The City of Crown Point is eyeing a 2025 budget of more than $52.6 million, which leaves room for all employees and elected officials to receive pay raises.
Elected officials are in line for 3% raises along with rank-and-file employees. Police officers and fire/rescue personnel can expect 6% raises. Rather than a percentage, department heads and administrators will receive uniform “market” adjusted salaries, according to Clerk-Treasurer Dave Bensen.
Department heads will see their pay rise to $93,000 per year while administrators — those who oversee multiple departments — will earn $103,000 in 2025. Mayor Pete Land will be paid $4,440 bi-weekly, or approximately $106,000 per year, according to the city’s 2025 salary ordinance.
City Council members are set to earn $1,759.36 per month, or $21,112.32 per year. The council president would earn an extra $100 per month.
That’s all contingent on the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance approving the city’s budget as submitted. Bensen said he’s confident the state won’t require the city to scale back any spending once it does its required review of the budget.
The Crown Point City Council approved the budget and salary ordinances by 5-2 votes on first reading at its meeting on September 3. The council has set October 17 for final adoption.
Although the 2025 budget will be up from the 2024 figure of $48.8 million, Bensen said he expects the municipal tax rate to remain flat and essentially go unchanged.
Mayor Land could not be reached for comment on Friday.
City establishes body cam fee
In other action, the council approved a $150 fee for per request for police officer body cam footage. This month, the city received 52 body cams along with 44 tasers. This is the first time in the city’s history that all police officers will be outfitted with body cams.
The city acquired the body cams from Scottsdale, Arizona-based Axon under a five-year lease agreement for $664,000, funded through a bond issue. Axon will provide police officers with the required training on the body cams and tasers, and new units will arrive every two years.
As part of the deal, the city received unlimited digital storage to accommodate the large amount of footage to be collected and stored.
Jim Masters is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
