Columbia Spy

https://local21news.com/news/local/officials-give-update-on-upmc-memorial-hospital-shooting-that-killed-officer-hurt-5-others-west-york-andrew-duarte-york-county-pennsylvania-pa

Columbia Borough police will soon begin stricter enforcement of regulations governing electric bikes and scooters, Mayor Leo Lutz announced at the April 22 borough council meeting.

The crackdown comes in response to the growing popularity of electric vehicles throughout Columbia and elsewhere, which has raised safety concerns among local officials.

“We’re starting to see popular not only in Columbia but all around, e-bikes and e-scooters,” Mayor Lutz stated during the April 22 meeting. “There are regulations for those electric bikes and electric scooters.”

According to Lutz, Police Chief Jack Brommer and his officers have been studying applicable rules and regulations and are preparing to take action against non-compliant riders.

“They are going to start taking action on those who are violators of those electric bikes and electric scooters for non-compliance,” Lutz warned.

Lutz expressed particular concern about safety risks as warmer weather approaches. “We can’t risk people flying around on electric bikes, electric scooters here in the summer and wind up getting seriously injured or, my God, possibly killed,” he emphasized.

The mayor also directed his message to parents, urging them to research regulations before purchasing these vehicles for their children. He cautioned against relying solely on information from retailers, suggesting that sales staff might not fully disclose usage restrictions in their eagerness to complete a sale.

“I just want to advise all parents and the kids to find out what you can do, what you can’t do, and what you should buy and what you shouldn’t buy when you’re getting into that,” Lutz concluded.

The police department has not yet announced when the increased enforcement will begin or what specific violations they will be targeting.

Last year, at the August 27, 2024 Columbia Borough Council meeting, Lutz said that police stepped up enforcement of ordinances governing e-bikes and e-scooters. Riders have been cited for various traffic infractions.

“The guys are stepping it up, and there have been citations,” Lutz said.

Currently, bicycles aren’t permitted on sidewalks, according to borough ordinance. Councilman Peter Stahl noted Police Chief Jack Brommer’s recent reminder that e-scooters are prohibited on borough streets and sidewalks. Stahl said scooters are permitted only in designated areas such as [certain] parks.

The Pennsylvania Vehicle Code “prohibits the use of electric scooters, electric skateboards, and electric unicycles on public roadways.”

A Lancaster city man raped a 14-year-old girl in his home after picking her up from a playground in Columbia in 2021, according to police. 

Lancaster city police have charged, Nicklos McRae, 25, with seven felony counts including rape by forcible compulsion and aggravated indecent assault of a person less than 16. 

According to a criminal complaint filed last week, McRae picked up the girl from a playground at Columbia Middle School on the evening of Aug. 30, 2021. Police say he drove the girl to his home in Lancaster city, made unwanted sexual advances and proceeded to assault her. 

The girl told police she demanded McRae stop multiple times during the assault, but he ignored her. After the assault, police say, McRae called the girl an Uber to send her home. 

A day later, the girl had a Sexual Assault Forensic Examination completed at Lancaster General Hospital. As part of the examination, medical personnel collected DNA, which would be identified as McRae’s in 2023 using the FBI’s Combined DNA Index System.

Lancaster police interviewed McRae on April 22, 2025. Police say he initially denied knowing the girl but later admitted he had picked her up in Columbia and brought her to his Lancaster city home. 

McRae is currently free on $250,000 bail. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 9. 

YWCA Lancaster runs a 24-hour sexual assault hotline, 717-392-7273, that connects callers to free, confidential counseling and therapy services for community members impacted by sexual abuse, harassment or assault. Report suspected child abuse to ChildLine at 800-932-0313. 

https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/lancaster-man-rapes-14-year-old-girl-then-calls-her-an-uber-police/article_503ad001-19bc-4c1e-841d-347d287d35f3.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=email&utm_campaign=user-share

This week’s photos of Columbia
Click on photos to see larger, sharper images.

York County sheriffs were at Plane & Manor Thursday morning. 

SEVEN sheriffs 

(At least one is on the K9 team, judging from his vest) . . .

and a Columbia Borough police officer (not shown).

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Painters were at the historic Wright’s Ferry Mansion on Tuesday. 

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Firetrucks on Locust Street 

Police cars at 700 Franklin Street

Are we still doing this?

Sometimes it’s better if you cook things, though.

Police activity on Locust 

Free loaner tools at Advance Auto Parts

Photo shoot on Front Street 

Fish’s new sign at short 6th & Lancaster Avenue 

Police cars at the District Administration Center Saturday morning 

Yes, there really is a Wellsville.

It’s in York County.

Here are several photos of the Columbia Animal Shelter…

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The banners are gone at Plane & Manor.

