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NSBNEWS.net photos by Sera Frederick. New Smyrna Beach Mayor Sally Mackay said a $5,200 raise request for City Clerk Johnny Bledsoe, below, will be taken off tonight's agenda because "the time is not right" with economic conditions and a tough budget season approaching..jpg)
NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Mayor Sally Mackay said she will pull the agenda item from tonight's City Commission meeting that seeks a raise for City Clerk Johnny Bledsoe, saying in part, "now is not the tim to be raising salaries with the budget coming up."
Bledsoe's $49,800 salary was scheduled to be increased by $5,200 to $55,000. Plus, he would have received $75 for a car allowance each pay period -- every two weeks -- and would have been guaranteed six months of severance pay plus gained sick and vacation time, if terminated from employment.
But the mayor said last night she would have the salary increase request for Bledsoe, hired in June 2008, pulled from the agenda. It was a three-year contract.
"It's unfortunate timing," Mackay said. "Mr. Bledsoe is a good employee and he's doing a good job. I'm having this pulled off the agenda because it's the wrong time. I don't want to consider wage increases when we're coming into the budget."
Mackay said her decision was not an easy one, considering even with Bedsoe's potential increase, he'd be more in line with other area clerks, but still below the avaerage of $62,500.
A couple of watchdog citizens who regularly attend city commission meetings said the mayor made a wise decision.
"I talked to the mayor today and I told her this kind of an increase would not be acceptable," Bouchelle Island resident Bill Kolesczar said late last night. "It just doesn't make any sense."
When told of the mayor's reasoning that the time was not right, Koleszcar responded, "Bingo! That's what I told her today, that the timing is bad, that you're all going to look like fools. Doing this in budget season would have been like throwing (Bledsoe) to the wolves."
Koleszar led a revolt last year to successfully shoot down a mill-rate increase that forced the city to cut more than a million dollars for its current fiscal operating budget.
"People just aren't going to stand for double-digit salary increases," Kolesczar said, adding even car allowances sends a bad message when local taxpayers are hurting in a national recession.
Robert Rees, another outspoken critic of city spending, said he feels bad for Bledsoe, but quickly added, "I was prepared to get up and blast them. It is the wrong time. And why do they need car allowances?" The city clerk is one of three appointed officials who report directly to the City Commission.
The other two are the city manager and the city attorney. Because their jobs are not covered under the city's personnel policies and procedures -- meaning union contract negotiations -- those positions are designated as contractual. At least that's the position of city Personnel Director Carol Hargy.
City Attorney Frank Gummey is New Smyrna Beach's top municipal employee at $200,000 and Interim City Manager Khalid Reshediat is under $100,000. City Manager John Hagood was fired earlier this year and walked away with nearly $200,000 in severance pay.
Bledsoe could not be reached for comment because of the lateness in the evening.
The City Commission meets 6:30 p.m.M in the Deberry Room of the Utilities Commission building, 200 Canal St. Commissioners are expected to discuss litigation over waterfront property development and an alternative date for city primary elections.