Columbia Borough Council will consider two agreements tonight to sell borough-owned properties on South Front Street to the Columbia Economic Development Corporation (CEDC) for a combined $1,105,000.
The draft sales agreements in tonight’s meeting packet call for:
- 420 S. Front St. (parcel 110-86079-0-0000): $540,000
- 430 S. Front St. (parcel 110-94138-0-0000): $565,000
The CEDC is listed as a Pennsylvania nonprofit. Each price would be paid in full at closing.
The deals come with a long runway. The CEDC would get 180 days of due diligence to inspect the properties, review environmental and geotechnical reports and negotiate any follow-up agreement. That period renews automatically in 60-day steps unless either side ends it in writing. During due diligence, the CEDC can walk away for any reason. Closing would follow within 60 days after due diligence ends, and the properties would be sold as-is.
The agreement for 430 S. Front St. notes an existing lease on the property, which the CEDC would take over at closing. The borough could not sign new leases or extend existing ones on either property without the CEDC’s written consent. Transfer taxes would be split evenly.
The packet does not describe what the CEDC plans for the sites or what the borough would do with the proceeds.
The meeting is at 7 p.m. tonight and will be livestreamed on the borough’s YouTube channel.