Friday, September 4, 2026

Toby the "Watchdog"

Welcome to Clayton Watch!

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Top News

By Clayton Watch

THE CANDIDATES ARE SET. NOW LET’S TALK ABOUT THE ISSUES.

Measures M & N — What Clayton Voters Are Being Asked to Decide

Clayton Watch has now completed its individual write-ups on all four candidates running for Clayton City Council, Kim Trupiano, Maria Shulman, Amy Callaghan and Charlie Schmidt.

With the candidate profiles complete, we’re turning our attention to two important financial decisions facing Clayton voters this November: Measure M, a proposed 1% local sales tax, and Measure N, the renewal of Clayton’s existing Landscape Maintenance District (LMD) for another 10 years.

The two measures work differently, require different levels of voter approval, and address different City funding needs. In this article, we’ll explain what each measure does, what it costs, where the money goes, what it pays for, and what happens if it does not pass.

Our goal is straightforward: put the facts and numbers in one place so residents can understand what they are being asked to decide.

MEASURE M — THE 1% LOCAL SALES TAX

Measure M asks Clayton voters whether to approve an additional 1% local sales tax.

Clayton’s current sales tax rate is 8.75%. If Measure M passes, the total rate would increase to 9.75%.

THE NEW REVENUE STAYS IN CLAYTON

The additional revenue generated by Measure M would go to the City of Clayton for local City purposes.

It is not a new State or County tax. The new revenue stays in Clayton.

WHAT DOES 1% ACTUALLY COST?

One of the easiest ways to understand the proposed increase is to put it into everyday dollars.

For a taxable purchase of:

$5 — 5¢ additional tax

$10 — 10¢ additional tax

$50 — 50¢ additional tax

$100 — $1 additional tax

$500 — $5 additional tax

$1,000 — $10 additional tax

The tax applies only to purchases that are taxable under California law.

Unlike a property tax or parcel assessment, the amount paid depends on taxable purchases. People who live outside Clayton would also pay the additional tax when making taxable purchases in the City.

HOW MUCH WOULD MEASURE M GENERATE?

The City estimates that the additional 1% sales tax could generate approximately $1 million annually.

Actual collections could vary from year to year depending on taxable sales activity.

Measure M is a general tax and requires a simple majority, more than 50% of the votes cast, to pass.

MEASURE N — RENEWAL OF THE LMD FOR ANOTHER 10 YEARS

Measure N asks Clayton voters whether to renew the City's existing Landscape Maintenance District for another 10 years.

THIS IS A RENEWAL — NOT A NEW DISTRICT

In 2007, Clayton voters approved Measure B with approximately 83% of the vote, authorizing the replacement Landscape Maintenance District for 10 years.

In 2016, voters approved Measure H with approximately 79% of the vote, extending the LMD for another 10 years.

That authorization is approaching its expiration, bringing the renewal before voters again in 2026.

WHAT DOES THE LMD HELP MAINTAIN?

Clayton's Landscape Maintenance District covers approximately:

515 acres of open space

27 miles of trails

7 miles of creekside trails and 20 miles of open-space trails

50 street islands and medians

More than 3,000 City trees

The District also covers approximately 2 million square feet of public roadway landscaping.

LANDSCAPING AND FIRE MITIGATION

LMD funds are used for authorized maintenance of trails, open space, roadside landscaping, community gateway entrances and other landscape-related responsibilities.

That work also includes weed abatement for critical fire mitigation and public safety.

With Clayton's extensive open-space areas, vegetation management includes mandatory firebreaks and weed trimming along trails, creeks and other areas where reducing potential fuel loads is important for fire safety.

LMD FUNDS ARE RESTRICTED

Unlike Measure M's general tax revenue, LMD funds are legally restricted to authorized Landscape Maintenance District purposes.

They cannot be redirected to unrelated City expenses such as police services.

For Fiscal Year 2025–26, the existing parcel assessment generated approximately $1.4 million for District maintenance.

WHAT HAPPENS IF MEASURE N DOESN'T PASS?

If Measure N does not pass, the existing LMD authorization will expire.

The City has stated that landscape-maintenance services would then be reduced, with the General Fund responsible for minimum fire-safety requirements.

That could require General Fund dollars otherwise available for City operations to be used for those responsibilities.

HOW MANY VOTES DOES MEASURE N NEED?

Because Measure N is a special tax dedicated to a specific purpose, it requires a two-thirds majority for approval.

For historical perspective:

2007 — Measure B: approximately 83% voted YES

2016 — Measure H: approximately 79% voted YES

Measure N asks voters whether to renew the LMD for another 10 years.

It’s your city. It’s your money. And it’s your vote.

Friday, August 28, 2026

Clayton Watch · 2026 Council Candidate · Final

Charlie Schmidt for Clayton City Council

An update on the Clayton City Council election. The candidates are set. The filing deadline closed at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 12.

