updated 9/27/23
Prayer Podcasts: for the city | for the officials
Location: bordered by Pomona to the West, Claremont and Upland to the North, Ontario to the East and Chino to the South; southwestern part of the county; in Pomona Valley and part of the Inland Empire. The San Bernardino Freeway (10 Fwy.) runs through the northern part of the city. Nearby cities include Claremont, Glendora, Covina, Mira Loma, Azusa. Montclair sits near three counties that border it: Los Angeles, Riverside and Orange counties.
Demographics: Est. population [2022] 38,345; median age 33; median household income $62K; median property value $354K; 70% Hispanic; 12% White; 11% Asian; Black 4%; homeownership rate was 53.9%; most people drove alone to work; average commute time 31 minutes; average 2 cars per household; 81.3% U.S. citizens; 863 veterans [24 WWII; 64 Korean; 224 Vietnam; 551 Gulf Wars]; 73% high school graduate; 17% degrees; M:F ratio 1:1; 45% married; 49% kids under <18; 38% speak English; 52% speak Spanish
Earliest inhabitants were the Serrano Indians who built their village on the banks of a sycamore tree-lined creek which followed what is now Mills Avenue. In 1774, Captain Juan Bautista D’Anza named a stream “Arroyo de los Alisos,” the Stream of the Sycamores now known as San Antonio Creek. Land used to be grazing land and a watering hole, but in 1897, Mrs. Edward Fraser founded, “The Township of Marquette,” area's first modern name; land development began.
In the early 1900s Emil Firth, a land developer, named a 1,000-acre land tract “Monte Vista;” to plant orchards and build homes. The first settlers moved in shortly after the tract opened in 1907. The first “modern” settlement within the tract was called Narod. Among the buildings which made up the settlement was a large orange-packing house and the Little White Church of Narod. Like most Southland areas, the Monte Vista Land Tract boomed after World War II. Fearing that it would be annexed by a neighboring city, and the right to control their destiny lost forever, long-time residents formed the Monte Vista Improvement Association. This Association proposed city incorporation of the Monte Vista Land Tract and the residents were asked to vote on the incorporation proposal in the April, 1956 election.
On April 8, 1958, the voters of the City of Monte Vista went to the polls to decide upon a name change for their city because there was another community in California also named Monte Vista; the new name was Montclair. During its early years, Montclair struggled to locate a greater tax base to finance the services it provided its residents. In 1964, land developers approached the city with an answer to their tax problems, a large shopping center - Montclair Plaza which produced an additional 20% tax revenue for the City, and today, one of the most successful shopping centers in Southern California; which brought economic stability and the region’s premier shopping destination due to its close proximity to 3 counties.
“The people are the city"
Location of Montclair in SBC
Specific Prayer Points
Environment: Current air quality index; current fire outlook; current drought condition is severe; recent earthquakes
Major employers: The largest industries in Montclair, CA are Retail Trade (3,005 people), Health Care & Social Assistance (2,084 people), and Manufacturing (1,865 people), and the highest paying industries are Public Administration ($60,294), Finance & Insurance ($41,307), and Wholesale Trade ($40,033).
Work: most common jobs held by residents of Montclair, CA, by number of employees, are Office & Administrative Support Occupations (2,486 people), Material Moving Occupations (2,029 people), and Sales & Related Occupations (2,007 people); unusually high number of residents working as Material Moving Occupations (3 times higher than expected), Construction & Extraction Occupations (1.61 times), and Personal Care & Service Occupations (1.55 times).
Government: District 4 San Bernardino County; Current City Council
School district: Ontario-Montclair School District; Chaffey Joint Union High school district
Christian schools: [not exhaustive] Our Lady of Lourdes school; Montclair Christian elementary
Crime grade:[2022] A crime occurs every 3 hours 57 minutes (on average) in Montclair. Overall grade is D+; violent crime C+; property crime C-; other D; top issues 21% [very high] drug crimes; 15% vandalism; 7% auto theft; 6% theft & burglary 5%
Poverty 18.2%: [CA Avg 15%] One out of every 5.5 residents of Montclair lives in poverty.
Spiritual: intercessors arise and pray until they see revival in the churches; laborers for the harvest; Christian recovery groups who address the drug addictions and look for ways to reach them outside the church walls; church prayer groups increase in number and answers for salvations, changes in their city; believers not get caught up in the cares of this life or being too busy due to its location and prevalent shopping center; more boldness in sharing their faith; testimonies given; an awakening in the older believers; passion renewed and a return to first love; pastors encouraged and preach the gospel with authority.
Churches & Ministries [not exhaustive]
Praise Christian Center
Brighter Day Ministries, Inc.
Praise Experience Church
The Truth/La Verdad; First Assembly of God