SedonaEye.com columnist Eddie S. Maddock on Sedona city employees salary and additional compensation packages budgeted for 2024.
Sedona AZ – WHAT’S IN STORE FOR 2024?
Boldly and sincerely stated in a video at the opening of City Council meetings is Sedona’s Vision:
“To be a city that is constantly vigilant over the preservation of its natural beauty, scenic vistas, pristine environment and cultural heritage. To be a city that retains its small-town character and creates its manmade improvements in strict harmony with nature. To be a city that is animated by the arts, and lives with a spirit of volunteerism to help achieve our common goals. To be a city that offers equal opportunities for all and fosters a sense of community. To be a city that welcomes and accommodates all of its visitors and future residents with a spirit of fellowship. To be a city that retains and enhances a strong and vital economy which preserves existing lifestyles without exploiting the natural beauty. To be a city that lives up to the challenge of proper stewardship of one of the earth’s great treasures.”
Before proceeding with what may or may not be a surprise to Sedona residents via a Freedom of Information Act, “Douglas Ducey in 2021 was employed in Arizona Governor’s Office and had annual salary of $95,000 according to public records. This salary is 20% higher than average and 36% higher than median salary in Arizona Governor’s Office.” (Phoenix has a population of 1.6 million and pays its City Manager $314,999 annually.)
With the city of Sedona gearing up to prepare its fiscal year 2024 budget, a review of the 2023 budget shows that average budgeted compensation for a city employee is presently $106,174. (Population of Sedona is 9,684 – a decrease from previous years.)
Here is what we pay Sedona city employees:
City Manager Karen Osburn: $183,000. (No change from 2022.)
Deputy City Manager Joanne Keene: $161,850. (A 7.9% increase from 2022.)
City Attorney Kurt Christianson: $155,235. (A 7% increase from 2022.)
Assistant City Manager/Director of Public Works J. Andy Dickey: $155,147. (A 7% increase from 2022.)
Director of Financial Services Cherie White: $153,422. (An 8.4% increase from 2022.)
Chief of Police Stephanie Foley: $135,200. (Foley replaced Charles Husted, who retired last fall; the chief position’s salary is an overall 2% decrease from 2022.)
Magistrate Judge Paul Schlegel: $125,008. (No change from 2022.)
Director of Community Development Steve Mertes: $125,000. (No change from 2022.)
Criminal Prosecutor William Kunisch: $120,443. (An 8% increase from 2022.)
Director of Wastewater Roxanne Holland: $119,061. (A 9.6% increase from 2022.)
Information Technology Manager Chuck Hardy: $117,830. (A 6.8% increase from 2022.)
Assistant Director of Public Works Sandra Phillips: $114,660. (A 4% increase from 2022.)
Human Resources Manager Brenda Tammarine: $114,354. (A 7.6% increase from 2022.)
Transit Administrator Robert Weber: $110,850. (A 10.9% increase from 2022.)
Engineering Supervisor Kurtis Harris: $103,000. (Position vacant in 2022.)
Police Lts. Karl Waak and Scott Martin: $103,000. (A 13.2% increase from 2022. Martin is a new hire, replacing the retiring Sgt. Michael Dominguez.)
Network Engineer, unspecified staff: $102,615. (A 5.6% increase from 2022.)
System Administrator, unspecified staff: $102,614. (A 5.6% increase from 2022.)
GIS Analyst, unspecified staff: $102,014. (A 5% increase from 2022.)
Additional benefits over and above wages include, but are not limited to health, dental, and vision insurance coverage plus countless hours of paid time-off; as offered in ads seeking even more City of Sedona employees.
And this, dear readers, is active even during the uncertainty of a predicted economic recession next year.
Impressive?
Suggestion: Reread the “Vision Statement” and then decide.
A Massachusetts town approved flying the Palestinian flag for a month despite heated debates among its residents in the wake of unprovoked Hamas terrorists’ attack on Israel in October where Hamas took hostages and burned and dismembered babies, elderly and children and adults in cold blood. The black, white, green and red flag of the Palestinian Liberation Organization was hoisted below both the American flag and POW-MIA flag on the North Andover Massachussetts Town Common flagpole. What town or city is next? Sedona? Flagstaff? Cottonwood? Phoenix? Anyone reassure that Jew she won’t be attacked in our city ever again? What happened to the attacker and it’s a federal hate crime to do what what done to that Jew here?
My ideas and opinions on comments above and subject to change my mind or not.
Get the store video posted on police town website because we need to know what terrorist sympathizers are amongst us, is it a citizen or is it someone here on visa or illegally? Expel them if second case and charge them with hate crimes if first and let feds prosecute! We’ve Palestinian sympathizers in Village and Sedona needing tickets to go to Gaza to help the fight — instead of sitting wealthy, privileged, hating America and unaffected by their intolerance while here in a free county.
