INLAND EMPIRE | Development News

[PragmaticIdealist]

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4792551867/" title="The Importance of Rail-to-Air Connections by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4143/4792551867_873456ae25.jpg" width="449" height="393" alt="The Importance of Rail-to-Air Connections" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4793185832/" title="SCAG Planning for High-Speed Rail in the Six-County Region by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4095/4793185832_7df7725410.jpg" width="435" height="323" alt="SCAG Planning for High-Speed Rail in the Six-County Region" /></a>

[PragmaticIdealist]

Here's a preliminary sketch of San Bernardino's Celebration Square, which, in its current form, needs to be narrowed and shortened in order to conform to the latest SmartCode regarding public squares.

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4789949454/" title="Preliminary Sketch of Celebration Square by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4139/4789949454_c2d93c628e_o.jpg" width="544" height="413" alt="Preliminary Sketch of Celebration Square" /></a>

The City of San Bernardino has begun the process of removing parking spaces and installing parking meters. The first area to feel the pinch is the courthouse and, specifically, the jury assembly room where citizens throughout the region are called to serve every day and where they will, in turn, bolster the existing foot traffic, especially on Court Street.

[germench]

P-E ran another article about the Raincross Promenade development in downtown Riverside yesterday.

There is an unfortunate amount of cynics par usual for P-E about it. I weighed in, as did Pragmatic literally seconds after myself. Maybe some others would like to stem the tide?

Article: Raincross developer tests the waters

[unmentioned]

suburbanites will forever baffle me. And I grew up in a gated community in Western Riverside.

[Chewsif]

Apparently UCR has some bigger plans for the future of University Village in regards to making the atmosphere more walkable and appealing to students based off of feedback collected from the UCR student body.

There's some really cool additions being considered, including a bowling ally above the theater, a dance/night club, a large open park area that can be used for concerts and such, as well as a number other pocket parks between UV and the campus. The goal is to make a great walking experience from UV all the way to The Barn since the UV and The Barn are the two most popular hangouts for students. The area from the arts building to The Barn is planned to be an Arts Walk area. There's a number of fountains and other nice landscaping features as well.

I know these aren't the largest pictures, I'll try to snap some close-ups later...

Here's the overall plan linking The Barn to UV...


They only show the overview of the pocket park, but you can how the landscaping is creating a better pedestrian experience.


I really like how the current UV main building looks, but I suppose if they took the design in this direction, I'd be happy.


Looks like the orange striped area is up for debate going off the notes. But the bowling ally and main pocket park seem to be figured out.


Now THAT is a University entrance! Check out that fountain.


The University wants to get this master plan off the ground and beginning construction within or by the next two years. Although there are phases of the project that wouldn't begin until two years after that. To be fair, some of those additions would be after these already mapped out here.

The full project report can be found here...
http://aquarius.riversideca.gov/cler...aspx?id=113029

[PragmaticIdealist]

I love it. This is exactly the kind of enhancement to student life that could make U.C. Riverside as desirable a campus as U.C.L.A. and U.C. Berkeley. I'm just jealous that all this great stuff wasn't available to me when I was studying there.

Making the Inland Empire's educational institutions as attractive as they can be to top-notch faculty and students should be a large part of the region's economic strategy.

[germench]

Originally Posted by unmentioned

suburbanites will forever baffle me. And I grew up in a gated community in Western Riverside.

The commenters on Press-Enterprise are an embarrassing lot, ripe with racist asinine cynics. I think excellent points were made, by members of this board no less, in that barrage of drivel.

Originally Posted by Chewsif

Apparently UCR has some bigger plans for the future of University Village in regards to making the atmosphere more walkable and appealing to students based off of feedback collected from the UCR student body.

Very awesome. If only UCR offered the graduate program I'm seeking. On the bright side, I'll soon be utilizing their Extension campus, in that bore of a building. That urban design firm, RTKL, does some great work.

