Some council members learned for the first time Tuesday that rejected Parks and Recreation Director Charles Melvin is still making almost as much as he was as interim head of the department.
Chief Administration Officer Robert Walker informed the council that Melvin is now making $3,075 on a bi-weekly basis, amounting to almost $80,000 a year. His pay is only a few thousand dollars less than what he made before the council rejected his nomination.
"(Melvin) is now an assistant (chief administration officer)," Walker said.
Councilman Marshand Crisler was openly furious. Melton told the council recently that he had no intention of making a second nomination after the council rejected Melvin. "Are you saying that while (Melvin) is working as assistant CAO, he will also be over Parks and Recreation?"
"Yes, sir," Walker affirmed.
Crisler and Councilwoman Margaret Barrett-Simon demanded to know how many assistant CAOs Walker had in his department.
"I have three," Walker said, later identifying the assistant CAOs as Goldia Revies, Melvin and Valerie Nevels. Barrett-Simon admitted that she had not even known of Nevels' position in the administration until today.
"All three of these people fall into the range that you're paying Mr. Melvin?" Crisler asked.
Walker affirmed that all assistant CAOs made between $70,000 and $80,000.
"What is the deal here?" Crisler demanded. "If the council rejects a department head, this person is taken out of that position and put into a new position that allows them to make the same salary we rejected them for? And yet when you talk to their office, they're still running that department? I'm sure you understand how convoluted that sounds, right?"
Melton recently decided to retain rejected interim head Todd Chandler as fire chief, re-assigning him as assistant fire chief with only a minor drop in his fire chief salary. Chandler, who is white, now makes almost $20,000 more than fellow Assistant Fire Chief Vernon Hughes, who is black—an issue that Hughes says is likely to come up in the near future. At a recent meeting of department heads, Chandler represented the fire department, and Melton called him "fire chief."
Melton supporter Councilman Frank Bluntson defended Melton's expensive re-assignment, pointing out that the council regularly interferes with the mayor's plans by trying to prevent him from installing his personal choices as department heads.
Crisler pointed that the council had approved most of Melton's department heads, like Michael Raff, Jimmy Heidel, Rick Hill, Thelman Boyd and Sarah O'Reilly-Evans. Council President Ben Allen explained that the council indiscriminately towing the mayor's line was not the way local government was supposed to work.
"Hey, I'm proud if there's disagreement between the council and the mayor," Allen said. "That's democracy there. That's what it's all about."
Barrett-Simon said the council is powerless to prevent the mayor from keeping Melvin in his $80,000 a year position.
"I hate this, but it's out of our hands," Barrett-Simon said. "It's in his power to put people where he wants in his administration."
Crisler remained unappeased after the council meeting.
"This top-heavy administration keeps making these expensive appointments when that position could have paid for at least three desperately needed positions somewhere else in the city, like code enforcement," Crisler said. "Walker says his budget's balanced, but we'll see."
The council will meet regarding the city's budget Wednesday at 2 p.m.
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