Palm Desert City Council - Study Session, February 13, 2025

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[00:04:46] Mayor Pro Tem Evan Trubee: Okay, it is 3:00 p.m. on the dot, so we are ready to open the study session portion of our meeting. I'll turn it over to... and I just want to start by saying, unfortunately, Mayor Harnik is not here today, so I am Mayor Pro Tem Evan Trubee, and I...
[00:05:00] Mayor Pro Tem: ...will be serving as mayor for today's meeting, so I will turn it over to our City Manager.
[00:05:04] City Manager: Thank you, Mayor Pro Tem. Mayor, I'd like to introduce Nick Maloney and Richard Kenon, who are going to take us through a quick update on the circulation element of the General Plan. As Council is aware, in the last few years we've had a number of statutory changes necessitating that the City rethink its General Plan, rethink all the elements of its General Plan, in order to have defensible objective standards with the proper rationale behind them. So this is a huge update, a large project for our planning department, and we wanted to at least stop, make sure you were aware of what was going on, get any feedback from you that you might have, and we'll continue on. So at this point, I'll turn it over to Nick.
[00:05:50] Nick Maloney: Thanks, Todd. Good afternoon, Mayor Pro Tem and honorable Council members. Nick Maloney with the planning division. Actually joined by our consultants, Brian Wolf and Jason Pack with Fehr & Peers. The City entered into a contract with Fehr & Peers for a professional services agreement to amend our circulation element. And so today we have a presentation that'll be led by Mr. Wolf, outlining some of the initial considerations that we'll introduce here and then bring back with more details as we develop them. So with that, I'm actually going to turn it over to Brian.
[00:06:30] Brian Wolf: Awesome. Thank you, Nick. Hello, Council. So yes, my name is Brian Wolf, joined alongside Jason Pack here from Fehr & Peers, and we're going to provide an update so far on our progress with the circulation element. So just to give you an overview of our agenda, we're going to start off with why—what's prompting the update of the circulation element. Then we'll touch in on some of the existing conditions within the city that we found through our first round of work on the project, as well as going over some of the recent changes since the last circulation element update in 2016. Then we'll focus on some of the key considerations for Palm Desert before diving into some of the discussion areas that we want to raise as we focus on updating some of the policies in the circulation element. And then we'll finish up with some next steps and questions. So there's three main drivers behind what is bringing the change to the circulation element. The first is there's a whole host of state laws that have come out since the last update in 2016 relating to things like VMT from SB 743 and how that relates to CEQA and how projects are processed through the environmental process. Also SB 932, which is the Safe Systems approach and looking at Vision Zero, which the City is already committed towards with the Vision Zero Action Plan, and so trying to bring that into alignment with the circulation element. We also have AB 98, which relates to truck routes, and then SB 330, which among other things requires that the General Plan include objective design standards for roadways as part of housing projects in the City. In addition, there's been a lot of local development since 2016, particularly in the northern portion of the city, and then of course all the different transportation projects that really came out of the last circulation element, so things like CV Link, the San Pablo Corridor, and really trying to build those into the update and then find out what's next for improvements in the city. So just to give you a brief background on what a circulation element is, it's one of the required elements within the City's General Plan, and it lays out a citywide vision and a policy framework for transportation improvements. So the idea is that all future decisions for the City through the capital improvement projects, any other actions, would tie back into this policy framework. It includes a set of goals and policies to guide that decision-making. It also is required to include a map showing the City's roadway network, as well as the classifications of those roadways, so which ones are those arterial roadways, collectors, etc. The circulation element should also include considerations for bikes, pedestrians, transit users, as well as goods movement, and then more recently, some of the legislation does require a focus on safety as well. So the current circulation element in the City is pretty robust. It covers all modes of transportation. For roadways, the City has a really strong layered network system which prioritizes different modes on different streets, and this is in line with state goals for complete streets and providing travel options. With this circulation element, there is the opportunity to update some of those classifications based on traffic volumes.
[00:10:00] Speaker 1: as well as the land use changes that we've seen in the city. And so, for example, some roads that are currently classified as those vehicle-oriented arterials, we could potentially consider classifying as a balanced arterial that includes enhanced bike facilities. Speaking of bikes, the circulation element includes policies for bikes, pedestrians, and golf carts. It lays out some of the improvements that are now underway with CV Link, Walk and Roll PD,
[00:10:30] Speaker 1: and so those projects will be incorporated and maintained in the circulation element update. And we also want to tie in some of those new projects that have come out of things like the Vision Zero Action Plan. And then third, public transportation. So, the city plays a supportive role in transit. Of course, SunLine is the prime operator of transit in the Coachella Valley region, but the circulation element does allow us to consider ways to be a supportive partner in that. And the project team has met with SunLine to discuss their long-term vision and make sure that's incorporated into our update.
[00:11:08] Speaker 1: So, zooming out, just some of the big picture stats when it comes to transportation in the city. No surprise that driving alone, or driving in general, is the predominant mode choice, and this is true across all income levels. So, we see on the chart here that for lower-income, middle-income, and higher-income commuters, it's fairly similar, with around 80 to 85% of commute trips being either driving alone or carpooling. We have seen since COVID the rise in work-from-home, particularly in that higher-income group there. And so, this is another factor that we do want to incorporate into the update of how do we respond to changing commute patterns because of COVID. Despite this work-from-home rise, traffic volumes have grown in the city since 2016 around 7%, and this tracks with the household population and employment growth that we've seen in the city.
