Jan. 26 Daily Briefing: McLean show previewed, hotel revamp approved, and more

Happy Monday, everyone, where we’re sending congratulations to Jackie and Shadow, the Big Bear Valley eagles who welcomed the first egg of the season to their nest on Friday afternoon. With eggs typically laid three-to-five days apart,  and Jackie’s track record of laying every three days, there’s bound to be more egg-citement on the horizon. Make sure to tune in to the live cams here.

🎶 Setting the mood: “Manic Monday” by The Bangles

LEADING OFF

Don McLean brings ‘American Pie’ home to The Plaza Theatre

Don McLean, the 80-year-old singer-songwriter behind “American Pie,” returns to Palm Springs this week for a concert that doubles as a celebration of a life steeped in music, memory and desert living.

Driving the news: McLean is set to perform at 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 30, at the renovated Palm Springs Plaza Theatre, a venue he says he’s eager to experience firsthand.

• Tickets range from $74 to $98 and are available through Ticketmaster and palmspringsplazatheatre.com.

Why it matters: McLean’s appearance isn’t just another tour stop — it’s a homecoming of sorts. A longtime Palm Desert resident, he has woven the Coachella Valley into his later-life story, embracing its music history, celebrity lore and midcentury charm.

Flashback: McLean rose to pop immortality with “American Pie,” his 1971 epic that traced America’s loss of innocence and helped usher long-form storytelling into mainstream pop music.

• He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2004 and still owns one of the most valuable publishing catalogs in music.

Between the lines: Though he says he’s done recording new albums or writing songs, McLean remains deeply engaged as a performer and cultural observer, attending concerts, Modernism Week and desert landmarks tied to icons like Bing Crosby and Gene Autry.

• “I will continue to sing as long as I can,” McLean said, adding that the Plaza Theatre show is something he’s genuinely excited about.

Read Bruce Fessier’s complete story here

BRIEFLY

🏨 Hotel expansion wins unanimous committee approval

• The Palm Springs Architectural Review Committee (ARC) unanimously approved a 179-room hotel development at 1973 North Palm Canyon Drive at its meeting on Jan. 21, one week after the Planning Commission received about 70 public comments opposing the project over concerns about noise, traffic and environmental impacts.
  
• The development will transform the vacant former Days Inn site into five buildings with renovated and new construction, including a restaurant fronting Palm Canyon Drive. The 4.23-acre property previously operated as a 107-room hotel.
  
• Details: Committee members focused on design elements, landscaping and on-site traffic flow rather than broader neighborhood concerns. The approval includes one condition requiring relocation of an accessibility lift at Building B.
• Dive deeper with our complete story

TODAY’S FEATURED EVENTS

California Winter League baseball
10 a.m. | Palm Springs Stadium
The California Winter League is now fully underway, featuring a diverse field of teams hailing from across North America, organized into two competitive divisions. Games will be played throughout the week. ($10)

HangingOUT! – Men’s Monday Coffee
4:30 p.m. | Social Cafe & Play Lounge
Join the group for coffee, chat, and chew! No RSVPs necessary.

Monday Night Dance Party with Leanna and Miguel
5 p.m.| V Wine Lounge and Martini Bar
Join Leanna and Miguel for a night of dancing to jazz, Latin, pop, disco, and more. ($5)

Zone Palm Springs Community Open House
5:30 p.m. | Convention Center
Palm Springs is updating its Zoning Code to plan for the future and is seeking community feedback on addressing growing housing and affordability challenges in the city. 

Desert Horticultural Society January Meeting
5:30 p.m. | Mizell Center
Get an inside look at The Living Desert’s Gardens with Arian Noorzai, the Gardens Curator, whose impressive background includes the Denver Zoo, the San Diego Zoo and Safari Park, the Getty, and Descanso Gardens.

See all events here

SAVE THE DATE

• Third Annual Palm Springs Readers’ Festival from Jan. 30 through Feb. 1
  
• Friends of the Palm Springs Library Book Sale on Jan. 31 at Our Saviors Lutheran Church
  
• Palm Springs Police Department open house on Jan. 31
  
• NUANCE Modernism Art Exhibit on Feb. 6 at Janssen Art Space
  
• Palm Springs Speaks with Cheech Marin on Feb. 10
  
• Modernism Week from Feb. 12 through 22 throughout the city
  
• Palm Springs Modernism Show on Feb. 14 and 15 at the convention center

Submit your event here

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AND FINALLY …

If you missed Sunday’s Palm Springs Profiles piece in your inbox, here’s your chance to catch up on a community builder worth knowing.

Meet Megan: Megan Robinson moved to Palm Springs and struggled to find culturally relevant events that welcomed people of color, so she decided to create her own solution — and accidentally built a community in the process.

The journey: What began as a personal weekly calendar of concerts, hikes, fitness groups, art shows and community gatherings evolved into @palmspringsincolour on Instagram, launched in March, and later the Palm Springs in Colour Social Club in late 2025.

• The Instagram account grew from a few hundred followers to nearly 5,000 within months.

Why it matters: Robinson’s project has become a community connector, helping residents discover inclusive spaces and find belonging in the desert. For a transplant from the Philadelphia suburbs who dreamed of desert life for two decades, she’s now helping others feel at home too.

The backstory: Robinson was drawn to Palm Springs’ layered diversity — its LGBTQ+ community, large Latino population and Native land — seeing it as a naturally safe space. She just needed help finding where that diversity gathered.

What’s next: Get to know Megan in Maggie Miles’ full profile here.