What to watch for at the next Palm Springs City Council meeting
The Palm Springs City Council is back in action on Thursday, Jan. 13, after a holiday break. Up for discussion are issues related to homelessness, housing and development, art, and infrastructure. We hit the highlights.
HOMELESSNESS
- A potential site for a homeless services center is on the agenda of a 3:30 p.m. closed session (where property sales are typically discussed). You may recall that late last year a potential buyer of the property agreed to let the city step in as the buyer. The city is currently in escrow on the property at an agreed sale price of $5.9 million.
- Where will money needed to purchase the property and run the services center come from? Aside from some funds already in place, and others promised by Riverside County, both the city and county hope to secure money available through the Homekey2 program administered by the California Department of Housing and Community Development. A resolution authorizing the city manager to move forward and work with the county on securing those funds is on the Council’s regular meeting agenda under new business. The regular meeting starts at 5:30 p.m.
HOUSING AND DEVELOPMENT
- Municipalities throughout the country are struggling with the issue of fulfillment centers — large buildings that hold inventory for businesses that sell goods, such as Amazon — and Palm Springs is no different. Despite many pre-application meetings with potential developers of these massive buildings, none have moved forward with an application. Issues around a lack of guarantee for variances from existing standards for height limits and parking requirements are reported to have been a hindrance. To overcome the issues, city staff recommended amending zoning rules for manufacturing and industrial land that were first adopted in the 1990s. The Planning Commission had the amendments on its plate last November, but members had a handful of concerns about building height, traffic, and environmental impacts surrounding fulfillment centers. The Commission ultimately decided to form a subcommittee to discuss those concerns further. The City Council will discuss the zoning rule changes during its Thursday meeting. There’s a 227-page document you can peruse if you’re interested in the background.
- A new state law aimed at increasing available housing in cities (SB 9) went into place Jan. 1. The City Council has an “urgency ordinance” on its agenda to make sure the law applies in Palm Springs. If approved, it would allow residents in single-family neighborhoods to subdivide lots into two —provided the lot is no smaller than 1,200 square feet — to create up to four units total per parcel.
INFRASTRUCTURE
- Approval to go out for bid on the construction of two new traffic signals is on the Council’s consent agenda — where several items are approved in one fell swoop. The new signals will be located at Rosa Parks Road and Indian Canyon and at San Rafael Drive and Avenida Caballeros. Both signals are in direct response to concerns about speeding brought up by members of the community.
- Every year the city puts new slurry seal on streets. Approval to ask for bids for that work is included on the agenda. Want to know where the work will be happening this year? Check out the list in this document.
- The city is going to replace the chain link fence shared between the wastewater treatment plant and Demuth Park with a block wall. Approval to spend more than $230,000 to do that will also be on the consent agenda. The Council is also expected to approve going out to bid to replace some aging equipment at the wastewater facility.
SAFETY
- The Council is expected to approve speed limits in the city — including some lower limits — on more than 200 street segments. The complete list is available here. The Post reported on three dozen streets where the speeds will be lowered here.
- Also on the agenda is approval of more than $500,000 for replacement of equipment needed by the Palm Springs Fire Department, as well as permission to enter into an agreement with the firefighters’ union for salaries and other conditions of employment.
THE ARTS
- The “Popsicles” artwork by John Cerny, located on a vacant lot at 605 Sunny Dunes Rd., is on loan to the city. There’s a request for $1,950 to extend that loan to June 30 on the Council agenda.
- Final approval is being sought for Tysen Knight to repair damage and graffiti on the 50 painted benches that are seen Downtown, as well as a traffic box that was also painted as part of a Public Arts Commission community grant program.
AND FINALLY
- The Coachella Valley Small Business Development Center (SBDC) has approached the city about participating in a four-week program titled “Palm Springs MADE,” designed to aid city-based small businesses get up and running. Over the four-week period, participants will create their business, build their Palm Springs MADE marketplace vending booth, and create a successful e-commerce website. On the consent agenda, the city is being asked to wave business license and VillageFest fees, as well as match $7,500 in grant monies for the small businesses provided by Sun Community Federal Credit Union.
BRIEFLY
CHALK ART: Organizers of a weekend chalk art festival March 19 through 20 are seeking both professional and students artists to participate, they said last week. The 10th Annual Palm Springs Chalk Art Festival, which runs from 7 a.m. until 5 p.m. both days, will feature artists creating chalk art pieces on Museum Way in Downtown Palm Springs near near the Forever Marilyn statue. Additionally, there will be live music, hands-on art activities for children, and much more. Professional artists can apply to be in the festival at this link; Student artists can apply here; Vendors can apply here; and additional information can be found here. All art will be judged and awards will be handed out. Admission is free, and proceeds from the event go to Palm Springs Sunup Rotary Foundation for Rotary student leadership programs, charitable organizations in the Coachella Valley, and many other projects.
TODAY’S CALENDAR
MIZELL CENTER: The Mizell Center, 480 S. Sunrise Way, hosts a widows or widowers group, a Scrabble and cribbage players group, bingo, and more, starting at 8 AM. You can find a complete list of all today’s classes online here.
HUMAN RIGHTS: The city’s Human Rights Commission meets at 5:30 PM, via Zoom. Information on how to participate in the meeting, or simply view it, can be found here.
COVID TESTING
Need to get tested for COVID-19 but can’t find an at-home test and don’t know where to turn? Aside from asking your regular healthcare provider (if you have one), The Post maintains a list of places in and around the city that you can check. Please note the information is accurate at the time this email was sent, but may change.
COMMUNITY CONNECTION
Curious about when various governmental agencies meet or if trash collection will be delayed? We’ve compiled the list below in an effort to help with the most common questions our neighbor have. Is something missing? Let us know at editor@thepalmspringspost.com
City of Palm Springs calendar of events | Official city contacts
Palm Springs Library calendar of events
Palm Springs Unified School District calendar | Board meetings
Desert Healthcare District Board of Directors meeting agendas
Mizell Center calendar of events
Police reports | Submit a police report
Code compliance reports | Report a code violation
Current road projects and closures
Palm Springs Disposal pickup schedule
Currently active development projects