SE HIGH FIVE Sedona Chamber & City could be North Andover LMAO tone deaf politicoes & fools (delete by editor)
@don. @archiemendes. @esm. @sedona. without good intentions sedona dies, hate isn’t welcome here, sacred love protections for our Jewish family and friends is, protect sedona from evil residing within our sacred Sedona spaces and root out enemies of peace. Sage your spaces sedona and enjoining light workers to protect Sedona. Namaste.
Shape up Sedona before we get boycotted.
Yea ok yawn……your kool-aid is now ready for gulping. Lol
Right on but your gonna need a lot of sage to cleanse the Hate of those you mentioned. God Bless
Biden released billions in sanctions so Iran can keep its oil monies. Isn’t that treason?
Hey China morons, US is a pacific nation so back off.
Sedona might become oceanfront one day with the volcanic activity, but we’re not holding our breaths, but neither are we staying or buying in California or Northwest.
China needs to humble itself and learn how to coexist peacefully and get the hell out of Cuba and Peru.
Need to stay away from Democrat fundraisers, party is left wing anarchists.
These were topics of conversation at early dinner last night with a group of eight friends and neighbors. Just sayin.
distance and balance
the blandness of Sedona
what’s the plan sedona
Hamas terrorist who paraded Shani Louk’s body has been killed by IDF and is ‘roasting in hell forever,’ rabbi says. hot up.
Hell is waiting for the rest and may you find hell sooner than later and may you never find peace on earth and I’m Spitting on your family three times.
Can lightworkers fix chamber of commerce? T try hard a real job.
Great job, Your post is an excellent example of why I keep coming back to read here.
Moral equivalence? Say it. Terrorists should be imprisoned for life or killed and terrorist supporters sent to prison. Terrorists and supporters are rats that need to be returned to sewers called prison. Condemn them all from the pulpits and bemas and keep them off our streets and out of our parking lots in Sedona and Arizona and United States of America.
You expected better?
Wow you sound lke a real fun bunch…LOL
Speaker Mike Johnson is releasing the January 6th tapes! The truth is finally getting out, let’s see the lies and who lied and then hold on. Maybe we’ll find out why Democrats promised DC statehood .. was it for being completely useless on Jan 6 except for aiding and abetting a fake “riot” or “insurrection” or ????? access to the Capitol??? Let’s round up the true instigators and political funding and dramatic hysterics while live streaming??? moments including what each member of Congress was really doing, like who they called and who called them, especially Nancy Pelosi and those in charge of security.
would work in Sedona but can’t stand tourism or tourists BWAaaaaaaahhahahahha city’s freaking boring rocks BWAaaaaahahahhaha
https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/12/business/harvard-doxxing-truck-israel-hamas-statement/index.html
Names and faces of Harvard students linked to an anti-Israel statement were plastered on mobile billboards and online sites | CNN Business
Somebody send them a picture of that terrorist sympathizer from store lot that attacked a Sedonan wearing a Star of David. Hell has no fury like an attack or an innocent person by our city #SedonaStrong
We noticed NBC CBS CNN MSNBC give pro Palestine propaganda coverage with anti Israeli news written or street gatherings riots speeches filmed by anti Jewish staff and media employees? It is Argentina and Paraguay and most South and Central America way of living and you’ll regret it when they turn on you the majority. Sedona will be a worthless tourist relic like places in Mexico and Central America.
https://youtube.com/shorts/ALKQvZtcRh8?si=BoIAWdvXbn2Ptv_m (offsite link)
https://youtube.com/watch?v=-ogoSIT1Rx8&si=eRXKjOuCRBQZ9IfX (offsite link)
More than half America believes Biden and his DOJ acted inappropriately, according to new court filings DOJ documents support this questioning. It’s like Chamber going its merry way ignoring what the residents and taxpayers are telling them about what is right for the city and not developers and biased government economic reports. Bidenomics is an absolute failure and that’s math not opinion.
There was no Russian collusion by Trump before, during or after his election. It’s been proven.
Seems it may be an “op” says Congress on the American people. Like antisemitism and Black Lives Matter it may be an op to keep our eyes off the good ball and make us feel insecure and wanting better days?
What’s in store for 2024? Americans Warned About Travel to Mexico Due to ‘Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever’. An advisory has been issued for Americans traveling to parts of Mexico, warning them of a potentially deadly disease called Rocky Mountain spotted fever. Pay attention Sedona.
Why do you have to lie over and over…Except the truth and go away…Your pathetic!
This link is from the Senate (deleted by editor)
https://www.intelligence.senate.gov/sites/default/files/documents/report_volume5.pdf
why cares about that disease been around forever
Write a check!! Lol. You really love kook-aide. Drink it up
Hire me I work cheap!
