On Wednesday, July 31, COMET’s attorney filed a Motion for Preliminary Injunction,set for September 4, 2019 at 8:30 a.m. in Department S-28 of the San Bernardino Superior Court. The Motion asks the Court to stop Redlands immediately from demanding 1) annexation in exchange for water and sewer services to new developments, and fees for its own city hall, police, fire, libraries, parks and 2) all other fees that benefit only Redlands, 3) fees that are in excess of the reasonable value of said improvements. and 4) that proposed legislation earlier this year was interfered with, which caused it to die in a legislative Committee.
The Motion particularly speaks for Tom’s Burgers, which has sat unopened on the Boulevard for 12 years since the County building permit was approved. Redlands initially demanded fees in excess of $630,000 from Tom’s Burgers, now down to about $55,000. However, the Motion argues, besides the other fees for services that Redlands does not provide, even the water connection fee is not applicable because the pipes were already in the street; however, but if applicable, the water connection fee should be no more than $6,784.92 total. However, Redlands added “water service” for a storage room that – in another part of the same statement – says the storage room would not have any other function, and wants nearly $1500 more.
The Motion complains that Redlands’ demands are slowing business and residential growth in Mentone (see article on Dollar General elsewhere in this newspaper). The City and LAFCO have time to oppose the Motion and then COMET has a right to counter their Opposition.
Attachments to the Motion included maps showing how much Mentone territory has been lost in recent years, a map of Mentone’s water companies that Redlands acquired (although there is some historical haziness as to how it acquired them), a sample of Redlands’ annexation “Agreement,” by which it demands annexation or “pre-annexation” into its city limits in exchange for water and sewer to new developments, copies of Redlands’ own adopted studies as to the amount to charge for water and sewer, as well as its own ordinances, which the Motion argues it violates. It can be viewed on the Court’s website for $.50 per page: 27 pages of the Motion and 20 pages of exhibits.
A “Motion” is a formal request that the Court make an order against the other party; for a Preliminary Injunction ordering the other party to cease doing something, that is harmful to the moving party, namely COMET, on Mentone’s behalf. MM