[00:12:08] Speaker 1: Another key area we wanted to focus on as part of our initial review was safety. And so, we took a look at the collisions in the last five years—I realize there's a typo here, but 2019 to 2024—with around 2,984 collisions. This does include the property damage only collisions. And among those, there are 18 fatalities and 49 serious injuries. So, the circulation element, together with other efforts including that Vision Zero Action Plan that's underway, we'll make sure and try to focus on addressing, improving roadway safety. And so, we did want to dive a little deeper into these collisions, and so we tended to group them in two areas: whether that's the city center, so the Highway 111 corridor, Fred Waring, and that downtown area. We did see some of the common causes, or the top causes, were speed, improper turns, and unsafe starting and stopping. Whereas outside of the city center, the causes were somewhat similar, somewhat different, with speed, improper turns, and unsafe lane changes being those key causes there.
[00:13:18] Council Member 1: What is an unsafe start and stop?
[00:13:23] Speaker 1: That would be something along the lines of perhaps being parked and kind of accelerating out of a parking spot, or illegally parking or stopping in the roadway.
[00:13:39] Council Member 2: The data above—2,984 recorded collisions, 18 fatalities, 49 injuries, 2019 to 2023—give me some perspective, if you don't mind, for a city our size. Good, bad, average?
[00:13:50] Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean, this is fairly average, I'd say. We'd have to double-check and kind of look at some of the data in more detail, but as far as this, I mean, it is, you know, unfortunate, those fatalities, and that is definitely a priority of this effort is to look at that and find what ways the transportation system can address that. Because we know it's a multifaceted approach; it's driver behavior as well as, you know, the infrastructure, and so tying that together.
[00:14:16] Council Member 3: And then I'll just chime in, then, too. What about the roundabouts? Now that we have people having issues with those, does this data break out the roundabouts?
[00:14:24] Speaker 1: Yeah, so one thing we actually did look at in those city center collisions was what changes happened along San Pablo. Since, you know, in 2019 those improvements were not complete, and now they are complete. And so, we did look at San Pablo specifically, and the number of collisions on San Pablo decreased from an average of nine per year to five per year. And we also did see a notable decrease in speed from 30 miles per hour average speed to 26 miles per hour average speed. So, the improvements are doing what they're intended to do. And so, while there might be some of those property damage collisions in a...
[00:15:00] Staff: ...roundabout. We're definitely seeing those fatalities and serious injuries decline on San Pablo.
[00:15:08] Council Member: Before we skip ahead in seeing the number of fatalities and serious injuries, you mentioned this includes property damage. Is there a way to gauge if this was vehicle-to-vehicle, vehicle-pedestrian, vehicle-cyclist, or motorcyclist? Or is there a breakdown on who is at greater risk?
[00:15:23] Staff: Yes, so we—I don't know the numbers off the top of my head, but I know we did prep an existing conditions report that evaluated those pedestrian collisions and bicycle collisions, and we can definitely provide that information after this.
[00:15:35] Council Member: Thank you. It would be important to look at how we address the walk and roll of increased visibility signage, or what we can do to highlight—I mean, we can't stop vehicle-to-vehicle, they should be paying attention, but if there's, you know, the pedestrian element, we'd love to look at it. Thank you.
[00:15:54] Staff: All right. Yeah, so this slide just highlights some of those changes and kind of what's next for transportation in the city. And so, the last circulation element update put into play a lot of the improvements on corridors like San Pablo, and so this effort allows us to identify some of those other areas in the city where we might see improvements like this and to put them in motion going forward.
[00:16:19] Staff: So, a couple of key things to keep in mind, and that we, along with the city, are keeping in mind when updating the circulation element: first, that policies must be horizontally consistent. So that means all the policies and goals within the circulation element should be heading in the same direction. So if the city, you know, has goals on walkability, which we know is a key priority for the city, understanding that there might be some policies that come out of this effort that maybe, you know, would be going against that. So we want to be mindful of that and making sure all policies are leading in that same direction.
[00:16:57] Staff: Similarly, policies must be vertically consistent, so between the elements. This circulation element update is focused only on updating that circulation element, and so we're going to be reviewing the policies in the other elements of the general plan, including, you know, walkability in downtown, mixed-use development, that kind of stuff, tying in to make sure that the circulation element policies support those changes.
[00:17:23] Staff: In addition, the plan should align with the funding, environmental, and political constraints, recognizing that, you know, we not only have to construct these improvements, but the additional costs and responsibilities with operating and maintaining them. And so, especially as the city is starting to, you know, reach its mature status with development, recognizing that those improvements need to be analyzed on their full life-cycle cost.
[00:17:49] Staff: And then, of course, all policies should reflect the goals and values of the city. And so this effort allows us to kind of hear from you at the beginning as we work on updating those policies, and then we'll, of course, come back to Council and have further discussion on that.
[00:18:06] Staff: So for Palm Desert specifically, we did take a look at the policies in the current circulation element, and City staff and Fehr & Peers did identify three key areas that we want to focus on for this round of improvements and changes.
[00:18:20] Staff: First is on consistency and specificity. We want to make sure that the policies in the circulation element align with other plans that have come into place since 2016, as well as just within the circulation element itself, making sure that the details are there—for example, like the roadway cross-sections, that it provides those details in alignment with SB 330—and then just in general, simplifying the policy language to make sure that those goals reflect City values.
