Commercial/Industrial Development Category

MeridianBusiness Park

Meridian, a master planned business park, designed with growing companies in mind, is nearly 1,000 net acres and will provide an unparalleled business park environment at this prime location in the East Inland Empire. The project is the westerly portion of the former March Air Force Base. The project has three miles of freeway frontage on Interstate 215, Foreign Trade Zone designation, a future Metrolink Station, rail spurs with BNSF service. The business park offers office, industrial, and commercial sites for build-to-suit opportunities, as well as, attractively priced land offering a variety of improved lot sizes and zoning. Ground was broken for the first 250-acre phase of the 1,000 acre development in late October 2003.

LNR Property Corporation was named Master Developer by the March Joint Powers Authority (JPA) for the western portion of the former March Air Force Base through an RFP competition in July 2000. The JPA is the local reuse entity made up of four jurisdictions – the Cities of Riverside, Moreno Valley and Perris, and the County of Riverside. The western portion includes approximately 2,400 acres of vacant land. Approximately 1,300 acres of the property is planned for commercial / industrial development; the remaining 1,100 acres is subject to environmental considerations due to endangered species (Kangaroo Rat) habitat issues.

A portion of the now March Air Reserve Base shares operations with an air cargo facility developed by the March JPA. The JPA also has a golf course, Air Museum, rental housing and a variety of smaller commercial tenants on former Base property. Meridian is planned as part of the jobs/housing solution within western Riverside County and is projected to generate 15,000 jobs to help replace the nearly 6,000 jobs that were lost when March Air Force Base was realigned to a reserve base.

The initial project was the development of 180 acres of business park and industrial uses, while Phase 2 of over 300 acres is underway and will include the gamut of commercial development, from warehouse to office to retail. LNR is providing more than $100 million in infrastructure improvements to make this opportunity competitive in the marketplace. The Development Agreement allows for profit participation by the RDA as the project succeeds and, as a redevelopment area, there is the potential for future tax increment financing for regional infrastructure improvements.

Meridian is a balanced project and was designed and developed to limit zoning for warehouse uses, so the overwhelming majority of businesses ultimately locating to the Meridian will be involved in other types of commerce. Out of the 1290 gross acres, only 343 acres (26.6%) are zoned for Industrial, of which warehousing & distribution is only one of the allowable uses along with manufacturing, light industrial, assembly, outdoor storage, research and development, and recycling facilities. 432 acres (33.4%) are zoned for business park and 104 acres (8.1%) are zoned for mixed-use (non-residential), 32 acres (2.5%) are zoned for commercial, and 58 acres (4.5%) are zoned for office uses. The balance of 322 acres (24.9%) is utilized for a park, a wildlife management area, detention basins, open space, landscaped lots, an existing rail line and public streets. This concept of mixed use is unique to the Inland Empire for projects of any substantial size.

The March JPA and LNR Property Corporation have been developing the plan for this property since early 2001. A community meeting presenting the plan was held in the evening on August 20, 2002 in which nearly 150 local residents attended and with over 1000 invitations mailed to the nearby residents. The March JPA staff has been meeting with the planning and engineering staffs of Riverside, Moreno Valley, Perris, and the County at several forums in Nov. 2002 -Feb 2003 specifically to review the Meridian Specific Plan and Environmental Impact Report. LNR Property Corporation made presentations to the City Councils of Perris, Moreno Valley, and Riverside. This Specific Plan is a well-balanced, thoughtful mixed-use non-residential project that meets the needs of the market, the local community, and the goal of the March JPA of “Bringing Good Jobs back to March”.

The developers at Meridian are projected to pay over $35 million in Traffic Uniform Mitigation Fees (TUMF), adopted by all jurisdictions in western Riverside County, to be utilized to alleviate congestion on major arterials. The March JPA and LNR are working with Caltrans to upgrade the freeway interchanges in the vicinity of Meridian. The Riverside County Transportation Commission is working with the March JPA and LNR to develop a multi-modal Metrolink transit center near Alessandro Boulevard with rail and bus service. This regional amenity will enable employees to use mass transit to access Meridian and local residents to use mass transit to commute to jobs outside the area, eliminating commuter vehicle trips on both arterials and freeways. Traffic problems exist today. Meridian is part of the solution.

Meridian is expected to help the region improve air quality overall, by providing employment opportunities closer in, allowing commuters option of working closer to home and reverse commuting. Meridian is part of the solution of smart growth, placing jobs closer to employees and helping to address the jobs/housing imbalance in Western Riverside County.

Meridian is defined as a great circle of earth passing through the poles and any given point on the earth’s surface the highest point of development or prosperity. New street names such as Innovation Drive, Opportunity Way, and Meridian Parkway reinforce the notion and perception of the name Meridian.

Meridian is a master-planned business park designed for company growth. Building permits are expedited by the local jurisdiction, the March Joint Powers Authority. The site is within a Redevelopment project area and has Foreign Trade Zone designation. March Global Inland Port is adjacent with longest runway in Southern California, capable of handling both cargo and charter aircraft. Several rail served lots are possible with Burlington Northern Santa Fe service. A highly trained local work force looking for local employment is ready to be tapped. Three freeway interchanges at Alessandro, Cactus, and Van Buren provide direct access.

LNR has activated a project marketing website www.Meridian-LNR.comand attracted 150 Brokers to open house in May 2004. The NAIOP-Inland Empire East Bus Tours in 2004 and 2005 featured four Meridian building projects. LNR has developed a positive image of the project with commercial real estate brokers in the Inland Empire and Meridian is now considered one of the premiere business parks in the region. LNR installed custom marketing signs on I-215 freeway, Cactus Avenue & Alessandro Boulevard. LNR also developed standardized marketing signs for all lots.

Blight has been eliminated by the demolition of Arnold Heights housing, nearly 540 former Air Force housing units, vacant and vandalized since 1996. The foundations and slabs of numerous former Air Force warehouses and commercial structures were demolished and recycled into aggregate base for the new streets at Meridian, while eliminating the need to haul the concrete to landfills. Similar recycling of green waste has occurred.

The March Joint Powers Authority Redevelopment Agency has implemented its vision at Meridian and the area residents are beginning to reap the benefits with regional economic growth and increased employment opportunities close to home.

The former “greyfield” at March that had outlasted its useful life as a large air base, World War II POW camp, and base housing for a population that had departed, is seeing new life as a vibrant employment center with both blue and white collar jobs. The cleanup accomplished by the Air Force and LNR has made recycling of the land feasible for new, clean employment.

Contact:

March Point Powers Authority Redevelopment Agency

P.O. Box 7480

Moreno Valley, CA 92552-7480

Phone: (951) 656-7000