Will Cape Coral city leaders get higher pay?

Raise, stipend, bonus—whatever you want to call it, it’s angered Cape Coral voters. Now, you might get a say in whether city leaders get more pay.

At Wednesday’s workshop, Cape Coral residents made it clear that they feel the Cape Coral City Council wronged them, and they are not going to forgive and forget.

They’re still fired up over the council’s vote late last year to give themselves stipends: $5,000 a month for the mayor and $3,333 for each council member.

But now, there’s a chance the stipends could go away for good.

Councilman Robert Welsh proposed amending the city charter so that council members and the mayor couldn’t get paid for expenses.

Instead, board members and the mayor could vote each year to set their own salaries.

People who spoke said the council can’t be trusted with the responsibility.

Councilman Tom Hayden suggested adjusting the language to set a cap on the salary council members can give themselves.

“The way it’s written right now, it’s just too ambiguous. I think temperatures are too hot right now,” Hayden said.

In the end, all of the council agreed to revisit the topic at their next workshop in two weeks.