[00:18:53] Staff: Second, just understanding that the goals in transportation have changed since 2016, and this comes out of state legislation, but also just, you know, increased awareness and Council direction here. And so, for example, focusing on minimizing that vehicle miles traveled per capita, with the goal of reducing the distance and time spent traveling, and to really make the transportation system more efficient for everyone that's using it.
[00:19:16] Staff: Also, providing increased travel choices: active transportation, public transportation, improving resiliency, including during, you know, severe weather events, and making sure the transportation system can respond to those.
[00:19:30] Staff: And then also optimizing the existing network. So, recognizing that most of the future improvements in the city are going to be on the existing roadways that we have, and so understanding that and tying that into our policy language.
[00:19:43] Staff: And third is tourism and seasonality. So, recognizing, you know, the ebbs and flows of tourism over the year, and so focusing on managing congestion during that peak period while also determining the appropriate size of...
[00:20:00] Staff: Roadways. We don't want to necessarily size our infrastructure for that peak one-month, two-month period if it means ten months out of the year, um, it might be underutilized. So, striking that balance and making sure, um, we get that right, um, and then also providing travel options for tourists. So, whether that's regionally them coming into, uh, or out of the region, and then also once they're here, um, in the city and Coachella Valley. So, next we're going to jump into five topic areas that we think will be the focus of the circulation element update. Um, for each of these, we're going to highlight what the current General Plan, um, includes in there, as well as some key considerations, um, there we go, uh, key considerations, um, and then some of the initial recommendations. Um, you'll also note that there are, uh, the different state laws in the bottom right corner, um, really just making sure that as part of these recommendations, that the city is, um, consistent with those, um, state law requirements. So, first is Active Transportation, which is, um, a key priority of the city. And so, recognizing that the, you know, the current circulation element, uh, overall does a really good job of, um, facilitating this change, and we've seen a lot of, um, change and improvements since 2016. So, it includes a city-wide network of bike and pedestrian facilities, um, focus on prioritizing improvements near schools, as well as that education and awareness, um, campaigns to really, uh, support, you know, bike riding and, uh, walking to school or walking around the community. Some of the key considerations, um, of course, we have CV Link, other regional improvements, as well as local investments, um, that we want to make sure are tied into this, um, update and make sure all those plans are consistent. And so, some of the recommendations will be updating that circulation element to include those current projects. Um, we do want to, you know, potentially look at evaluating future developments and how they, uh, support pedestrian and bike access, access to them. Um, also as part of the roadway design standards, we'll want to address, um, potentially design standards for, uh, golf cart facilities, ensuring minimum width, um, and that it fits the needs of the city. And then, of course, with the, um, planned rail extension from, um, the Inland Empire and LA to Coachella Valley, um, there's opportunities to have active transportation be that first-last mile, um, connection. So, the next topic, um, relates to safety. So, I know we already touched on this, um, briefly at the beginning, but, um, some of the, the current General Plan, um, does include policies on providing safe routes to school, as well as safe routes to transit, um, and includes those pedestrian and bicycle safety campaigns and, um, provisions for monitoring safety conditions. So, that would be through things like that Vision Zero Action Plan, is really monitoring what is going on on the ground and identifying, um, any potential improvements specifically.
[00:22:57] Councilmember: Can I ask a question on that? I see that, you know, we're, we're talking a lot about the Vision Zero plan, and that still seems to, to focus more on, um, small vehicles or pedestrians. And looking at where it says 'safe movement of heavy vehicles' in this site plan, does it factor in our portion of Highway 74, since we've had, uh, people come and address that those larger vehicles shouldn't even be on that road, and at what point does that impact our side of the roads within the city?
[00:23:28] Staff: Yeah, so actually, one of the big things that has come out is AB 98, which is the new legislation that passed, um, in Sacramento this past September. And, uh, one of the key requirements is that, um, cities are now required to establish truck routes, um, within their city, which Palm Desert currently has identified truck routes, um. And with that establishing truck routes, there's specific provisions about, um, addressing safety, making sure these truck routes avoid, um, what are called sensitive receptors. So, that would be, um, you know, residences, schools, parks, um, those areas where, um, you know, pedestrian activity would be higher. And so, this, um, effort will definitely be focused on, um, identifying those truck routes and making sure, um, there's an, uh, you know, they avoid those sensitive areas. And there will be, um, opportunities for Council to be involved in that. Um, you know, we'll, we'll prepare that draft and present it to you, um, at a later date. Yeah, so, um, as far as some of the recommendations for safety, of course, participating in that Vision Zero effort, um, which is currently in that draft state of reviewing those, um, improvements there, um, and then we'll also be mentioning, as part of the requirements with AB 932, um, the safety corridor prioritization. So, identifying those key corridors in the city where the city is focused on making improvements, um, as far as safety. And this could be through things like raised medians, um, tightening up the turn radii to allow to slow down vehicles as they turn, uh, pedestrian crossing improvements, as was done on...
