CALLAWAY — The Callaway City Commission has approved increasing pay brackets for 11 employees and granting pay increases specified in the 2014-15 budget.
The commission accepted the staff recommendation to increase pay ranges for five utilities department employees, four street department employees, a shop worker and a fire department employee by $5,000. The total for the 3 percent pay raises was $15,532 taken out of reserves.
The discussion among commissioners consisted of how to institute the pay increase with 9 out of the 11 employees already over their max pay grade before the raises were instituted. Commissioner Melba Covey argued for a cost of living increase only, which would be 1.5 percent.
“When we start dallying around with the minimum, mid and max, we could throw the schedules completely off,” Covey said.
Mayor Thomas Abbott countered that the commission would take heat from citizens if they keep the employees over the maximum. Commissioner Pamn Henderson said raises may increase insurance costs for some employees.
“We don’t want an unintended consequence,” Henderson said.
Resident Shelly McKinny said that if the city starts down this road that it will have to keep expanding brackets year after year.
“We really need to consider hiring people at entry level positions below $10 hour,” McKinny said.
The vote was 3-2 with Covey and Commissioner Bob Pelletier voting against the raise and expanding the brackets. Covey clarified that she was not voting against the raise but how it was administered.
“I was one of the ones who wanted a raise in the first place,” she said.
In other business, the commission:
- Approved a contract of $1,495,000 with HD Supply to install 6,000 drive-by style water meters in the city. City Manager Michael Fuller said HD Supply was the only company that met the specifications for the proposals. The city is piggybacking on a contract with Utility Services of America that will save about $30,000 on meter installation.
- Approved the final plat for the Baywinds Subdivision, 12 lots at 6608 Boat Race Road. Tony Layne is the property owner.
- Approved a dual code enforcement and planning position. Fuller said the employee will spend 75 percent of his or her time on code enforcement and 25 percent on planning.
- Approved rehabilitation of the Gay Avenue lift station with Royal American Construction. A new price for the project is set at $114,774 because the city purchased pumps and avoided paying sales tax.
- Approved the first reading of an ordinance imposing a lien search fee of $50 on title companies and banks.
- Approved the franchise agreement with Gulf Power for 6 percent of gross revenue for 15 years. The city expects to net about $705,000 from the fee in 2015. The city has the option to adjust the rate every three years of the contract.
- Heard the first readings of ordinances for special tax assessments, to transfer future code enforcement liens onto the tax rolls.