diff --git a/src/applications/maniphest/editor/ManiphestEditEngine.php b/src/applications/maniphest/editor/ManiphestEditEngine.php
--- a/src/applications/maniphest/editor/ManiphestEditEngine.php
+++ b/src/applications/maniphest/editor/ManiphestEditEngine.php
@@ -287,7 +287,8 @@
 
     $positions = id(new PhabricatorProjectColumnPositionQuery())
       ->setViewer($viewer)
-      ->withColumns(array($column))
+      ->withBoardPHIDs(array($column->getProjectPHID()))
+      ->withColumnPHIDs(array($column->getPHID()))
       ->execute();
     $task_phids = mpull($positions, 'getObjectPHID');
 
diff --git a/src/applications/project/query/PhabricatorProjectColumnPositionQuery.php b/src/applications/project/query/PhabricatorProjectColumnPositionQuery.php
--- a/src/applications/project/query/PhabricatorProjectColumnPositionQuery.php
+++ b/src/applications/project/query/PhabricatorProjectColumnPositionQuery.php
@@ -6,10 +6,7 @@
   private $ids;
   private $boardPHIDs;
   private $objectPHIDs;
-  private $columns;
-
-  private $needColumns;
-  private $skipImplicitCreate;
+  private $columnPHIDs;
 
   public function withIDs(array $ids) {
     $this->ids = $ids;
@@ -26,277 +23,51 @@
     return $this;
   }
 
-  /**
-   * Find objects in specific columns.
-   *
-   * NOTE: Using this method activates logic which constructs virtual
-   * column positions for objects not in any column, if you pass a default
-   * column. Normally these results are not returned.
-   *
-   * @param list<PhabricatorProjectColumn> Columns to look for objects in.
-   * @return this
-   */
-  public function withColumns(array $columns) {
-    assert_instances_of($columns, 'PhabricatorProjectColumn');
-    $this->columns = $columns;
-    return $this;
-  }
-
-  public function needColumns($need_columns) {
-    $this->needColumns = true;
-    return $this;
-  }
-
-
-  /**
-   * Skip implicit creation of column positions which are implied but do not
-   * yet exist.
-   *
-   * This is primarily useful internally.
-   *
-   * @param bool  True to skip implicit creation of column positions.
-   * @return this
-   */
-  public function setSkipImplicitCreate($skip) {
-    $this->skipImplicitCreate = $skip;
+  public function withColumnPHIDs(array $column_phids) {
+    $this->columnPHIDs = $column_phids;
     return $this;
   }
 
-  // NOTE: For now, boards are always attached to projects. However, they might
-  // not be in the future. This generalization just anticipates a future where
-  // we let other types of objects (like users) have boards, or let boards
-  // contain other types of objects.
-
-  private function newPositionObject() {
+  public function newResultObject() {
     return new PhabricatorProjectColumnPosition();
   }
 
