Updated General Plan adopted, with Boulders and Crescendo properties now open space

The Palm Springs City Council approved an updated General Plan Thursday night, focusing on sustainability, economic diversification and housing opportunities. The plan, developed over six years, aims to guide the city’s growth through 2040 and beyond.

In a significant move, the council voted to designate the Boulders and Crescendo properties as open space, ending years of debate over the parcels’ future.

The updated plan — available to read here — includes revisions to the land use, circulation and safety elements. Planning Director Chris Hadwin presented it to the council following months of work and community input, highlighting its focus on addressing key challenges and leveraging the city’s unique assets.

“This revised plan will serve as the city’s guiding policy with specific goals and actions that will help us achieve our shared vision on how we grow and develop into 2040 and beyond,” Hadwin said.

The council’s decision to designate the Boulders and Crescendo properties as open space marks the end of a 20-year controversy. The parcels, previously owned by Grit Development and considered for low-density housing development, were conveyed to the city as part of a settlement in a lawsuit years ago.

To comply with California’s Housing Element requirements, the city designated another parcel on Gene Autry Trail north of Mission Drive as high-density residential to absorb the density that would have been on the Boulders and Crescendo sites.

Tim O’Bayley, a resident of the adjacent Little Tuscany neighborhood, fought to protect the land for many years. On Friday, he expressed relief at the council’s decision and gave credit to District 2 Councilmember Jeffrey Bernstein, who helped push for the designation.

“We were always cognizant of the fact that property owners have the right to develop land in ways that are consistent with the city’s General Plan and zoning,” he wrote in an email. “We simply pushed back to urge the city and the developer to produce a better housing product with less density that was more consistent with the neighborhood.”

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