Palm Desert City Council - Regular Meeting, May 14, 2026

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AI transcript text.

[00:04:56] Mayor Trubee: Okay, welcome everybody. I have now called to order the regular City Council meeting of May the 14th, 2026. Um, I'm sorry. I now call to order the regular meeting of the Palm Desert City Council, the Successor Agency to the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency, the Palm Desert Housing Authority, and the Palm Desert Board of Library Trustees for Thursday, May 14th, 2026. Roll call, please.
[00:05:21] City Clerk: Council member Harnik.
[00:05:24] Councilmember Harnik: Here.
[00:05:24] City Clerk: Council member Moreno.
[00:05:26] Councilmember Moreno: Here.
[00:05:27] City Clerk: Council member Nestande.
[00:05:28] Councilmember Nestande: Here.
[00:05:29] City Clerk: Mayor Pro Tem Perdeto.
[00:05:30] Mayor Pro Tem Perdeto: Here.
[00:05:30] City Clerk: Mayor Trubee.
[00:05:31] Mayor Trubee: Yeah, here.
[00:05:32] City Clerk: All council is present.
[00:05:33] Mayor Trubee: All right. Now, please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance, which will be led by Council member Moreno.
[00:05:45] Councilmember Moreno: Just wanted to make sure. Please stand if you are able. Remove your hats. I pledge allegiance...
[00:05:52] All: ...to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
[00:06:08] Mayor Trubee: Okay. I will now give a brief words of inspiration. I'm a big fan of history and I'm a big believer in these following words. This quote is attributed to Marcus Garvey: 'A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin, and culture is like a tree without roots.' And that is all. Thank you. Move on to item number five, awards, presentations, and appointments. We will begin with item 5A, Civic Academy participant recognition. And I guess it will go on down. I'm going to ask my council members to join me at the proper time.
[00:06:44] Councilmember: Do you go now?
[00:06:45] Mayor Trubee: Sure. All right, let's do it.
[00:06:50] Ryland Penta: Good afternoon, Mayor, council members, members of the public. My name's Ryland Penta and I have the honor to recognize our Civic Academy class of spring 2026. I'd like to say this is one of my favorite points of the year because these individuals are so thoughtful, caring, and passionate about Palm Desert, and they signed up to learn the ins and outs, or as I like to say, from art to zoning of all things Palm Desert. Through a five-session course, these individuals went at various city facilities. They got to experience the things that we do, meet the staff, and it's an incredible opportunity for them to connect with us as staff members, but then also deepen their connection point to our community and each other, most of whom I think didn't know each other prior to this experience. This Civic Academy has now gone through six cycles and I'm happy to announce we've graduated over 150 participants. And that's 150 people in Palm Desert that get to know who we are, know who to reach out to, and I see some past graduates as well. So, it's a great honor to see you return and continue your participation with us. Now, specifically to the current graduating class, thank you for showing up. Thank you for asking questions, investing your time in us, and most importantly, your ongoing commitment to our community. For anyone watching, we are going to continue with Civic Academy. So, if you are interested, I highly encourage you to go to our website under the participation tab at the very top, there's an option for Civic Academy. Please consider signing up. That program will likely begin in April, but dates to follow. So, it is my honor now to call each graduate up one by one. Please give them a round of applause as they meet our council members, get their certificate, and then they will stay up here for a group photo at the very end. And starting off is Melissa Martinez.
[00:08:58] Ryland Penta: And now we have Aaron Highland.
[00:09:10] Ryland Penta: Connie Sedlacek.
[00:09:21] Ryland Penta: Shawn Harrington.
[00:09:30] Ryland Penta: And Lindsey Kilinky. I've told her I was going to mispronounce her name. I'm so sorry.
[00:09:42] Ryland Penta: Carmen Josephs.
[00:09:51] Ryland Penta: Ann Greer.
[00:10:01] Speaker: Linda Davis.
[00:10:11] Speaker: Isabella Crater.
[00:10:20] Speaker: Carla Sullivan Dilly.
[00:10:30] Speaker: Terry Stone.
[00:10:43] Speaker: Ron Noriega.
[00:10:52] Speaker: Linwood Ray.
[00:11:02] Speaker: Melody Thornton.
[00:11:13] Speaker: Lynn Worley.
[00:11:25] Speaker: Jack Crane.
[00:11:35] Speaker: And I'd like to give a special recognition to Thomas Nelson, who is a Palm Desert High School student who participated after class for 5 weeks. And congratulations to everyone, and we will take our group photo.
