SEE Police 14 The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, August 10, 1994 (continued from page 1) All of the communities are conscious of what they can afford to pay for professional police pro- tection. “The police department is a big chunk of our budget,” said Dallas Borough councilman Bill Peiffer. “We have an outstanding police department and want to keep that same caliber of service in our community.” Like its neighbors, Dallas Bor- ough pays its officers what it can afford. Unlike its more rural neigh- bors, Dallas has little room for further development, either resi- dential or commercial, which means that its property tax reve- nues won't drastically increase in the future. “The borough is unique,” Peif- fer said. “Most of our available open land is in the conservation zone, where it's limited to one home for every two acres.” Harveys Lake mayor Richard Boice, whose main role is supervi- sion of the police department, thinks that police consolidation is “a great idea.” “We want to give the people the best police protection that we can for their money,” he said. “Some of the smaller communities have trouble affording a good police department. A regional force would help everyone, especially in covering sick days, emergen- cies and vacations. You could have more than one officer on duty per shift and many more available if needed.” Calling regionalized services “the wave of the future in local governments in Pennsylvania,” Kingston Township manager Jeff Kids will kick cancer Fourteen kids ranging in age from 7 to 14 will be kicking the day away to raise money for the American Cancer Society. They have pledged to kick up to 3,000 kicks before they finish and hope- fully raise more than $1,000 for local programs to benefit people with cancer. ~The event will take place on Saturday, August 13 starting at 12 noon next to Campus Pizza. ~The evnet has been organized by Gary Barnes, owner and chief instructor. “The kids have be- come very excited about this,” Barnes said. “They are learning a very important lesson about community involvement and how to give something back. We are very proud of these kids,” he said. Anyone who would like to get involved or make a donation on behalf of the kickers can call the American Cancer Society at 825- 7763 or Barnes Kenpo Karate System at 675-5611. 'Y' fall swim classes to begin Sept. 6 The Greater Wilkes-Barre Family YMCA will begin its fall session for progressive swim les- sons for Preschool through high school on September 6. For more information and reg- istration call the Wilkes-Barre YMCA at 823-2191. = 4 Free Hours ($50 Value) Commercial and Residential Long Distance Save as much as 30% calling anywhere (i in the U.S.A. Q Quality AT&T Service 3 * No Contract * No Monthly Fees Just Savings Call 969-2786 - Lehman Antique Market Saturday & Sunday Aug. 27 - 28 The Barn Market Street Lehman, Pa 675-4232 Box said the Back Mountain al- ready has one prime example of local municipalities working to- gether — the Back Mountain Communications Center. “It works well in other areas, but you have to consider the long- range implications of these moves,” he cautioned. “The feasi- bility study will give the township pervisor Frank Wagner and re- tired Kingston Township police chief Paul Sabol. “It’s a good idea for the smaller municipalities, but we're not inter- ested,” Wagner said. “We tried it with Kingston Township and it didn't work out. There were too many people in charge.” Sabol, a Kingston Township “We tried it with Kingston Township (in 1971) and it didn’t work out. There were too many people in charge.” Frank Wagner Dallas Township supervisor supervisors a better basis to use in deciding whether or not to join, if a regional police force is recom- mended.” “The bottom line for us will be how much it costs and the quality of services that we'll get for our money,” said Jackson Township supervisor Walter Glogowski. The state official is more en- thusiastic. “It's a win-win situation,” said Department of Community Affairs representative Dick Martin. “Ev- ery community gets full-time, round-the-clock police services with more than one officer on duty for every shift. You can pull in extra officers for special proj- ects or problems. No present po- lice officer will lose his job. Not all of the chiefs will remain chiefs, but there will be jobs for all of them.” A consolidated police force was unsuccessfully attempted on a smaller scale in the Back Moun- tain during the early 1970's, ac- cording to Dallas Township su- patrolman at the time, said that the consolidated force existed for only about five or six months in 1971. “Each township had five offi- cers,” he said. “Of course the offi- cers preferred working in their own towns, but they worked well together. Our officers tend to iden- tify themselves with the towns which they serve. It might have worked if we had worked together and waited a bit longer.” Sabol blamed the regional department's breakup on arbitra- tors who separated the officers by township during police contract negotiations. “They split us up and we never got back together,” he said. Wagner still doubts thatalarger force could work in the Back Mountain. “We already have a good work- ing agreement with the other municipalities,” he said. “Let them start it up and then we'll see what it costs.” Regional police no longer a novelty By GRACE R. DOVE Post Staff If several Back Mountain de- partments consolidate, it will be the 23rd regional police commis- sion formed in the state and the first in Luzerne County, home to more than 60 local departments. Representatives of five area municipalities met with represen- tatives of the Pennsylvania De- partment of Community Affairs August 4 to take the first steps in a nonbinding feasibility study of possible police consolidation. “Back Mountain police depart- ments spent a total of $666,449 for police services last year,” said - DCA representative Dick