I grew up in local government - my dad was a city manager. And while I was “adjacent” to the work he did, I never fully understood or appreciated it until I was an adult. As a result, I went off to college with the idea that I had no interest in government of any sort - not local, not federal and certainly nothing political. I floundered around a bit finding my major, and eventually, thanks to an inspiring professor, I fell in love with accounting - nothing remotely political or government-adjacent.

Well, fast-forward a couple of decades, and here I am, working in local government! While I lost my dad three years ago, he did live long enough to help support Ryder and me as we started and grew Tripepi Smith. He was so proud of the work we were doing and that the family name would continue in the world of local government.

A few more words on my dad, for those of you who didn’t know him in his early career. He was a bit of an anomaly in the profession, as he was made a city manager at the age of 27. I didn’t really understand that it was unheard of until I started working in his world. City management is HARD, and to think about doing it without much experience at 27 is mind-boggling. He then went on a nearly 30-year run as the city manager in Rosemead, so not only did he figure out how to run the city, but he did it successfully enough to have council support for a very long time. 

I have more appreciation for the people who work in local government than I did early in my life. The problems local government solves are readily visible - you aren’t just looking at numbers on a spreadsheet, but you see the people and infrastructure that are challenged or creating problems in your communities. My couple of decades in the local government world have given me a far better understanding of my dad than when I was a teenager at home.

My dad always used to say that all big problems are solved at the local level. And that people ultimately care that their lights turn on, their toilets flush, their trash gets picked up, their streets aren’t full of potholes and their families are safe. He used those principles as his guiding post for all decision-making in his city, and it served him well.

While I still do a lot of accounting and spreadsheet analyzing, I also get to watch our team help local governments make a difference in communities, and it brings me great joy. I like to think my dad is proudly looking down on me and smiling, and likely even laughing at teenage me a bit for saying “I have no interest in working in local government”. 

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Karla Tovar

Senior Business Analyst

With more than a decade of public sector experience, Karla brings valuable expertise in strategic communications and government relations to the firm.

Michael Garcia

Videographer

With 20 years of professional video production experience, including nearly a decade in Local Government Television, Michael brings a wealth of knowledge and a fresh perspective to Tripepi Smith.

Jessie Arvizu

Senior Graphic Designer

Jessie brings over a decade of creative leadership to the team, with a dynamic portfolio. Jessie blends strategy with striking design across every platform.

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Established in 1972, West Coast Arborists, Inc. (WCA, Inc.) is a family-owned company providing professional tree mainteneance and management services to more than 330 municipalities and public agencies across California, Arizona and Texas.

Since 2020, WCA has partnered with Tripepi Smith to help execute overall marketing efforts in California.



Learn more about West Coast Arborists.

Strategic goal setting shapes an organization’s long-term focus and priorities. It enables governing boards to identify key policy areas for investment and clearly communicate those priorities to their constituents. It also ensures alignment between the board and the executive leader who carries out their vision.

Our work is tailored to meet the unique needs of each agency and often includes:

• Engagement with community stakeholders, including targeted public outreach
• A comprehensive review of existing goals and direction, including one-on-one discussions with elected officials, senior leadership and key stakeholders
• Management of an online survey to identify key priorities and concerns
• Facilitation of a strategic planning meeting with elected board
• Collaboration with agency staff on goals and priorities
• A finalized report summarizing findings and outlining next steps

Principal Jennifer Nentwig, APR is a skilled communications expert and account manager with nearly two decades of experience serving government agencies. Accredited in Public Relations (APR), she specializes in strategic communications, media relations, social media strategy and content development.

Jennifer holds a B.A. from the University of Notre Dame, an M.S. from the University of San Diego and serves as a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Air Force Reserve.

Her clients include the cities of Orange, Livermore, Lancaster, Calabasas and the Fresno Council of Governments.

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