“I Hate Living in San Bernardino”: Residents Grill City Officials Over Yearlong Feldheym Library Computer Lab Shutdown
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San Bernardino City Council listens to constituent complaints on April 2 inside the Feldheym Library’s Bing Wong Auditorium at 555 West 6th Street — the designated council meeting location due to seismic safety concerns at City Hall.
“Today I’m here to let you know how much I hate living in the City of San Bernardino,” resident Gina Mireles said, her frustration echoing through council chambers during the April 2 City Council meeting. Her remarks launched a wave of public criticism aimed at city officials for allowing the Norman F. Feldheym Central Library to go without a functioning computer lab for more than a year — an absence that many argue underscores the city’s failure to meet basic community needs.
Located in Ward 1 at 555 W. 6th Street, Feldheym Library is the city’s central library and a vital public resource. As National Library Week is here, from April 6–12, residents say they’re left without access to essential digital tools like internet-connected computers and printers — access widely available in neighboring cities.
Mireles, who moved to San Bernardino from Rancho Cucamonga and Ontario, explained she chose to buy a home near the San Bernardino Police Department, expecting a comparable level of public services to her former cities. “I was expecting the level of service I received in Ontario,” she said. “I hate the fact that the city cannot provide its citizens with the bare necessities.”
She emphasized that this issue disproportionately affects children and low-income families. “Children need computers to do research projects; they need them to print,” she said. “People without funds need these computers to conduct job searches.”
Although Mireles is fortunate enough to have a car, car insurance, and money for gas, she questioned why she should be forced to leave her own city for basic library services. “I can drive to Highland and Riverside to their beautiful libraries, but I should be able to walk to this library in San Bernardino,” she said.
She pointed to rapid public improvements in neighboring cities as a stark contrast. “The City of Ontario put in a new library with new programming and everything in four hours,” Mireles added. “And we have been without a functioning library for over a year.”
Mireles closed her remarks by challenging the city’s claim of limited financial resources. “I don’t want to hear that there is no money because I pay my tax bill every year,” she said. “If you don’t have money, all you need to do is make a cut on payroll. Our city staff are getting paid too much money for the pathetic services they are providing residents in the City.”
Her statement was one of several that night highlighting the digital divide and the systemic inequities residents say continue to be ignored.
San Bernardino resident Michel Meister reinforced those concerns, pointing out the wide-reaching impact on marginalized populations. “The children in San Bernardino already fall behind the averages in education and literacy,” he said. “Not having access to public computers will leave them further behind in the digital age. Parents also need public computer access to search for jobs and benefits that are due to all residents. Let’s get these computers back in our libraries and provide equity to San Bernardino.”
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, approximately 19.5% of San Bernardino residents — or about 41,900 people out of a population of 214,000 — live below the poverty line. That rate surpasses both the California average of 12.3% and the national average of 12.8%. The city’s median household income stands at $63,988, and per capita income is $23,980. These economic conditions directly impact digital access, with many low-income families unable to afford reliable internet or personal computers, contributing to the city’s persistent digital divide—particularly among students who rely on technology for education.
Attorney Tim Prince, a lifelong resident and partner at Tomlinson & Prince, also weighed in. “I know the library experienced a computer invasion in its system,” he said, referencing a cyberattack that disrupted services. “But it is not acceptable to keep patrons without internet access. This could have been re-wired in a weekend.”
Prince emphasized that technology access is no longer a luxury — it’s a necessity. “We are a city of socio-economic need and not everyone has their own computer,” he said. “I could not imagine even a week without a computer or internet.”
Interim City Manager Bill Gallardo acknowledged the longstanding issue and assured the public that improvements are on the way. “We have a substantial amount of money coming to the library in process and plan on updating its entire computer system,” Gallardo said. “We will address this.”
While some residents wait for city action, others are exploring low-cost alternatives. Business owner Alan Stanly recommended the Raspberry Pi — a compact, $40 computer that connects to any TV and allows users to browse the web, access Google Docs, write resumes, and conduct job searches. While not a replacement for a fully-equipped public library, devices like this can help families stay connected in the interim.
Still, critics say the city has failed to meet the minimum standard of service, especially given San Bernardino’s existing educational and economic challenges. Countywide, 16.9% of children under 18 live in poverty, and digital disparities persist across racial and age groups. Pacific Islander residents, for example, face the highest poverty rate at 30.9%, compared to 9.6% for Asian residents.
In response to these gaps, the San Bernardino City Unified School District has implemented several programs aimed at improving digital access, including a Laptop & Home Internet Program and a Family Chromebook Initiative providing free devices and T-Mobile service to 5,000 families.
At the county level, the Access to Technology Program has allocated over $2.5 million to expand digital literacy among residents aged 60 and older. Additionally, the recently approved California State Digital Equity Plan will bring $70.2 million in federal funds to the state to improve internet affordability, expand device access, and offer digital training; but it’s still not enough.
Despite these efforts, residents say the absence of working public computers in their central library is symbolic of deeper systemic neglect.
“The lack of urgency is telling,” said Mireles. “We’re not asking for luxuries — we’re asking for the bare minimum. And right now, San Bernardino can’t even provide that.”
