Laurels & lances: Fire & food

Laurel: To making progress. Four Hempfield fire departments are moving ahead with dissolving their charters.

The good thing here is not that they are going away. It is that they are finding a way to continue to serve their communities.

By dissolving as individual chartered entities, the departments will move under the management of the township. Hempfield will take over the operation and payment of expenses. Assets, including the properties of the stations, will be transferred to the township. Volunteers will still continue their participation, but the township will be keeping the doors open.

“There won’t be any changes as far as service to the township,” said Hempfield Manager Aaron Siko. “The volunteers within those stations will be continuing to respond from those stations.”

It’s encouraging to see forward motion on a plan that should provide the stable, necessary support volunteers need to continue to perform the valuable service they do.

Lance: To disappearing options. Community Supermarket in Harrison will be closing this fall.

It’s a blow to the Natrona Heights area, where the market has served the community for years. It was the only grocery store locally when Howard Rosenberg and George Thimons bought it in 2002. That was before Walmart came in to the Highlands Mall shopping center and before discount grocer Aldi announced plans to move across the street from Walmart.

That’s left the store struggling.

It isn’t that other options aren’t in driving distance. A big factor is that many of Community’s customers don’t drive.

At a time when the economy is being measured by its impact on grocery bills, it’s sad to see such a central part of the local retail landscape disappear. Does this make Harrison a food desert? Not quite. But it definitely suggests a drought.