Sleepy Hollow Landmark Purchased by City of Chino Hills

Championed by Chino Hills council member Ray Marquez, a longtime resident of Carbon Canyon, the historic liquor store property in Sleepy Hollow on Carbon Canyon Road has been acquired by the City.

As reported in this weekend's Champion, the store and lot, comprising just over an acre, were purchased for $600,000 with almost 30% of the price considered a charitable donation to the City by longtime owner Gus Fedail.  This means that the City effectively pays $425,000.  The last business to operate there, the Canyon Market, closed in 2012. 

Before that it was Party House #2 (the main Party House is on Chino Hills Parkway and Pipeline Avenue), Joe Tater's restaurant and tavern, Ichabod's restaurant and store, and others, including a gas station.  One of the concerns about acquiring the property was whether the old gas tanks were still present, but it was learned they were removed long ago.  The future of the aging structure is to be discussed.

Council member Marquez has long advocated acquiring the store property for a new community center, replacing the current one further east and on the south side of Carbon Canyon Road and where a former volunteer fire house and community center was located for decades. 

Noting that parking at the current Sleepy Hollow Community Center is very limited, Marquez said that he'd like to see recreational, social, and nature programs, adding that the City owns 3 acres just to the east along Carbon [Canyon] Creek, where improvements, such as a nature trail, could be made. 

In addition, he has wanted to improve the property as a bus stop to improve access and safety, as Chino Valley Unified School District's buses use adjacent Oak Way Lane as the furthest west stop in the Canyon, but have to make difficult roundabout turns there.

In fact, from the founding of Sleepy Hollow in 1923, that section along the creek had a swimming pool along with a well and served as an outdoor gathering place for early residents and property owners, many of whom had weekend cabins when the community was a rural get-away.

Council member Marquez is hoping to hold community meetings soon to discuss the future of the building and property, so stay tuned for future developments!

Carbon Canyon Candidate Convincingly/Clearly Clinches City Council Contest

The all-mail-in election this week for the Chino Hills City Council seat vacated last fall by Bill Kruger was contested by four candidates with Carbon Canyon resident Ray Marquez emerging the clear winner.

The Inland Valley Daily Bulletin reported (see here and here) that Marquez won a convincing 45% of the vote, besting Rossana Mitchell, a former school board member and, briefly, council member whose tenures some years ago were, well, complicated, and who has been the face of the Not in Chino Hills organization which fought the Chinese "maternity hotel" that was recently shuttered in town; Debra Hernandez, a city public works commissioner; and Jesse Singh, an attorney whose family owns the Circle K market in Carbon Canyon and who, incidentally, did not register to vote until just before the fall 2012 elections and immediately ran for council.

Marquez, a retired firefighter and a realtor, has been a mainstay with the Carbon Canyon Fire Safe Council for several years and has been a board member of the Chino Valley Independent Fire District, as well as holding posts with other area organizations and agencies.  He was previously on the city's planning and parks and recreation commissions and will likely be sworn in at next Tuesday's city council meeting.

While, obviously, Chino Hills council members serve at-large for the entire city, there are now two members who reside in Carbon Canyon, the other being Peter Rogers.  Marquez has been particularly active with issues and activities in the Canyon, so it might portend well for this part of town to have him on the council.