An Archbald resident concerned about potential consolidation of the four fire stations in the borough pointed to steady population growth and the prospect of large-scale data centers as reasons for keeping them all open.

Despite social media rumblings suggesting two stations in the borough will close, the mayor and borough manager confirmed that council hasn’t made any decisions. When reached by phone, Archbald council President Louis Rapoch declined to comment on the council’s plans for the stations.

A post on the Facebook page of the Black Diamond Hose Co. 2 reads, “The Archbald Borough Council has announced it intends to close 2 of the 4 fire stations in the borough. Black Diamond Hose Co. #2 is one of the stations to be eliminated“

Attempts to reach Black Diamond officials for additional comments were unsuccessful. In a reply to a reporter’s question on social media about potential consolidation of fire services in the borough, East Side Hose Co. 4 declined to comment.

In 2026, council members allotted $68,000 — $17,000 for each of Archbald’s four fire stations — less than 1% of the borough’s overall budget of $7,103,031.

The next borough council meeting is scheduled for Aug. 19 at 6 p.m. at the Municipal Building, 400 Church St.

Mike McAndrew, who resides in Archbald’s Nebraska section, believes a roughly 20% population increase in the borough since the early 2000s and continued discussions about data center development should prompt council members to maintain each firehouse rather than consolidating.

According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Archbald’s population grew from 6,220 in 2000 to an estimated 7,598 as of July 2025 — an increase of 22%.

“If it’s something they’re looking to do, it’s disappointing,” McAndrew said. “(The borough) still has a lot of undeveloped land. There’s housing developments going up and the more houses and residents you have, the more potential for structural hazards there are. We don’t know if data centers are coming, but if they are we need to have all the fire departments available. I’d hate to see us in a position where we don’t have enough fire departments.”

McAndrew believes recruitment efforts should be ramped up before any final decisions are made.

“I’m not going to pretend I have the answer, but it would seem to me that they should explore every option before closing or merging two,” he said. “(Black Diamond) has been in service since 1900; that’s a long time of faithful service to the community. I know the issue is a shortage of volunteers but I think it would be prudent to give them every opportunity to expand their membership before just shuttering them and saying you’re closed or we’re merging you with another department.”

Fire Chief Bob Harvey stressed the safety of residents should always come first amid any consolidation talks. He feels Black Diamond Hose Co. 2 on Rock Street and East Side Hose Co. 4 along Salem Road provide a vital service to the community and would be missed if eliminated.

“It’s one thing if you’re going to council and saying we need another fire station in the East Side section or the Number 5 Hill section, and there’s nothing there right now,” Harvey said. “That’s a lot to ask, to put a station there, but they are already there and they’re new buildings. They’re there for the fast accessibility for a structure fire.”

Harvey called for council to impose a fire service tax in upcoming budgets.

“If council gives a line item and there is a tax where X amount of the budget is dedicated to the fire service then the fire service will be guaranteed to be in business,” he said.

Harvey hopes to help facilitate an amicable agreement between the volunteer firefighters and council members.

“Hopefully we’ll come up with a solution that will be mutually agreeable and everything will work out for the residents of the municipality,” he said. “I’m always trying to get council to put fire protection, and health and safety, on the top of the budget. If anything has to be sacrificed, it has to come from other areas. There could be a lot of speculation. I’m trying to look at it from protecting the residents, period. That’s my goal.”

Harvey added consolidation of fire stations has been discussed in the past and he wouldn’t rule it out in the future.

“We’ve had the fire study done from the state of Pennsylvania,” he said. “We took some of their recommendations, we worked on it, and we’re looking into the future. Consolidation down the road … is probably going to happen, I would say. Whether I live to see it or not, I don’t know, but it seems that’s the way the whole valley’s going to be going whether it’s consolidation locally or regionalization. The alternative is that the community has to put a paid department in, and I personally feel the community can’t afford a paid department.”

State study recommended mergers

The state Department of Community and Economic Development began a project in December 2021 to assess the fire services for Archbald.

The DCED’s Fire Feasibility Study — issued in May 2022 — offered recommendations intended to align the borough’s fire and rescue agencies with the best national practices and build a cooperative relationship between the volunteer membership of the agencies with a common objective, professional response and preparation for community service growth, DCED officials said in the report.

DCED officials organized virtual meetings with the municipal officials of Archbald and volunteer membership of the four independent, nonprofit volunteer fire companies, and visited the four fire station facilities, interacting with available members, per the report.

In the study, DCED officials provided recommendations to phase out the Black Diamond and East Side fire stations over time. The report also proposed the construction of a new firehouse to store the merged parties under one roof in a central location to service the eastern half of the borough.

“This facility should not receive any additional expansion or improvement,” officials said of East Side Hose Company. “(It’s) recommended that this facility should not be used in its continuance as an open and working response facility. Long term, this facility should eventually be faded out of service within the next five to eight years.”

DCED noted Black Diamond services only “one small branch of a residentially zoned area,” making its a prime candidate for consolidation.

At the time of the report, DCED officials also said no more response units should be stored at Archbald Fire Company 1. The fire station merged with Archbald Community Ambulance and Rescue Squad in 2024 to form Archbald Fire and Rescue Squad. The Eynon Hose Company 3 and the Sturges Hose Company 5 merged in 2013 to form the Eynon-Sturges Hose Company 3.

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