In Inland Empire : TownGate to Become Big Mixed-Use Center
Even if TownGate never gets its 1.25-million-square-foot regional mall, it will still be one of the largest real estate ventures ever undertaken in the Inland Empire.
Phase 1, which begins next spring, calls for the construction of a 460,000-square-foot commercial center. According to the developer, Dallas-based Fritz Duda Co., anchor tenants will include an Ole’s home-improvement store, a Mervyn’s department store and an Edwards eight-plex theater.
Other tenants are expected to include banks, specialty shops, restaurants and a car wash.
The first phase also calls for the construction of 450 single-family homes by Upland-based Lewis Homes and Walnut Creek-based Ryder Homes. Future neighborhoods in the 590-acre master-planned project will vary in size and price range, and will include attached houses and apartments. About 2,400 dwelling units will be built.
The entire development will take about 15 years to complete. It will eventually include up to 2 million square feet of office space, a full-service hospital and medical office-complex and hotel.
A “town center” on an 8.6-acre parcel in the development will include a day-care facility, senior citizens’ activity area, library and church site.
Adjacent to the town center is a 25-acre school site. The school will serve grade-schoolers and junior high students living in TownGate and nearby areas.
The 12.6-acre neighborhood park will include extensive recreational facilities, including an Olympic-size pool.
Civic Center Buildings
TownGate also includes a 26-acre site on which the developer hopes to build a town hall and other civic facilities for the recently incorporated city of Moreno Valley. However, the city has yet to sign a formal agreement to take space in the project.
A core area comprised of the park, school, hospital, town center and proposed mall and civic center would be connected by walkways to surrounding residential areas. An early-California and traditional architectural theme will run throughout TownGate.
The city’s redevelopment agency is providing $14.8 million to help build roads and make other infrastructure improvements within the project.