[00:25:00] Staff Speaker: El Paseo, and then traffic signal improvements as well, and then the truck routes that we just mentioned. So, the third area that the circulation element update will focus on is roadway design standards. And so, the current circulation element provides a high-level overview of what the different roads in Palm Desert would look like. So, these are more at a conceptual level; they do not include, you know, measurements for lane width or bike lanes or any of that. There's also broad policies on roadway design, and then considerations as well for operations and maintenance. And so, some strong foundation that we definitely want to build on as part of this update here. And so, some of the key considerations, of course, SB 330 has prompted us to identify those cross-sections. And the other key area is consistency as well within the General Plan. We have the circulation element, which includes one cross-section for Highway 111, as well as the City Center Area Plan, which proposes a slightly different version. And so, we're really wanting to tie those together and make sure it's one cohesive vision for Highway 111, as well as other roads in the city.
[00:26:11] Staff Speaker: And so, as we work on upgrading or identifying those design standards, we definitely want to incorporate best practices, both what's been done currently in the city as well as across the nation. And so, one area, for example, is narrower travel lanes. These provide the benefit of slowing vehicles as well as creating space for enhanced bike facilities. So, for example, along El Dorado, the planned improvements for a Class IV separated bike facility—by using narrower lanes, there's the space for enhanced bike infrastructure, providing those separated bike facilities whenever possible. As well as within, specifically, the City Center, sidewalk activation with things like outdoor dining. Of course, that's really strong on El Paseo, but potentially some other areas in the city for that, or landscaping or shade during the summer. And then also, driveway access management. This is another area that we can consider to improve safety and reduce the number of conflict points on the roadway where collisions can occur.
[00:27:15] Staff Speaker: So, as part of the recommendations, you know, definitely updating those cross-sections with those specific measurements, and we'll be able to provide that information once we go through the alternatives development process. There's also the opportunity to reclassify streets based on their traffic volumes or their surrounding land use. So, for example, Country Club Drive right now is classified in the circulation element as a vehicle-oriented arterial, which means it would have a potential build-out of six lanes. However, just given the lower traffic volumes on that roadway, as well as the built-out nature along the corridor, we definitely recommend—and we'll be studying this further—looking at potentially reclassifying it as a balanced arterial with bike facilities.
[00:28:07] Staff Speaker: And for Highway 111 specifically, as I mentioned earlier, the current General Plan presents two somewhat similar, somewhat different visions for Highway 111. And so, we'll want to just clarify that, provide additional detail with that. There's also opportunities to explore things like activating the frontage roads where the parking is located, providing enhanced bike facilities—currently, there are no real marked facilities on Highway 111, so we could consider different options there. And then, of course, with 111 being the primary transit corridor in the city, we can identify improvements that might improve transit reliability and service there.
[00:28:52] Staff Speaker: So, the fourth topic is traffic congestion, which is another area of note here. And the General Plan provides a good foundation here, identifying what's in this circulation element as appropriate service levels. The city does also have a level of service policy for transportation, which is, through a development process, reviewing potential effects on the transportation system and uses a Level of Service D threshold with that here. In addition, as part of the current circulation element, the roadway capacity improvements should only be considered after improvements to other modes of travel. And so, really making sure that the system is complete and serving all mode users, and we want to preserve that policy there. And then also, prioritizing improvements to existing infrastructure, especially this will be more important looking ahead at any potential changes in the future. And so, some of the key considerations as we update policies, of course, we want to balance those other priorities. You know, if you want to address traffic...
[00:30:00] Speaker: ...congestion that might come at, you know, changes or impacts to walkability or fiscal responsibility. And so, striking that balance and making sure the city gets that right there. Also, prioritizing transportation improvements on key vehicle corridors. Of course, some roads carry more vehicles than others, and so we want to potentially maximize any improvements there that would serve those vehicles. And then also accommodating growth, recognizing most of the growth is in the northern part of the city, and so how do we address that while also maintaining those other priorities there?
[00:30:35] Speaker: And so, as part of this, updating the level of service policy is one potential route that the city can take. And so, as I mentioned earlier, right now we kind of have a blanket, across-the-board policy that reviews traffic congestion and tries to maintain an adequate level of service, which is that level of service D threshold, which is measured based on an average vehicle delay at an intersection.
[00:31:00] Speaker: And so, there's potential ways to change this, including looking at level of service during the peak season. So, really emphasizing studying how does this development change traffic during that peak, you know, three months in the winter. This does manage that peak season traffic, but also has the potential to overbuild roadways for the other parts of the year. You can also develop a downtown area level of service policy that establishes a lower threshold for the city center, recognizing, of course, that widening is not either feasible or even desired in this area. This would have the effect of promoting that downtown walkability, making sure the streets maintain at most their current size and could potentially be modified. And then also looking at bike, ped, and transit level of service, providing and getting a better understanding of how non-auto modes experience the transportation system, and so evaluating things like pedestrian comfort, transit speed, and that would allow us just to have a better, clear picture of what's going on with improvements.
[00:32:06] Speaker: So, the last topic area is CEQA and VMT. And so, this has really come out of SB 743, which requires cities to establish a vehicle miles traveled, or VMT, threshold for significance as part of the CEQA process. Currently, the city tiers off of the county guidelines for that, and so this effort does allow us to consider that, or reconsider that, and find a city-specific threshold.
[00:32:33] Speaker: So, the current General Plan includes policies to use state cap-and-trade funds for transportation improvements, as well as promote alternative fuels for city vehicles, and then encourage the use of electric vehicles. So, as part of our recommendations, definitely looking at promoting some of these policies since that's a key goal and commitment of Council and the city, and then, of course, establishing that VMT policy to be consistent with state law.
