Meeting looks at SR merger
SLIPPERY ROCK — A meeting Wednesday evening attracted about 150 Slippery Rock Borough and Slippery Rock Township residents curious about a possible merger of the two municipalities.
Residents and Slippery Rock University students filled SRU's Advanced Technology and Science Hall.
While the purpose of the meeting was to disseminate facts about a merger, borough council Vice President Blase Tucci primarily discussed the positives of such a move during his 45-minute presentation.
"Nobody should be intimidated by it. A merger cannot happen unless the majority of voters, in each community want it to happen," Tucci said.
"Tonight is all about fact-finding."
A combined police force and lower taxes across both municipalities were key talking points.
Township officials previously have claimed the merger idea is a ploy by the borough to bail itself out of economic difficulty. The borough has said if the township wants continued assistance from borough police, it has to pay more.
A shared police services contract between the borough and the township, which relies on state police protection with occasional help from borough police, will expire April 30.
Part of Tucci's presentation included a statement from the township that showed the township opposes even researching a merger.
In 2009, the township paid the borough about $916 for police services, including administrative fees and an hourly rate, and the borough is seeking about $53,000 per year in a new contract, said township Supervisor John Hines.
Tucci said, "The borough is financially sound. This is just one option we want to present to our neighbors.
"We have to get an agreement that reflects the true value of the police department."
Tucci said that a border change only — expanding the borough's borders to include the densely populated township area surrounding the borough — is another option that was proposed.
On May 4, the borough will invite the township to participate in a state study of merger-consolidations, Tucci said.
Michael Foreman, a regional local government specialist with the Governor's Center for Local Government Services, said the process for municipal mergers takes about three years.
It begins with both municipalities approving an ordinance to merge, which is submitted to the county election bureau for inclusion on the next ballot.
Although the vote may be taken at either a spring primary or November general election, petitions for the ordinance's addition may be circulated only during a seven-week period starting 20 weeks before a vote.
Also, logistics must be determined: How will the new boundaries be defined? Will the new governing body operate as a second-class township or a borough? How does the new government liquidate debts and sell off shared assets?
Finally, if a question is accepted on the ballot and defeated, it cannot reappear on a ballot for five years.
Since 1991, there have been 12 boundary change votes approved in the state and 17 rejected, Foreman said.He said his agency does not follow up on municipalities' satisfaction with the mergers.Foreman said small communities merge to improve their tax base, to save on taxes by eliminating duplicated services, and to provide expanded services.By 2014, using their combined financial resources, the municipalities could reportedly provide 12 full-time officers, or the equivalent in mixed full and part-time officers, allowing for around-the-clock local police coverage.The change, said one SRU student, would address long response times which occur when state police are busy and the borough force, which operates only part-time, is off-duty.Both Tucci and Hines said that the majority of police calls in both municipalities involve university students.One township resident responded to student support of the plan by asking why students would be allowed to vote on the issue when most are not landowners or will no longer live in the township in a few years.A copy of Tucci's presentation is available online at www.srboro.net.A copy of the Municipal Consolidation and Merger Act is available online at www.newpa.com.
