The San Bernardino City Council agreed Wednesday to put up to $500,000 in general fund money into the struggling Shandin Hills Golf Club while directing staff to explore ending the city’s contract with its management company, capping a meeting that also advanced a $10.2 million library renovation and a sweeping financial review.
The golf club appropriation reimburses over $255,000 in past “cash calls” — payments the city is contractually obligated to make when course revenue falls short of expenses — and sets aside the remainder of the $500,000 appropriation as cushion for future shortfalls.
Director of Economic Development Luis Portillo told the council the cash calls, received between July and September, covered payroll, utility bills and management fees.
Prior to a unanimous vote to approve, the debate exposed what several council members called a breakdown in oversight.
Mayor Pro Tem Kim Knaus said the profit and loss statements provided by Local Golf Management LLC, the firm running the course, “don’t really add up” and questioned why checks were issued without proper documentation.
“I don’t feel we’re questioning the accountability and the actual accounting of what’s coming into the city by the management company,” she said.
“We’re possibly allocating an additional $245,000, but we really have no even kinda guesstimate in regards to what is needed for that course,” Knaus added.
City Manager Eric Levitt acknowledged the city historically had no oversight of the management company’s checking account and said the city is moving to a city-controlled account and enterprise fund accounting that would enable oversight of the course’s cash flow.
“The reason we probably haven’t (had financial oversight) is because it has been self-sustaining in the past, and so money hadn’t been requested (from) the city,” Leavitt said. “For whatever reason, we didn’t do this as an enterprise fund … so we are putting it in. That’s a more structural sound way to do it is have an enterprise fund.”
Councilwoman Treasure Ortiz said city officials “failed to do our due diligence” amended the motion to direct staff to discuss dissolving the contract with Local Golf Management.
“The city did not have proper procedures and mechanisms in place to properly manage one of its own facilities,” Ortiz said. “And in that inability to properly be accountable and transparent in in maintenance and facilitation of operations with our own vendor, we now have to correct that that error, that lack of oversight.”
The council also awarded a more than $8.32 million construction contract to Tovey/Shultz Construction Inc. for improvements to the Norman Feldheym Central Library at 555 W. Sixth St., including accessibility upgrades, a backup generator, HVAC modernization and foundation repair. With a nearly $271,000 construction management task order and a roughly $645,000 contingency, the total project budget reaches over $10.2 million.
The council chose to cover a more than $2.25 million shortfall from the city’s Measure S fund balance rather than reallocating money from other projects.
On financial oversight, the council directed staff to pursue an independent financial process assessment extending back to fiscal year 2019, plus a separate third-party audit of the community facilities districts and landscape maintenance districts. Council members debated whether the review should be forensic and how consultants should be selected.
The council also introduced an ordinance to expedite permitting for electric vehicle charging stations, bringing the city into compliance with state law, and a separate ordinance updating water-efficient landscaping rules.
The new regulations pertain to soil amendments, compost and mulch requirements.
“To provide habitat for beneficial insects and other wildlife, up to 5% of the landscape area may be left without mulch and identified in the landscape design plan,” according to a city staff report. “Organic mulch made from recycled or post-consumer materials shall take precedence over inorganic materials or virgin forest products unless the recycled post-consumer organic products are not locally available.”
The council OK’d a vacant property registration ordinance 5-0 after Knaus pressed for assurances the city could actually enforce it, with Levitt committing to an implementation update within about 60 days.
The Love Your Block Year 3 program, funded with $80,000 from the cultural development fund and $70,000 in salary savings, passed over the objection of Councilmember Fred Shorett, who cited the city’s “fragile” fiscal condition.
“I’m all about beautification of the community and getting the the the people engaged, but our fiscal condition is is fragile at best,” Short said. “I’m trying to be very fiscally conservative on on some of the expenditures we make.”
The council also directed staff to proceed with a feasibility study on revenue from warehouse, logistics and truck parking activity.
“The city … has a substantial concentration of warehouse, logistics, industrial, storage, distribution and related commercial activity,” staff reported. “These activities generate business activity and employment, while also creating demands for transportation infrastructure, permitting, inspection, code enforcement, public services, and other municipal functions. The city therefore has an opportunity to evaluate its overall fiscal position with respect to this sector rather than examining a single potential warehouse tax in isolation.”
The AI platform Civilio assisted this report.