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An Interesting Observation from Clayton Watch

Clayton, CA

Kris Loftus, our recently hired city manager, had his six-month evaluation this past Tuesday during the City Council meeting. Interestingly, there was no line of divisive speakers demanding that the city retain Kris. This stands in stark contrast to the six-month evaluation of our previous city manager, Bret Prebula. At that time, Prebula, despite his struggles in the role, organized citizens and employees to speak on his behalf.

The speakers included those who regularly criticized Jeff Wan, Jim Diaz, and Kim Trupiano, while strongly supporting Holly Tillman. They tried to pressure the city into giving Prebula a favorable review, even though his performance was widely regarded as inadequate. The reason for their support? Prebula shared the same divisive politics as Tillman and others in the group, and unfortunately, tribalism had a significant influence on decision-making.

Since Prebula’s departure, the city has seen marked improvements. Under Kris Loftus’s leadership, our finances have become far more transparent, and his leadership has been well-received by many. Kris is proving to be a manager who prioritizes effective governance and community collaboration. His first six months in office have shown his commitment to moving Clayton forward, and we’re hopeful for the positive changes he will continue to bring to the city.

We look forward to your comments. If you would like to get on our email list, send us a message.

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Clayton City Council - From the Desk of Kim Trupiano 4-1-25

City Council Correspondence: The excerpts below have been sourced from the Diablo Gazette to share with the Clayton Watch Community. You can access the article in the Diablo Gazette's website by following this link: https://www.diablogazette.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Diablo-Gazette-APR-25-16pg-D1.pdf

While we may not always agree with the opinions shared, we believe in facilitating a platform for respectful debates. Thank you for contributing to the ongoing conversation in the comments section. Remember to keep your comments respectful and concise.

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Clayton Community Library Celebrates 30 Years 

Clayton Library

Thank you Joyce Atkinson, Jeanne Boyd (posthumously) and Diana Bauer for dreaming big and making the hope of a library in Clayton a reality over 30 years ago. These women, with the help of the Clayton Branch of the AAUW (American Association of University Women) decide in 1989 that the Clayton community needed to build a library. They formed a steering committee made up of many organizations across the community and in July of that year formed the Clayton Community Library Foundation, created to raise money for the project.

Over the next five years fundraising takes place, including book sales, crab feeds, and a multitude of grant applications resulting in one large grant of $2.8 million from Prop 85 in 1991. A groundbreaking ceremony happened on March 12, 1994, and later that year, the City approved $542,000 for book collection. After all of the demanding work, extraordinary vision and determination, on March 4, 1995, the Clayton Community Library opens its doors.

It is because of the efforts of these three women and lots of other volunteers and donors who supported the library then and continue to do so today, that we celebrate 30 Years of the Clayton Community Library this month.

Today the library is testament to the community and visited by thousands of people a year who will find, besides a vast assortment of books and publications, a variety of activities and classes including Tai Chi, Chair Yoga and Meditation, Story Time for children, Art Classes and Teen events, Book Clubs and so much more.

To coincide with the 30th Anniversary of the library, the City will be embarking on a refresh project later this year that will include new paint, carpeting, improved lighting, furniture and other design elements and CCLF is hoping to have some celebratory events throughout the year to commemorate the anniversary. Also, save the date for the next Book Sale, on May 17 and 18 (May 16 for members only).

The Clayton Community Library stands as a testament to the strength, commitment and caring that so many of our residents perform day in and day out to make our community a better place. Thank you Joyce, Jeanne and Diana for being shining examples of that.

Other City News

Each month the City is awarding an Unsung Hero Award to someone making a significant difference in our community. We honored Linda Pinder for the month of January and Paul Jordan for the month of February. For March, we will be honoring Joyce Atkinson, Jeanne Boyd (posthumously) and Diana Bauer. If you have suggestions about future Unsung Heroes, please feel free to contact me at 925.673.7324 or kimt@claytonca. gov.

City Council Meeting Summary - Jeff Wan 3-18-25

City Council Correspondence: The excerpts below have been sourced from the website of council member Jeff Wan to share with the Clayton Watch Community. You can access council member Wan's website by following this link: https://www.jeffwanforclaytoncitycouncil.net

While we may not always agree with the opinions shared, we believe in facilitating a platform for respectful debates. Thank you for contributing to the ongoing conversation in the comments section. Remember to keep your comments respectful and concise.

