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The Corona City Council today will decide whether to annex almost 85 acres of El Cerrito and rezone about 18 acres from animal-keeping residential use to commercial zoning. The proposal has triggered a backlash from some residents who see their valley as an island surrounded by unchecked commercialization.
For Corona officials, however, El Cerrito has long been slated for annexation, and it is part of the city's vision for the future and for a thriving commercial corridor along Interstate 15.
The triangle of land up for annexation sits at the city border west of I-15 and north of Foothill Parkway. It consists of a small neighborhood of roughly 80 large-lot homes built a little more than 20 years ago. Back then, it was a remote community that attracted people who valued their independence and favored septic tanks and open space over strip malls and noise ordinances.
Though urban sprawl has already crept up on the valley, a vocal group of residents hopes to derail commercial development by speaking out at today's meeting.
Owners of the 18 acres up for commercial zoning have not said how the land will be developed, and city officials have not yet approved a specific project. However, at a recent Planning Commission meeting, a representative of the owner said that a developer has expressed interest in building a four-story hotel at the site.
The possibility of a hotel development has evoked passionate reactions from neighbors both for and against it.
"I moved in here 12 years ago, and there was always supposed to be homes built in that area," said El Cerrito resident Paula Meservy. "Homes are for families -- people who have an investment in the community and care about their neighbors."
A four-story hotel, she said, would dwarf the homes while creating traffic and bringing in people who do not necessarily share El Cerrito's sense of community and identity. Meservy said she also worries that a commercial development will open the floodgates for more retail projects to invade the area's remaining open space.
While the vocal majority of neighbors have come out against the project and the annexation, some see the proposals as a welcome improvement.
At the Long household, which abuts the proposed development, Bruce Long is in favor of a hotel while his wife signed a petition to oppose it. Like many of their neighbors, they have strong feelings about the project, and he plans to speak out at today's council meeting.
"The area has been vacant for a while, and it's nothing but a big trash dump," he said. "So if someone is going to come in and clean it up and landscape it, then good."
Long said he attended a community meeting with the land's owner and left confident that any commercial project would be compatible with the needs of the community. With today's economic climate, it is unlikely that the land could be used for housing as originally planned, he added.
City staffers have recommended that the City Council move forward with the annexation and zone change, said Corona Senior Planner Jason Moquin.
"It's a logical extension of the commercial corridor along the 15," he said. In recent years, Corona housing projects have spread south, supporting large retail projects along the I-15 including The Crossings and Dos Lagos shopping centers.
A small portion of the acreage is already zoned for commercial, and Foothill Parkway is going to become a major thoroughfare and gateway into Corona, said City Councilman Eugene Montanez. With or without annexation, El Cerrito is going to experience growing pains, he predicted.
If the council approves the zone change and annexation proposal, a commercial development would still have to get final approval from the city, Moquin said. And residents would still have a chance to protest or support the annexation before the Riverside County Local Agency Formation Commission makes the final decision.
If more than 50 percent of the registered voters or landowners within the proposed annexation area sign written protests, then an election would be called and scheduled for a vote, according to state law.
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