Dear Chris Constantin,
So you are off to San Dimas? I heard it through the Grapevine. (ha ha, get it? Through the Grapevine? Old trucker joke)
It seems like just yesterday you bragged to a Tea Party gathering about all he “initials” after your name. You bragged about the consulting positions you held with agencies all over the state. You told the assemblage that our town was in a terrible financial shape, because our former Finance Director was “Loosey Goosey”. But you bragged about your credentials and promised that you would fix everything, adding, “then you’ll be able to hire somebody cheaper, with fewer initials behind their name…”
Wow, looking around myself, I don’t see that. I see our town is a bigger mess than it was when you got here, while you’ve done very nicely for yourself. You’ve garnered almost $200,000/year in salary and about a $50,000 package. You paid little to nothing for not only a 70% pension but a $20,000/year 457 Plan (special 401K for public workers). Now you’ve used Chico to step along to an “Annual salary of $220,000” as city manager in a rich Southern California town.
I realize you’ve paid the price. I remember when you bragged and bragged about your gorgeous young wife, showing her off around town like a trick pony. Then you left her at home to pop out kids like a popcorn machine. When you told me about your first child, I told you, “Quit your job, or you’ll miss the best years of your life.” You should have listened to me Bud. Instead you made an ass of yourself at the podium, whining like a bitch about our town causing your divorce?
That’s on you! Jesus Christ Chris, look what YOU’VE done to our town!
Good Bye, and Good Riddance Chris Constantin, and please, don’t let the screen door hit you on your ass on your way to San Dimas. It’s already had enough abuse.
To the people of San Dimas – GOOD FUCKING LUCK with this guy. Here’s what you can depend on – your town is about to get more expensive!
Juanita Sumner
FROM THE SAN DIMAS CITY COUNCIL AGENDA FOR THIS TUESDAY
CITY COUNCIL MEETING AGENDA
TUESDAY NOVEMBER 10th, 2020 7:00 P. M.
SAN DIMAS COUNCIL CHAMBER
245 EAST BONITA AVENUE
a. Consideration of Appointment of Chris Constantin as City Manager, with a start date of January 4, 2021, and approval of City Manager Employment Agreement
RESOLUTION 2020-61, A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF SAN DIMAS, COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES, APPOINTING CHRIS
CONSTANTIN AS CITY MANAGER AND APPROVING A CITY MANAGER
EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT
RECOMMENDATION: Adopt Resolution 2020-62, Appointing Chris Constantin as
City Manager and Approving the City Manager Employment Agreement.
Chico Taxpayers Association 
They are all a bunch of grifters jumping from one town to another.
Thanks Jim, that’s the word alright, grifters.
We are still suffering from the mismanagement (embezzlement) by Dave Burgland and Jennifer Hennessy. As we recall Burgland just retired (took the money and ran) and Hennessy got a higher paying job in another city.
It wasn’t embezzlement – that’s outright stealing. What Burkland and Hennessy did was allowed by council. For example – Hennessy was allowed to hire the guy that gave her a performance evaluation – then allowed to give herself a $14,000 raise. That’s why we have to pick our council members better. Staff is only as good as the people demand.
It was Lando, who just got re-elected for CARD board, who floated the MOU that attached salaries to revenue increases, but “NOT DECREASES” The sitting council – including Maureen Kirk and Larry Wahl – signed that MOU.
Not that I’m defending Burkland or Hennessy, but I knew them both, and neither of them was smart enough or had the balls to do anything illegal, or they would have been caught. And it really pissed me off after she was allowed to go on to another job, that Constantin made accusations that he couldn’t hold up. These people are just garbage, like you said – GRIFTERS – moving from one town to another, duping one council after another. I blame the voters for not better educating themselves.
Under this guy’s tenure the pension debt and interest exploded to nearly a quarter billion dollars. This does not include the OPEB debt. And while that was happening the streets and infrastructure has gone to Hell and it’s going to cost over a third of a billion to fix. These are mind boggling sums of money for a little city like Chico.
And now he gets rewarded with with a job that pays nearly a quarter million a year! And it appears that’s just salary and doesn’t include all the ridiculous benefits these bureaucrats get.
Nothing succeeds like failure in government. That old Willie Nelson song should be – mommas don’t let your babies grow up to be anything but government employees!
thanks, you nailed it. I’m glad somebody besides me remembers what has happened over the last 7 or 8 years – no, our town didn’t always look like this, crime was not this bad, infrastructure was maintained better. This has happened because Orme and Constantin have literally looted our town for their own gain.
Today I was over near Raley’s Skyway and saw that a window had just been bashed out at the mattress store there in the parking lot. Things better change under the conservative super majority.
