Inland Empire

WHILE the Inland Empire isn't known for copious night life, enterprising clubs such as Sevilla are sending a message to locals: "You don't have to head to Hollywood for Friday night fun." The Latin-inspired venue in Old Town Riverside entices clubgoers to stay in the neighborhood -- and forgo burning that precious gas money -- by offering big-name headliners and L.A. atmosphere, without the $13 vodka tonics.

Despite skyrocketing foreclosure rates and a sluggish economy, the Inland Empire will remain the fastest-growing region of the state in the years ahead as more people flee high-priced coastal areas, according to a study released this week. "The Inland Empire will continue to be the locus of growth in California as it has been in the past," said Hans Johnson, director of research for the Public Policy Institute of California, a nonpartisan group that conducted the study.

The rampant theft of copper and other metals in Southern California has begun hitting Inland Empire freeways hard, leaving motorists in increasing danger as traffic signals and lights in underpasses and rest areas have gone dark, law enforcement and Caltrans officials said Tuesday. Thieves also have swiped guardrails and irrigation systems along roadways.

Concerns over recent coyote attacks in the Inland Empire escalated Friday when wildlife officials said two more children in Lake Arrowhead may have been bitten and a woman in Temecula reported having to drive a stubborn coyote out of her house. "They are behaving abnormally," said Steven Martarano, a spokesman for the California Department of Fish and Game. "They have lost their fear of people for whatever reason."

Voters in the Inland Empire will decide two hotly contested political races and a handful of regional ballot measures when they head to the polls Tuesday. The loudest and testiest contest is between Assemblyman John Benoit and former Assemblyman Russ Bogh. Each hopes to be the GOP candidate for the 37th Senate District in a heavily Republican area. Two other Republicans, Brian Nestande and Kelly McCarty, are battling for the 64th Assembly District seat soon to be vacated by term-limited Benoit.

Prosecutors indicted four Inland Empire businessmen Monday on money laundering charges after accusing them of illegally funneling $50,000 in campaign donations to seven state political races over four years. Mark Leggio, part-owner of three car dealerships, allegedly directed three employees to give $3,000 to $3,300 to specific candidates running for the Assembly and state Senate between 2002 and 2006.

The high price of gasoline and a rocky economy may be behind increased incidents of gas siphoning at Inland Empire homes and businesses, authorities said Wednesday. They said gas has been siphoned in recent months from parked cars, trucks and boats in the area. Truck rental companies with lots where vehicles are left unattended overnight, including U-Haul, Penske and Ryder, are especially vulnerable, authorities said.

A panel of economists Wednesday offered grim predictions for the Inland Empire economy, including a rise in unemployment, a slide in manufacturing and a wave of foreclosures likely to continue for another two years. Some of the numbers were staggering. "There has been a 3,500% rise in foreclosures in the Inland Empire since 2005," said Brad Kemp, director of regional research for Beacon Economics, a research and consulting firm.

Ken Leaverton sat quietly in the chilly lobby of the Workforce Employment Center in Riverside, still shocked he'd found himself on the front lines of the Inland Empire's ever-growing ranks of the unemployed. For two decades, Leaverton delivered packaged sweets to supermarkets across Southern California. But when his company, Mother's Cookies, unexpectedly filed for bankruptcy last month, the 51-year-old Riverside resident was suddenly scrambling to find a way to support his family.

Geological tests to determine if a water conduit and a highway tunnel can be built between Riverside and Orange counties are scheduled to begin this week in the rugged Santa Ana Mountains . The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California plans to drill two deep holes to explore groundwater levels as well as rock and soil conditions along the routes of the proposed projects.