Tonganoxie city employees will receive a 2.5 percent cost-of-living pay increase in 2011.

The city council approved the increase on a 3-1 vote with council member Paula Crook voting no at a Nov. 22 meeting. Councilman Jim Truesdell was absent.

Crook said she opposed the increase because of its affect on the mill levy and fairness to taxpayers.

“A lot of people in the community are paying these wages and not getting wages in their own home,” she said. “So I’m going to have to stand by that one.”

But later in the meeting, former councilman Tom Putthoff approached the council about the topic. He said the mill levy wasn’t raised because of the wage increase but because of recent projects in which $100,000 of $200,000 in sales tax revenue was used for debt service.

Asked what the increase would cost, City Administrator Mike Yanez was unable to locate the number in his reports. Putthoff said it was about $16,000.

There are no merit increases planned for the upcoming year.

school district talks

Yanez reported on a meeting with Tonganoxie School District officials and HTK Architects about concepts for renovations to existing schools and a new elementary school on the district’s 80 acres on Washington Street. A new middle school was built on the property a few years ago. HTK is designing the school facility improvements and developing cost estimates for a proposed April bond issue referendum.

Yanez said communication would be maintained between the architectural firm and city staff. He said all parties knew a traffic study was needed with any additions to the 80 acres, which would require new roads.

Yanez said he anticipated that the city would be asked to help fund the roadwork.

County Commissioner John Flower, who also was in attendance, said the school district should be treated as any other developer, meaning it would be responsible for infrastructure.

“If it were a business coming in you wanted and you wanted to provide some incentive, you could look at it from that perspective,” Flower said.

Trip to D.C.

Council members discussed whether to again go on a lobbying trip to Washington, D.C.

The Leavenworth County Development Corporation infrastructure committee had a meeting last week after the city council met to discuss lobbying efforts in Washington, D.C. The committee is looking at a February trip.

Tonganoxie has sent representatives in the past and council members said they found that worthwhile. The council discussed inviting elected officials representing this area at the federal level to Tonganoxie to hear of the city’s needs.

The council also told Yanez it was interested in the February trip and to keep the council informed.