Didn’t he leave under a cloud from the city he came from before he came here?
This says it all. Should be on a campaign poster against another tax increase.
The Pecking Order, The New City Council, and a Golden Opportunity for Chico!
Chico City government has a pecking order. Is very similar to most private corporations, most meritocracy structures, even the US military. At the top are the Corporate CEO or the Major General. They get paid the most. Next in line are the Senior Vice Presidents or the Colonels, and you digress on down the ranks to the secretaries and the enlisted personnel.
In municipal structure, all employees have a pay grade. An employee is not allowed to make more than their manager. Across the board pay increases of an equal percentage keep the structure in compliance, with managers making more than their underlings.
The top of the tree in Chico is the City Manager. It is a tough job to do well, and deserves a robust salary and benefits. If the job is not done well, one could argue for a pay cut or a reduction in overall compensation. Unfortunately, this is the unionized California labor market where such things are not allowed to happen. And its really a shame. If the City Manager took a percentage pay cut, he would make sure that everyone below him on the pay scale took the same percentage pay cut to keep the structure in compliance. Its like an across the board raise, except in reverse.
Which brings us to the golden opportunity for the new “conservative” City Council. It appears that its time to hire a new Assistant City Manager. This position is very close to the top of the salary tree as well. Hiring this position with a lower salary and benefits will have a dampening effect on the overall wage hierarchy. The City Manager will make a recommendation, and the new City Council will approve.
What you will (unfortunately) hear from the City Manager and Council is that we have conducted an exhaustive search, and have come up with the best candidate. The overall compensation requirements for this person demand that they occupy the same exalted position on the compensation organization chart as the previous Assistant City Manager.
This s simply not to be believed. The City Council should demand to review the candidate interview records. Who was interviewed, was it a diverse group, were there some candidates from the private sector, or from outside municipal government? There are literally thousands of State of California municipal employees desiring to do this job: It will not be had to fill. And, with much lower compensation requirements that the outgoing Assistant Manager.
The current City Managers responsibility is the hire the best employee, who will do an exemplary job, at the lowest cost for the taxpayers. It is the new City Councils job to only approve a new Assistant City Manager who fits that description.
Good points, need to go into a letter to the editor. Want me to write it or you? I could probably get two letters out of this!
I realize, the ER doesn’t have the circulation of a big city paper, but it gets read. Dave sent me this link to the letter I just sent to the ER, picked up by Pension Tsunami, a California news website run by the Fullerton Association of Concerned Taxpayers. There are other people working toward reforming these pensions, if we all pull together to fight this crap, maybe we can make some ground for our grand kids.
PENSIONTSUNAMI.COM
Wrong link. Use this https://gofile.io/d/HjxzYj
Do you have a video of that meeting? (The diverting comment specially)
Are you talking about the meeting(s) at which Constantin had his meltdown? That’s here,
http://chico-ca.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=2
look for the June 2 meeting, continued to June 9 and 10th – the video is there. I recommend you watch the whole ridiculous mess, but you can fast forward to Constantin’s presentations, including his ridiculous claims that the city of Chico wrecked his marriage.
The real problem with this guy is he’s determined to put his crazy pension on the rest of us.
Hi! I’m a concerned resident in San Dimas and would like more information on who was chosen for our city manager. Our last one was fired under questionable reasons, so many of us are a tad leery over the new pick considering he comes with quite a bit of past luggage. How can I reach you?
Hi Amanda,
You can find more about Constantin here, just type the name into the search engine at top right. Or give me some specific questions, and I’ll try to help.
Also, you might find more information about Constantin in the news archives for Hemet California – he has a pretty spotty record with that town. As I recall, he got his friend named “Public Safety Director” after firing both the police and fire chief, then his friend got in an accident in the city car, using it for personal purposes. There’s also the questionable deal he made, selling the city’s landfill, one of their main sources of income. You can find all that online.
Chris Constantine has ruined my familys life and business and continues his agendized harassment with san dimas employees. I don’t like lowering myself to his level but hes a slimy punk. Any insight as to why cities keep hiring this jerk?
Thanks for chiming in – I’m sorry your town got stuck with this carpet bagger. I’ve watched people like Constantin move from town to town, sucking up higher salaries with each transfer. And leaving destruction in their wake. Why do towns keep hiring him and people like him? Because the average city council is made up of people who are not qualified to run anything, they were voted in on a popularity contest. I wish I’d had the gumption to run for council when I was younger and had money – maybe it’s not too late for you, think about it.
John, when Chico hired Constantin, he was under investigation for actions he had taken at his former job – here’s one article about that. It sounds similar to what you have described. Good luck.
Here are more details, compiled by a Chico woman –
http://savechiconow.weebly.com/constantin.html