The Sturgeon Bay City Council took the first step toward cutting the salaries of future aldermen & the mayor by 10% during the council’s meeting Tuesday evening. Council members came up with the idea of the pay cut during recent committee of the whole meetings on the budget. State statutes require changes involving salary to be made at the end of a term. Consequently, the cut will apply to aldermen in districts two, four & six next April & for districts one, three, five & seven in April of 2013. The mayor’s pay will also drop by 10% in April of 2013, after Mayor Thad Birmingham’s current term ends. Alderman Ron Vandertie opposed the action Tuesday because he felt the intent was for aldermen to take a pay cut & not the mayor. A second reading of the ordinance change is needed before the mechanism for the pay rollback is in place. Aldermen will eventually see their monthly salary drop by $60, while the mayor’s pay will be $85 a month less.