Well, Councilor Nicholas DelVento certainly hit the nail on the head when he said it was a nice situation for the Council to be deciding at the end of a fiscal year into which account excess funds should be going. Thanks to some excellent financial management by Town Manger James McKenna and CFO Timothy Gordon, and some sound fiscal decisions by the Council itself, the town was able to place more than $350,000 in the town stabilization fund. There are also funds available in the Town Council’s own reserve fund and other departmental accounts.
It was just a few years ago that the town was thinking about closing the library and cutting back on hours at the Senior Center. There was concern from the state level about Winthrop’s precarious financial situation. But McKenna made it a top priority to get Winthrop back on a sound financial footing and through some innovative ideas (such as consolidating school and town departments), he has been able to guide Winthrop to a position of fiscal strength. It is an effort that McKenna, Gordon, and all of the Winthrop department heads can be proud of.
Winthrop weathered the storm and we’re hoping that the revenue flow from the state continues to improve. As Nick said, it’s a pleasant problem to have when there is still money remaining in reserve as a new fiscal year approaches.