When most people think of the town meeting, they think of the open forum, all topics and issues brought to the forefront and debated convocation of the shareholders.

In its most pure form, the town meeting begun and practiced in New England’s states and commonwealths, was an open forum of voting citizens in a town. In Vermont, “It is the day when all the legal voters of a town have an opportunity to air their grievances; a day when true town business is addressed; and the source of a much-needed social respite towards the end of a long Vermont winter.”

Wikipedia says it this way: “A town meeting is a form of direct democratic rule, used primarily in portions of the United States since the 17th century, in which most or all the members of a community come together to legislate policy and budgets for local government.

“The term has more recently been expanded to cover public meetings that draw people in a geographic area to discuss issues but not vote on any legislative or administrative action. Notably, the term is commonly used by politicians in the United States to describe forums at which voters can ask questions.”

Was Monday’s meeting a town meeting?

At Monday night’s town meeting in Columbia, the “openness” and the general airing of grievances by citizens was limited as the unpublished agenda evolved as the mayor and police chief showed Power Point presentations. The mayor’s focused on observations about what the mayor’s observed around town and what he believes is needed; the police chief’s was a show about the police department’s resources and needs.

Yard sales: The mayor’s Power Point began with a slide showing yard sale signage and the mayor held up a yard sale sign that he’d gotten over the weekend. He went on to say that the uncontrolled yard sales (1) violate utility company policies when people post signs on utility poles; (2) that the signs not removed give a bad appearance to visitors ; (3) that the nails, tacks, staples and devices used to affix the signs present a safety hazard; (4) that signage taped to surfaces can scar and remove paint when removed and that the sale of food at yard sales by individuals can present a health risk.

The Columbia Website page headed ZONING says this about yard sales: “It is illegal and unlawful to post signs (yard sale, garage sale, etc) on public poles, trees or public property of any kind. Garage/yard sales may only be held between the hours of 8:00 AM & 4:00PM. Items for sale must belong solely to the household where the sale is held. Only (1) four square foot sign shall be permitted advertising the sale. Such sign shall be located on the premises where the sale occurs. Such sales shall be limited to (2) per year and shall not extend beyond a (2) day period.”

That’s pretty clearly stated. Columbia has ordinances that apply to the conduct and advertising of yard sales, but leadership does not appear to be willing or able to enforce the codes.

Columbia Borough also has ordinances stipulating the licensing for retail sales and for the sale of food (as does the Commonwealth); but leadership does not appear to be willing or able to enforce the codes.

The mayor did say that he’s got jobs for people apprehended for defacing property in the borough; he’ll give them a pair of pliers to pull the nails, staples and tacks from utility poles.

Trash and litter. The mayor’s next slide showed stacks of trash bags along the side and front of a residence. He railed against the unsightliness and transgressors. He said that trash containers cannot be kept in front of the houses. He showed pictures of trash and drinking cups on the road surface near the gutters. He and the chief comment on the unsanitary conditions; one of them said when he pointed out that throwing debris into the gutter is not the right thing to do, the person responded, “That’s what the gutters are for.”

Columbia has an ordinance pertaining to trash (Section 181-16: Accumulation of refuse), but leadership does not appear to be willing or able to enforce the codes.

Keep the parks clean. The next point addressed the disregard that some people have for the condition of Columbia’s parks. One citizen commented on the vandalism and graffiti that marks some of the parks. The citizen said, “Vandalism is a crime.” The mayor agreed and said it’s disgusting.

Columbia has an ordinance pertaining to vandalism of public property: “Within the limits of any Borough property, it shall be unlawful for any person to either perform or permit to be performed any of the following acts: Injure, deface, destroy, tamper with, displace or remove any signs, notices or placards, whether temporary or permanent, or other structures or equipment, facilities or property or any appurtenances whatsoever, either real or personal.” But but leadership does not appear to be willing or able to enforce the codes.

The mayor pointed that the codes department staffing consists of one full time employee, two part timers and one clerk.

When someone asked why the cameras are not used to determine who the litterbugs and vandals are, the mayor offered “there are some issues with the cameras.”

Rental units. The next agenda topic centered on rental units, landlords and renters. At this point, the mayor stated, “We’ve got to take our community back,” and “It’s going to get a little hard around here.” He said that he was going to check “if it’s legal, then disruptive violators will be posted at the Website.”

When a citizen, ostensibly a landlord, asked whether the annual landlord occupancy forms are downloadable from the Website, he asked the codes officer, who hesitantly stated, “No.”

The mayor said, “Hopefully, we’ll get some of this online.”

Columbia has an ordinance pertaining to landlord and tenant responsibilities, but leadership does not appear to be willing or able to enforce the codes.

Property maintenance. Next on the agenda was the issue of property maintenance. The mayor opined, “some of the houses are just plain trash.” He stated that building permits must be checked and that zoning codes must be enforced.

Quality of life. The mayor said that noise issues were problematic. He went on to say a recent spill of a hazardous material on a borough was significant. During the mayor’s comments on these issues, a councillor echoed the mayor’s earlier comment by saying “Take back our town.”

The problem of dogs and cats. The mayor and police chief both spoke to the issue of dogs and cats. (Columbia news, views & reviews wonders whether the problem is dogs and cats or irresponsible dog and cat owners or those who feed itinerant cats.) The police chief said the Columbia Police Department has been engaged in random interviews with dog owners asking for proof of licensing, rabies inoculation and a pick-up container.

One citizen asked why cats are allowed to roam unlicensed. There was no clear response from the chief nor the mayor, though the chief offered that Pennsylvania has no law requiring licensing of cats. The mayor said that he thinks there is a town north of Columbia that recently enacted a cat licensing and control ordinance; he was going to try to get details from that town’s officials. Columbia news, views & reviews research has yielded no laws concerning the control or licensing of cats. Here is a comprehensive site for dog and cat laws in Pennsylvania.

Columbia has several ordinances pertaining to ownership of dogs and cats, but only recently has leadership appeared to be willing or able to enforce the codes.

Policing of dog “doo-doo.” Chief Bromer related a recent personal instance: He got out of his police vehicle at the police station and immediately saw a pile of dog defecation on the sidewalk right by the station.

NOTE: Due to deadline constraints (it takes time to review the audio and written notes), Columbia news, views and reviews will continue with more on this meeting tomorrow.