
Incorporation is a process that communities go through in California if they would like to become a city. The process requires the approval of a State organization named LAFCO and you, our community members.
As an incorporated community, citizens would have more control over their safety, security, planning, zoning and so on.
Incorporation sets the boundaries of your community. For example residents in the new community of Eastvale are wanting to include areas of Mira Loma in their incorporation to assist in being a viable city. If we were a city this process could not happen. Areas can only be annexed into an existing city with the approval of the voters of that community (and LAFCO).
Incorporation establishes local controls that currently are under the County or Service District control.
The County does not go away and the service districts don't just disappear but we have far more input and control and in some cases the City can create new city departments that replace the services provided by the current organizations.
Re-development issues being handled at the County level can have a more local control and input by the citizens of the city. Incorporation does not mean you will have street lights or side walks. Incorporation does not mean that horse property will be re-zoned to not allow horses. Incorportation does not mean that your taxes will go up. LAFCO reviews the economic viability of the incorporation to ensure that the current tax base (property, sales and vehicle taxes) can support the community for years to come before any approval.
Here are a couple of links to important incorporation-related documents on the Riverside County LAFCO site