[PragmaticIdealist]

Earlier this week, the San Bernardino Common Council awarded a $200,000 contract to AECOM to design streetscapes in the city center. The work will include transportation-demand management, stormwater management, and new fiber-optic lines.

Tonight at 7 p.m. is the last opportunity to participate in a public hearing for SCAG's draft of the Federal Transportation Improvement Program. All the offices will be linked with teleconferencing, so find your nearest.

http://www.scag.ca.gov/ftip/2011/draft.htm

70% of the funding is going to highways and 30% to transit. In Riverside County, the ratio is 98% to highways and 2% to transit, and, in San Bernardino County, the ratio is 97% to highways and 3% to transit.

[germench]

Originally Posted by PragmaticIdealist

Earlier this week, the San Bernardino Common Council awarded a $200,000 contract to AECOM to design streetscapes in the city center. The work will include Transportation Demand Management, stormwater management, and new fiber-optic lines.

Tonight at 7 p.m. is the last opportunity to participate in a public hearing for SCAG's draft of the Federal Transportation Improvement Program. All the offices will be linked with teleconferencing, so find your nearest.

http://www.scag.ca.gov/ftip/2011/draft.htm

70% of the funding is going to highways and 30% to transit. In Riverside County, the ratio is 98% to highways and 2% to transit, and, in San Bernardino County, the ratio is 97% to highways and 3% to transit. So, let's raise some Hell!

Sh*t. Unfortunately, I have plans for tonight, which is unusual for me so go figure. I think I still might try my luck at shooting an email to Mr. Miguel. Those ratios are pathetic!!

Well, turns out Mr. Miguel is out of the office until the end of the month, so I emailed my comments to Matt Horton and Cheryl Leising. I then got an email that Miss Leising is out of the office until the end of the month as well. I'm pretty sure my comments are too late. Oh well.

[PragmaticIdealist]

The Inland Empire is being trashed in several ill-informed comments on the Huffington Post as a result of the recent publication of an interactive map from the Brookings Institution that shows that the San Bernardino-Riverside-Ontario metropolitan statistical area is one of the ten in the country that have the lowest percentages of college graduates.

Very few people seem to understand the interrelationship between the Inland Empire, which many people evidently assume is largely agrarian, and the rest of the SCAG region, as well as San Diego County. The phenomenon has less to do with politics and more to do with the fact that southern California is one of the worst examples of suburban sprawl in the world. A poorly-regulated rural-to-urban Transect that is at the mercy of rampant highway construction and cheap fossil fuels creates enclaves and ghettos where the middle class, young professionals, and other well-educated groups are unable to find affordable housing in livable cities close to employment.

http://www.planetizen.com/node/45197

[germench]

City of Calimesa's Downtown Business District

On July 21, 2010, the City of Calimesa, which is located on the western edge of Riverside County’s San Gorgonio Pass and home to approximately 7,000 residents (per 2000 U.S. Census Bureau data), implemented their recently-approved Downtown Business District (DBD) plan. The DBD includes a new code and architectural design guidelines prepared by Costa Mesa-based The Planning Center, and streetscape improvements (as part of a separate project) prepared by Irvine-based DMC Engineering (although I’m not absolutely sure if it’s this Irvine firm or another firm named DMC). The new DBD, which was two years in the making, is a revision of the City’s existing Calimesa Boulevard Corridor Plan that was implemented in 1996. The DBD was funded in part by the Federal Highway Administration and Federal Transit Administration of the United States Department of Transportation, the Regional Blueprint Planning Grant that is awarded by California Department of Transportation, as well as from the Southern California Association of Governments through their Compass Blueprint Demonstration Project Program.

