Category: Inland Empire

As I wrote previously, the Delta Conveyance Project is a tunnel that would divert excess flow in the Sacramento River upstream of the delta and deliver it to the existing State Water project near the mouth of the delta. The existing pumping station works well from an engineering perspective but can have a significant impact on several species of fish, notably the federally protected Delta Smelt and salmon. There is also a real risk a major earthquake could cause the failure of levies throughout the delta, causing saltwater intrusion from San Francisco Bay and making the water at the current diversion point unusable for human use.  A major milestone for the project was obtaining $300 Million in additional funding for continued planning and preconstruction costs of the project. This funding will come from all project participants, but the biggest portion comes from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (Metropolitan) whose share is $142 Million, or a little over 47 percent of the additional costs. Metropolitan has 26 member agencies across Southern California, and their individual interests sometimes conflict. Some areas, like Los Angeles and

All of Ontario was enraged 125 years ago, an anger that got most everyone involved in something never done before or since. One Sunday in May 1899, the men of the town were herded into one church while the women gathered for a sermon at a different church. This odd arrangement came about after word spread of how alcohol fueled an indecent incident among three teens – two boys and a girl. This was really a big deal in particular because Ontario prided itself on its ban on alcohol, originally set down by founder George Chaffey in mortgages and city rules. Since alcohol was the subject of this odd arrangement, it’s easy to figure that the men heard a sermon probably loaded with plenty of fire and brimstone since they were most likely the customers of local bootleggers. At the separate church services, “the men were soundly scored by the minister who went so far as to say that he could stretch out his hands and put them on the heads of alleged pious men who were not true to their marriage vows,” reported the

Chasity owns and operates a medical billing company in Riverside that was established in 1992 and currently employs 22 amazing women. She grew up in Riverside and attended Chemawa Middle School and Arlington High School. Chasity is married to her husband AJ of 28 years. The two of them raised their two daughters here and they graduated from Riverside colleges, UCR and Cal Baptist University. Chasity loves Riverside and volunteers through the local outreach department at The Grove Community Church. Her favorite time of the year is Christmas and her favorite ministry is The Christmas Store where children are registered for gifts by their parents and they get the opportunity to provide Christmas for about 300 children each year. Each child receives something to keep them warm, a family fun activity and a toy/gift. The family buys in with a small amount which provides dignity to them at the same time as loving on their children. Chasity and her family love Riverside and believe in using their talents to help others. They strive to add value to the city and its people.  What does Riverside

By the 1880s, Riverside became known as a place to escape the cold winters of the Midwest and East. Promotional materials, including postcards, touted the warm climate and the ripening oranges versus the freezing snow. Postcard of Winter in California. (Author’s Collection) Places for these winter visitors sprung up, one being the Glenwood Cottages, the predecessor to the Mission Inn.  Managed by the Miller family, the first paid guest was Albert White in November 1876.  Another family, just outside of the original mile square, soon converted and enlarged their home over the years to become a winter retreat for those wishing to escape the cold.  The house belonged to Ebenezer Griffith Brown, one of Riverside’s early founders and settlers. Brown purchased 104 acres about a half mile north of the town along Colton Avenue (today La Cadena Drive).  The property was bordered by Colton Ave. on the west, Russell on the north, Kansas Avenue on the east, and Blaine St. on the south. The Upper Canal, built by the Southern California Colony Association, ran through Brown’s property and furnished the water he needed for this

A big thumbs up to all you tool users out there! Last week, we rattled our cutlery to satisfy our creative desires one spoonful at a time. Did you exceed the recommended daily dose of 10 ml of creative expression every four hours (not to exceed five doses in 24 hours)? Or was it a day to defy gravity with a spoon sculpture to scrape the clouds? Maybe you kept your feet on the ground and gathered a crowd around you while jamming out a spoon symphony.  Whatever you found time to accomplish, I hope it was as satisfying as the last scoop of soggy cereal from your morning bowl. This week, we’re embarking on a creative journey inspired by the captivating forms and textures of shells.  These natural wonders evoke a sense of mystery when you find them miles from a coastline. But rest assured, residents of the Inland Empire, shells are not limited to the seashore; they can also be found right here, like the fossils embedded in ancient rocks scattered around the San Bernardino & Riverside County, or the delicate shells of snails that overrun our gardens and sidewalks.

