Chino 'Beverly' Hills?
To the surprise of many coastal cliff-hangers and suburban dwellers alike living in Los Angeles and Orange counties, their humble neighbor just to the east is growing up much quicker -- and much wealthier -- than many of them realize. (Of course, much of this has been previously pointed out on this very Web site.)
Centerlake - Ontario Airport
Amazingly, thanks in part to the increasingly myopic, self-absorbed, Hollywood-influenced media that smothers the Southern California airwaves, most Angelenos and OCers haven't the foggiest idea that a population larger than the city of Chicago now resides on their doorstep.
However, a recent article in the Los Angeles Times, full of Inland Southern California superlatives and myth-busters, could be a sign that many preconceived notions regarding Riverside and San Bernardino counties might soon change:
... The region's median income now surpasses that of Los Angeles County. It is creating more jobs than Orange and San Diego counties are creating put together. Riverside and San Bernardino counties boast more residents than Oregon. ...
... Increasingly, western Riverside and San Bernardino counties are featuring the type of upscale houses, stores and entertainment long found in Los Angeles and other coastal enclaves. White-collar professionals...are finding attractive jobs there, no longer commuting westward. Tall office buildings are sprouting, along with more $1-million-plus homes. ...
... While the region's Coachella Valley towns, such as Palm Springs and Indian Wells, have long sported pricey housing for the well-to-do, top drawer residences are now popping up in rapidly urbanizing Inland Empire neighborhoods just east of Los Angeles County. ... For instance, the median home price is $780,000 in Chino Hills, a prosperous bedroom community on the western edge of San Bernardino County. The median income of the city's 75,000 residents surpasses that of Beverly Hills. ...
... Now, the former agricultural plain has become big enough to sustain its own economy, attracting professionals such as lawyers and accountants who used to serve the area from offices on the coast. ...
... "A tremendous amount of space will be added in the next few years, and land values are going through the roof," said Newport Beach commercial real estate broker Kevin Hayes Jr. of Cresa Partners, which is contemplating opening an office in the Inland Empire. "It would be shortsighted of us not to consider going there."
Even though the article wasn't nearly as comprehensive as it should have been -- it focused primarily on the Ontario area -- it's nice to see that at least someone within the mighty Los Angeles media world is paying closer attention to Inland Southern California's quickly changing demographics. In reality, they simply cannot afford not to. But then again, it's often difficult predicting what exactly to expect from the land of the self-absorbed, over-tanned, leather-skinned, silicone-indulged and botox-addicted...
Related
- Los Angeles Times - Inland Empire: Where the L.A. Dream Landed
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