Politics & Government
Council Approves Raise for Firefighters
Contract also asks Coronado Firefighter Association members to contribute more to their pensions.
Firefighters have a new two-year contract after the City Council unanimously agreed to a pay raise for the union at Tuesday’s meeting.
The only one who objected to the terms was Peter Amaro, a policy analyst with the San Diego Taxpayers Association.
While he applauded the city requiring firefighters to pay into their own pension fund, Amaro objected to the city giving the firefighters an 8-percent pay hike to defray the cost.
He also suggested a two-tier pension approach, in which new employees would retire at a later date. For example, a second-tier firefighter would receive 2 percent of his salary at age 55, while a first-tier firefighter would receive 2 percent at age 50.
While the council saw the need for pension reform, members believed the city has the means to do so in a more measured way.
“We can move to the middle in a way that doesn’t do harm to our employees,” Mayor Casey Tanaka said.
Adding a trial tennis shop in the Cays also received unanimous support, though Councilman Al Ovrom wondered if there would be “enough business to support” another shop when there is already one on Glorietta Boulevard.
Recreation Department Director Linda Rahn reminded the council that the shop project is a one-year experiment. If the shop succeeds, the concession will be open to competitive bidding from all vendors.