Projects in the Works

Apex Project (Apex Street from Ramsey to Wilson)(Details): I worked with the real estate broker that represented the owner of the land that the city needed an easement from and approval of a project that would create a through street from Ramsey to Wilson on Apex. I handed this project off to Mr. Burk, Director of Public Works and he skillfully guided this project through engineering, legal counsel, property owner's signature, bid process and award of contract to do the work from May 2010 through July 2010. I requested of our city manager to give us an update on this project from public works and he provided the board with the written update and further read it aloud for the record at the April 27, 2010 meeting. This project is important for so many reasons, with these being the main points;

The trailer park at Wilson and Apex was blocked from ingress and egress during a storm several years ago. They had to cut a hole in a fence in the back of the park to get in or out on a dirt path. This will eliminate that problem.

Access to Wilson from Ramsey or vice versa on Apex Street means traffic will not need to go to the overly congested Highland Springs and Ramsey to go to or from the hospital. This cuts down traffic congestion at Highland Springs and Ramsey and through that entire congested corridor. A four corner intersection has been created that will make it attractive for businesses to develop on the four corners with access from all directions. We see what this has brought to the improved corners of Eighth and Ramsey Street.; Status: Updated May 18, 2010
Mid-County Justice Court Center (Details): The CRA approved the sale of 4 acres of the 7 acres they had purchased for the eventual sale to the state for the construction of the court facility. Upon completion of the storm line "D" project the state real estate group determined the property was ready for their purchase. The 4 acres were purchased by the state and the escrow closed in November 2009. A presentation was recently made to the CRA and City Council in a special meeting by the architect of the court center project. The designs of the 6 court, 70,000 square foot facility that included basic parking and landscaping design were presented and the timeline for construction phases was included. Plans call for the construction to begin in 2011 and take two years to complete.

