Pomona : Auto Center Plans Advance

Hoping to generate about $1.5 million yearly in sales tax, the City Council has adopted initial plans for the long-awaited Pomona Auto Center. The council, seated as the Redevelopment Agency, approved agreements last week with the owner of Valley Chevrolet and three developers of a car service shop to begin construction this summer at the planned 57-acre auto complex. The agreement allows the Redevelopment Agency to create a concentrated business center by exchanging land it owns at the development site for the property of future tenants, said Ron Smothers, the city’s economic development manager.

Including an agreement with Pomona Valley Nissan that is expected to be reached next month, about 22 acres of the auto center site have been committed to future car-related businesses, Smothers said. The facility, located at the Corona Expressway and Rio Rancho Road, is expected to open by December.