2:15pm | After more than a year of speculation that electric automaker Tesla Motors was choosing between Long Beach and Downey to locate their massive production facility, the company will reveal today that they have nixed those plans and will build their upcoming Model S sedan in Fremont under a partnership with Toyota.

A press conference has been scheduled for later this afternoon to explain specifics. Tesla was rumored again and again and again to be nearing a deal with Downey only to jump ship, just as they did with another Northern California production plant several years ago. The staging-live.lbpost.com has documented over the last year how an independent site purchase and model production would be extremely difficult financially for Tesla to conduct, and repeatedly questioned whether Tesla’s interest in either city was sincere.

Tesla has been unable to produce a Model S protoype that can actually be driven since it was unveiled one year ago. In contrast, Toyota has been unable to get some of their cars to stop driving. So it should be a perfect fit.

The Downey Patriot is reporting now that Mayor Mario Guerra feels “like I was stabbed in the back.”

Personally, I am not sure why. Tesla did nearly the exact same thing to San Jose earlier this year.

A high-ranking Downey official told the staging-live.lbpost.com in November that the city was aware of Tesla’s background of unmet promises and financial troubles, but that the city was not concerned because Tesla CEO and founder Elon Musk had given his word and that Musk’s considerable personal fortune would clear the company from any money problems.

Tesla’s apparent indecisiveness, however, was the first clue of trouble in the deal and it only worsened with each unfounded rumor that Downey was a lock. The automaker faced extremely tight deadlines that appeared to become more unfeasible as time went on. Also, the cost of leasing the massive Downey Studios lot and fitting it for mass auto production seemed to be more than Tesla could handle.

Entering into the deal with Toyota will likely provide Tesla with the capital and the location it needs to meet timeline goals. Too bad for Downey, who learned the lesson of San Jose the hard way.

Much more to come…