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New San Bernardino council elects Juan Figueroa as mayor pro tem, approves regional board appointments
Summary
The newly seated council selected Juan Figueroa as mayor pro tem, directed staff to draft a mayor-pro-tem selection policy, and approved appointments to several regional agencies; several annexation items were continued to Jan. 15.
The San Bernardino City Council elected Council member Juan Figueroa as mayor pro tem and approved a slate of appointments to regional boards after newly seated members took the oath of office.
Council members also directed staff to return in the first quarter of 2025 with a draft policy on how the council selects a mayor pro tem, responding to calls during the meeting for a consistent, transparent approach to future selections.
Election: Council member Javier Sanchez nominated Juan Figueroa for mayor pro tem; the council voted unanimously to elect Figueroa. The council also asked city staff to bring back sample policies used by other cities so the council can consider a formal selection rule in Q1 2025.
Regional boards and appointments: The council approved nominations and alternates to five key regional bodies with unanimous support after members confirmed availability. The approved assignments were: - Inland Valley Development Agency (IVDA): voting members Fred Charette, Juan Figueroa and Sandra Ibarra; alternate Mario Flores. - San Bernardino International Airport Authority (SBIAA / SABIA): voting members Kimberly Knauss and Javier Sanchez; alternate Fred Charette. - San Bernardino County Transportation Authority (SBCTA): voting member Mayor John Tran; alternate Kimberly Knauss. - Omnitrans (regional transit): voting member Mario Flores; alternate Juan Figueroa. - Inland Counties Homelessness (ICH) regional bodies: voting member Treasure Ortiz; alternate Sandra Ibarra.
The mayor thanked outgoing council members and noted the appointments are intended to ensure experience and coverage across the council on major regional issues including airports, transportation, redevelopment and homelessness.
Other council business: Two annexation items related to the city’s Community Facilities District (CFD 2019-1) — Dutch Brothers Coffee annexation and Piedmont Mobile Home Estates annexation — were opened and continued to the council’s Jan. 15, 2025 meeting for additional noticing. The consent calendar, including routine items and commission appointments, was approved unanimously.
Process note: During the mayor-pro-tem discussion the city attorney advised that the municipal code contains a rule for selecting a temporary mayor pro tem when the officer is absent (Municipal Code §201.010) but no standing council policy governs the routine selection of the mayor pro tem; council members directed staff to return with options for a formal policy.
What’s next: Staff will prepare the requested mayor-pro-tem selection policy options for Q1 2025 and will return amended items related to the CFD annexations on Jan. 15, 2025.
