El Cerrito residents already pay a dedicated pool tax, yet the City Council is now considering using more of the General Fund reserves to repair the Swim Center’s lap pool. This isn’t about a lack of funding — it’s about how the City has managed (or failed to manage) the money it already collects. AContinue reading “Why El Cerrito Needs a Capital Renewal Plan Now”
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El Cerrito Needs Fiscally Responsible Leadership — Not More Endorsements of the Status Quo
Courtney Helion has formed a campaign committee to run for El Cerrito City Council again in 2026, which signals that either Gabe or Carolyn will not seek re-election. In her previous campaign, Courtney was backed by former Mayor Greg Lyman, who helped send the city into near bankruptcy, is a proponent of new taxes andContinue reading “El Cerrito Needs Fiscally Responsible Leadership — Not More Endorsements of the Status Quo”
El Cerrito’s Selective Spending: Expert Voices Without Expertise
From a recent social media discussion. At the October 7 City Council meeting, the Council considered authorizing an additional $391,000 to Ghirardelli Associates for “construction management services” related to the El Cerrito Del Norte Transit-Oriented Development Complete Streets Project. This wasn’t a competitive bid. It was a contract extension, justified by claims that the originalContinue reading “El Cerrito’s Selective Spending: Expert Voices Without Expertise”
Too Many Staff, Too Little Service
Staffing Levels: A Key Driver of Payroll, Pension Costs, and Declining Productivity El Cerrito’s staffing structure is significantly larger and more expensive than those of peer cities of similar size. This isn’t just about “overhead” — it’s a major driver of payroll and pension costs that are consuming the city’s operating budget. The city’s $53.8Continue reading “Too Many Staff, Too Little Service”
💰 Taxing Our Way to Maintaining Services Hasn’t Worked
For decades, El Cerrito has responded to fiscal pressures with one familiar tool: more taxes. From parcel taxes and storm drain assessments to multiple sales tax hikes and the 1.2% real property transfer tax, voters have repeatedly been asked to approve new revenue streams to “preserve city services” and “prevent cuts.” Yet today, service levelsContinue reading “💰 Taxing Our Way to Maintaining Services Hasn’t Worked”
The People You’re Leaving Behind
(This blog was influenced by a social media post that raised important concerns about how leadership responds to residents.) Mayor Wysinger, Your handling of the Richmond Street project reflects a troubling disregard for the people who are most vulnerable in this city — the elderly, the disabled, and multigenerational families — and a pattern ofContinue reading “The People You’re Leaving Behind”
El Cerrito Library Proposal: Who Really Benefits?
El Cerrito is moving ahead with plans to build a new library at Fairmount and Liberty, near the Plaza BART station. At first glance, the idea of a modern library sounds appealing—who doesn’t want better facilities for families, students, and lifelong learners? However, upon closer examination, serious disadvantages become apparent. This isn’t about opposing libraries.Continue reading “El Cerrito Library Proposal: Who Really Benefits?”
