On Monday, the Roanoke City Council will consider, on second reading, a new payment plan for city employees that would include 3% cost-of-living pay increases. Improving competitiveness through employee compensation was one of the main priorities city officials cited during this budget season.
During the city’s budget adoption last Monday, the council voted 4-2 in favor of the pay raises, with councilman Terry McGuire and councilman Peter Volosin voting against it. Councilwoman Vivian Sanchez-Jones was absent from the meeting. A five-member majority is needed for this ordinance to pass, City Attorney Tim Spencer said during last week’s council meeting, prompting the second reading this week.
Volosin declined to comment on his vote after the meeting. McGuire said last Monday evening in a text that he “has concerns about some of the levels of increases.”
The pay plan, which would become effective on July 1, says that all eligible city employees must be paid at the minimum salary established in the plan and must either receive a pay increase of 3% of their base salary or move halfway to the acknowledged “Living Wage” salary of $42,000 — “whichever is greater.”
The pay plan, which would become effective on July 1, does not apply to employees already covered under the Law Enforcement Salary Step Plan, the Sheriff’s Salary Step Plan or the Fire Suppression Salary Step Plan.
Public hearings
The council will hold a number of public hearings on Monday, including one pertaining to a new tax designation proposed for blighted and derelict properties.
The proposal, brought to the council on May 5, recommends a 5% property tax increase for properties deemed blighted, and an extra 10% on properties assessed as derelict.
City officials proposed the special tax as a way to address a housing deficit in the city and hold property owners accountable.
The council will also hold a hearing on an amendment to the Roanoke City Public Schools FY25 budget, which would appropriate an additional $17,874,219 to RCPS, to address what the agenda report called a “shortfall resulting from omission of rollover appropriations for multiyear capital projects.”
The funds are already on hand with RCPS, the agenda report states. But the division is now requesting that the funds be reappropriated because of a recent heated letter exchange between City Manager Valmarie Turner and Superintendent Verletta White, in which Turner expressed that from now on, the schools are to return their year-end fund balance back to the city, which can then reappropriate funds back to the division.
Historically, the school division has held onto its fund balance. But Virginia State Code says the city is legally entitled to hold onto the funds and decide where to reappropriate them.
“Now that there’s this process question, [the division] is just going back and making sure the city will approve this reappropriation request,” said Claire Mitzel, director of communications and public relations with RCPS. She said these capital improvement projects that the funding is required for have already been approved by the school board and the city council.
Those interested in reading the full agenda for Monday’s meeting and public hearing can find it here.
Monday’s meeting, with sessions at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., will be held in the city council chamber, fourth floor, room 450 of the Noel C. Taylor Municipal Building. The meeting will be livestreamed through Facebook, with recordings posted on the site afterwards.
