City expects large crowd for tonight’s council meeting

Columbus city officials are expecting a big crowd at tonight’s city council meeting, as the council considers efforts to bring the pay of its employees in line with other, similarly sized communities.

The city finished a salary study that showed many city employees were underpaid compared to their equivalents in other communities. An adjustment to the salary ordinance would bring those pay rates more in line with the market average, meant as a way to improve employee retention especially among competitive jobs such as police officers.

When the salary changes were heard last month, a large crowd, made up mostly of city employees, turned out to support the measure.

The council will also be considering a measure to give $1 million to the renovation of the former Republic building, which Indiana University plans to use as the J. Irwin Miller School of Architecture starting this fall. That money would come from the redevelopment commission.

The council meets at 6 p.m. tonight and the meeting is being held in the Cal Brand meeting room at Columbus City Hall, to accommodate the expected large turnout.