Finance committee chair Coun. Mark Felix is proud the Town of Stephenville’s audited financial statements for the year 2017 show more than half a million dollars surplus.
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The consolidated financial statement indicated total revenue for the calendar year of $8,552,595 — 4.2 per cent higher than the budgeted amount of $8,200,971.
The total expenses for the year were $8,346,659, 1.8 per cent higher than the budgeted amount of $8,200,971.
Felix said most of this amount was used in the town’s community development fund, providing grants to many not-for-profit groups doing tremendous voluntary work for taxpayers of the town.
A $275,000 grant to the Stephenville Airport Corporation assisted in making the airport a viable operation.
For the year, a net surplus of $205,937 was left and that was added to the surplus at the beginning of the year of $355,115 for an overall surplus of $561,052.
Felix said this, along with the fact the town just finished paying off one of its bank loans which will save the town $75,958 per month, puts the town on track to be debt free by March of 2019.
“This puts our town in an excellent financial position as we look to growing in the next three to four years,” he said.
Felix said the new council is only responsible for one quarter of the financial management of these financial results and former Mayor Tom O’Brien and previous council can take credit for three quarters of these good results.
As part of council’s transparency and accountability to Stephenville taxpayers the statements will be posted on the town website by next week, he said.
