Once a small-town stop on famed Route 66, the city is booming thanks in part to the recent opening of another roadway -- a 14-mile extension of the 210 Freeway that has eased commutes into Los Angeles from this city on the western edge of San Bernardino County.
The basics
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Friday April 02, 2004 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 1 inches; 59 words Type of Material: Correction
Rancho Cucamonga -- An article in Sunday's Real Estate section omitted Rancho Cucamonga's newest high school, Los Osos, in a listing of area schools. The story also mistakenly said that Mt. Baldy "looms as a gorgeous backdrop" to the city. The backdrop is Cucamonga Peak. Mt. Baldy, while higher, is hidden from most of Rancho Cucamonga by other mountains.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Sunday April 04, 2004 Home Edition Real Estate Part K Page 7 Features Desk 1 inches; 61 words Type of Material: Correction
Rancho Cucamonga -- An article in the March 28 Real Estate section omitted Rancho Cucamonga's newest high school, Los Osos, in a listing of area schools. The story also stated that Mt. Baldy "looms as a gorgeous backdrop" to the city. The backdrop is actually Cucamonga Peak. Mt. Baldy, while higher, is hidden from most of Rancho Cucamonga by other mountains.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Sunday April 04, 2004 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 1 inches; 61 words Type of Material: Correction
Rancho Cucamonga -- An article in the March 28 Real Estate section omitted Rancho Cucamonga's newest high school, Los Osos, in a listing of area schools. The story also mistakenly said that Mt. Baldy "looms as a gorgeous backdrop" to the city. The backdrop is Cucamonga Peak. Mt. Baldy, although higher, is hidden from most of Rancho Cucamonga by other mountains.
Three distinct communities were combined to form the city of Rancho Cucamonga when it incorporated in 1977. To the east, Etiwanda's wind-blown fields have sprouted subdivision after subdivision over the last decade and new home construction continues unabated. Alta Loma stretches up the flank of Mt. Baldy and is known for its half-acre horse properties and million-dollar homes. The community that was formerly called Cucamonga lies along historic Route 66 and has a mix of commercial development and older subdivisions. Although Alta Loma and Etiwanda retain their names in mailing addresses, Cucamonga is now Rancho Cucamonga.
Drawing card
The city's proximity to Ontario International Airport and to the corporate offices and warehouse facilities springing up around it has drawn business executives looking for housing, said Cheryl Gillotti of Re/Max Legends in Alta Loma. Half-acre horse properties in Alta Loma start at more than $600,000 and neighborhoods at the north end of Haven Avenue have million-dollar homes, Gillotti said.
Realtor Lili Hwang's clients are a mix of residents trading up to larger homes and transplants from Orange and Los Angeles counties seeking more house for their half-million dollars. A four-bedroom, 2,300-square-foot newer home starts at about $470,000 in Etiwanda, Hwang said.
At the lower end of the price range, homes built in the 1970s with 1,800 to 2,200 square feet are selling in the mid- to high $300,000 range.
Good news, bad news
Mt. Baldy looms as a gorgeous backdrop to this city of 146,000. Rancho Cucamonga's perch high on the mountain's flank affords sweeping views of the valley to the south but leaves northern neighborhoods vulnerable to wildfires such as last fall's 60,000-acre Grand Prix fire, which destroyed 135 homes including 13 in Rancho Cucamonga. And the strong Santa Ana winds that whipped that fire out of control are a periodic annoyance in Etiwanda, which is just south of the Cajon Pass, spurring some residents to move to the more sheltered neighborhoods of Alta Loma.
In the works
