The San Antonio City Council voted 9-1 to give City Manager Erik Walsh a nearly $90,000 raise on Thursday, just weeks after voters eliminated a salary cap for the position.
The city council also voted to give him a monthly car allowance of $500 — a yearly value of $6,000 — and made his term indefinite. Under the previous rule, the city manager could serve no more than eight years.
Walsh’s salary starting on January 1, 2025, will be $461,000. His current maximum base salary is $374,000, which is ten times the lowest-paid salaried city employee — aligned with previous rules voters imposed in 2018.
San Antonio voters approved Proposition C in November’s City Charter Election 54-46, removing caps on the city manager’s salary and tenure.
Melissa Cabello Havrda was the only council member to vote against the raise.
District 5 Councilmember Teri Castillo, the lone councilmember to oppose Prop C, said she would accept the raise given voters’ decision and the need to retain talented leadership.
“My understanding is that a couple of city managers who are currently earning more than our sitting city manager worked and had leadership positions here in the City of San Antonio, and I think that demonstrates the risk of losing talent to other cities because of the compensation,” she said. “And again, I was opposed to this, but the voters made their decision.”
Other council members emphasized that the raise was a market rate adjustment to bring Walsh’s salary to a competitive level with other city managers after being prevented from giving the position large raises since the 2018 cap.
