City rejects lawsuit settlement proposal that includes relocating ‘Forever Marilyn’ statue, suggests plaintiffs deal with its owners

The Palm Springs City Council has rejected a settlement proposal from a group suing over the location of the “Forever Marilyn” statue, with City Attorney Jeff Ballinger suggesting that the organization enter into mediation with the statue’s owner.

In a letter dated Dec. 6, attorneys for the Committee to Relocate Marilyn (CReMa) informed Ballinger that they would drop the group’s lawsuit if the city agreed to permanently move the statue off Museum Way and pay some of the organization’s legal fees. In response by phone on Dec. 15, reiterated in a letter sent this week, Ballinger said the offer had been rejected after consideration by the Council.

“[T]he City would encourage your client and PS Resorts to consider participating in a mediation of this matter,” Ballinger wrote.

The proposal is the latest in the ongoing legal battle over the statue’s location in the middle of Museum Way. At issue is whether the city had the right to temporarily close a portion of the roadway in 2021.

With the temporary closure expiring next year, the Council voted 4-1 in a special meeting earlier this month to begin the process to permanently vacate the street. City officials believe that action would render the current lawsuit moot.

The lawsuit was kicked back down to a trial court earlier this year, and is scheduled for its next hearing on Friday.

The permanent closure could take months to be official, but also makes an approved ballot measure — spearheaded by the statue’s owner, PS Resorts — unnecessary. That could potentially save tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars.

In an email response to Ballinger sent Tuesday, CReMa’s attorney said that her clients thought mediation would only delay the case further.

“In my experience, meditation can be helpful when parties are attempting to find a compromise solution between differing settlement positions,” wrote attorney Amy Minteer. “But here, my clients have made several offers and have never received any proposal from the City or PS Resorts.

“If either party would like to make a settlement proposal, my clients would be happy to consider it. However, without such a responsive proposal, my clients do not believe mediation would be a productive use of the parties’ time.”

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