This story was updated to include the city’s response.
Richmond City Manager Shasa Curl announced at Tuesday’s city council meeting that she plans to retire later this year.
Curl shared the unexpected news, which comes after months of tensions with the police union, as she was updating the council about a number of achievements during her tenure, including improvements at Wendell and Boorman parks and the Booker T. Anderson Community Center.
“I also want to let the city council and the community know that when our three park renovation projects are completed I will be retiring from the city of Richmond,” Curl said.
In a statement sent out Wednesday, Curl was acknowledged for her service and accomplishments during her tenure that included renovations of the Richmond Library and Booker T. Anderson Community Center, the removal of Richmond from the State Auditor’s high-risk category and the revamping of the city’s public works department.
“It has been the great privilege of my professional career to serve Richmond for over two decades, and I am proud of our many accomplishments on behalf of this extraordinary City,” Curl said in the press release. “Our residents are deeply engaged, the City Council is committed, and the City staff are extraordinary in every way. Thank you for the opportunity to serve this remarkable community. I will always love Richmond.”
Mayor Eduardo Martinez also acknowledged Curl’s retirement in a press release.
“I recognize her outstanding service to the City of Richmond in the role of City Manager and note her intention to complete remaining projects prior to her departure. I want to personally thank her for her years of service and dedication to the City of Richmond,” Martinez wrote.
Curl, who holds a master’s degree in urban planning from UCLA, is a long-time Richmond employee who has worked for the city since 2003. She was named city manager in April 2022 after serving as interim city manager for just less than six months. Prior to that, she served in various roles within the city manager’s office, including deputy city manager, Community and Economic Development director and administrative chief.
Shasa Curl, police union at odds over reinstatement of officers involved in fatal shootings
The announcement follows months of tension between Curl and the Richmond Police Officer’s Association (RPOA) over Curl not reinstating of officers Brandon Hodges, Nicholas Remick and Colton Stocking.
Remick and Stocking were involved in the fatal shooting of 27-year-old Angel Montaño at an Iron Triangle home. Both officers were recently cleared of any wrongdoing by the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office and returned for duty.
Hodges fatally shot Luis Angel Torres Rivera on Interstate 80 near Hercules earlier this year. According to Sgt. Ben Therriault, president of the RPOA, Hodges was reinstated within the last two weeks.
According to Therriault, although the three officers are back on duty, the RPOA is still planning on pursuing legal action “based on Curl’s violation of the (memorandum of understanding) and applicable labor law.”
Since the start of 2026, dozens of officers have spoken at council meetings, calling out Curl for not reinstating the officers and saying she violated the labor agreements and diverted from standard practices that allow officers to return to work pending the results of in-custody death investigations.
Tuesday night, prior to Curl’s announcement, the council was set to discuss the performance evaluation process for the city manager during the closed session of the meeting. Therriault criticized Curl during the public comment session, calling for the city to adopt a 360-review process that included “direct, confidential input” from labor.
“The contract of the person who sets the tone for every department in the city — that decision can’t be made in an echo chamber and it definitely can’t be made on the basis of a self-assessment or a closed session conversation or a handshake, so to speak,” Therriault said.
“A lot of us (department and labor leaders) all talk. A lot of us have worked here for a long time. The pattern of micromanagement from the city manager’s office has undermined operational decision making, demoralized some staff and created confusion where there should be clarity. That included a not very meaningful connection with labor and understanding labor, specifically with this public safety labor union, and needs to be addressed.”
According to the union, officers have been working without a labor contract since July 2025.
As an example of that “inefficiency,” Therriault mentioned a delay in staff pay raises.
“We have 24 pay changes and, not just pay changes that affect my people but affect all various unions, that are being held up by the city manager’s office. We actually have to have the chief secretary right now create a spreadsheet on the tracking where all those pay changes have been since February and they are just held up in the city manager’s office.”
Curl responded to Therriault’s comments.
“As I have indicated before, I am not going to be bullied by RPOA,” she said. “We were scheduled to meet with them on Friday, April 17, and they cancelled the meeting. We currently have 14 items that we are seeking to address with them outside of the regular MOU negotiations and so it’s really disappointing when we have time and calendar to meet with them and they cancel at the last minute.”
Curl told Richmondside in an email that her impending retirement has “nothing to do” with the RPOA.
“I have a collaborative working relationship with both retired Chief (Bisa) French and Chief (Tim) Simmons, and we have been working hard to hire and retain officers,” Curl said. “We are currently in negotiations with RPOA and will leave it at that.”
Simmons, who was copied onto Curl’s emailed response, commended her for her collaboration.
“She currently has, and she’s always had, a collaborative relationship with myself and Chief French,” Simmons wrote. “There are many accomplishments City Manager Curl has helped the police department with over the last several years.”