-  private function newColumnQuery() {
-    return new PhabricatorProjectColumnQuery();
-  }
-
-  private function getBoardMembershipEdgeTypes() {
-    return array(
-      PhabricatorProjectProjectHasObjectEdgeType::EDGECONST,
-    );
-  }
-
-  private function getBoardMembershipPHIDTypes() {
-    return array(
-      ManiphestTaskPHIDType::TYPECONST,
-    );
-  }
-
   protected function loadPage() {
-    $table = $this->newPositionObject();
-    $conn_r = $table->establishConnection('r');
-
-    // We're going to find results by combining two queries: one query finds
-    // objects on a board column, while the other query finds objects not on
-    // any board column and virtually puts them on the default column.
-
-    $unions = array();
-
-    // First, find all the stuff that's actually on a column.
-
-    $unions[] = qsprintf(
-      $conn_r,
-      'SELECT * FROM %T %Q',
-      $table->getTableName(),
-      $this->buildWhereClause($conn_r));
-
-    // If we have a default column, find all the stuff that's not in any
-    // column and put it in the default column.
-
-    $must_type_filter = false;
-    if ($this->columns && !$this->skipImplicitCreate) {
-      $default_map = array();
-      foreach ($this->columns as $column) {
-        if ($column->isDefaultColumn()) {
-          $default_map[$column->getProjectPHID()] = $column->getPHID();
-        }
-      }
-
-      if ($default_map) {
-        $where = array();
-
-        // Find the edges attached to the boards we have default columns for.
-
-        $where[] = qsprintf(
-          $conn_r,
-          'e.src IN (%Ls)',
-          array_keys($default_map));
-
-        // Find only edges which describe a board relationship.
-
-        $where[] = qsprintf(
-          $conn_r,
-          'e.type IN (%Ld)',
-          $this->getBoardMembershipEdgeTypes());
-
-        if ($this->boardPHIDs !== null) {
-          // This should normally be redundant, but construct it anyway if
-          // the caller has told us to.
-          $where[] = qsprintf(
-            $conn_r,
-            'e.src IN (%Ls)',
-            $this->boardPHIDs);
-        }
-
-        if ($this->objectPHIDs !== null) {
-          $where[] = qsprintf(
-            $conn_r,
-            'e.dst IN (%Ls)',
-            $this->objectPHIDs);
-        }
-
-        $where[] = qsprintf(
-          $conn_r,
-          'p.id IS NULL');
-
-        $where = $this->formatWhereClause($where);
-
-        $unions[] = qsprintf(
-          $conn_r,
-          'SELECT NULL id, e.src boardPHID, NULL columnPHID, e.dst objectPHID,
-              0 sequence
-            FROM %T e LEFT JOIN %T p
-              ON e.src = p.boardPHID AND e.dst = p.objectPHID
-              %Q',
-          PhabricatorEdgeConfig::TABLE_NAME_EDGE,
-          $table->getTableName(),
-          $where);
-
-        $must_type_filter = true;
-      }
-    }
-
-    $data = queryfx_all(
-      $conn_r,
-      '%Q %Q %Q',
-      implode(' UNION ALL ', $unions),
-      $this->buildOrderClause($conn_r),
-      $this->buildLimitClause($conn_r));
-
-    // If we've picked up objects not in any column, we need to filter out any
-    // matched objects which have the wrong edge type.
-    if ($must_type_filter) {
-      $allowed_types = array_fuse($this->getBoardMembershipPHIDTypes());
-      foreach ($data as $id => $row) {
-        if ($row['columnPHID'] === null) {
-          $object_phid = $row['objectPHID'];
-          if (empty($allowed_types[phid_get_type($object_phid)])) {
-            unset($data[$id]);
-          }
-        }
-      }
-    }
-
-    $positions = $table->loadAllFromArray($data);
-
-    // Find the implied positions which don't exist yet. If there are any,
-    // we're going to create them.
-    $create = array();
-    foreach ($positions as $position) {
-      if ($position->getColumnPHID() === null) {
-        $column_phid = idx($default_map, $position->getBoardPHID());
-        $position->setColumnPHID($column_phid);
-
-        $create[] = $position;
-      }
-    }
-
-    if ($create) {
-      // If we're adding several objects to a column, insert the column
-      // position objects in object ID order. This means that newly added
-      // objects float to the top, and when a group of newly added objects
-      // float up at the same time, the most recently created ones end up
-      // highest in the list.
-
-      $objects = id(new PhabricatorObjectQuery())
-        ->setViewer(PhabricatorUser::getOmnipotentUser())
-        ->withPHIDs(mpull($create, 'getObjectPHID'))
-        ->execute();
-      $objects = mpull($objects, null, 'getPHID');
-      $objects = msort($objects, 'getID');
-
-      $create = mgroup($create, 'getObjectPHID');
-      $create = array_select_keys($create, array_keys($objects)) + $create;
-
-      $unguarded = AphrontWriteGuard::beginScopedUnguardedWrites();
-
-        foreach ($create as $object_phid => $create_positions) {
-          foreach ($create_positions as $create_position) {
-            $create_position->save();
-          }
-        }
-
-      unset($unguarded);
-    }
-
-    return $positions;
-  }
-
-  protected function willFilterPage(array $page) {
-
-    if ($this->needColumns) {
-      $column_phids = mpull($page, 'getColumnPHID');
-      $columns = $this->newColumnQuery()
-        ->setParentQuery($this)
-        ->setViewer($this->getViewer())
-        ->withPHIDs($column_phids)
-        ->execute();
-      $columns = mpull($columns, null, 'getPHID');
-
-      foreach ($page as $key => $position) {
-        $column = idx($columns, $position->getColumnPHID());
-        if (!$column) {
-          unset($page[$key]);
-          continue;
-        }
-
-        $position->attachColumn($column);
-      }
-    }
-
-    return $page;
+    return $this->loadStandardPage($this->newResultObject());
   }
 
-  protected function buildWhereClause(AphrontDatabaseConnection $conn_r) {
+  protected function buildWhereClauseParts(AphrontDatabaseConnection $conn) {
     $where = array();
 
     if ($this->ids !== null) {
       $where[] = qsprintf(
-        $conn_r,
+        $conn,
         'id IN (%Ld)',
         $this->ids);
     }
 
     if ($this->boardPHIDs !== null) {
       $where[] = qsprintf(
-        $conn_r,
+        $conn,
         'boardPHID IN (%Ls)',
         $this->boardPHIDs);
     }
 
     if ($this->objectPHIDs !== null) {
       $where[] = qsprintf(
-        $conn_r,
+        $conn,
         'objectPHID IN (%Ls)',
         $this->objectPHIDs);
     }
 
-    if ($this->columns !== null) {
+    if ($this->columnPHIDs !== null) {
       $where[] = qsprintf(
-        $conn_r,
+        $conn,
         'columnPHID IN (%Ls)',
-        mpull($this->columns, 'getPHID'));
+        $this->columnPHIDs);
     }
 
-    // NOTE: Explicitly not building the paging clause here, since it won't
-    // work with the UNION.
-
-    return $this->formatWhereClause($where);
+    return $where;
   }
 
   public function getQueryApplicationClass() {