Columbia Spy

❧ ❧ ❧ ❧

In Which Four Members of Council Outrun Both Caution and Legal Counsel — Your Correspondent Raises an Eyebrow at the Borough’s Most Irregular Work Session

✦

Columbia, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania — The Fifth of May, in the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand and Twenty-Six

Dearest Gentle Reader,

Your correspondent has read of many a civic spectacle in the noble Borough of Columbia, but rarely has she read of a work session with her eyebrow so thoroughly elevated as after the evening of the fifth of May — wherein council undertook to approve an employment agreement for the incoming Chief of Police with all the delicate precision of a gentleman threading a needle whilst wearing riding gloves.

The new Chief, one Holly Arndt, appears by every account a most capable and suitable personage. That her agreement was nearly entangled in a thicket of contradictory contractual language is no fault of hers whatsoever.

When a lawyer says a contract contradicts itself, the proper response is to fix it — not to dismiss the observation as insufficiently bold.

Council Vice President Heather Zink raised what your correspondent considers entirely legitimate concerns: the agreement distributed the night before did not accord with what had been discussed in executive session, the borough’s own labor attorney had flagged that protective language he’d inserted had been removed, and the document contained directly contradictory provisions regarding whether Chief Arndt would be an at-will employee or enjoy civil service protections. One cannot, in polite society — nor in a court of law — be both simultaneously. Madam Zink was, in this correspondent’s estimation, entirely right to object.

Into this scene stepped Mayor Leo Lutz, who dismissed the labor attorney’s objections as “wishy-washy” and urged council not to delay. His desire to spare Chief Arndt further uncertainty was understandable — but calling one’s own paid legal counsel wishy-washy and pressing forward regardless was, to put it charitably, rather overbearing. Attorneys retained at public expense to scrutinize employment agreements are not engaged to produce mere decoration.

Council Member Ethan Byers moved sensibly to table the matter. Unfortunately, that motion failed. The council then voted four to three to approve the agreement — at a work session, where votes are not typically taken, on a document distributed the night before, over the objections of its own labor attorney. Madam Zink, Mr. Byers, and Mrs. Jeanne Cooper dissented with admirable resolve.

In sum: Chief Arndt is an excellent choice who deserved a clean, legally sound agreement — which is not precisely what she received. The borough may one day wish it had taken a fortnight more to tidy the language. Columbia’s governance deserves deliberation equal to its considerable character, and your correspondent shall be watching — eyebrow perpetually at the ready.

✦

Lady Whistletown

Your Faithful Correspondent & Reluctant Reporter of Borough Affairs

[Submitted article]

JOE LINTNER | COLUMBIA SPY 

A dedication at the Columbia Borough Fire Hall on Monday evening, May 4th, honored one of the borough’s most dedicated fire service members. Elwood “Tim” Deeg was named Grand Marshal of the upcoming Lancaster County Firefighters Parade scheduled for Saturday, June 6th.

The recognition came as a surprise to Deeg, 83, who spent decades protecting life and property in Columbia Borough by serving in several roles, including Fire Chief and Fire Marshal. 

Deeg’s connection to the fire service stretches back to just after his graduation from high school at age 18, when he responded to his first fire, at the old Standard Garment Factory at 625 Locust Street, where CVS now stands. The factory, which had sat idle since the company relocated to New York City in 1956, was heavily damaged in July 1961 when three boys playing with matches set it ablaze. Over the decades, Deeg rose through the ranks to serve as chief of the Vigilant Fire Company.

Deeg also served multiple turns as borough chief, a position that would pass among officers on a rotating basis. He credited John Lutz, a longtime dispatcher, as central to borough emergency communications in those years.

[Provided photo]

Beyond his firefighting duties, Deeg served for several years as Fire Marshal for Zone 7, covering northwest Lancaster County. As both Fire Chief and Fire Marshal of Columbia Borough, Deeg held two demanding roles, commanding emergency response operations while overseeing fire prevention and fire investigations for the borough.

Deeg’s career spans the history of Columbia’s five fire companies, including the current Columbia Borough Fire Department 80 which was formed in 2015 through a merger of the companies. Deeg remains a member at Station 80, known as the “Hambones.”

Along the way, Deeg chalked up several other notable accomplishments:

1. He started the first junior firemen’s program in Columbia, with three young men: nephew Fred Gerfin, (Mr. McGriddles), Pat Bransby, and John Williams.

