SAN BERNARDINO SPECIAL DISTRICTS DEPT, COUNTY OF

What SAN BERNARDINO SPECIAL DISTRICTS DEPT, COUNTY OF does

San Bernardino County Special Districts Department is a division of the San Bernardino County Department of Public Works that delivers essential municipal services to unincorporated areas and designated service districts across San Bernardino County, California. The department was founded in 1972 (with the Bloomington Recreation and Park District established on July 19, 1972) and operates as a government entity, publicly funded and overseen by the County Board of Supervisors, with no private shareholders.

The department's service portfolio spans five core lines: Parks & Recreation (including Big Bear Parks, Big Bear Alpine Zoo with 130k+ annual visitors, Bloomington Recreation and Park District, and 11 additional County Service Areas); Roads & Streetlights (585+ miles of maintained roads plus snowplowing); Television Districts (broadcast services to CSA 29 Lucerne Valley, CSA 40 Barstow, CSA 70 TV-2 Morongo, CSA 70 TV-4 Wonder Valley, and CSA 70 TV-5 Mesa); Water & Sanitation (69,930+ customers served through 330+ miles of pipeline across 17 named service districts); and Community Facilities Districts / Joint Powers Authorities (including the Agua Mansa Industrial Growth Association and five CFDs). The underlying technology is conventional municipal infrastructure — water distribution systems, sanitation pipelines, road networks, and park facilities — supplemented by basic digital tools: an online payment portal, an ArcGIS-based snowplow road map application, rec1.com for recreation registration, and Google/Outlook calendar exports.

The business model is government service delivery: recurring monthly water/sewer utility fees from 69,930+ residential and commercial customers, plus property-based special district assessments levied on parcels within each district's boundaries, supplemented by dedicated Community Facilities District financing for infrastructure in development zones such as Kaiser Commerce Center and Citrus Plaza. The department manages 120+ districts and 217 funds, executes $68.6M+ in capital improvement projects, and employs 201 people across its operations. Go-to-market is direct-to-resident service delivery, with no commercial sales motion; marketing is limited to organic social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube) and email newsletters for resident communications.

Name

SAN BERNARDINO SPECIAL DISTRICTS DEPT, COUNTY OF

Legal name

San Bernardino County Special Districts Department

Website

https://specialdistricts.org

Company type

Public

Founded year

1972

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

San Bernardino County Special Districts Department is a government division providing water, sanitation, road, parks/recreation, and television services to 69,930+ utility customers across 120+ districts in unincorporated San Bernardino County, California.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Works & Municipal Services

NAICS

Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213), Other General Government Support (921190)

SIC

Electric, Gas & Sanitary Services (4900), Sanitary Services (4950)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Works & Municipal Infrastructure (Streets, Stormwater, Facilities) (BPAIACAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Public Works Departments (Streets, Bridges, Stormwater, Fleet, Maintenance) (BPAIALAD), Municipal Wastewater Collection (Sewer Networks) (BPALAMAA)

Keywords

• Municipal water services
• Wastewater management
• Road maintenance services
• Parks and recreation
• Special district administration

Headquarters

HQ city

San Bernardino

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Water and Sanitation Service Fees: Monthly water and sewer service fees charged to over 69,930 residential and commercial customers across various service districts. Revenue supports water distribution, sanitation services, and infrastructure maintenance.
2. Property-Based Assessments: Special district assessments levied on properties within district boundaries to fund road maintenance, parks and recreation, streetlights, and other municipal services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

San Bernardino County Special Districts Department delivers essential municipal services to unincorporated areas and designated districts across San Bernardino County, including water distribution and sanitation to 69,930+ customers, road maintenance and snowplowing across 585+ miles of roads, parks and recreation facilities, and television signal services across multiple County Service Areas. The department manages 120+ special districts and 217 funds through a combination of user fees, property-based assessments, and public financing mechanisms.

