Low voter turnout has allowed Gabe Quinto to keep his seat on the Council. As readers of this blog will likely surmise, this author is not pleased. Akin to a few other Contra Costa County results like the Sherriff’s and County Assessor’s races, El Cerrito lacks accountability, transparency and humanity in El Cerrito. Even so,Continue reading “Low Voter Turnout”
Category Archives: City Council Meetings
El Cerrito Election Links
There is still time to vote! Do you need to cram to catch up on the issues? If so, this post is for you! You can find many of the essential links here. Enjoy! Web pages Vanessa Warheit’s web page Vanessa Warheit’s YouTube Channel Carolyn Wysinger’s web page Gabe Quinto’s web page Disclosures El CerritoContinue reading “El Cerrito Election Links“
Conflict of Interest
In this town, things are getting worse. They have scheduled an event titled “Lunch with El Cerrito’s Mayor and City Manager,” where members of the public join them to have a conversation with Mayor Gabe Quinto and City Manager Karen Pinkos on the latest happenings in the City of El Cerrito, and what’s next forContinue reading “Conflict of Interest”
Do Nothing City Council continues to do nothing even as the State moves El Cerrito to #6 on the state high risk list
Today the State Auditor released their annual list of cities at high risk of financial difficulties. This list is based on FY 18/19 figures which was a better year for many municipalities. However, El Cerrito dropped from #7 to #6 largely based on lack of reserves (El Cerrito not only has no reserve but owesContinue reading “Do Nothing City Council continues to do nothing even as the State moves El Cerrito to #6 on the state high risk list”
We are alarmed but refuse to take action-City Council meeting 10/20/2020
But they refuse to take action! Councilperson Pardue-Okimoto was once again the lone voice saying make cuts now. As you can see from the below statement included in the packet we are at 11% of revenues with 25% of the year completed. Now there is an issue with the city getting our Transfer Tax moneyContinue reading “We are alarmed but refuse to take action-City Council meeting 10/20/2020”
More of the same inaction from El Cerrito City Council on the budget-When is enough enough?
The El Cerrito City Council continues to refuse to take real action on the budget. I will start this post by stating that Councilperson Rochelle Pardue-Okimoto was a superstar during the meeting and she would have taken action. I will also be honest and say that I did not watch the entire meeting. I didContinue reading “More of the same inaction from El Cerrito City Council on the budget-When is enough enough?”
Budget Update
On September 15th City Council met and discussed two items in regards to the budget. The meeting was over 4.5 hours and it is not a reasonable expectation that most people will listen to it all. I will confess I listened to 2+ hours only. The first item was regarding the Finance Department’s monthly reports.Continue reading “Budget Update”
New Proposed Budget Book is out
The City Council has its next meeting on September 15, 2020, at 7 pm. Here is the link to the e-packet-the budget information starts on page 121. This is a lot of information to digest. The City continues to not disseminate this information in a manner that is accessible to a resident that does not haveContinue reading “New Proposed Budget Book is out”
The City takes some budget actions
At the City Council meeting on May 5, 2020 some budget announcements were made. The link to the video is below and the budget discussion started 4 hours in. The city announced furloughs for management and SEIU staff. That is 45 SEUI staff and 25 Management staff. They will be furloughed one day every twoContinue reading “The City takes some budget actions”
Key decisions coming soon: Make your voices heard!
Today we have a post by another member of the group. Whatever your opinions are we encourage you to make your voice heard! Information on public comment for the April 21st meeting are at the bottom of the page. I will post with information on agenda items prior to the meeting on the 21st. AtContinue reading “Key decisions coming soon: Make your voices heard!”
April 7th Council Meeting-More Talk No Real Action
The April 7th El Cerrito City Council meeting had the budget on the agenda. Staff used the $150 an hour consultants to make new slides saying how bad things are. One slide said that we are at risk of an 8 million dollar deficit in the next fiscal year. This is even with the 2Continue reading “April 7th Council Meeting-More Talk No Real Action”
April 7th City Council Meeting to address first level budget cuts
The agenda and packet are out for the April 7th City council meeting. There had been some discussion that there would be no cuts until September but the agenda includes some recommended cuts totaling $1,631,848. Pages 214-220 of the packet address the financial crisis and have some proposed cuts. It looks like once again the city hasContinue reading “April 7th City Council Meeting to address first level budget cuts”
City Council Meeting June 4, 2019-City Manager and Finance Director say it is all okay.
In November 2018, the independent auditor expressed the going concern statement for the second year in a row. It appears in the CAFR. In the June 4, 2019, meeting the city finance director expressed the view things were improving and the going concern statement would likely go away. This was backed up by Karen. WhenContinue reading “City Council Meeting June 4, 2019-City Manager and Finance Director say it is all okay.”
City Council Meeting February 4, 2020
Last night there was a council meeting with the budget situation on the agenda. Here is the link to the video and packet. Here are some observations from two of us who watched the meeting. It did appear to both of us that council is now taking this issue very very seriously which is aContinue reading “City Council Meeting February 4, 2020”
El Cerrito Committee for Responsible Government (ECCRG) 