2. He introduced a Plectron Alerting System to Columbia Borough to update fire dispatch. The Plectron replaced the old system in which firefighters were simply notified by telephone and siren.

3. He worked with Charles Gohn, head of Columbia Water Company at the time, to color-code all fire hydrants according to the size of underground water lines, and also marked all fire hydrant locations on the borough map. 

4. He initiated the first larger pre-connected hose firefighting landlines and deck guns to save time. 

5. He and a group of firemen from his company created a major disaster plan.

6. Under the direction of Jim Ciccocioppi, training was given to Vigies firemen on use of radiation detection equipment. “It definitely came in handy for the radiation leak at TMI,” Deeg said.

The Firefighters Parade carries extra significance this year, since it coincides with Columbia’s 300th Anniversary celebration. 

The Columbia Borough School Board voted to advertise its proposed final budget for the 2026-27 school year, with a reduction in the real estate tax rate for the second year in a row.

At its May 5 meeting, the board approved a proposed tax rate of 25.26 mills — down 0.4 mills, or roughly 1.6%, from the current rate of 25.66 mills. For a property owner whose home is assessed at $100,000, that translates to an annual tax bill of $2,526.

The proposed budget projects $35.13 million in expenditures against $34.56 million in revenue, leaving a projected deficit of about $562,000. 

Officials plan to draw from the fund balance to cover the shortfall, if needed.

The board has also set aside $365,470 in committed fund balance reserves to help offset pension obligations under the Public School Employees’ Retirement System.

Residents have 30 days to review the spending plan before the board takes a final vote at its June 9 meeting.

[Source: LNP/LancasterOnline]

The meeting packet is HERE.

Dearest Gentle Reader,

Your humble correspondent must take up her quill today to address a matter of some considerable civic importance — one that touches upon glory misappropriated, history insufficiently celebrated, and the peculiar habit of one’s neighbors claiming credit for one’s own most magnificent inheritance.

Let us speak plainly of Columbia — that storied borough upon the Susquehanna — and of two of the most extraordinary sons ever to grace its streets: Mr. William Whipper and Mr. Stephen Smith. These gentlemen, one a businessman and abolitionist of the first order, the other his equally formidable partner, operated a lumberyard in Columbia that was, in truth, something altogether more magnificent than mere commerce. Hidden within their train cars were secret compartments, and within those compartments rode human souls — men, women, and children — traveling from the darkness of bondage toward the blessed light of freedom. Dear Reader, one shudders with admiration.

And yet — and here is where your correspondent must fan herself with some vigor — it is Lancaster that has seen fit to celebrate this legacy, as Whipper and Smith are featured prominently in its exhibits. Lancaster now hosts a lecture series in Whipper’s honor. Lancaster’s public library welcomes his descendants to speak. Lancaster’s institutions drape themselves in the rich fabric of a story that was, at its very heart, Columbia’s story.

One does not begrudge Lancaster its enthusiasm — enthusiasm for history is always a virtue — but one cannot help but observe that Columbia itself has done precious little to claim what is rightfully hers. Where, pray tell, is Columbia’s monument to these men? Where is the historical marker — other than a simple plaque — of suitable grandeur along the very streets where Whipper and Smith conducted their heroic enterprise? Where is the lecture series, the dedicated exhibition, the civic pride that ought to overflow like the Susquehanna herself in the spring thaw — especially now, in this celebration of Columbia’s 300th year?

The family of William Whipper — represented most recently by the estimable Dyymond Whipper-Young of Philadelphia, an artist, educator, and storyteller of considerable accomplishment — travels not to Columbia to speak of her ancestor’s deeds, but to Lancaster’s public library. One feels the sting of this, or rather, one feels that Columbia ought to feel the sting of this, were she paying sufficient attention.

Mr. Whipper was born in Drumore Township, yes, but it was in Columbia that he built his life, his business, and his legend. It was in Columbia that the midnight work of liberation was carried out with extraordinary ingenuity and at considerable personal peril. Smith and Whipper did not merely assist the Underground Railroad — they engineered it, quite literally, concealing freedom within the very infrastructure of commerce.