[00:11:58] Speaker: Many congratulations.
[00:13:05] Mayor Evan Trubee: Okay. Next, we have item 5B. A very, very important segment here. We have the award and recognition of service by former board and committee member—yeah, please do step. You want the photo ops? More photo ops. Recognition of service by former board and committee members, and I'll bring up Monique to talk a little bit about it.
[00:13:33] Monique La Melle: Good evening, Mayor Trubee, members of the City Council, members of the public. I'm Monique La Melle, senior deputy city clerk, and tonight I have the privilege of recognizing several dedicated volunteers who have generously given their time, expertise, passion, and service to the city of Palm Desert. Through their work on our boards, commissions, and committees, they have helped shape policies, preserve our community values, and improve the quality of life for residents and visitors alike. As a small token of our appreciation, we are presenting each of them with a commemorative clock in recognition of their years of service and lasting contributions to the city. Their commitment and leadership have made a meaningful impact on our city, and we are truly grateful for all that they have done. And with that, I will invite Mayor Trubee to come up as I call their names. Vincent Hearing for 4 years of service.
[00:14:31] Speaker: Wow.
[00:14:43] Monique La Melle: Carlos Garcia for 4 years. He was unable to join us tonight, but Wallace Colvard will be accepting the clock on his behalf. You can come up. And as he comes up, Wallace Colvard is actually being recognized for 5 years of service with a clock of his own. Carol Adney for 8 years of service. Paul Clark for 13 years of service. Robert Leo for 14 years of service. Nancy De Luna for 18 years of service. And Don Graybill for 18 years of service. All right. And that concludes our recognition for tonight. I welcome family members to come and take a photo of your loved ones.
[00:17:18] Mayor Evan Trubee: All right. Very good. I think so. Yeah.
[00:17:37] Mayor Evan Trubee: All right. Very good. Now we are on to one of my favorites, item 5C, proclamation for Public Works Week. I love the timing of this one. Just before we get into the heat of summer. I think it's an appropriate reminder to think about how the staff in the Public Works has out there in the field in 110, 120 degrees. We have some members of Public Works here today, don't we? Got some of the crew? Yeah? All right, good. Good good good. In fact, come on up. Come on up. We got to get the Public Works crew on up here. Take it, get your—get your claim and your photo op, man. Absolutely. Love it. Okay. I'll read the proclamation. Here we are. There we go. Now we're talking. I didn't—I don't want to have to beg you guys. Come on. All right. Love it. Excellent. There we go. Whereas Public Works professionals provide essential infrastructure and services that safeguard public health, support safety, and contribute to the high quality of life in the City of Palm Desert. And whereas these services are made possible through the dedication and expertise of engineers, managers, and skilled personnel who plan, design, build, and maintain transportation systems, public facilities, and other critical infrastructure. And whereas Public Works professionals work diligently, often behind the scenes, to ensure infrastructure remains reliable, resilient, and responsive to the evolving needs of the community. And whereas their commitment to innovation, stewardship, service, and operational excellence help strengthen neighborhoods, enhance mobility, and support a safe and thriving community for all. And whereas the city of Palm Desert Public Works Department in partnership with capital projects continues to advance important initiatives that improve public safety and mobility throughout the community, including the Cook Street and Marketplace Drive traffic signal installation, implementation of the city's Vision Zero strategy, and ongoing traffic signal modernization and infrastructure upgrades. And whereas National Public Works Week sponsored annually by the American Public Works Association recognizes the contribution of public works professionals, and the 2026 observance marks the 66th annual celebration under the theme rooted in service, powered by community. Now, therefore, be it proclaimed that I, Evan Trubee, mayor of the city of Palm Desert, California, on behalf of the entire city council, do hereby proclaim
[00:20:00] Mayor Evan Trubee: ...the week of May 17th through May 23rd, 2026 National Public Works Week in the city of Palm Desert, and commend the dedicated professionals of Public Works and Capital Projects for their outstanding service, leadership, and commitment to protecting public health, ensuring safety, and enhancing the quality of life for the community. Awesome. So, I don't want to let—I guess Randy, come up and say a few words. But before he does, I just want to say, I have the opportunity occasionally to—well, I have girls in Santa Barbara who are going to college, for example. And I was out there this week, and this happens often when I travel, and I tell them, we get into a conversation, tell them I'm from Palm Desert, and before I even tell them I'm in city government or mayor or city council or anything, they immediately, 'God, we love Palm Desert. We love to go out there and visit. It's so clean. It's so beautiful.' I mean, I hear that every time I mention the word Palm Desert. And so, thank you all so much putting on our best public face. So proud. Thank you.
