Former ‘Lemon Capital’ Seems Sweet to Newcomers : Corona: With its strategic location, Riverside County city is magnet to home buyers from adjacent counties.

Ron Raposa of Corona knew his hometown had an identity crisis when an entertainer failed to show up for a friend’s party. Instead, she called from Corona del Mar, saying she was having trouble locating the street.

She wasn’t the only out-of-towner to make the mistake. Corona residents have waited hours for their new furniture to arrive, only to learn that it had taken a detour to the beach.

So Raposa, tired of having Orange County residents assume that Corona was short for their own Corona del Mar, started a campaign to distinguish the landlocked Riverside County city from the seaside town.

“When people would ask where I was from and I’d tell them Corona, they’d say, ‘Oh, Corona del Mar--what nice beaches!’ The easiest way of refuting that was to respond ‘No, Corona no del Mar.’ ”

Two years ago, Raposa, 41, a public relations/advertising agency owner, launched a line of “Corona no del Mar” bumper stickers, T-shirts and buttons.

He likes seeing commuters on California 91 with their “Corona no del Mar” bumper stickers, helping spread the word as they drive into Orange County.

These days, more and more people are commuting from Corona. The former “Lemon Capital of the World” was the fastest-growing large city in the state last year, according to the California Department of Finance.

Corona added nearly 9,000 residents last year, as the population increased 16.8% to 61,000 by the end of 1988. The population is now about 70,000 and by Jan. 1 is expected to be 73,658, said Peggy Temple, Corona’s acting senior planner.

The reason? Corona may not be by the sea, but it’s right by Orange County, providing a logical next step for people and businesses that can’t afford the prices there. Real estate ads promise prospective buyers that their projects are only a few miles from the county line.

Although it’s the most expensive real estate market in Riverside County, the prices look good to folks from Orange County. Or Los Angeles County.

Steve Gutierrez moved to Corona two years ago from Montebello because the price was right.

Gutierrez, 29, bought a 1,400-square-foot home that was several years old for $109,900. Last month his brother and sister-in-law, Fred and Carol, joined him in Corona. They had been waiting since May for their $269,900-, 2,600-square-foot-house to be finished. By the time they moved in, similar homes were selling for $310,000, Carol Gutierrez said.

New-home prices range from $126,990 to $352,900, said Steve Johnson, vice president in the Corona office of the Meyers Group research firm. Corona’s median new-home price is $202,000.

That compares to an Orange County new-home median of $350,000, and $340,000 in Los Angeles County’s San Gabriel Valley, where many of the newcomers are from.

Although most people associate Corona’s growth with Orange County overflow, the city is attracting residents from other places as well.

Now 40% of new arrivals hail from Orange County, 38% from Los Angeles County, 12% from Riverside County and the rest more distant locations, Johnson said. Because prices are higher than communities farther inland, Corona attracts more move-up customers instead of first-time home buyers, he said.

Real estate broker Kathy Walker said many buyers are young professional couples. “You know, the yuppies,” she said. “Years ago they would have turned their noses up at moving out here. Now Corona is the ‘in’ place to live.”

Corona is popular now because people feel they aren’t moving too far away from Orange County, Walker said. It also has an excellent school district and good medical care that includes two general hospitals, she said.

The school district was one of the main reasons Gale Hernandez moved to Corona two years ago with her husband, Al, and two children. Hernandez, 36, liked living in the city of Orange but found everything--including the schools--had grown too crowded there.

She is pleased with the education her children are getting in the Corona-Norco Unified School District. And she likes the fact that residents get involved in community projects.

“People here really do care,” said Hernandez, who is chairman of the board of the Corona Jaycees. “We’ve found our home and we’re not ever going to leave.”

According to Walker, owner of Realty World Circle City, the average price for a three-bedroom resale home is $149,400; a four-bedroom averages $182,900.

When it comes to rentals, “you can get a good house for under $1,000 a month,” Walker said. Apartments start at $400 for a modest one-bedroom and go up to $795 for a two-bedroom at a new complex with exercise room and other extras.

Besides good schools and affordable housing, Corona’s small-town charm is also a big draw. “Corona has a nice homey feeling,” said native Coronan Ken Calvert. “It’s a good town to raise a family,” said Calvert, 36, who sells commercial real estate.

Carol Gutierrez had been house hunting for three months before she drove into Corona last spring. “I loved it,” she said. “The area’s so nice.”

Now Gutierrez, 30, is happy to be living on a quiet street where daughter, Cavon, 10, can ride her bike, unlike their busy neighborhood in West Covina. A park is just around the corner, and their home in the new Sierra del Oro development has a nice view of the mountains.

Other major developments include Corona Hills and The Corona Ranch. Johnson said developers with Corona projects include Brock, Buie, Woodcrest, John Laing, Premier, UDC Homes and California Communities.

Founded in 1886 by another developer, Robert B. Taylor of Iowa, Corona was originally called South Riverside or the Queen Colony. Early settlers planted citrus groves, and soon Corona was known for its packing houses and Sunkist lemon processing plant.

