Divisions arise over police contract talks
EVANS CITY — Divisions have resurfaced as borough council considers a proposal to extend a regional police contract and add stability to the department in anticipation of contract negotiations with the union in a year or two.
At a meeting earlier this month, some residents and one Evans City council member pushed back on the proposal, with some asking why the borough can’t spend less on police coverage and others opposing regionalization of police altogether.
While council voted to table the motion to extend the contract, the issue will be discussed Monday at the commission meeting of the Evans City/Seven Fields Regional Police Department at 5:15 p.m. at the Seven Fields Borough office. Both municipalities have three seats on the commission.
The current 10-year contract began in 2015. The proposal is to extend the contract five more years, into 2030.
“What they want to do is hire another officer, but they don’t want to just hire him for just five years,” Councilman Kim Armstrong said. “They want to give another 10 years, rather than just hire him for five years, then quit.”
Additionally, council President Lee Dyer said the commission hopes to have the contract extension in place before union negotiations begin within the next year or two.
This is an excerpt — read the full article in Thursday’s Butler Eagle.
