THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, September 15, 2023 Page 5 CITY COUNCIL ROUNDUP: Malden Mayor one of lowest paid in Massachusetts; that may change as raises for all elected officials now being considered by City Council City Council passes resolution supporting Mass. State Ethics Commission, but vote is not unanimous By Steve Freker W hen you are looking at a city budget of $215 million, one salary of $105,000 annually does not stick out too much. But when you are talking about that being the annual salary of the City of Malden’s top executive post, it does command attention. There has been one major constant in the top echelon of Malden municipal government for over a decade: Gary Christenson has been Mayor of Malden since January 1, 2012, after winning the election in November 2011. If reelected to another four-year term this November, he would be in line to become what is believed to be the longest-serving mayor in the city’s history. There’s another constant: When Mayor Christenson fi rst took offi ce on the fi rst day of 2012, his annual salary was Mayor Gary Christenson has not had a pay raise since 2012. That could change soon due to a City Council resolution. $105,000 annually. Remarkably, today, Mayor Christenson’s annual salary remains unchanged: still $105,000 annually. At that fi gure, Malden’s Mayor is one of the lowest paid full-time municipal chief executives in Massachusetts, particularly for a city the size of Malden. Additionally, it is believed that Mayor Christenson is the only full-time employee of the several thousand in the city of Malden who has not received a pay increase since 2012. According to some quick research, the Mayor’s position and the pay rate of the 11 members of the Malden City Council ($17,500 annually) are the only pay rates in the entire city budget which have remained unchanged in the same time frame – since 2012. Furthermore, according to 2002 municipal salary records, not only is Mayor Christenson’s salary among the lowest in the state, there are over 300 city or school employees who earn higher salaries than the Mayor in the city of Malden. In the Malden Police Department alone there are 78 offi cers and/or patrol personnel who earned more than the Mayor’s $105,000 salary in 2002. There are 59 employees of the Malden Fire Department who earned more and over 40 salaried employees of the City of Malden – non-School Department personnel – who earned higher than $105,000. It is estimated there are close to or over 100 Malden School Department employees at or over ROUNDUP | SEE PAGE 8 JOHN MACKEY & ASSOCIATES ~ Attorneys at Law ~ * PERSONAL INJURY * REAL ESTATE * FAMILY LAW * PERSONAL BANKRUPTCY * LANDLORD/TENANT DISPUTES 14 Norwood Street Everett, MA 02149 Phone: (617) 387-4900 Fax: (617) 381-1755 WWW.JMACKEYLAW.COM SABATINO INSURANCE AGENCY 519 BROADWAY EVERETT, MA 02149 Auto * Home * Boat * Renter * Condo * Life * Multi-Policy Discounts * Commercial 10% Discounts * Registry Service Also Available Sabatino Insurance is proud to welcome the loyal customers of PHONE: (617) 387-7466 FAX: (617) 381-9186 Visit us online at: WWW.SABATINO-INS.COM
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