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Ontario council schedules special election after petitions challenge 600‑room hotel and Empire Grove approvals
Summary
The City Council voted 5‑0 to schedule a special election in June 2026 after residents submitted more than 11,000 signatures seeking to rescind approvals for a proposed 600‑room hotel and the Empire Grove specific plan. Supporters and opponents traded sharp public comments during the hearing.
The Ontario City Council voted 5‑0 to book a special election for June 2026 after petition organizers submitted more than 11,000 signatures seeking to rescind the council’s approvals of a development agreement and the Empire Grove specific plan for a proposed 600‑room hotel.
Supporters of the referendums told the council the signatures represent widespread voter concern. "That's a clear and powerful message from the voters of Ontario," Andy Seymour of the Higher Wages Lower Rent Alliance said during public comment, urging the council to rescind the project approvals rather than send the measure to the ballot.
Residents who addressed the council said the project grants too many incentives and uses public resources in ways they find troubling. "This is just outrageous," Chris Robles said of what he described as cost increases and developer giveaways tied to the sports‑complex and parking elements of broader project planning.
City staff and the City Manager urged the council to let voters decide. The City Manager noted that signature gatherers were paid in some cases and that signing a petition outside a store does not equate to voting at the ballot box. "It takes something else entirely for somebody to go to the ballot box and register their vote," the City Manager told the council, arguing the special election would allow the public’s will to be expressed formally.
Councilmembers moved to set the special election date in June 2026; the motion passed unanimously. The city clerk will administer the election process required by law.
The special election follows multiple public hearings and a period of public comment in which petitioners and residents urged rescission, cited transparency concerns and sought different land‑use priorities such as parks and affordable housing. The council’s vote schedules the next procedural step, with ballot logistics to be handled by the clerk’s office ahead of the election.
