LYNNFIELD — Lexington’s loss is Lynnfield’s gain with new town Assessor Michael Golden’s property assessing experience and private sector appraisal skills brought to his new job.
Golden’s responsibilities encompass assessing town property at full and fair market value under the parameters set by Proposition 2½, the state’s property tax limitation law.
Five years experience as the Town of Lexington’s assessor saw Golden manage two assistants and assess more than 14,000 properties. He was the Town of Weston’s assistant assessor from 2013-2015 and compared the western suburb to Lynnfield with roughly 3,400 properties in each community.
“Working in Lexington and Weston is very comparable. Lynnfield is like those two communities, a blend of old and new,” Golden said.
The Reading resident initially applied for the Lynnfield assessing post four years ago.
“I didn’t get the job I think because I didn’t have management experience. Weston has a small office so I never managed a staff,” Golden said.
He hit the ground running last month in Town Hall and credits assistant Marie Gardner with helping him.
“So far it’s been good. I have all my passwords and usernames, so now I just need to get up to speed on Lynnfield in general and inventory,” he said.
Golden worked in 2013 for the Town of Stoneham and Patriot Properties, a major property inventory firm.
“A friend of mine Dave Nugent, who played football at BC, brought me in to see his bosses at Whittier in Boston. I wasn’t keen on a commute to Boston, so he recommended I talk with Dave Brown, who had a family business in Stoneham, and he took me on board (of assessors),” Golden said.
He loves his short commute from Reading to Lynnfield and back home where Golden and his wife, Kelly, have a son, Shawn, a senior who hopes to play hockey in college.
Golden’s hockey reputation almost overshadows his professional experience.
He is a former Hobey Baker Trophy (best college player in America) finalist in 1987-1988. He was drafted by Edmonton in the second round, the 40th overall pick coming out of Reading High.
While attending the University of Maine, Golden was traded to the New York Rangers and signed a contract with them.
“I had never really had an injury, but the summer before I started with the Rangers, I fractured my left ankle. It happened one week before the start of camp. That wiped out my rookie year and I only played 18 games,” Golden said.
A skating injury to his left foot translated into a prolonged recovery including seven weeks in Massachusetts General Hospital.
He lasted one more year playing for the Milwaukee Admirals before “I saw the handwriting on the wall.”
He spent a year working for American Retail Properties on a team selling leases and started a 10-year career with Brown Associates as an appraiser and consultant before making the jump from the private sector to the public when he took the job in Stoneham.