The purpose of the DBD is to establish a unique and separate land use district in a concentrated, revitalized area through focused, high-density redevelopment. The DBD is the result of public input from the residents of the City and the guidance of SCAG’s Compass Blueprint. The DBD encompasses approximately 142 acres and is bounded by County Line Road on the north, Sandalwood Drive on the south, Interstate 10 on the west, 5th Street on the east from the south of Avenue L, and Park Avenue on the east from the north of Avenue L. However, an existing light industrial use north of Avenue K and east of Interstate 10, which includes approximately four structures, is not part of, nor subject to, the DBD. Calimesa Boulevard serves as the DBD’s primary arterial, as shown on Figure 1.



Implementation of the DBD required a General Plan Amendment, Zone Change, and Zone Text Amendment. Specifically, these changes afforded the DBD to subject the area to specific land use regulations, architectural design guidelines, and street improvements. For future redevelopment, floor area ratios will range from 0.35 to 1.00; residential uses are set to 30 dwelling units per acre; and an existing truck route designation along Calimesa Boulevard from County Line Road to Avenue L, as previously allowed by the Circulation Element of the City’s General Plan, was removed. Further, the 142 acres that make up the DBD were re-designated/re-zoned from light industrial, high residential, public/quasi-public, and community commercial uses into three districts/zones within the DBD, which are Downtown Village Commercial, Downtown Neighborhood Commercial, and Downtown Visitor-Serving Commercial (previous zoning shown on Figure 2). Downtown Village Commercial is concentrated on the northern portion and constitutes approximately 60 percent of the DBD. Downtown Neighborhood Commercial is concentrated on the southern middle portion of the DBD, immediately north of Downtown Visitor-Serving Commercial. Downtown Visitor-Serving Commercial is concentrated on the southern end of the DBD (new zoning shown on Figure 3). Also, included is a Calimesa Creek overlay district on the northern portion, although the guidelines and participation is voluntary.





One goal of the DBD’s design guidelines is to achieve aesthetically-pleasing, pedestrian-oriented development on and around Calimesa Boulevard. The DBD permits three styles from Southern California’s regional vernacular architecture for future development. First is the Mission style, chosen for its regional precedent and influence from early Spanish missions; second is Rustic Lodge, chosen for its influence from the region’s climatic conditions; and third is Ranch, chosen for its influence from local building practices and materials. The design of future development will be set around unifying parameters as outlined in the style book, for example, regardless of which architectural style is chosen, structures will feature a corner tower, pedestrian-inviting arcades spanning the block, large and segmented storefront windows, second-story balustrades, roof top features, etc. These parameters are designed to provide pedestrian-scale amenities and pedestrian-emphasized access and connection points as well as to create walkable space. By way of the selected architecture and design, the City is actively opting for a traditional, distinctive downtown image instead of the franchise modern architecture found in other newer developments. Further, to keep a welcoming, appropriate scale in the DBD, building heights are limited to three stories in the Downtown Village Commercial zones, and two stories in the Downtown Neighborhood Commercial and Downtown Visitor-Serving Commercial zones. The following images are the idealized prototypical examples for each style.

Mission


Rustic Lodge


Ranch


Another goal of the DBD is the promotion of retail and mixed-used development on and around Calimesa Boulevard, which would in turn increase property values, spur economic development, and improve the City’s revenue. Basically, the desired land uses for the DBD are retail, government, entertainment, and residential. Each zone within the DBD has assigned target land uses. Downtown Village Commercial will be developed with horizontal and vertical mixed uses such as specialty retail, dining, entertainment, residential, office, and civic/cultural. The sidewalk-fronting storefronts will be appealing and pedestrian-oriented. Downtown Neighborhood Commercial will be developed for auto-oriented commercial development such as shopping centers and a full range of retail and service businesses, e.g., larger retail stores, commercial recreation and entertainment (movie theaters, hotels, and restaurants), grocery stores, and banks. The intent of this zone is to attract residents and the surrounding community, and will feature large landscape plans that are complementary to the streetscape. Downtown Visitor-Serving Commercial will be developed with commercial land uses convenient to visitors such as hotels/motels, fast-food restaurants, dine-in restaurants, gas stations, convenient stores, and a visitor information center. Development in this zone will be focused toward Calimesa Boulevard and Interstate 10. Landscaping for this zone’s development will be attractive and welcoming to visitors with the intent of enticing them into the other zones of Downtown.

