EVANS CITY — Borough council approved a floodplain ordinance Monday, accepting new floodplain maps and continuing a policy of strict regulations on construction in floodplains.

“Every couple of years (Federal Emergency Management Administration) goes back and redraws the floodplains,” said Lee Dyer, borough council president. “(It) kind of makes it more current.”

The borough had already implemented rules on what could be built in the floodplain, prohibiting any construction that would raise the flood level.

“We stayed with where we were before, which was minimal developments,” Dyer said. “We’re very cautious about allowing people to do things in the floodplain that would cause problems.”

Properties in the floodplain are eligible for flood insurance at a reduced rate through FEMA. Residents can contact the borough for more information and to find out if their property qualifies.

EDCO Park

Also at the meeting, the Evans City Veterans of Foreign Wars post presented a donation to EDCO Park of $2,500 to go toward a pool renovation project. With this donation, the park has reached its goal of $80,000 to be used to match grants.

“The community support is off the charts,” said John Rogers, EDCO Park president.

Construction is expected to start soon, he said, and may be finished by summer of next year.

In the interim, the pool will continue to raise funds through business-sponsored “swim for free” programs this summer.

Police Dept. budget

Also Monday, Tom Smith, police department administrator, gave an analysis of the last years’ police expenses. The police commission was under budget in 2017, he said.

“Evans City’s contribution, we budgeted for $314,014,” Smith said. “The actual (amount) Evans City paid, because there was a credit, was $311,627.04.”

The borough has received less than expected in district court revenue, Smith said, but because of the way payment plans are often structured, it will increase the next year.

The borough is also struggling with turnover rates among part-time police officers, something Smith said could be improved by focusing on hiring more full-time officers.

“We have gone to four full-time officers. That’s a major improvement,” Smith said. “It stops the carousel of hiring part-time officers. We get them on board, we train them, we uniform them, then they leave us for another department.”

Dyer agreed, saying the borough spends a lot of time and money training officers that end up moving to other departments.