[00:21:05] Randy: Well, Public Works also includes a Capital Projects team, so we have so much work, we had to create two departments. But I just want to thank all the men and women in Public Works, and also to the City Council for always supporting us. They truly make a difference, and they make my job a lot easier. So, I really appreciate it, and I'll turn it over to Casey.
[00:21:28] Casey: Yeah, absolutely. I just want to say that it's an honor to actually be part of Public Works and this team of dedicated professionals that have dedicated their life and their career to public, and the Public Works Department is second to none. So, it's just really truly an honor to represent this team here. Thank you.
[00:21:55] Unknown Speaker: Bring it in, guys. Bring it in. You got it, guys. Hey, wait. Who takes Randy?
[00:22:15] Mayor Evan Trubee: Okay, and next we have item 5D, proclamation for Founder's Day recognizing the founding of Palm Desert. And I know we celebrate the 50th anniversary in November—or we did, sorry, the incorporation of the city, November 23rd, 1973. This is something that is actually memorialized out on the plaque at the bottom of the flagpole as May 15th, 1946, as the founding of our city. And this writing looks a little bit smaller, so I'll do my best. But here we go. So, we are celebrating 80 years now of the founding of the city, but incorporation actually happened in 1973. So, here we go. Whereas the city of Palm Desert proudly—well, I might need some reading glasses. Who's got some? Anybody? There we go. Thank you. Yeah. This is—whoa. I can—I'm going to put this with—okay. Sorry. Okay, so there we are. I apologize for all that, everybody. I did the LASIK, but not for the up close. Okay. Whereas the city of Palm Desert proudly recognizes the 80th anniversary of Palm Desert's founding vision, which began taking shape in 1946, the foresight, energy, and determination of Clifford Henderson and the Henderson family; and whereas following World War II, Clifford Henderson, together with his brothers Randall, Carl, and Phil, and his sister Doris Henderson Thompson, saw opportunity in the desert landscape south of Palm Village that helped shape the family legacy associated with the creation of a planned desert community; and whereas Doris Henderson Thompson, the only Henderson sister, further connected the Henderson family's founding story to Tommy Thompson, whose planning, design, and landscape work helped shape Palm Desert's early streets, community layout, Shadow Mountain Club, and distinctive desert character; and whereas Cliff Henderson formed the Palm Desert Corporation to acquire and develop land for a new community centered around Shadow Mountain Club resort and gathering place that helped introduce Palm Desert to residents, visitors, and investors; and whereas the Henderson family's efforts extended beyond real estate development, helping establish the identity, character, and promise of Palm Desert as a place of beauty, enterprise, recreation, and civic pride; and whereas 80 years later, Palm Desert continues to reflect the Henderson family's founding spirit through its strong civic identity, vibrant neighborhoods, thriving business community, cultural life, and enduring commitment to quality of life; now, therefore, be it proclaimed, I, Evan Trubee, mayor of the city of Palm Desert, California, on behalf of the City Council, do hereby recognize the 80th anniversary of Palm Desert's founding vision and honor the Henderson family for their lasting contributions to the creation, growth, and spirit of Palm Desert, and encourage residents to reflect on the leadership, vision, family legacy, and community pride that helped make Palm Desert the community it is today. And I know there's no heirs of the Henderson family. There's nobody here representing the Henderson family side. I believe we have—is David Tolzmann here from the historical society? We'd like to present this to the historical society that can then display it as they like. So, thank you.
[00:26:05] Mayor Evan Trubee: Okay, thank you everyone. That was a lot of fun stuff. We move on to item number six, City Manager comments.
[00:26:11] City Manager: Mayor, I'd like to invite up Robert Fish up here to the lectern for an introduction in his new capacity officially as the Riverside County Fire Chief and Cal Fire Chief.
