The Kalispell City Council approved a 3 percent pay raise for the city’s nonunion employees Monday, but only after a discussion about the possibility of integrating merit into the city’s pay system.

City Manager Doug Russell explained that the nonunion employee raise was intended to roughly match raises that were negotiated for city union employees.

He said the idea is to maintain an average with parity and consistency in employee compensation. 

Council member Tim Kluesner inquired whether the 3 percent is regarded as an average, with supervisors having the ability to provide employees in the range of no raise up to 3 percent, based on evaluations of employee performance. 

Russell replied that “evaluations are not tied to salary increases” under the system used by the city.

“For me that’s a problem,” Kluesner replied. “We need to be doing that. Employees need to be rewarded for effort and performance.”

Council member Chad Graham agreed.

Council member Phil Guiffrida said cost-of-living adjustments are standard for the public sector, but he suggested that there may be a way have a hybrid COLA/merit-based system with an ability for employees to excel through training programs, for example.

Mayor Mark Johnson cautioned that in a city government headed by elected officials, there are potential pitfalls because evaluations can be highly subjective and politics can work their way into who gets raises and who doesn’t.

However, he said, merit is important.

“I do understand. You want to protect the guy who is more efficient and productive,” he said.

Kluesner clarified that he is not against pay raises but he was voting against the 3 percent package as a “protest vote” with hopes that the council will continue to discuss the matter in the future. The measure handily passed with the support of the rest of the council.

THE MEETING started with a public hearing on the city’s preliminary budget, and only one citizen spoke. But Pauline Sjordahl wasn’t shy in criticizing the city for what she considers neglect of the city’s oldest neighborhoods on the avenues east and west of Main Street.

“I’ve been waiting the longest time to see the alleys repaired, the streets repaired, the sidewalks repaired,” said Sjordahl, a Third Avenue West resident.

She also cited unsightly utilities and neglect of tree trimming in some areas.

Sjordahl said the city seems to allocate resources to the newer parts of town while not providing enough to the oldest parts of town where residents often go to great lengths to maintain or restore historic homes.

“When are you going to get your act together and look at the two older areas of the city and give them some of your time?” she asked.

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by email at jmann@dailyinterlake.com.