On Thursday, Mayor Todd Gloria appointed Bethany Bezak, who currently serves on the mayor’s executive team, to be the city’s new chief operating officer and oversee the city’s day-to-day operations.
Bezak has served as chief performance and logistics officer since December 2025, overseeing city departments like transportation, purchasing and contracting, general services and more.
Mayor Gloria fired the city’s last COO in February 2025 and filled the role himself. He defended that decision, despite consistent pushback from the City Council. Councilmembers and others pushed multiple times for him to rehire a COO, after what they perceived as management failures. Calls for him to hire a new COO reached a fever pitch after the city screwed up trash bills.
“This was both a budget reduction as well as a desire to be fully accountable for the difficult decisions that are gonna need to be made in order to put the city on a stronger footing,” he told Voice of San Diego on Thursday.
We asked if he expects any pushback from councilmembers who still need to confirm the mayor’s pick. He said Bezak is for them to confirm, but that she’s consistently delivered.
“I suspect that they know full well that she’s highly capable and extremely well qualified for this position,” he said. “I hope that they’ll vote accordingly.”
We asked Gloria whether he consulted with councilmembers prior to his nomination. He said no.
“This decision is mine,” he said. “The consultation was over the last 20 months of watching Bethany both as a department director and as a member of my executive team. I think talent by definition stands out, and I’ve had my eye on Bethany for quite some time.”
Several Councilmembers have already stated their support for Gloria’s pitch, including Council President Joe LaCava and councilmember Stephen Whitburn and Vivian Moreno.
“I mean, it was about time,” Moreno said.
The City Council is set to consider Bezak’s appointment on Monday.