[00:26:29] Division Chief Cody Wright: Good afternoon, City Council. I'm Division Chief Cody Wright, and it's my pleasure to announce the appointment of Robert Fish to the position of unit chief in the Riverside unit, effective November 10th, 2025. Chief Fish began his career in 1992 as a volunteer firefighter in the city of Moreno Valley. From 1995 to 2001, he worked as a dispatch clerk and public safety communications officer II in the Perris Emergency Command Center. In 2001, he was promoted to the role of Firefighter II Paramedic, advancing over the next decade to Engineer Paramedic and then Fire Captain Paramedic. During this time, he served the communities across the Coachella Valley, including the Cove communities, La Quinta, and Mecca. In 2010, he transferred to the department's Emergency Medical Services Bureau and the EMS CQI and Education Coordinator, focusing on quality improvement and training. In 2015, Chief Fish was promoted to Battalion Chief in the San Diego unit in the Monte Vista ECC. He returned to the Riverside unit in 2017 as a Battalion Chief assigned to the Mountain Battalion. In February 2019, Chief Fish accepted the Eastern Desert Division Chief position and returned to the Coachella Valley for the cities of Coachella, Indio, and La Quinta, and the communities of Thermal, Mecca, and Blythe. He has also served as the Deputy Chief of Eastern Operations for the past five years. Chief Fish holds an Associate Degree in Fire Technology and a Bachelor of Science in Fire Engineering Protection and Administration. He is accredited as a Chief Fire Officer, Chief EMS Officer, and a California Executive Chief Fire Officer, and maintains his paramedic license. I know Chief Fish is going to take us in the right direction, and it's my honor, and please join me in congratulating him.
[00:28:15] Chief Robert Fish: Mayor and Council, thank you for the invite. I know we've had an opportunity in the past to meet, but in an official capacity, I wanted to come back and introduce myself to the city, express the department's profound enjoyment of having Palm Desert as a long-term partner along with the other Cove communities. Palm Desert in particular is very special to me because I started my professional career here in the city at Station 33 on the medic unit. In addition to that, the improvements that the city is making, as the addition of Station 102, I look forward to seeing all of us there opening that. The improvements to the other facilities is amazing, and we just really appreciate the partnership, the long-term, meaningful partnership, and look forward to continuing in the future and continuing to provide high level of service and improving services to the city. That's all I got, unless you have questions.
[00:29:16] Councilmember: A question.
[00:29:18] Chief Robert Fish: Oh, excellent.
[00:29:19] Councilmember: And this is for City Manager, you, anybody who might know, when is 102 going to open? Do we know?
[00:29:27] Chief Robert Fish: September of this year.
[00:29:31] Councilmember: Oh, wonderful. Okay.
[00:29:34] Chief Robert Fish: Yes, I'll get you the exact date.
[00:29:36] Councilmember: I'll go with September. It's okay.
[00:29:37] Chief Robert Fish: Yeah. It'll be amazing. It's going to be a beautiful fire station, and it's going to bring much-needed services. It'll be real great. Thank you.
[00:29:51] City Manager: Next up, I'll invite Ryland Penta to give us a quick update on our digital accessibility efforts.
[00:29:59] Ryland Penta: Good afternoon, Mayor, council members.
[00:30:01] Ryland Penta: Uh, my name is Ryland Penta, and I am the city's community relations supervisor, but today I'm pivoting to focus on digital accessibility, a new process we've taken about in the last 2 and 1/2 years, and we are making huge strides. So, I wanted to give you an update on what that looks like, and moving forward, what new federal regulations are requiring of us.
[00:30:24] Ryland Penta: In April of 2024, the Department of Justice passed what they call a rule affecting all local and county government and state governments. Uh, it requires all of our digital infrastructure, entire ecosystem, to be accessible. And what does that mean? Individuals in particular with visual impairments, they use systems called screen readers that will read the text of a website to them. And a lot of the material our government agencies at large have is not able to be compatible with those devices.
[00:30:55] Ryland Penta: So, the city took an early step towards this. The first big effort was looking at our city website. And with that website, we wanted to ensure that we consciously took all content and migrated it slowly over, looked at every PDF, consider what this looks like moving into this rule going into effect. Uh, the DOJ is particularly focusing on websites, mobile apps, digital services, which includes things like the permitting software, um, but it also includes social media and all of the systems we contract with. So, uh, clarity permitting software, things of that nature.
[00:31:33] Ryland Penta: The um guidelines that we need to follow as set by the DOJ is called the website content accessibility guidelines. And it has a lovely acronym called WCAG. So, if you hear WCAG, it's about digital accessibility. Um, but the standard listed here, the 2.1 level AA, is the standard that is universally accepted. And so, they're trying to encourage uh government agencies to meet that standard that is set by a lot of uh private entities as well.
