By Ken McCarthy
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pennsylvania)
JACKSON, Pa. — With an eye toward the future, the Harmony Volunteer Fire Co. has purchased land that could be used for an expansion.
Harmony fire Chief Tim Sapienza said the department paid $420,000 for 45.5 acres on Old Route 19 in Jackson. He said the department did not want that much land, but the seller was unwilling to subdivide the property.
“We can’t afford it, we don’t want it [all], and we don’t need it, but this is what we had to do to get it,” he said.
Mr. Sapienza said the department will keep about 10 acres of the property and is in the process of selling the rest.
What will happen ultimately with the department’s 10 acres will depend in part on whether a proposed merger with the Zelienople Volunteer Fire Department materializes.
The two departments met with officials from the state Department of Community and Economic Development in October and are awaiting a final recommendation from the feasibility study that was conducted.
Mr. Sapienza said if the merger takes place, the land might make a good location for a new home for the merged department. Even if the departments remain separate, buying land is never a bad thing, he said.
“Our goal has always been to expand,” he said. “Even if the merger doesn’t happen, this is great for our future.”
The land in Jackson is closer to the center of the department’s service area. In addition to serving Harmony, the department also covers the 45 square miles of Jackson and Lancaster.
Mr. Sapienza said the department struggles with access at its current location with Harmony’s narrow streets, and it can’t even use some bigger equipment.
He said he proposed the merger 10 years ago, but the idea wasn’t well-received. He is hopeful that it can be worked out now, but he believes the hardest part is yet to come.
“This is the easy part,” he said. “Even if the merger is approved, it could be five years before all the details are worked out.”
Unlike in Harmony, where the department operates independently of the borough, Zelienople owns that department’s fire stations and equipment.
Zelienople Council Vice President Russ Robertson said he believes the firefighters from both departments are in favor of the merger. But, he said, it could be difficult to establish the value of the assets of the two departments and divide them equitably.
He said he believes there is a danger in allocating public tax dollars to a department that operates independently of the municipality that provides that funding.
“It’s an issue of taxation without representation,” he said. “That is why our fire department is an entity of the borough now. Other municipalities permit revenue to flow directly to their fire departments.”
Jackson and Harmony this year will each allocate 1.125 mills to the Harmony fire company, and Lancaster will make a $15,000 donation.
Zelienople allocated 2.36 mills for fire protection for 2009.
Given its long history of operating in Harmony, Mr. Sapienza said a move outside the borough would be difficult.
“It would be a tough move, for sure, but that’s what we need to do to grow,” he said.
Copyright 2009 P.G. Publishing Co.