Kathy McGraw, Riverside County CA Real Estate

A few of the Buildings in the Banning Downtown Art District are getting a makeover. Last year the City Council approved several buildings for a Facade Grant aimed at helping to renovate and revitalize the Downtown area. Building Owners applied for these Redevelopment Grants that were specifically geared towards improving the look of Downtown Banning.

Several Business's were approved and currently work is in progress. If you drive Downtown you will see the work, but specifically the Art District around N. San Gorgonio Ave. is and has undergone major transformations.

Ben Stephenson's building on the corner of San Gorgonio and Hays (the one with the big Mural) has really changed the feeling of the area. He chose to go with the Early Mission style. This Building was once uninhabitable, and it needed to be completely rehabbed including retrofitting.

It's so nice to see the improvements to the buildings in the area. Ben's building and the Hendon Building behind it both could have been torn down as they needed some major work. And a really great coup for the new Art District is the addition of the Dorothy Ramon Center (more later on this wondrful addition to the neighborhood) that bought the building across the street. They also bought some vacant lot(s) behind them, and are in the process of fundraising to pay for the transformation.

Upcoming events:

If you live in the area there are many different activities happening in this new Art District. And don't forget the Evenings in the Park Concert Series in Repplier Park. The series starts this coming Thursday August 7th at 7:00 PM, and as always is FREE for everyone. One of the Major Banning Art Groups is the Playhouse Bowl Association, Inc. that has put this Concert Series on forthe past 55 years.

For further information on the Concerts call: 951.922.3240

For many years White Water (Whitewater) CA was mostly just known for a few things.....the Whitewater Trout Farm, Whitewater Rock, and the boys school off the Verbania Exit. Progress is a strange thing; the Whitewater Trout Farm is gone, the Boy's school is gone, that old gas station has been deserted for years, and the street name Verbania has been changed. So much for local landmarks :)

People ask about about the gas station right off the Haugen-Lehmann Exit of the I-10 freeway.

The location of this old gas station is perfect, and many people want to make a mini mart there. We sure could use a Mini Mart for Bread, Milk, and some of the quick things residents need without driving 10-15 minutes to the nearest store in Cabazon.

From my understanding this gas station is in litigation. I have not verified this information, nor shall I, but you know how stories are with the old timers. I've been told for years that it wasn't for sale, and everyone I know that has wanted to buy it has come up blank. One of my clients even told me that he suspected there might be leakage from the old tanks. But again, I have not, nor will verify this. It would be something to check though if anyone actually were to try to purchase that property.

Now, not only do you have the deserted gas station on one side of the street as you are coming into the community, but now the Boy's School on the other side of the road has closed down. After years of this old Hotel being used as a Residential Treatment Center for boys, it closed down this past June.

This old Hotel has a lot of history (I'll tell it to you later), and we used the Dining Hall for our Neighborhood Watch Meetings. Jeff, the Director of the Boys Home was a good neighbor, and he'll be missed. We are also left with no community meeting place unless we want to go to the Cabazon Community Center down the road.

~Progress has it's benefits, but many times it leaves a void~

Cabazon has 2 different Outlets although I doubt most people even notice the difference. The Desert Hills Premium Outlets has over 120 Stores, and has been a premier shopping destination for years. Big Tourist Buses bring International Shoppers here where they can find some great bargains.

Desert Hills Premium Outlets is one of the Outlet Centers, and Cabazon Outlets is right next to it, and is very small....I haven't counted, but I think there are under 20 stores in the Cabazon Outlets.

From Los Angeles you would take the Fields Road exit and go left. There's a McDonalds before you get into the main parking lot if you're hungry, or you can eat in one of 2 food courts. The smaller Cabazon Outlets don't have food, but they do have coffee and pretzels. Both of these Outlets are separated by a street, so most people might not realize they have left one Outlet Center for the next.

If you're coming from Palm Springs get off at Seminole Drive- And be VERY CAREFUL!!! Be very careful of the new round-about as there are no stop signs....everything is Yield.

This is a picture taken last week 7-27-08 of the new round-about at Seminole Drive. These cars are getting off the freeway, and are turning right by the A&W Restaurant. If you're going to the Casino stay to the right.....if going to the Outlets....you will go part way around the round-about by the Rubys Restaurant.

Seminole Drive is the exit for the Morongo Casino, and the Bowling Alley. If you're going to the Outlets.....go around the round-about and follow the signs. There are a couple restaurants here where you can eat, a gas station, and the World Famous Hadley's Fruit Orchards.

If you've never had a Date Shake I would suggest you might want to stop and try one before going shopping or gambling:)

The Art District of Downtown Banning has been developing for several years now. It started with several different Groups including Pass Cultural Arts Foundation , Poetry Groups, Dance, Photography and a Summer Music Series in the Park .

A couple years ago I was on the General Plan Committee that met once every week for almost a year to redo the Cities General Plan. We talked about having an official Art District at that time, and a certain area was discussed. Another Art Group formed and this Group petitioned the City Council for funds saying they would bring business into the Downtown area helping to revitalize it.

This is important because this Group has had a couple successful Street Fairs centered around Art, and they also were instrumental in convincing the City Council within the past few months to purchase Paula Hills building on N. San Gorgonio Ave, in the Center of the Downtown Art District.

This two story building has been used as an Artists Co-op over the past several years, and now the city purchased it.

Watch for more news on the Art District and interviews with local Artists.

By: Kathy McGraw - CELLing Realty - Author of Caifornia Real Estate and Life Blog

Palm Springs is famous for many things, and one of them is the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, located in Riverside County, Ca. This is a tram system that in 10 minutes takes you from 2,643 feet up the mountain to an elevation of 8,516 feet. You can see all of Palm Springs, the neighboring Desert Communities, Whitewater, and on a good day you can see the Salton Sea.

The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway is located at the base of the Majestic San Jacinto Mountains. There's no need to rush onto the car because the floor rotates so everyone gets a 360 degree view. It is absolutely spectacular. And for people like me, they have a handrail that you can hold onto. Just hold onto the handrails in the center, as the ones by the windows rotate as well. Here are a couple pictures taken out the window going up. They don't do the view justice, but look close and you will see one of the trams going down, and look at the cable.......up , up, up you go.

Tram Information: Located at the base of the San Jacinto Mountains just a few minutes Northwest of downtown Palm Springs. It is also about 2 hours from San Diego or Los Angeles, Ca.

• Address : 1 Tramway Rd. Palm Springs 92262.
• Phone number: (760) 325-1391
• Hours of Operation: M-F the first car up is around 10am. Week-ends and Holidays usually around 8am. Make sure you check when you get off what time the last car goes down.
• Ticket Prices: Adults- $22.25 Children- $15.25 Sr's (over 60) - $20.25
• Prices and Hours of Operation are subject to change without notice......

Other Important Info.....

• Use Sunscreen in the summer
• Take water if you are hiking
• NO PETS ALLOWED
• Absolutely Beautiful views and hiking trails
• Can take a picnic lunch with you, and I would suggest taking your own water, and if you have kids: snacks and/or lunch as the food can be quite pricey.
  

The above shot was taken on the way up, looking down. Almost directly in the center of the photo you can just make out the Tram that is going down. The tram goes at about 10 miles per hour.....Now the next picture was taken looking up. There are a few of those towers, and you can see the cables better that haul the Trams up into the San Jacinto Mountain Park.