New Castle seeks plans for police station study

By Virginia Ross

The city is looking at selling its sewer lines to the New Castle Sanitation Authority.

NEW CASTLE, Pa. — Lawmakers are looking for proposals for a study that would determine the feasibility of relocating the city’s police station.

One of the initiatives in the city’s fiscal recovery plan under state Act 47 addresses the possibility of relocating the station. Council recently agreed to seek proposals for the study, which is to be funded by the state.

Mayor Anthony Mastrangelo said the city is looking at moving the police station from the city building on Jefferson Street to the former Huntington Bank building at the corner of North and East streets.

Earlier this year, Huntington Bank donated the building to the Greater New Castle Community Development Corporation. According to the recovery plan adopted by council last August, the police station has several deficiencies including inadequate facilities for detaining adult and juvenile offenders simultaneously, faulty plumbing and insufficient storage space for evidence, weapons and supplies.

In other news, the city is looking at selling its sewer lines to the New Castle Sanitation Authority. Council has given the sanitation authority its blessing to have a study done on the matter. The study is to be conducted by an independent firm to evaluate the sewer system and its worth, officials said.

Residents pay a monthly fee to the authority for sewage treatment and maintenance. The city is given the money collected for maintenance to cover the cost of maintaining the lines.

Since adopting its fiscal recovery plan the city has continued looking for ways — such as instituting employee wage freezes and increasing employee benefit contributions — to cut costs.