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About Keizertimes. (Salem, Or.) 1979-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 2016)
PAGE A6, KEIZERTIMES, JANUARY 1, 2016 SKIING, continued from Page A1 While Gahlsdorf is leaving the city on Jan. 8, she has been easing into the retirement and put a transition plan into place well in advance. “I’ve put a lot of thought into retirement over the past couple of years,” she said. “I’ve seen others retire and the rest of us move on. I’ve heard it can be hurtful and isolating. The transition I’ve worked on over the past year has been very purposeful and I believe good for the city and me. I didn’t want to wake up one day not knowing what to do with myself. And I didn’t want to leave the city scratching its head wondering what all my responsibilities were and what direction I was going. Now, staff is cross-trained on all my major duties and I have a huge list of new pursuits. It’s good closure for all involved.” One of Gahlsdorf ’s chief jobs has been preparing the budget for city councilors each year. The process typical- ly starts in October, when staff reviews the city’s fi nancial po- sition and identifi es emerging issues. The budget document is updated with fresh data, for- mulas and templates. The next step comes this month when councilors update their goals for the year ahead, giving di- rection to funding priorities. The fi nal budget has to be ap- proved by councilors by the end of June. “We make a point each year to focus on improve- ments to our budget,” Gahls- dorf said. “Over the years, we have automated many pro- cesses, which have simplifi ed things. That has freed up our time for long-range planning, scenario testing and improved forecasting techniques.” The effort has paid off: the past two years, Keizer has got- ten a national award from the Government Finance Offi cers Association Distinguished Budget Presentation Award Program. “It’s all about priorities,” Gahlsdorf said of balanc- ing requests with the budget limit. “What’s hard is telling people what they need to know which is often not what they want to hear. It’s very emotional for people. Staff does not control the revenue stream. We work with what we have and manage the city’s funds responsibly.” Gahlsdorf noted the city is in good shape fi nancially. “We have a strong control system to safeguard our as- sets,” she said. “We adhere to best practices for reporting, accounting and budgeting. We have a transparent opera- tion, clean books, clean audit opinions and knowledgeable staff. Our approach is modera- tion; not too conservative as to constrain services and not too aggressive which would risk our basic operations. We have a strong bond rating and a se- cure revenue stream to repay our debt. This is a good foun- dation for the next fi nance director.” Over the years, Gahlsdorf said the city has built cash re- serves and has suffi cient work- ing capital for daily operations as well as bigger projects that have come up, in addition to future ones. Gahlsdorf called resolving the Keizer Station Local Im- provement District fi nances the most challenging as well as the most rewarding work. The city had more than $20 million in debt on the devel- opment and several proper- ties went into default. The LID debt has since been paid down. “I had the privilege of working with a great group of people in a great commu- nity,” Gahlsdorf said. “I am most proud of the fi nance staff and the team we’ve built over the years. They are a very hard working, dedicated group and many of them have been with the city for more than 10 years. They are committed to service and fi nding solutions that will fi t both the custom- er’s and the city’s needs.” Now Gahlsdorf looks for- ward to the future, no matter where that adventure might take her. “I am so fortunate because I have the life I envisioned all those years ago – and much more,” she said. “No regrets here. Even the most diffi cult challenges and experiences provide the best opportunity for growth and an apprecia- tion for what I have. My hus- band Dave and I have worked hard building our careers, rais- ing our two sons, renovating our home and building our fi nancial security. We met in business school at Oregon State University and have been together for over 35 years. We enjoy many of the same things. We have a fabulous life, and family and friends with whom to share it. I am look- ing forward to enjoying what we’ve built together.” KRP: ‘Where do we want to focus the money?’ (Continued from pg. A1) Bill Lawyer, Public Work director, said old Systems De- velopment Charges (SDC) money cannot be used for re- strooms, but could be used for other projects like surfacing. “What is the priority?” Lawyer asked. “Where do we want to focus the money?” Walsh said the answer hing- es partially on whether the city is successful in getting an Oregon Parks and Recreation Department grant for Big Toy improvements. “The Big Toy is our pri- ority,” Walsh said. “We won’t know if we need more money for the Big Toy surface until after we learn if we got the grant. If we fail to get the grant, we might need more.” Parks Board member J.T. Hager wanted more informa- tion. “Our priority is to do all of them,” Hager said. “Know- ing that’s not going to happen, what options do we have? We’ve been solid in want- ing to get the Big Toy done. For restrooms, do we want to draw in people but not have restrooms?” Lawyer said the budget needs to be refi ned. “We’re not even sure how much cash we need to come up with,” he said. Lawyer noted there has been an uptick in vandalism inside the park, with several items used for maintenance being stolen. “It’s diffi cult to curb van- dalism,” he said. “The police department can only do so much.” Clint Holland suggested putting up reward signs like there used to be at Keizer Lit- tle League Park. “We had a reward of $500,” Holland said. “We never had problems. As soon as they took the sign down, they had all kinds of problems. 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