The DBD will also provide common space for pedestrians and future residents of Downtown as well as the surrounding community. This common space can be used as a gathering place for civic and cultural events. Additionally, as pedestrian safety will be vital, traffic calming measures along Calimesa Boulevard are part of the improved streetscape.

Personally, I am impressed a city the size of Calimesa has taken the initiative to modernize and fully redevelopment its central corridor into a functioning, high-density Downtown that incorporates the latest standards of urban planning. While it’s not a full fledge dive into providing maximum density nor will it eliminate the need for personal vehicle ownership (as exhibited in the generous parking requirements), the DBD has been designed with respect to the scale and location of the City. I’m not the biggest fan of siting residential uses adjacent to a major interstate because of the associated air quality and noise issues; however, the DBD code does discuss maximum noise attenuation for residential uses nearest to the interstate, but does not discuss air quality measures such as non-operable windows, MERV filtration, and prohibited balconies/porches. I also notice the amount of existing single-family residential development within the DBD. Some appear well-kept and others blighted, but these homes may invite some problems for future development caused by displacement issues and unwilling homeowners… then again, there’s eminent domain. In all, there will be a sizeable amount of demolition and relocation of existing businesses involved for the DBD to be fully realized, but if you pan over the area on Google Maps and Bing Maps, you’ll see the DBD is going to result in a massive upgrade to this underutilized space. God speed Calimesa. Do the Compass Blueprint proud.

PS: I didn’t cover every aspect of the DBD, but what I’ve discussed here should be informative and sufficient.

Sources -
News Article: Calimesa adopts its Downtown Business District
Planning Commission Action Minutes: PC Minutes February 8, 2010
Compass Blueprint website: Calimesa Boulevard Downtown Revitalization Project
Design Guidelines and Style Book: Calimesa Downtown Commercial Architecture Design Guidelines
DBD Code: Calimesa Downtown Business District Code

[soup or man]

Calimesa? Really?

[PragmaticIdealist]

Last weekend, San Bernardino held the Audiotistic Music Festival. And, this Friday and Saturday, the City hosted, for the first time ever, the LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival.

www.AudiotisticFestival.com

www.LOLComedyFest.com

(Caesar Sebastian)
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/caesarsebastian/4840211127/" title="Audiotistic 2010 by Caesar Sebastian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4092/4840211127_b524279d7f.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Audiotistic 2010" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/caesarsebastian/4840819022/" title="Audiotistic 2010 by Caesar Sebastian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4128/4840819022_e34468a1a6.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Audiotistic 2010" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/caesarsebastian/4840208965/" title="Audiotistic 2010 by Caesar Sebastian, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4151/4840208965_15848ed120.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Audiotistic 2010" /></a>

(etherbinge)
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/11593221@N04/4838973583/" title="Untitled by etherbinge, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4144/4838973583_4038ab40b9.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/11593221@N04/4838945697/" title="Untitled by etherbinge, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4086/4838945697_19926262b3.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/11593221@N04/4839269648/" title="Untitled by etherbinge, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4083/4839269648_2ea44c212b.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/11593221@N04/4839551888/" title="Untitled by etherbinge, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4091/4839551888_35c43cc442.jpg" width="500" height="458" alt="" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/11593221@N04/4838978845/" title="Untitled by etherbinge, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4154/4838978845_9e302e1ee4.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="" /></a>

(Adrian Ocampo)
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/adrianocampo/4833168748/" title="audiotistic-14 by AdrianOcampo, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4107/4833168748_2abaed411c.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="audiotistic-14" /></a>

(etherbinge)
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/11593221@N04/4839263484/" title="Untitled by etherbinge, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4152/4839263484_4dfb42c9d9.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="" /></a>

