CENTER FOR COMMUNITY ACTION AND ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE
“Bringing People Together to Improve Our Social and Natural Environment” Mailing Address Physical Address Tel: 951-360-8451
P.O. Box 33124 3840 Sunnyhill Drive, Suite A Fax: 951-360-5950 Jurupa Valley CA 92519 Jurupa Valley CA 92509 www.ccaej.org June 13, 2023
City of Rialto
Attn: Daniel Casey
150 S. Palm Avenue
Rialto, CA 92376
Submitted via email to [email protected].
Re: Rialto/Lilac Mitigated Negative Declaration
Dear Daniel
This letter is to respond to the Mitigated Negative Declaration which was prepared for the proposed Rialto/Lilac Project which would be built there in the city. After reviewing the documents made available for inspection, there are several concerns which remain unaddressed by the responses and which we believe warrant a full EIR be completed for this Project.
As many community members continue to make abundantly clear and which we seek to uplift in our advocacy work, there is no desire for this particular project at the specified location and indeed, as discussed in the MND, the General Plan and this Project are inconsistent which each other. There are already ongoing concerns about an oversaturation of warehouse development in the region overall and specifically within the city. While several districts exclusively for warehouses do exist in Rialto, they nevertheless continue to expand elsewhere, encroaching on the peace and quiet of the residential neighborhoods and other people-focused uses such as schools and parks.
Thus, it is concerning to see the proposed Project as it would be another egregious intrusion into the quality-of-life of the Rialto community. This is especially relevant given the proximity to Bud Bender Park which is directly adjacent the Project to the north. Additionally, there are homes within a similar distance on the west side of Lilac Avenue and as noted in the traffic section of the document, Cedar being the designated truck route means that those vehicles would have to travel directly past the sites of Werner Elementary School and Rialto Middle School.
According to the MND documents, the Project is expected to generate over 200 truck trips a day, many of which would likely make that trip during school hours and expose children to the diesel pollution.
If there are any additional questions or comments, please do not hesitate to reach out for answers.
Sincerely,
Marven Norman
Policy Coordinator
CCAEJ is a long-standing community based organization with over 40 years of experience advocating for stronger regulations through strategic campaigns and building a base of community power. Most notably, CCAEJ’s founder Penny Newman won a landmark federal case against Stringfellow Construction which resulted in the `Stringfellow Acid Pits’ being declared one of the first Superfund sites in the nation. CCAEJ prioritizes community voices as we continue our grassroots efforts to bring lasting environmental justice to the Inland Valley Region.
June13, 2023
Cityof RialtoAttn: Daniel Casey150S. PalmAvenueRialto, CA92376Submittedviaemail [email protected] Re: Rialto/LilacMitigatedNegativeDeclarationonAIREFRialtoCommerceCenter II, LP,APN:0130-191-09Northeast corner of RialtoAve. andLilacAve.
Dear PlanningDepartment andPlanningCommission,
MynameisAnaGonzalez, Rialtoresident at 509W2ndSt, I amwithinapproximately150ftawayfromtheproposedproject andacrossthestreet fromBudBender parkwhichisdirectlynext totheproposedproject inquestion. I amheretoprovideastatement of full oppositiontothisproject.
Mysonwhois17yearsoldhaslost approximatelyof hischildhoodandanysenseof normalcytobelikeother childrenduetohislungcapacity. I invest inspecial filtersfor our homeandtherapytosupport hismental healthduetohisdiagnosisof depression, ADHD, andother PTSDsymptoms. I movedawayfromNorthRialtoseekingahomeawayfromindustryandtrucktraffic,but it isquicklycatchingupagain, our familyistired. His, myentirefamily’sandneighbors’healthwill begreatlyimpactedbythisproject asit will addtothecumulativeimpactswearealreadyfacing. Althoughthecityanddeveloper isusingtheloopholetopassthisproject withanMNDit isnot enoughfor our community. Afull EIRreport isneededtosafelyaddressthecumulativeimpacts, air quality, noiseandlight pollutionthat will negativelybeaddedtoourneighborhood.
I havespokentomyneighborsinpersonandnext door toseewhat theywant toseeonthatlandandit isdefinitelynot awarehouse. Weneedgrocerystoresandmorehousing. I amsharinganimageheretoshowtheresponsesof our neighborsinregardstothisproject. Alsonospanishnoticesweresent, andI canassuremorethanhalf of thiscommunityaremajoritymonolingual spanishspeakingresidents, thecitymust noticetheseprojectsproperlyandbeinclusiveof themajorityof thepopulation. Thecityhastheultimatepower toensurethehealthandsafetyof our communityandit beginshere. Our communitydoesnot needanymorewarehouses. It isbadfor thebuilt, social andnatural environment inthelongrun. Pleasedenythisproject until further conversationswiththecommunityarehadfor full transparencyandmeaningful engagement.
Sincerely,
AnaGonzalezRialtoResident