Growing Anti-Development Sentiment in the Inland Empire
The Inland Empire in non-coastal Southern California, stretching east of LA and Orange County, is one of the nation’s largest and most important industrial markets. Over the past few years, and even in recent weeks, multiple cities throughout the Inland Empire have adopted warehouse moratoriums that bar the development of new warehouses and distribution centers. The moratoriums halt the development approval process, allowing municipalities time to decide how to mitigate negative externalities, namely: 1) pollution and adverse health effects; 2) traffic and road damage; 3) undesirable building appearances; and 4) a desire to develop these cities into a more pleasant place for residents. Many moratoriums begin as a 45-day development pause, which is not nearly enough time to solve all these complex problems. City Councils have often voted to extend the moratorium ordinances for a longer period of time while local leaders sort out actionable changes.
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