`Recovery requires some tough choices`

By Joe Pinchot
Herald Staff Writer

In mid-1997, Farrell was positioning itself to exit the financially distressed status bestowed by the state on Nov. 12, 1987, said Tom Tulip of the Pennsylvania Economy League Inc., which was hired 21 months ago as economic recovery plan coordinator.

But since then the city has lost the revenue of 250 workers laid off from Caparo Steel Corp., and the property tax payments from Caparo under a 45.5 percent reassessment. It was the latest twist in a “tax revenue roller coaster ride” the city has ridden, but had nothing to do with causing, Tulip said.

So instead of exiting the program the city is facing yet another set of recommendations to increase revenue and cut costs.

Some of the recommendations are new and some are old, but they all challenge council to make some tough decisions about the city’s short- and long-term financial health, Tulip said.

Recommendations unveiled publicly Monday range from a short-term property tax hike and phasing out the non-resident earned income tax to scaling back the fire department and asking neighboring municipalities if they’re interested in consolidating or merging.

Mayor Eugene C. Pacsi said there’s a lot more in this plan than in past revisions. “There are some things we already knew we would have to look at,” he said. “We’ve discussed some already.” Pacsi added that council is not afraid to make tough decisions. “We’ve made them in the past,” he said.

Council faces the immediate problem of a projected $150,000 to $200,000 budget shortfall by the end of the year, while hope is on the horizon in the form of a plan by the Shenango Valley Industrial Development Corp. to revitalize the Broadway Avenue corridor, and Sharon Tube has announced plans for a $56 million manufacturing plant in Farrell and Wheatland.

Tulip praised the city for its commitment to sharing services, from forming a regional police force and jointly pursuing a garbage collection contract to partnering with Hermitage to buy fire equipment and going after delinquent sewer and garbage user fees.

Tulip also noted that in 2003 the city will retire its long-term bond debt. The bond debt cost the city $287,487 this year, and the debt rises to $292,735 in 1999 before gradually decreasing to $68,087 in 2003.

Farrell “does and can have a brighter future,” Tulip said.

Council has 30 days to accept the plan or present alternatives, Pacsi said.

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Updated July 28, 1998
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