HOST: KVCR News previously reported on the Bloomington Business Park Specific Plan, which was approved by the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors in 2022.
The developer, Howard Industrial Partners, says the project will bring hundreds of jobs to the unincorporated town. Some people say the company is helping give back to Bloomington.
But not all residents are happy with this outcome.
ANTHONY VICTORIA: Bloomington residents for years have voiced frustrations over the lack of improvement in their community.
They’ve complained about the lack of sidewalks, deputy patrols and public services.
But some say the presence and growth of the warehousing industry finally promises economic stability.
Teresa Escoto is a member of the Bloomington Municipal Advisory Council, known by locals as the MAC. I interviewed Escoto and her MAC colleague, Angela McClain, for a news story in 2022.
Escoto said then that with the financial support from the warehousing industry, Bloomington could someday have autonomy and maybe become a city.
ESCOTO: There hasn't been any developers that have came in and actually done something like what Howard is proposing to do for our community
VICTORIA: Escoto was referring to Tim Howard of Howard Industrial Partners -- the Newport Beach-based developer behind the Bloomington Business Park Specific Plan.
(SOUND OF CONSTRUCTION)
Howard’s business park is 213 acres of land or about 50 football fields. At its completion, it will have demolished 138 homes and relocated an elementary school.
On a chilly day in December, I chose to walk through the future site of the Business Park.
I walked along a dirt path along Jurupa Avenue, eventually making my way to Maple Avenue. A short row of homes on the street stood empty, with piles of trash, concrete rubble and glass scattered around.
(VICTORIA WALKING OVER GLASS)
I went back to Bloomington in January to visit nonprofit Olive Branch Development and Empowerment Services. The organization is led by McClain.
Howard Industrial Partners in the past has helped Olive Branch with community toy drives. The Bloomington Little League also received at least one donation from Howard Industrial Partners.
McClain refused an on-tape interview with KVCR News, but did share that Tim Howard has a big heart…regardless of what people think.
Other residents disagree.
Ana Carlos is a school teacher, mother and homeowner. She’s lived in Bloomington for 12 years.
Carlos is also one of the co-founders of the Concerned Neighbors of Bloomington, a local group who advocates for environmental justice.
Carlos alleges that people working for Howard Industrial Partners have attempted to intimidate residents into moving out and selling their land…so they could begin construction on the project.
CARLOS: Neighbors have said that these real estate people or people who work for Howard Industrial would come and say, ‘Well, you're the only one holding this project back, you're the only neighbor that hasn't sold and imagine how your neighbors are going to feel when they find out that you're the one holding this project back
On January 24, I got a tip about a resident who appeared to be locked inside his own home. I decided to drive out to Bloomington to try to see it for myself.
Felipe Ortiz lives with his wife and three children on Locust Avenue. He says on the morning of the 24th he couldn’t leave the house because the front fence was padlocked.
He said in his native Spanish that when he tried to go outside, he saw a notice secured to the fence.
The piece of paper had a number and a message that read, “Need access? Ask for Tim Howard.”
ORTIZ IN SPANISH: I was told the property was already sold. They came and locked inside my own house. I felt like a hostage.
VICTORIA: A few weeks later on February 15, surveillance video shows a bulldozer charging toward the property and knocking the chain link fence down.
Alondra Mateo is an organizer with the People’s Collective for Environmental Justice or P-C-4-E-J. Since January, she’s helped Ortiz and his family address their concerns with their landlord and Howard Industrial Partners.
Mateo says the company knows what they’re doing is wrong. She alleges they waited to cut the lock on Ortiz’s fence until the area was clear.
MATEO: It’s no coincidence that they waited until there no was no one in front of the house.
VICTORIA: Howard Industrial Partners did not respond to multiple requests for comment about Ortiz’s situation.
Ortiz, who discovered his own sense of belonging in Bloomington through horseback riding, is heartbroken that he’s having to give up the things he loves most.
ORTIZ IN SPANISH: My 13 year old son says to sell his horse. He tells me, ‘family comes first, then horses.’ This makes me feel really bad.
VICTORIA: Ortiz says he has until April 13th to leave his property…and sell his horses.
For KVCR News and The Frontline Observer, I’m Anthony Victoria in Bloomington.
This story can be read in its entire form through independent news publication, The Frontline Observer. Audio reporting was done by KVCR’s Anthony Victoria, who is also the founder of the Frontline Observer. Additional reporting was done by Frontline Observer reporter Christopher Salazar and Pitzer College students Journey Lipscomb, Anthony Shing and Diego Tamayo.
Support for this reporting project was made possible through the Rita Allen Foundation’s Civic Science Collaborative Journalism Grant.
