Sept. 20 Daily Briefing: Airport expansion, Marilyn could be headed for a vote, and more

Mark here, with what feels like a confession. You may be aware of recent technological developments like ChatGPT, Open AI, and more. You might be curious about how newsrooms are utilizing these tools, and whether we utilize them. The short answer is we don’t use them to write content for The Post and don’t plan to use them. The confession is that I totally use them in both my day job and on a side project, where I’m teaching AI how not to do this (or this). 

Want to know what I’m up to, what advice I offer others, and how I see AI playing a role in newsrooms? You can read this article from Fast Company that came out yesterday, or this one from Harvard’s Neiman Lab a few months ago. ~ Mark

🎶 Setting the mood: “Fly Me To The Moon” by Frank Sinatra

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LEADING OFF

Big changes for little airport? Residents get first look

More than 150 locals turned out to the Palm Springs Convention Center Tuesday evening to learn more about significant changes that could be coming to the Palm Springs International Airport (PSP).

Driving the news: PSP officials showed off early renderings of different layouts that would expand the airport terminal as a part of the new airport master plan.

• The current master plan is from 2015, and The Federal Aviation Administration recommends airports update their master plans every seven to 10 years.

By the numbers: Last year, PSP saw about 3 million passengers. An analysis estimates that by 2042 the airport can expect to accommodate 6 million.

Why it matters: To plan for double the number of passengers, the airport will need to double the number of parking spaces and terminal square footage, and, most importantly, increase the number of gates from 18 to 32. 

Zoom in: Four different alternatives are being considered for the expansion:

• Two of the options would expand the existing terminal but arrange the additions in different ways.
  
• A third option presents a more dramatic change with entirely new concourses and an expansion of the central open space.
  
• The final option would completely replace the existing terminal with a new structure to the east of the existing terminal and move the airport entrance to Kirk Douglas Way.

But wait: Neil McLean, an architect with Gensler, assured the audience that the midcentury Donald Wexler-designed building would be preserved.

• “It may or may not have any airport functions,” he said. “It could be used for office space or other civic fashions.”

Next steps: PSP officials and staff will hold several additional open houses as they refine the concepts and develop cost estimates. By October, they hope to bring recommendations to the City Council.

Read our complete story here.

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IN OTHER NEWS

🗳️Marilyn headed to a vote?

• The next battle over the “Forever Marilyn” statue, temporarily placed on Museum Way in 2021, could happen at the ballot box. A group led by the chair of a local hotel association seeks to let voters decide its fate in March 2024. [KESQ]
  
  
• “Protect Our Marilyn” has initiated a campaign aimed at supporting Museum Way’s permanent closure, potentially turning it into a private road and allowing for the statue’s permanent display.
  
  
• Looking back: The statue has sparked controversy since its 2021 installation. A lawsuit argues the city failed to conduct a required environmental review for the street’s three-year, City Council-approved closure. An appeals court panel upheld the case, citing grounds to challenge the lack of review.

🏥New lease, purchase proposed for hospital

• The private company managing Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs has proposed a new 30-year lease and wants the option to purchase the hospital when it ends. [The Desert Sun]
  
  
• During a special meeting with the public agency that owns the hospital — The Desert Healthcare District — Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare proposed a $75 million initial payment when the current lease expires in 2027, followed by annual lease payments that would total more than $600 million.
  
  
• Bottom line: At the end of the proposed lease, Tenet hopes to own the hospital. It purchased JFK Memorial Hospital in Indio in 1979.

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TODAY’S EVENTS

Palm Springs Sunshine Sisters Breakfast
7:50 a.m. | Elmers
Join the Palm Springs Sunshine Sisters and start your day off right with breakfast and conversation.

Business Expo & Taste of Palm Springs
5 p.m. | Indian Canyons Golf Resort
The Palm Springs Chamber of Commerce annual networking will showcase more than 40 valley restaurants, accompanied by wine and beer tasting, a cocktail bar, and live entertainment from a Queen tribute band. ($30)

Palm Springs Airport Commission
5:30 p.m. | In-person and online
The agenda for the regular meeting includes an update on the capital improvement program. 

Lecture: Preservation on the Reservation
6 p.m. | Palm Springs Public Library
Learn about issues, concerns, collaborations, and successes within the Tribal Historic Preservation Office. Also included, a highly anticipated overview of Indigenous Archaeology at the excavations at Séc-he (the sacred spring).

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SAVE THE DATE

• PSUSD Diversity and Racial Equity Conference  on Sept. 30 at Palm Springs Convention Center.
  
  
• Boo2Bullying Wellness Festival  on Sept. 30 at Sunrise Park.
  
  
• Evening Under The Stars  benefitting AAP – Food Samaritans on Oct. 14 ($200)

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AND FINALLY …

🐾 Each week, The Post partners with a local animal shelter to feature one or more of the many animal companions ready for a new home in our community.

Today we invite you to meet the beautiful Fran, a seven-year-old female cat who’s been at the Palm Springs Animal Shelter since July. Staff say Fran is very friendly and will make you feel loved the minute you meet her with her nasally purr.

• “She can be a chatterbox when in the mood and she is in the mood quite frequently,” staff said.

If you’re interested: You can visit the shelter at 4575 E. Mesquite Ave. Hours are 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. on all days except for Tuesdays (open for intake and clinic only) and Thursdays (1 p.m. until 7 p.m.). You can always call the shelter at (760) 416-5718. Make sure to check out all the other pets at the shelter here. And get a jump start on adoption by completing the form here.

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📚 Kendall  is on her way to reading every David Grann book.

🤔 Mark asked Open AI to write something that could go here. It came up with this: “Mark is finding solace in the simple pleasures that bring happiness.” That’s deep!

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