CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : MORENO VALLEY : Community’s First Hospital Opens

Moreno Valley, a rapidly growing city in Riverside County, opened its first hospital, a 96-bed facility to be managed as a joint venture of the Hemet Valley Hospital District and St. Joseph Health System of Orange. Previously, residents had to travel to Riverside or Loma Linda for hospital care. The Moreno Valley Medical Center occupies a 20-acre site at 27300 Iris Ave., cost $42 million to build and is designed to accommodate expansion up to 250 beds, according to spokesman Larry Berenato. Hemet Valley Hospital District, which owns two other nonprofit hospitals in Riverside County, financed the project through revenue bonds which it expects to retire with hospital income.