The city of College Park has hired a new finance director, who assumed his position on Sept. 19, city officials said.
Gary Fields replaced Steve Groh, who retired after 17 years in the position, according to a city press release from August.
“We’ll be working very closely together … on ensuring the financial stability and the financial sustainability of the city,” said city manager Scott Somers.
Fields expressed his excitement to be “a part of the College Park team,” in a written statement sent Thursday through Ryna Quinones, the city’s communications coordinator.
“I look forward to contributing to the city of College Park and its wonderful community,” Fields said.
Fields will be in charge of developing, preparing and implementing the city’s budget each year and will also oversee the finance department, Somers said. The finance director’s role, as listed on the city’s website, is to provide services to city residents and account for city assets.
Fields has a 35-year background in finance and accounting, and has been a finance director in three different cities — Gross Pointe and Bay City in Michigan and Manassas Park in Virginia — so he has the right amount of experience, Somers said.
“It’s important to have somebody that has a strong financial background on board to make sure that they are keeping the books in order,” he said.
In regard to the change between Fields and Groh, Mayor Patrick Wojahn said he thinks Fields will offer “a fresh perspective.”
“There will be some changes in terms of how the budget is developed,” Wojahn said, as well as how the financial department tracks how the city spends its finances.
Those changes mean that Fields could provide “an excellent opportunity to relate with how [the city] will engage the public in establishing the budget,” he said. He added that having Fields on board will help in “making sure that the budget meets the priorities of our city.”
“We’re looking forward to building and continuing to have a solid management team here,” Somers said.
