Free water for firehouses, in-person payment option to end with Aqua sale

SHENANDOAH – If the Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission (PUC) approves Aqua Pennsylvania’s purchase of Shenandoah’s water authority, our volunteer fire departments will eventually have another bill to pay, while many residents’ primary way to pay their bill will go away.

Aqua President Marc Lucca spoke one-on-one with the Sentinel last week in an in-depth interview about the proposed sale, and you can read more from that interview here.

His company agreed to purchase the Municipal Authority of the Borough of Shenandoah for $12.5 Million in 2020, a sale that, while approved 6-1 by borough council, has seen several residents voice opposition.

Lucca said his company intends to ask the PUC to keep the current billing structure MABS has now, until its next rate case.

That structure, includes providing water service free-of-charge to the five firehouses in the Shenandoah Fire Department, as well as the William Penn and Shenandoah Heights fire companies and Shenandoah Community Ambulance. Four of the fire companies currently are not metered, though meters will be installed within three months of the sale’s closing.

But, when Aqua presents its next rate case to regulators and brings the MABS system in line with Aqua’s rate structure, each of those entities will be charged for water service at the firehouse. Fire hydrant water would not be billed.

The Hazleton City Authority and the Mahanoy Township Authority both told the Sentinel that they also charge fire companies in their service territories for water service. The Schuylkill County Municipal Authority did not respond to the Sentinel‘s inquiry.

The Shenandoah Fire Department is an entirely volunteer force and is largely funded by fundraisers and community donations.

Additionally, the primary way many Shenandoah residents pay their water bill would no longer be available, either.

Currently, residents can pay their bill in person at First National Bank at Main and Lloyd Streets. The arrangement dates back to the 1990s when the bank was the locally-owned Merchants National Bank of Shenandoah.

At that time, the municipal authority moved its offices from Lloyd and Ferguson Streets to the current location near Raven Run and intended to keep an in-person payment option downtown.

Lucca said in-person payments would still be possible at Western Union locations for a fee. According to Western Union’s website, that service is available at Rite Aid downtown or Redner’s in Turkey Run.

Customers could also pay by phone or pay online through Aqua.

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Kaylee Lindenmuth

Kaylee Lindenmuth is a Shenandoah native with a passion for journalism and the community she calls home.

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