Palm Springs council advances review of massive tribal warehouse project, hopes for joint meeting

The Palm Springs City Council on Wednesday reviewed plans for a proposed warehouse complex on tribal land in north Palm Springs, adopting a “conformity report” on the project and moving forward with plans for a future joint meeting with the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians.

The proposal, called the Desert Mountain View Business Park, would add a 2.85 million-square-foot industrial warehouse complex on tribal land in north Palm Springs. The complex would be split into four warehouse buildings on 217 acres of Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians trust land west of Tipton Road, south of Interstate 10 and north of Highway 111. Each warehouse building would range in size from 248,000 to over 1.1 million square feet.

The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians is the landowner and lead agency on the project. Shopoff Realty Investments, operating as Desert Mountain View, LLC, is the developer under a long-term ground lease.

Limited City Authority

Because the project sits on tribal trust land, the city’s role is “advisory to the tribe, which maintains sovereignty over decisions on their land in accordance with their Constitution and applicable federal and tribal law,” according to the city staff report. The city council does not have authority over approving or denying the project, but does have the ability to review and comment on the project under a land use agreement set between the tribe and the city in 1998.

This typically takes the form of a “conformity report” prepared by the city that analyzes the project’s impacts and can recommend a list of nonbinding conditions. Under the land-use agreement, once the conformity report is adopted, a joint meeting can be scheduled between the city and the tribe, where the city can discuss nonbinding recommendations and the public can make additional comments.

Public Opposition and Meeting Request

More than 20 people spoke in opposition to the warehouse project at Wednesday’s meeting, expressing concerns over truck traffic, air pollution and disruption to the desert landscape. Many commenters acknowledged the city’s limited authority, but asked that the city request the joint meeting with the tribe to allow additional public input.

“We want to share our deep respect for tribal sovereignty and make sure the public is aware that ultimately the tribe will make the final decision, not the city council,” said former Palm Springs city councilmember and current Oswit Land Trust boardmember Geoff Kors. “That said, the city council will play a big role here.”

In a letter submitted to the city council before the meeting, Oswit Land Trust asked that the council vote that the project doesn’t conform with the city’s General Plan and Zoning code, which designates the land as open space.

“What you’ve heard tonight is not anger, it is care. It is people who love Palm Springs and want its future to reflect its values,” said Jane Garrison, founder of Oswit Land Trust.

The initial staff report had recommended waiving the joint meeting. Palm Springs Planning Director Chris Hadwin said that recommendation was based on recent precedent in the city, which hasn’t requested such a meeting since around 2002.

Council Decision

The city council ultimately voted to submit the conformity report. Councilmembers and staff repeatedly stressed that submitting the conformity report is a necessary step to pass along recommendations and hold a joint meeting — even without submitting the conformity report, the tribe could continue with plans regardless of considering the city’s recommendations.

Hadwin and other city planning staff noted that while the conformity report outlines how the project might be approached if it was under the city’s jurisdiction, the city’s General Plan and zoning don’t actually apply to the tribal land.

“The City Council has concluded that the Project does not conform with the City of Palm Springs General Plan and Zoning Code, and that incorporation of the accompanying conditions would better align the Proposed Project with the City’s and the Tribe’s regular development standards, where possible,” states the city’s resolution. A list of recommended but nonbinding conditions of approval will also be transmitted to the tribe. The list includes conditions such as public art fees, park development fees, dust control measures and improvements along Tipton Road, among others.

Late Notice Concerns

Also at issue among community members and the city council was late notice regarding the project, which was first made public by the tribe in October but only came to the attention of many community members on Friday, when it was published as part of the city council agenda. City staff received plans for the proposed project in mid-October.

Palm Springs City Manager Scott Stiles apologized for not providing the public with more time to review the project and associated documents. “As staff we clearly missed the mark,” he said, adding that city staff will “really evaluate that going forward especially for these sensitive issues.”

Next Steps

The joint meeting would likely be scheduled sometime in January or February. The tribe also completed its own draft environmental impact report, which was open for public comments through Monday. Any public comments submitted in response to that report received by that deadline will need to be addressed in the tribe’s final environmental impact report. Final tribal action on the project is expected sometime around late winter or spring, according to Hadwin.

The facility isn’t the first planned warehouse in the area, which has seen steady growth in warehouses in both Palm Springs and Desert Hot Springs city limits over the past several years. Recent approvals include a pair of warehouse buildings totaling 2 million square feet located at North Indian Canyon Drive and 18th Street, while a 730,000-square-foot warehouse is located near Indian Canyon Drive and 19th Avenue.

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