[00:33:03] Speaker: And so, on VMT policy, the city is currently working with Fehr & Peers to identify that appropriate threshold. We're coming before you today with these two initial options. Of course, this is information only, so we'll have further guidance and a recommendation at a later date. But the two thresholds that are potentially open for consideration here are using a 'better than existing' threshold. This essentially means that as you review new developments through the CEQA process, they would be required to be at least as efficient, if not more efficient, than the current conditions. And this would be measured on the VMT per capita, so basically taking the total miles for that project and dividing by the number of people as part of that residential project, employment project, or anything like that, and comparing it to the citywide average. And so, making sure that with this threshold, all new development would be at least as efficient as the current city. This type of threshold tends to be more appropriate for areas with growth, as well as fewer mitigation options that are available, but it is less aggressive in achieving the greenhouse gas reduction goals.
[00:34:15] Speaker: Another option that aligns with the state guidance, particularly for areas that are more developed as well as that have more mitigation options—whether that be public transit, a denser grid of active transportation—would be to apply a '15% better than existing' threshold, meaning that all new developments would have to be at least 15% more efficient than the citywide average. Of course, this has the potential for additional projects to be considered significant environmentally through the CEQA process. So, wrapping up here before we open up to questions and discussion, the city and Fehr & Peers will continue to work on developing those alternatives.
[00:35:00] Staff: For some of those key policy areas, the effort of today was just to really provide you where we are right now, some of the initial things that we're considering. And so we'll have those updated priorities, potential changes to the roadway classifications, as well as the multimodal expansion that we know is a priority of the city. Staff will evaluate these alternatives and then present that preferred alternative to Council. And you'll continue to see this going into the spring and then having that updated circulation element before you in the fall. And with that, Jason and I are happy to answer any questions and open it up to discussion.
[00:35:42] Council Member: As we look at the magic crystal ball of what's ahead—population growth, etc.—and encouraging electric vehicles, has this factored in that as we look at plans for 2040, 2050, and beyond, the vehicles, like the trash trucks for example, the electric batteries that will be required for those will be three times as heavy in order to operate? And if City vehicles are required—actually, all major commercial vehicles will be required to—are we factoring in the way that that will impact our roads and the quality and, what was it, the LOS?
[00:36:21] Staff: Yeah, so one of the things, of course, the added weight of the vehicle could have an increased effect on the operations and maintenance, right? The additional wear and tear on the roadways. And so one of the key priorities in the current circulation element, and we'll want to tie into the future, is to make sure that any improvements are evaluated at their full life cycle cost. And so, making sure that doesn't have a fiscal burden on the city, and understanding that, you know, any improvements not only have a capital cost, but the ongoing maintenance, which would increase with the heavier vehicles.
[00:36:56] Council Member: Yeah, this might be a question for the consultants, but on the last slide before this one, when you were talking about the VMT... Is there an example, when the description requires new developments to be at least 15% below conditions, what's an example of it?
[00:37:17] Staff: Yeah, so as part of how a project becomes more efficient from a vehicle miles traveled perspective, it really comes down to two major things. One would be that densification, as well as mixed-use. And so a perfect example would be an apartment complex that might have, you know, a ground-floor retail. You might be able to, perhaps, if that was like a grocery store or something, instead of having to drive, you would, if you lived in that apartment complex, have direct access to that grocery store. And so that would reduce the trips, and that would be more efficient than maybe the citywide average.
[00:37:52] Council Member: Right. I think the people in North Palm Desert, where all the building is going on, would welcome a Trader Joe's or any other grocery store, so this could be good news for them. Thank you.
[00:38:09] Council Member: So how do you measure current conditions of undeveloped land?
[00:38:15] Staff: Yeah, so, I mean, the current conditions would be a citywide average since that's the baseline that we're using. And so, projects that would be considered would either be to a citywide average, or we can look at a CVAG region average as well. And so that would be the threshold. And so anytime a new project would come in, they would compare themselves to that either City, CVAG, or countywide threshold that can be used. So it's taking into account what's existing beyond just where that project is located.
[00:38:44] Council Member: In terms of the traffic congestion policy options, I do like the idea of a combination of all three applied to different areas. Last week, some of the staff and I went to the local elementary school and talked to some of the parents about some of the safety concerns around the school and Vision Zero. And one of the things I expressed to them is, in certain circumstances, when people feel there is danger and that something should be fixed, and when you look at the data and there's no incidents, part of the reason there are no incidents is because of the perceived danger. One of the reasons roundabouts work is people think that no one knows how to use them, and they all drive safer, and that's part of the self-fulfilling prophecy of those. So through that, I also explained to some of the public as well is, when we are approaching walkability, one of the things we have to consider is that because—you alluded to this—resources aren't infinite, therefore, to improve the pedestrian experience, we...
[00:40:02] Council Member: Often have to reduce the driver experience, and I just state that because I want the public to understand that as we approach these decisions, those are the trade-offs we have to make in an environment of limited resources.
[00:40:17] Staff: Correct. And yeah, there, you know, it's a matter of adjusting those expectations. For example, areas near schools, of course, in the city center, you kind of expect to go slower in those areas, or we want to promote that behavior. And so policies like this can definitely address that. And so, yeah, there's the opportunity for all three of these to be baked into that city LOS policy.
