I'm only an MS3, so I'm sure you have a much better handle on the programs than I do, having visited them yourself. The main reason I probably won't apply to either is the location - I can't see myself living in NYC, particularly not the area around Columbia🙂 However, the path PD at my school also told me that Columbia (the hospital as a whole, not the path program) is having a lot of financial problems, which I guess isn't surprising, given the population it serves.
As for Cornell, I haven't heard anything bad about it, but they seemed to have a relatively small volume - the 2003-2004 Path Training Programs book says 125 autopsies/yr - which is pretty small compared to most other programs in decent-sized cities. They also seemed to have a lot of IMGs, but I guess that's typical for many path programs, especially those in bigger cities. I have heard good things about the research there, and they have a lot of teaching conferences, which is going to be one of the main things I'm looking for when I interview next year. If you like NYC, I think it would be a great place to go.