Opinion: City Council and staff, listen to what Council Member William Ktsanes has to say about finances and priorities. He speaks for many of us.

By Betty Buginas

This message will be submitted to the city clerk prior to the July 7 city council meeting as public comment for inclusion with the meeting materials. Written public comments are posted online by the city with the meeting documents. [UPDATE: No public comment for items not on the agenda scheduled for July 7; This will be submitted for a future meeting when public comments on items not on the agenda are accepted.]

I am writing to support the comments made by Council Member William Ktsanes at the June 16 City Council meeting. Ktsanes speaks for many El Cerrito residents when he says he wants the city to manage its finances more responsibly and begin budgeting for much-needed improvements, such as a new public safety building, community center repairs, and to support El Cerrito seniors.

He was spot on when he said the city needs to show a good faith effort to set aside funds for important needs before it comes back to voters to ask for more money.

What was most shocking was the disrespect with which he was treated at the June 16 meeting by other city council members and amazingly, by city staff. I’d like to draw your attention to the city organizational chart which shows the city council - all the members - above the city staff.

Ktsanes has gained a lot of respect since his election for listening to the community and is frankly spoken of in higher regard than the rest of the council. When you disrespect him, you disrespect us.

The arguments made against his proposal were ridiculous - that the money would have to come from somewhere, and it isn’t the right time to bring this up. 

Of course the money has to come from somewhere, but if the city acknowledged the importance of this earlier, it would have been in the budget before all the money was committed to other things. You wouldn’t need to tell him it’s his job to figure out what to cut.  As long as there’s money for rushed elections, city council member travel, and paying someone to facilitate council retreats, there’s money to set aside to keep our police and firefighters safe, care for senior citizens, and take care of our most treasured public buildings. Even small amounts send a message about your priorities. 

It’s always a good time to show that you’re listening to the will of the voters, who said loud and clear with the defeat of Measure C that we want you to be more fiscally responsible. And I don’t buy the argument that this is the first time Ktsanes has brought up his concerns. He’s been talking about these issues since he ran for city council.

City council members talk openly of having discussions with city staff ahead of meetings. This idea of conducting the public business in private, and then trying to make everything look rosy during public meetings and icing out a dissenter, is not what the Brown Act had in mind. We need more spirited debate among the council members, not less. It can be done in a respectful manner. I’ve seen many city council members thoughtfully disagree with each other and remain civil, and come up with better decisions because of it. You can do it too.

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Image is a screenshot from the recording of the June 16 El Cerrito City Council meeting. The transcript is part of the recording.