(PragmaticIdealist)
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4847421442/" title="LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival 2010 by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4091/4847421442_d6aba5ac35.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival 2010" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4847362922/" title="LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival 2010 by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4111/4847362922_cf2d38ae8b.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival 2010" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4847630361/" title="LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival 2010 by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4089/4847630361_cfc165884e.jpg" width="500" height="352" alt="LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival 2010" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4845329621/" title="LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival 2010 by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4128/4845329621_a77e7d243a.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival 2010" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4846124884/" title="LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival 2010 by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4092/4846124884_89ef17deb1.jpg" width="409" height="500" alt="LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival 2010" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4846306440/" title="LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival 2010 by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4113/4846306440_543f484a05.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="LAUGH OUT LOUD Comedy Festival 2010" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4848850697/" title="Untitled by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4137/4848850697_fd2f21cd46_o.jpg" width="620" height="249" alt="" /></a>

Here is some of the collateral from the ongoing Bicentennial Celebration:

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4833099137/" title="San Bernardino Bicentennial Celebration by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4130/4833099137_c478de3fb2.jpg" width="367" height="500" alt="San Bernardino Bicentennial Celebration" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4832405371/" title="Sixth Street by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4112/4832405371_522379ae8b.jpg" width="381" height="500" alt="Sixth Street" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4780093758/" title="San Bernardino Bicentennial Celebration by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4142/4780093758_21ccb45886.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="San Bernardino Bicentennial Celebration" /></a>

[PragmaticIdealist]

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4859988644/" title="Circle of the Horned Lizards by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4140/4859988644_62bf52d2ff_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Circle of the Horned Lizards" /></a>

The design work on the first phase of the new streetscapes and public open spaces has begun in the areas depicted below, and public charettes are forthcoming.

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4866071672/" title="Design Work on the First Phase of the New Streetscapes and the New Public Open Spaces by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4076/4866071672_5b83b63354_o.jpg" width="924" height="422" alt="Design Work on the First Phase of the New Streetscapes and the New Public Open Spaces" /></a>

The second public charette for the first project to daylight waterways in the city center will be held August 18th at 1 and 6 p.m. in the Bing Wong Lecture Hall attached to the Feldheym Central Library.

[PragmaticIdealist]

Earlier this week, the Press-Enterprise reported that the private-sector San Bernardino Convention & Visitors Bureau is being subsumed by the increasingly-influential San Bernardino Economic Development Agency, and, today, the newspaper reports that the Inland Empire Economic Partnership, the largest private economic-development enterprise in San Bernardino and Riverside Counties, is moving from Riverside to the city center of San Bernardino where the organization will operate in the same building as both the San Bernardino Economic Development Agency and the sbX Project Management team.

http://blogs.pe.com/business/2010/08...ernardino.html

www.ieep.com

The Inland Empire Economic Partnership (IEEP) is the private, non-profit regional economic development organization for the Inland Empire (which includes both Riverside and San Bernardino Counties). IEEP's core mission is the expansion and relocation of business to the Inland Empire.

A coalition of 180-public and private-sector members partner with IEEP to support the organization and its services. Advancing the goals and objectives that benefit the entire two-county region, the IEEP's mission is to attract, create, expand and retain business in order to increase the region's growth and economic output. This is achieved by providing superior service to members, clients and the communities in the Inland Empire. It is supported by our core values of regional teamwork, integrity and professional excellence.

IEEP works directly with individual companies, their brokers and consultants to provide hands-on customized client services that will assist them with their relocation, expansion and retention projects. IEEP's services are underwritten by our public and private-sector membership and are therefore provided free, and on a confidential basis.

Services offered include:

Up-to-date access to available real estate (commercial and residential executive housing)
Coordination and organization of site tours for real estate in the Inland Empire
Incentives and tax information
Access to workforce information, hiring and training
Demographic and economic data
Contacts with local government and private industry
From initial contact through final move-in, IEEP professionals provide customized assistance to suit your specific business needs.

