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Residents press Columbia council on code enforcement, parking and 801 Walnut exterior work
Summary
Multiple residents complained about unaddressed code violations, parking changes and sidewalk/curb work at 801 Walnut; staff reported stop‑work orders and involvement of Commonwealth Codes, and council urged follow‑up.
Residents raised a string of code enforcement and public‑safety concerns during the public comment segment on Aug. 12, telling Columbia Borough Council they had not seen corrective action after multiple complaints.
A resident who signed up to speak asked when code officers would make property owners fix code violations and collect payments, citing multiple addresses throughout Columbia. Council asked the resident to direct specific enforcement concerns to borough staff; the resident said he had previously reported problems and “nothing was done yet.”
Council and staff responded with specific actions. Councilperson Geezy and other officials said officers have been issuing parking and code citations; one staff speaker reported that that day officers had issued 70 citations in the cited area and that the borough has issued 5,900 parking tickets so far this year. For the particular complaint about parking and sidewalks at 801 Walnut Street (referred to by speakers as 801 Wallace/Walnut), residents said exterior work created new off‑street parking and eliminated several on‑street spaces.
Staff said they issued a stop‑work order for exterior work at 801 Walnut a few weeks earlier because work was occurring without a permit. Staff also said Commonwealth Codes (the contractor that administers building permits and inspections for the borough) inspects interior work connected to building permits. Council said zoning procedures, including potential review by the zoning hearing board, apply when a property seeks a change that affects required on‑site or off‑site parking.
Why it matters: residents said removed on‑street parking and new off‑street backing configurations create safety and access concerns in older neighborhoods. One resident also said a tree was removed and not replaced.
Council asked staff to continue follow‑up. Staff said they had reached out to Commonwealth Codes for inspections and had placed stop‑work orders on unpermitted exterior work. No additional council motion or vote was recorded at the meeting on these complaints.
The exchange also raised process questions: staff indicated some exterior inspections are the responsibility of the borough while Commonwealth Codes handles interior permit inspections. Council said some zoning approvals require public hearings before the zoning hearing board; other changes can be staff approvals depending on scope.