With the filing period now closed, four candidates have stepped forward to serve the community: Councilmember Kim Trupiano, Planning Commissioner Maria Shulman, Amy Callaghan, and Charlie Schmidt.

Over the past month, Clayton Watch has examined the public record of each of these candidates and published what we found, from City records, our own files, and other background material. We have done this for every candidate.

Last up, Charlie Schmidt.

Charlie Schmidt has not held elected office in Clayton. Because there is no Council voting record to review, what follows is drawn from his own candidate statement rather than a records review. One item of public record concerning his recent appointment to the Planning Commission is noted below.

Schmidt says he wants to continue serving the citizens of Clayton, maintaining a careful balance between progress and necessary growth without disrupting the charming character and landscape of the town.

While pursuing his education in Chemistry, Schmidt lived in North Carolina, Nebraska, and Florida. He taught Chemistry at the University of Florida for more than 10 years and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the North American Pesticide Residue Workshop.

He is a 24-year resident of Clayton. He has been married more than 50 years, raised two children, and has two grandchildren. His daughter attended Diablo View Middle School and Clayton Valley High School.

Twenty-eight years of service as a retired Lt. Col. in planning and operations for the U.S. Army Reserve, he says, have made him a leader with the skill set to be a civil servant.

His current commitments to the City of Clayton include serving as a citizen volunteer on the Trails and Landscape Committee, his recent appointment as a Commissioner on the Planning Commission, and volunteering for Oktoberfest for more than 20 years. He says he will continue those efforts and hopes to support the city as a City Council candidate.

Planning
Commission

Commissioner, appointed July 2026 - but has not attended one meeting, nor has he been sworn in at this time.

Trails &
Landscape

Citizen volunteer, Trails and Landscape Committee

Military

Lt. Col. (Ret.), U.S. Army Reserve · 28 years, planning and operations

Profession

Chemistry instructor, University of Florida, 10+ years; Board of Directors, North American Pesticide Residue Workshop

Volunteer

Oktoberfest, 20+ years

Clayton

24-year resident · married 50+ years · two children, two grandchildren

Of Record

Absent from the City's Town Hall on the two tax measures.

On Wednesday, August 26, the City of Clayton held a Town Hall Meeting, “Let’s Talk About Clayton’s Future,” at which City staff presented on the proposed City sales tax measure and the Landscape Maintenance District renewal. These are the two revenue measures headed for the November ballot, and the largest financial questions in front of Clayton voters this year. Mr. Schmidt did not attend.

Absent from a second town hall the following night.

On Thursday, August 27, 2026, the City held its Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) Community Engagement Meeting. Mr. Schmidt did not attend that meeting either.

Source: City of Clayton Town Hall Meeting notice, claytonca.gov, August 26, 2026; City of Clayton Emergency Operations Plan Community Engagement Meeting notice, August 27, 2026; City of Clayton appointment record, June 2026.

Charlie Schmidt is one of four candidates who qualified for the November 2026 Clayton City Council ballot. That completes our review of the field.

By Clayton Watch, FPPC ID #1471612. Biographical details are drawn from a candidate statement provided by Charlie Schmidt and are the candidate’s own. Appointment and attendance items are drawn from City of Clayton records.

Friday, August 21, 2026

Clayton Watch · 2026 Council Candidate · No. 4

Kim Trupiano for Clayton
City Council

An update on the Clayton City Council election. The Candidates are set for Clayton City Council. The filing deadline for the Clayton City Council election officially closed at 5:00 p.m., Wednesday, August 12.

With the filing period now closed, four candidates, Councilmember Kim Trupiano, Planning Commissioner Maria Shulman, Amy Callaghan, and Charlie Schmidt have stepped forward to serve our community.

Over the coming months, Clayton Watch will examine the public record of each of these candidates and publish what we find, from City records, our own files, and other background material. We will do this for every name on the list.

Next up, Kim Trupiano, who currently serves on the Clayton City Council and is seeking re-election. Unlike candidates without prior office, she has a voting record. Council votes referenced below are matters of public record and can be verified in the minutes.

Kim Trupiano came to the Council from a career spent reading budgets, and she asked for the seat on the committee where the City’s numbers actually get examined. Her stated aim is putting Clayton’s financial house in order: proactive about the future rather than reactive about the past.

DECADES

Newspapers, shopping centers, nonprofits, and her own small business.

Trupiano spent decades in the newspaper, shopping center, and nonprofit sectors before public office, and owns a small business herself. She points to that background as the basis for strategic financial planning, balancing the budget, and building relationships across the community, and says she understands firsthand what Clayton’s business owners are up against.

THE BOOKS

Four years on the Budget and Audit Committee, sometimes meeting weekly.

