Dear Neighbor:

It’s hard to believe more than six months have gone by since I had the honor of being sworn in as your town supervisor. And in that short span of time – thanks to the hard work and dedication of so many town employees and my staff – much has been accomplished.

From day one, navigating the complex financial challenges facing our Town has been my top priority.Working with our dedicated Comptroller's office and strong management team, we’ve achieved a number of milestones in addressing the mistakes of the past, while planning diligently and conservatively for the future.

We have completed another two intensive audits and crafted a funding plan that will allow us to remedy past accounting errors using existing revenue streams and judicious budgeting – a strategy that will bring complete transparency, while ensuring our town is financially sound, and your tax dollars properly allocated and accounted for.

Importantly, we have come to fair and reasonable terms with the PBA and CSEA unions. Working in cooperation with union leaders, I was able to successfully avoid costly arbitration, but rather, we agreed to multi-year contracts recognized in the Southampton Press as "A Good Deal" for the taxpayer and a "refreshing new direction", while protecting the integrity of the men and women working hard to serve the town.

Our hard work and thorough response to these fiscal challenges has even been noted by Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s Rating Agencies – recognition that effectively protected the Town from a potentially devastating increase in interest rates at an especially vulnerable time.

Further, we’re in the midst of budgeting for not only 2011, but 2012 as well. For too long, past administrations have looked only to the short term to make budget and organizational decisions, allowing large and complex challenges like aging infrastructure and increasing employee costs to loom in the distance unaddressed, ultimately resulting in unnecessary costs to the taxpayers.

While much has been accomplished, many more goals lay within reach. A two-year term provides only a small window to fulfill the vision I have for Southampton and, frankly, to fully achieve all of the goals I have set I will need more time.

In the coming weeks and months we will continue to work on streamlining and improving our service model by maximizing the skills and expertise of our dedicated employees. We’ll also tackle planning reform, focus on improving on infrastructure where possible, and continue to create ways to make local government more user-friendly and responsive without increasing our costs.

I understand and respect that in your busy life, and during these tough economic times, giving your hard earned money to a political campaign is not top on your list of priorities. But, in political terms, November 2011 is just around the corner, and in order to run a successful campaign I must begin raising funds now. Without your help it will be difficult to put up the fight required to stay in office beyond my first term.

Together we have made, and continue to make, significant progress toward dissolving the entrenched "same old, same old" way of doing business and providing services that has gripped Southampton Town for so many years, focusing instead on new initiatives that benefit constituents, not politicians. But, the opportunity to see these important changes through to a successful end is not possible without your help. Whether you can give right now or not, I encourage you to contact my office with any ideas and suggestions you may have for making our town better.

Serving as your supervisor is a wonderful and rewarding professional and personal privilege. I hope you will support me in continuing the work you put me in office to do. I am ever grateful for your time and generosity.

Sincerely,

Anna Throne-Holst