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Fredonia's Department of Public Works director wants another raise, right after village trustees granted him a $11,500 pay hike in March.
Scott Marsh was set to get a bump for an annual salary of $89,000 per year in Mayor Douglas Essek's budget proposal, that includes an increase in the property tax rate. Trustee James Lynden brought up the proposal when the trustees met about the budget Monday.
He said Marsh should only get the same 3% raise that department heads get every year under their contracts.
If the proposed raise went through, "it would essentially be 20% more than he was making a matter of weeks ago," Lynden said. "That's larger than we've ever given."
Lynden's proposal would take Marsh's salary to $81,300. Trustee Jon Espersen proposed a compromise with Essek's figure, $85,000. Lynden held firm to the standard 3% raise.
"I think you're going to get slaughtered in the public. The news media's gonna slaughter you on it, even," commented Lynden.
"I am not gonna make any decisions based on if the public is going to slaughter me or not," retorted Espersen.
Trustee Michelle Twichell said, "Well, we've gotta watch our spending. We've got to be responsible for that." She agreed with Lynden that Marsh should get the 3% raise.
Trustee David Bird said Marsh is "woefully underpaid" compared to other village department heads and public works supervisors in the area. He supported the $85,000 salary.
According to seethroughny.net, recently retired and more than 25-year DPW director Jeffrey Lehman earned $99,189 annually in Jamestown, a city of 29,000 residents. Marsh's city of Dunkirk counterpart, Randy Woodbury, earned $63,192 in 2022. Mayville's DPW chief, John Buxton, earned $71,819 while Andrew Thompson in the village of Westfield earned $94,940 in the same position last year.
"I understand wanting to cut expenses, but it's hard to not give him more of an increase beyond the standard 3% because he was underpaid for so long," Trustee Nicole Siracuse said, also backing $85,000.
Lynden and Twichell replied Marsh has had the position for only two years. "There is no 'so long,' " Lynden said.
When it became clear three of the five trustees backed the $85,000 salary, the discussion wound down quickly. Espersen said he would put the $85,000 figure in the budget to see how it affected other areas of the spending plan.
"Well, let's move forward, we've got three trustees that want to do that," said Lynden, sounding frustrated.
Final passage of the budget is on the agenda for the trustees' Monday meeting.