The important work of tracking Inland Empire mentions on the national scene never ends. On CBS’ “Late Show” last Monday, commenting on the end of the manhunt for the killer of the UnitedHealthcare CEO, Stephen Colbert said the suspect’s arrest was basically inevitable. “Classic bad-guy mistake,” Colbert said in his monologue, “fleeing to one of America’s funny-name towns. Police will always find you right away, whether it’s Altoona, Pennsylvania; Rancho Cucamonga, California; or Sheboygan, Wisconsin.” On social media, the clip was posted by “Late Show” with this lead-in: “The suspect was caught in Altoona and might be headed to jail soon-a.” What if he’d made it west? I guess he could’ve been “caught in Cucamonga where he didn’t belong-a.” To be honest, the Colbert monologue seemed in questionable taste to me. (But I’m glad to know about it, courtesy of readers Carolyn Badger of Riverside and Terri Di Donato of Alta Loma.) And it’s just the latest example of Rancho Cucamonga making a funny-name list. Anaheim, Azusa and Cucamonga were grouped together on Jack Benny’s radio and TV series. In more modern times, there was the

Last Saturday, the Colton Lions Club held their Annual Christmas Toy Drive at the La Cadena Express parking lot. A dozen members of this local service club, led by President Cynthia Calderilla, came downtown to the busy street of La Cadena Dr to set up their festive booth to receive donations of new toys from residents and businesses. All donations of toys that were received will be given out to Colton Children at Pepper’s Park (5th St and N Street) on December 21. For the fifth year in a row, this active club boasts thirty members and has been developing a reputation for community-minded involvement. “We believe in helping the community,” says Soledad Morden, one of the long-time members. Whenever there is a holiday, a charitable cause, or special event, the Colton Lions are usually on the scene taking part and making headlines for the benefit of the Colton Community. When asked about the Annual Toy Drive, Calderillla explained, “We want to help the children of Colton, especially those who might need a boost of Christmas spirit.”  Now in her second year as President, the Colton Lions

Restaurants and other food vendors ordered to close and allowed to reopen by San Bernardino County health inspectors from Dec. 4 to Dec. 12. Cardenas, 16212 Foothill Blvd., Fontana Closed: Dec. 5 Reason: Insufficient hot water Reopened: Dec. 5 Lakeside Sports Bar, 26816 Blue Water Road, Helendale Closed: Dec. 5 Reason: Cockroach infestation Reopened: Dec. 6 Brew Bees Coffee Co., 1118 E. 19th St., Upland Closed: Dec. 4 Reason: Insufficient hot water Reopened: Dec. 4 Uranus 27, 555 E. Foothill Blvd., Suite 10, Upland Closed: Dec. 6 Reason: Operating without a valid health permit Reopened: Dec. 6 Stimulant, 1386 E. Foothill Blvd., Suite A, Upland Closed: Dec. 6 Reason: Operating without a valid health permit Woodhaus, 35010 Yucaipa Blvd., Yucaipa Closed: Dec. 4 Reason: Insufficient hot water Reopened: Dec. 5 Updates since last week’s list: Titi’s Drips at 14084 Amargosa Road, Suite 260, Victorville, which was ordered closed Dec. 3 because of insufficient hot water, was allowed to reopen Dec. 9. Related Articles Local News | San Bernardino County restaurants shut down by health inspectors, Nov. 28-Dec. 5 Local News | San Bernardino County restaurants

Arlington-Poly Rivalry With the reconfiguration of the Ivy league, Poly and Arlington are set to play each other in sanctioned matches for the first time in over half a decade. The reignition of this historical cross-town rivalry is a big deal to the players and the coaches, these matches will be well attended and highly energized. Poly and Arlington both won their first pre-season tournaments of the 2024/25 campaign. Poly defeated Roosevelt 1-0 in the Norte Vista Tournament and Arlington beat hosts Citrus Hill on their home field 3-1. In High School Soccer, pre-season tournaments give teams an opportunity to get much-needed minutes on the field before going into regular season play. These tournaments may not be important as far as entry into post season play but they give teams chances to compete against good teams from all over Southern California. There is a lot to this rivalry, from the coaches being neighbors to Arlington’s coach being the director of Albion Riverside. A highly successful organization that is producing some of the best players at each of our local high schools including a significant part

