After several years as Greenfield’s city accountant, Angelica Desroches will transition to her new role as town accountant in Montague on Monday, while Katherine Cabrera-Veloz will fill the accountant position in Greenfield.

The Montague Selectboard voted unanimously last week to sign Desroches’ employment contract. Desroches, who has served in municipal finance roles in Greenfield, Cummington and Leyden, was the sole candidate recommended by the Town Accountant Hiring Committee. Desroches is the current town accountant in Leyden, and will continue in this role while working in Montague.

“We’re looking for somebody with experience that is familiar with accounting in a municipal setting,” Montague Town Administrator Walter Ramsey said in a phone interview. “We were fortunate to find that in Angelica, as someone who can take that experience and hit the ground running as we start to get ready for next year’s budget season.”

Desroches will be tasked with recordkeeping, budget and tax management, attending meetings, and collaborating with other town boards and committees. Ramsey noted that she will also spearhead a more modernized accounting system for Montague that prioritizes visibility and accessibility between town government and residents.

“In Greenfield, I did several software conversions and it made a lot of stuff a little bit more efficient and more open,” Desroches explained. “I know that a lot of people like to be able to see the invoices and that aspect of an open government. I’d really like to encourage that and bring that to Montague.”

In an interview Wednesday, Desroches cited Montague’s reputation for financial stability, along with the “slowed-down pace” of a Selectboard system, as some of the primary motivations for her move to Montague. She referred to the job offer as an “excellent opportunity” she could not turn down.

Having served in Greenfield’s Finance Department since 2017, Desroches described her tenure as being, at times, “tumultuous,” as different mayoral administrations brought about turnover. Elizabeth Gilman, former finance director, helped show Desroches the ropes of municipal accounting and finance when she started out.

“When I first started, I was a year in and the finance director at that time departed the city, and then I had the great opportunity of working under Elizabeth Gilman, who did an incredible amount of training and grooming and helping me become who I am. When she stepped out, it’s just been kind of an up-and-down roller coaster,” Desroches said. “Trying to seek some stability would be another reason [for the move to Montague].”

When then-Finance Director Diana Parsons stepped down four months ago, just as the city was drafting its fiscal year 2025 budget, Desroches said she was tasked with taking on some of Parsons’ responsibilities — an added workload that she said gave her valuable experience in municipal finance.

Desroches said Carolyn Olsen, who has served as Montague town accountant for nearly three decades and announced earlier this year her plans to retire, initially referred her to the job opening.

“I can feel confident that all the work that I’ve put into my records is going to be properly maintained going into the future,” Olsen told the Greenfield Recorder in July, saying that Desroches is “incredibly well-qualified.”

Greenfield accounting

Desroches’ role as Greenfield city accountant will be filled by the city’s Human Resources Account Manager Katherine Cabrera-Veloz.

Cabrera-Veloz holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo and a certification in municipal accounting from Greenfield Community College. She is in the process of completing her associate’s degree in accounting at Holyoke Community College. She has professional experience in payroll processing, auditing, accounts payable and other financial dynamics.

“I realized that I personally like accounting more than other aspects of administration I did,” Cabrera-Veloz said. “I am just trying to collaborate with the Finance Department and ensure that Greenfield continues to prosper in the years to come. We want to continue the city’s tradition of fiscal management, and I’m just excited to establish that dynamic with the current staff and to collaborate with the current goals of the city.”

During her transition to the role, Cabrera-Veloz will work with Lynn Nenni, a certified accountant with more than 15 years of experience as a municipal finance director. Nenni will serve on an interim basis for the city over the next several months to ensure a smooth transition throughout the department.

“I am confident Katherine Cabrera-Veloz will be a terrific fit as our new accountant,” Mayor Ginny Desorgher said in a statement. “She displayed great energy and productivity during her time in our Human Resources Department. I am happy to have her stepping into this important role with a great support system around her.”

Greenfield Communications Director Matthew Conway noted in an interview Wednesday that as the city fills its vacancies, more experienced officials are stepping in to pass along institutional knowledge to the new hires.

In addition to the hiring a new finance director, former procurement official Phil Wartel will rejoin the city’s procurement office on an interim basis starting Aug. 26. The city is interviewing candidates for the procurement position, with several interviews scheduled this week. Wartel will help train the new full-time staff member.

“We have two people with decades of municipal experience coming in to help shepherd this transition,” Conway said. “Losing institutional knowledge in municipalities is one of the great challenges anytime there’s turnover. This plan we have in place is really to establish that institutional knowledge and make sure that there is a great understanding of municipal finance practices.”

“Addressing vacancies while maintaining institutional knowledge within the municipality can often be challenging,” Desorgher said in a statement. “I think the plan we have established with our Finance Department going forward achieves a terrific balance. Lynn Nenni and Phil Wartel possess decades of municipal finance experience and will be tremendous assets for our city.”

Anthony Cammalleri can be reached at acammalleri@recorder.com or 413-930-4429. Erin-Leigh Hoffman can be reached at ehoffman@recorder.com or 413-930-4231.