Inland Empire Cities Pushing Back on Warehouses
Municipalities across the Inland Empire are hitting the brakes on new warehouse development. A growing number of cities are enacting temporary moratoriums and tightening zoning rules due to community pushback over air quality and truck traffic. This regulatory pressure is starting to directly impact the pipeline of new industrial supply in the region.
The industrial market in the Inland Empire is experiencing a significant cooling phase, with the vacancy rate climbing to 8.4% in the third quarter of 2025, the highest in over a decade. This rise is coupled with negative net absorption and a 3.3% year-over-year decline in asking rents, as a surge of sublease space hits the market. At least nine municipalities have enacted moratoriums or outright bans on new industrial projects to study environmental and health impacts. While some cities like Perris and Chino passed short-term 45-day bans, Jurupa Valley's moratorium lasted two years, and Colton's extended for a year. Redlands has moved to permanently ban new warehouse construction in most of the city. The pushback comes after the region's warehouse footprint doubled between 2004 and 2020, now encompassing over 1 billion square feet across more than 4,000 facilities. This massive industrial base serves as a critical logistics hub, processing roughly 40% of goods entering the United States. This concentration of logistics activity has had severe environmental consequences. The American Lung Association consistently ranks San Bernardino and Riverside counties as having the worst ozone pollution in the nation. The region's warehouses generate an estimated 600,000 truck trips daily, contributing heavily to diesel particulate matter in the air. Community health impacts are a primary driver of the opposition, with activists pointing to research linking warehouse proximity to negative health outcomes. In San Bernardino County, about 70% of children under 10 suffered from asthma in 2020. More than 300 warehouses are located within 1,000 feet of schools in the region. State-level regulations are now adding another layer of pressure. Assembly Bill 98, effective January 1, 2026, mandates significant new design and siting requirements. These include setbacks of 300 feet from sensitive sites like homes and schools, mandatory truck routing plans to avoid residential streets, and requirements for zero-emission forklifts. Organized community groups such as the People's Collective for Environmental Justice and Riverside Neighbors Opposing Warehouses (R-Now) have successfully challenged and blocked major projects, including the proposed Inland Valley Infrastructure Corridor Project near the San Bernardino Airport. In response to both market shifts and regulatory hurdles, the development pipeline is slowing. The pace of construction completions saw a sharp 71.1% year-to-date drop by mid-2025 compared to the previous year. The volume of industrial space under construction is at its lowest point since 2014.
