Police union says Evans City, Seven Fields silent
According to Peter Pietrandrea, solicitor for the Butler County Fraternal Order of Police, negotiations for the dissolution of the Evans City-Seven Fields Regional Police Department remain stagnant.
Representing the two remaining officers in the department, Pietrandrea said he met with solicitors from Evans City and Seven Fields a month ago to initiate a buyout for the dissolution.
“They came to us and said, ‘Hey, we want to (dissolve), and we want to buy you out,’” he said. “Well, I said, ‘These guys are protected for the next two and a half years.’”
Despite the municipalities’ moves toward dissolution, Pietrandrea said the contract for the remaining officers — Chief Joe McCombs and Sgt. Donald Meyers — runs until Dec. 31, 2025.
“And at that time, according to the charter agreement, Officer Meyers and Chief McCombs can return to Evans City Police Department,” he said.
Their right to return, according to Pietrandrea, was also guaranteed by the state’s Police Tenure Act.
Bringing this to the attention of the solicitors at last month’s meeting, he said he initiated demands for salary buyouts for the duration of the contract and family health care coverage for Meyers.
“One of the officers has some extraordinary circumstances … and he has a right to keep working under the contract and, of course, the Police Tenure Act thereafter,” Pietrandrea said.
He said the demands included keeping Meyers active as an officer in either municipality until his family is eligible for Medicare coverage.
“Because he’d be entitled to that if we didn’t dissolve,” Pietrandrea said.
These demands, he said, were termed “dead-weight demands” in a statement on the dissolution made by Seven Fields last week.
“They came to us, they want to buy us out and then they never made any offers to buy us out,” Pietrandrea said. “They just want to dissolve and then forgo the rest of the collective bargaining agreement and the charter agreement.”
Since meeting last month, Pietrandrea said he has made repeated efforts to reach out to the two solicitors.
Pietrandrea said he heard from Seven Fields, that the borough was “working on it, or waiting to hear from Evans City.”
“We don't have any comment at this time regarding specific employees at the Regional Police Commission,” Megan Turnbull, solicitor for Seven Fields said Friday, Sept. 8. “However, generally, the commission's charter provides no legal means or framework for employee buyouts.”
Ryan Mergl, solicitor for Evans City, has not responded, according to Pietrandrea.
He did not return a request for comment Friday.
While the buyout remains in limbo, Pietrandrea said the officers continue working their “regular shifts, and then some.”
Meanwhile, both Evans City and Seven Fields have begun seeking policing partnerships with neighboring municipalities.
Seven Fields approved a resolution Aug. 7 to begin seeking short-term police coverage with the Cranberry Township Police Department. The borough’s council agenda for Monday, Sept. 11, is also seeking authorization for township manager Tom Smith and Turnbull to begin discussions for contracted short-term and long-term police services.
Evans City has sent requests for proposals to the Jackson Township, Adams Township, Zelienople and Mars police departments.
On Wednesday, Sept. 6, a proposal from Jackson Township to exchange police services for property on the borough’s reservoir was delayed for the council to appraise the property.
And through it all, McCombs and Meyers remain, assisted by state police coverage.
“If they want to dissolve, then that’s fine, but, again, these guys are giving up all their rights for future earnings and benefits to do so,” Pietrandrea said. “So we have to talk, and they haven’t talked.”
