Picture this: It’s New Year’s Eve and Mayor Mark Lauretti is sitting, waiting in his near-empty office for a press conference he called on the city’s latest audit.
The only person there is John “Jack” Finn, the Board of Aldermen’s lone Democrat, and one of Lauretti’s most ardent dissenters.
Where were all the reporters?
“When it’s good news, nobody comes,” Lauretti surmised Monday night, as he told the story about the failed press conference to the full Board of Aldermen following a special meeting.
Several of the aldermen said they didn’t know about the press conference.
And one reporter sitting in the audience of the conference room at City Hall shouted his surprise.
“What?” said Fred Musante, the veteran reporter for the Huntington Herald. “I never got an invitation.”
An invitation sent to the Valley Independent Sentinel Dec. 31 (during the week the Valley Indy didn’t publish and the staff was on holiday) includes reporters from two other newspapers.
Musante and the Huntington Herald are not on the list.
The e‑mail was sent out at 9:46 a.m., notifying reporters of a 2 p.m. press conference.
“So let me get this straight,” Musante said. “You sent an invitation out to reporters on New Year’s Eve, hours before a press conference?”
After telling Musante “you’re not the only person I have to worry about around here,” Lauretti said he would be willing to host another press conference to go over the lengthy document with reporters.
The audit was not available Monday evening, but Lauretti said it would be filed in the City Clerk’s office Tuesday morning.
Here’s Lauretti’s summary, as told to the Board of Aldermen:
Shelton brought in $1.1 million less revenue than it expected, but still ended the year with an $89,000 operating surplus.
The city’s fund balance, according to Lauretti, is now at $6.75 million, of which $4.6 is unreserved.
Lauretti said to expect some surprises.
“There was criticism levied during the last election that will be determined unfounded,” Lauretti said.
