Like a cruel cliffhanger on a daytime drama, the last meeting of the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors ended moments before the board would have voted on the planned Alta mira gated housing project in Joshua Tree. That was two weeks ago and county supervisors are expected to finally decide the matter tomorrow. Reporter Mike Lipsitz has details…
Following more than two-and-a-half hours of testimony on the appeal of the planning commission’s approval of the planned Alta mira housing project, the County Board of Supervisors continued the matter until tomorrow’s meeting. So with Board Chair James Ramos and Supervisor Robert Lovingood poised to kill the project, Supervisors Janice Rutherford and Curt Hagman ready to give it the green light, and Supervisor Josie Gonzales absent, fate of the project has been in a state of suspended animation. That condition is expected to end tomorrow when the board picks it back up. Public testimony on the matter has been closed. What remains are final board comments (including Supervisor Gonzales who is expected to have reviewed the recorded testimony and will cast the tiebreaking vote), and perhaps some last words from county legal counsel and planners. Then, finally, we’ll all find out the fate of the proposed 248 new homes on 105 acres next to Friendly Hills Elementary School.