El Cerrito Deserves Better: Why It’s Time to Move On from Gabe Quinto
For more than a decade, Councilmember Gabe Quinto has sat on the El Cerrito City Council. With his visibility at community events and a polished public persona, he’s managed to remain in office. But when you peel back the layers, one fact becomes undeniable: he has done nothing to strengthen this city or to meetContinue reading “El Cerrito Deserves Better: Why It’s Time to Move On from Gabe Quinto”
Bond Ratings Up, But Paid For With Your Taxes and One-Time Funds
Federal relief dollars, new taxes, and emergency fund raids aren’t financial stewardship — they’re passing the buck. In the September 2025 City Manager’s report, El Cerrito highlighted what it framed as good news: S&P Global Ratings raised the City’s bond ratings to A+ and A-, with a positive outlook for future upgrades. This was presentedContinue reading “Bond Ratings Up, But Paid For With Your Taxes and One-Time Funds”
El Cerrito Needs An Overhaul—Not Cosmetic Fixes
El Cerrito’s problems run far deeper than budget shortfalls and service delays. They are systemic—rooted in a culture of poor financial stewardship, opaque decision-making, and an entrenched unwillingness to hold leadership accountable. These challenges cannot be resolved by tinkering at the margins or by trusting the same people who created them to suddenly reverse course.Continue reading “El Cerrito Needs An Overhaul—Not Cosmetic Fixes”
Grasping at Straws
Proponents of the massive and costly library are grasping at straws. Some community members and leaders in El Cerrito argue that our city’s library is underused because it is “too old.” The implication is that if only we spent $75 million or more on a massive and costly new facility, people would suddenly flock backContinue reading “Grasping at Straws”
Image First, City A Distant Second
The City Manager is supposed to be the city’s CEO and chief strategist — the person responsible for setting priorities, stewarding resources, and ensuring residents receive the services they depend on. But in El Cerrito, the record tells a different story. The City hasn’t really recovered from her lack of focus. El Cerrito’s finances remainContinue reading “Image First, City A Distant Second”
A $75+ Million Gamble El Cerrito Can’t Afford
El Cerrito voters are being asked to consider a massive $75 million+ tax measure for a new library. But before agreeing to decades of new taxes, residents deserve to ask a simple question: what guarantee do we have that this library will ever get built? The city’s current plan relies on the construction of aContinue reading “A $75+ Million Gamble El Cerrito Can’t Afford”
The False Choice Between Expenses and Services
One of the most overused lines from El Cerrito’s city leadership is: “Cutting expenses means cutting services.” It’s a simplistic and frankly idiotic statement that City Manager Karen Pinkos and Councilmember Lisa Motoyama have repeated so often they seem to believe it themselves. If that logic were true, the reverse would also be true: addingContinue reading “The False Choice Between Expenses and Services”
The True Cost of the Swim Center Proposals
El Cerrito residents are once again being asked to absorb multimillion-dollar expenses, this time for Swim Center improvements. The numbers presented at the council meeting tell only part of the story. When you read the details, the costs are far higher than what was initially suggested. Option 2: Partial Scope – $2.3 Million This optionContinue reading “The True Cost of the Swim Center Proposals”
El Cerrito’s Library Plan: Big Price Tag, Shrinking Foot Traffic
The City of El Cerrito is pushing ahead with plans for a 21,000 square-foot library at a cost of over $75 million—and the price could ultimately reach $100 million. The proposed funding mechanism? A $300 per year parcel tax that residents would be locked into forever with periodic escalation. At first glance, investing in publicContinue reading “El Cerrito’s Library Plan: Big Price Tag, Shrinking Foot Traffic”
El Cerrito Library: Public Safety Data Reveals Risks
In August 2019, a consultant hired by the City of El Cerrito flagged several potential issues with building a new library at the Plaza site. Even then, concerns about safety and accessibility were part of the conversation. Fast forward to today, and fresh analysis of police incident data suggests those concerns may have been well-founded.Continue reading “El Cerrito Library: Public Safety Data Reveals Risks”
El Cerrito’s Senior Center: A Promise the City Has Chosen to Forget
In March 2016, the El Cerrito City Council made a clear and unanimous commitment to its residents. Under then-Mayor Greg Lyman, the council voted for the Portola site as the location for a new library and explicitly rejected the “library-only” plan. Instead, they approved Proposal 1b, which included adequate space for a new senior center—aContinue reading “El Cerrito’s Senior Center: A Promise the City Has Chosen to Forget”
Understanding California’s Sunshine Ordinance
In today’s age of information, transparency in government is more than just a buzzword—it’s a fundamental pillar of democracy. Across California, the idea of a “Sunshine Ordinance” has come to symbolize the state’s commitment to keeping government operations open, accountable, and accessible to the public. While there isn’t one single, statewide sunshine ordinance, a mixContinue reading “Understanding California’s Sunshine Ordinance”
Rethinking El Cerrito’s Library Expansion: A Community Approach
A recent East Bay Times article highlights the undeniable challenges facing El Cerrito’s public library: it’s overcrowded, outdated, and seismically unsafe. No one disputes that the current facility falls short of what the community deserves (see the full article here). But the article stops short of asking an equally important question—what’s the most responsible and sustainableContinue reading “Rethinking El Cerrito’s Library Expansion: A Community Approach”
El Cerrito Committee for Responsible Government (ECCRG) 