SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (KABC) — The former City of San Bernardino finance director claims he was threatened and fired by current city officials after he raised concerns about the potential cost of a renovation project at Old City Hall.
Barbara Whitehorn made this assertion during the public comment portion of the May 15 City Council meeting.
“Today I came back from vacation and today I was fired,” Whitehorn said in a statement, sometimes tearing up. “Today, I am no longer an employee of the City of San Bernardino due to threats (by the City Administrator) to release information into the public domain that would damage my career.
“Then I said, “City Manager, please do that, because first you have to fire me,'' and he said, “Oh, then I'll fire you without cause.'' “said.”
Whitehorn claims the cost of renovating Old City Hall is spiraling out of control. The building had been vacant since late 2016 after being vacated due to concerns that it could collapse in a major earthquake.
“This project has grown from $80 million to about $120 million, and that number is nowhere to be found on this (public) agenda. This city doesn't have that kind of money,” she said. .
A presentation was made to City Council in January 2024 outlining the process for renovating City Hall. City Manager Charles Montoya said the city is currently experiencing increased costs to rent space in other buildings to maintain city services.
“If we don't do this now, sooner or later that building will just become a giant doorstop,” Montoya said during the meeting.
In response to questions from City Council members, he acknowledged that there is still no estimate of the final cost of the project.
“The reason we're doing it this way is the speed at which we can get this done. The lease on the city building is up in two years, and we don't want to sign a new lease that just throws the money out the window. there is no.” . ”
Two days after her appearance at the City Council meeting, the city released a statement in response to Whitehorn's remarks.
The statement claimed Whitehorn was fired for reasons unrelated to the City Hall project and disputed some of her other claims.
“However, contrary to Whitehorn's claims, the renovation project has not yet been designed and construction costs have not yet been determined,” said a statement from public information officer Jeff Kraus. “Construction cost estimates and project financing options will be presented to council at a future meeting.”
“The City of San Bernardino has confirmed that Mr. Whitehorn is an at-will employee and was terminated due to financial issues unrelated to the City Hall project.”
The statement also said discussion about the City Hall project was postponed from that night's council agenda because there was not enough time to consider the issue and hear public input.
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