Akron council members push back against proposed $3.5 million mayor's office budget

Some Akron Akron City Council members are continuing to question the $3.5 million budgeted for Mayor Shammas Malik's office in the city's proposed operating budget.

During Monday's budget and finance committee meeting, Finance Director Steve Fricker said that the net cost for new positions in the mayor's office is roughly $750,000.

The city's total operating budget is $815 million.

"While the mayor's office budget does show more than that, there are reasons for that," he said, "some of which are we had four positions that transferred from other budgets into the mayor's office. There's also cost of living increases that were part of that additional cost, so there's more to the increase in the mayor's office budget than just the new positions."

City Council President Margo Sommerville said she was concerned about about the budget's inequitable distribution of funds across all city departments, asking why the mayor couldn't spread out the process of staffing his office instead of doing it all at once.

In a statement to the Beacon Journal, Malik said that the budget invested in the highest level of police staffing in 20 years, as well as the highest level of fire staffing in 30 years. Investments also have been made in the service department and in parks and recreation, creating a number of full-time positions from seasonal roles.

The jobs created in the mayor's office, public safety, education and economic development are important, he said, and are intended to make Akron's government more effective.

Part of the process, he said, is the dialogue between City Council and the administration.

"This is part of the budget process is that there's feedback and there's give and take, and we're going to continue to have those discussions over the next week and then look forward to working on finding a budget that we can all agree on," Malik said.

Malik acknowledged that over $750,000 isn't a small investment.

"But," he said "it's less than 1% of the city's budget. And I think it's an investment that's well worth making."

The budget proposal marks a 59% increase in spending for the mayor's office compared to last year.

Under former Mayor Dan Horrigan's administration, the mayor's office spent over $2.2 million for 11 full-time positions in 2023, an increase from about $1.7 million in 2022 for 12.5 full-time positions.

The mayor's office under the new Malik administration has 23 staffers.

Ward 7 Councilman Donnie Kammer said he's not sure he can support the budget and asked the mayor to consider his and others' concerns.

"Moving forward, how do I go back to Ward 7 and explain to the residents how I approved a budget to staff the mayor's office when we have some real issues in Ward 7, and throughout the city?" Kammer asked, adding that Akron needs a vice unit to investigate "illegal businesses, and these nuisance bars and gambling places."

During last week's budget hearings, Sommerville said that council heard from all departments that they could use additional funds and staffing, referencing specifically the Department of Neighborhood Assistance and the increased calls to the 3-1-1 center, as well as hiring dedicated seasonal recreation workers into full-time positions.

"My concern is, why hasn't there been an increase in staffing to address those calls?" Sommerville asked. "But yet we've got in the budget four secretaries to receive calls for the mayor."

Malik said that during the transition between former Mayor Dan Horrigan's administration and his own, the focus was on staffing the mayor's office.

"And, you know, now that we're in there in City Hall," Malik said, "we have the opportunity to really assess where some of the needs are, whether it's in the finance department, or the service department, or Parks and Rec or 311, and really figure out what additional staffing is needed and how and what those roles might look like."

Sommerville asked why the mayor couldn't spread out the process of staffing his office instead of doing it all at once.

"I think there's a lot of opportunities here when we look at the mayor's budget that maybe everything doesn't have to be hired right away, but over time, he can build out his cabinet to do a little bit more, just like everybody else is trying to do across the city department-wide," Sommerville said.

Chief of Strategy Nanette Pitt responded, saying: "I agree that we want to be judicious about the time we take. But there are certain matters on which we do not have the time to take."

The city, she said, needs urgent action in violence intervention, diversity, equity and inclusion and sustainability and resiliency.

"Again," Pitt said, "I would remind the council that the additional staff comes to a net value of $750,000 in an $815 million budget," Pitt said. "So I would urge the council to see the ways in which those positions, as one team, would aid you in the work that you were doing in your council wards, and aid the city in moving the needle forward in some very, very important initiatives on which we do not have time, unfortunately."

Contact reporter Derek Kreider at DKreider@Gannett.com or 330-541-9413

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Akron City Council members question $3.5 million mayor's budget