Trupiano reviewed dozens of City contracts, pushed for an RFP process so future contracts go out to competitive bid, moved Clayton to a managed investment portfolio, updated the Master Fee Schedule, and scrubbed the budget and scrubbed it again. The committee met monthly and at times weekly to get the numbers right.

Read that list against Clayton’s recent history. A city whose checkbook once went unreconciled for eighteen months, and whose Mayor could not say what it held in its investment accounts, now has a managed portfolio and a competitive bidding process. That is the specific hole, filled.

She also served four years on the City Sponsored Special Events Committee and sits on the East Contra Costa Habitat Conservancy Governing Board.

CERTIFIED

Clayton’s Sixth Housing Element has been certified by the state.

The Council approved the Housing Element more than three years ago. Certification by the California Department of Housing and Community Development came this year, ending a long period during which Clayton was out of compliance and exposed on housing.

It did not move on its own. Trupiano and City Manager Kris Lofthus went to Senator Tim Grayson’s office in person and asked for help securing a meeting with HCD. Her assessment is blunt: without that meeting, Clayton would still be waiting. She also credits City staff and the Senator’s office for the work that followed.

An uncertified housing element leaves a city exposed to builder’s remedy projects it cannot control. That exposure is now closed.

THE LIBRARY

As City Liaison, she led the library refresh from funding through vendor selection.

Trupiano serves as the City’s liaison to the Clayton Community Library Foundation Board and led the refresh process: securing the funding, defining the scope of work, and selecting the vendors. After years of planning, the refresh begins later this year.

Three separate things had to be true at once for that project to move. She made sure they were.

STAFFED

A new City Manager two years ago, and then a City Hall rebuilt around him.

Trupiano points to the hiring of a new City Manager two years ago as the decision the rest followed from. That manager went on to build out the staff: a new Police Chief, Public Works Director, Project Manager, Community Outreach Coordinator, and Community Development Specialist.

Craig Blythe joined as Public Works Director in early June, the first person to hold that position in Clayton. Melissa Rhodes came on as City Clerk the following week. The City reports it is now fully staffed.

Staffing continuity is not a small matter here. Gaps in continuity and institutional knowledge are exactly what has been blamed for missed grant funds and lapsed financial controls. This addresses the mechanism, not the symptom.

CLAYTON 311

The long-delayed SeeClickFix reporting system is live.

Residents can now report weed abatement, downed trees and limbs, graffiti, broken fixtures, code enforcement, and animal control issues through the City website under How Do I? › Report a Problem, or through the SeeClickFix mobile app on Android and Apple.

It gives residents a documented channel and gives the City a record of what was reported and when.

5–0

She voted with a unanimous Council to put a 1% sales tax measure on the November ballot.

The vote followed several months of meetings evaluating the City’s current and projected finances. The Council is also weighing a ten-year renewal of the Landscape Maintenance District, including establishing a reserve for emergency funding.

Trupiano’s stated reasoning: Clayton’s main revenue sources remain stable, but the cost of essential services has escalated. Behind that sits a longer bill. Years of deferred maintenance and unbuilt capital improvement projects have gone unaddressed, and deferring them further does not make them cheaper. The measure goes to voters in November. They will decide it, not the Council.

FOUR YEARS

Four years of delivered work, not a set of promises.

A certified Housing Element after a three-year stall. A managed investment portfolio and an RFP process for contracts. An updated Master Fee Schedule. A library refresh funded, scoped, and out to vendors. A new City Manager and a fully staffed City Hall, including Clayton’s first Public Works Director. A resident reporting system talked about for years and now live. A financial path put before voters rather than deferred to the next Council.

Each of those was pending when Trupiano took office. Each is done. In her own framing, serving has been the honor of her life, and the job is not yet finished.

REGIONAL

She holds seats on boards well beyond Clayton’s city limits.

East Bay Economic Development Alliance Board of Directors, since 2024. Diablo Valley College Business Advisory Board, since 2011. Save Mount Diablo, Moonlight on the Mountain and Development committee volunteer, since 2018. Clayton Valley Village volunteer, since 2022. Member of the Clayton Historical Society and the Mt. Diablo Birding Alliance.

Fifteen years on the DVC board is the sort of tenure that produces the relationships a small city needs when it wants something from the county or the state.

SINCE 2013

She and her husband Rich chose Clayton in 2013.

Rich Trupiano is a Gulf War veteran and former Combat Engineer in the Air Force. They live here with their dog JoJo. Trupiano can be reached directly at kimt@claytonca.gov or 925.673.7324, and closes her updates to residents the same way each time: we are stronger together.

In her own words

“I am running for reelection because I want to ensure that we continue to move forward, address our needs, and not fall back into the old patterns of ignoring priorities and long-standing issues.”

Experience Matters. Proven Results.