News today- President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, saw his salary from a Ukrainian natural gas company cut in half after his father left office in 2017, new charging documents indicate …
Your checks elected pro communist government apparatchiks into office..shamefully you drink koolade that your party is for you and the nation. At least orange Man was always pro America which RINO and Democrats despised because it kept them from lining their pockets with foreign monies.
Hunter Biden whining about being attacked by Trump meaning that no Democrat has integrity? Trump? LMAO Trump isn’t part of Congress and Hunter Biden is defying Congress by not showing up and puffing fake innocence in front of genuflecting Media! You’re corrupt losers Democrats!
Dear JM, maybe you should keep your mouth shut on things you know nothing about! Here is the list of subpoenas that the GOP has ignored….Now shut off Fox news and learn something!
https://www.politico.com/news/2022/12/19/jan-6-ethics-violations-00074599
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/january-6-committee-subpoena-kevin-mccarthy-jim-jordan-mo-brooks-scott-perry-andy-biggs/
All of them just ignored their jobs.Hunter is a privet citizen and has never run or been in office.
House just authorized an impeachment inquiry to investigate possible HIGH CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS perpetrated by the 46th President of the United States, Joseph R. Biden.
History will remember this day.
The White House has stonewalled teams of investigators at every turn. They can’t do that. Not anymore. So far, what has been discovered:
Phone records of Biden speaking with his son’s business associates
Direct payments from Hunter Biden’s China-linked shell company to Joe Biden’s personal bank account
Thousands of email communications between Hunter’s business associates and Joe Biden under a FAKE NAME.
Shady loan repayments from Joe Biden’s brother to the President himself that Biden and his cronies have been worried about.
Majority of Americans polled say Hunter Biden needs to be jailed for tax evasion and repay millions. How is it Democrats blame Trump when Trump hasn’t done anything except be in court because of Democrat obstruction and corruption of our legal system? Democrats shouldn’t have gone after him then they could blame him without America laughing.
Jan 6 committee has been discredited.
Read your 1000 page submission above.
I’m on page 249.
Redacting is an education in super powers by administration.
Neither were Trump’s children and as we all recall Ivanka didn’t vote for her father because she remained a Democrat, but she is a Jewish convert and we know how Democrats despise and hate Jews now like blacks, don’t we?
hard to believe the America we live in
White House counsel urged a vote on House floor which has now been taken and BIPARTISAN support for impeachment put this process in motion. Score one for Democrats.
Pantsuit Queen Hillaria just joined Biden’s team bc who else is desperate enough to join his circus except a freak show performer?
Still waiting for the next one. .
Sedona likes peace and quiet not noise and tourist services.
Slurp up the KOOK-AIDE… ho hum more nonsense going nowhere… but it makes great kindling for the crazy!! YEA
there you are again and again and again
libs r ‘tards
Bipatasin vote for impeachment!!?? This is why nobody takes your comments serious you lie. LOL
Stock market soared to a record high today!!!
Ditto
praying for good weather hello
A Delaware Democrat just introduced a D.C. statehood bill in the Senate encouraged by Biden and Schumer to get two guaranteed forever 2 Democrat party Senators (DC’s voters have never voted Republican to the tune of 90% and above and never Independent or Nonpartisan have ever been allowed on a ballot there.) DC small city will have equal power to the entire state of California, New York, Illinois, Arizona and Vermont . .
The Left is hell-bent on seeing it rammed through before old man Biden dies or loses the White House because polls show 74% of voters don’t want a new state bureaucracy PERIOD for 8 miles of land and one tiny city with no ability to support itself. It has no manufacturing and most of its 8 square miles is federal land which means government bought itself two new power positions to make other states pay more taxes to support itself.
You need to understand how serious this situation is and make sure know you can stop it before it’s too late. Puerto Rico is next on the flag route.
If Washington, D.C. becomes a state, the Democratic majority will be made PERMANENTLY LEFTIST AND SOCIALISTS will have voting majorities.
Here’s what would happen if D.C. statehood became a reality:
Right to Life will become government mandated instead of women’s choice.
The Supreme Court EXPANDED for no reason except to promote communist and socialist agendas of more government and less choice.
American National Security BREACHED as open borders without fear of criminal or civil deportation become policy.
Your Freedom of Speech CANCELLED.
Do I really need to go on?
With Democrats maintaining control of the Senate, this bill has a REAL chance of passing. There isn’t time to stop them, so you better pick up the phone to let your elected representatives know that they are not going to be re-elected if they go down this path of undoing our government for six screwball leftists agenda!
Without your input, efforts to stop the spread of violence and extremism will be for nothing. You will be one of those people that led to the downfall of freedoms here. Goodbye.