Leadership vacuum by mayor, interim city manager, amidst an ongoing budget crisis.

I t’s been a rough couple of weeks for Pacific Grove officials.

In the latest round of financial Jenga, they’ve poked even more holes in the city’s wobbly budget and are bracing for a crash into bankruptcy. They’ve already merged P.G.’s fire department with Monterey’s and are considering doing the same with police. Last year’s reorganization whittled city staff down to a bare minimum, and those who remain may soon lose their perks in the California Public Employees’ Retirement System. The P.G. library, facing the loss of general fund support, is at the mercy of a parcel tax slated for the November ballot. And now the state plans to borrow hundreds of thousands of sorely needed dollars from the cash-strapped city.

Compounding the headache are the Last Hometown’s less pressing debates—about parking for dog-walkers, the partial privatization of the museum, sewer improvement and the fate of the Holman building, all of which inspire hours of public comment at notoriously long council meetings.

“YOU DON’T THINK ANYTHING IMPORTANT IS GONNA BE GOING ON, AND ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE.”

Worst of all, no one seems to be taking charge.

The city hasn’t had a permanent city manager since December, and the recruitment has taken months longer than expected. Interim City Manager Charlene Wiseman agreed to extend her six-month term by two months, but has indicated she won’t stay beyond August.

The leadership void was underscored in mid-July, when both Wiseman and Mayor Dan Cort were away on overlapping two-week vacations.

While Cort’s power is largely symbolic, Wiseman is in charge of the city’s day-to-day operations and personnel issues. Most city councilmembers agree that while she is capable in those respects, she’s not in a position to help define the council’s priorities.

“She’s holding our city affairs together really well,” says Councilwoman Deborah Lindsay. “It’s not, nor has it ever been, her job to steer our ship in future directions. We need a [permanent] city manager because we need a course set.”

Wiseman did not return calls by press time.

In the meantime, some city councilmembers—many of whom hold full-time jobs, and receive a minimal stipend for their public service—feel overworked and underappreciated.

“I’d say a few people have to step up to the plate, and it’s going to take more time and more energy than anybody thought,” says Councilman Alan Cohen.

In addition to the bimonthly City Council meetings that often approach the length of a full workday, the council has been holding all-day closed sessions in the ongoing search for a permanent city manager.

“The last two [candidates] we were looking at hiring dropped out,” Cohen says. “Maybe they’ve done a little homework and aren’t sure about coming to a city that is getting rid of CalPERS. And we’re trying to keep the purse strings a little tighter.”

Councilman Bill Kampe is focused on long-term stability. “It’s obvious that we need a new city manager who’s in a place to make commitments on plans that they’ll be able to see to fruition,” he says.

As the search drags on, Cort says, the city may recruit a second interim through the League of California Cities.

As for his absence in a time of financial crisis, Cort says he planned his family’s two-and-a-half-week Spain sojourn last year, thinking it would coincide with the City Council’s summer hiatus in mid-July. “You don’t think anything important is gonna be going on, and all of a sudden all hell breaks loose,” he says.

Cort emphasizes that he has no more power than the other six city councilmembers, all of whom are trying to keep their heads above water. “Every time we turn around, there’s some new bad news. As a council, we’re just not set up for this tsunami of difficulties,” he says. “I believe that I and this council are providing leadership in the context of what we’re allowed to do. We’re trying as best we can.”

But Cohen sees room for more initiative.

“Now’s the time when a leader is made,” he says. “[Cort] is in a position to really push things forward, push things a little faster. He can direct, and I think he has to step in a little more. Our agendas are just piled high. We’ve gotta pick our priorities and stick with ‘em. The other things are going to have to wait.”