishwasher. Old food residue on the can opener blade.

The meeting packet is HERE.

https://lancaster.crimewatchpa.com/columbiapd/10552/post/columbia-borough-code-department-reminders

The first block of North 6th Street, from Locust to Avenue H, is closed Thursday, April 25, for tree removal.

Lancaster Lebanon Habitat for Humanity dedicates new homes in Columbia