Council mulling raises for elected officials

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

Discussion of possible pay increases for elected officials took up the majority of Monday night’s lengthy meeting of Van Wert City Council.

During the two-hour meeting, council members discussed current and potential future salaries for their seats, along with future salaries for mayor, law director and city auditor. Council members currently make $4,900 annually, while the council president is paid $5,500 per year. Those salaries have gone largely unchanged for several years. The mayor’s post currently pays an annual salary of $54,180, while the law director’s job pays $71,000.

Council members reviewed and compared salary survey results from the Ohio Municipal League and during the discussion, Second Ward Councilman David Stinnett said he’s not against raises, but questioned just how big the pay increases should be.

“With the economy the way it is right now, we’re not 100 percent sure where the economy is going to go, do we want to start handing raises out to ourselves?” Stinnett said.

Fourth Ward Councilman Andrew Davis said the perfect decision doesn’t exist, but he added it’s important to keep salaries competitive, especially for mayor, law director and auditor.

“The goal is to make sure we’re in a position where if we’re asking someone to give up four years of their career with no guarantee that their job exists when they leave that seat, we have to be willing to pay someone that has the experience that we need out of that position,” Davis said.

After the discussion, council members voted 4-2 against a proposal to increase future council salaries to $6,100. However, council then voted 6-0 to prepare legislation that would increase those salaries by 10 percent, to $5,390 for ward and at-large council members, and $6,050 for the council president, starting with the next term.

The legislation will be voted on in July. By law, council members are prohibited from giving themselves raises during a current term.

In addition, council members voted to prepare legislation to increase salaries for the law director and city auditor by three percent each of four years, starting with the next term, and one percent each of four years for the mayor, also beginning with the next term.

In other business, council members heard from Mark Davis, a Van Wert resident who regularly attends the twice-a-month meetings. Davis spoke out against reverse angle parking, which is scheduled to be tested along two blocks of Jefferson St. New temporary striping will be put down in the near future and the concept will be tested through the winter holidays.

Davis questioned overhang from larger vehicles blocking the sidewalk and creating a hazard on the street and he questioned the legality of it, given potential obstructions. He asked council to hold off and to consider a different proposal.

“To make up for the spaces that would not be gained by remaining parallel on the west side, they may be recovered by moving the northbound lane to where the left turn lanes are and putting the angle parking on the east side,” he said. “This would gain seven spots on S. Jefferson and if you move it over all the way to the railroad tracks, you could add four to five parallel spaces on N. Jefferson St.”

Council opted to proceed with the test period as planned, but left the door open for changes.

“Some of your concerns may come to fruition by having that trial period put into effect,” Council President Jerry Mazur said.

Council members agreed to prepare legislation that would allow a resident at the corner of Greenville Road and Hospital Drive to de-annex, or detach from the city limits. The resident doesn’t receive water or sewer services. Law Director Jon Hatcher said there’s nothing in Ohio law that prohibits such a change. If the resident’s property is removed from the city limits, he will still need acceptance by the Pleasant Township Trustees and the Van Wert County Commissioners.

Among the ordinances approved during Monday’s meeting – one creating a union cemetery district for Woodland Cemetery, which is required by law, and one allowing Safety-Service Director Jay Fleming to advertise and award bids for street resurfacing.

The next meeting of Van Wert City Council will be held at 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 10, in Council Chambers on the second floor of the Municipal Building, 515 E. Main St. A public meeting will be held at 6:15 that night to discuss the tax budget.