The city of Suffolk has initiated an independent financial analysis and as a result some people are imitating Chicken Little. There is room for concern as it relates to the city’s financial condition n but it isn’t time to claim that the sky is falling.

According to the report, provided by an outside agency, there are some good things going on and some things that are perceived questionable. Some positives are that Suffolk is trending well in population growth, income growth and a few other areas. They also received praise for collecting revenue. Unfortunately according to the report, there are a number of discrepancies when compared to “standards of practice” in municipal finance that, as a result, have raised a number of eyebrows concerning the city’s fiscal management.

Perhaps the Mayor, Linda T. Johnson, said it best at Wednesday’s council meeting when she said, “This is just the beginning.” Several pieces of information need to be compiled before the end of this evaluation, which include getting the “other side of the story” as a few councilmen have requested.

The city is in need of some constructive criticism, but it would be wise to wait until the full the process is complete before jumping to conclusions.