The Pacific Grove City Council voted 5-2 in favor of increasing councilmembers' monthly salary from $420 to $966 and the mayor's monthly salary from $700 to $1,610, on Wednesday, May 7. It's the first increase in council salary since December 1998.
Past councils have tried to increase compensation but have been met with staunch opposition from residents who contend the positions of councilmember and mayor should be essentially voluntary.
It was no different this time, as a line of residents sometimes angrily demanded the council reject any increases.
City Attorney Brian Pierik brought the matter to the council in the wake of changes to a 2023 state law enabling increased compensation for councilmembers. The goal was to help attract a more diverse field of candidates from different income levels.
Other local city councils have already voted in favor of increases, including Marina and Seaside. Both councils used the upper limits of the law to increase compensation. Marina councilmembers went from $200 a month to $2,000. In Seaside monthly compensation increased from $400 to $2,400.
Pacific Grove's Council took a more conservative approach, a flat increase of 5 percent a year since the last increase, between December 1998 and December 2024, 26 years.
"I think it's a pretty reasonable increase. It's lower than a lot of the other communities that have done it," Mayor Nick Smith said. "We do a ton of work here with a very small staff."
Smith said increasing the compensation was "extremely important" to recruiting future candidates.
Councilmember Cynthia Garfield, who voted against an increase when she last served on the council, said she supports it now, calling it a catch-up in pay.
"We've been under compensating for a long time," she said, adding that the state, in its reasoning for encouraging increased compensation was in part to cover the costs of child care. Councilmember Tina Rau added the idea of helping pay for elder care, as well.
"I believe this [increase] is measured, conservative, responsible and is long overdue," Rau said.
She mentioned that the city had been having trouble finding volunteers to fill city boards and commissions, suggesting that the reasons people aren't volunteering may correlate to why it's been hard to find qualified people to run for office.
The council rejected the idea of including medical benefits, saving that discussion for a future time.
The fiscal impact of the raises will be $69,522 a year for the six councilmembers and $19,320 a year for mayor, according to Pierik.
Councilmembers Paul Walkingstick and Lori McDonnell both voted no on the increase. Walkingstick tried convincing the council to put it up to a vote of the people in November 2026. His motion failed 2-5.
(3) comments
Paul Walkingstick's idea to let the people decide seems reasonable, unless the costs to add it to the ballot exceed the increased cost of the raise in 'salaries'. Clearly, these are not full-time positions. Perhaps the PG citizens wish that to be the case, and get more responsiveness from them since they would not be 'volunteers'. He might wish to seek polling of the citizens to see what they favor.
No, adding a measure to the ballot of a general election is about $10,000, or so.
Re: PG Council increases.
You’ve failed to report that this same Council cancelled & cut back THREE meetings this year.. thus more money for less work.
The Comparisons to”the other Cities “of Marina & Seaside & Salinas also raised compensation - PG is a City of 15,000, 3 mile radius.. HALF the size of Marina.
And last, but not least the entitlement of this mayor to think a less than part-time counsel deserves at the taxpayers expense health benefits when Pacific Grove city employees that are part time did not even receive benefits, so that is totally inappropriate.
As was the abuse of power to silence public comments to 90 seconds because he just wanted to shut us up. This has never been done. Previous leadership would limit to two minutes when there was a large group wanting to speak.
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