As a recent transplant to El Cerrito in the wake of the pandemic, my partner and I often reflect on our decision to settle here. Drawn by its fantastic views of the Bay Area, convenient location near San Francisco and East Contra Costa County, along with access to two BART stations, we saw potential in this community. The warmth and friendliness of El Cerrito’s residents, coupled with the charm of local coffee shops, initially seemed to validate our choice.
However, one aspect that has repeatedly given me pause is the Real Property Transfer Tax. Despite its significant cost, the lack of clarity regarding how this revenue is used has been frustrating. While I’ve sought insights from various sources, including the Next Door app, I’ve found that accurate information is scarce but there are a few people who have some legitimate insights. While this did not lead to new information on the property tax, this has led to unsettling discoveries about the city’s practices, particularly the opacity with which it handles public information.
The advice to attend City Council Meetings was an eye-opener. My initial remote participation, dictated by travel obligations and curiosity about the council’s operations, revealed a lack of transparency. Documents spanning hundreds of pages left out key issues from the agenda, and the council’s non-engagement with public comments, both during and after meetings, was disheartening.
Opting to attend in person only intensified my observations. The dynamics within the council ranged from members who seemed to relish the attention to others who provided thoughtful insights, albeit infrequently. In a separate conversation, a particular interaction caught my attention: a council member’s evasive response to inquiries about implementing state auditor recommendations, concluding with a dismissive “We can’t be perfect.”
This experience has led me to a simple yet profound conclusion: El Cerrito must strive for better. The community doesn’t expect perfection but demands accountability and solutions to the challenges we face. Ignoring these issues only exacerbates them, creating obstacles that could have been avoided. It’s time for El Cerrito to embrace transparency, engage with its residents, and openly address and work toward solving its problems.
El Cerrito Committee for Responsible Government (ECCRG) 
Hi! I’m also a new resident of El Cerrito and am appalled by everything I’ve read on this website. The fiscal mismanagement isn’t a new phenomenon
and I’m mystified. Where’s the outrage from citizens who’ve lived in this town for years? Has there ever been candidates running for mayor and/or city council who have exposed this travesty? I just don’t get it! Where they voted down or is it just inertia? If anyone can explain this please let me know. Thanks!
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Thank you for engaging with this topic. The persistence of these issues can be attributed to several factors. Firstly, the council members elected by the city have shown a lack of capacity to tackle these challenges effectively. Secondly, the City Manager, who assumed her role through succession, has unfortunately steered us toward a financial brink. The aim of this blog is to shed light on these pressing matters. It is hoped that by bringing these issues to the forefront, residents will feel motivated to advocate for meaningful reforms within the council or to support candidates who truly have the community’s interests at heart in future elections.
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Unfortunately the attitude of this city council to the long-term problems of this city can best be depicted as an ostrich with its head in the sand. It’s clear to me that the council and the manager’s incentives are just not aligned with the interests of the city.
The last city council meeting where they were discussing the the mid-year budget update (March 5, 2024), the finance director noted that the revenue from the transfer tax was lower than expected due to the slow real estate market stemming from high interest rates.
Quinto, never the one shy to pat the council on the back, commented that he expects the revenue to “get back on track” because his “contacts at the federal level” told him that interest rates would decrease in the spring, and this would boost revenues. While I appreciate his optimism, if he does have insider knowledge on how interest rates are going to move, I’d love it if he could confirm so we could exploit some easy arbitrage opportunities in the market.
Unfortunately optimism is not enough: transfer tax revenues will not reach the levels seen during COVID unless we see historically-low negative real interest rates again, which aren’t likely anytime soon. Until then, it would be nice if we could get real about the health of this city’s finances.
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