[00:40:41] Mayor Pro Tem: Right. Any more questions? Excellent. Thank you very much for the presentation. Great questions, everybody. And next up, turn it over to Ryan Lamb to give the Council an update on the new library facility project, where we are, and if you have any feedback, please let us know.
[00:41:10] Ryan Lamb: Mayor Pro Tem and fellow council members, thank you. Ryan Lamb, Capital Projects Department here at the city. I have joining me Rashard Kennedy Architects, we have Jeremy Coder and Lee Swanson, as well as our Director of Library Services, Gary Schaefer, will be available to answer any questions or respond to any comments you might have.
[00:41:28] Ryan Lamb: So I'm here today to provide an update on the new library facility project. I'm going to give a brief overview of the timeline of how we got to where we are today. I will have the architect go through the conceptual designs that we've gotten to, and then we'll provide a brief project summary, a budget summary, and then the next steps that we'll be moving forward.
[00:41:52] Ryan Lamb: So back in June of 2023, City Council voted to form a library task force in anticipation of taking over the library from the Riverside County Library System. And later that year in 2023, in September, we hired a consultant, Margaret Sullivan Studios, to work out a framework and a vision moving forward for what the service model would look like, what the programs—operational programs, building programs—for not only the existing facility at the College of the Desert site, but then also moving forward into a potential, into a new facility, what that building program would be.
[00:42:34] Ryan Lamb: So the framework that they developed was community-driven. They held countless community outreach meetings, received feedback, met regularly with the task force, evaluated the feedback, and ultimately put together a document that was used by the library staff to develop programs there at the existing library.
[00:43:03] Ryan Lamb: So continuing in September of 2023, City Council voted to withdraw from the library system and self-operate the library starting on July 1st of 2024. And the city staff, we presented goals to the task force for potential sites for the new library.
[00:43:24] Ryan Lamb: And then later on in February '24, a withdrawal agreement was executed with the Riverside County system, which included $4 million being provided to the city from the county, which could be used for development and construction of the library system for the city. And we also entered a new five-year lease with College of the Desert at that time.
[00:43:50] Ryan Lamb: So going back to September 2023, where we started the conversation with site goals for the new facility, the goals for the site were preferred that it would be a city-owned property, that it would support a comparable size building as the existing at the college, which is around 22,000 square feet, and ultimately we'd like to identify an initial location and then plan for a second location moving forward.
[00:44:17] Ryan Lamb: So the College of the Desert was—the existing facilities, just because we were there, we still wanted to evaluate that and look at that. Obviously, that first goal of city-owned, it didn't meet that one, but we still wanted to look at it and determine the pros and cons of that. Constructing a new facility, there's a vacant lot across the street of Fred Waring. We looked at that option. It was limited to its size because there's no existing parking, no existing infrastructure. The goal for the building to meet the current needs and growth for the library and for the public facility, it didn't meet those goals. And then the third and fourth option, the third being to renovate the sheriff station building...
[00:45:02] Staff Member: On the Civic Center campus, and the site itself was ideal. However, the cost of renovation—it's an older building, it was designed and constructed specifically to be a police station—so the cost to bring it up to current seismic codes and renovate it to meet the library needs, the cost return wasn't as ideal as to demolish the building, the sheriff station site, and build new. So ultimately, that Option 4 was what the library task force had voted unanimously to recommend moving forward with, to demolish and build new on the sheriff station site. So we then went through the process. We released an RFP for Design Services for an architect, and in March of 2024, we had the final interviews with the firms that had qualified. We had 16 firms that responded to the RFP, five of which we shortlisted. And during the interview process, part of the interview process was to present their methods and how they designed and how they would meet the needs of the city and the environment. And four of the five, part of their presentation, they identified a site, not being the sheriff station, to choose something more adjacent to the park itself would be a more preferred option if the City Council would like to entertain that possibility. Nonetheless, we did continue along the path of contracting with Rashard Kennedy Architects. They were ultimately the best-suited candidate for the job, and they were contracted to design a conceptual design for that sheriff station location site. Later that month, in March of 2024, City Council was going through evaluation of the future of the Parkview office building, and Council directed City staff that that building would be demolished and identified that site for the new library moving forward. And then the following month, we amended Rashard Kennedy's scope of work to relocate their design to be the site, the Parkview building site, with two concept design options: what we're calling the low option and the high option. The low option being a $20 million project budget, which at the time was the current approved project budget, and the high option being $30 million for the potential if Measure G were to come to fruition and pass, that that could help increase the budget for the project.
[00:47:52] Staff Member: Thanks. So moving on, July 2024, the city now took over the library operations at the College of the Desert facility. We, the city, dissolved the task force and then started the advisory committee. December of 2024, we presented the conceptual designs to the advisory committee, which they voted unanimously to present to Council via study session, which we're doing. And then the end of that month, December, and early January of 2025, we wanted to make sure that we covered all the current information because the process had been going on for over a year. We went back to College of the Desert to discuss, you know, doing an assessment of the building. We just wanted to verify what all the costs might be if we were to stay there as a potential option. Ultimately, COD told us they have plans for the facility and staying is not an option at the end of our lease. But we still did—we did a high-level, we didn't get into the weeds with it, but we did do a high-level assessment based on the information that we had, knowing that the mechanical system continues to fail and break down. So an overhaul of the mechanical system and plumbing system being millions of dollars just to make the building continue to function, as well as ongoing maintenance that would be required there because it is an older facility.