Product overview

San Bernardino County Special Districts Department, a division of the Department of Public Works, provides essential municipal services to unincorporated areas of the county. The department operates a multi-service portfolio including Parks & Recreation (managing parks, community centers, and recreational programs), Roads & Streetlights (maintaining 585+ miles of roads and providing snowplowing services), Television Districts (providing broadcast services to multiple areas), Water & Sanitation (serving 69,930+ water customers across 330+ miles of pipeline), and Community Facilities Districts. The department manages 120+ districts and 217 funds, with services delivered through a network of community centers, parks, and service facilities across San Bernardino County.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Big Bear Parks: Parks and recreation services for Big Bear area including Swim Beach, Ski Beach, and various parks
• Big Bear Alpine Zoo
• Bloomington Recreation and Park District
• County Service Areas (CSAs)

Products and services

• Parks & Recreation Services Recreation and park district services providing outdoor spaces, community centers, and recreational programs across multiple County Service Areas, including Big Bear Parks, Bloomington Recreation and Park, CSA 20 Joshua Tree, and others.
• Roads & Streetlights Road maintenance, snowplowing, and streetlight services across 585+ miles of roads managed by the department through various road districts.
• Television Districts Television signal services providing broadcast reception to residents in designated County Service Areas across San Bernardino County.
• Water & Sanitation Water distribution and sewer services serving over 69,930 customers across various service districts, maintaining 330+ miles of pipeline. Includes customer service, billing, conservation programs, and developer services.
• Community Facilities Districts (CFDs) Special financing districts that fund public infrastructure and services including roads, fire protection, and community facilities in designated areas of San Bernardino County.
• Agua Mansa Industrial Growth Association (AMIGA) Joint powers authority focused on industrial growth in the Agua Mansa area of San Bernardino County, supporting economic development in the region.

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Agua Mansa Industrial Growth Association (AMIGA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint Powers Authority (JPA) focused on industrial development and economic growth in the Agua Mansa area. The department participates as a member of this collaborative regional development partnership.
• Community Facilities Districts (CFDs)coreOthersCFDs including CFD 2002-1 (Kaiser Commerce Center), CFD 2002-2 (Kaiser Commerce Center Fire), CFD 2003-1 (Citrus Plaza), CFD 2006-1 (Lytle Creek North), and CFD 2010-1 (East Valley) are special financing districts that fund public infrastructure and services.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District: Regional wholesale water supplier within San Bernardino County; interacts with the department's water service districts and provides wholesale supply that underpins the department's retail water operations.
• Big Bear Area Regional Wastewater Agency: Regional wastewater treatment agency serving the Big Bear Valley within San Bernardino County — directly comparable component operating in the same service area as the department's CSA water/sanitation districts.

Direct peers

• Kern County Public Works: Large California county public works department operating roads, water, and sanitation services across diverse terrain (desert, mountain, valley) — directly comparable operational complexity to San Bernardino.
• Ventura County Public Works Agency: County-level public works agency providing water, sanitation, roads, and flood control services — comparable in portfolio breadth and special-district governance.
• Orange County Public Works: County public works agency providing roads, sewers, and infrastructure services; operates CSAs and assessment districts analogous to San Bernardino Special Districts' structure.
• Riverside County Public Works / Flood Control: Adjacent Inland Empire county public works agency managing roads, flood control, and special districts — highly comparable geography, climate risk, and service portfolio including water/wastewater and transportation infrastructure.
• San Diego County Department of Public Works: California county-level public works department providing roads, water, and sanitation services to unincorporated areas — directly comparable in scale, service offering, and special-district governance model.
• Los Angeles County Public Works: Largest California county public works department, providing water, sewer, road, and infrastructure services across unincorporated LA County — directly comparable as a county-level municipal infrastructure operator with similar service mix.
• Sacramento County Department of Public Works: Operates roads, water, and wastewater services across Sacramento County unincorporated areas through a comparable district management structure.

Others

• California Special Districts Association (CSDA): Industry association representing California's 2,000+ independent special districts — provides governance, training, and advocacy support directly relevant to a member-operated special-district system.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sbcounty
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/SBCountyPIO
• Facebookfacebook.com/SanBernardinoCounty
• Instagraminstagram.com/sbcounty
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/san-bernardino-special-districts-dept-county-of

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SAN BERNARDINO SPECIAL DISTRICTS DEPT, COUNTY OF