Published: Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Lynnwood finance director resigns after last week's walkout
LYNNWOOD — The city’s finance director, who walked out of a City Council meeting last week after a heated exchange over the budget, has resigned, Mayor Don Gough announced Monday.
The news that John Moir had quit came at a work session where the council was talking about hiring an outside auditor to look at the city’s finances.
Gough told the council as the session started that he received Moir’s resignation letter. Gough then read a statement that he sent The Herald last week, urging calm and asking for ideas on how to address the city’s financial woes.
At Monday’s meeting, Councilman Mark Smith said that he was sorry to see Moir leave.
“John is a consummate professional, and I think the city is much worse off because of his departure,” Smith said.
After the announcement, Councilwoman Kerri Lonergan criticized Gough’s administration over the city’s budget problems.
“In my opinion, the administration has sugar-coated this situation and not provided the council with timely information,” Lonergan said.
The city’s budget has been topic of heated discussion for weeks. It came to a head Wednesday when Moir abruptly left a work session.
Council members were peppering Moir with questions about the way city funds have been allocated to plug budget gaps and whether information was being withheld. They demanded he produce financial statements they’d asked for during a meeting two nights earlier.
He said at the time: “I don’t need this, I do not need this, folks, I’m leaving.”
The city has seen a sharp drop in sales tax collections over the past couple of years. Lynnwood has already depleted its $2 million reserve or “rainy day” fund to plug budget holes. And it has taken $3 million from its utility fund — money that must be paid back — into its general operating fund, the one it uses to pay for basic services such as fire, police as well as employee salaries.
Tensions have escalated since February when a new, worst-case scenario put the city’s two-year budget nearly $5 million behind original estimates.
The news that John Moir had quit came at a work session where the council was talking about hiring an outside auditor to look at the city’s finances.
Gough told the council as the session started that he received Moir’s resignation letter. Gough then read a statement that he sent The Herald last week, urging calm and asking for ideas on how to address the city’s financial woes.
At Monday’s meeting, Councilman Mark Smith said that he was sorry to see Moir leave.
“John is a consummate professional, and I think the city is much worse off because of his departure,” Smith said.
After the announcement, Councilwoman Kerri Lonergan criticized Gough’s administration over the city’s budget problems.
“In my opinion, the administration has sugar-coated this situation and not provided the council with timely information,” Lonergan said.
The city’s budget has been topic of heated discussion for weeks. It came to a head Wednesday when Moir abruptly left a work session.
Council members were peppering Moir with questions about the way city funds have been allocated to plug budget gaps and whether information was being withheld. They demanded he produce financial statements they’d asked for during a meeting two nights earlier.
He said at the time: “I don’t need this, I do not need this, folks, I’m leaving.”
The city has seen a sharp drop in sales tax collections over the past couple of years. Lynnwood has already depleted its $2 million reserve or “rainy day” fund to plug budget holes. And it has taken $3 million from its utility fund — money that must be paid back — into its general operating fund, the one it uses to pay for basic services such as fire, police as well as employee salaries.
Tensions have escalated since February when a new, worst-case scenario put the city’s two-year budget nearly $5 million behind original estimates.
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