WESTBROOK – The city administrator and superintendent of schools have been working together on a proposal to hire a shared chief financial planner – a new position that would replace the school department’s business manager and the city’s finance director.
The shared position fits into Superintendent Reza Namin’s plan to restructure the school department’s administration. That plan, which school board members approved last week, includes eliminating four positions and consolidating two others to save more than $500,000.
Though most of the restructuring will go into effect at the beginning of the next fiscal year in July, City Administrator Jerre Bryant said the implementation of the new financial planner is “on a faster track than that.”
City councilors will discuss the new position at a Finance Committee meeting Monday. Councilor Michael Foley, who is the chairman of that committee, said he thinks the consolidation of the two positions is “a great move.”
Earlier this month, Michael Kucsma, the school’s business manager, vacated his position to take a similar one in Sanford. The city’s finance director, Sue Rossignol, has held the job for 30 years. Both positions are salaried at around $80,000.
Namin and Bryant have preliminarily proposed budgeting $60,000 each for a chief financial planner’s salary and benefits. But Bryant said that number is simply a proposed figure. City councilors and school board members will have to approve the salary.
Once that happens, the city and school department would start advertising for the position immediately and could hire someone as soon as January. Bryant said Rossignol could chose to apply for the position and would be considered along with other applicants.
During the past five years, the city and school department have started sharing several positions, including the directors of technology, facilities and human resources.
Bryant said having a shared financial planner is “consistent with a lot of things we’ve been doing over the past years,” which have both improved effectiveness and reduced costs.
“It will improve coordination between the school and city,” he said.
Though the city hasn’t solidified any other restructuring plans, Bryant said, “we’re looking at all kids of options just like we always have.”
Mayor-elect Colleen Hilton, who’s also vice chairwoman of the school board, said she’s meeting this week with all department heads to get a better sense of their jobs and the challenges they face – something she believes is necessary before she makes any plans to restructure positions.
On the school side, however, a lot of changes are already being made to save money in the coming year’s budget.
Last month, Namin presented a plan to reorganize the department’s administration, cutting four positions including the assistant superintendent, in order to prepare for a decrease in funding from the state.
Last week, as Gov. John Baldacci announced that school districts would have to cut $38 million from their budgets – with Westbrook receiving a $600,000 reduction in funds from the state – Namin said he’d also be consolidating the transportation director and facilities manager into one position.
The total savings that would be realized through Namin’s restructuring plan comes out to just about $600,000. For the total budget, Namin said, his goal is to reduce spending by $2 million next year – and believes this plan is a good start.
“I think it’s effective and fiscally sound,” he said.
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