Chino Hills, California   is an upscale newer community in San Bernardino County built over hills and valleys on the borders of Orange and Los Angeles Counties. Residents are active in community and special events and there is a strong sense of unity in the city. Schools scores are high, crime is low and the commute is better than most cities in the area because of its prime location.  The approximate population is 77,969 with about 22,500 homes and about 2,500 more to be built in the next four years. In 2002, residents passed a $150 million bond to build and renovate schools.

History: Massive growth in Orange and Los Angeles Counties drove many of the dairy farms over the hills to the Chino area. In 1969 the 60 freeway was extended bringing suburbia to this part of the county as well. Chino Hills doubled its residential units in the 1960s from about 700 to about 1400. In the 1970s, the building boon began and by the 1980s, over 10,000 new residential homes had been developed, most of them single detached homes.

The growth in Chino Hills demanded leadership and the City of Chino was ready to annex this area. The townspeople were split on the idea of annexing to Chino or incorporating as a new city. In 1991, after a successful local election, the townspeople incorporated Chino Hills into a legal city and placed planning controls in the hands of a locally elected city council. This new city is 46 square miles and that is only slightly smaller than San Francisco.

In the 1990s, development continued to progress with an additional 8,700 homes and some apartments. There is the old section in Los Serranos, but overall, Chino Hills is a new city. Almost 80 percent of the housing has been developed in the last 25 years. The new tracts came in as master-planned neighborhoods which encourages quick access to freeways, identifies school and retail sites, buffers residential streets from heavy traffic and often includes a recreation center.


Current: Our beautiful city has about 38 parks with 37 miles of trails, equestrian centers and sports activities, including roller-hockey rinks, soccer, softball and baseball. The new six field Big League Dreams baseball center is a major attraction and is popular with the local Little League and soccer organizations. The city recreation department sponsors many activities for children and adults.

Four-lane arterials wind through the city and move traffic quickly to Highway 71. Ontario airport, the major center in the county, is within a drive of 20-30 minutes. Chino Hills enjoys a half-hour drive to Industry, one of the job centers of Los Angeles County. The Chino area is separated from Orange County by the foothills of the Santa Ana Mountains. Carbon Canyon Road snakes through the hills and deposits motorists near Brea, Yorba Linda and Highway 57 (Orange County job market). This is a shortcut that residents in the Carbon Canyon area would probably like to have closed, but it is handy! The Chino Hills State Park is located in Carbon Canyon just before the entrance to Brea and is huge! It spans over 11,000 acres with over 60 miles of hiking, biking and horse trails.

The Shoppes at Chino Hills is a new major shopping center currently in development along with a new civic center which will later include more than 200 condominiums. The Shoppes completion is expected in May of 2008. Another new major shopping center project underway is The Commons at Chino Hills  located at southeast corner of Ramona Avenue and Chino Hills Parkway. Our city continues to grow, but a building moratorium is in place to protect our beautiful hills and views. There is 3,000 acres of publicly owned natural open space.

Future: Completion of major construction projects will bring in as many as 2,500 new residences and tremendous retail growth. According to City Planner, Jeff Adams, a majority of the city will probably be built out by 2010. The Shoppes project will bring a new civic center and more residential units to the center of Chino Hills. Street expansion along Peyton Drive and the connection of Eucalyptus Avenue to Peyton are under way to reduce congestion in the area. The city now has its first movie theater, an 18 screen Harkins Theatre at the Crossroads Entertainment center. The Gateway Village project is now complete with two more multi-vendor buildings at the center anchored by Chili's. The city's first hotel, the Hampton Inn is now complete and five new restaurants are expected. Retail development along the 71 freeway will probably continue in the next five years and three new residential developments will also be completed...including the KB Home project south of Woodview Road with more than 200 homes, the Vellano golf country club and residential development with 205 homes near Peyton Drive and Woodview Road, and Villa Borba which will have three phases of homes totaling 351 homes south of Pine Avenue.

In ten years Chino Hills will be putting final touches on development, filling in areas farther away from the central portion of the city with smaller retail units. With the conclusion of rapid development since its incorporation in 1991, the city will really begin to see the benefits of sales tax revenue. The city is expected to be completely built out residentially in ten years and commercial development may follow. This includes development along the 71 freeway. After build out, infill projects may begin to update standing structures. The city hopes to have an expandded recycled water system available to more residents and many street improvements should be completed in 2020, including the Pine Avenue expansion, the Soquel Canyon connection, the Los Serranos street improvement project, the Peyton Drive pipeline to reduce flooding and the realignment of Fairfield Ranch Road to make an all-weather road. The biggest unknown, the future of Tres Hermanos - a 1,700 acre area of open space owned by the City of Industry near Chino Hills' border with Diamond Bar, may be decided by 2020, bringing a water facilities or some other development to that area.

If you would like more information or have any questions about our beautiful city, please feel free to contact Gail.

Gail Griffin, GRI, e-PRO, Realtor

Direct (909) 952-9515