$170K consulting contract tabled as council debates economic development approach

The Palm Springs City Council on Wednesday tabled a vote on a $170,250 contract amendment with CVL Economics for economic development consulting services, delaying action until all five members are present amid a debate over whether the city needs another round of consultant-led analysis before engaging directly with its business community.

The item — Amendment No. 2 to an agreement the city first entered in July 2024 — was pulled from the consent calendar for discussion. After an extended exchange between councilmembers and city staff, the council voted to continue the matter to its next meeting to allow Councilmember Jeffrey Bernstein, who had an excused absence, to participate.

Mayor Pro Tem David Ready made the motion to table, noting that Bernstein had been actively involved in the city’s economic development process and had spoken with both the business community and the consultants about the contract.

If approved, Amendment No. 2 would bring the city’s total contract with CVL Economics to $592,830, according to city documents provided by staff. The original agreement, executed in July 2024, was valued at $375,080 and covered two scopes of work: an economic development strategic framework, budgeted at $123,250, and an economic impact study for Palm Springs International Airport, budgeted at $251,830.

A first amendment in June 2025 added $47,500 for additional analysis and early implementation work, bringing the contract to $422,580. The airport portion of the contract remains unchanged under the new amendment; the economic development side would grow to $341,000.

The proposed amendment is intended to help implement the city’s Economic Development Strategic Framework, which the council adopted on Nov. 24, 2025. City Economic Development Officer Wayne Olson told the council that the framework contains 103 action items, and the code and regulatory review proposed under Amendment No. 2 is the key first step toward putting the plan into action.

“If this isn’t passed tonight, it effectively stops the implementation of the economic development strategic framework,” Olson said.

According to city documents, CVL Economics would conduct a four-phase review over roughly 12 months — originally scheduled from May 2026 through April 2027 — covering a diagnostic scan, a barriers analysis, recommendations, and a final synthesis. The work would produce a Regulatory Findings Report, a Barrier-to-Solution Matrix, and an executive summary for city leadership. Staff argued that retaining CVL makes financial sense because the firm wrote the original framework and could avoid the time and cost of bringing a new consultant up to speed.

Olson defended the contract’s scope and cost in broader context, saying the $170,250 represents one-tenth of one percent of the city’s overall general fund and a fraction of what the city spends on other priorities. He cited figures from the city’s own strategic framework showing the stakes: 68% of Palm Springs businesses said city regulations work against their interests, and 51% said they had considered relocating out of Palm Springs because of those regulations.

“I look at you to please stop applying, layering on more and more committees, boards, and bureaucratic regulations on local businesses,” Olson said, summarizing business community feedback captured in the framework. “It’s soul crushing. Shrink the regulation bureaucracy and the paperwork.”

“What we’re proposing tonight,” Olson said, “is to conduct that audit and help businesses do what they do best, which is sell services and goods to the community.”

Ready questioned whether another round of consulting was the right tool for the job, saying the city should instead go directly to business owners, ask them to identify their top concerns, and begin fixing those problems without waiting for a consultant to name them.

“I’m not sure about paying $170,000 to tell us what we already know,” Ready said. “I guess that’s my concern.”

Ready also raised skepticism about the pace of the process, describing a timeline in which the code review would be followed by additional phases of business outreach and analysis stretching a year or more into the future. “It’s like a dog chasing its tail,” he said. “Almost never catch it.”

Councilmember Ron deHarte echoed Ready’s concerns, saying business owners who had approached that councilmember were frustrated at not being more directly engaged earlier in the process. The councilmember said the city should ask business owners directly to name the regulatory barriers they face and then set about addressing them.

City Manager Scott Stiles acknowledged that staff resources are stretched and said the city is already tracking multiple major economic development priorities simultaneously, including the convention center project, hotel milestones, airport opportunities, and potential new retail and entertainment deals. He said he was open to proceeding with the amendment but urged the council not to let the broader economic development effort stall.

“My fear is, if we don’t do anything tonight, that’ll all get a little stagnant,” Stiles said.

Councilmember Grace Garner asked Olson to share his contact information so businesses that have not yet weighed in on the process know how to reach the city. Olson said businesses and residents can contact him at wayne.olson@palmspringsca.gov or reach his colleague at dean.grubel@palmspringsca.gov.

The council is expected to take up the item again at its next regular meeting.

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