Diamond Bar : Pomona District School Site

The Pomona Unified School District plans to acquire a 72-acre site in northern Diamond Bar next week in hopes of building a high school there.

Now used for cattle grazing, the parcel is south of the Pomona Freeway (60) and west of Chino Hills Parkway. Escrow is expected to close by Monday, a school district official said.

The property owner, City of Industry’s Redevelopment Agency, has agreed to transfer the land to the school district as authorized by a recent state law.

The bill calls for Industry to give up the land in exchange for the city’s exemption from the state low- and moderate-income housing law that requires the industrial-oriented city to build affordable housing within its boundaries.

Instead, Industry will hand over about $8 million a year in redevelopment revenue to the Los Angeles County Housing Authority. That agency will use the funds to build low-income housing in neighboring San Gabriel Valley communities.

The school district will pay $1 for the property, and Industry has agreed to pay about $5 million for grading the site if it is chosen for a planned Diamond Ranch High School.

School district officials say Industry’s property, which is one of six parcels the district is considering for a new high school, appears to be the most feasible. Environmental studies are under way at each of the possible sites.

For years, northern Diamond Bar residents have asked the district to build a high school in their neighborhood. Students from that area attend Garey and Ganesha high schools in Pomona, or go to private schools.