City of Ontario, California

Making a magnet┬áA California city has developed innovative ways of improving public amenities, as Alan T Swaby learns. Forty-five miles east of Los Angeles is the city of Ontario, small fry compared to LA, but nevertheless a city with big ambitions.In actual fact, Ontario is not really that small. Home to approximately 175,000 people, Ontario is at the heart of an area known as the Inland Empire, which includes neighboring Riverside and San Bernardino counties and has a total population of around four million, making it the 14th-largest metropolitan area in the United States.With its close proximity to Los Angeles, relatively lower costs and easier logistical access, Ontario is already a job-rich locality. Many of the biggest names in manufacturingÔÇöToyota and Whirlpool, for exampleÔÇöhave chosen the Inland Empire to locate distribution centers, transporting goods and materials from the ports of LA and Long Beach to destinations in the north and east of the country. It is estimated that more than 80 percent of the stateÔÇÖs imported cargo is shipped through the Los Angeles/Inland Empire corridor.In order to pull in more of the skilled and knowledge-based jobs it wants, the City of Ontario has a massive program to enhance the regionÔÇÖs attractiveness, with appeals to both employers and employees. It already offers an exceptional pro-business environment with competitive commercial lease rates, technical amenities and an abundant, well-trained workforceÔÇömany of them graduates of the regionÔÇÖs 14 colleges and universities. But the city knows that to attract the highest caliber of employees, local amenities have to be more than competitive. One of the most important keystones of this process has just opened its doors to the public. The Citizens Business Bank Arena is a multipurpose 11,000-seat entertainment venue, built to the highest standards and geared toward providing the local community with around 140 concerts, family variety shows and sporting events each year.ÔÇ£This is the first venue of this magnitude in the region,ÔÇØ says Otto Kroutil, development director for the City of Ontario. ÔÇ£ItÔÇÖs one of the principal anchors to this program, which will eventually provide almost 200 acres of housing, retail and commercial developments.ÔÇØThe $150 million project has been financed completely without the need for bonds or borrowing, thanks to an opportunity, 10 years ago, to buy a defunct 193-acre tract of land that had at one time been home to speedway racing. But when racing lost much of its appeal in the 1970s, the site was sold for development, which unfortunately never got off the ground. As such, the City of Ontario was able to buy the land at the bargain-basement price of $2 per square foot and later sell it to private developers at great profit to the City once plans for the Ontario Center, as the locale is now known, had been formulated.ÔÇ£In effect,ÔÇØ says Kroutil, ÔÇ£the City became master developers, providing common amenitiesÔÇöroads, drains, servicesÔÇöbefore then selling off sections of the site for various uses. So far, in addition to the Citizens Business Bank Arena, which opened in October, there are 800 residential units, 60 acres of retail space and several office buildings, including a five-story, 125,000-square-foot Prudential building. Talks are also ongoing with hotel developers.ÔÇØLocated just a few miles from the LA-Ontario International Airport, one of the most exciting aspects of the arena is that the city has engaged AEGÔÇöamong the very top sports and entertainment presenters in the worldÔÇöto manage and maintain it. AEG owns or controls a collection of entertainment venues in all corners of the world and mounts shows featuring the biggest names in show business and sports.ÔÇ£With AEG managing the arena,ÔÇØ says Kroutil, ÔÇ£weÔÇÖre assured of attracting the best possible array of entertainment to suit all ages and tastes: singers such as Carrie Underwood and Neil Diamond, and for basketball fans, the Lakers and the Harlem Globetrotters. Financially, the 10-year agreement with AEG provides the city with a guaranteed $1 million income each year plus a 25 percent share of profits.ÔÇØIn his role as development director, Kroutil has overall responsibility for construction of all public works, from roads to fire stations. As such, he is aware that the stateÔÇÖs legal requirement to accept the lowest bid on public tenders doesnÔÇÖt always lead to the best solution or the least problematic performance. In a bid to neutralize these negative aspects, the City of Ontario has been testing an innovative way of managing construction. In place of one main contractor, the work was split into 52 different segments and placed as separate contracts. Turner Construction was then hired to provide overall construction management.┬á ÔÇ£In reality,ÔÇØ admits Kroutil, ÔÇ£this doesnÔÇÖt completely eliminate problems; rather it changes their nature. But on balance this approach gave us greater control over smaller packets of work. The overall effect is that construction was managed in a more efficient manner, and the project came in on time and on budget. Dividing the work in this way enabled us to hire contractors at the right time to take advantage of prevailing market conditions.ÔÇØThe CityÔÇÖs brief to Rossetti Architects was to create a landmark, iconic design and a quality building that all would be proud of for years to come yet at the same time would be economical to run and ecologically responsible. The result is a light, airy building, featuring a flying wing roof line inspired by the nearby airport, which is also an important integral cog in the overall drive to meet the CityÔÇÖs aspirations. The current financial difficulties might slow progress a little but are unlikely to dent OntarioÔÇÖs ambitious plans. ÔÇô Editorial research by Jim Rose┬á