San Bernardino, Calif., which became the largest US city to file for bankruptcy in 2012 before it was eclipsed by Detroit, is on the hunt for PR and marketing communications counsel to improve its image.
The working-class city of 205K, which houses several foreign consulates and a campus of California State University, acknowledges in an RFP that it has "fallen on hard times" but says it "wishes to improve the transparency between itself and its citizens as well as itself and the outside communities that surround it." It wants a firm or agency that will "dedicate themselves to improving the image of this city in all aspects."
The city sees hope in new officials elected last year, revamps of pension and salary payments, its transit system, and efforts to find a carrier for the city's international airport. It filed for Chapter 9 protection in 2012 amid a $46M budget shortfall and assets/debt topping $1B.
Proposals are due Oct. 2. View the RFP (PDF).
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