Dispose of your old flags at the Elks on the 400 block of Chestnut, or at the VFW at 4th & Manor.

Seen at the American Legion on Chestnut Street 

Some vivid evening clouds

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Ants are digging out the sand between bricks at the bridge plaza.

There are still many spaces available for commemorative bricks.

Coming soon

Oriental rugs are for sale on the first block of South 2nd.

The bug man was at Columbia Crossing this week.

Lit up bus shelter on South 4th

Quotations 

Help build a playlot at Janson Park. 

The hedgehogs are still there. 

Seen on the steps at United Methodist Church 

Doug’s Tree Service squeezing out onto 4th Street 

Enjoyment at Columbia River Park 

Occasionally seen in Columbia 

Fire police and borough workers responded to the scene of a large limb on the roadway on South 9th Street Sunday morning. 

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Columbia Borough Council has approved a new ordinance allowing limited free downtown parking for senior residents.

Council voted unanimously at Tuesday’s council meeting to advertise the ordinance, which establishes a Senior Citizen Parking Permit program that allows residents aged 65 and older to park for free for up to one hour during regular business hours within the Downtown Commercial Zoning District where parking meter zones have been established.

Eligible seniors must apply in person at the municipal building at 308 Locust Street and provide a valid driver’s license and vehicle registration showing Columbia Borough residency. Only one permit will be issued per residential address.

The permits must be displayed on the passenger side lower corner of the windshield and are non-transferable between vehicles or individuals. Each permit will be valid for one year from issuance and must be renewed before expiration.

Key details of the program include:

– Free parking limited to one hour, Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

– Vehicles exceeding the one-hour limit must pay standard parking rates

– Permits not valid during scheduled street sweeping operations

– Violations subject to fines as established in the borough fee schedule

The ordinance will take effect in accordance with Pennsylvania law. Columbia residents interested in obtaining a permit can visit the municipal building during regular business hours once the program is implemented.

For more information about the Senior Citizen Parking Permit program, residents are encouraged to contact the Columbia Borough office.

At Tuesday’s meeting, Columbia Borough Council voted to close on a $5.4 million loan aimed at developing the McGinness Innovation Park. The loan is paired with a $3.35 million grant. Both amounts, which total $8.75 million, are funded through a Business in Our Sites (BIOS) program administered by the Commonwealth Financing Authority, which provides funds to municipalities and other entities to prepare sites for development. In order to receive the grant, the borough was required to close on the loan.

Columbia Borough purchased the 58-acre McGinness property for $1.5 million on August 20, 2021.

Following is a breakdown of costs associated with the project:

The estimate to develop the tract as of summer 2022 was $12 million, according to BizNewsPA (7/20/22). Columbia initially paid $1.5 million to purchase the property. The total of those two figures is $13.5 million.

Along the way, the borough received a $1 million Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) grant from the state. Deduct that from the $13.5 million above to get $12.5 million.

As mentioned above, the borough was approved for a $3.35 million BIOS grant. So, deduct that from the $12.5 million to get $9.15 million. That’s the total amount the borough will owe. The amount includes the $5.4 million loan that was approved, since it must be paid back, most likely with interest (see below).

These figures could vary somewhat, but unless the borough somehow secures yet another grant, $9.15 million is a good “ballpark” figure. Officials hope that leasing or selling parcels (or possibly the whole property) will generate revenue. If that can be done, the $9.15 million figure would certainly be mitigated – or, ideally, eliminated.

Over the past few years, the borough has already spent about half a million on testing and maintenance of the property, asbestos abatement and demolition of the former McGinness home, the purchase and demolition of 700 Franklin Street and other buildings, as well as the purchase of an additional tract along Plane Street- just to get the project started.

Regarding the $5.4 million loan, the borough has 5 years to pay it back. Columbia will need to reimburse the state about $158,000 for every acre sold (LNP 3/5/22). After five years, the state will amortize the loan over 15 years and charge 3% interest.

In sum, this project could be costly for a long time.

This is a tale of two “cities”:

According to LNP/LancasterOnline, Tuesday’s Lancaster City Council meeting was canceled due to technical problems. Council members decided to postpone the meeting until the problem is fixed.

“Council President Amanda Bakay said the meeting recording, streamed to the city’s YouTube channel (CityofLancasterPAGov), was not picking up audio to broadcast to listeners at home. Residents have come to rely on a live recording of every council meeting, Bakay said, so council members agreed to delay the meeting until the problem is fixed,” the article states.

(The meeting was rescheduled for next week.)

Columbia Borough, on the other hand, did not cancel its Tuesday night council meeting, despite similar technical problems. (In fact, Columbia Borough has never canceled a meeting due to such problems.)

