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PREVIOUS Benefits of Intergovernmental Cooperation
What types of infrastructure improvement projects are best suited for cooperative efforts between municipalities?
Water and Wastewater Treatment
The cost of upgrading water and wastewater treatment facilities (or building new facilities) is great, but much of it comes from fixed costs that do not change much with the addition of more users into the system. By sharing these fixed costs with neighboring municipalities, borough officials can greatly reduce the cost per user to their own municipality. In some cases, a borough might not have been able to afford to improve its water and wastewater infrastructure without a cooperative agreement; thus the arrangement actually allows them to offer services it couldn't have offered otherwise (like bringing public water and sewer to new areas in which it didn't exist before). This, in turn, provides other benefits. By bringing public water and sewer to new areas, for example, they encourage development, which can be a boon to their local economy.
Another reason intermunicipal cooperation on water and wastewater infrastructure projects is so popular is because of the increasing sophistication required to operate water and wastewater systems in Pennsylvania . Regardless of a treatment plant's size or the amount of water it processes daily, the law requires the plant to have at least two licensed operators on staff. Yet small plants that treat only 100,000 gallons of water per day may not need to have two operators work full-time. As licensing requirements become more stringent by the year (requiring greater expertise and continuing education), it becomes increasingly difficult to find people to fill these positions when a municipality cannot offer them full time hours. Regulations also include certain testing requirements that mandate the use of accredited laboratory facilities, but the cost of maintaining these facilities is high. Therefore, it is often more practical to regionalize water and wastewater treatment and use one lab instead of several in a particular area.
Surveying and Geographic Information Systems Development
Like water and wastewater infrastructure, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) can be very expensive, but they can also save municipalities a great deal of money through greater efficiency. One way to reduce the cost of developing these systems is to cooperate with neighboring municipalities in the base mapping phase. When developing a GIS, aerial photography should be taken of the area, which is then used to produce an accurate base map of the municipality. To reference these aerial photos to actual locations on the ground, surveyors must locate a certain number of “control points” that can easily be identified in the photos. Because the number of control points needed to cover two municipalities is not significantly different from that required to cover one and most of the cost associated with obtaining aerial photos is related to the cost of getting the plane in the air, the price of procuring these services can be greatly reduced by including other municipalities in the project. Herbert, Rowland & Grubic, Inc. is currently working with two municipalities in Dauphin County to create aerial mapping in this way. Had they contracted the work independently, it would have cost them approximately $5,000 per mile. By contracting the work simultaneously, however, their cost is reduced to just $4,000 per mile!
Transportation Planning and Roadway Design
Most roadways (and the traffic they bring) routinely cross municipal boundaries; thus, transportation planning efforts require a regional perspective, as well. Current efforts to improve the intersection of Walnut Street and Progress Avenue in Susquehanna Township , Dauphin County , illustrate this fact clearly. This intersection is a common route of access for suburbanites to downtown Harrisburg , but drivers must cross through Penbrook Borough before reaching the city via this route. Thus, any improvements to the intersection that cause more people to use this route for access to the city will increase traffic in Penbrook, as well. Consequently, the borough has asked Susquehanna Township for input into the intersection improvement alternatives that are considered, and the township has agreed. Such foresight will be greatly beneficial to all parties involved.
Watershed Planning/Stormwater Management
As stated previously, watersheds cross many municipal boundaries; thus, the efforts to prevent pollution or flooding associated with these watersheds must cross municipal boundaries, as well. This very principle is the reason behind Pennsylvania 's Act 167 law, which requires stormwater management initiatives to be performed on a watershed-wide basis, not a municipal one. Because the state recognizes the importance of intermunicipal cooperation in these efforts, it reimburses municipalities for 75 percent of the cost of implementing stormwater ordinances in accordance with the Act 167 plan for their region. Though such plans are to be created by counties (not municipalities), they can be initiated by a municipality if it thinks there is a need for one. If a borough has issues with stormwater management and no Act 167 plan exists within the county, borough officials can suggest that the county create one. This will save the borough money it would have spent correcting the problem itself and create a more effective solution because similar stormwater management initiatives will be established in neighboring municipalities that impact stormwater in its area, as well.
Recreational Facilities Design
Recreational facilities such as ball parks, playgrounds, swimming pools, and trails improve the quality of life for local residents, but their cost can be more than one municipality can bear. By spreading the cost of developing and maintaining such facilities over several municipalities, boroughs may be able to provide recreational opportunities for their residents that would otherwise be impossible. Many municipalities throughout the state are creating regional recreation commissions, for this reason.
Planning & Zoning
Recent changes in the Municipalities Planning Code allow intermunicipal cooperation on planning and zoning to occur, which is a great benefit to borough and township officials. When neighboring municipalities create zoning ordinances independently, they may unintentionally create conflicting plans that prevent the proper extension of water lines, sewer lines, and roadways at their borders. They may also create situations in which incompatible land uses are zoned at their borders. (For example, one municipality may zone the land at its eastern border for industrial use, while the neighboring municipality zones land on the other side of that border as residential.) Joint planning and zoning efforts eliminate such conflicts, and they are also beneficial to smaller municipalities, struggling to meet state requirements to zone for every type of land use within their borders. By working with another municipality (or several), they can zone for all of those uses over a much larger area. Adams County Commissioners are currently encouraging municipal officials in their jurisdiction to pursue a joint comprehensive plan project, which was recently approved by council members in Bendersville Borough. Such efforts are occurring around the state.
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