Columbia, Dearest Reader, possesses a history that other municipalities would construct elaborate fictions to claim. And yet Lancaster constructs not fictions but actual institutions, while Columbia rests, apparently, upon her laurels — laurels she has not even fully cultivated.

Your correspondent urges — nay, implores — the good citizens of Columbia to remedy this oversight with all appropriate haste. Celebrate your Whipper. Celebrate your Smith. Hang their portraits, erect your markers, speak their names from rooftops facing that great river that carried so many toward freedom. Do not allow history to be relocated, like so much unclaimed luggage, to the next town down the highway.

Lancaster is a fine city. But this, Dear Columbia, is your story.

With the utmost affection and no small measure of exasperation,

Your Most Devoted Correspondent,

Lady Whistletown

Ulrich Brent A, Ulrich Katelyn D, Ulrich S. Marlene conveyed property on Locust Street to Ulrich Brent A, Ulrich Katelyn D. for $1.

Lancaster Rentals LLC conveyed 460 Locust St. to Marlon Malpica for $275,000.

The estate of Martha M. Grab conveyed property on Locust Street to Farabaugh Property Group LLC for $177,025.

Gregory A. Nikolaus conveyed 691 Cherry St. to Zachary I. Nikolaus for $133,200.

Frank J. Doutrich conveyed 740 S. 12th St. to HNT Builders Inc. for $80,000.

This week’s photos of Columbia 

Click on photos to see larger, sharper images. 

JOE LINTNER | COLUMBIA SPY 

Details of the 1948 American LaFrance at Columbia Crossing on a rainy Saturday…

There it is, in all its glory.

*****************

Possible hawk’s nest way up in a sycamore 

Someone dumped dirt at the former McGinness property.

Who and why?

*****************

The Creamline Cruiser is on its way to somewhere.

Teetering, about to fall in

Electric scooters 

*****************

On Monday, Elwood “Tim” Deeg was named Grand Marshal of the upcoming Lancaster County Firefighters Parade. 

*****************

Fine figure of a killdeer on Heritage Drive 

A work in progress 

The finished product 

Congratulations, Chief Jack Brommer 

Congratulations, Chief Holly Arndt 

The cakes were part of the celebration at the Columbia Fire Hall on Tuesday, May 5.

There’s a used flag deposit box at the Legion. Dispose of your old, worn flag there. Don’t wrap yourself in it like some politicians do.

Derailed rail

Hangin’ at the tracks, heavily camouflaged

Missing street signs at 3rd & Cherry 

Norfolk Southern workers renovated the railroad crossing at the borough sheds this week. The supervisors are the ones standing around, doing nothing. 

New flag at Borough Hall 

Onward, children!

Workin’ on the railroad 

When you just don’t feel like stopping for that red light

[Submitted video]

JOE LINTNER | COLUMBIA SPY 

Columbia Borough Council voted 4-3 to approve an employment agreement for new police chief Holly Arndt during its May 5 work session, despite concerns about contradictions in the document.

Eric Kauffman, council president, said he, Borough Manager Jack Brommer, and Chief Arndt had reviewed the agreement together, and Kauffman described it as similar to the contract Brommer worked under when he was the borough’s police chief. Arndt also requested that council support her in pursuing a master’s degree in the future.  

Heather Zink, council vice president, said that although she believes Arndt is the right person for the job, she had reservations about the agreement sent to council members the night before the work session.

“It did not match what we had talked about in executive session,” Zink said, noting that the borough’s labor attorney said certain language he had included in the contract had been removed.

Zink also pointed out that council had previously agreed to remove civil service language from the agreement, but the version sent the night before still contained it. According to Zink, that language directly contradicted another provision in the document. Officials didn’t state the specific language of the agreement due to confidentiality constraints. 

The issue boiled down to whether the chief would be an at-will employee, or be entitled to civil service protections. 

“I feel council is being strong-armed into voting for something,” Zink said. “We want a contract that’s going to stand up if there are challenges.”

She also dismissed the argument that the agreement was acceptable because it was similar to Brommer’s agreement. “That was 14 years ago and things change,” she said.

Mayor Leo Lutz defended the agreement and called the labor attorney’s comments largely advisory and “wishy-washy.” “I don’t see any reason to stall this and keep this chief on the hook,” he said.

Council member Ethan Byers moved to table the matter, but the motion failed. Council then voted 4-3 to approve the agreement, despite the concerns over contradictory language. Zink, Byers, and council member Jeanne Cooper voted against the motion.

