West Side Communities Luzerne County
I am a resident of Forty Fort Borough in Luzerne County and I work as a professional assisting PA municipalities with topics regarding land use, community planning, regionalization and shared services. I am writing in regards to proposed maps that break up the West Side communities of Luzerne County. These West Side municipalities consist of: Kingston, Forty Fort, Edwardsville, Wyoming, West Wyoming, Swoyersville, Luzerne, Courtdale, Pringle, Exeter, West Pittston, Exeter Township, Kingston Township and Jackson Township. Throughout my time as a resident and a professional, I have witnessed the West Side communities continue to expand the multimunicipal and regional services they provide. These multimunicipal and regional services keep our municipalities efficient, our residents safe, and our infrastructure strong. The West Side shares services and amenities such as public works services, recreation and trail facilities, and mutual aid for emergency services. They are also continuing to explore and implement options for further cooperation. Breaking up these communities and placing them in multiple house districts will prove detrimental to the progress being made regionalizing and sharing services, while keeping the communities under one State Representative will allow them to most efficiently continue this progress. Please keep the West Side together, and give the municipalities the tools they need to continue to move in the right direction.