Riverside’s longtime “Nutcracker” show is dancing over to Moreno Valley this Christmas season. And organizers are hoping audiences will follow the festive performances to the city next door. David Allan’s “Nutcracker” will start a two-day run at Moreno Valley High School on Saturday, Dec. 21 — after 14 years in Riverside City College’s Landis Performing Arts Center in downtown. Dancer Joelle McConnell rehearses Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, in Riverside with other dancers for BRAVA’s performance of David Allan’s “Nutcracker.” The show will be at Moreno Valley High School Performing Arts Center on Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, and Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) Dancers Evelyn Iha, right, and Isaac Huerta, center, rehearse Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, for BRAVA’s David Allan’s “Nutcracker” in Riverside. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) Dancers Evelyn Iha, left, and Isaac Huerta rehearse Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, in Riverside for David Allan’s “Nutcracker.” (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) A dancer balances on her toes during a Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, rehearsal in Riverside for David Allan’s “Nutcracker,” presented by BRAVA.

Several billboards have been seen recently in various states of disrepair and are now partially covered in large graffiti. The billboards owned by West Hollywood-based Regency Outdoor Advertising have been the center of a decades-long legal battle between the advertiser and the city. The battle first began in 1993 over Proposition L, which aimed to limit the number of new billboards built in the city. At that time, Regency Outdoor Advertising already had a contract for 10 double-sided billboards to be built in Pomona if the company demolished some 30 others first. Graffiti covered billboards at the center of a lawsuit against the city of Pomona remain up along the 57 Freeway on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024 in Pomona. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG) By 2014, the City Council had voted to extend Regency Outdoor Advertising’s agreement by 12 years in return for keeping only nine billboards and returning $1 million to the city. In the same year, citizens filed a lawsuit to amend Proposition L and force the removal of the billboards. Deputy City Manager Mark Gluba declined to comment on the status of the

By Greg Archer | Contributing Columnist The Museum of Riverside is heading toward a stellar new era. A recent grant from Inland Empire Community Foundation further fuels those efforts as the museum prepares for its grand reopening in 2027. “The recent Charles F. and Wilhelmina E. Clark Botanical Fund grant that we received allows us to oversee the care, growth, and interpretation of botanical collections and an herbarium — the Clark Herbarium — which we have built upon over the subsequent decades since the Clark’s original bequest in 1949,” said Robyn G. Peterson, museum director. “The funds that the endowment generates, currently around $8,000 or so a year, are being set aside and aggregated to assist in the botanical interpretation that will go into the new main museum when it reopens in 2027.” There’s big hope for that reopening. The museum closed in 2017 with a plan to undergo renovations. As that process continues, Peterson and the museum’s creative team are planning new exhibits for the museum’s reopening. She said she’d love for people “to know we’re not the Cheech,” referring to The Cheech Marin

Record players are hot for the holidays. It’s been the case for a few years. I think most people assumed the re-emergence of vinyl records was a nostalgia play and would go the way of the Furby. Vinyl records are still around, and sales are still growing. Technologies rarely get a second chance, so why is it that vinyl records, well down the road to obscurity, get sucked back into the cultural milieu? Humans are bad at predicting the future. Flying cars and robot maids for everyone seemed inevitable in the last century but are now no more than dead fantasies. Isn’t it a little interesting that the technologies that seemed like logical progression never came to be and the truly revolutionary advancements that DID happen weren’t ever on our radar? In 1970 flying cars were an inevitability but a tiny computer that could access nearly every song and movie from your pocket was never mentioned. Streaming music is a big part of my life. It is my main method of consumption. I listen to music mostly in my car, and I’m not embarrassed to admit I had a 100

