Problems at River Park

Someone asked me today why River Park was closed last night and when I came home from my trip in town and to the DMV, I had an email from a Columbia Police Officer with some information as to what took place and what has taken place at the newly renovated park.
This alert didn't come from borough council, or a directive from that group, rather the police, who are trying to enforce the rules and keep the park as nice as possible.
Police said they have has parking issues since the park reopened in May, but Sunday and Monday nights it was extremely bad.
Sunday night, there were between 30 and 40 people including children sitting down at the park, waiting for the Wrightsville fireworks and doing a lot of nothing. Police explained the park is closed from dusk to dawn except for boat launching/.
Monday afternoon, police returned to the park and another large group had gathered, using the park for a little bit of everything. Around 8 p.m., police said they found a pile of dirty diapers in the middle of the grass field and other trash scattered throughout the park.
So police decided to put cones across the entrance to let people other and other boaters come in. Police told those at the park and many understood the park hours, but some complained as one officer took an an hour and 20 minutes to clear the park. During that time, people were driving around the cones that police had placed, past the "no trespassing" signs and crossed the railroad tracks at the bridge.
With the fireworks bursting in air, police finally cleared the park of the non-boaters from the water company to the canoe/kayak area.
Had police not stayed at the park, there would have been some serious issues with trash.
Police said across from the park under the bridge where Columbia stores its highway materials, there were also some trash issues, which eventually were cleaned up.
Police were too busy to check the condition of Rotary Park during the fireworks,
was spilled. It was too hot and dry out to not soak it up if they were not fresh. Anyway, I asked them to pick them up and they did, which was nice. It was too dark at Rotary Park to see what trash was left behind there. I never made it up there to get those people moving on.
Police said they were trying to enforce the rules and if some innovative vendor would have been down there for the fireworks and park area, they could have made some money as well.

Lights and trash

All but a handful of the lights have been installed at River Park. Get a close look at the lights because they are the ones to be installed downtown. And the second picture might look the same as the other day, but it is not. It is down at the River Park.

Columbia Police reports

JAMES SCOTT ZERCHER, AGE 31, OF COLUMBIA, WAS CHARGED WITH AGGRAVATED ASSAULT, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE; SIMPLE ASSAULT, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE; AND RECKLESSLY ENDANGERING ANOTHER PERSON, FOR AN INCIDENT THAT HAPPENED ON WALNUT STREET, 2:09 A.M., JUNE 30. HE WAS TAKEN TO CENTRAL BOOKING, IN LANCASTER, AND COMITTED TO L.C.P., IN LEIU OF $50,000 STRAIGHT BAIL.

LUKE EDWARD CAMERON, AGE 19, OF LANCASTER, WAS CITED FOR OPERATION OF VEHICLE WITHOUT OFFICIAL CERTIFICATE OF INSPECTION, AT FOURTH AND CHESTNUT STREETS, 3:40 P.M., JUNE 30.

ROBERT THOMAS SIMON, JR., AGE 36, OF YORK SPRINGS, WAS CITED FOR OPERATION OF VEHICLE WITHOUT OFFICIAL CERTIFICATE OF INSPECTION, AT THIRD AND CHERRY STREETS, 11:20 A.M., JUNE 29.

CHRYSTAL D. HOSTETTER, AGE 43, OF WRIGHTSVILLE, WAS CITED FOR REGISTRATION AND CERTIFICATION OF TITLE REQUIRED, AT FOURTH AND POPLAR STREETS, 8:35 A.M., JUNE 30.

DAVID C. SPACKMAN, JR., AGE 27, OF BAINBRIDGE, WAS CITED FOR OBEDIENCE TO TRAFFIC DEVICE, AT FOURTH AND LOCUST STREETS, 11:30 P.M., JUNE 30.

JERRY L. HARRIS, II, AGE 51, OF LANDISVILLE, WAS CITED FOR OPERATION OF VEHICLE WITHOUT OFFICIAL CERTIFICATE OF INSPECTION AND FOR REGISTRATION AND CERTIFICATION OF TITLE REQUIRED, IN THE 1100 BLOCK OF LANCASTER AVENUE, 3:39 P.M., JULY 1.

COTY STEPHEN RUTTER, AGE 23, OF MOUNTVILLE, WAS CITED FOR PUBLIC DRUNKENNESS IN THE 100 BLOCK OF SOUTH THIRD STREET, 5:48 P.M., JULY 3.. RUTTER WAS AGAIN CITED FOR PUBLIC DRUNKENNESS, IN THE 300 BLOCK OF CHERRY STREET, AT10:39 P.,M., JULY 2.

THOMAS A. GOAS, AGE 43, OF LANCASTER, WAS CITED FOR REGISTRATION AND CERTIFICATION OF TITLE REQUIRED, AT LANCASTER AVENUE AND 15TH STREET, 5:03 P.M., JULY 3/
MARIA LYN BASS, AGE 28, OF MOUNT JOY, WAS CITED FOR TRAFFIC-CONTROL SIGNALS ATTHIRD AND CHESTNUT STREETS, 11:17 P.M., JULY 3.

NATHAN L. EVANS, AGE 30, OF COLUMBIA, WAS CITED FOR DRIVING A VEHICLE WITH A SUSPENDED REGISTRATION, AT FOURTH AND LOCUST STREETS, 1:17 P.M., JULY 5.

JORGE LUIS COLON-TORRES, AGE 31, OF COLUMBIA, WAS CITED FOR MAXIMUM SPEED LIMITS AND FOR DRIVERS REQUIRED TO BE LICENSED, AT ROUTE 441 AND PERRY STREET, 3:48 P.M., JULY 5.

JOHN DAVID HERR, AGE 31, OF COLUMBIA, WAS CITED FOR OPERATION OF VEHICLE WITHOUT OFFICIAL CERTIFICATE OF INSPECTION, IN THE 500 BLOCK OF WALNUT STREET, 7:55 A.M., JULY 6.

KNOWLEDGE M. MANCOTYWA, AGE 44, OF COLUMBIA, WAS CITED FOR REGISTRATION AND  CERTIFICATE OF TITLE REQUIRED AND FOR OPERATION OF VEHICLE WITHOUT OFFICIAL CERTIFICATE OF INSPECTION, AT FIFTH AND MAPLE STREETS, AT 6:27 A.M., JULY 6.