Divisions of IEEP:

Inland Empire Small Business Development Center
Inland Empire Film Commission
Inland Empire Tourism Council

[PragmaticIdealist]

Million Air terminal at San Bernardino International Airport opens


10:00 PM PDT on Friday, August 6, 2010

By KIMBERLY PIERCEALL
The Press-Enterprise
In order to get to Stater Bros.' headquarters, officials from the grocer's suppliers such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi and ConAgra fly into the new Million Air terminal at San Bernardino International Airport.

"Every business should advise their suppliers that we have the finest corporate airport in America," Stater Bros. CEO Jack Brown said Friday evening at a grand opening for the terminal.

It's one of 30 Million Air terminals that cater to corporate aviation departments and general-aviation flyers, offering lounges and high-end amenities.

Brown was among many local business owners and elected officials who gathered at the event. Rep. Jerry Lewis, R-Redlands, called the terminal "phenomenal" and said it would be an economic driver for the region.

Once corporate jets begin flying in, business opportunities shouldn't be far behind, he said. "Indeed, the country will be looking at us in a very special way," he said.

Million Air CEO Roger Woolsey said the company is going to highlight the San Bernardino terminal at other airports and in the company's magazine.

"We're pollinating our own customers," he said.

It cost Million Air San Bernardino, a franchisee of Houston-based Million Air Interlink, about $20 million to build the two-story terminal and hangar space for corporate jets and charters, and took three years to build.

"This will be the gateway to Inland Southern California," said San Bernardino Mayor Pat Morris, a leader of the Inland Valley Development Agency and San Bernardino International Airport Authority.

http://www.pe.com/localnews/sbcounty...7.3190616.html

[xXFallenXx]

Audiotistic was sick. Anyone else go?

[PragmaticIdealist]

Here is more from the Lytle Creek Ranch Traditional Neighborhood Development:

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4795499655/" title="Conceptual Rendering of Lytle Creek Ranch by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4120/4795499655_7dcaa9a66a_o.jpg" width="1214" height="507" alt="Conceptual Rendering of Lytle Creek Ranch" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pragmaticidealist/4796130256/" title="Project Site, Lytle Creek Ranch by zIDEAz, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4093/4796130256_d2fc8cf0c0_b.jpg" width="821" height="649" alt="Project Site, Lytle Creek Ranch" /></a>

[germench]

Calimesa Planning Commission approves downtown project
By BILL BROWN
Staff Reporter for News-Mirror

The Calimesa Planning Commission held a public hearing Aug. 9 on a new development known as Havasu Plaza at 950 Calimesa Blvd., at the northwest corner of Avenue K. The anchor business is described as a restaurant. The applicants, are seeking a Conditional Use Permit to allow service onsite consumption of alcoholic beverages.

The project is a small commercial center consisting of one building divided into four sections. Three sections of approximately 700 square-feet area for retail leases. The fourth will be an approximately 4,750 square-foot bar and grill restaurant which is yet to be named.

Full article: News-Mirror

To my knowledge, this project is the first to be approved after implementation of the Calimesa DBD discussed previously on this page. Overall, an underwhelming project, but hey, it's a start. Compared to the existing land uses at the project site, this project could do no harm.

[Chewsif]

I thought this was interesting...

Citrus City Grille exits Riverside Plaza

10:00 PM PDT on Wednesday, August 18, 2010

By TIFFANY RAY
The Press-Enterprise

Citrus City Grille has closed its location in Riverside Plaza and will reopen this fall near the Mission Inn downtown.

The restaurant is relocating to a spot at the corner of Main and Sixth streets in Riverside's downtown with an anticipated opening date of Nov. 1. Citrus City Grille also has locations in Orange and Corona. The Riverside Plaza restaurant opened in 2005.

Chris Ingerson, manager of the Corona location, said the new Riverside location would be larger. He said rent was a factor in the decision to move, along with the new growth of the downtown area. "It is truly going to be a regional destination," he said.