Martin. “In Pennsylvania it's almost a miracle for local municipal police departments to work together on consolidation, but faced with the economy and cuts in governmen- tal revenue sharing, some are now considering it,” To combat increasing salaries and benefits, many smaller mu- nicipalities make do with one offi- cer per shift —- or none, choosing instead to rely the Pennsylvania State Police for protection. Keeping the same full-time offi- cers, a regional police force would be similar, with these changes, Martin said: e One chief or commander would supervise as many police officers as needed and be respon- sible to a police commission con- sisting of representatives from each participating municipality. The regional police commission would appoint and evaluate the chief, set police policies and adopt the budget. » Several officers would be on duty for each shift, with extra personnel available to coordinate services and cover sick days, vacations and emergencies. e Small municipalities which presently rely on the State Police for all or part of their police pro- tection would have the same round-the-clock services as their larger neighbors. * One larger jurisdiction would replace several smaller ones, making law enforcement easier. e All officers would receive the same salaries and benefits, in- stead of each municipality setting salaries based on how much it can afford. e All officers would follow the same regulations and operating procedures, receive identical train- ing ai'd have the same uniforms, badges, identification and equip- ment. Each member municipality would have one vote on the com- mission and would pay a portion of the operating costs. Regionalization would mean a lower overall cost than operating individual departments, improved and more coordinated police serv- ices, more officers available for duty, improved training and effi- ciency and more opportunities for the officers’ job advancement. According to a booklet on po- lice regionalization published by the DCA, disadvantages to police consolidation include officers’ concerns that they could lose their jobs, opportunities for advance- ment and identities as local police officers, and residents’ concerns of losing the standard of police services which they are accus- tomed to, their small-town rela- tionship with their police officers and local control over police de- partment operations and policies. “Our officers identify very strongly with the community which they serve it's part of their pride in their role and their work,” said retired Kingston Township police chief Paul Sabol, now di- rector of the Back Mountain Communications Center. “They're very caring men who see themselves as ‘people helpers’ as well as enforcers of the law. They're very proud to be police- men and enjoy working with one another.” In the old days, officers volun- tarily worked overtime without .- pay, he added. It was their job. “Inaregional police force, you'll have one administrator who calls the shots,” said Dallas Township supervisor Frank Wagner. “Its board has one vote per munici- pality and each community pays an equal share, no matter how large its population.” The two closest regional police departments, established Janu- ary 1, 1991 and May 1, 1991, are in Berks County. The state’s largest regional department, Northern York County, was also the state’s first, set up in November, 1972. York County also boasts two other regional departments, es- tablished in 1983 and 1992. Q: Where do you find the most Back Mountain news each week? A: Only in The Dallas Post Dates: Time: Place: In-Person Registration July 25 - August 25 Monday-Thursday 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday 9 a.m to 4 p.m. Center for Lifelong Learning King’s College, 826-5865 Administration Building 1st Floor, Room 108 133 North River St. Wilkes-Barre, PA 18711 ACCELERATED COURSE OFFERINGS FOR PART-TIME EVENING STUDENTS ONLY First Accelerated Session, August 27 - October 20 Literature & the Arts Western Civilization Business Law I Catholic Perspectives Business Communications Second Accelerated Session, October 22 - December 15 Historical Perspectives in Literature The 20th Century: A Global Perspective Business Law II Faith, Morality & the Person Theatre Experience FIRST ACCELERATED GRADUATE SESSION AUGUST 27 - OCTOBER 15 Health Policy SECOND ACCELERATED GRADUATE SESSION OCTOBER 22 - DECEMBER 10 Behavioral Medicine Human Resources Management (course held at Mercy Hospital, Wilkes-Barre, PA) GRADUATE DIVISION For more information, call 826-5991 The William G. McGowan School of Business at King’s College offers Master of Science degrees in Accounting, Finance, Health Care Administration, and Taxation. FALL 1994 GRADUATE SCHEDULE All classes begin the week of Monday, August 29, and meet once a week. Financial Management Financial Accounting International Finance Quantitative Business Methods Financial Markets Corporate Taxation I Mon/Wed 5:30 - 8:00 p.m. Tues/Thurs 5:30 - 8:00 p.m. Sat 8:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Sat 8:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Sat 8:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Mon/Wed 5:30 - 8:00 p.m. Tues/Thurs 5:30 - 8:00 p.m. Sat 8:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Sat 8:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Sat 8:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Mon 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. Tues 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. Tues 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. Wed 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. Thurs 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. Sat 8:30 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Sat 8:00 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. Sat 8:00 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. Sat 8:00 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers