After 12 years as Assistant City Manager, Karen Pinkos became City Manager on January 1, 2019. Since then, several disturbing events have happened under her watch, yet she acknowledges none, nor has she addressed these significant and catastrophic issues.
As the City Manager conducts business as usual, she has two patented phrases. One of her phrases is… “not on my watch!”
Well, this happened on your watch:
- State Auditors Report: In a state audit conducted in 2021, El Cerrito’s financial practices were found to be severely lacking, pushing the city dangerously close to bankruptcy. This audit placed El Cerrito among the ten most mismanaged cities in the area. Unfortunately, the situation has not significantly improved, as the city now ranks 13th worst out of over 400 California cities.
- BBB- Bond Rating: Prior to Karen Pinkos assuming the role of City Manager, El Cerrito enjoyed a prestigious A+ bond rating. However, shortly after her tenure began in 2018, the city’s bond rating plummeted to BBB-, just shy of a junk bond status.
- Costly Sexual Harassment Settlement: El Cerrito faced financial distress and bankruptcy threats, yet the city paid out over half a million dollars for a settlement and the city has failed to implement policies to prevent future occurrences.
- Unfunded Pension Liability: El Cerrito’s failure to align pension payments with its unfunded liability has resulted in an enormous $85 million pension liability. While the city allocated $1 million for the Section 115 trust, it is not legally obligated to use these funds to reduce the unfunded liability. The city’s financial future is at risk, with potential recommendations for bankruptcy by the state.
- High Turnover in Finance Director Position: The city has had three Finance Directors during the last two years. The city’s toxic work environment led to the shortest tenure of a Finance Director who could have helped rectify its financial issues. The replacement, a much less experienced Finance Director, has been unable to provide accurate financial reports, even placing year-to-date numbers in a column designated for quarter-to-date figures.
The City Manager’s second favorite phrase claims both Accountability and Transparency. We saw this consistently repeated in each mailer for the Library tax, yet The City Manager’s actions reflect an entirely different story. Read on:
- Lack of Accountability in Leadership: No performance standards exist for city leadership, including the City Manager. This lack of accountability allows for a range of conduct without consequences and zero performance standards. The lack of accountability leads to the second item:
- Telling a Subordinate to STFU: In a recent October 3rd incident, the City Manager was heard using inappropriate profane language and telling the Director of Public Works to be silent. Such mismanagement of anger not only impacts the well-being of the staff but also exposes the City to potential additional legal actions by its employees.
- Transparency and Accountability Concerns: The Financial Advisory Board (FAB) meetings, once recorded during the previous Finance Director’s tenure, are no longer recorded. Unfortunately, her position excludes the public from accessing the proceedings unless they are physically present. This allows the City Manager to control the narrative surrounding these meetings, potentially biasing the commentary to her advantage.
- Circumventing the Financial Advisory Board: Many high-value items are not presented to the Financial Advisory Board (FAB) for consideration. For example, the City’s initiative for the analysis of the Library costs was not presented to FAB. Recent additions to the City’s budget were not presented to the FAB for consideration. Furthermore, collaborating with a group she consistently bypasses is simply not possible. FAB agendas posted here.
- Including Financial reports in the City Council packet, but no mention on the agenda. This tactic circumvents any meaningful discussion about the City’s budget performance. Further, only those astute Citizens who read all 167 pages of the October 17th packet can find the 5-10 pages of financial statements that have been buried within.
- Furthermore, the City Manager often presents items for FAB and City Council approval at the last minute, leaving no room for meaningful changes. This rushed decision-making has resulted in ill-advised choices that have pushed the city to the brink of bankruptcy.
All these events have occurred during her tenure as a highly compensated City Manager. Any one of these infractions should be cause for considerable concern, yet the Citizens of El Cerrito are stuck with a litany of transgressions and poor performance by someone who should perform at a much higher level.
El Cerrito’s financial and operational management is in dire straits, with numerous issues stemming from a lack of governance, transparency, accountability, and prudent decision-making. Addressing these concerns is crucial to prevent further financial deterioration and to restore the city’s fiscal health and the well-being of city staff.
Your Thoughts? What are your experiences with city services in El Cerrito? Do you see similar issues, or do you have a different perspective? Share your stories and suggestions for how our city can improve. Let’s start a conversation for change.
Here is how you can help:
- Share this post with other residents.
- Comment on the post
- Attend the monthly Financial Advisory Board meetings in person.
- Post on Next Door
- Voice your concerns with the Council.
- Council meetings are remote and in-person, but public comment is now limited to in-person attendees.
If you want to contact City Council Members or the City Managers, all their emails are below:
- Karen Pinkos-City Manager kpinkos@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us
- Councilperson Gabe Quinto gquinto@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us
- Councilperson Carolyn Wysinger cywysinger@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us
- Councilperson Tessa Rudnick trudnick@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us
- Mayor Lisa Motoyama lmotoyama@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us
- Councilperson Paul Fadelli pfadelli@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us
El Cerrito Committee for Responsible Government (ECCRG) 