Police officers in Sarasota have staved off a change to their retirement benefits many felt was a recipe for disaster. City commissioners last night backed off from the plan that would have ended police pensions, replacing them with 401(k) style plans that shift the risk of the retirement investments from the city to the officer. In compromise for keeping the defined benefit pension plan, the commission knocked the pay raise for officers next year from 3.2 percent to 1-percent.