[00:32:00] Ryland Penta: The original compliance date was April 2026, but 4 days before the deadline, they extended it 1 year. So, we have a good approach that we were going to be compliant by that date, but we have even more time to thoroughly review everything fully.
[00:32:16] Ryland Penta: So, what have we done so far? I brought up the city website. The original website that we had prior to March 9th, if you can believe it, had over 6,500 PDFs in it. We've gone through and looked at every single PDF that was on there. We've remediated each of them except for about 300 that we're still working through now that we have extra time.
[00:32:34] Ryland Penta: These documents are various page lengths, and making them accessible requires a keen eye to what other use this material can be presented as. You may ask, why are PDFs such a highlight? Many of these early PDFs are just not designed with easy screen reader capacity. So, individuals with those tools just really can't receive the information that they need to to do essential services or know who to contact when things are troubling them.
[00:33:02] Ryland Penta: We've also conducted staff training for everyone's awareness. This approach is no longer supporting an individual that requests a document is that all things need to be digitally accessible here on out on all platforms.
[00:33:18] Ryland Penta: We've also developed, with, I should say, the city clerk's team, give them the credit. They developed a new ADA compliant staff report and presentation tools. And then we've also added new technology, which I'll get to in just a moment.
[00:33:34] Ryland Penta: This technology is an incredible addition to our efforts. It's called Doc Access. It takes whatever documents are on the website and makes them ADA compliant using AI tools. You'll see it's quite small, but on the left we have our annual comprehensive report and in the top it explains that this is a cactus with snow in the background. It fully writes out a description of every table, graphic, so that individuals with those screen readers get a full depiction of what is being seen to the average user. Um, this tool is now active on our website.
[00:34:09] Ryland Penta: Interestingly, if it's probably not a surprise per se, but the state of California requires certain PDFs on our website. So, while we would like to remove all, there are certain things that will need tools of this nature to ensure accessibility for everyone.
[00:34:27] Ryland Penta: When it comes to our process, I think Palm Desert as is a frontrunner and a leader in change. Uh, and we are taking this as far as we can and one of which is creating a digital accessibility policy, which I will be bringing back at the July meeting. This is really to codify our efforts and our approach to ensuring accessibility across the board on all of our uh digital tools. Uh, that's things like the mobile app and whatnot. This is uh just to enshrine our path forward and really set a standard with our staff and any new hired employees.
[00:35:00] Ryland Penta: But what's next? So, we do have some documents remaining. There are some very technical material you think of like uh specific or specific plans for developments, but then also uh uh standard drawings, things of that nature that we really need to go through and improve as much as possible. Um, there is uh an update coming for the city's Discover Palm Desert website. We're looking at improving the mobile app to ensure it's also ADA compliant. Um, but as well continuous staff training, ensuring that this is the norm for all staff uh moving forward. And if it doesn't have to be a PDF, let's not make it a PDF.
[00:35:36] Ryland Penta: Um, finally, establish long-term monitoring. Uh, as a contract city, we have a lot of resources that are not managed in-house, things like the permitting software. So, we want to ensure that these partners of ours are maintaining the standards that we are setting for them.
[00:35:53] Ryland Penta: And finally, I'm happy to take any questions.
[00:36:00] Mayor: Right. Any questions from my colleagues? All right.
[00:36:03] Mayor: Great. Thank you, Ron. Appreciate it. Terrific. Anything else?
[00:36:08] Ryland Penta: Nothing additional.
[00:36:08] Mayor: All right.
[00:36:14] Mayor: Next, we're on to uh item seven, mayor and council member reports and requests for action. And uh I'm going to go a little bit out of our normal order and ask council member Nestande.
[00:36:23] Council Member Nestande: I'm all good for today. Thank you.
[00:36:25] Mayor: All right. Council Member Moreno.
[00:36:29] Council Member Moreno: Mhm. Where'd my notes go? It's been a lot of travel, a lot of conferences. Um, I, speaking of of conferences, it reminded me um we had one of our our um members here that had just graduated from from the uh Civic Academy and she said, 'Thank you for funding this.' Where earlier today we were looking at where we can cut from the budget and what we can look ahead. The funding of this program is not gigantic overall in the scope of what it takes to run a city, but I think we all support and understand that when we make an investment in one individual person, it brings more people together and helps understand how you can get involved in the city. So, that was just kind of a full circle moment that came to my brain.
