Washington State auditors say the Vashon Park District has taken steps to address serious financial concerns raised in prior state audits, causing the organization to receive the most positive audit since 2009.

Vashon Park District (VPD) Executive Director Elaine Ott met last week with Carol Ehlinger of the state auditor’s office and was congratulated on the district’s “noted progress” over the past several years, Ott said. Since 2009, the district has had a tumultuous financial history that can be traced through state audit reports from 2010 to 2013. Ehlinger has overseen those past three audits that brought to the surface VPD’s declining financial condition, non-compliance with state contracting laws regarding the construction of the VES Fields and practice of borrowing money to stay afloat.

The 2010-2012 audit reported the district’s financial condition had declined and that park district commissioners did not follow laws relating to contracting and bids for such work. The 2013 audit reported “the District’s financial condition puts it at risk of not being able to meet financial obligations and maintain current service levels.”

But the audit revealed to Ott last week, which spans from Jan. 1, 2014 to Dec. 31, 2015, tells a very different story. The seven-page audit report indicates the district has taken “a number of steps” to address the financial concerns brought up in the 2013 audit. Included in those steps has been a revenue increase of more than 13 percent through a combination of a 5 percent user fee increase passed in January 2016 and the pay off of the VES Fields bond in December of 2015.

The $400,000 non-voter-approved bond was adopted in December of 2011 and consumed nearly $100,000 every year since then.

“That retiring of significant, old debt was a really big piece (of the positive audit report),” Ott said.

As for contracting laws, Ott said the auditor was “very impressed” with VPD’s “documentation of and thoroughness in following public works contracting laws.”

“I’m just tickled. I’m really thrilled,” Ott, who took the helm of VPD in 2013, said last week of the positive audit report. “I would say this is the ultimate seal of approval on the progress we’ve made.”

Part of that progress she is referring to can be seen in the district’s 2017 budget that was passed at the board’s Dec. 13 meeting. According to budget documents, VPD has $100,000 in its permanent reserve and another $50,000 in its capital reserve, neither of which existed in the 2016 budget. The district also finished the year not owing anything on its tax anticipation note (TAN) — an annual loan that provides the district with cash for the times in between the twice-yearly property tax payments.

“Even though this audit looked at 2014 to 2015, they took in to consideration 2016,” Ott said. “We finished 2016 with $100,000 in the bank and not owing anything on the TAN.”

Ott also said she is not planning on renewing the TAN in June of 2017, but, until then, the funds from the current TAN will be used to cover repairs at the Vashon Pool. Those funds, coupled with a $75,000 matching grant from King County that VPD is contributing $28,391 toward and for which the Seals swim team is fundraising another $9,375, will allow for the pool’s boiler to be refurbished, along with other electrical, ADA and pump repairs identified in a May engineering report.

“Those are really significant budget pieces,” Ott said.

VPD board member Scott Harvey seconded Ott’s thoughts on the audit and said it was “outstanding.”

“We made significant progress,” he said. “I’m excited, I think we’ve turned the corner.”

He also mentioned VPD’s newly budgeted reserves and said the funds represent a “big change in operations.”

Moving forward, the audit report recommends the district keep a close eye on its budget, specifically actual revenue versus expenditures on a monthly basis, as well as continue to develop a long-term financial plan without relying on the short-term line of credit, such as the TAN. Auditors also recommended VPD establish a credit card policy and ensure it has procedures for detailed receipt documentation for management review. Ott said her staff has been developing “best practice” processes and the credit card policy for the past several months.

Calls to the state auditor’s office for comment were not returned.

In other VPD news, the organization is in the process of having the results of its recent community survey compiled. The 25-question survey was launched in September and called on islanders to answer questions regarding the future of VPD and where money should be directed — new projects, maintenance on existing properties, etc. Reached Thursday, Ott said that Beckwith Consulting, the firm hired to handle the survey process from creation to results reporting, is nearly finished with the report.

A total of 951 islanders took the survey, 9 percent of the island population. Ott said she is very pleased, as she was told to expect between 3 and 4 percent of the population to participate.

“Most definitely, it showed strong support for the pool,” she said.

According to the draft survey report, strong support was also shown for replacing playground equipment at Ober Park and completing drainage and maintenance projects at Point Robinson.

“It definitely guided some of our major decisions,” Ott said, noting that the results will come into play in January when the district begins work on its strategic plan.