By Clayton Watch, FPPC ID #1471612. Council actions described above are matters of public record and can be verified in City minutes; biographical details and stated reasoning are drawn from Ms. Trupiano’s own published materials. Conclusions are the opinions of the committee.

Friday, August 14, 2026

Clayton Watch · 2026 Council Candidate · No. 3

Amy Callaghan for Clayton
City Council

With the filing period now closed, four candidates, Councilmember Kim Trupiano, Planning Commissioner Maria Shulman, Amy Callaghan, and Charlie Schmidt have stepped forward to serve our community.

Next up, Amy Callaghan. She has not held elected office in Clayton and does not sit on a City commission. Because there is no public record to review, what follows is drawn from her own candidate statement and professional background.

Amy Callaghan has spent thirty years managing other people’s buildings, budgets, and contracts. She is asking to do the same work for the city she has called home since 1992.

CREDENTIALS

A business degree, a broker’s license, and a professional designation.

Callaghan graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from the University of Phoenix and attended in person as it was geared towards working adults. She holds a current California Department of Real Estate Broker License and is certified by the Building Owners and Managers Association as a Real Property Administrator.

The RPA is the industry credential for people made responsible for the financial performance of buildings they do not own.

CORRECTION: In our original candidate write-up on Amy Callaghan, we described her degree as having been earned at the University of Phoenix and characterized that institution as an online school. Both details were wrong, and neither came from Ms. Callaghan. They have been corrected above.

Ms. Callaghan earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Management in person, graduating in 2000. She attended the Walnut Creek campus at Shadelands, a program built for working adults, which operated there until 2003 before relocating to Concord. She was granted special admission at 22, below the program's usual minimum age of 23, on the strength of work experience she had already accumulated. She completed the degree while working full time, and graduated Cum Laude.

We did not verify the characterization before publishing it. That was our error. We regret it and thank Ms. Callaghan for bringing it to our attention promptly and courteously.

$24 MILLION

Her largest portfolio ran 2.5 million square feet across six cities on a $24 million budget.

That portfolio carried roughly $24 million in revenue against $8 million in operating expenses, plus a capital outlay of between $3 and $5 million every year. Over her career she has managed properties in 38 cities, from Gilroy to Roseville and Petaluma to Stockton.

Clayton’s entire general fund is a fraction of the budget she has been accountable for. She has read a balance sheet that size every month of her career.

CONTRACTS

She writes and operates the kind of contracts a city lives and dies by.

Callaghan writes and administers leases and vendor contracts, and coordinates between landlords and tenants, owners and vendors. She works with hundreds of vendors across the Bay Area, on everything from large HVAC maintenance agreements and major landscape projects down to indoor plant service.

She is trained to read, review, and approve construction documents, and has managed millions of dollars in property improvements and full redevelopments. Contracts, capital projects, and vendor oversight are most of what a small city actually does.

SIDEWALKS

It started with the sidewalks.

Callaghan and her husband Chris walk their dogs through Clayton’s neighborhoods and trails, and over the years watched the sidewalks and trails deteriorate. The busy intersection near their home had needed attention for years, with promised improvements long overdue. When the project finally showed signs of life, she started attending City Council meetings to follow it.

What she learned in those meetings is why she is running.

THE MONEY

Her position: find every dollar Clayton is already owed before asking residents for more.

Callaghan says City reserves have been steadily depleted, and that Federal and State grant funds have been held, missed, or left unused because of gaps in staffing continuity and institutional knowledge. Those are dollars Clayton residents have already paid through their Federal and State taxes.

On the sales tax measure now before voters, her position is that the Council is trying to address a real problem, but that before asking neighbors to pay more, the City owes them a thorough review of its financial history, contracts, and assessed needs. That review is the work she does for a living.

SINCE 1992

Clayton is where she grew up, got married, and came back to raise her children.

Her parents moved the family to Clayton in 1992, just before her senior year of high school. She left in 1995 to live on her own, married Chris in a backyard ceremony here, and in 2002 bought a home in Clayton because she wanted to raise her children in it. Their children, Haley and Alex, carried the family further into the community through school plays, sports, chorus, and art shows.

Her mother Vicki still calls Clayton home. After her father Bob passed in 2015, Vicki built an addition above the garage to stay close to her sister Erika’s family next door. Three generations, one town.

15 YEARS

She has been pouring the wine and selling the tickets for fifteen years.

Callaghan has volunteered at the Art & Wine Festival and Oktoberfest for at least fifteen years, and at the Fourth of July and Clayton Pride parades. She volunteered in her children’s classrooms and with parent club events at every school they attended. She and Chris have played bocce since the courts opened in 2014.

She is an active member of the CBCA. In 2024 the Callaghans opened their home for the Clayton Historical Society’s first Halloween Tour, and this year were featured on its Annual Garden Tour.