The Mid-County Court design and construction scheduling was presented to the council on January 12, 2010. This will bring a 70,000 square foot court complex to the downtown center of Banning, with a construction estimate of $70 million dollars. The design of the complex has been shared with Art Pearlman and Mark Frost who have an ENA (Earnest Negotiation Agreement) with the city to develop the property where the San Gorgonio Inn was located. The state court will bring construction jobs in the near term and high level jobs and support facilities in the future. This will cause a spread of new and upgraded developments in what is termed the "East" end of Banning. "East End" is defined as anything East of San Gorgonio Ave. Clearly with the completion of the new police facility, the ENA with developers for the San Gorgonio Inn and West Coast properties development, the Mid-County Justice Court Center, the Inland Medical Center, Gary Carlton's movement of the Riverside County Social Services to Hargrave and Ramsey(which facilitates hundreds of people working and visiting that building daily) the spread is moving from the downtown core in an Eastward direction.; Status: Updated May 18, 2010
Paddy O'Reilly's Parking Lot/Art Park/Stephenson Building:(Details): I worked with the Public Works Director to move these projects forward as part of the beautification of downtown, increased parking, underground power, alley walk, Stephenson building mural repair completion and the art park. The work schedule I requested of the city manager was provided and read aloud at the April 27th meeting. This work also has the component of running underground power to a vault, a trash enclosure and a grease trap(required of restaurants). This will allow the alley to become a walkway free of overhead electrical, trash cans or other obstructions. Undergrounding of power, telephone and cable tv has been completed in the alley way and soon the overhead to underground building conversions can begin. Work will complete by late summer 2010.; Status: Updated May 18, 2010
Storm Line "D" (Details): This project was necessary to sell the 4 acre property to the State of California for the Mid-County Justice Court project. The storm drain was an open ditch that was visible North of the post office and ran through the center of the proposed mid-county project to Ramsey Street. Once the storm drain piping was installed underground, the open trenching was backfilled or paved over, clearing the way to sell the property to the state.; Status: Updated May 18, 2010
Liberty Energy (Details): I made the motion and the city council voted to not allow the burning of sludge within the city limits of Banning. The AQMD also announced they would not permit similar projects that relied on air quality credits.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Fox Theatre (Details): Fox theater completed a full exterior and interior remodel utililizing funds from the Community Redevelopment Agency through a Owner's Participation Agreement and a Facade Grant. The Fox reopened after 85 straight days of construction on November 20, 2009. Patrons are enjoying the new interior that includes a new snack bar, restrooms, screens, seats, sound systems and restoration of the grand interior. Fox owner's have maintained their low prices and Wednesday matinee specials.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
San Gorgonio Inn (Details): Art Pearlman and his partner Mark Frost are in the final months of an (ENA) Exclusive Negotiations Agreement for development of the site that was currently the San Gorgonio Inn. Stakeholder meetings have been held to include a recent meeting with the architects of the Mid-County Justice Center to be built on property on the opposite side of Ramsey Street. The next step will be a (DDA) Development Disposition Agreement that should be negotiated between the city and the developer in Mid 2010.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Paseo San Gorgonio (Details): This involves the development of the downtown core of Banning. I recently discussed the possibilities with (SCAG) Southern California Association of Governments to include the Paseo San Gorgonio as a "Compass Blueprint Project". This is a grant to study the traffic patterns of a development area and make recomendations for planning of an efficient traffic pattern. The grant I discussed with SCAG staff was for $60,000. I passed this off to the staff to prepare a proposal for submittal for this grant. I am happy to report the Banning Community Development staff put together a proposal that brought over $100,000 to the city for this traffic study.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Banning Police Station (Details): On February 5th the new 30,000 square foot police station that was built for the size and standards to meet the cities needs at least to the year 2035. Officials from the State of California, Riverside and San Bernardino County, Morongo Tribal Council, Beaumont, Riverside County District Attorney, Sherriff, Coroner, Probation Dept, Fire, Banning Unified School District Board Members, Parks and Rec Board Members and hundreds of residents and business owners. The projects engineer and construction contractors were all represented. The Director of Public Works Director, Duane Burk was acknowledged by Chief Purvis for his untiring and professional management of the project. Beyond all these were the most honored of the day, the Chief of Police and all of his sworn and operations staff. Resolutions were presented to the Banning Police Department commending them for their outstanding work to serve and protect the Pass area. It was acknowledged that the Police Department deserved the best the community could offer for their willingness to enter into harms way for the protection of all in the pass. Beaumont police department took over patrol duties and dispatch, so that all of the Banning Police Department could attend the Grand Opening. I asked one of the great supporters of Banning activities to sponsor this grand opening and Waste Management that serves Banning stepped up and sponsored the invitations, photography and food for the celebration. Congratulations to the previous city councilmembers and the current city councilmembers that have supported this very important project.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
CRA Meetings (Details): I am pleased that for two years in a row, the board has elected me to be the chairman of the CRA. The projects are numerous and key to the redevelopment and economic development of Banning. The City Councilmembers make up the 5 member CRA board. Board meetings are held prior to the city council meetings on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of each month. Depending on the need for special meetings and size of the agendas the meetings usually commence at 5:00 PM. Meetings are televised live on channel 10 cable channel and channel 29 Verizon. On these channels you will also see when these meetings will be re-televised along with programming menus for the 24 hour programming now showing on these channels. On the cities web site you will find the capability to live stream the meeting or you can replay past meetings on the internet. Agendas for the meeting is also available on the website that includes all the backup that we are to review prior to each meeting. The board oversees the expenditure of bond monies along with tax incentive payments from the state. Money is not used from the general fund for any of the redevelopment projects.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Council Chambers (Details): upgrade has been completed with the exception of a camera to pick up the City Manager and City Attorney table.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Chanel 10 Upgrade (Details): has been activated. The Nexus System will allow for 24 hour per day programming, weather and local news information. There is more equipment needed, but this is a very good start. Try it out on channel 10 or on Verizon channel 29.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Planning Department Appointments (Details): The city council reviews the applications and conducts oral interviews with the applicants that have responded to our advertised postings to fill the vacant seats. Nominations are made in open session of the council meeting and commissioners are appointed by majority vote of the council.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Parks and Recreation Appointments (Details): The city council reviews the applications and conducts oral interviews with the applicants. This is the same process as the Planning Department.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Sunset Substation (Details): Dedication of this facility was held in April 2009. The substation is part of the infastructure that is required to support the expansion of the San Gorgonio Memorial Hospital, future housing and business developments. It is important to note that Banning is one of only a few cities in California that owns their own electric utility, water department and waste water department. This has given the city assetts that we can borrow against to help redevelop the cities infastructure, public and private/city partnership improvements.