The Riverside County Planning Commission voted 3-2 Tuesday in support of a 1 million-square-foot Cajalco Commerce Center, despite public concerns the project will add warehouses and truck pollution to unincorporated Mead Valley.
Last month, the Board of Supervisors approved a General Plan Amendment to rezone 44.7 acres near Cajalco Road and Seaton Avenue for commercial and industrial use. That cleared the way for Hillwood Investment Properties’ project, which includes warehouse and industrial space along with 13 acres set aside for a new sports and recreation park.
As was the case during the July 29 vote for the GPA, dozens of Mead Valley residents wearing blue shirts with slogans urging commissioners to vote “Yes on the Cajalco Commerce Center” attended the hearing. Carpenters unions and ironworkers also spoke in support of the project.
Scott Morse, representing Hillwood, told residents the company has a proven record of creating jobs, citing the Amazon Air facility in San Bernardino. He said the Cajalco Commerce Center promises to generate nearly $38 million in infrastructure improvements and provide community amenities, including street upgrades and flood control improvements.
Morse also highlighted Hillwood’s outreach efforts, including community meetings and events like trunk-or-treats and turkey giveaways.
“We heard that the community needs infrastructure and amenities which extend beyond the impacts of the project,” Morse said. “These improvements are not driven by the project’s impacts, but rather our commitment to give back to the neighborhoods we work within.”
Opponents argued the project would exacerbate existing environmental and health concerns. The project’s Environmental Impact Report (EIR) shows that impacts to traffic, noise and air quality are unavoidable due the warehouse’s size.
Karla Cervantes, a homeowner and environmental justice activist, said the final EIR fails to reflect opposition from residents and local organizations.
“So this park is going to be surrounded by warehouses, meaning that the kids that go here are going to be inhaling fumes,” Cervantes said. “So it's not really necessarily saving our kids. It's easy to say that it's better than nothing, because our community has been fed crumbs, so it's easy to feel full when we have gotten nothing.”
Cervantes added that while some residents supported the project for the sports complex, others rescinded their support after learning it included a warehouse.
First District Planning Commissioner Ariel Savage said she struggled with approving the project because of the number of warehouses already in Mead Valley and their long-term health impacts.
“I think that we cannot have development without there being direct community benefits, such as what we’re seeing through the park, through a community center,” Savage said. “I want to support a park. I want to support economic development for Mead Valley. I just don’t know if this is necessarily the best possible way that we can imagine it for the community.”
She said any new warehouses in the area will have “significant and unavoidable effects on air quality” and that the community benefits need to outweigh those impacts. Savage also said she would have liked to see a housing component included to offset the loss of residential space.
Third District Planning Commissioner Marisa Guytch, in contrast, highlighted the infrastructure benefits tied to the project.
“I really do think that this project is bringing in significant benefits outside of the park,” Guytch said. “The park is just something you can see on the outside. The developments to the streets and the flooding that happens in that area, the sidewalks, the trails…I think that’s significant.”