Two of the largest operations were the Corona Foothill Lemon Co. and Jameson Ranch. Former Mayor Charles Jameson, 67, continues the family citrus-growing tradition on a smaller scale, but the renamed Foothill Properties is switching from fruit trees to housing tracts.

Many of the grove workers were from Mexico, and often they stayed in Corona to raise their families. Eventually they worked in other industries as well. Today Corona has a strong Latino community that celebrates its heritage with a big Cinco de Mayo festival each year.

In 1896, citizens incorporated the city as Corona, the Spanish word for crown. The name came from the city border, circular Grand Boulevard, which, from above, looked like a crown, said Gloria Scott, Corona’s Heritage Room librarian.

Today, Grand is one of the prettiest drives in town, if confusing to a newcomer who discovers he really is driving in a circle. The historic homes, tall trees and old-fashioned street lamps are now attracting young couples interested in preserving the area.

One is attorney Kent Hansen, who owns a 1926 Tudor-style home on the boulevard. He is working with others to designate the street as a historic district and make additional improvements.

Hansen, 36, also headed a committee to expand the city library. Coronans approved a $7.4-million bond issue last year to pay for the project.

Corona’s first library was started by the Woman’s Improvement Club. Jameson’s grandmother, Hetty Joy Jameson, and great-grandmother, Ella S. Joy, helped found the organization in 1899.

A few years later, when city trustees refused to approve funds for street cleaning, the women took to the streets with brooms. Embarrassed trustees (several of them club members’ husbands) decided money was available after all.

Ninety years later, the club’s 200 or so members are still doing good works, said President Valdora Cress. “We take care of the community,” she said, often working with Corona churches.

Real estate broker Calvert noted that local churches are strongly involved in community issues. Church opposition helped close down a controversial adult bookstore several years ago.

Corona has 38 houses of worship, including two Catholic churches, a Jewish temple and many Protestant denominations, said Ernie Peirson, head of the local ministerial association. Several churches have their own schools.

The city’s next frontier is in south Corona, which, until recently, consisted mainly of 5,000 acres of citrus groves. During the 1980s controversy raged as landowners and homeowners disagreed over the area’s future development.

Finally, a compromise was reached that included 12,500 homes instead of 15,000 as originally proposed, and agreements that developers would pay for needed services.

Although residents hate to see the groves disappear, today Corona land is too valuable to justify citrus farming, said Tom Paradise, project manager for Foothill Properties and a Corona resident.

Next spring, Foothill plans to break ground for Foothill Ranch, a 900-acre community. Paradise said the development is designed to promote Corona’s family atmosphere, and will have bike paths connecting schools and parks, including a 20-acre nature park near the Cleveland National Forest. Parks are important in Corona, which has 22 of them and plans for more.

Most Coronans accept growth as long as the city has a good grip on the reins, said Mayor Dick Deininger. Of course, all the new residents do pose a few problems.

“The challenge for those of us who’ve been here for a while is getting the new generation of Corona residents active in community affairs,” Paradise said.

Many Coronans have roots elsewhere and leave town for jobs, entertainment and shopping. All of which adds to traffic congestion, which Deininger and others identify as the city’s worst problem.

“The only thing really stifling us is the 91 Freeway,” said Hernandez, who still commutes to Orange County, as does her husband. “If we could get that under control we’d be fine.”

At least 35% of Corona’s workers commute to jobs west of Corona, said George Guayante, deputy director for housing and development. That means they’re on California 91 early in the morning and well into the evening.

Unfortunately, so are thousands of people who live in Riverside, Moreno Valley, Temecula and the rest of western Riverside County. They all funnel through Corona, creating traffic jams. Many commuters try to avoid the congested freeway by cutting through residential neighborhoods, irritating homeowners.

Proposed solutions include plans to widen California 91, expand other roads, or use light-rail and bus lines. However, there’s no quick solution in sight.

Raposa, who writes an irreverent column for Corona This Month magazine, turns serious when he talks about the future of the place where he’s lived for eight years.

“Corona has to make sure the attractive elements of the city’s past are preserved and incorporated into its growth,” he said. “We have to give people who do move here more of a reason to want to feel a part of the city.”

Fixing up the Civic Center is one example. Officials recently agreed to spend $40 million in the next three to four years to renovate the city landmark and build more offices behind it. Long a symbol of Corona, the graceful Spanish-style structure was built in 1922.

Raposa would also like to see more of the city’s historic buildings restored to splendor, with a few extra restaurants and antique shops to draw people downtown.

And he likes the citrus park idea, so people will never forget Corona’s lemon-squeezing, orange-packing past.

AT A GLANCE Population

1989 estimate: 70,000 Median Age: 30.7 years Racial/ethnic mix

White (non-Latino): 63.9%

Latino: 33%

Other: 2.3

Black: .8% Annual Income

Per Capita: $13,000

Median Household: $37,731 Household distribution

Less than $15,000: 18.4%

$15,000-$30,000: 20.2%

$30,000-$50,000: 31.7%

$50,000-$75,000: 20.3%

$75,000+: 9.5% Home price

September average: $181,920