Evans City, Seven Fields reach agreement in regional police department dispute
After months of stalled negotiations, officials from Evans City and Seven Fields reached a long-awaited agreement on the division of assets from their now-defunct regional police department.
The deal, which was finalized earlier this month, brings an end to a prolonged dispute that began after the dissolution of the Evans City-Seven Fields Regional Police Department at the end of 2023.
The sticking points in those discussions largely centered around the value and control of leftover assets, including three police vehicles, and other equipment, such as cameras and computers.
According to Evans City Council President Cheri Deener, under the terms of the agreement, Evans City will pay Seven Fields $22,000 for one of the police vehicles that remained with the borough and all of the remaining inventory.
“The majority of that payment is for the car,” she said.
The two remaining marked police vehicles will be sold to the highest bidder, with proceeds divided according to the original charter, giving Seven Fields 61.5% of the revenue and Evans City the remaining 38.5%.
The resolution comes just weeks after a mediation session was held over the phone April 28 and follows nearly 30 months of on-and-off discussions.
Each borough agreed to split the cost of that mediation session, which totaled about $7,500, according to Deener.
Seven Fields Vice President Dawn Servello had previously expressed frustration with the process, stating that her borough had been denied full access to inventory evaluations and accusing Evans City of acting unilaterally in seizing equipment.
Evans City officials denied that claim several times, saying that representatives from Seven Fields were previously given the time and ability to gauge the assets.
Deener noted that the police vehicle Evans City will retain will be formally signed over to the borough, allowing its newly reestablished department — which includes six part-time officers — to officially utilize it.
Shortly after the joint department disbanded, Seven Fields signed a four-year contract with Northern Regional Police Department. Earlier this year, Seven Fields officials announced their readiness to begin discussions with the department about extending the borough’s existing police coverage agreement.