Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney.
Mountain Brook City Councilman Lloyd Shelton at his office at Borland Benefield.
After a decade on the Mountain Brook City Council and two decades on the city’s finance committee, Lloyd Shelton can tell plenty of stories about the people who have put Mountain Brook on its solid financial footing.
The 61-year-old Mountain Brook native said he has deeply revered the financial powerhouses that he has worked alongside, such as former three-term council member and finance committee chair Tom Clark and former finance committee member and CPA John Lyon.
The work of Clark, Lyon and others on the city finance committee set a standard of fiscal responsibility for Mountain Brook, Shelton said. They also taught Shelton a number of valuable lessons.
“When I got on the committee, I shut my mouth and listened. There was a lot of wisdom shared around that table. I was fortunate to be along for the ride,” Shelton said.
What he learned is the “Mountain Brook way” to handle money: being prepared and not asking for or keeping what isn’t needed, Shelton said. For example, the Mountain Brook way is to keep 180 days of cash reserves, even though most cities keep only 90 days, Shelton said. That approach is also why the city’s occupational tax was repealed in 2006, after it achieved its goal, he said.
“We didn’t need the money any longer,” Shelton said.
Planning ahead for major expenses like new fire engines or overfunding retirement for city employees is also part of the finance committee’s approach, Shelton said.
Today, Shelton serves as the committee’s chair and council liaison, along with six appointed committee members and Mayor Stewart Welch and city manager Sam Gaston as advisory members. The volunteer committee continues these policies under his leadership.
“I’ll never forget the day I took over the finance committee and ran my first meeting,” Shelton said. “Mr. Lyon was still on the committee and I ran the meeting. That night, I got home and the phone rang, and I saw on the caller ID that it was Mr. Lyon. I said [to my wife], ‘Sarah, please get that.’ She said, ‘No way, Lloyd, you answer it!’ I was scared to death. I picked up the phone and said, ‘Hello Mr. Lyon.’ He said, ‘Lloyd you ran a fine meeting today,’ and then hung up. That compliment went a long way in my life.”
Shelton said finance director Steve Boone, who is coming up on 30 years of service, is another reason the city is in excellent financial shape.
“Steve is an absolute superstar. Replacing him will be nearly impossible,” Shelton said. “A lot of what we do is driven by Steve. We have a rigorous budget process.”
Shelton said it takes hard work to provide the “top-shelf services” residents expect within Mountain Brook’s financial limitations.
“It’s no huge secret that we are landlocked, and we are the only city in the state of Alabama whose number one source of revenue is real estate taxes,” Shelton said.
Shelton ran into an old friend not too long ago, who said, “I didn’t know you served on the city council,” Shelton said. “Well, I must be doing something right if you haven’t had anything to complain about in 10 years!”
