Chili's Coming Soon!

A question that often asked to me by women, "When are we going to get the same type of restaurants like Victorville"? Here's a start, Chili's next to El Pollo Loco.

Joe

Chili’s among upcoming developments in Barstow By AARON AUPPERLEE Staff Writer March 10, 2007 - 9:06AM Staff photo by Aaron Aupperlee This vacant lot behind the Valero gas station and next to Denny's on Lenwood Road is the planned site of a new Chili's restaurant and 92-room Country Inn & Suites hotel. BARSTOW — Those singing the baby back blues — “I want my baby back, baby back, baby back, Chili’s baby back ribs” — will soon receive some ambrosial relief in Barstow. In an e-mail, city spokesman John Rader confirmed a Chili’s restaurant will be built as part of a new hotel development in the outlet center area. “The restaurant will be located just off Lenwood Road, adjacent to the El Pollo Loco restaurant,” he said. Also slated for construction in that area is a new Country Inn & Suites hotel. According to Rader, the Country Inn & Suites will be a 92-room hotel built on the vacant property next to the Valero gas station and behind the Denny’s restaurant on Lenwood Road. Rader did not know when the construction on the new restaurant or the hotel will begin, but he said the plans for the restaurant have been approved by the Planning Commission. “The Country Inn & Suites is one of three new hotel complexes currently announced for the outlet area of Barstow,” Rader said. A 90-room Hampton Inn is current under construction, and a 83-room Comfort Inn & Suites is planned for construction next to the Flying J truck stop. Cory Baker, a customer service representative for the Barstow Chamber of Commerce, said the city of Barstow has seen a boom in the construction of hotels and restaurants tend to follow hotel booms. “As you build more hotels, you need more places to eat,” he said. “And people want more than just fast food.” Barstow has always been a popular stopping point for truckers and travelers, Baker said, but he added that Barstow is growing into a destination of its own. The small-town and rural setting Barstow presents and its collection of museums and other area attractions has made it a vacation spot, he said. “We’re a tourist town, plain and simple,” he said. “We’re in the middle of everything.” A representative for Chili’s could not be reached for comment. Long-term lease around Home Depot Rader also said that 20 acres around Home Depot on L Avenue have been leased by a major retail developer. Plans for this development have not been submitted to the city yet, and the city will not become involved until plans are received. “We’re extremely excited about the retail possibilities for this area,” Rader said. A representative from the California State Land Commission, which administers the land for its owner, the State Teacher’s Retirement Fund, could not be reached for comment.