Smart & Final Extra! Breaks Ground

COLTON>> Residents, community leaders and numerous members of the Colton community came together Tuesday, Nov. 1 to celebrate the groundbreaking of Smart and Final Extra! on the corner of Colton Avenue and North Mount Vernon Avenue in Colton. Colton Mayor Richard DeLaRosa was present along with Council Member David Toro, Council Member Frank Navarro and Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown. DeLaRosa welcomed those in attendance, thanked those who are involved with the project and said the city is serious about attracting new businesses, as well as keeping existing businesses stay active and successful. “This public groundbreaking is a special one for our city,” DeLaRosa said. “That’s because it’s the first in a series of projects coming to our city.” Navarro also spoke at the ceremony about the vision he had for the area nearly two and half years ago. Navarro said he had been thinking of what could be done with the property and while shopping in Smart and Final in Redlands, he thought of Smart and Final being the perfect project to help bring retail to Colton, which would keep the revenue in the city rather than in surrounding cities. He said in 2015, he and the Economic Development Manager Art Morgan, met with Holly Jensen from Smart and Final to further discuss the project. It was that day that Jensen would give them the store number and essentially, the green light to move forward. “I see this project as a focal point of the immediate area and a synergy in furthering retail and commercial development along the Mount Vernon corridor and the city as a whole,” Navarro said. Navarro concluded by thanking those involved with the project for the collaborative work in keeping the project moving forward. The development will be led by Evergreen, a real estate company specializing in retail, commercial and multi-family development, asset management, property management and leasing. Chris Bergren, Principal of Evergreen, spoke during the ceremony and attributed the success of the partnership to the city and retailer working collectively. Bergren said Colton has culture along with residents, city staff and elected officials who truly care about the community and said it is evident in nearly every conversation he has with the staff or council members. “The City of Colton has tremendous vision and you know to execute on your vision and that is rare,” Bergren said. “The reason why we’re here is the vision of Councilman Navarro.” He said that Colton ranks as the top of the best cities to work with out of all the cities he has worked alongside. Bergren continued to thank the city staff, elected officials and the residents of Colton. Brown thanked the council, mayor and Evergreen for collaborating together and presented a certificate of recognition. She thanked Evergreen and said they have been a huge inspiration to the city. A representative from Congressman Pete Aguilar’s office as well as from County Supervisor Josie Gonzales' office also gave certificates of recognition to the city, Evergreen and Smart and Final. Smart & Final Extra! is one of the company’s newest store concepts and are larger than a typical Smart & Final warehouse store. The stores carry an expanded selection of products in key categories like produce, fresh meat, frozen foods, dairy, deli and grocery basics like cereal, yogurt, bread and snacks.