John Echevarria, from public housing to police sergeant and now your Colton city councilman

Colton’s District 5 City Councilman John Echevarria’s name may sound familiar to you, and that’s because he’s a sergeant at the San Bernardino Police Department.

Echevarria, who was sworn in December 3, joins the city council with an array of experience beginning with graduating from San Bernardino Valley College in 1999 (associate’s degree in Administration of Justice), California State University, San Bernardino in 2002 (bachelor’s in Criminal Justice), and California Baptist University in 2018 (master’s in Public Administration).

He began his official public service campaign in 1996 when he served Upland Police Department as a police cadet, before becoming a police officer in 1999 with the agency.

Since 2002 Echevarria has been busy serving the San Bernardino community, first as a police officer, and subsequently a sergeant since 2018.

“My public administration program at CBU gave me the push to run for city council. It provided me with a deeper insight on leadership and during this time I began routinely attending city council meetings. During and after my program I began visiting neighborhoods in the city, the city’s administration, and local businesses to ask and determine what their thoughts and goals are for our city,” said Echevarria.

The San Bernardino native, who’s been married for 19 years and has 4 children under the age of 18, was raised by a single mother, and to date credits his childhood journey as his motivator to strive for success.

“I resided in the housing projects in both San Bernardino and Colton. We were dependent on public assistance, my family was issued food stamps and we had Medi-Cal. Going through these sometimes embarrassing moments pushed me to strive for success,” continued Echevarria.

Now and in the near future, Echevarria sees continued success for the city of Colton.

“My three biggest goals while serving the city are to enhance, improve and ensure. It’s my mission that while I serve our constituents our city enhances public safety, improves city-wide customer service, and ensures community success,” Echevarria said.

One stringent attribute Echevarria brings to the table is his accessibility to constituents in the fifth district and beyond.

“I want my community to know that I’m a full-time first responder and a full-time city councilmember. I’m committed to helping constituents and your patience with me is greatly appreciated. Although I’m a fifth district councilmember, I’m here to assist anyone’s needs in the city,” said Echevarria.

Echevarria said those with inquiries can directly reach him at 909-252-6929 or by email jechevarria@coltonca.gov.

For more information, visit https://www.ci.colton.ca.us.