Rialto OKs Payment to Airport - Deal Needed for City to Build Huge Project!

Rialto OKs payment to airport
Deal needed for city to build huge project
Jason Pesick, Staff Writer
San Bernardino County Sun
Article Launched:04/04/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT

RIALTO - The City Council on Tuesday night approved an agreement that will provide San Bernardino International Airport with $49.5 million.
The agreement is necessary to allow Rialto to close its airport and replace it with a massive mixed-use development along the Interstate 210 extension.

"It'll be put to a much better use," Robb Steel, the city's economic-development director, said after the council had voted.

On Monday, Steel said that although the item would remain on the council's agenda, City Administrator Henry Garcia wanted to delay the council vote because at least one council member asked for more information.

However, after meeting in closed session Tuesday afternoon, Steel said the council's concerns were addressed.

Federal legislation allowing Rialto to close the airport required the city to pay 45 percent of the value of its airport to SBIA.

Rialto officials agreed after negotiations with SBIA officials that the airport was worth $120 million. To determine the $49.5 million payment, $10 million of the value was deducted to account for development costs.

The city initially thought the airport was worth $66 million. The difference between that and the value agreed upon means that Rialto will have to pay SBIA about twice as much as it originally intended. That difference will be split by Rialto and the developer of the project, Lewis-Hillwood Rialto LLC, Steel said. Lewis-Hillwood is a partnership between the Lewis Group of Companies and Texas-based developer Hillwood.

After Rialto closes its airport, many of the airport tenants will move to SBIA. The city is guaranteed to gain $26 million from the sale to the developer, even after paying SBIA and helping Lewis-Hillwood prepare the Rialto airport property for development.

Even though Rialto is guaranteed $26 million from Lewis-Hillwood, Steel stressed the developer could end up spending $120 million after helping to pay SBIA, preparing the Rialto property for development and after paying Rialto for the property itself.












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BS Ranch Perspective:

As I had wrote in m previous BLOG's The figures that they have are all speculations of what could be by probability and statistical figures gathered if, and that is one huge if, the people that drive on the freeway get off the freeway and decide that they want to go to a Shopping center located in the City of Rialto? Now, that might all be fine and dandy, but there is a few things that are missing. One this is Rialto. and the Administration that Leads this city is still Garcia, & the City's Council is Still Owen.

The City's Council wants to take Black and Decker to court over the Perchlorate problem when they have said that they would pay for the problems. The County of San Bernardino has said that in the group of City's and County that the best thing to do is allow the Businesses the right to see if they are going to pay for the problems themselves and avoid any Court Costs that might occur to our budgets. Owen, apparently feels that he has the Administrator's Ear, because he said that he felt that it was best to take the businesses of Black and Decker to court and sue them for an undisclosed amount for the clean up of the Perchlorate problem that we are suffering in Rialto. The thing is that each time that he goes to court, Owens makes more and more money, At least $450 an hour. He gets paid 750, 000.00 a year just to attend the city Council Meetings, and that is a certain amount. if they run over three hours then there is a per hour charge. so that can kick in. You can see why Owen is eager to start the Court Wheel going.

Now the cities matter on the Sale of the Airport and the land, they will be paying the airport the amount, plus there is an ongoing rent agreement that they will pay for the renters that are moved over there because of the Inconvenience of having to move their plane to another Facility.

I think that is sick. They should not have to spread that kind of coin out for them! That is what I feel. On that matter. But that is just me. I am not so easy at spreading out my Taxpayers money. Like the City Council of the Rialto Council.

Renaissance will have one anchor store and that is going to be Target. There has not been any other interested parties even though they have had the net out to try to catch another willing business. Rialto is a commuter city always has been and it will not change any time soon. The businesses that are here have been here for a while, but most of the time if they don't have help they fail.

Even the huge chain store that was open for a short time at the corner of cedar/foothill. They had some weird policies on how they handled petty theft, they didn't prosecute, but if you were panhandling in front of the store. oh my!! if was like the third wold war was opened up!

They didn't make it. They closed the Rialto branch, and shortly there after they announced via radio that the chain was bankrupt! Kind of like Builders Emporium. But the whole thing was sad they were a good store like that of Builders Emporium, they even had a out door patio center, back in 1993 they were open there when the place first opened up, and Food 4Less was first there and the Grocery Stores were having a strike back then too. They were striking for better pay and since Food 4 Less was purchased by a Union Franchise they wanted to be part of the Union. I think they won, but still got paid less. I don't quite know how the outcome of that strike came out, but I am getting off subject.

I Truly Pray that Rialto, and the City Council makes out great and the City Budget is over flowing with Cash, on the sale of the airport and the Privatising of the land there to Businesses, and houses, and the like, will make it so much better! I pray that it does work out for them. I would rather see that My Beloved Rialto Police Grow to over 300 to 500 Employee's and even bigger, that would be great! It would be wonderful.

What I get into with the airport, is that This is Rialto! This is the Sale of said Property for Businesses in Rialto, and usually what happens is that they don't work to well. I wonder and hope that it doesn't go by the way, rather that it Thrives to make money hand over fist.
BS Ranch