In the increasingly popular move of making urban living part of the Inland landscape, Ontario is upping the stakes.

Construction has started on the city's bid for a slice of big-city life, called Piemonte at Ontario Center, where stores and restaurants are planned to go alongside -- and under -- condominiums. Panattoni Development also expects to put up several office buildings and a 256-room hotel, all of it centered around what no other Inland city has: An 11,000-seat arena.

Piemonte, as planned, would further cement Ontario's status as a regional hub, adding a walkable, insta-neighborhood to a suburban city working through a long list of ambitious projects. While other projects around the region also are installing shops with condos and offices, none is expected to have as many so close to where people shop and eat...

If an urban district will work anywhere in the Inland area, it's Ontario, said economist Joel Kotkin.

"Ontario, unlike most of the other areas in the Inland Empire, is not just dense, but it's an employment center..."

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