BARSTOW — Mayor Julie Hackbarth-McIntyre admits progress "seems to take forever."
But she proudly announced during Monday's City Council meeting that "a lot of dirt is being moved in our community."
"Wal-Mart has gotten a contractor and they will be in the process of building a Super Wal-Mart. And Choice Medical is moving dirt as well," the mayor said.
Indeed, a number of construction projects in the city of Barstow are underway that will result in jobs in the future.
Here are the five of the top construction projects in Barstow right now:
1. Super Wal-Mart
Construction trailers have been parked in the project site that is located next to the present Wal-Mart store at Montara Road and East Main Street. That store will be torn down once the new one is built.
"Plans have been approved and preparation work for construction is underway," Barstow Economic
Development and Planning Manager Gaither Loewenstein said in an email Monday. "Completion is expected between November 2016 and January 2017."
The 200,000-square-foot supercenter is expected to employ 85 to 100 people. The development also will add space for five additional business parcels that are estimated to bring in 100 to 200 more jobs.
2. Crossroads Route 66 Industrial Park
Lots of dirt is being moved from a West Main Street site near Highway 58 next to the Tomahawk Antique store in Lenwood. Skanksa USA has been hauling dirt from the site, which contained a mountain of dirt, to the Highway 58 widening project.
"Grading is underway for a 30-plus-acre industrial park that is planned to accommodate up to 500,000 square feet of industrial/warehouse/logistics uses," Lowenstein said. "Grading expected to be completed in February 2016. Tenants are being sought."
The owner of the property, Barstow developer Michael Lewis, said it's not known yet how much of the dirt will be removed by Skanska.
"We've actually submitted plans for conceptual design to the city and actually started marketing throughout the United States," Lewis said Tuesday.
Lewis said he's already received interest and potential clients have visited the site.
3. Laverne Drainage Project
The second of a multi-phase drainage project is underway on West Main Street near Avenue L. Consulting City Engineer Brad Merrell reported to the City Council in August that Weka Inc. was the top bidder on the project at $1.88 million. The City Council voted 5-0 to accept the bid.
"This is basically just half of the project for the Laverne project. It's phase one," Merrell said. "The reason we are doing this is so we can get all the development north of Main Street developed prior to our temporary construction easements running out to the land owner."
Merrell also warned the Council that the Laverne Flood Control Improvement project will not work as well as the Kitchen Dean Wash until the entire project is completed. He said staff is aware of the predicted El Nino coming, so additional measures like a cut-off wall will be added to prevent damage to the system.
4. Choice Medical medical center
Work crews have been preparing a corner location in the 1800 block of West Main Street that once was the site of the Bun Boy Restaurant for construction of a one-stop medical center. The restaurant was torn down in September of 2014.
Manmohan Nayyar, M.D., president of Choice Medical Group, said the center will provide primary care, specialist care, labs, pharmacy and X-rays. Additional amenities will include a senior center and a health and wellness center.
“We recognize that the Barstow market needs more physicians and easy access to quality medical care,” Nayyar said. “Our new medical center will allow us to provide our patients with the ease of treatment that each of us expects.”
Choice Medical Group is affiliated with Victor Valley Global Medical Center, St. Joseph’s Health-St. Mary Medical Center, Desert Valley Medical Center and Barstow Community Hospital. Founded 24 years ago, Choice Medical has grown to a team of nearly 200 board certified physicians, including more than 40 primary care physicians and more than 140 board certified specialists.
"It should be ready by May," Renee Rincon said an email statement Monday. She is the marketing assistant for Choice Medical. "The building will have offices for two primary care providers, specialists, a conference center, a lab, and a pharmacy."
5. Medical Plaza
A project to renovate a building in the 700 block of West Main Street is 90 percent completed, said Project Manager Nathaniel Pickett.
"According to the city, we can rent space right now," Pickett said Monday. He said there is room for nine medical-related tenants.