By STEFANIE SCOTT

By STEFANIE SCOTT

Wauwatosa’s city administrator got a glowing annual review that resulted in a raise, but he surprised Common Council members by volunteering to pay more toward his health insurance coverage.

The council has authorized a 2.75 percent pay increase for City Administrator James Archambo that will bring his annual salary to $115,170 come Jan. 1, according to the city’s Human Resources Department.

The pay increase is equivalent to that given to union and nonrepresented employees, said Brian Ewerdt, who served as chairman of the Committee of the Whole meeting held in closed session Dec. 15.

The raise is reflective of his performance throughout 2009, he said.

“His review was excellent,” Ewerdt said. “There was not one negative comment.”

The council voted 13-1 — aldermen Cheryl Berdan and Jerry Stepaniak were absent — to approve the raise. The lone dissenting vote was cast by Alderwoman Linda Nikcevich, who suggested the raise come in closer to 3 percent.

“He did a really good job,” she said. “My concern is: How are we creating an incentive for him to be a proactive administrator if we don’t give him some kind of performance bonus?”

At one point in discussions, a raise of up to 4 percent was on the table, but aldermen agreed that such a significant increase would not be fiscally responsible during hard economic times, Nikcevich said.

Both Ewerdt and Nikcevich said Archambo has done a good job communicating about issues facing the city and the options for dealing with them. They also said he has found ways to save money by changing Wauwatosa’s health insurance structure and analyzing city operations to find ways to create efficiencies.

Archambo’s willingness to pay more toward his health insurance premium next year is an example of his fiscal responsibility, they said.

The city administrator volunteered to pay an additional 5 percent — for a total of 7.75 percent, including the discount for participating in the city’s wellness program — toward his premium. That increases his portion of the costs from $455 in 2009 to $1,282 next year, according to the HR Department.

“Many people are paying much more than that,” he said. “I’m not oblivious to what’s going on out there. I’m trying to let them know I understand.”

Archambo called the move “a gesture of leadership.”

The Budget and Finance Committee have been voicing interest in seeing city employees contribute more toward health insurance benefits. Bargaining with the unions will start in the second half of 2010.

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