Mayor Glen Robertson Discussed Salary Increases and Power Generation [Audio]

Friday on Lubbock's First News, Mayor Glen Robertson recapped the issues covered during last night's City Council meeting.

The Council voted to increase salaries for three city employees. A raise was given to James Loomis, City Manager, after an extensive evaluation, the result of which determined he was previously undercompensated. Mitchell Satterwhite, Sam Medina's replacement as City Attorney, was given a raise as he took on more responsibilities with the promotion. Rebecca Garza, City Secretary, was given a raise after it was shown that there had not been one given over the past few years.

Robertson also talked about the formation of the Veterans Committee, begun by Councilman Todd Klein about year ago. He observed that the citizen based committee will offer veterans assistance and support.

Finally, Robertson discussed power generation alternatives, looking into to the next several years. He hopes to have 30-35% renewables by 2025. He also hopes the city will do more research on opportunities for solar, wind, and other types of power generation. However, Robertson said, "My concern right now is that we have a CEO that wants one option with one vendor." The ongoing RFP blackout period prohibits him from offering more information. He said, "There's a lot of behind the scenes, behind closed doors politicking, wrangling, discussions. It's not been healthy. It's not good for the city of Lubbock and it's time for us to end that process, move forward, and come up with good solutions." Robertson hopes to push various departments within the city to work together to bring about progress.

Listen to the full interview: