Lansford borough is adding manpower to its police force to give the department more presence at night and more time to investigate crimes.

At its meeting Tuesday night, borough council voted to promote Sgt. Jack Soberick, the department's officer in charge, to chief.Council also voted to appoint two full-time police officers, bringing the number of full-time officers to six.Councilman Matt Walsh, who serves on the public safety committee, said crime and drugs are among the primary concerns he hears from residents.The borough had planned for a new officer and Soberick's promotion in the 2016 budget."Our borough gets more calls than any of the boroughs surrounding us, so it's definitely important that we have a fully staffed police force," Walsh said.But not all council members feel that the borough can afford it. Ditsky, who only voted for adding one officer, said the borough is struggling to cover its expenses with taxes at current levels."It's been very close in 2016, it's a very slim margin," Ditsky said.The vote to appoint Soberick was 3-1, with Ditsky voting no.Walsh, Jared Soto and Colin Jones voted in favor of the promotion.Rose Mary Cannon abstained because she is Soberick's mother, and Joe Butrie refused to cast a vote.Councilman John Turcmanovich, who was the borough's last police chief, was absent.Soberick is the department's first chief in nearly two years. He has been the officer in charge since 2014, when Turcmanovich retired.He joined the department as a part-time officer in 1986 and became a full-time officer 10 years later.Council also voted to hire two new full-time police officers, Derek Marouchoc and Phil Shedlacer.Walsh said that appointing two new officers will give the department increased presence during the nighttime hours, when the department is often busiest.It will also free up officers to spend more time following up and investigating more incidents, Walsh said."I think it'll help with our shifts, but I think it will also help with the investigations. It's going to give us more time to investigate more crime," he said.