The construction question covers more than one project
A fresh Bakersfield reader question asks what is being built near Old River Road and Panama Lane, including work near the closed Rite Aid, the AutoZone and across the road. Public planning records show several approvals around the intersection. They do not support one blanket answer for every active construction area.
The clearest current record is a housing proposal on the west side of Old River Road, about 700 feet north of Panama Lane. A separate record covers commercial parcels at the northeast corner. Neither document names a replacement for Rite Aid or identifies a new chain coming to the corner.
A 137-home tract is scheduled to return October 1
Vesting Tentative Tract Map 7432 proposes 137 small-lot single-family homes on 20.56 acres. The September 17 Planning Commission agenda identifies McIntosh & Associates as the applicant and Old River Properties, LLC, as the owner. The proposal also requests alternate lot and street design, a sidewalk-design modification and a mineral-rights waiver.
City staff asked the commission to send the item back so approval conditions could be updated, with review continued to the October 1 meeting. That is a pending land-use step, not confirmation that all 137 homes are under construction or that a sales date has been set.
The northeast corner is divided into commercial parcels
A different city file—Vesting Tentative Parcel Map 12251—covers 32.01 acres at the northeast corner of Old River Road and Panama Lane. The approved map creates nine commercial parcels and one designated remainder. In February 2024, the Planning Commission considered a three-year extension of that map.
The staff report described the land as largely vacant except for a gas station and convenience store, with a pharmacy to the west. The map organizes land for commercial development; it is not a tenant list. The report does not name new stores, restaurants or a pharmacy replacement.
What the public record does—and does not—answer
The documents support two limited conclusions: housing is proposed north of Panama Lane, and the northeast corner has an active commercial parcel map. They do not establish which construction equipment belongs to which parcel, whether a private lease has been signed, or which businesses may eventually occupy the commercial lots.
A named tenant normally becomes verifiable through a tenant-specific building permit, alcohol-license notice, company announcement or other address-level record. Until one appears, assigning a brand to the construction would be speculation. Readers with a permit number or posted project sign can send that public information to the newsroom for a document check.
Sources and further reading
Bakersfield Planning Commission: September 17 agenda ↗
Bakersfield Planning Commission: 2024 Parcel Map 12251 coversheet ↗
Bakersfield Planning Commission: Parcel Map 12251 staff report ↗
California CEQAnet: Old River Road zone-change record ↗