Even after the 2024 election, there’s still an open City Council seat in Rialto. That’s because on Nov. 5, Rialto voters chose City Councilmember Joe Baca — whose term was to end in 2026 — as their next mayor. And that left a gap the remaining City Council members had to fill. At their Tuesday, Dec. 10 meeting, the council voted 3-1 to hold a special session before the next regular meeting to interview candidates. The council will appoint their new member at the meeting, scheduled for Jan. 14. Sign up for The Localist, our daily email newsletter with handpicked stories relevant to where you live. Subscribe here. Longtime Inland Empire politician Baca won with 40.52% in November’s election, trailed by sitting mayor Deborah Robertson, who held the seat for 12 years, with 29.39% of the vote. Behind them both were Councilmember Rafael Trujillo with 23.62%, and newcomer Ché Rose Wright with 6.48% of the vote. Baca was sworn in as mayor on Tuesday by his son, San Bernardino County Supervisor and former Rialto City Councilmember Joe Baca, Jr. “I’m very, very proud of my

The Riverside Public Library system has added the Libby app to its roster of electronic media offerings. Libby has become a popular choice for library systems due to its expansive list of books and the inclusion of audiobooks, magazines, and comics. The app is available on all major platforms and free to use with a valid Riverside Public Library card. The adoption of Libby is the latest attempt to adapt to a changing consumer environment and keep libraries relevant in a world that reads much differently than we did just a few decades ago. A quick look at our Calendar section will show you that Riverside Public Library is more than just a place to check out a book. You can attend a poetry open mic, learn to craft, join a book club, and participate in many other activities. They have always been a place for kids to find a quiet place to do homework. Most of our libraries have small conference rooms that can serve as temporary office and meeting spaces for small social or business groups. Riverside’s libraries have expanded their identity beyond just books and have become

The Boys From Riverside, a book by Thomas Fuller about the success of the CSDR Cubs boys’ football team, was selected by Amazon editors as the best book of 2024. The Cubs just won their third consecutive CIF Southern Section title, but the book tells the story of a program that was not always dominant and faced many challenges on their way to the top. California School for the Deaf Riverside opened over 70 years ago. Even though it sits conspicuously near the freeway and on one of Riverside’s busiest streets, many Riversiders never really thought much about what goes on there. CSD Riverside is a California state school servicing deaf K-12 students from the Central Valley and South. Many of their students are transported to the school and live on campus during the week. Aside from specializing in the education of deaf students, CSD Riverside serves as a hub of a vibrant deaf community here in town. After graduation, many students settle in Riverside, and some families have had several generations attend the school. Athletics have always been a big part of campus life and

Perris’ public library opened at the tail end of the grunge era, which might be an appropriate comparison given its recent state. Not grungy, really. But dated. “It was 30 years old and looked it. It was well used,” Malcolm Corona, a councilmember and regular library user, told me wryly. “I recall it as archaic as the one when I was growing up in East L.A.,” said Michael Vargas, the mayor. “The furniture was antique.” These conversations took place last week inside the newly transformed Cesar Chavez Perris Branch Library. In a $1.2 million overhaul, the library got new paint, lighting, ceiling, restrooms, chairs and tables, reception desk, carpet, tile flooring and computers. “It’s not only new furniture, design and paint but new technology, public art and even history, with our recent statue,” said Clara Miramontes, the city manager. The statue of Chavez outside was dedicated last summer for the library’s 30th anniversary. And by public art she was referring to an interior mural, now in progress, by Patrick Barwinski that includes Chavez. As careful readers will recall, I had wandered over to the library

The Ontario Chaffey Community Show Band will present “Holiday Traditions,” a concert of traditional and contemporary holiday music, 7:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 16, at Gardiner W. Spring Auditorium on the campus of Chaffey High School, 1245 N. Euclid Ave., Ontario. Admission is free, and before the concert the Woodwind Celebration Ensemble will perform beginning at 7 p.m. in the lobby, where coffee and cookies will be available. The concert will feature guest artists Susan Hitch, ringing handbells, and singer David Pentecost. Soloists from the band will be Natasha Le, Joscelyn Washington and Pat Arnold, according to a news release. Susan Hitch, who is a longtime member of the bell choir at Claremont United Church of Christ, has played bell solos in England, Japan, Korea, Australia and Canada as well as in the Western United States. She is retired after 34 years of driving for United Parcel Service and now plays recorder in several organizations. In the “Holiday Traditions” concert, she will play three of her arrangements, “Good King Wenceslas and Friend” and “Winter Holiday Mashup” with band accompaniment, and “Christmas Angels” in a solo performance.