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Jeff Wan

At our last Council meeting we discussed several significant items. The majority of time was spent on the Biennial Pavement Assessment Report, which I will go into further details below.

- We received a report on the mid year budget. There were a few increases in spending that were authorized by Council (painting/carpeting at City Hall, and a new riding lawnmower), but other than that the results at mid year were in line with expectations. There were various puts and takes, the most significant being increases in contractor spend that was offset by lower compensation expense due to staff vacancies.

Excluding the general fund appropriation ($230K) that was approved with the adoption of the budget, overall the City is projecting a deficit of approximately $110K at year end.

- We discussed a potential pilot program for sidewalk repairs. Sidewalks in front of residents property are the responsibility of the property owner, however the sidewalk if primarily on City property. As a result, if sidewalks create a hazardous situation, the City is potentially liable along with the homeowner. Combine this with the fact that sidewalk repair is often very expensive, the City is seeking ways to mitigate risk and assist homeowners in fulfilling their responsibility.

There was general consensus that the City was not interested in subsidizing the cost of sidewalk repairs directly. We considered a few different options that included the City facilitating the repair and billing the homeowner, as well as exploring joining other neighboring cities' sidewalk repair program that utilizes a network of qualified professionals. A larger program may provide benefits of scale. Ultimately the Council gave direction to staff to seek more information and report back.

- Most of the discussion was around the pavement assessment report we received. Overall Pavement Condition Index (PCI) of the City is approximately 73. The scale is out of 100, and is divided into four general condition categories. Pavements in “Good” condition have a PCI above 70, pavements in “Fair” condition have a PCI between 50 and 69, pavements in “Poor” condition have a PCI between 25 and 49, and finally pavements in “Failed” condition have a PCI below 25. Here are examples roads with different PCI values:



While a score of 73 is considered "good", it also reflects consistent and steady declines over the last 10 years.



The table above shows the current score of 73, with a score of 85 in 2016. This table also illustrates the work that has been done on City streets. We typically do work every two years in order to get slightly lower costs with larger scale. The work scheduled in 2020 was postponed due to COVID.

Picking the streets to work on is a bit counterintuitive. At first it may seem logical to pick the streets that are in the worst condition. However, rehabilitating these streets is also the most costly. With limited funds, the entire pool could be consumed with 1 or 2 streets, leaving the rest of the streets in the city to continue to deteriorate through normal wear and tear. As a result, it is often more cost efficient to do maintenance on a streets in better condition, as maintaining current conditions is less expensive in the long run, and more areas of the city could be improved.

The City uses a program called StreetSaver. This program is designed to maximize PCI overall in the City based on the amount of funds available. Because it costs more to rehabilitate streets in poor condition often StreetSaver will not select the streets in the worst condition for maintenance and rehabilitation work.

Given the steady decline in PCI overall, it is important to determine what level of funding is necessary to maintain the current road conditions. Each year we receive approximately $1M in our share of gas tax, and other state and local funding. We accumulate these funds and every other year pick streets to do maintenance on in order to improve the road condition and the overall PCI.

Based on analysis, in order for the City to simply maintain a PCI of 73 that it currently has overall, the City would need to spend approximately $13M over 5 years, or $2.6M/year. Our funding is approximately $1M/year.



Unless the City is able to spend a significantly greater amount on street maintenance and rehabilitation, the conditions of roads in the City will continue to decline. At our current rate of spending, this is the projected outcomes on overall road conditions:



Total general fund revenues for the entire year are projected to be just under $6M. As we enter the budget planning process, we will need to begin a discussion with the community regarding what level of overall services, quality of streets, and maintenance of the City is desired, and what we are willing to pay for.

A link to the detail by street PCI for both the 2025, and 2023 years can be found here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1sUUWREdNL1FC1iccvXJghYzsAv5IhBd4/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=103891531140515892067&rtpof=true&sd=true

- The Oakhurst Geological Hazard Abatement District (GHAD) Board also met and adopted a resolution declaring the intent to increase the overall assessments in the District in accordance with Prop 218. Ballots will be mailed to properties in the district no later than 4/18. There will be a public hearing on 6.3.25 to determine the results of ballots received. More to come on what this means for the GHAD.

