General Plan - Moreno Valley

CHAPTER 8 – HOUSINGvariety of income groups within theredevelopment project area.• A Moreno Valley Live show wasbroadcast on MVTV-3 on October 27,1999 and thereafter two times a day.• Display ads were published in thenewspapers of local circulationincluding the Press-Enterprise, theValley Times, the Black Voice and LaPrensa.• November 15, 1999 meeting at PalmMiddle School.• November 22, 1999, meeting andEdgemont Woman’s Club.• February 10, 2000, February 24, 2000February 29, 2000, March 9, 2000,March 16, 2000, March 23, 2000 andApril 13, 2000 public meetings.• Planning Commission review onAugust 3, 2000, August 24, 1000 andSeptember 28, 2000.At meetings, issues were raised bycitizens in support of rural lifestyles in thecommunity through zoning that wouldencourage larger minimum lot sizes.Concerns were raised about increasingopportunities for apartments, feeling thatthe city has sufficient affordable housing.In addition, concerns were raisedregarding higher density housing and theimpact it could have on increased trafficcongestion and crowding in the schoolsystem. However, citizens were verysupportive of revitalizing and preservingolder housing in the city.MORENO VALLEY GENERAL PLAN8.2 HOUSING NEEDS ASSESSMENT8.2.1 Population Trends andCharacteristicsBetween 1950 and 1988, population inMoreno Valley increased by 1,395%. (Table8-1). By comparison, Riverside County’spopulation increased by 456% during thesame period. Moreno Valley is now thesecond largest city in Riverside County.Since its incorporation in 1984, the once ruralcommunity has become a diversifiedsuburban community, providing a variety ofservices and amenities to its residents.According to the State Department ofFinance, the 1999 estimate of population forthe City of Moreno Valley is 139,052,representing a 200% increase over the 1980population of 28,139. Between 1985 and1990 the city’s population increased rapidlywith the city gaining 61,164 people (a rate of106.2%). Moreno Valley has been amongthe fastest growing medium sized cities(population of 40,000 to 200,000) inCalifornia since 1988. Moreno Valley iscurrently ranked sixth in the state among thefastest growing California cities, with Corona,Palmdale, Fontana, Irvine and Lancaster,outpacing Moreno Valley. 1The city’s population growth was fueled bythe expanding economy of the early 1980s,affordable housing prices and the availabilityof jobs within commuting distance in SanBernardino County, Orange County and LosAngeles. However, as the defense industryand attendant industries closed their doors orscaled back, including the realignment ofMarch Air Force Base, Moreno Valley’spopulation growth slowed. The slowdown inthe city’s population growth between 1990and 1998 is illustrated in Chart 8-1, and ismore reflective of the economic recessionaffecting Southern California in the 1990s.Annual population growth between 1990 and1998 was 1,650 persons, much lower thanthe growth during 1986-1990 of 12,400persons per year.Page 8-2 July 11, 2006