Board Lauds Work of Nate Scott; Picks Expert Mountain Climber For Job
Rick Langenberg
In yet the latest passing of the town torch regarding Green Mountain Falls’ ever-changing clerk/treasurer position, an official oath was presented last week to Boulos “Bou” Ayad of Florissant.
The new GMF finance chief, based on social media reports, sports much experience as a real estate pro, business operator and mountain climber.
He will assume the position held by Nate Scott for the last year, and earlier by Matt Gordon, who left to take a job in Brush, Colorado.
Only this time, no harsh, departing words were conveyed regarding town politics. Gordon ran the town’s clerk/treasurer operations during a rather rough tumultuous period, capped by fights over paid-parking, trail closures and COVID restrictions.
When Gordon left, the former clerk didn’t depart quietly, lashing out at some of the town’s frequent government critics.
This trend didn’t repeat itself in the latest resignation saga, although this amounted to probably the fourth departure of a clerk/treasurer chief in the last six or so years for GMF.
Scott recently announced his decision to step down, to pursue opportunities in the Colorado Springs area. Besides his role as clerk/treasurer, Scott was heavily involved with the planning commission, almost serving as a mini-planning consultant for the town.
At last week’s meeting, the contributions of Scott were recognized.
In turn, Scott complimented Town Manager Becky Frank. Both Scott and Frank emerged as the finalists for the town manager spot at little more than a year ago.
The trustees picked Frank, but were impressed with both candidates, and opted to have Scott serve as clerk/treasurer.
Scott admitted last week that the trustees made the right decision in picking Frank, and said the two have worked together well. But he cited another opportunity and lifestyle change that he couldn’t pass up.
“Bou should be a good fit for the town,” said Scott, following last week’s meeting. Scott, though, will still assist the town on an as-needed basis, especially in the planning arena.
Ayad has worked in real estate for the last decade, winning several notable accolades in the industry and serving as an agent for Compass. In addition, he ran a large outdoor/mountaineer business, overseeing 30-plus employees. A graduate of Colorado University at Boulder, Ayad also sports a strong academic background, with his father serving as an anthropology professor for 40-plus years.
Ayad, in fact, is quite a mountaineer and climber himself, scaling some of the most renown peaks in North and South America, some of which have extended above the 20,000-foot range. His treks almost conjure up images some of the stories recanted by Colorado author Jon Krakauer, only with better endings than that described in the famous “Into Thin Air” epic.
A graduate of Colorado University at Boulder, Ayad also sports a strong academic background, with his father serving as an anthropology professor for 40-plus years. According to a social media posts, Ayad cites his expertise in business, management, customer service and carpentry.
He has lived extensively in Colorado. “I am really looking forward to this position,” said Ayad, following last week’s meeting. “I love this town.”
The GMF post will mark Ayad’s first major position with a local municipal government.
“He definitely was the best candidate for the job,” said Mayor Todd Dixon. The mayor especially cited Ayad’s business achievements
He said the town did receive inquiries from several top candidates, since the job vacancy was announced in early January.
As for priorities in the position, Dixon said the town wanted to have the new clerk/treasurer concentrate more on the day-to-day operations associated with this job, and not undertake the planning role as much. “I think that was putting too much on Nate (Scott),” said the mayor.
He expressed regret as far as the town losing Scott, and admitted this job has faced the pitfalls of becoming a revolving-door position.
“Green Mountain Falls is a small community,” said the mayor, who said the fact that individuals take this job and pursue other opportunities shortly after is a reality leaders must contend with.
“We don’t have that much opportunity for growth. We continue to have a high-turnover rate.”
Besides picking a new clerk, the town will soon pick a planning contractor to assist the town with specific projects. Even though GMF is a small community, the town is not shy about pursuing some big-dollar infrastructure grant investments, which could near the $10 million price range when the final bills are tallied (see related story).