[00:37:15] Council Member Moreno: Um, the artist council, they have art classes for um, let's see, it's focused on people with um Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, memory loss, and also for their caretakers. So, this is a great opportunity that they have on the first and second Tuesdays of the month and you can find out more info from them.
[00:37:43] Council Member Moreno: Um, last meeting I was online because I was attending the League of Cities Leader Summit and I appreciated the opportunity to meet with our local representatives in small groups and um, one elected official mentioned to our Senator Rosilicieo Ochoa that she hated calling Caltrans because she would get a different answer every single time of the day. There'd be a different person that answered with a different um problem that they would have. And so, she said, 'Let me call. This is what I do.' And just like we try to help people resolve what we can at a municipal level, it was great to advocate for what we need here. Um, when I spoke with a um Assembly member Greg Wallis, we talked about Rena and her housing needs, and he was very happy to hear um one of the ideas that Chris brought forward, and he really liked that. So again, showing the agenda of um what's going on here and how it can equal ripple across the state.
[00:38:47] Council Member Moreno: Um, meeting with Assembly member Gonzalez, we talked about the passenger rail service, and he went to his map, he had the map, and he said, 'See, that's great. I like it here, and I also like it in this part of Imperial. I just want to loop.' So he didn't commit, but I at least brought it up, and he didn't say no. I want to focus on a different one.
[00:39:07] Council Member Moreno: Um, Mayor Pro Tem and I attended the JPA Elected Officials Summit, and it was very informal, so I appreciated having some time to to get to know him a little bit more, and there was um, there was a great discussion on what it's like when a new council member joins, and the kind of environment and the things that are productive, and how we make those efforts to to get to know each other, and that I think is the spirit of what local government should be. It's not supposed to be partisan.
[00:39:37] Council Member Moreno: Um, shared with them about the autism certification with a JPA is an insurance um collected by the different cities and agencies in California, and they have 33 police departments, so they were excited to hear what we've done with the blue envelope program, and again, the awareness that can go out into the community. At we
[00:40:00] Councilmember Moreno: Trying to think, several of us were at SCAG, the Southern California Association of Governments, and the amount of conferences and people in the networking was amazing. But this time, the keynote speaker really grabbed me when he said that we need to observe the 55-5 rule, which means for every hour that you work, you schedule in the 5 minutes so that you give your brain something to do, dispelling the idea that if you work straight through, you'll be more productive. And I know, let's see, what's another one that I had? The social media. I have gotten such great reviews and great things that I have heard from—I don't know if you guys saw the Darth Vader, 'May the 4th be with you' for the Star Wars nerds there. The team rivalries, Economic Development versus the Municipal Clerks. 'Get pumped to shred,' the community gardens, concerts in the park. It's such a people-focused thing, and because it goes on the reels, I heard that there was one that said, 'Who were you in the '90s?' that had over 21,000 views. So, we're really seeing that build up. And the Cinco de Mayo, I brought in my cat, Cinco, just a reminder to go and adopt or foster animals. And let's see, the Harvey Milk breakfast today, over a thousand people in attendance. And that reminded me of what it's like to start something new or do something different or just be yourself, and how difficult that can be until you step into a room of people that are welcoming and inviting. So, that was really neat. Is there anything else I'm forgetting? The All Valley, there's—that's what it is. The All Valley Chamber of Commerce mixer. That was—is Vanessa here? I don't see Vanessa. Vanessa brought over someone from the community, and this person said, 'I want to see what the city can do to help start to assist with more people that are in-home child care providers.' We talk about things that are economic development, and I think that's one that we can look at, what we would do. So, if that is on a formal request for action to my peers, if we can direct staff to see what's available in that fund and how we can increase the capacity for child care in the city.
[00:42:35] Councilmember: Did we get anything in writing on that?
[00:42:38] Councilmember Moreno: No, we didn't say or promise anything in writing. I just want to see if we can direct staff to look if there's anything we can do.
[00:42:46] Councilmember: I thought we did.
[00:42:49] Councilmember Moreno: The adoption of the form is tonight.
[00:42:52] Councilmember: Then I'll second that.
