Mount Vernon Bridge reopens; city highlights street repaving and $5 million for Second Lake Park

City leaders marked the reopening of the Mount Vernon Bridge and highlighted recent and planned public works projects that officials framed as reconnecting neighborhoods and restoring basic services.

"This was the second-largest public works project in San Bernardino's history and it wasn't easy. After five years of closure, the bridge reopened last August," Mayor Helen Tran said, crediting local, state and federal partners and the city's Public Works team.

Officials described ongoing street repaving across multiple wards, storm-drain projects and park rebuilds. Council member Theodore Sanchez said Second Lake Park is undergoing a major rebuild and that Assemblymember James Ramos secured an additional $5 million in state funding to enhance the park's improvements.

City staff and councilmembers credited the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority, state and federal partners, and local public-works crews for delivering the bridge project and other infrastructure work. The mayor and other speakers called the investments a visible sign of progress and neighborhood reconnection.

Specific timelines were given for some projects (the Mount Vernon Bridge reopened in August), while others were described at a programmatic level; for example, the city did not provide a full schedule or budget breakdown for every street repaving or park renovation during the presentation.

City officials said the ongoing capital work aims to restore access to local businesses, improve safety and support economic reinvestment across neighborhoods.