Top Finance Manager Retires

More than six months after Rohnert Park's finance director, Sandy Lipitz, faced alleged criticism by City Manager Gabe Gonzalez, the longtime city employee has officially quit.

Folliwing is the text of an email sent to Rohnert Park Patch Wednesday, from Gonzalez:

To All city Employees:

The purpose of this email is to update you of a couple of recent staffing changes in the Finance Department.

Sandy Lipitz, Director of Administrative Services, has notified the City of her official retirement from the City effective January 10, 2012. Council and I thank Sandy for her 21 years of dedicated services to the City and wish her all the best in her retirement.

Second, I am re-appointing Cathy Orme as interim finance director to oversee the day-to-day operation of the Finance Department and re-assigning Barbara Galaudet to serve in the number two position in the Department. Together they will manage and direct all functions of the Finance Department.

Repeated calls and emails to Liptiz and Gonzalez over the last 24 hours have not yet been returned. Stay tuned to Patch for updates as we receive them.

In June, Lipitz feared for her job, she and her lawyer told Patch, in response to a previous email she'd received from Gonzalez. The email sent June 28 at 9:50 p.m read, in part:

"Over the past eight months, I have discussed with you my significant concerns with your performance ... the city needs to be able to rely on the budget information and analysis you provide, and has been unable to do so ... you have made a number of significant errors in recent months ..."

Scott Steever, who represents Lipitz, said Gonzalez was searching for a reason to fire Lipitz.

"Gabe hired someone from outside to go through every aspect of Sandy's work, I believe, to find something wrong — anything," Steever said. "I have her records in front of me, and they're exemplary."

According to the city's website, the finance director:

• Provides financial information and advice to City Council and staff.
• Prepares the city's annual budget.
• Prepares the city's audited financial statements.
• Invests idle city funds.
• Monitors collection of revenue.
• Monitors expenditure of funds.
• Administers self-insured employee benefit programs.

Rohnert Park Patch continues to follow this story. Read the one . The Press Democrat is also following this story. They reported today that the mayor Lipitz did not contribute to the city's budget problems over the last decade. Last year, the city faced a $2.5 million budget deficit — today it hovers just above $400,000 — what the . The article also stated quoted Mayor Jake Mackenzie, and stated that:

"Budget deficits that the city began to ring up in the last decade — the hole hit $10 million in 2009 — were attributable to 'major policy decisions' related to council-approved pension and salary benefits and also with a sewer rate rollback that voters pushed through, Mackenzie said."

"'These were not decisions that were made by the finance department,' he said."

Read the full story from the Press Democrat here.