Council approves first reading for Mountain View Business Center, clearing way for gas station, drive-throughs and 126-room hotel

The City Council of Loma Linda voted unanimously to adopt the initial study and mitigated negative declaration under CEQA and introduce the entitlements needed for the Mountain View Business Center, a proposed commercial redevelopment on an approximately 4.3-acre vacant site near the I‑10 and Mountain View Avenue interchange.

Community development staff member Lorena Materita presented the project, saying the proposal would change the parcel’s land-use designation from Business Park to General Commercial (C-2) and subdivide the site into four parcels to accommodate a gas station and convenience store, two fast-food drive-throughs, and a four-story, 59,712-square-foot hotel with 126 guest rooms. "The project site is a 4.3 acre vacant lot located just south of the 10 Freeway," Materita said during her presentation. She told the council the plan provides 201 parking spaces, exceeds development standards, and includes a master sign program that proposes a freeway-visible pylon sign at 70 feet subject to master sign program approval.

Materita said a mitigated negative declaration was prepared and circulated; most impacts were identified as less than significant after mitigation and will be managed with a mitigation monitoring and reporting program during construction. Staff noted one nearby intersection would require mitigation paid by the project through a fair-share contribution under the city’s Measure V traffic analysis.

Councilmember Popescu asked about construction timing and the mitigation amount. The applicant’s representative, who said the firm self-performs construction on its projects, said they expect to start once building permits are issued. Staff explained the Measure V calculation and that signal work used per-signal cost assumptions included with the packet.

Several councilmembers expressed concern about traffic at the I‑10/Mountain View interchange and the jurisdictional limits for some signalized intersections, noting Caltrans’ authority over freeway ramps. At the same time, multiple members emphasized the city’s revenue limitations given the dominant health-care sector and said gas stations and hotels produce needed sales tax revenue. One councilmember asked about the proposed hotel operator, Live Away Suites; the applicant said discussions with multiple hotel operators were ongoing and that no final operator agreement was fully executed.

After closing the public hearing with no public speakers, Popescu moved to adopt the CEQA document and introduce the related council bill and ordinance on first reading, covering the general plan amendment (GPA 2024-002), zone change (2024-001), tentative tract map (2024-0002), precise plan of design (PPD 2024-0002), conditional use permit (2024-002), and master sign program (2025-0032). The clerk called the vote and the motion carried unanimously.

Next steps: the ordinance was introduced on first reading with the second reading set for May 12, 2026. If the council proceeds on the second reading as scheduled, implementation tasks such as building-permit review and mitigation monitoring would follow prior to construction.