A debate erupted at Margate’s latest commission meeting when Mayor Tommy Ruzzano pushed for significant salary increases for the fire chief and city clerk. This outraged some commissioners and left residents wondering what sparked the sudden push for raises.
During the September 18 meeting, Ruzzano asked the commission to approve a salary increase for Fire Chief Roberto Lorenzo from $176,000 to $200,000 — a 13.64% increase, and for City Clerk Jennifer Johnson from $147,000 to $176,000 -a 19.73% increase.
Commissioner Joanne Simone said she wanted more information on the pay increase situation, and the matter needed to be vetted.
Commissioner Antonio Arserio expressed concern because Lorenzo and Johnson are already scheduled for a three percent cost-of-living increase on October 1.
This led to an argument from Commissioner Anthony Caggiano because the commissioners had not been notified about the possibility of a pay increase. Ruzzano and Caggiano engaged in a heated discussion on the topic, and Caggiano continued to express anger about the sudden request for raises.
Ruzzano believes Lorenzo and Johnson are doing exceptional work and are being paid less than people doing similar work in other Broward County cities. He compared Margate to private industry and said that if people working for businesses are not paid fairly, they often look for different jobs.
“We have top-quality people here, and we should pay them more,” said Ruzzano.
Then Ruzzano asked Lorenzo to come forward and tell the commission he should receive $200,000.
City manager Cale Curtis asked that Lorenzo not be put on the spot at the meeting.
Finally, after the discussion, the commission agreed to provide Johnson and Lorenzo their raises, and an additional 3 percent increase October 1 was canceled.
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