Prior to the close of the Plymouth Common Council meeting Monday evening Mayor Mark Senter commented on the recent announcement that Clerk Treasurer Toni Hutchings will be retiring at the end of the month.
He said, “On January 1, 1996 the City of Plymouth changed in a very positive way. Madam Clerk-Treasurer Toni Hutchings was sworn in. Over the next 18 years and 9 months she has been a community leader, operated a budget of over 11 million dollars, managed the clerical part of her duties with a staff like no other, administered 3 TIF zones, assisted numerous department heads, kept the City out of the red, saved taxpayers millions of dollars , handled the agendas of thousands of meetings, oversaw hundreds of state and federal grants, set aside nearly 7 million dollars in a rainy day fund and I could go on and on!!”
Mayor Senter continued, “In my short time here as mayor I have observed numerous new clerk-treasurers throughout the state that think they can do that job and then get totally lost and many times end up resigning or in some cases indicted! We never had to worry about that here in Plymouth. Municipal financial management is like no other and Toni Hutchings is like no other as well!”
The mayor closed by saying, “This is her last meeting…she will be missed by many that do not even realize it! Thank you, Toni!”
The comment was immediately followed by a standing ovation.
Councilman Wayne Smith said, “I had the pleasure of working with Toni when she first came into office. I go all over the state now and I see communities that are in bad shape. I tell you what, it’s a pleasure to be on a council where the city is in such good shape and it has a lot to do with Toni.”
Plymouth resident Wilson Gerard said, “As a tax payer I think I appreciate Toni much more than many people in Plymouth because every year she goes over the budget with a fine-tooth comb. We’re going to miss her.”
