As Franklin County continues to grow, so have the salaries of Franklin County’s suburban mayors and administrators or managers, according to the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission’s 2024 salary survey.
Bexley
Bexley Mayor Ben Kessler received $161,000 in 2024 and will be paid $167,000 in 2025. The city does not have a city administrator or manager.
Mayor Ben Kessler is shown inside the Carriage Court at Jeffrey Mansion in December 2021.
Canal Winchester
Joe Steager, whom voters elected in November 2023, earns $40,000 a year. The exact salary for City Administrator Matthew Peoples isn’t provided; instead there is a salary range of $100,464 to $146,557.
Canal Winchester Mayor Joe Steager speaks July 17 during a memorial vigil for Alexa Stakely, a 29-year-old Pickerington mother killed early July 11 trying to stop car thieves from stealing her SUV with her 6-year-old son inside.
Dublin
The study doesn’t list an exact salary for Megan O’Callaghan, who has served as city manager since October 2022, but shows the salary range as $202,000 to $296,200. Dublin Mayor Chris Amorose Groomes receives $15,750 annually.
Megan O’Callaghan
Gahanna
Gahanna Mayor Laurie Jadwin, whom voters first elected in November 2019, is paid $103,809 annually. The eastern Franklin County suburb does not have a city administrator or manager.
Gahanna Mayor Laurie Jadwin begins her second term
Grandview Heights
Mayor Greta Kearns, who has served in that role since January 2020, receives $72,000 annually. Administration Director Aubrey Hale receives an average annual salary of $119,309.
Grove City
Richard “Ike” Stage, who is serving his fifth term as mayor, is paid $40,000, while City Administrator Charles Boso receives $187,000 annually.
Grove City Mayor Richard L. “Ike” Stage speaks to guests in attendance for a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the opening of the Columbus Street extension on Oct. 1, 2021.
Groveport
Groveport Mayor Lance Westcamp brings home $26,000 a year. The city’s administrator, BJ King, receives an annual salary of $138,944.
Hilliard
Hilliard does not have a mayor after residents voted in 2018 to amend the city charter to change its form of government from a strong mayor system to the council-manager system. City Manager Michelle Crandall, who has served in the role since January 2020, is paid $225,737 annually.
As city manager, Michelle Crandall is the Hilliard equivalent of a mayor. Hilliard switched from having an elected mayor to having a professional (unelected) city manager in charge of the city, who serves at the pleasure of the City Council.
New Albany
Sloan Spalding, a council member selected to be mayor by other council members, is paid $28,227 a year as New Albany’s mayor. The survey doesn’t list an exact salary for City Manager Joseph Stefanov, who has been in the role since 2000, but gives a range of $154,234 to $192,793.
New Albany City Manager Joe Stefanov, pictured in December 2021.
Reynoldsburg
Mayor Joe Begeny, who is serving his second term, receives $124,036 a year. Reynoldsburg does not have a city administrator or manager.
Reynoldsburg Mayor Joe Begeny is seen speaking before a large crowd gathered at the old Kmart store on Brice Road in this Aug. 28, 2021, photo during a “Demo Day” celebration to kick off the demolition of the building and the beginning of a project that would bring the headquarters of Christian Missionary Alliance, a nonprofit evangelical Protestant religious organization, from Colorado Springs, Colorado, to Reynoldsburg.
Upper Arlington
Ukeme Awakessien Jeter, a council member selected to serve as mayor by other council members, is paid $9,857 per year as mayor. Steven Schoeny, the city manager since September 2019, receieves an average annual salary of $238,613.
Ukeme Awakessien Jeter, pictured in May 2024, is president of the Upper Arlington City Council and also serves as the city’s mayor.
Westerville
Kenneth L. Wright, a council member chosen as mayor by other council members, gets $4,800 for his extra duties as mayor. Monica Dupee, who is the city manager, receives an average annual salary of $106,267.
Whitehall
Michael Bivens takes home an average annual salary $105,000 as Whitehall’s mayor. Whitehall does not have a city administrator or manager.
Worthington
Robyn Stewart, who was hired last March as Worthington’s city manager, is paid a base salary of $190,000 annually, according to city documents from her hiring.
Robyn Stewart is city manager of Worthington.
mdevito@dispatch.com
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: See how much Franklin County suburbs pay their mayors, administrators