Fontana is a city in
west San Bernardino County (east San Bernardino County is adjacent to the states of Nevada and of Arizona).
Fontana is mostly comprised of working class housing; it has a racially & ethnically mixed population. It also has much more street
gang and street drug activity than most folks would want.
Speaking of gangs, Fontana is the birthplace of a famous old
gang...the Hell's Angels.
Speaking of birthplace, Kaiser Permanente Health
Care began in Fontana during World
War II; originally started as Employee Health for the large Kaiser Steel Mill.
When the Kaiser Steel Mill closed in the
early '80's, it caused a substantial down-turn in the local economy. Parts of town became very crime-ridden, especially in the
redneck "Fontucky" area.
The closed-down steel
plant was later used for the location shots in the film, "Terminator 2".
The closed steel
plant was dismantled & shipped to China to be reassembled for steel production in that country.
The California Speedway was built by Roger Penske on the old Steel Mill grounds...it regularly is used for NASCAR events.
It's true, there truly is a rough side to Fontana...it's not Beverly Hills, but things do happen there.
