Council approves salary increases

On a 3-2 vote, the Alexandria City Council approved a 2 percent increase in their salaries for 2011 and 2012.

The council took action on the salaries at its November 8 meeting. The salaries will increase from $5,885 to $6,003 next year and increase to $6,124 in 2012.

The mayor’s salary will increase by the same percentage, going from $7,637 to $7,790 in 2011 and to $7,946 in 2012.

The salaries were frozen in 2010.

Council members Owen Miller and Cindy Bigger voted against the increase.

Miller said that although the salary bump represents only a minor amount of dollars, he was contacted by a lot of constituents who opposed the idea.

During a preliminary consideration of the salaries last month, Mayor Dan Ness noted that the combined increase, $371, over a two-year period represents 0.00007 percent of the city’s total proposed levy increase of $5.29 million.

City Administrator Jim Taddei noted that the salary adjustments reflect the same 2 percent increase the council approved for city staff next year.

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