Mayor Aguilar: “This Council is Planning for a Bright Future” as Improvements Revamp City

The Redlands city council is listening to residents and meeting their requests. That’s what Mayor Pete Aguilar told an audience of city leaders, business owners and other community members at last Thursday’s State of the Community luncheon, put on with the assistance of the Redlands Chamber of Commerce and lead sponsor, the Southern California Gas Company. Upon the people’s request, city council and staff have kept in mind four core values, Aguilar said: maintaining a sound budget; improving roads, parks and open spaces; helping business and encouraging new business; and public safety. “We have heard loud and clear that these are the issues you care about, and we have responded,” Aguilar said. “We have balanced the last five budgets, grown reserves, improved our credit rating and made big gains in a number of key areas.” In the last year the city has seen improvements to existing infrastructure, including road repaving, striping and the addition of bike lanes, making up 130 lane miles of street and road resurfacing and accounting for 30 percent of the overall five year project aimed at city-wide improvements. The $8.6 million Colton-Alabama-Redlands Boulevard Interchange Project that broke ground a few months ago is expected to be completed by the year’s end. Throughout the city, 1,225 square feet of new sidewalks, more than 150 handicap ramps and five additional bicycle lane miles will be added, Aguilar explained. Other infrastructure improvements this year will include the city’s expanded partnership with the Redlands Conservancy to add the preservation of 60 more acres of land in the canyon area; park improvements including rehabilitated bathrooms, playground equipment and trimmed trees; and the Orange Blossom Trail Phase 1—a total 7.5 mile trail spanning the city linking residents to local parks, open space areas, schools and downtown Redlands—which is slated to begin construction from Grove Street to Wabash Avenue before mid-August. “All of these efforts have delivered the most comprehensive set of infrastructure improvements the city has seen in decades. It would not be complete without the support of the community giving us the latitude to ask tough questions and make tough decisions,” Aguilar said. Over three years, more than $15 million in state and federal grants has been secured to help fund additional street patrol, emergency preparedness resources, technology, flood control and open space areas to supplement a “concrete plan for the future,” Aguilar said. A three-year strategic guide has been set in place aimed at focusing on the areas of fiscal accountability, economic development, infrastructure, land resource development, and safety and community services. “By setting a strategic plan in motion, seeking grants for projects, making progress on flood control and supporting commuter rail, this council is planning for a bright future,” Aguilar told the audience. Following his speech, Aguilar invited residents to ask of him or other council members in attendance, including Mayor Pro Tem Paul Foster and Councilmembers Bob Gardner and Pat Gilbreath, questions they had related to city activities. Kyle Cummings, co-founder of Fox Dance Studio, asked Mayor Aguilar what the comprehensive plan was for the downtown area, including its mall, parking and crime prevention. Aguilar explained he hoped to see new ownership of the mall to help bring in business, shoppers and, he hoped, housing. “Downtown is the core of our city,” Aguilar said. “We need to make sure we make investments there.” Beth Sanders of Security Bank is one of a group of business owners who has been meeting with City Manager N. Enrique Martinez, discussing business concerns and how the council and staff can help address them. “I’m pleased with how responsive the city manager has been in working with us,” Sanders said. “It’s nice to have an ear to listen to the concerns of the business community.” Mayor Aguilar said, “If something is at critical mass, if it’s important to the people, we aren’t going to shy away from it.”