Amy Ady, who has been responsible for helping turn millions of dollars into critical construction projects and a key in acquiring speedy federal disaster aid for the City of Kissimmee, is retiring this month after a 30-year career.
The City’s Director of Finance since 1998 spent the previous seven years as the assistant finance director, a guiding hand behind the scenes in overseeing Kissimmee’s financial health.
While directly leading a staff of 13 employees in the Finance Department, she also exercised control over financial operations in all departments of the city: everything from billing health insurance for the Fire Department’s ambulance service, to new air traffic control equipment for the Kissimmee Airport, to paying summer camp counselors for the Parks Department.
Several departments, including the airport and sanitation, operate on a business basis, using only revenues from user fees and are generally restricted from using tax funds. These operations have unique and critical accounting requirements. In addition, several millions of dollars in grant funding for Public Works, airport and several other departments are received in any given year, all with varying rules and procedures for making expenditures.
Over the past 30 years, her financial management skills, especially in the area of issuing municipal bonds and other borrowings, enabled the City to build and maintain roads, and fund numerous construction projects such as the Civic Center, Lakefront Park, several fire stations, City Hall, a Public Safety Training Facility, Toho Square Garage and the Lancaster Ranch property purchase.
“The construction of most of the facilities that we see in the City of Kissimmee today occurred during her tenure,” said City Manager Mike Steigerwald at a recent City Commission meeting. “She has seen the General Fund budget almost quadruple in the time that she has been here and has been instrumental in maintaining the City’s financial integrity through the creation of every budget during the past years …
“I can tell you that that process is, without a doubt, the backbone for how we are as stable and solid of an organization as we are today.”
Lessons learned in the aftermath of the devastating 1998 tornadoes that struck Osceola County, including parts of Kissimmee, prepared Ady and her department for even more disaster-related financial recovery work to come some six years later.
Ady said she was “proud of the work that my team put forth after the 2004 hurricane season when the city was struck by three hurricanes in six weeks. The City was ready to immediately implement the FEMA process and Kissimmee was the very first government in the state to receive reimbursement from the federal and state governments.”
Eventually, Ady is planning to return to her home state of Tennessee, a turnabout for her husband, Mark, who grew up in Orlando. She plans to spend time with her extended family, travel, garden, and volunteer with local government as a resident.
Tavia Conner has been named the new Finance Director and is already on board. Conner was previously the Chief Financial Officer for Haines City for more than five years, is a Certified Public Accountant, and a University of Central Florida graduate.
