At the same time, this two-county region east of Los Angeles has been home to booms in home construction and population that in turn have altered demographics to produce a thriving office market and a demand for more and different types of retail developments.The unique path that the Inland Empire is following and the implications for its future growth will be the focus of RealShare Inland Empire on Tuesday, Aug. 14 when the RealShare conference series comes to the Ontario Convention Center for an event that begins at 11 a.m.

Some 350 registrants are expected at the conference, according to RealShare conference producer Jason Young, who points out that some of the top developers, brokers, lenders, development officials and experts within the logistics and supply chain industry will be participants in this year's conference. In addition, the conference will feature "economic development officials from some of the most active and influential municipalities within San Bernardino and Riverside counties," Young notes.

The combination of logistics experts, economic development specialists and others who are involved directly in the Inland Empire's explosive growth has been designed to give the RealShare conference a uniquely Inland Empire flavor, Kelley and Young explain. Young notes that the region's growth as a logistics and distribution hub has brought not only local but national attention. And while distribution and logistics continue to play a huge role in the Inland Empire, as they have for a dozen years or more, the region is also emerging as home to some of the savviest economic development officials in the business.

"Much more so than in many places, the economic development groups are very much on top of their game when it comes to drawing projects, businesses and jobs to their cities or counties," Kelley comments. He points out that the middle portions of the conference will include much that is oriented toward this topic, while sessions at the beginning and the end will focus on logistics and the role of the Inland Empire in relation to the global flow of goods.

RealShare Inland Empire will begin with a keynote address by Steve Schellenberg, vice president of IMS Worldwide Inc. , a specialist in international supply chain solutions. Then, in a town hall meeting, leading real estate and civic executives will look at the logistics picture from every conceivable perspective, sharing their views on capital flows, the day-to-day business of leasing buildings, developers' approaches to joint ventures and the quest for land.

Throughout the conference, speakers and panelists will zero in on sector-specific outlooks for the office, industrial, multifamily and retail sectors, job growth and other factors affecting growth in the Inland Empire. They will also tackle topics like mixed-use developments, the debt and equity picture, the industrial outlook and the red-hot office market.

Among the panels scheduled for the day will be "Municipalities' Role in Growing the Inland Empire ," "Forecasting The Red-Hot Office Market," a "Debt and Equity Update" an update on investment sales and tenant-in-common deals called "Who's Buying, Who's Selling and Why," a sesson titled "Meeting Population and Business Growth with Mixed-Use Development" and the final two panels of the day, "The Outlook for Leasing, Investment and Development in the Industrial Market" and "Focus on International Trade and Goods Movement."

Following the final panel, the event will feature a cocktail reception and networking event at 5 p.m. RealShare Inland Empire, along with other RealShare events nationwide, is produced by Real Estate Media, publishers of GlobeSt.com, GlobeSt.RETAIL, Real Estate Forum magazine and other print and online publications devoted to commercial real estate.