Township Manager's Contract: How Much Should He Make?

The Lower Merion Board of Commissioners at 6 p.m. Wednesday will consider a new two-year contract for township manager Doug Cleland, whose last contract expired in 2011.

Cleland's contract was a topic of conversation at several board meetings earlier in the year, but amidst a debate about the for township management employees.

Under the terms of the currently proposed contract, his base salary would be about $202,000 this year and $207,000 next year; benefits would bring his total compensation to about $275,000 a year, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. 

In recent emails to constituents, Commissioner Jenny Brown has called the proposed compensation "excessive and inappropriate." (See a PDF of the proposed contract attached to this article.) Brown has made similar statements in the past, .

Township Democrats, meanwhile, told the Inquirer they consider Cleland's compensation more than appropriate, given the scope of his responsibilities.