Residents of Adams Township and Mars may have the chance to decide whether their municipalities continue on separately or as a single entity.

The decision will hinge on whether elected officials for each municipality make the determination to bring a merger to public referendum.

The governing bodies of Mars Borough and Adams Township publicly announced on Monday, Jan. 5, they had entered into preliminary talks about a potential merger of the municipalities. The two municipalities are still working out details of how the merger would affect public agencies and property.

It’s an uncommon — but not unprecedented — move for municipalities to choose to merge.

There are upsides and downsides. However, discussions around the merger so far lean toward it having benefits to residents of both municipalities.

Merger talks seem to have stemmed from updates the municipalities want to perform on the Mars Area Public Library. The library is a public organization that gets contributions from both municipalities and serves people throughout Butler County, so it’s clear the people discussing the merger are approaching the topic from the perspective of shared service.

In addition to the library, the municipalities share other resources, including the Adams Area Fire District, Breakneck Creek Regional Authority, Quality EMS and Mars Area School District.

Each municipality currently maintains separate public works, code enforcement and parks/recreation departments and administrative staff.

There are also potential hurdles.

A handful of contiguous municipalities in Pennsylvania have consolidated in recent decades. While the move often provides cost-savings benefits, such mergers have sometimes had unintended consequences.

There is the challenge of maintaining a sense of identity, especially for longtime residents. A name can also mean a lot when it comes to tourism and associated marketing. Creating a new identity and name encompassing all parties involved is no light undertaking.

Another issue residents of some municipalities that have merged encounter — particularly when larger, more rural townships merge with boroughs and cities — is consolidating municipal ordinances while avoiding undue burdens to residents who may not be in compliance based on the rules of their former municipality. Similar issues can arise when it comes to tapping into utility systems, as residents of one municipality may have been required to use public services, while residents of another may not have.

It could take years for the two municipalities to merge, even though a vote could come as early as the November general election.

There are a lot of variables to consider for residents and administrators and some of those will be discussed at a meeting at 6 p.m. Jan. 22 at Twelve Oaks Mansion on Scharberry Lane in Adams Township. Residents of the two southwestern Butler County communities will be able to share their opinions on the possible merger at the meeting, so if you could be affected by it, consider being in attendance.

— ET