PAINT — Paint Borough Council, while saying it will miss its dedicated police force, voted to disband its part-time department at year’s end for budgetary reasons and agreed to contract with neighboring Paint Township for full-time police coverage.
The lone dissenter, Councilman Robert Polochak Sr., said that he wanted to give the department another shot, which council did last year.
Councilman Vincent Ferrante abstained from voting.
Also during the meeting, council adopted a 2010 budget of $242,450 that is balanced and retains current taxes for the fourth consecutive year.
The three-year police contract with Paint Township will cost $31,500 annually with an option to renew.
Paint Township supervisors still must approve the agreement.
It cost Paint Borough $55,650 to run its police department this year.
Councilman Walter Drzal said it was a difficult decision to disband the department, which had served the town for 102 years.
It came down to a budget crunch.
The borough was unable to afford its police department without raising taxes a good bit, he said.
“It’s a sad, sad day for me,” Drzal said about losing the five-member department. “I would rather have kept the department.
He said police Chief Karen Hugya and four other officers as well as former members of the department have done a fine job of keeping the borough safe over the years.
John Kaiser, chairman of the police committee, likewise said the borough has an excellent department but had to disband the force for financial reasons.
For three years, council has debated whether or not to disband the department, Kaiser said.
He said that although the borough’s officers always responded to calls even when not officially on duty, Paint Township will be on duty 24 hours a day, improving coverage.
Paint Township officials told council that they would hire two officers for the extra duty. Council is hoping that former borough officers will be hired, Kaiser said.
Another officer works for Windber Borough police.
The chief’s retirement also was accepted by council at the meeting.
Mayor Nick Zindash said he was not happy with disbanding the force but that, overall, doing so was in the best interest of the borough.
He said council didn’t want to raise taxes.
“We had to do what was best for the community,” he said.
Council President Dennis Berkey likewise said it came down to finances.
He said that a proposed sanitary sewer project that will commence in the spring is going to cost more than expected.
Hugya, who led the department for the past four years, said she loved working for the borough.
“I’m really going to miss the people,” she said.
“We did all we could to save it.”
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