The three Democrats voted against the appointment at a legislative meeting Thursday. Audio from the discussion is posted at the top of this story.
Sill was the most critical in his assessment of the situation:
“You are shoving this down everyone’s throat,” Sill told Mayor Rich Dziekan Thursday.
Ron Sill
Five Republicans voted in favor of the appointment, along with Joe DiMartino, a Democrat. The city website lists Alderman Rob Hyder as unaffiliated, but he ran on the Republican line Nov. 5.
The vote allows McLiverty to remain as interim finance director for up to 12 months.
McLiverty was appointed interim finance director because of the abrupt departure Thursday of Sal Coppola, who had served as finance director since 2015.
The Derby Shuffle
McLiverty was Derby City Treasurer for 23 years. City treasurer is an elected position. It pays a stipend.
Finance director is an appointed position — a paid public employee of the City of Derby.
Confusing the situation in Derby — residents just voted out McLiverty as treasurer Nov. 5.
McLiverty, who ran with Mayor Dziekan on the Republican line, lost his seat to Democrat Walt Mayhew, who will take the oath of office Dec. 7.
In order to move over to finance director, McLiverty was to resign as treasurer Friday, according to information Thursday from the mayor’s office. There was no letter of resignation on file at the town clerk’s office Friday. His first day as finance director is scheduled for Monday.
Why Did Coppola Resign?
The city/town clerk’s office released Coppola’s letter of resignation, which was effective Thursday — the same day it was submitted.
Why Coppola resigned without notice was not clear Friday. The Valley Indy exchanged texts with Coppola Friday and is attempting to set up an interview for next week. Coppola said he is willing to be interviewed.
A week before resigning, Coppola submitted a jarring report in advance of the Nov. 14 Aldermen/Alderwomen meeting.
The letter of resignation from Nov. 14.
Each month Coppola and his fellow city department managers submit reports for the monthly legislative meeting. His most recent report contained a cryptic passage:
“I am aware of a sum of cash that belongs to the city which is unaccounted for. I have been aware of this, to the best of my recollection, since January of 2018, but have decided it is in the best interest of me and the city to now make the Alders aware of this,” Coppola wrote.
“I will not have further public comments about this for reasons that I will share in an appropriate forum. I will not engage in any conversation about this matter privately with anyone.”
The report was written Nov. 7.
At the Nov. 14 Aldermen/Alderwomen meeting, Alderman Donofrio wondered what that was all about.
Without going into details at the meeting, Alderman Charles Sampson, the board’s president, said he was advised that the issue Coppola raised was dealt with by the administration in late 2017/early 2018, and that a police investigation found no evidence of wrongdoing.
Click the play button at the top of this story to listen to the exchange.
The allegation had to do with scrap metal at the Department of Public Works. In an email Friday to The Valley Indy, Sampson said the DPW budget now has a line item tracking scrap metal money. No funds were missing, Sampson said.
The Resistance To McLiverty’s Appointment
McLiverty is more than qualified to be Derby’s finance director. He’s been the city treasurer for decades, and his responsibilities have expanded far beyond the rather simple job duties described in the Derby City Charter.
Barbara DeGennaro
He was also the director of finance and operations for the Region 15 school district for 14 years before resigning in March.
At Thursday’s Aldermen/Alderwomen meeting, DeGennaro acknowledged his competence — but questioned why city government wasn’t posting the job and asking for applicants. McLiverty could apply for the job with everyone else.
“I know it’s critical (to have a finance director). But we also know what happens when we make hasty decisions in this city,” DeGennaro said.
Donofrio also suggested the city conduct a job search.
Sill noted he had only learned of the situation a few hours before the meeting. He called the appointment political.
“I don’t think it’s proper, two weeks after the election, to shove somebody down our throats like this,” Sill said.
Sampson and Mayor Dziekan pointed out that the city can still conduct a search for a permanent replacement, while relying on McLiverty’s decades of experience to steer the city hall finance department.
“This does give us time to do it the right way,” Sampson said.
The Budget Blunder
Dziekan pointed out McLiverty crafted an eight-point plan city government is following designed to get Derby back on solid financial ground. The city suffered a serious budget crisis in the spring, when McLiverty revealed city government, in previous years, had accidentally double counted state grant money as revenue.
The mistake, along with a number of other factors, eradicated reserves and caused a downgrade to Derby’s credit rating. The Dziekan administration has maintained that if not for McLiverty’s recovery plan, which includes selling assets and restructuring debt, the downgrade would have been much worse.
Following The Will Of The Voters?
But McLiverty, along with Coppola and the full Derby Board of Apportionment and Taxation — were among the people who missed the mistake. They are the people involved in putting together a budget every year. Separate from that — the tax board raised taxes by 2.5 mills in the spring which presumably angered Derby voters.
Right or wrong, the financial situation is likely what cost McLiverty his position as treasurer, according to Derby Republicans on Election Day and Valley Indy podcasts interviews with Seymour First Selectman Kurt Miller, Seymour Democratic Town Committee Chairman Stephan Behuniak, and Owney Malerba, Derby Democratic Town Committee chairman.
It’s probably the sentiment Sill was referencing at Thursday’s Aldermen’s meeting when he said: “The perception of doing it so fast is terrible. And we answer to the taxpayers.”
In introducing his request to make McLiverty finance director, Dziekan said McLiverty is the guy to clean up the mess.
Charles Sampson
“We have the obligation to ensure that our city if properly managed and that city business moves forward,” Dziekan said.
Click play at the top of the story to hear the complete discussion.
Sampson Reacts
Sampson, the board president, told The Valley Indy he understands the concerns.
“I understand the voters concerns, but knowing the facts behind the scenes, it was determined that Keith would be an asset during this restructuring time to push forward with the City’s recovery,” Sampson said. “I too believe that Keith took the blame for the fiscal situation we are in on election day as the voters did not have any other options available to them.”
The board president noted McLiverty’s key role in Derby’s finances.
“This is only an interim basis until another permanent Finance Director can be found. It will take months to accomplish this and the City cannot remain stagnant in its fiscal recovery. We made promises to Hartford and New York with our 8 Point Plan, and if we fault on those promises we risk having our bond rating go even lower. We are currently in a good spot based upon all the hard work that Keith has done to keep our rating positive, and losing that asset would be a detriment to the City.”
Change Was Coming
In a podcast interview with The Valley Indy published Oct. 16, Mayor Dziekan said his administration was considering bringing in an interim finance director. He described Coppola’s position as “in transition,” during that interview. Click here and fast forward to the 24-minute mark to listen.
