Glassport council designated Citizens Hose Company as the borough's official fire department by unanimous vote Tuesday, cutting local tax funding for Reliance Hose Company, the municipality's other fire department.

That means Citizens will now receive all the revenue from the borough's 0.75-mill fire tax the borough collects to fund its departments. The borough had been splitting the amount, about $68,000 annually, between the two departments until this year when it froze the fund while council pondered the issue of competing fire departments in the community. The borough plans to pay insurance on equipment belonging to Reliance until the end of the year.

"You're not defunct," Councilman Eugene Skerkoski told members of Reliance, who were upset by the decision. "The door is not closed. Guidelines can be set up for an amicable merger."

So far, negotiations between the two companies have been strained. Both departments, who are only four blocks from each other and who respond to the same calls, have refused to meet. Each has hired a lawyer.

The decision to close one of the departments is one council has been mulling for months, if not years.

In December, a feasibility study of the two companies conducted by the state Department of Community & Economic Development recommended that the borough phase out one of the departments to save money.

Firefighters at the meeting said the rivalry between the departments is more than 100 years old.

Council members said the passage of time hadn't made their decision regarding Citizens and Reliance -- which have around 53 and 40 active firefighters respectively -- any easier.

"We don't like this decision," said Councilman Paul Trunzo. "I didn't even want to come here tonight."

Mr. Skerkoski agreed but said a decision was necessary.

"I'm a retired life member of [Reliance] but I voted for [Citizens]," he said.

Councilman Jim Foster, a member of the Reliance Hose Company, said, "Nobody feels worse than me," about cutting funds to the department but said he too hoped the two departments could work out a friendly merger. Provisions of such a merger should include firefighters from Reliance joining Citizens' force and its governing board, he said.

Reliance President Jim Ali said it will take some time before firefighters in his department accept council's decision.

"We've still got to the end of the year," said Mr. Ali.

"They're hoping a bunch of our guys go down there and join their fire department," he said. Eventually, "If someone wants to be a fireman in a department, they probably will."