City of Cortland Names New Director of Administration & Finance Following Departure of Greenwood

During last night’s City of Cortland Common Council meeting, the council voted to approve Mayor Scott Steve’s appointment of Clarence “Chuck” Shager (SHAY-GERR) to the position of Director of Administration and Finance. His first day will be today, January 21st with an annual salary of $135,000.

The appointment comes after Elizabeth Greenwood informed the mayor and council of her plans to step down from the position effective January 20th.

Shager previously served as the City of Binghamton’s Comptroller for 10 years from 2014 to 2024 and was most recently the treasurer to the Village of Johnson City, which Steve noted is similar in size to the City of Cortland.

“In Binghamton and Tioga County, he oversaw budgets more than three times that of Cortland’s. Our annual budget is comparable in size and complexity to that of Johnson City. Like [Cortland], each of these communities faced ongoing challenges related to pensions, employee and retiree health insurance and public safety costs.”

In a release by the City of Cortland, Shager’s time in Binghamton demonstrates direct experience addressing challenges similar to those currently facing the City of Cortland, including audit delays, deficits, and complex financial operations. During his time in Johnson City he performed a role similar to that of the City of Cortland’s.

Shager previously applied for the open position of Director of Administration and Finance in the City of Cortland a year and a half ago and also interviewed with city officials before ultimately declining the role the city would then offer to Greenwood.

Mayor Steve noted he was informed by Shager’s availability to an open position if one came up just before Greenwood announced her intentions to resign from her position. Councilmember Tobin expressed his support for Shager in part to his experience and knowledge of what the job at hand entails.

However, Councilmember Conlon, originally planned to vote against the appointment of Shager, citing his wish to have met and spoken with him to learn more about his qualifications prior to an appointment. Conlon ended up voting to appoint Shager due to three members of the council absent and thus needing all five members present to vote yes.

The City of Cortland says Shager’s experience also included managing municipal debt, closing out capital funds, and overseeing labor and personnel related financial actions such as retiree payouts, back-pay adjustments, and budget-compliant staffing changes. In Tioga County and Johnson City, he contributed to maintaining essential public services while keeping tax-levy increases below two percent and identifying opportunities to reduce spending without service disruption.

During his municipal career, Shager oversaw significant long-term fiscal improvements, including reducing the tax levy by more than $2 million over a ten-year period. He also strengthened overall financial stability by lowering the constitutional tax limit from 93.96 percent to 76.03 percent and increasing the City’s general fund balance from $9.3 million to more than $18.1 million. Over the same period, the water fund balance grew from approximately $500,000 to $1.5 million, while the sewer fund improved from a $4.4 million deficit in 2013 to a positive fund balance of $1.9 million by 2023.