[00:49:18] Council Member: Can I ask a question?
[00:49:19] Staff Member: Yes.
[00:49:19] Council Member: Looking at the future projections again, now that we know they said goodbye, 'you're not welcome here anymore,' is there an estimate of how much it is going to cost us in that meantime? Because again, these are continuing efforts and spending time there. Some of the staff has expressed their frustration. Do we have any idea how much we're still going to keep pouring down that drain?
[00:49:40] Staff Member: Are you talking about for the next five years at the least?
[00:49:41] Council Member: Yes.
[00:49:43] Staff Member: Yeah, so right now we have a current lease that is in place, so the rent itself is—the lease covers the maintenance, but it doesn't cover any type of replacement needs or anything. So we're in constant ongoing discussions with the College administration to...
[00:50:01] Ryan: ...identify when things are as they're breaking or shutting down, that we're, you know, getting them addressed as efficiently and quickly as possible. And if things become to a point where they need to be replaced, that we're having that conversation. And we've even established a threshold in the budget annually to work with them that if they can't get it done in a timely manner, that we'll get it done and be reimbursed.
[00:50:21] Council Member: Yeah, okay. Yeah, that was one of the reasons why we separated, because we know that there were so many things that were coming on that they weren't taken care of. I know it's a broad question, but with what you've seen, are there things that you expect that are at risk of failing maybe within that five years where we would have to still assume some of that cost? Could you toss out a number?
[00:50:44] Ryan: Uh, I don't, because the way the lease is established is that the college is responsible for the cost. The really, the challenge that we have is the timeliness of the repairs being done. And they've made no commitment to do any extensive replacements, which would be ideal for a more long-term solution. But, you know, looking forward, we are going to try and get out of there as quickly as possible into a facility where we don't have to deal with any of those shortcomings.
[00:51:14] Council Member: Thank you.
[00:51:18] Ryan: You're welcome. All right, so I'll turn it over to Rashard Kennedy Architects. They'll go over the conceptual designs.
[00:51:31] Lee Swanson: Thank you, Ryan, and thank you, Mayor Pro Tem and council members. I'm Lee Swanson with Rashard Kennedy Architects. We're the firm selected to design the conceptual design of the library, and I'm excited to be here today and share with you where we're at with the project. From the onset of the library project, collaboration was key to the community-driven design process. Throughout the program and concept phase, our team of designers and engineers met with the library staff and leadership, City of Palm Desert leadership, Planning, Development, Public Works, Facilities and Maintenance, Visitor Center staff, Public Arts group, and the Library Advisory Committee. Many of the faces in the room here today have met with us in the development of this, so it's nice to see familiar faces here today. We had in-depth conversations about the goals and needs of the library to best serve its community. The vision for the Palm Desert Municipal Library is to create a dynamic and resilient space that provides access to resources and technologies for all residents. The project aims to foster community outcomes and maximize the return on the community's shared investment by creating safe, welcoming, and innovative spaces. The concept plan focuses on functional and aspirational aspects of the program. Shaded exterior program space and interconnected pathways were included to knit the building into the existing fabric of the Civic Center Park. Library functions were separated from the Visitor Center and cafe functions to provide better access control between different operating hours, and the building was placed at an angle to respond to solar orientation, reducing solar heat gain on the southern and western exposures while providing ample northern windows for visual connections to the park. A high and low concept were developed to align with the budget directives. The high option shown on the screen was designed to a $30 million budget and has a total area of just under 26,000 square feet. Cost estimates for the design were reconciled between the architect's estimator and the construction manager to ensure the concept was in budget. The site design integrates existing parking to the east of the site and also a current solar canopy project, which reduces overall site costs for the project. A new drop-off on the west side of the site is also integrated to provide safer access to the building. The layout of the plan focused on operational efficiency and flexible space, providing ideal adjacencies for staff services and separation between active and quiet spaces for acoustical control. The high option provides spaces for traditional library uses, including book stacks, reader area, and a mix of meeting spaces. Innovative spaces, including a maker lab and demonstration kitchen, were also included. Community shared spaces include dedicated space for veteran services, Friends of the Library, space for CVAG meetings, special programs, green room, a new Visitor Center cafe, and a multi-purpose room designed with flexible space that can not only accommodate community and library programs, but can be configured to host City Council sessions and CVAG.
[00:55:02] Presenter: Meetings, exterior program, and circulation are covered by an overhead-shaped canopy shown dashed on the plan. A low option was designed to a $20 million budget and has a total area of just under 17,000 square feet. The reduced footprint includes essential library program spaces and shared space for veteran services, Friends of the Library, space for SEAG meetings (although those meetings will require bookstack reconfiguration to enlarge the multi-purpose area), and a visitor center desk, but no additional dedicated space for the visitor center. Spaces not included are special programs, green room, the demonstration kitchen, maker space, or the cafe, and staff support areas were also reduced in the low option.
[00:56:00] Presenter: The overall building concept was inspired by regional native palm groves and includes three main design elements: the palm tree canopy shading exterior space shown in blue, boulder forms highlighting key program areas shown in red, and riverbed materials defining the ground plane shown in green. The design of the shade canopy is an abstraction of a palm frond, mimicking the shade patterns of the natural environment. The result is a building that uniquely represents the community and its region. This view is from the west side of the site looking east. The library program is on the left, and the visitor center, cafe, and multi-purpose program on the right. Shaded exterior space allows for opportunities to expand interior function when weather permits and provide space for community functions like craft fairs and farmers markets. Cost-effective, durable materials were selected, including plaster, natural stone, and glass, that are all long-lasting and easy to maintain.