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Brinton Water Reservoir (Details): I suggested to the director of public works, Duane Burk, that I would like to tour the Brinton Reservoir site to gain an understanding of what this project is all about and where the water will come from and where it will be disbursed in the city. The timing was right, one half of the 8 million gallon tank had been filled with water and the remaining 4 million gallons was scheduled to be filled that week. A tour was scheduled and the entire council toured the facility to include going into the 4 million gallon chamber. We all learned that the tank was placed at similiar elevations to other reservoir tanks that serve Banning to facilitate transfer of water and to maintain the tanks at a consistent level of fill. It was further explained that this infastructure improvement was to meet current daily needs and help meet future water needs as the city develops more housing and businesses. The city averages 8 million gallons of water comsumption per day, so this was a much needed improvement to our storage capacity. The city of Banning owns our own water utility and is responsible to maintain water level and quality.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Fixed Base Operator Model (Details): The consultant for the airport FBO RFQ reported that there hasn't been any responses at this time to the RFQ that was advertised. The consultant is now looking at other options to include full time fueling versus and hourly attendant that is at the airport on a fixed schedule. This information was also shared at the joint meeting of Banning City Council and Morongo Tribal Council in a meeting held this January.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Smoking in Parks Ban (Details): This passed the council last year and is currently in effect.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Freeway Oriented Freestanding Signage (Details): In early 2009, I proposed a vinyl overlay of the existing sign at the San Gorgonio Inn site. We own the property that includes the sign and the proposed developer agreed that a sign would be a good benefit, during the development process of the site. An RFP was advertised and the vendor with the lowest bid was chosen. A few details need to cleared and is scheduled to come before the council in March 2010. The electronic sign will be controlled by the city's IT department and will include messages presented to the thousands of cars that pass Banning daily. Current city events and points of interest will be displayed in an effort to draw passersby to stop in Banning.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Sunset Grade Seperation and Ramps (Details): Is currently in (PE) Project Engineering phases. I have asked and the county supervisor and our engineering department has agreed to consider leaving the temporary tracks with a new tie in past Sunset Ave to facilitate a train station and/or siding for Banning. This means if approved a station could be in Banning's future and we will be prepared when Metro-link comes through the Pass as a potential stop for passengers headed to the proposed SanDiego to San Francisco high speed rail and our committment to improve transportation for workers to travel to Banning for employment, schooling, events and a comfortable place to work and play. This is a grade seperation project that is listed on the RCTC (Riverside County Transportation Commission) list of future projects. This started as a 24 million dollar project that is now estimated at over 30 million due to state ramp upgrade requirements and construction costs.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Goals and Objectives for the City Manager (Details): We have hired a new city manager, Andy Takat that will be on board on February 15th. He will replace our current interim city manager, Sam Racadio. Mr. Racadio, Hoyl Belt(Human Resources Director) for the city of Banning and a panel of past city managers vetted a group for the council to review and approve the hiring of Mr. Takata, a highly respected and accomplished city/town manager. He will take over on the goals and project status that was requested by the council.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Westward Thoroughfare to Cabazon (Details): A joint project of the City of Banning, Riverside County and the Morongo Band of Mission Indians to extend Westward Ave to Cabezon is being prepared for design and the hearing process. This will provide a route should Interstate 10 become closed again as it did 4 years ago. Partial funding of this project was provided by transferring federal funds from a proposed Ramsey St extension. Hearings on this project will be advertised in the future.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Western Dental (Details): is now open and busy just up from the corner of 8th and Ramsey St. The CRA and City Council developed the corner of 8th and Ramsey that has resulted in an upgraded Jack in the Box, Western Dental and Rite Aide.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Rite Aide (Details): is now open at the corner of 8th and Ramsey.; Status:
Holiday Inn Express (Details): is in the final stages of construction and will be opening the end of April or early May.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Mount San Jacinto College (Details): MSJC has met with city staff to create an OPA to start with a Modular Campus Facility at Sunset and Westward. The agreement was finalized to get this project off the ground with the CRA approving a $750,000 participation in the infastructure of the project. MSJC is currently offering classes at Banning High School and consulting at their consulting headquartered at 1735 West Ramsey. The San Gorgonio Pass has had the largest growth in admissions for the school in past year. MSJC has purchased an additional 1.5 acres that had 2 houses and a barn on the site. The removal of the houses was commenced when city, county, MSJC officials, residents and business owners celebrated the bringing down of the houses of January 13, 2010. The first phase should be complete and campus ready for occupancy by the first quarter of 2011.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Coplin House CRA (Details): façade improvements have been completed and found to be a refreshing addition to the main cornerstone of Ramsey and San Gorgonio.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
City Parking Lot (Details): has been completed and used for the Phineas Festival this past winter(estimated at 1000 participants). Electrical has been installed and allows for use of the parking lot as an event center for the city.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Subs + Parking Lot (Details): Parking lot and driveway have been completed for additional parking use as required by city functions.
Gilman Historic Ranch and Wagon Museum has completed a major entry change to the property and facility.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
DeMario Jackson CRA (Details): Projects “Desert Orchid Place” on Ramsey street are ready and searching for tenants. Property “Canyon View Plaza” on 1st is now moving along quickly and should be ready soon for occupancy.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Elegant Affair CRA (Details): project is now hosting functions, meetings, weddings and gatherings in their newly remodeled facility on Ramsey Street. This is another one of the gems of the city’s CRA program; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Other CRA Projects (Details): The CRA has approved a group of public benefit projects that went to bid and were awarded to Larry Jacinto Construction. These projects include left turn pockets into the Beaver Medical Clinic facility on Ramsey Street East of Highland Springs. Apex and Ramsey is scheduled to have two lanes cut through from Ramsey to Wilson to help eliminate some traffic to the hospital and the very busy Highland Springs and Ramsey Street intersections. This will also create a four corner intersection that will be more viable for development. A city parking lot and substructure to provide underground electrical and trash container facility to serve Paddy Oreilly's, Hendon Building and the Stephenson Buildings. This will also provide access to the proposed art park/walk adjacent to the Stephenson Building. An underground utility district was approved for the alley way which is now seeing the wiring and the poles from Williams to the freeway removed in the near future. Included in this bid process were sidewalk projects that were defined by the public works department.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010
Oddfellows Building (Details): Oddfellows Building completed with the addition of money for a patio and sign. The Haven Coffee Bean Company opened on November 21st and has become a focal point for residents, businesses and guests to gather and enjoy coffees, cakes and sandwiches in a wi-fi center of a 100 hundred year old building that is totally rehabbed.; Status: Updated February 6, 2010

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