FNG: Financial New Guy

He’s got a dry sense of humor, this Art Wuerth. Says if he had a daughter, he would name her “Annette.” 

He may need comic relief, from time to time, as Wuerth is the new finance director of the City of Ocean Shores. He took over for the retired George Rogers on (no joke) April 1.

“He’s got a wealth of financial experience, and he’s got an MBA degree,” says Mayor Dean Bunkers, of Wuerth. “I’m excited to have him on board.”

Bunkers and the City will need all the expertise Wuerth has, coming off a year in which drastic cuts were necessary to balance a ballooning budget. And 2009 isn’t off to such a great start, as the City’s revenue from building permits for the first quarter was down almost half from the same period in 2008.

Personally, Wuerth is looking forward to reconnecting with Ocean Shores, the setting of his first date with his wife.

The new finance man took time out from his hectic schedule to answer a few questions, via email.

Q: The Mayor made two announcements at Monday’s City Council meeting: Your appointment, and that the bond ratings had improved. Are you a financial magician, or is this a coincidence? 

A: Yes and Yes.

Q: Which job or tasks that you’ve done in your professional career are most similar to what you’ll be doing here? 

A: I have a varied background to prepare me for the city finance director position. The most similar position would be my experience as the Chief Accountant for neighboring Pacific County. Most recently, I have utility accounting experience from Alderwood Water & Wastewater District in Lynnwood — the largest public water/sewer district in the state. Prior to that, I was the Business Manager for Timberland Regional Library which provides public library service for the five counties of Grays Harbor, Pacific, Mason, Lewis, and Thurston. I also have extensive budget experience with the Washington State community college system and I was a state examiner for the State Auditor’s Office for five years. I knew, in junior high, not only what profession I wanted, I even knew who I wanted to work for — the State Auditor Bob Graham — as Mr. Graham attended our church in Olympia. (Mr. Graham grew up in Grays Harbor and graduated from Grays Harbor College.)

Q: How well do you know the Ocean Shores/North Beach area? Will you be living here? 

A:  As a tourist: Our first date (Barbara and I) was in Ocean Shores to ride the horses on the beach.  I thought she was a cowgirl — but she wasn’t. I grew up in the country (near Tumwater), but we used tractors, not horses. Afterwards, I told her that if my horse moved faster that a slow walk I was going to jump off and let the owner retrieve it. Fortunately, the horses don’t move very fast. 

We have already rented a nice apartment near the Interpretive Center.

Q: A little personal note: What is your family situation, and what kind of things do you enjoy doing when you’re not crunching numbers? 

A: I am married to Barbara. We have a kitten named Rosie. My hobby is growing dahlias. I am an accredited dahlia judge of the American Dahlia Society. I am a board member of the Federation of Northwest Dahlia Growers and I am founder/president of the South Sound Dahlia Society in Olympia.  

Q.: What are your biggest priorities, on your new job? 

A.: One priority is the conversion to the Springbrook financial management system.

Another priority will be to master the complexity of city finances and the uniqueness that makes the City of Ocean Shores the special community that it is.

Regarding where Ocean Shores can increase revenues and/or decrease expenditures, I have not formed opinions as I arrive on the job. I believe I am similar to my father who was the chief mechanic for Tumwater School District for many years. If he acquired a new bulldozer or a new television set (although none of the stuff he acquired was actually “new”), he didn’t just stuff new parts in or toss old parts out to see if the machine worked better. He thoroughly understood the system before he fixed it so that he didn’t waste time and money on misdirected efforts. Likewise, as I master the components of Ocean Shore city finances, I will propose recommendations to the Mayor that he and the City Council can have a high degree of confidence will achieve a successful outcome.

Q: Do you have experience with the new financial software the City is ordering? 

A: I do not have experience with the Springbrook financial management system. I do have experience with a similar accounting system which was also designed specifically for city needs. I have been reconnecting with associates who currently using Springbrook and they are all highly recommending the Springbrook system.  I am looking forward to implementing this system for the City.

Q: What do you think about your interview made the City want to hire you? 

A: I hope that I shared my enthusiasm with the interview panel about coming to Ocean Shores.  (I was somewhat concerned that my wife wanted to move here even if I didn’t get the job.)  I kind of think that the City’s interest came from the preparatory homework that Mayor Bunkers (and the interview panel) did in reviewing my resume and checking with people that I had worked with in the past.   

Q: And why did you want to come here? 

I told Mayor Bunkers that I was looking for a challenge and the mayor promised me that the City could provide that!