[00:42:57] Councilmember Moreno: And the other one is a request that we recognize Human Rights Day, which was founded in the United Nations in 1948. I don't recall off the top if it's part of our announced holidays or recognition, but I think that this would be something that would be some sort of a day of service or a sort of recognition. It's only 210 days away. It's December 10th that it's coming up. So, just a thought. And the last one that slipped through on my notes is, with all of the conferences that we go to and everything that we go to and bring back, I think that it's a great privilege and honor to share how great our city is, how our staff, the way that we're looking forward and into the next 30, 40, 50 years of Palm Desert, not just resting on how great we've been in 80 years. And that's why I'm looking forward to NALEO, which is in Los Angeles this year. So, that's coming up soon. But, that is it for me. So, any interest in December 10th Human Rights?
[00:44:22] Councilmember: So, you're making a request for action?
[00:44:24] Councilmember Moreno: My request for action is just to guide staff to see, is it feasible to do something? I think that if it could be just a collection of something, if it's not just a post on social media, what we can say what this means for folks, how you engage and where you feel safe, what makes you you when you feel safe to say who you are. And I think that's part of the element. So, you know, doesn't have to be big, doesn't have to be grandiose, but it's just an opportunity to say we respect you, and that's a United Nations endeavor.
[00:45:04] Councilmember: Well, maybe not this evening, we might not make a decision, but since like you said it's 210 days away, bring us something back a little more formal maybe.
[00:45:11] Councilmember Moreno: Okay.
[00:45:12] Councilmember: Great. Thank you.
[00:45:13] Councilmember Moreno: I think pointed, it's December 10th.
[00:45:14] Mayor Trubee: Yeah, thanks. Awesome. We'll move on to Councilmember Harder.
[00:45:19] Councilmember Harder: Thank you so much, Mayor Trubee. So, Mr. Penta, you thought you had the worst acronym with WCAG, or how did you say that? SCAG always thinks it has the worst. But that's Southern California—right next to NARC, which is the National Association of Regional Councils. But SCAG is the Southern California Association of Governments. And they did have, as Councilmember Moreno said, they had their General Assembly here May 6th, 7th, and 8th. And they have it every year in Palm Desert. We're happy to host the six Southern California counties here. On Wednesday, a whole crew from those counties took a trip on CV Link. And it was so great to see the number of people out there using CV Link. And it's become so popular. Now, granted, we still have the two missing links in Rancho Mirage and Indian Wells, but they'll see the value at some point. But it was great seeing everyone out there. We went on that trip because there was a sustainability awards at SCAG, and CV Link won one. And it has to do with acting regionally, doing things that are good for our environment, good for health, good for our economic environment as well. So, CV Link did win an award at the conference. The speaker's name that Councilmember Moreno spoke of is Sunil Gupta. And he did talk about the 555, which I thought was really important. The other thing he talked about, and I think we've been talking about it at every Council meeting lately, it's the power of now. Do it now. The action comes—sometimes the courage follows the action. But he was a wonderful speaker, and we left with a lot. Now, also on the trip with SCAG onto CV Link, we also took a bus with SunLine. They learned all about hydrogen fuel cells, which, you know, the only thing that a hydrogen fuel cell bus puts out into the environment is moisture, just condensation. And SunLine is ahead of the rest of the nation in what they're doing. And it was great when they were able to talk about their efforts with clean energy. And it was great with all the other things they do with preparing for emergencies. And whether it's a natural emergency, whether it might be an area, a shooter, something like that, SunLine works with all our agencies to find ways to deal with things like that. So, SCAG was extremely successful this year, and they'll be back next year, May 7th, also. Also, we had the Coachella Valley Business Conference. Was that last week, I think? And the speaker is from Beacon Economics, and it's Christopher Thornberg. And he really stressed—and it's not easy to do, but we as individuals seeking out the difference between the narrative about the current economic environment and the reality of our current economic environment. He's a great speaker and provided a lot of really great information. Today at Coachella Valley Conservation Committee—is that right, or is it commission? We talked about the fact that more than 100,000 acres have been protected. And they will not be built on, and it's what makes this place where we live so great. It's the natural environment, and we have protected it so that we can live so well. So, more than 100,000 acres have been protected under the Coachella Valley Multiple Species Habitat Protection Plan. Got it. And that's what I've got. I thank you, Mayor, for your time.
