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City leaders highlight public safety upgrades, new developments and job efforts at annual State of the City
REDLANDS, Calif. — Public safety equipment, economic development updates and new city headquarters were among the highlights shared at the Redlands Chamber of Commerce’s annual State of the City event, held June 2 at the University of Redlands.
Over lunch, attendees heard presentations from city officials, department leaders and Chamber representatives.
First up, Mayor Mario Saucedo shared updates on the ongoing transition of city departments to the former Citibank building on State Street, now serving as Redlands’ main administrative offices.
The fifth floor will remain leased to long-term tenants, providing continued revenue for the city. Final plans will be developed in the coming months to create a public plaza open to State Street passersby, with seating areas and a space for live entertainment, Saucedo said.
The city is exploring options as the city offices current on Citrus Avenue transition to their new home a few blocks away. Among them is potentially adding additional downtown parking.
The lastest on another city headquarters was also announced during the meeting. Police Chief Rachel Tolber shared architectural renderings for a new Police Department Safety Hall, which will consolidate operations spread across four locations to 1625 W. Redlands Boulevard. The former Kmart building will be demolished to make way for a mission revival-style headquarters.
The city's development department also highlighted growth through new residential and commercial developments in the city.
CarMax is finishing up the city approval process for a location at the northeast corner of the I-10 and 210 freeways — just south of Home Depot and north of the Toyota dealership. Construction is expected to begin within a year, according to Brian Desatnik, the city’s director of development services.
Ace Hardware is expected to open within six to 12 months inside the Albertsons shopping plaza off Redlands Boulevard, filling the vacant site of the former Rite Aid.
Desatnik also noted several residential developments in the works, including:
Desatnik also encouraged the audience to explore the city's Geo Hub to learn more about development projects, local infrastructure and census data.
By mid-summer, Fire Station 262 on Garden Street is expected to finish its modernization, including the addition of nearly 1,000 square feet. Final construction awaits the pouring of concrete behind the facility.
In collaboration with the Redlands Police Department, the Fire Department has worked on its integrated public alert system for notifications of critical events, and with grant funds has upgraded its emergency operations center.
Another new development is the infrared cameras that monitor the San Timoteo and Live Oak canyons. The cameras provide a livestream and alerts about wildfires and incidents that occur in that remote area, Fire Chief Rich Sessler explained.
Juan Cabral, superintendent of the Redlands Unified School District, said nearly 1,700 high school diplomas will be awarded over the next week during graduation ceremonies. He noted that the district’s graduation rate has increased by 4 percentage points during his two years as superintendent.
Cabral thanked the community for its support in passing the $500 million Measure D facilities bond in fall 2024.
“This isn’t about buildings,” he said. “It’s about opportunities.”
A consistent theme echoed by various departments and the Chamber of Commerce focused on assisting homeless individuals find resources, mental health assistance, jobs and housing.
Assistant City Manager Chris Boatman lauded efforts spearheaded by the city’s Homeless Solutions Coordinator David Rabindranath in reducing the number of unhoused individuals within the city. Since 2023, the number of unhoused individuals in Redlands has dropped 30% annually — from 324 to 146 — aided by $30 million in state Homekey grants and roughly $10 million in state encampment resolution funds.
The city’s partnership with the county, nonprofits including Youth Hope, Step Up, Family Service Association, Goodwill and Building A Generation; and faith-based organizations Salvation Army and Church of Religious Science helped achieve progress, as well as efforts by the Redlands Chamber of Commerce.
Grant funding has also supported the addition of a Substance Use Navigator (SUN) who helps the Fire Department respond to the nearly 50 calls it receives each month related to opioid and substance use complications.
The challenges are continuous, Boatman said, as the influx of homeless people continued to trickle in from other areas.
The Redlands Chamber of Commerce has played a key role in the city’s homelessness strategy by helping residents find jobs and preparing them to re-enter the workforce.
Evan Sanford, executive director of the Chamber, said 205 individuals have been placed in jobs in the past 11 months, and another 53 people have landed jobs through the Chamber's New Beginnings program.
The Chamber’s online job portal lists nearly 170 open positions and has fielded more than 4,300 resumes.
“With the city, our obligation is to help those formerly homeless individuals get into a job — or get them job-ready,” Sanford said. “We’re a membership of business organizations and nonprofits, and we’re able to create a pipeline of people looking for work, connecting them to the people who are hiring.”
Chamber Board President Jan Hudson noted internal improvements over the past year, including implementation of cost and accountability policies and updates to bylaws.
“These efforts provide our staff with a strong roadmap to follow, and they are doing an excellent job executing it,” Hudson said.
Under Sanford’s leadership, membership has grown to 555 — up by 300 members over three years.
So far this year, the Chamber has hosted 22 networking events, held 27 ribbon-cuttings and is planning at least three job fairs. The monthly Rise and Shine networking event averages 122 attendees, while monthly mixers draw more than 80 people.
Sanford also shared how the Chamber has revitalized the Visit Redlands tourism initiative and partnered with Redlands-based tech firm Esri to provide members with detailed demographic and census data — the first chamber in the region to do so.
“Our strategic plan aligns with our mission: workforce, economic and leadership development,” Sanford said. “That spells WELD — and the idea is that we’re building a stronger business community.”
The Chamber has also advocated at the state level, co-sponsoring the Small Business Utilization Bill and weighing in on other legislative issues that affect local businesses.
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