The borough’s livestreams have been plagued by audio issues for about six months, and this latest meeting was no exception. Officials are well aware of the problem but have so far – for some reason – been unable to fix it.

At the March 11, 2025 meeting, Mayor Leo Lutz said that a technician had spent several hours at borough hall, working to fix the problem. Unfortunately, the audio quality is still poor, and many conversations are hard to understand. At most meetings, a persistent crackling overrides the audio feed, obscuring officials’ voices. In addition, there was no audio at all at the March 4, 2025 meeting. 

During a discussion at Tuesday’s meeting, Heather Zink, council president, noted that the minutes of the March 20, 2025 joint planning commission and borough council meeting were lacking detail. She suggested it wasn’t possible get the information from the meeting livestream due to poor audio quality.  “We all know that that meeting, the audio was horrible,” Zink said.

Yes, it was.

And so it continues. 

There’s an old song that goes, “There’s something happening here. What it is ain’t exactly clear.” 

Indeed.

Columbia Borough Council voted unanimously Tuesday evening to approve the demolition of 700 Franklin Street, in addition to accessory structures remaining at the McGinness homestead site of 1020 Manor Street, to clear the way for a planned business park.

Council awarded the demolition contract to Farhat Excavating, LLC, which submitted the lowest bid of $52,780.00 among nine contractors competing for the project.

The decision comes after unsuccessful efforts to preserve the Franklin Street dwelling. In December 2024, the borough solicited bids for the sale and relocation of the 700 Franklin Street property, but received no offers, making demolition “the logical option to keep the project progressing forward,” according to a borough executive brief.

C.S. Davidson, the engineering firm handling the bidding process, publicly advertised the demolition contract in LNP/LancasterOnline and opened bids via PennBid on April 17, 2025.

The complete list of bids received:

– Farhat Excavating, LLC: $52,780.00

– Tamco Construction Inc.: $57,180.00

– Pennell Services: $57,500.00

– Victory Gardens, Inc.: $59,939.50

– Ben Washington: $60,000.00

– Empire Demolition: $62,440.00

– SDL Construction LLC: $62,500.00

– Saway: $66,900.00

– A.T.O Excavating, Inc.: $78,750.00

Kate Haldeman (left) does yoga with instructor Beverly Kelley at the Columbia Animal Shelter.

At 6:50 Monday evening, 14 enthusiastic people lined up at the Columbia Animal Shelter to participate in yoga.

Once inside, enthusiasts rolled out their mats as furry felines wandered through. Obviously, this isn’t your typical yoga class—it’s “Cat Yoga,” a unique wellness experience where relaxation meets animal interaction.

A yoga practitioner is joined by a feline shelter resident.

The idea behind cat yoga is simple: Participants do yoga conducted alongside the shelter’s resident cats. They can choose to practice in one of four spaces—the kitten room, female cat room, male cat room, or the lobby. 

Instructor Beverly Kelley typically guides the class through gentle stretches and positions, as shelter cats accompany participants. “We’ll do a little yoga and a lot of playtime and loving on the cats and kittens while we’re here – and hopefully an adoption or two,” says Kelley. 

Rochelle “Rock” Gutierrez Meiskey joins instructor Beverly Kelley before class. 

Kelley had just gotten certified at the end of last May as a 200-hour certified yoga instructor. The program began last summer when she collaborated with Rochelle “Rock” Gutierrez Meiskey at Rock’s CardioBox. (Columbia Spy posted a profile of Rock’s classes HERE.)

The yoga program serves a dual purpose. While participants benefit from stress reduction and physical activity, the cats receive socialization. Proceeds from the sessions go directly toward supporting the shelter’s operations.

Cat Yoga classes are held monthly at the Columbia Animal Shelter. 

Participants may not bring their own cats, to ensure the safety and comfort of shelter animals and attendees. Sessions are held one Monday a month at 6 p.m., with 15 spaces available. Sessions are $25 for 75 minutes. Registration is required. Go HERE for more information. 

A woman found dead in the Susquehanna River on Friday in West Hempfield Township was identified as April Wefler of Lancaster city, the Lancaster County Coroner’s Office announced today. 

Wefler, 33, of the 100 block of South Queen Street, died of freshwater drowning, according to the coroner’s office, which reported her body was found on the shoreline in West Hempfield Township between the Wrights Ferry and Veterans Memorial bridges.  

The coroner’s office said Wefler was reported missing by her family Saturday. The coroner confirmed Wefler’s identity via dental records.  

The coroner said the manner of death is still under investigation.  

West Hempfield police have not said if they are investigating the death and have not responded to requests for more information. 

https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/lancaster-city-woman-drowned-in-susquehanna-river-over-the-weekend-coroner/article_55678552-dd2d-4358-9072-14d8be8da369.html