Some sizable changes are in store for the Charles City Police Department.
Monday night, the five-person Charles City Council unanimously approved a resolution to change salaries for police lieutenant and captain positions and to approve a tentative collective bargaining agreement between Teamsters Local Union 238 Police Department employees and the city.
“We value our police force quite a bit,” Charles City Mayor Dean Andrews said after the vote.
Council Member Jerry Joerger expressed support as well but with an acknowledgment added in. “I understand the reason for it and we’re in a precarious position,” he said. “(But) John Q taxpayer has to pay for this.”
Andrews acknowledged the future costs, as did City Administrator Steve Diers, who said that the changes will add about $167,000 to the city’s budget in a year. Council Member DeLaine Freeseman wanted to know what, if anything, that increase could mean for incentives for other departments.
“I don’t see it to be as big of a concern,” Diers said.
The rough terms of the deal feature: an immediate $2 hourly pay increase for all certified officers, step-ups in pay after an eighth and tenth year of service, a 5% pay increase by 2022, a 30-mile radius for residency with a $2,000 stipend for living within city limits and a $5,000 signing bonus paid over three years. The lieutenant position would go up to $80,560 a year and captain to $85,560.