08 Jan Four Candidates Remain for Open Pittsburg City Council Seat

Pittsburg City Council narrowed the list of possible people to fill its empty seat from 23 to four on Monday. (Screenshot captured by Samantha Kennedy / The CC Pulse)

By Samantha Kennedy

The Pittsburg City Council narrowed the choices for its vacant seat from 23 applicants to just four at its Monday meeting, inching closer to appointing a new colleague they hope will “hit the ground running.” 

Some of the most experienced applicants — a two-time Pittsburg mayor, the Planning Commission’s chair and the Chamber of Commerce’s CEO — were chosen as finalists for the vacancy Shanelle Scales-Preston left after departing for the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors. 

Council members, who each first recommended two applicants to move forward in the process, voted in December to appoint a new council member rather than hold a special election to fill the vacancy. The move saved the city an estimated hundreds of thousands of dollars. 

Experience was of the utmost importance when making recommendations, with council members initially only recommending two candidates: Arlene Kobata, chair of the Planning Commission, and Wolfgang Croskey, the Chamber’s CEO. 

Those recommendations grew following a request by council member Juan Banales, resulting in Robert “Bob” Lewis, the two-time mayor, and Joanna Hernandez, a 25-year veteran of the social services industry focused on reentry and criminal justice reform, being considered in the final stage of the process. 

In addition to resumes and statements submitted by the applicants, council members will consider responses to interview questions posed at Monday’s meeting. 

Croskey, a former planning commission that lost a 2022 city council bid with 17% of the vote, prioritized, among other things, economic growth and public safety in his application. 

Part of that economic focus, he said at Monday’s meeting, would involve one of his platform issues of removing or implementing policies that create a “more friendly environment for businesses” and entrepreneurial programs for youth. 

Croskey said the city did well in providing youth with social-emotional learning and diversity but misses “an entrepreneurial mindset.” 

Hernandez felt the same, saying youth she knew were more interested in non-traditional, entrepreneurial-type jobs over ones they may learn about in school. 

Kobata and Lewis, however, placed more of a focus on recreational programs and, for Kobata, the focus on youth also meant focusing on opportunities for parents.  

The Pittsburg City Council has made youth development one of its priorities, including increasing non-sports programs for youth and all ages and the development of Pittsburg’s Dream Courts, a 45,000-square-foot sports complex. 

Candidates, though they slightly diverged in youth opportunities, were in agreement on how to ensure all residents are heard, even when dealing with a controversial issue: being accessible and listening. 

Hernandez said hearing those “voices from our community” was especially important when making those harder decisions, including being transparent and fostering trust with residents. 

Lewis, Croskey and Koabata agreed with the approach. Lewis, who used an example during his time on council that resulted in Pittsburg Auto Mall retaining Winter Chevrolet, emphasized inclusion but also managing the bottom line. 

“The best policies are where everyone leaves a little unhappy,” said Croskey, “because that means everyone got a little bit of what they needed.” 

The “platform issues” for candidates varied from Kobata’s environmental protections and city development to Hernandez’s push for more resources for unhoused residents and preferential local hiring, but all had some focus on economic development. 

When it came to the budget, Croskey and Lewis appeared to have the most knowledge of all regarding the city’s finances. But Kobata and Hernandez, the latter of whom emphasized her experience on boards overseeing budgets, had an idea of what the primary fund, also known as the general fund, was. 

The appointee, who will be announced at a special Jan. 13 meeting, will serve out the rest of Scales-Preston’s term that expires in November 2026.