LANCASTER TWP — A police consultant says regionalizing police is an answer for police coverage only if part-time police forces and state police coverage would not work.

That's what about 30 representatives of a dozen communities in southern Butler County heard Monday night on the advantages and disadvantages of pooling police departments.

The meeting comes after the Middlesex Township supervisors voted on Dec. 1 to disband that township's police department and use the money to fix roads.

Some representatives at Monday's meeting vowed regionalization would not work, claiming response times by officers would be longer and costs could go higher.

Municipal police consultant Bill Gamble said the process of putting together a joint police force, particularly with many municipalities involved, could take considerable time.

Police regionalization has been discussed and studied in southern Butler County in the past four years, and each venture has faltered.

But Stephen Misko, a supervisor of Connoquenessing Township, said he invited 18 municipalities to the meeting because he wants more police protection.

He pointed out municipalities struggle to keep their local police, while the state police cannot handle all the municipalities themselves.

Misko said state police are stretched too thin to serve Connoquenessing Township.

"We're not getting police protection. We're asking the state police to come for major events," Misko said.

State police cannot provide regular patrolling, he said, especially in neighborhoods. Misko said he realized not all 18 municipalities would join, but the meeting served as a starting point to talk about pooling police resources.

Municipalities that want to seriously explore the possibility could be the subjects of a feasibility study. It would be paid for by the state Department of Community and Economic Development to assess the region's police needs and recommend how municipalities could share costs.

Misko said he would invite municipalities seriously interested in regionalization to a meeting in January or February with Robert Amann, chief of the Northern Regional Police Department of Allegheny County, which covers several municipalities.

Some officials said they would give regionalization a shot, if it would save money.

"You owe it to the taxpayers to try this," said Dick Settlemire, Mars mayor.

Nicholas Vaccarello, who is on the Prospect Borough Council, said a stronger, full-time police force would be worth giving up control of local departments.

"We have to look beyond ourselves," he said.

He added part-time police departments are a "disservice" to police officers because they offer them few hours and no health benefits.

"I would hate to see anyone walk away from this because they don't want to lose control," said Cathy Rape, mayor of Harmony.

Gamble, who formerly was with the Governor's Center for Local Government Services, pointed out consolidation works for the Northern Regional Police Department of Allegheny County, which serves Marshall Township, Bradford Woods, Pine Township and soon will serve Richland Township.

Marshall, Pine and Bradford Woods have had a consolidated police department since 1969.

Gamble also passed out information on the 33 consolidated police departments in the state.

He outlined the advantages and disadvantages for these police departments. Besides shared costs and evenly spread police coverage, consolidated forces enjoy:

More career opportunities for police officers, including the chance to specialize in a field.

Better management, because the police chief can spend time on management instead of patrol duties.

Improved training, because there are more officers to take over coverage while an officer is away training.

However, Gamble also said there are these disadvantages:

The loss of local control. One municipality cannot directly control the force.

The problem of what to do with two or more chiefs when departments merge.

The loss of other services often done by a police officer, such as collecting parking meter money, delivering messages to municipal officials and issuing licenses and permits.

The temporary loss of citizen contact because of new patrol zones, although citizens can adjust to new officers.

While the negatives have discouraged some municipalities from thinking about regionalization, recent police budget issues could mean municipalities might take another look at the issue.

In addition to Middlesex's elimination of its police force at the end of the year, Lancaster Township supervisors on Monday cut their police department's 44 part-time hours per week to 16 part-time hours. But they gave the part-time police officers a 32-cents-an-hour raise and the two full-time officers a 40-cents-an-hour raise.

The move saves the township about $13,000.

The information meeting on Monday is the latest effort to regionalize police in the county.

In March, officials discussed the possibility of a regional department covering Middlesex, Penn, Clinton, Adams and Winfield townships and Saxonburg and Mars. But an official study never came.

In 2001, a regional police study among Zelienople, Harmony, Evans City and Lancaster Township failed.

About four years ago, an effort by Evans City, Jackson Township and Lancaster Township to merge departments was ended by Lancaster.