Weatherly Borough Council has informed the supervisors in neighboring Packer Township that they can either agree to increase what they pay for fire protection or risk losing it.

Borough council members say Packer should pay their fair share of the cost it takes to run Citizens Fire Co. No.1. The fire company has served both municipalities for decades, but recently, insurance has made it a lot more expensive.Borough council voted 5-0 Monday night to authorize a letter from its solicitor to the supervisors, notifying them that if there is not an agreement in place by June 8, Packer will lose its fire coverage. Joseph Cyburt and George Miller were absent."We're asking them to reconsider and to work with us in the future so that we can continue our relationship, or terminate the agreement they have with us as far as the fire company goes, and go our separate ways," Mayor/Council President Tom Connors said.The two sides have been negotiating the cost of fire coverage since before the new year. Weatherly officials say that the cost to run the fire department, particularly workman's compensation insurance, skyrocketed by $11,000 last year.Packer Township has about 40 percent of the population of Weatherly - 998 residents versus 2,525, according to census figures. It pays about 10 percent of the fire department's annual budget - about $8,000 out of a total $82,000.That amount hasn't changed in 20 years, borough Manager Harold Pudliner Jr. said, but the borough has continued to increase its share, while providing service to Packer through a verbal agreement."For years we worked together, and unfortunately nothing was ever in writing, which today you definitely need," Connors said.They have been negotiating over the increase since December.Borough officials said they rejected Packer's most recent offer, which would have seen them pay $2,000 more, starting in 2017."We reached out to the supervisors in Packer Township asking them to absorb that cost. They did get back to us with their intentions on what they would like to offer. Council has not accepted it," Connors said.That was in response to the borough asking Packer to contribute an additional $2,000 starting in 2016. They sent that request in January.Council initially wanted the township to split the cost of the department per capita, meaning that they would pay proportionally based on population.Under that arrangement, the township would have paid about $24,000 per year. Connors said that the current agreement is unfair to borough residents."I personally have a lot of respect for the supervisors and families of Packer Township, but I also have a responsibility to the residents of Weatherly to make sure that their money is spent wisely and to the best of our ability," he said.