At the East Allen Township Board of Supervisors workshop meeting July 23, supervisors heard a presentation about the state of the East Allen Township Volunteer Fire Department from Deputy Chief Raymond Henry and Fire Chief Josh Smith. The report included the personnel status and the challenges they, like other area volunteer departments, face with staffing firefighters during the day.

The discussion lasted more than an hour and included a review of the equipment the department has and a talk about the age of the trucks, with upcoming possible replacement needs and more. Financial challenges for the fire department continue to escalate because of the high costs of equipment and other needed items.

Toward the end of his report, Henry talked about financial resources for the department and suggested the supervisors consider the feasibility of a fire tax added to the homeowners property tax.

Township Manager Brent Green noted a fire tax in a township like East Allen, a second class township, can be imposed by the supervisors to not exceed 3 mills of taxation designated solely for fire protection. He said the amount of financial resources provided by the supervisors to the fire department is annually about 1 mill.

Green said the approximate 1-mill annual expenditure for the fire department began in 2006. He added that was the last time there was a general fund tax increase in East Allen Township.

Supervisor Chair Roger Unangst suggested one of the supervisors attend the monthly fire department business meeting so the board has an update on fire department challenges. No supervisor was selected at the time, but more meetings and evaluations are anticipated.

In other business, supervisors were recommended to award the payment of $877,085 to develop and build a public works storage building. The supervisors voted June 11 to proceed with advertising for the bidding on expanding the storage space for the public works department.

The plan is to install a new 7,200-square-foot storage building at the public works facility, 7437 Driftwood Road. The supervisors voted unanimously to approve the contracts to complete the project.

The supervisors discussed the North Halbea Street bridge and the Jacksonville Road bridge. Both bridges need repairs and/or replacement. It is expected the bridges will soon be reduced to single-lane traffic.

Green noted the North Halbea Street bridge has about a two-year life. It was built in the 1980s and will need replacement, so planning for the replacement needs to begin now.

Township Engineer Jim Millot investigated the Jacksonville Road bridge. He said a metal plate will be placed on the bridge as “a Band-Aid.” A replacement plan was developed and sent to Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to establish a replacement timeline.

The supervisors briefly considered an elderly housing overlay zoning ordinance and map amendment for 6500 Hanoverville Road. The proposal is to amend the zoning ordinance to create a new overlay that will allow for senior housing in a cluster of mid-rise multifamily apartment buildings on a site sufficient to also offer on-site amenities.

The approximate 15.7-acre parcel is currently zoned within East Allen’s planned commercial district (PC-2). A portion of the parcel extends into Hanover Township. The applicant intends to develop apartments for residents aged 62 and older on the East Allen Township portion of the parcel. No action was taken at the meeting.

The next East Allen Township meeting is set for 7 p.m. Aug. 13 at the municipal building, 5344 Nor-Bath Blvd. It is a hybrid meeting, with both in-person and virtual options. Visit eatwp.org to review the meeting agenda and to access the meeting virtually.