Limerick Township supervisors hear reports on fire departments, road project

The Limerick Township Board of Supervisors heard an evaluation of the township’s fire departments from Dr. William Jenaway at Tuesday’s workshop meeting. Jenaway, a consultant with the Volunteer Firemen’s Insurance Service (VFIS), said the report looked at both the performance and the long-term planning of the township’s fire and emergency services, comprising both the and fire companies.

Limerick was compared to other municipalities with populations of 10,000 to 24,999 residents. Jenaway said, “Limerick Township has more facilities, staffing and equipment than comparable communities.”

Jenaway’s figures showed that in similar municipalities, almost 50% of the fire department were paid employees, while Limerick’s departments are 100% volunteer. Staffing a department with an equal number of paid employees would cost the township $4 million per year, Jenaway said.

Jenaway identified several action items for the departments: improvements in planning and management, in personnel management such as better recruiting and retention, and in financial long term planning. He said that the two departments are already in the process of implementing many of the suggested changes.

“We want the public to know that this is not a study we’ve paid for that will sit on the shelf. It’s part of a big business plan that has been going on for years,” since supervisor Kara Shuler.

Township manager Dan Kerr agreed, saying that these improvements are part of the comprehensive 15-year master plan that the township is already working on.

“It’s not the fault of anyone, any other board or anything,” he said, “but previously the pace of development was so fast that the township was reacting instead of being proactive. Now that we’re in a bit of a lull, we have time to look at development. This plan is a larger scale business plan [for the township].” 

Intersection upgrades at 422 & Lewis Road interchange

The board also heard from Jon Platt of Traffic Planning and Design on a project to improve the intersections on Lewis Road between the station and Linfield-Trappe Road near . Platt said they expect to have the project out for bids in September, with construction starting in March 2012 and ending in approximately August 2012.

Platt said that the project includes upgrading the four stoplights on Lewis Road, connecting them with fiber-optic cable, and putting in turn lanes at the intersections.

In addition to approving the plan for Lewis Road, the board moved to apply for a PennDOT ARLE grant to help with the costs. Platt said that the township may have a chance at winning a grant if the township applied for funding to replace the stoplights on Lewis Road with newer technology. The new stoplights would use cameras to time the lights instead of fiber-optic cabling.

Police radios to be upgraded

The board also voted to support Montgomery County’s plan to upgrade police radios in the county’s 62 townships. Kerr said that the county is planning the upgrade because they have been ordered by the FCC to upgrade from analog radios to digital radios.

County commissioners have voted to fund a $48 million bond to pay for the upgrades if 80% of the townships agree to upgrade the system. The township will be responsible for paying back their part of the funding at a total cost of approximately $180,000.

Police Chief William Albany pointed out that if the township does not participate, will be at a disadvantage because they will not be able to talk to other police departments, and if the radios break they cannot be repaired. Albany said that there is a chance there will be federal funding that could help the township with the cost, and his department will be checking into that possibility as the upgrade plans move forward.

Vending machines proposed for

Parks and Recreation department head Karen Hegedus presented a proposal to the board to place vending machines at Limerick Community Park. Hegedus said that for the last few years, the concession stand has been leased out, but it is increasingly difficult to run the stand as a for-profit business.

Hegedus said that the stand’s operation has been very weather-dependent and that the stands often aren’t open if it’s raining. Vending machines would allow people access to drinks and snacks all the time, whether the stand was open or not.

Hegedus said that the vending company she contacted has options for healthier snacks and drinks, so that the machines could be stocked with less soda and more healthful options. 

Supervisor Joseph St. Pedro voiced concerns about vandalism of the machines. Hegedus said that the vending machine contractor has cameras they can place near the machines, and that the township would not be liable or responsible for any damage to the machines.

Request for support of H.R. 1489

During the public comment period, Lansdowne resident Donald Mallory, representing the LaRouche Political Action Committee, asked the board to pass a resolution supporting the “Return to Prudent Banking Act” which would reinstate the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933. Glass-Steagall was an act that required banks to choose between commercial banking or investment banking. It was repealed in 1999 when banking was deregulated.

Mallory was reading a “Dear Colleagues” letter from Representative Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) explaining the act when St. Pedro interrupted and said “I would rather read what you gave me and come to my own opinion.” Supervisors Thomas Neafcy and Elaine DeWan agreed. DeWan said she thinks supporting the act should be an individual decision. Mallory asked if he could come back at some point and ask the board to act. 

Neafcy said the township could not respond to this type of request. “It won’t be an official action for the township,” he said.