Monstrous Distribution Center Being Planned

Recently I became aware of a proposed project that will affect everyone who lives in the Pass area.  The city of Beaumont is entertaining the idea of allowing a developer from Santa Fe Springs, CA to construct a monstrous warehouse (designated as the Beaumont Distribution Center) on the southeast corner of 1st street and Hwy 79 south of the freeway.  (Yes that is the infamous corner with an already existing gridlock of vehicles trying to get on and off the freeway.)  This monster of a building will be 803,600 sq.ft and the entire facility will cover most of 38 acres.  The plans call for 387 parking stalls, 179 of which will be for semi-trucks belching diesel fumes as they come and go -- or since there's already gridlock -- belching diesel fumes as they idle, waiting to get on the freeway.  Of all the different projects I have seen the city of Beaumont consider over the past several years, in my opinion, this has to be the absolute worst.

First of all, this particular intersection is one of the major gateways into Beaumont.  Why would anyone think that a huge "high cube distribution warehouse facility" (to quote the builder) is a wonderful way to say "Welcome to Beaumont"?  Someone who flunked Marketing 101 -- that's who!  It reminds me of the days when people thought that Beaumont was named "Innerclean" because that was the biggest sign they saw driving by on the freeway!

According to the developer, this huge Beaumont Distribution Center will be built on spec -- there are no tenants standing in line waiting to rent a space.  So I couldn't help but wonder why they would even consider putting out that kind of money with no immediate reward.  Well I don't know what incentives the developer received -- if any -- but I did find out what the city of Beaumont wants and expects from them.  On page 2 of the Initial study, it says:

"...the proposed Project will construct future Potrero Blvd. to connect with Beaumont Ave/SR79.  This intersection will be signalized."

And that's when I realized that the people who run the city of Beaumont seem more than willing to throw us all under the bus -- or in this case under the semi-truck -- in order to get their precious Potrero Blvd. extended another quarter of a mile or so.  It doesn't matter that we will all be gasping from diesel fumes, or that the infamous intersection will become a parking lot, all that matters is that the famous "Bridge to Nowhere" out on SanTimoteo Road might possibly have a chance to be connected to something!  Shouldn't that possibility be worth every "Adverse Significant Impact" to the environment that this project will bring to our city?  And all it will take to get this project approved are a few tweaks to the General Plan, a change of zoning from commercial to industrial, and then after okaying the EIR, voila it's a done deal.

Warehouses have been shown to be a hazard to the public health.  And when these warehouses are built in populated areas, those health risks increase.  Also there is absolutely no way to totally mitigate the impacts that semi-trucks make on the environment -- specifically to air quality, noise levels, and to traffic issues.  However, the EIR can simply state that the negative impacts are unavoidable and can't be helped and I guess that's supposed to make us all feel better about the project.

I suppose it's possible that some people might think this planned project is a great idea, but if you are not one of those people and are as appalled as I am, there will be opportunities to speak out in the upcoming months.  However, you don't have to wait for those opportunities, you can send e-mails or letters to all the city council members expressing your thoughts and concerns on the project.  You can also call Rebecca Deming, Director of Planning at (951)572-3229 to ask her questions.  Believe me, they'll be very surprised to hear from you this early in the game.  Legally, the city doesn't have to notify the citizens until the public hearings start, and even though our family ranch is right next door to this property, we were not notified by the city.  I first heard about it when a friend told me that it was being discussed at the Water District meeting.

Personally, I hope that the city is flooded with comments because in my opinion, this is the wrong project -- in the wrong place -- and I am hoping that those of us who still care about the quality of life in Beaumont will speak up before it's too late.