Pa. residents vote to eliminate paid fire department

A total of 799 voters wanted to disband the fire department and 618 voters wanted to keep it and the one paid firefighter

November 05, 2014 01:33 AM

The Daily Courier

CONNELLSVILLE, Pa. — The majority of Connellsville voters decided on Tuesday that they want to eliminate Connellsville’s paid fire department and only remaining paid firefighter.

According to the Fayette County Election Bureau, 799 voters wanted to disband the paid fire department and 618 voters wanted to keep the paid fire department and the one paid firefighter.

“I’m just glad the city residents had a say in an important decision like this for the city,” Connellsville Mayor Greg Lincoln said.

In Ward 1, 297 voters said yes to eliminating the paid fire department while 189 voted to keep it; Ward 2 had 174 voting to keep the department and 190 to disband; Ward 3 saw 144 voters favoring the disband and 86 votes to keep the paid fire department. The closest results came from Ward 4 with 168 voting to eliminate the paid department and 169 voting to keep it.

Lincoln said he spoke to people at the polls on Tuesday and found voters were concerned elimination of the paid fire department would cause their homeowner insurance premiums to increase. Reportedly, paid firefighter eliminations affect Insurance Services Office Inc. ratings.

“I don’t foresee the ratings dropping,” said Lincoln, adding the city hasn’t been the subject of an ISO rating in more than 10 years. Since that time, there have been various improvements from New Haven Hose, which has been the city’s primary fire department since 1991, he continued. “There’s a good chance that rating will increase.”

While the votes are in, Lincoln said the issue is not over.

He was informed by the city solicitor that paperwork has been submitted to take the case into arbitration. With the paid firefighter’s contract ending on Dec. 31, Lincoln said those meetings could start soon.

“I hope the arbiters see the majority of taxpayers who pay for the fire department want it to be eliminated,” Lincoln said, adding that the financial state of the city is not good and the city can save $100,000 annually with the elimination of pay, benefits, insurance and operation costs of the East Side Fire Station. “Any positive help will go a long way for us.”

Lincoln said in regards to a budget meeting on Thursday, during which members of city council will go over expenses for 2015, they’ll still plan on the expense of a paid fire department.

All election results are unofficial until validated by the Election Bureau.