Antonio, 56, is a former city finance director who succeeded Good as city manager in 2010 and retired at the end of June. In 2001, he explained aspects of the retirement plan to commissioners before it was approved. He now receives a monthly pension of $10,645, or $127,800 annually. City records state that his highest base city salary was $165,000.

Like Good, Antonio accumulated a considerable city-funded nest egg in his DROP account: $744,637 by July 31, 2012, according to city records. City officials said he was also due about another $100,000 for unused sick and vacation days and other earned benefits.

Intindola, under whose administration the retirement plan was adopted, retired as city manager in 2002. He receives a monthly pension of $9,308, or $111,700 annually. His highest base city salary was $118,664.

Intindola, now 61, retired a year after the plan was implemented citing health concerns. At the time, the plan did not allow him to have a DROP account. He did receive a payment of $139,000 for accrued sick, vacation and other benefits, according to city documents.

Two city commissioners who backed the plan in 2001 now wish they hadn’t.

“My thinking today is ‘no,’ ” said Commissioner Dorothy Ross. “We can’t go back to that time.”

William Julian, who left the commission but is now running again, said he had “no experience with pensions” when the matter was brought up years ago by Intindola and staff. He said they told him the plan was “normal” for top city officials.

“Looking back, we should never have offered the plan,” said Julian, especially the granting of credit for past years of service. “I was new,” Julian said. “It sounded logical and we took staff at their word, but I wouldn’t take it now.”

Julian receives $900 a month for his service on the commission between 2001 and 2010.

Mayor Joy Cooper, who has been on the commission since 1999, was the lone vote against the plan back in 2001. “I did not feel comfortable,” she said.

She said she also now opposes the idea of equating top management jobs to those of police and firefighters — something she voted to approve in 2003.

“Police and firefighters are in a different category,” Cooper said. “They put their lives on the line.”

EX-CITY MANAGERS LIKE THE PLAN

Each of the three former city managers defended the management retirement plan, though only Intindola acknowledged that it has elevated costs to taxpayers by millions of dollars.

“Absolutely, it was OK,” said Antonio, who got retroactive credit for the 14.25 years he worked for the city before the plan went into effect in 2001. He also purchased an additional five years of service credit at a cost of 8 percent of salary for each year purchased.

Without credit for those 14.25 years, Antonio’s pension would be about 57 percent lower. Without those years and the extra years he purchased, his pension would be approximately 77 percent lower.

Antonio said commissioners implemented the management retirement plan to address a lack of fairness regarding pensions for top managers. At the time, the city was contributing 10 percent to 17 percent of gross salary to their 401a retirement accounts.

Intindola agreed. “It was a good thing,” he said. “We had to improve the [existing] plan; we had a high turnover.”