California City officials report good news

Developer looking at Matrix property

BY BILL DEAVER

CALIFORNIA CITY - City leaders offered some good news for the new year at last week's California City Economic Development Corporation meeting.

Mayor Larry Adams led-off with a report that the city is working with a group that plans to complete the two buildings begun by Matrix Motors and possibly build a third structure on the airport industrial park site. The property has been uncompleted for several years since Matrix dropped out of the project to concentrate its efforts ion Ridge crest.

Adams said the site and buildings belong to the city and that no money from the city's general fund is invested in the project.

Money for the city's investment in the Matrix site came from the U.S. District Court judge in Fresno who authorized reimbursing the city for $1.5 million it spent to upgrade property in the Subdivision Deferred Improvement (SDI) tracts.

When the buildings are completed, the city's investment will be returned to be used as the council decides, Adams said.

The three buildings, located in the foreign trade zone at the airport industrial park, were supposed to house a race car and windshield manufacturing plant, but Matrix pulled out before completing the two largest buildings and starting a smaller office structure.

City Councilman Mike Edmiston said the presence of the unfinished buildings helped the city qualify for a federal grant to upgrade utilities in the industrial park.

Following the meeting, City Manager Jack Stewart said the developers are "in the process of working on the architecture and design."

How the buildings will be used has not been decided. "We haven't got that far yet," Stewart said. "They're talking about a tenant, they're talking about doing some investment, and we have some people who are looking for space."

Airport grants

Airport Manager Tom Weil reported that grants the city has received are helping the city to grow.

Noting the profusion of Christmas tree lights in the city, Weil said they are "a good sign of prosperity."

Other grants are in the pipeline to upgrade runways and taxiways at the airport, and Weil said his plans are to widen the main runway to 100-feet within the next two years.

That will allow larger aircraft to land, he explained.

"We are developing the airport for general aviation and to attract business," Weil told EDC members and guests.

City CD

City Economic Development Director Keri Tapia said copies of a new CD are available. The CD is an electronic directory of businesses and services in California City and will be distributed at trade shows and to business prospects.

Tapia said traffic at the city's booth at trade shows around the country is becoming so heavy that everyone assigned to the booth must be present and available to answer questions full-time.

"We can no longer walk around and look at other booths," Tapia said.

She and Adams also noted that developers are competing for property in the city, a situation that has not occurred in the past.

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