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Derby City Hall
DERBY — Interim Derby Finance Director Keith McLiverty has accepted a new government position in Virginia, Mayor Rich Dziekan’s office confirmed Monday.
According to a news brief published Nov. 8 in The Northern Virginia Daily, McLiverty will become the finance director of Warren County, Va.
The newspaper reported that McLiverty was scheduled to start his new job Nov. 30.
The news took many in Derby government by surprise, as no official announcement came from Derby City Hall.
Andrew Baklik, Mayor Rich Dziekan’s chief of staff, told The Valley Indy Monday morning that McLiverty is still Derby’s interim finance director, and will probably remain in that capacity for up to two months.
Apparently McLiverty will be able fulfill some of his Derby responsibilities remotely.
Baklik said McLiverty told Mayor Dziekan about his new position Monday, Nov. 23. The information was apparently not shared with the Derby Board of Aldermen.
“I value the opportunity to become part of the Warren County team, and in particular the Finance Department. We are in challenging times, and it is essential that everyone rows together in order to provide the necessary fiscal prudence and maximize taxpayer returns,” McLiverty said in a prepared statement published Nov. 7 in The Royal Examiner.
McLiverty was appointed Derby interim finance director in November 2019. He was appointed interim finance director shortly after being voted out as Derby treasurer, a position he held for more than 20 years.
McLiverty’s institutional knowledge in Derby government is huge. In fact, it’s why he was hired as interim finance director after he was not re-elected as treasurer in 2019.
City’s finances circled the drain after officials realized the finance office had mistakenly double counted grant money from the state in fiscal year 2016 ‑17, and then again in 2017 – 18, according to McLiverty’s September 2020 testimony in front of the state’s municipal finance advisory commission.
The mistake, which put a $1.2 million hole in the city budget, was disclosed to the public in May 2019.
McLiverty was the architect of Derby’s economic “recovery plan,” a strategy that includes tax increases, debt restructuring, the sale of assets, and a tax-lien sale, and other things.
McLiverty was appointed “interim” finance director a year ago. In September, Mayor Dziekan recommended the position’s salary be set at $95,000, up from the current salary of $71,000.
However, the recommendation did not move forward.
Baklik said the City of Derby — which also has no human resources department — is not attracting candidates because the $71,000 salary is at least $20,000 below the market rate.
Derby is also without a tax collector, and a zoning enforcement officer. The school district’s business manager, Mark Izzo, is also planning to retire.
Meanwhile, Derby ranks as one of the most economically-distressed communities in Connecticut.
Baklik said Derby government will still look for a permanent replacement for McLiverty. However, he expects the Dziekan administration to explore whether money can be saved by pooling resources with the school district, or looking at a regional solution.
McLiverty is no longer considered a full-time employee in Derby, and will be compensated at an hourly rate, according to an email from the mayor’s office. The precise pay rate wasn’t available Monday afternoon. Baklik estimated it to be in the $30 per hour range.
Second Ward Alderman Ron Sill, who has butted heads with McLiverty on occasion, said he does not begrudge McLiverty for making a career change. But Sill questioned why the Derby Board of Aldermen & Alderwomen, along with the general public, were not told about the change.
“The mayor should have at least reached out to Joe DiMartino, the president of Board of Aldermen, to let him know that something was happening,” Sill said. He also said that the city simply relies on McLiverty for too much — finances, capital planning, supervision of building projects. His impending departure now leaves a major hole.
“It doesn’t make sense to have one person responsible for so many things. It needs to be spread out,” Sill said.
Still, the long-time Second Ward Alderman agreed with Baklik about the salary.
“It needs to be higher. We need to attract qualified candidates,” Sill said.
