Many locals were critical of the Park City Council’s May decision to more than double councilor and mayor salaries for fiscal year 2027. The feedback prompted a unanimous decision to revisit the raises Thursday, June 11.
City Manager Adam Lenhard said city staff will provide the council with alternative compensation recommendations. There will also be another opportunity for public input.
“We've attempted to implement a number of different methodologies that the council could look at,” Lenhard said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” June 10. “Where it gets really tricky is there's no single standardized methodology for implementing council pay. It's entirely a political decision by the council.”
Staff reviewed several data points to provide an alternative recommendation, including the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it measures inflation by calculating the average change over time in prices paid by urban consumers.
According to CPI growth in the Mountain West, Colorado and Mountain Plains regions, staff report adjusted pay for councilors would range from almost $33,000 to nearly $36,000. That’s compared to current councilmember salaries of $29,000.
When staff considered growth based on average staff salaries since 2014, council pay would be between $36,000 and almost $38,000.
Finally, when cost-of-living-adjusted compensation and homeownership affordability were factored in, council salaries would be around $44,000.
“Ultimately, they have to cast their vote and decide what is both financially feasible — can the budget support it — and then what's politically acceptable,” Lenhard said. “I think what has been agreed upon so far is that doubling pay was not politically acceptable.”
Staff also noted the mayor has typically received a salary nearly two times higher than councilmembers, but this can change.
Outside of cost-of-living adjustments, neither the council, nor the mayor has seen a pay increase since fiscal year 2015.
As initially proposed, the raises would bring Park City’s compensation rates in line with the council’s Summit County counterparts.
Summit County councilors got a pay bump in December 2025, raising salaries from $61,000 to $70,000 per year.
The council is expected to alter councilor and mayor salaries before the final fiscal year 2027 budget is approved June 25.
