REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
November 18, 2025
FROM
NOEL CASTILLO, Department of Public Works - Surveyor
SUBJECT
Title
Summary Vacation of Portion of Road Right-of-Way of Cedar Avenue and Valley Boulevard in the Bloomington Area
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
1. Find vacation of a portion of road right-of-way on Cedar Avenue and Valley Boulevard, located north of Interstate 10 freeway and south of current Bloomington Avenue in the Bloomington area is an exempt action under the California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines pursuant to Title 14, Section 15061(b)(3) and 15312 of the California Code of Regulations, Categorical Exemptions.
2. Adopt Resolution that finds and determines that excess road right-of-way along portion of Cedar Avenue and Valley Boulevard is excess road right-of-way and may be vacated to achieve the public purpose of eliminating and clearing the public records of unusable and unnecessary public road rights-of-way.
3. Direct the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors to forward a copy of the Resolution to the Department of Public Works to be recorded in the official records by the San Bernardino County Recorder.
4. Direct the Department of Public Works to file the Notice of Exemption in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act.
(Presenter: Noel Castillo, Director, 387-7906)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Ensure Development of a Well-Planned, Balanced, and Sustainable County.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). All costs associated with the vacation are applicant-funded through the approved Road Abandonment Fee.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The summary vacation will remove public road rights-of-way on a portion of Cedar Avenue and Valley Boulevard, located north of Interstate 10 (I-10) freeway and south of Bloomington Avenue in the Bloomington area since they are excess public road rights-of-way, are not required for public road purposes, and are not necessary for current or future public road use.
The Department of Public Works (Department) has completed its review of the request to vacate said portions of Cedar Avenue and Valley Boulevard and finds that this vacation will have no effect to the existing roads of Cedar Avenue, Valley Boulevard, and Bloomington Avenue, in the Bloomington area.
In 1891, the County received rights-of-way for roadways currently known as Cedar Avenue (60 feet wide) and Valley Boulevard (previously known as Colton Avenue) as shown in the map recorded in Map Book 11, Page 12, official record of the County, being the “…Subdivision of Lands belonging to The Semi-Tropic Land & Water Co.” In 1967, County Surveyor Map No. 7669-06 (being a Caltrans Right-of-Way map) was filed in said county delineating a realigned centerline for Cedar Avenue as a part of the I-10 Freeway project. This re-alignment and ongoing project improvements have deemed portions of the original 1891 right-of-way of Cedar Avenue and Valley Boulevard unusable and unnecessary public road rights-of-way. The portion requested to be vacated is influenced by this realignment and is described in Exhibit A and shown on Exhibit B. This request to vacate the portion of Cedar Avenue and Valley Boulevard came from the Farmer Boys development team to facilitate on going site improvements (signage and parking under license agreements) and road widening efforts.
The proposed vacation serves a public purpose by eliminating and clearing the public records of unusable and unnecessary public road rights-of-way that have not been accepted by the general public, and by removing an unnecessary title encumbrance.
The Department’s Environmental staff reviewed this project and has determined that the proposed project qualifies for a Categorical Class 12 Exemption in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines, Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations, Section 15061(b)(3) is appropriate. Class 12 consists of sales of surplus government property except for parcel of land located in an area of statewide, regional, or areawide concern identified in Section 15206(b)(4). In addition, the project is exempt from CEQA under CEQA Guidelines section 15312 as the vacated property does not have significant values for wildlife habitat or other environmental purposes. When the Board of Supervisors (Board) considers environmental findings, the filing and posting of a Notice of Exemption is recommended.
Upon Board approval of this summary vacation action, the County will no longer hold public road rights over said portions on Cedar Avenue and Valley Boulevard, in the Bloomington area. A certified copy of the Board-approved Resolution to vacate the public road right-of-way will be recorded in the office of the San Bernardino County Recorder. The vacation aligns with the County and the Chief Executive Officer’s goal of ensuring development of a well-planned, balanced, and sustainable County by removing unnecessary road right-of-way.
PROCUREMENT
Not applicable.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Aaron Gest, Deputy County Counsel, (387-5455) on November 13, 2025; and County Finance and Administration (Kathleen Gonzales, Administrative Analyst, 387-5412) on October 28, 2025.