“The Sycamore Park District set out four (4) years ago to correct its financial status, and move to place where its ACTION 2020 Plan could be initiated from a position of strength”, said Ted Strack, Board President. Click here to read full analysis for the rating.
For several years prior to 2012, the park district had accrued nearly a million dollars of operating debt at its Golf Course, and had nearly depleted its reserve funds in its overall budget.
“Today, we are proud to share with our residents that Standard & Poor’s has raised our rating to A+ Stable“, said Executive Director Daniel Gibble. “We have eliminated that operating debt at the Golf Course, and built our reserves for the district as a whole, to a point that the financial community considers a good level for management of taxpayer funds.”
With a commitment toward correcting the position of the park district, Board and Staff made key management decisions to turn around the financial position of the district. “Our progress”, says Michelle Schulz, Board Vice President, “is through EVERYONE’s hard work:
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Watching our budget
• Becoming more efficient
• Finding major areas of savings
• Garnering Citizen Support
In its press release and report (included/attached to this press release), Standard & Poors stated:
“[This] rating action reflects our opinion of the district’s significantly improved reserves due to a property tax rate increase and sustainable savings measures taken during the past few fiscal years. The stable outlook on the SPUR reflects our opinion that the district will likely maintain its very strong reserves over the next few fiscal years”.
When asked what this means to the park district’s residents, Daniel Gibble said, “We believe that a strong, stable financial position gives us the ability to bring ACTION 2020 to reality. Our citizens are seeing progress toward accomplishing that plan, and this rating will allow us to issue the bonds we need to complete our Community Center, Splashpad, Sled Hill, Dog Park, Trails, Sports Fields, and Golf Course Irrigation at a very low cost to the district and its taxpayers.”
NOTE: In the quote from Standard & Poors, “SPUR” means: Standard and Poors Underlying Rating
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