San Bernardino council conducts closed-session interviews for city manager; no reportable action

The San Bernardino Mayor and City Council met in a special closed session beginning at about 5:35 p.m. to conduct additional interviews for the permanent city manager and reconvened at 9:06 p.m., City Attorney said there was no reportable action.

Public comment ahead of the closed session included a single in-person speaker, Luis Ojeda. Ojeda criticized the city’s hiring process and council dynamics, saying the process “is not working” and calling the council “very dysfunctional.” He told the council, “This gentleman’s gonna be here for what? A few weeks, maybe a few months, and then what happened? So it’s a waste of time, resources, and money.” Ojeda also alleged conflicting directions from elected officials and recounted a prior agreement with a former interim city manager that he said was later contradicted by another official, naming “Mr. Bail.”

Agenda materials and written comments were distributed to the mayor and council and posted in the meeting backup online, the clerk said during the meeting.

After the closed session, the City Attorney reported: “The mayor and council met in closed session to conduct additional interviews for the permanent city manager position. There is no reportable item from closed session.” The meeting was then adjourned at 9:06 p.m. The mayor and council scheduled their next joint regular meeting for April 16, 2025, at the Feldheim Central Library, 555 West Sixth Street; closed session will begin at 3 p.m. and open session at 5 p.m.

The meeting record shows the council convened solely to conduct interviews; no votes or formal appointments were announced during open session following the interviews.