The Santa Rosa Pit Stop convenience store and gas station in Mountain Center is now open. Anza Valley Outlook/Diane Sieker photo
“Páxam, páxam! We are officially open for business!” Social media and news outlets near and far have trumpeted the news.The Santa Rosa Band of Cahuilla Indians’ Pit Stop convenience store and gas station opened recently in Mountain Center on Highway 74. It employs about 10 people and serves as a rest area on the Pines to Palms route from the mountains to the deserts.The Pit Stop’s name is a play on a Cahuilla word – Pít – pronounced somewhat like the name Pete, is the Cahuilla word for road. Hence, the name actually means “road stop.”The project has taken about a decade from conception to grand opening. The opening ceremonies were presented virtually for everyone to enjoy.Spacious fuel pump a
