Windcrest EDC reports $1.12 million cash position, audit savings and near‑term investment review

Esther Troy, presenting the EDC financial report covering the first three months of fiscal 2025 (Oct. 1–Dec. 31, 2024), told the board the organization maintains a strong cash position. Troy said the bank total showed $1,120,096 in operating accounts and that adding roughly $130,000 in a separate First Public account yields approximately $1,250,000 in total cash.

Troy reviewed headline figures from the December financial statements: December expenditures for the month totaled $35,483 and the three‑month total expenditures were $99,995, which she said is below the adopted FY25 budget. She identified legal expenses of $19,250 that exceeded the budget by $9,250 and attributed that to ongoing real‑estate work on access and easements. "This was expected with our ongoing activity related to the real estate projects and access and easements that we just talked about earlier," Troy said. She reported total salaries and benefits for the three months at $53,857; business retention and prospect development expenses at $12,193; and admin/other expenses at $33,943 (over budget by $6,443, primarily due to the legal costs). Troy said she expects the totals to normalize across the fiscal year.

On audit and accounting, Hernandez and staff said the EDC's audit work has been completed and that the EDC's portion of the audit cost was $2,500. Mario Hernandez credited coordinated work with city staff and outside vendors for significant savings compared with prior years; staff reported the reduction from a prior budgeted $5,000 to actual $2,500 and said the savings represented part of a broader cost reduction that staff estimated at roughly $16,000 compared with earlier engagements. The EDC is considering shifting some accounting functions to the city and will evaluate the timing and implications over the next 30–60 days.

On investments and interest earnings, Hernandez reviewed the depository agreement mechanics: the city depository agreement is tied to T‑bill rates minus a spread (currently described in meeting remarks as approximately T‑bill minus 70 basis points, yielding about 3.41% on checking funds), but that spread will change and could move to T‑bill minus 100 basis points. He said the Lone Star sweep account currently yields over 4% and that staff will gather final rate data before recommending any transfer of funds. "There's gonna be some change to the depository agreement with the city, but not significant on the on the on the basis points," Hernandez said; he recommended waiting until the next meeting to make an investment recommendation.

Board members had no additional questions. The board later moved to adjourn; Rainbow Presti made the motion and Kevin Compton seconded. The vote to adjourn was unanimous.

Ending: Staff will return with a formal recommendation on investment sweeps once final rate information is available and will present follow‑up documentation on accounting consolidation timing and the Builders Mark transaction when ready.