Clayton Council to Explore Governance Training - By the Diablo Gazette / Comments by Clayton Watch

The article below is from the Diablo Gazette, March 1, 2025 issue, shared with the Clayton Community.

While we appreciate the coverage of Clayton in the Diablo Gazette (reprinted in black type below), the team at Clayton Watch felt it was important to add some commentary (in blue) throughout the article to provide clarity and offer a more accurate perspective. See the updated version below.

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Featured in the Diablo Gazette, March 1, 2025

Clayton Council to Explore Governance Training

For years City of Clayton has suffered from high staff turnover. Councilmember Holly Tillman has repeatedly asked Council for an independent investigation since October 2023. She felt it was the actions of some of the other councilmembers behavior responsible for the high turnover.

* For over 15 months, Holly Tillman's repeated requests for an investigation were disruptive and wasted time during council meetings. As we have stated in previous articles, the turnover of staff had nothing to do with the council; it was entirely due to two poor hiring decisions. (Past City Managers Reina Schwartz, and Bret Prebula) To read our past articles, click the links below:

1. Holly Tillman: When Did Asking Questions Become a Problem?

2. Clayton Residents: Get the Truth and Know the Facts

3. City of Clayton: It's Time to Get Back on Track

In a March 11, 2024, a Clayton Pioneer editorial by Tamara Steiner elevated the drama stating the “City is in decline” and called for a Grand Jury investigation.

Clayton City Hall is in chaos. It’s time for the Contra Costa Grand Jury to step in for a close look at City Council governance and the behavior of some individual councilmembers.”

* Not only did Tamara Steiner constantly bang the drum, she also participated in a podcast where she tried her best to tear the city down, calling it a city in decline.

Click on the following to read one of her past articles.

https://www.claytonwatch.org/2024/03/theres-no-limit-on-what-community-can-do.html

Once again, Tamara is mistaken. There is no need for an investigation. For some unknown reason, she seems determined to cast a dark shadow over Clayton.

Bringing civility to the issue, Mayor Trupiano arranged a meeting between herself, Tillman, City Manager Kris Louftus, and City Attorney Mala Subramanian on January 28th to review the turnover.

* At the January 21st city council meeting, Mayor Trupiano stated that she had sent an email to Councilmember Tillman requesting a meeting to discuss her ongoing concerns about staff harassment and turnover. Tillman responded with evasive language, attempting to explain why she had not yet addressed Trupiano's request.

During the February 4th council meeting, Mayor Trupiano reported that a meeting had finally been scheduled between herself, Tillman, City Manager Kris Louftus, and City Attorney Mala Subramanian on January 28th.

According to a post on ClaytonWatch.org, which is no fan of Tillman, “It was determined that no investigation would take place, as we all knew there were no valid complaints from current or former staff that would warrant such an inquiry. The turnover in city staff stemmed from one primary issue: poor leadership and mismanagement by previous city managers... (whose) styles caused the turmoil at City Hall, not the actions of certain council members or public inquiries.”

* As we've mentioned all along, poor leadership and mismanagement by previous city managers were the issues. Now that we have a true professional at the helm, we have a fantastic team working for all of us at city hall.

Also, as a result of that meeting, Mayor Trupiano and Tillman formed an ad hoc committee with the council’s unanimous approval in order to facilitate a governance training workshop for Council and staff. Tillman stated to Councilmember Jeff Wan in that meeting that the ad hoc committee and training satisfies her previous requests for an independent investigation.

* Maybe now Holly Tillman can reach out to her friend and ally at the Clayton Pioneer to share the news: 'No investigation is needed,' and she was wrong.

However, Tillman told the Diablo Gazette, “I will let people know if it’s resolved based on council members’ behavior in the future. Now, the rubber will hit the road once we find the person to do the training and if all five council members show up for the training and actually complete it. It’s baby steps.”

* We’re not sure what Holly Tillman meant by the ‘rubber will hit the road’ comment, or why she would doubt for even a moment that the other council members wouldn’t show up for the training. It appears that she is still in the early stages of grasping the operations of a city council, as well as the importance of interacting with fellow council members and the public professionally. However, you can form your own opinion by clicking here to observe her in action. To us, it seems like she’s the one that needs some serious training, and she is the one taking baby steps.