Hollister fires city manager following employee, community outcry

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After eight months on the job, Ana Cortez was removed as Hollister’s city manager by the Hollister City Council on Oct. 21 amid backlash over her handling of recent layoffs. 

Airport Director Jeff Crechriou, who has been acting as planning director since June, was appointed interim city manager until the city appoints a full-time administrator.

Council members spent two hours in closed session on Oct. 21, after which City Attorney Dayna Louie announced the council had voted 3-2 to terminate Cortez’s contract “for convenience.”

Louie did not immediately respond to BenitoLink’s request to clarify whether “for convenience” means without cause, which would qualify Cortez to receive about $132,500 in severance pay equal to half her annual salary. 

During her report at the meeting, Louie said council members Priscilla De Anda and Rolan Resendiz cast the dissenting votes. 

Ahead of the announcement, Resendiz requested advice from Louie about disclosing all the motions and votes taken during the closed session.

“I’m asking that you advise us on how to bring this matter forward so that our hard-working employees, dedicated employees, and the citizens of Hollister, California, can have an accurate account of the council’s actions tonight,” he said.

Louie recommended only reporting the action taken “to protect the confidentiality of our closed session.”

No other council members made comments about Cortez’s termination. 

Before the council entered closed session, more than a dozen public speakers, including employees who received a termination notice, spoke out and urged the council to move forward with terminating Cortez’s contract. 

Many speakers also urged the council to rescind the employment termination notices affecting more than three dozen city employees while the city conducts a review of its finances.

Liz Castillo, a senior support service assistant at the Hollister Municipal Airport, expressed the frustration of employees who were placed on paid leave to return to work knowing they might still be laid off on Nov. 13.

“If we come back to work, it’s going to feel like a cloud over us,” she said. “It’s just a super awful feeling to know that it’s still on the table.”

According to a termination notice sent to Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 521, the employees were placed on administrative leave effective Oct. 14 with an employment termination date of Nov. 13. The notice said the cuts were necessary to address financial deficits.

Cortez last reported a $6.9 million deficit in the general fund and $9.6 million for the water fund in a presentation for a scheduled special meeting and town hall on Oct. 16, which was cancelled. Unions have contested those numbers, saying the city has not provided accurate accounting to justify the numbers.

SEIU told BenitoLink they knew of 37 city employees who received termination notices the week of Oct. 12. Of those, 16 were represented by SEIU and nine by the Hollister Police Officers Association. 

At the Oct. 21 meeting, the council ratified its Oct. 19 decision to rescind the city’s fiscal emergency declaration and request that laid-off employees who were placed on paid leave to return to work. The city also directed staff to meet with unions and department heads on reducing costs.

The council also declared a local emergency related to the anticipated winter storms and flooding and approved the initiation of two General Plan amendments for two proposed commercial projects. 

The first is prezoning and annexing 1.9 acres on the corner of Fairview Road and Hwy 25. It was approved on a 4-1 vote with Resendiz opposed. He said he was concerned that the annexation would lead to the city eventually providing sewer and water services to the Ridgemark community. 

The second property is the undeveloped 4.6 acres on San Felipe Road between the Starbucks and Maple Street. That project is a commercial development including a 7Brews Coffee Shop. It was unanimously supported by the council.

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