If Finley is still wondering why nobody wants to work at the pool this summer (they have gotten 2 applications to fill 28-32 positions) look no further than how he has treated them versus how he has treated himself:
For the 2012/2013 budget, the Hanna Pool had a “seasonal salary” budget of $80,000 [see page 36]
For the 2022/2023 budget, the Hanna Pool had a “seasonal salary” budget of $75,000 [see page 37]
That is a DECREASE of 6.25% over TEN YEARS!!!
Finley, on the other hand, was VERY well taken care of.
In the 2012/2013 budget, Finley was hired at $94,500 [see page 18 – Full Time Salary]
Right now, Finley makes $150,000 plus tons of bennies – that is a 59% increase over that period.
Let’s take a look at how our bloated IT Department has been treated over that same period:
In the 2012/2013 budget, the IT Department “Full Time Salary” was right about $90,000 [see page 24].
In the current 2022/2023 budget, the “Full Time Salary” is at $148,173 [see page 25]
That is a 68% increase!
Solution to current lifeguard staffing problem? Double salaries to where they belong (approximately $15/hr). This means they will need to find about $75,000 in the budget to pay these kids properly.
Luckily for City council, I have a detailed list of all the times you have miraculously found large sums before, so it should be no problem this time:
The $96,000 A/V system for council chambers comes to mind. You had a bid from Broadcast Works for around $35,000. You instead went no-bid with Azbell and blew an extra $60,000 right there.
You also went with a $128,000 elevator (for City Hall remodel again!) when there was a $96,000 bid on the table from Austin Elevator. That’s ANOTHER $30,000.
You sold a building for $75k then bought it back for $229k – City Hall building AGAIN. That’s over $150,000 squandered
You incinerated almost $170,000 on a pre-fab BATHROOM in Campbell Park….yet another no-bid project that could have been done for half of that. That’s about $80,000 wasted.
Mike White managed to find about $72,000 instantly in 2020 to provide “free” electricity to the businesses they forced closed due to Wuhan flu. Apparently there was just $72,000 laying around unused.
Rich developer Deorald Finney was handed “free” electrical hookups for this houses in Stone Valley – at a cost to the City of about $72,000 in lost fees.
S2M2 was handed $150,000 for THEIR housing development after FORMER CITY COUNCIL MEMBER “Greasy” Chris Harrison begged for it.
City council and the LEDC squandered $15,000 on three giant metal letters (LTX) that sit on a pedestal in the town square and supposedly attract throngs of tourists!
You recently handed Ryan Ward $38,840 for software to make his job slightly easier.
