San Benito commissioners standing behind city manager amid allegations

Fred Sandoval

SAN BENITO — City commissioners are standing behind City Manager Fred Sandoval amid a real estate company’s allegations.

In a closed-door meeting, commissioners met with Sandoval days after VARCO, a Brownsville real estate company, accused him of official oppression while requesting the police department investigate any ties between him and the city’s festival promoters.

“We went into executive session and discussed what was on the mind of the commission and came out united behind our city manager,” Commissioner Tom Goodman said Wednesday, referring to Tuesday’s meeting. “I’m not seeing any substance or any evidence of any of the allegations that were put forward.”

Before the half-hour meeting, Commissioner Pete Galvan described the closed session as “a touch point.”

“It’s an opportunity for the commission to address any concerns, accomplishments or areas for improvement,” he said.

Meanwhile, Goodman said he was also supporting the city’s festival promoters.

“Our promoters are doing a wonderful job with the upcoming Hog Waddle concert,” he said, referring to this month’s four-day Hog Waddle Concert and Cookoff.

Last week, VARCO accused Sandoval of official oppression, describing the allegation as a class A misdemeanor.

In a letter to a San Benito police detective, Paul Serafy, an attorney representing VARCO, accused Sandoval of refusing to lift an order stopping the developer from completing the Resaca Village plaza off Business 77.

Meanwhile, the company also requested police investigate any ties between Sandoval and two music festival promoters, claiming “those allegations appear to be clear cases of abuse of official capacity and misapplication of fiduciary property.”

The accusations came amid a year-long legal battle.

In April 2024, VARCO filed a lawsuit against the city, claiming San Benito’s Economic Development Corporation breached the parties’ contracts surrounding the development of Resaca Village, failing to “honor its obligations” under an agreement extending its construction timeline while claiming its amendments “void” because city commissioners had not approved them.

In response, San Benito officials filed a counter suit, claiming VARCO breached its contract when the company failed to comply with the city’s agreements granting extensions on the project’s completion, originally set for 2022.

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