Sterling Heights council approves amended employment agreement for city manager after public debate
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Summary
After extensive public comment and council debate, Sterling Heights approved a revised employment agreement for City Manager Mark Vanderpool, adopting a friendly amendment setting a $275,000 base salary; the measure passed 4–3.
The Sterling Heights City Council voted 4–3 to approve an employment agreement for City Manager Mark Vanderpool after hours of public comment and council debate.
Council considered a proposed contract that backup materials described as a $40,520 increase and referenced a $290,000 starting base; during deliberations Councilmember Radke offered a friendly amendment to set the base salary at $275,000, which the motion maker accepted. The roll‑call vote, read aloud by the clerk, recorded votes as: Swarovski — no; Taylor — yes; Yanez — no; Zarko (also spelled Ziarco in the record) — yes; Majak — no; Radke — yes; Schmidt — yes. The motion carried 4–3.
Dozens of residents spoke during the public‑comment period. Several urged the council to reject the raise or postpone action, citing local household incomes and impacts on taxpayers; one speaker called the proposal “unreasonable” compared with median Sterling Heights incomes. Other residents and civic leaders defended Vanderpool, saying his two decades on the job and the city’s operational performance justified market‑rate compensation to retain senior management. Council members also debated process and transparency: some said negotiations normally take place in closed session; others said compensation for a top executive must reflect recruitment and retention realities.
Council members who supported the agreement emphasized Vanderpool’s 21 years of service, the size of the organization he manages (roughly 600 full‑time employees and a budget the council described as approximately $300 million), and the difficulties of recruiting experienced municipal managers. Opponents cited equity concerns and urged a smaller or phased increase tied to annual evaluations.
The approved agreement includes the amended base salary figure the council accepted during the meeting; additional terms and benefit calculations were discussed in public and by staff, with administration noting some elements (like retirement‑matching formulas) are governed by existing city plan rules.
The council recessed briefly after the vote and then continued the agenda. No further changes to the employment agreement were announced during the meeting.