The action was unusual because council typically does not vote at a work session. Also, the late distribution of the agreement gave council members only a short time to review it.

JOE LINTNER | COLUMBIA SPY 

Borough officials, dismayed and frustrated by continued vandalism at Makle Park, said the park is close to being shut down. 

The most recent incident was an act of arson at the basketball court, in which a melted zipper was found fused to the court surface.

“It has to stop,” Councilman Kelly Murphy said at the May 5 borough council workshop. He called on neighbors to remain vigilant and said this may be the community’s last opportunity to save the park. “I think we really need to get the message out: This is your last chance. Take care of it, or you may lose it forever.”

Mayor Leo Lutz echoed the sentiment: “If this continues, have a resolution and shut that park down.” 

Resident Frank Doutrich said, “This has been going on for years, especially there, so we spend all the money, and we still don’t have it solved.”

Lutz outlined several measures under consideration, including new surveillance cameras aimed directly at the restroom doors and additional camera coverage across the park. He noted the borough has already spoken with residents of four newly built homes whose backyards face the park, asking them and others to keep watch. “So far, we haven’t got a lot of help,” Lutz said. He added that Police Chief Holly Arndt has recently increased patrols at the park. 

Future grant funding from the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) may be at risk if the borough can’t show proper upkeep  of the park. “DCNR is going to come down, they’re going to look and say you can’t keep up the money we spent. You’re not getting any more,” Lutz said. 

Lutz referenced a prior episode in which vandals broke a backboard and bent rims so badly that the borough removed them and effectively closed the courts. Resident Kurt Edmond Sr. later raised the funds to install new rims and backboards. Lutz said he hopes Edmond can again help remind the community to take better care of the park.

Borough Manager Jack Brommer noted that new lighting had recently been installed. Despite those improvements, Lutz acknowledged the park’s somewhat secluded location makes oversight difficult. “It’s the only park we have that is kind of out of public view,” he said, adding that identifying suspects wearing hoods and masks presents a challenge.

Eric Kauffman, council president, said, “In any neighborhood, the more active they are, the less crime there is,” he said. “If our parks are busy and occupied, then the trash won’t build up, the bathrooms will be taken care of because people will want to use those parks.”

Lutz noted that with warmer weather approaching, events are planned at the park — an opportunity to bring more eyes and community presence. 

Lutz said the borough would continue looking for community members to help monitor and maintain the park, and urged anyone with information about the April 28 arson to come forward. “The neighborhood needs to step up and take control of that area,” he said. “Someone needs to speak up.”

JOE LINTNER | COLUMBIA SPY 

The Columbia Market House is still running in the red, borough officials acknowledged at the May 5 Columbia Borough Council workshop held at the Columbia Fire Hall. Council members warned that the deficit could persist for years to come.

Heather Zink, council vice president, confirmed that finance reports show the market is not breaking even. When resident Frank Doutrich asked, “Are we in the hole?” Zink replied: “Yes.” The amount of the shortfall was not disclosed at the meeting, since the financial reports weren’t on hand.

Doutrich said that since the borough currently lacks a finance manager, “Somebody should be on top of this.” He also questioned whether the borough’s accounting firm, Brown’s, was monitoring the market’s finances. Zink said the firm was not focused on that particular issue.

Zink, who reviews the market’s finances as part of council’s finance committee, suggested the market will remain in the red for the foreseeable future. She added that the financial situation could persist for a long time unless the market increases the number of renters, or stand rents are raised.

Doutrich noted that standholders appear to be turning a profit, and questioned whether borough taxpayers should at least be breaking even on the investment.

Columbia Spy previously reported on the Market House’s troubled finances HERE.

The Columbia Market House, built in 1869, operated as a market until 1996, when it closed amid concerns about costs and a dwindling number of vendors. It reopened in 2005 but closed again just before Christmas in December 2017, according to lancasteronline. The building at 15 S. Third St. closed in December 2017 to undergo a several million construction and renovation paid for with a combination of state and local funds.

The borough-owned facility reopened after renovations in May 2021 under CHI St. Joseph Children’s Health management. Ten months after reopening, the market saw several vendors leave and was welcoming shoppers only one day a week. CHI eventually stepped away from its management role, and the borough took over operations.