State of the union
ZELIENOPLE — The Zelienople-Harmony Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday morning hosted its annual State of the Union breakfast at the Kaufman House where municipal and community leaders gave an update on their communities.
Here is what officials discussed.
Tim Sapienza, former chief of the Harmony Volunteer Fire Company, said the department answered 350 fire and service calls for 2010.The fire company recently bought 45 acres on the Lancaster/Jackson township border to get the 10 acres it needed for a future fire station site.Although there are no immediate plans to construct a new station, population and commercial growth will determine its construction.“It's there for the future. We think this area is going to explode with those ramps,” said Sapienza of the new traffic ramps off Interstate 79 near the Seneca Valley School District campus.A new pumper truck will be added to the fleet this year.Harmony firefighters have recently gone through training with Rex Energy on Marcellus Shale natural gas well emergency response. Several gas wells already have been drilled in the Lancaster and Jackson areas.Chief Jim Miller of the Zelienople Police Department said his department answered 2,000 calls to 911 in 2010 and had 500 in-station calls.It responded to three incidents that required Special Weapons Action Team (SWAT) in 2010.
As a result of those high risks incidents, Zelienople police cars now are equipped with AR-15 semi-automatic rifles in addition to their traditional shotguns. He said the borough officer's role in high risk situations is to stop the incident from escalating before groups like the SWAT team arrive.As for crime, Miller said the borough recently has been plagued with metal thefts as electrical ground wires on poles have been cut and copper is being stolen often by drug abusers looking to make money at scrap yards.Two men ages 21 and 25 in the past year died of heroin overdoses, Miller said.Fire Chief Rob Reeb of the Zelienople Volunteer Fire Department said the department has struggled with the loss of three firefighters in a vehicle accident a year ago.Reeb said the department has boosted its training. It logged 7,720 hours of training in 2010 for 35 firefighters.Ambulance calls for 2010 were up about 100 from the previous year with crews answering 3,100 emergency calls and 4,500 nonemergency transports. The service has a $1.4 million annual budget and 26 full-time employees, he said.<br><Br>
Superintendent Donald Tylinski of the Seneca Valley School District said the district is facing a budget challenge.With potential state financial cuts, the administration is facing a complex budget process and is awaiting the district's share of state funding for next year.The district has been working, said Tylinski, to cut expenses a number of ways including consortium buying of fuel and electricity that has saved the district more than $1 million over the past several years, cuts in overtime pay, and a reduction in mailing cost from sending information to parents electronically.Despite the budget issues, the district has received state and national honors this past year.The Seneca Valley Middle School was named a National School to Watch, one of only 243 schools in the nation to be honored.The Schools to Watch Program is similar to the Blue Ribbon Program in that it involves a rigorous judging process to determine those that receive this distinction.The district also has been honored with the Excellence in Technology Award by the state.
Borough manager Don Pepe said Zelienople's three-year project to close its water plant and bring a new water line from the Beaver Falls Authority is nearly complete.The 11-mile water line is pumping water to borough residents and to the borough's two new storage tanks.The next project facing the borough is the replacement of the 100-year-old Main Street main water line. That is expected to begin this summer and take two years to do.Pepe said a majority of work will be done in the evening to minimize disruptions to the downtown. Some of the lateral line work would be done during the day.<br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br>
Harmony Council President Jack Shanks said both Harmony and Zelienople have signed a shared services ordinance that will ensure cooperation for projects such as leaf collection and snow removal by next year.“We try to cooperate with everybody,” said Shanks of the need for smaller communities to work with their neighbors. He will meet with Jackson Township officials to see if a similar cooperation agreement can be forged.There is an effort to develop a hiking trail around the Zelienople-Harmony-Jackson Township area. A preliminary plan puts the trail at 8.5 miles.Shanks said the trail is expected to take two to three years to develop and also would need the cooperation of all the municipalities.“Recreation brings visitors. Visitors brings traffic. Traffic brings money,” he said.The Harmony Business Association has been revived, growing from about four to 25 members, Shanks said.The group plans to take over the Silvester New Year's celebration from the borough, and it also plans a Victorian tea, four concerts in the square, and several car cruises this year.
Township Supervisor Jay Grinnell said big changes are in store this year as the township works to rid itself of a reputation of being hard to work with to one that is supportive of business and growth.A new planned residential development ordinance that would require developers to make infrastructure improvements is to be taken up in March.Rezoning issues likely will need to be tackled around the Interstate 79 ramps project that is under way. Grinnell said zoning on the east side of the project is agricultural and to the west is high density residential, and both zones aren't compatible with the new ramps.The Buncher Co. is to break ground this spring on the Jackson Pointe flex-warehouse space development at the intersection of Routes 19 and 528, he said.The township police department will have its new chief Terry Seilhamer take his post this spring. Seilhamer is former region commander of the state police who will take the post from former chief Len Keller. Three new officers also will be hired to fill vacancies.
State Rep. Dick Stevenson, R-8th, said Gov. Tom Corbett is expected to give his budget address March 8, which will set the direction for the state and the next legislative term.With a pledge by Corbett not to raise taxes, the only other option will be to make cuts.“It's a different agenda than in the past. Republicans are back in charge in the House and in the Senate and governor,” said Stevenson.“If the Republicans are going to get something done, this is the time to do it.”Stevenson also pointed out the legislative leadership is all from Western and middle Pennsylvania, not the Philadelphia area.“That is good news, and we may get some of our agenda items to move up in priority,” he said.Some of the items he expected the legislature to take up include tort reform, privatizing liquor stores, reapportionment of legislative and congressional districts, transportation infrastructure, school choice, state pension reform and Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling issues.Stephenson will sponsoring a Marcellus Shale gas information meeting from 6 to 8 p.m. March 31 at Seneca Valley High School with representatives of the state Department of Environmental Protection and the natural gas industry.
