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Council allocates $63,000 to reopen park restrooms, authorizes RFP for ongoing maintenance
Summary
The council approved a one‑time allocation and directed staff to issue an RFP for contracted daily opening, cleaning and closing of park restrooms, aiming to bring 14 high‑use park restrooms back into service while staff seeks longer‑term capital funds.
The San Bernardino City Council on July 16 authorized an initial, one‑time allocation of $63,000 to perform minor rehabilitation needed to reopen park restrooms at 14 high‑use parks and directed staff to issue a request for proposals (RFP) to secure ongoing contracted maintenance (opening, janitorial service and closing).
Public Works staff told the council the city has 36 parks and 33 restroom facilities; 23 are operational and about 10 are non‑operational because of severe deterioration. Of those, six are currently undergoing renovation; four require major work beyond the scope of minor repairs. Staff reviewed several service models and said in‑house staffing capacity is insufficient to reliably provide daily restroom opening and cleaning across the system. They identified approximately $300,000 in one‑time Measure S funds available to support park restroom rehabilitation; $63,000 was requested as the immediate amount to get identified restrooms functional (lighting, partitions, minor plumbing and fixtures) while staff seeks responses to an RFP for ongoing maintenance.
Council members supported the plan as a quality‑of‑life priority. Councilmember Knauss called the decision “refreshing” and urged completion of the larger General Plan updates that will provide certainty for developers and services. Councilmember Kanas asked that staff confirm which parks would receive contracted security or park‑ranger coverage in conjunction with restroom reopening; staff said park ranger contracts (through a vendor) provide security in certain locations but do not cover restroom opening and janitorial duties. City staff noted that more significant rehabilitation (ADA upgrades, roof or major plumbing replacement) would be a capital project and would require additional funding through the CIP process or grants.
Councilmember Sanchez moved to approve the $63,000 allocation and RFP authorization; Councilmember Ortiz seconded. The motion passed unanimously. Staff said the RFP will seek vendors that can open and close restrooms daily, provide periodic cleaning, and coordinate with parks staff on repairs; staff will return with procurement results and any requested additional funding for capital rehabilitation.
