Inglewood is on the verge
of bankruptcy, according
to 2nd District Councilmember
Judy Dunlap. Her
comments at Tuesday’s council
meeting raised doubts and
fears among residents, over
the City’s financial position,
which could only be quelled
by the facts.

It is a pattern
typical of the District 2 representative,
whose political
theme is “fiscal mismanagement.”
City Treasurer Wanda
Brown and District 4 Councilmember
Ralph Franklin
acted swiftly to exert rumor
control and restore confidence.
Currently, the City’s
deficit is about $10 million,
which is greater than was earlier
reported. However, Brown
said, the City does have
reserves and is not in dire
straits, as Dunlap has claimed.
“Her [Dunlap] method is to
project panic, hysteria, and
fear. When a city is facing
bankruptcy it means it cannot
pay its bills. Inglewood paid
$41.8 million in bills from
December 2009 through February
2010. In addition, nearly
$9 million was paid in payroll.”
Brown oversees a $276
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On The Inside million investment portfolio.
The City deficit, she said,
is part of the overall decline
in revenue suffered by all
cities. “This is a nationwide
issue. Even our own state is
facing a deficit of $26 billion
or more. Cities are experiencing
declining grants,
home and job losses.”
Franklin said Dunlap has
repeatedly created alarm
about the city’s finances at
council meetings. When the
topic came up on Tuesday, he
asked Brown to publicly clarify
whether the City was
going bankrupt. “She reassured
us that, no, this was not
the case.”
The City’s investment portfolio
currently has more than
$52 million in liquid assets
that could be tapped into if
needed. The city’s redevelopment
agency has over $200
million in funds available for
housing, retail and other joint
development projects.
Franklin also summoned
Jeff Muir, Inglewood’s Chief
Financial Officer to verify
Brown’s findings. Muir
agreed with Brown, but
warned that the city needs to
tighten its belt, it is drawing
daily on reserves.
“We are not immune to
making adjustments,” Franklin
said. We’re looking at current
operations to see where we
can tweak city management,
and whether we need to do
more outsourcing. We can not
continue operating in a structured
deficit, and will look at
every means possible to lower
costs.”
Dunlap has sat on the Inglewood
City Council for more
than 16 years and ran unsuccessfully
for mayor multiple
times. She filed personal
bankruptcy in 1991 and has
been evicted from her residence
at least once. Currently,
there is speculation about
the validity of her residency,
and her ability to maintain