[00:57:15] Presenter: The interior provides ultimate flexibility for the library with large open spaces and book stacks on casters so the library can adapt to future needs. Bookstacks are purposefully kept low to provide views across the library, increasing safety for both patrons and staff. Large north-facing windows provide visual connection to the park without added solar heat gain. A simple material palette is provided, including ceiling baffles that continue the palm frond pattern to the interior while providing acoustic control to interior spaces.
[00:57:57] Presenter: The community-driven concept represents a true collaboration between the design team, the library, and the City of Palm Desert. It provides a state-of-the-art library facility that meets the community needs and provides flexibility to adapt to the future. The design knits itself into the Civic Center Park and provides a safe and resilient building that reflects its community and the region where it's placed. Thank you. I'll hand it back to Ryan.
[00:58:35] Ryan: So moving on to the budget summary. As I had mentioned, we have the $4 million that was given back from the county, which we've been using currently for the current contracts that we have in place with our consultants that have done the design work and initial surveys and studies for the project site. And we're anticipating an appropriation of the other $26 million—or, I'm sorry, $26 million for the remainder of the project budget if we were to go with the $30 million, or it would be $16 million if we were to continue with the $20 million project for an appropriation coming up this fiscal year, fiscal renewal. Next steps: based on the feedback that we received from you today, we're looking to move on this quickly, that we would want to get an approval of a conceptual design, what that may be, at our next meeting on the 27th here with City Council, and then move into the schematic design phase, which Richard Kennedy Architects—they are still currently under contract through that schematic design phase, so we'll be able to just hit the ground running right out of the gate. Continuing, that process includes all the entitlements, going to the Planning Commission, going to the Architecture Review Commission, and the deliverables that we would receive from Richard Kennedy Architects would have all the bridging documents for us to put out an RFP for a design-build firm to then ultimately finish the construction documents and then...
[01:00:01] Staff (Ryan): ...build the facility, which we'd be looking, hopefully, being by Q4 of 2027 into the new facility. So with that, any questions?
[01:00:15] Councilmember: I have less of a question than a—actually, are there questions before my comment? Let's ask that first. Okay. Um, I just want to say thank you for all of the concepts that do have an environmental focus. Although it is not a LEED-certified building, I appreciate that it has all of that in mind, and I agree that it should not be LEED-certified in this case because our environment doesn't necessarily work well with it, and it would have a negative impact on our HVAC, having experienced that somewhere else. And I think people may neglect to see how wonderful and deliberate it is to have the north-facing view, not only because it's pretty, but you don't get as much direct sunlight, and where the courtyard is facing west where we won't get that direct light and you have the shading. I think this is beautiful on so many levels, so well-designed, and um, I can't wait.
[01:01:13] Councilmember: I was going to say I'm very impressed with the presentation and the design. The building looks absolutely beautiful, and uh, good work. Look forward to hearing what my colleagues have to say.
[01:01:26] Councilmember: Yeah, beautiful. The demolition of Park View, is that included in the construction estimate?
[01:01:34] Staff (Ryan): Yes, yes. We incorporated the construction costs of the facility in—it's incorporated into that budget estimate.
[01:01:45] Councilmember: Um, thank you. Great presentation, love it. Very excited, of course. Um, gorgeous building. The funding that we were looking at, 14 million, is essentially leftover RDA money, which we need to spend or otherwise we lose it. I think this is a perfect project for that. Um, 4 million we got back from the county through this whole process, that's great too. Now, but looking ahead, and I know it wasn't um part of this presentation, but actually on our agenda tonight, consent item M, page 545, we do have basically $8 million in Park View money left over that was positive cash flow over the years of being landlords of Park View. Um, I know we had planned on using some of that, about 600,000 to 700,000, for demolition of Park View, leaving seven, seven and a half million dollars left. Can we utilize some of that money towards construction of the new library?
[01:02:42] Staff: We have—um, that is not going to be a netted-out dollar amount. We did a number of ADA construction projects around that—the Park View buildings—where that needs to cover that. So once we actually have a final reconciliation of those numbers, um, yeah, if there's something left over and the Council would like to apply that in lieu of, uh, Measure G money, that's always your prerogative.
[01:03:02] Councilmember: Right, that's right. I'm not taking into consideration some of that will be put towards the State building. It's going to remain...
[01:03:07] Staff: I would say that, uh, the vast majority of these funds are not going to be there. My guess is that we're probably going to be less than $2 million when we're all done. Um, the state—the interior State—interior improvements to the State building are being recaptured through their rental agreement, so their rate rent will increase significantly now that we turn the building over to them. But we are responsible for all the exterior improvements there and making sure that that building meets code. So once that's netted out, we'll be able to let you know what can be applied to the building.
[01:03:36] Councilmember: Got it. Okay, I appreciate it.
[01:03:38] Mayor: I think that's it for—excellent. Well, thank you, Ryan. Appreciate the presentation. Thank you very much. And that concludes our, uh, study session. So I think we'll take, what, 10 minutes? Sound good to everybody? Come back at 4:10 and, uh, begin the general meeting. Thank you.