A plum spot for those who savor country life

Paint me a picture

At an elevation of 2,820 feet and with gently rolling hills covered with oak and sycamore trees, Cherry Valley is not without a certain charm. It has a temperate climate, and its proximity to the San Bernardino Mountains gives the area seasonal creeks.

And then, of course, there are the cherries. Named after its rapidly disappearing cherry orchards, the community has been proudly celebrating its agricultural heritage since 1914. The annual Cherry Festival now takes place in nearby Beaumont every June.

Drawing card

One person’s “rural” is another’s “lack of convenience.” And which it is depends on where you stand.

Lynn Bogh Baldy came to the “sleepy little place” of Cherry Valley in 1978. She must drive 10 minutes to a grocery store and said she left convenience behind when she moved from San Bernardino. Yet, she said, “it’s a little slice of heaven here — a reprieve from what everything is turning into.”

There are no big markets, no movie theaters, big-box stores or fast food. There are also no sidewalks, gutters or public sewer systems. Yet most residents are more than happy to live here. Think the simple life.

“You have to want to be here,” Bogh Baldy said. “Cherry Valley’s not a convenient place.”

But progress — or at least development — may be nipping at Cherry Valley’s heels. Many of its large cattle, horse and chicken ranches have dissolved into smaller parcels, making room for new homes.

Insider’s viewpoint

Cherry Valley is a community in unincorporated Riverside County, wedged between the cities of Calimesa to the west, Beaumont to the south, Banning to the east and Yucaipa to the north — all experiencing surges in growth. And some fear that neighboring growth is starting to encroach on Cherry Valley’s simplicity.

Stan Riddell, 81, came to Cherry Valley from San Bernardino in 1977 seeking a more rural life. He is now a member of the Cherry Valley Acres and Neighbors, a community group that works to preserve Cherry Valley’s rural lifestyle.

“One of the things that’s holding down development is that homes must be built on 1 acre or more,” he said. “You live in a nice home that sits on 1 acre, and if you choose, you can have horses, sheep or goats. That’s something that you can’t experience in cities.”

Patsy Reeley, president of the community group, said that Cherry Valley is being eyed by neighboring cities for annexation. Reeley moved to Cherry Valley from Anaheim in 1977.

“We’re not antigrowth,” Reeley, 75, said. “But we do defend the rural lifestyle quite strongly. We’re kind of being bombarded from all sides, and I don’t know how long we will be able to hold out.”

Right now, Cherry Valley has a little strip mall in the center of town that houses a pizza place that sells a large pizza for less than $6, a Mexican restaurant and a weight-loss business. A nearby feed store is about the size of the whole strip mall.

Historical values

Residential resales:

Year...Median Price

1990...$116,000

1995...$104,500

2000...$142,500

2004...$297,000

2005...$382,500*

*Year to date

Stock report

Although new construction is on a very small scale, custom-built homes are beginning to crowd the view in Cherry Valley. There’s a variety in the older housing stock — manufactured homes, geodesic domes and ubiquitous 1970s ranch-style homes surrounded by chain-link fences. A few older, two-story farmhouses used by cherry growers decades ago are still seen on Cherry Valley’s eastern border.

The higher elevation gives many homeowners views of the San Gorgonio Pass and its farmlands interspersed with new housing developments.

Although some buyers come from Orange County, most buyers are local families looking for an affordable home, said Jojo Hamilton, an agent with Cherry Valley Realty.

Homes in the hills and with more acreage command higher prices, whereas modest homes in town are still affordable, she said.

Report card

There are no schools in Cherry Valley, and most students attend the Beaumont Unified School District.

According to the 2004 Academic Performance Index Base Report scale of 1,000, students scored 768 at Chavez Elementary School, 694 at Mountain View Middle School and 654 at Beaumont High School. Brookside Elementary and San Gorgonio Middle schools are new and no API scores were reported.

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Sources: DataQuick Information Systems; city of Beaumont, https://www.ci.beaumont.ca.us ; api.cde.ca.gov.