Lower Alsace Township officials support a study on the finances and operations of the Central Berks Regional Police Department.
Representatives of Aspirant Consulting Group, Chester County, spoke with officials from Lower Alsace and Mount Penn about their proposal for the study at a recent joint meeting.
Central Berks police provide full-time coverage to Lower Alsace, Mount Penn, Oley Township and St. Lawrence.
Costs for Mount Penn and Lower Alsace are split 50/50 between the two, while St. Lawrence and Oley contract with the department.
The study — proposed by Mount Penn officials after a sweeping review of borough operations — would analyze the department’s cost sharing strategies, fee structures, staffing levels and more to identify inefficiencies.
It would take place over 12 weeks and be funded by a grant from the state Department of Community and Economic Development, which would cover 90% of the roughly $38,000 cost.
Mount Penn would cover the remaining 10%, officials said.
At the meeting, Lower Alsace officials voted unanimously to draft a letter in support of the study.
The letter allows Mount Penn to start the grant application process and gives officials the flexibility to choose another consulting group, noted Hunter Ahrens, Mount Penn borough manager.
The Central Berks Regional Police Department was formed in 1993 in response to financial difficulties, Central Berks Police Chief Ray Serafin said.
“Back in 1993 when we regionalized, Mount Penn borough had a difficult time maintaining its police department,” Serafin said at the meeting.
Serafin said there are some residents who feel the cost allocations give an unfair financial advantage to Oley and St. Lawrence.
He said that perception is inaccurate and that Central Berks benefits financially from its contracts with St. Lawrence and Oley.
“It doesn’t cost us anything to take care of those municipalities,” Serafin said. “We are making money. It actually enhances our services, and that is easily shown.”
He said maintaining an effective police department that can respond quickly is paramount in Mount Penn, especially in areas susceptible to blight.
“I am a firm believer that if you have blight, it creates crime,” Serafin said. “That’s what we’re seeing.”
Troy Goodman, Mount Penn borough council president, said the study is needed in part because Central Berks police haven’t shown financial evidence that their contracts with St. Lawrence and Oley save money overall.
“There was no breakdown on what we charge (per contract), and what’s coming in, how many officers are allotted,” Goodman said. “The proof is in the data.”
Serafin said that evidence could be provided. Officials noted that most of the department’s budget is spent on personnel costs.
Funding the police department is Mount Penn’s largest expense and is projected to become increasingly difficult in coming years due to stagnant revenues and increased expenses.
Goodman noted the borough is projected to accrue $500,000 in debt in five years if it doesn’t raise taxes or take other action.
Besides analyzing the department’s finances, the study would offer recommendations based on its conclusions, according to John String, co-founder of Aspirant Consulting.
Those recommendations could include measures like drafting a new funding agreement based on call volumes per area; having one municipality buy vehicles or other equipment in exchange for a lower overall charge; or having one municipality switch to a contractual agreement, String noted.
Officials noted the study could find that the department isn’t providing enough coverage, which may involve hiring more personnel.
Central Berks employs 21 officers, according to the department’s website.
The next steps involve getting the grant approved, settling on a consultant and holding a vote for final approval.
Merger discussion
Also at the meeting, officials from Lower Alsace and Mount Penn briefly discussed a potential merger of the two municipalities.
Officials touched on subjects like the number of governing officials the new municipality would have, and whether it would be run under a home rule charter format that would allow adjusting the earned income tax rate.
Lower Alsace Supervisor Todd Weikel said he wouldn’t want to see more than three elected officials in any municipality.
Some residents in attendance said they were concerned about a merger leading to the demise of the Mount Penn Borough Municipal Authority.
The authority provides water services to Mount Penn and Lower Alsace, in addition to St. Lawrence and part of Exeter Township.
Officials from both municipalities said there was no appetite for selling the water authority.
Lower Alsace Supervisor John Theodossiou noted that the authority is no safer under Mount Penn’s jurisdiction than it would be in a merged municipality because the decision to sell it would fall to whichever officials are elected at any given time.
An ad-hoc merger committee meeting is scheduled for Jan. 16. That meeting won’t be open to the public, but another joint public meeting on the merger will be scheduled for February, officials said.
Source: Berkshire mont