[00:49:47] Mayor Trubee: I have little to add to everything that's been going on except for one thing regarding the JPIA conference that I attended along with Councilwoman Moreno. And it's regarding
[00:50:00] Councilmember: Some legislation that JPIA is pushing to get through the legislature, and I shared that with our city manager, that would really help to protect cities when there are lawsuits and people go after the cities for deep pockets even though we are a very minor participant in that or play a minor role. So, I've shared that, and that could substantially reduce our risk in terms of claims. And then I want to share with the public, earlier this afternoon, we spent two hours going over the budget, and the keyword was balance. But I also wanted to share another word that was in the memo that the city manager put together that we didn't cover too much, but I also think is important to our future, and that word is stewardship. And that's something that I've been talking about, and I want to encourage anyone who wants to see all the big things going on, the budget plays a big role in the next 10 years of maintaining our funds that provides everything we do, not only balance, but being good stewards of your resources and providing good services. So, I want to thank the city manager and the staff for all you've done, and look forward to the next fiscal year.
[00:51:13] Mayor: All right. Thank you very much. Okay, just a couple things to add. I'm very fortunate as mayor to be able to attend a lot of, first, the monthly... Well, there's lots of events I get to attend, but one that really sticks out for me is the monthly student of the month awards at Palm Desert High School. And then yesterday, they recognized the two seniors of the year. So, this is all of something put on by the Optimist Club here locally. And man, if you're ever feeling like the world's going to heck, and you're tired of hearing all the bad news, if you were to just turn the TV off and go attend one of these events, you'd be, I think, uplifted. It just... I never get tired of it. I never get tired of hearing about their accomplishments, about the words of praise from the teachers, the coaches, their peers. And it's really remarkable, and it gives me faith and hope for the future to be around these kids. They're wonderful achievers, and not only that, they're polite, just good kids. So, that is one of the fun things I get to do, and I'm very proud and happy to do it. And then, I believe it was last week we had the Palm Desert Area Chamber of Commerce Awards where, you know, it's an annual award event where they recognize businesses of the year, customer service, small business of the year, various categories are chosen. And of course, Palm Desert's a presenting sponsor. So, we have the opportunity to nominate an employee of the year, which is one of my least favorite things in the world to do because, unlike everything else, which is a vote, all the other awards are voted upon by the general public and then whoever gets the most votes wins. I alone am tasked with having to choose the employee of the year out of 166 employees. And it's difficult because, in my opinion, all 166 are fantastic, wonderful, hard-working people, conscientious, they contribute to our city. And we just have a wonderful, wonderful staff here. But this year, we were, you know, kind of short on list, and I thought... I chose Chris Gary, who has been instrumental in securing funds and working on our Vision Zero project, which... And again, the criteria here, I just thought, well, this is something that everybody's going to benefit from because it's meant to create a safer environment for pedestrians interfacing between like schools, pedestrians, drivers. It's meant to kind of reduce risk in our infrastructure to make sure pedestrians, bicyclists, and school students walking around and driving and biking and drivers all can interface more safely. So, that is why I chose Mr. Gary, and proud of the work he's done. Like I said, he secured about $5.6 million from the federal government for this project. And so that was... That was fun, but a difficult, a difficult choice. So I just want to recognize all our employees. They're fantastic, wonderful, and proud to work here. So thank you so much, and we will move on to item number...
[00:54:00] Councilmember Jan: If I may, can you share about the crossings?
[00:54:03] Mayor: The crossings? Oh, yeah. I'm sorry. Beg your pardon. Oh, thank you. Okay. So there is a 176-unit affordable housing development that we cut the ribbon on last week as well. And this is for very low and low-income families. And so it was about a two-year project. Well, actually, it was approved in 2023. So it's been several years in the making, and I honestly... I hadn't been there since the groundbreaking about a year and a half, two years ago. Didn't know what to expect. I thought we're going to have to wear a hard hat. It was going to be kind of, you know, dirty and funky still, but boy, I tell you, it was a gorgeous property. The Blue Companies were responsible for doing that, Sun Country Builders. City, of course, loaned over $7 million to the project to help make it happen. And I just want to remind everybody that Palm Desert, of course, like every other municipality in California, we're mandated to have so many units of affordable housing, and every year... every time we're audited or looked at by the county or state, we exceed those numbers. So I'm very proud of that. We have a full range of housing in our city, all the way up to the multi-million dollar homes and down to people just getting back on their feet or starting out in life who needed a, you know, step up there. So very proud of that. It's just one more housing development that we can look at and be very, very proud of. So that was a great event. Thanks, Jan, for the reminder. Appreciate that. Okay, item number eight, non-agenda public comments. This time has been set aside for the public to address the city council on issues that are not on the agenda for up to three minutes because the Brown Act does not allow the city council to act on items not listed on the agenda. Council members may briefly respond or refer the matter to staff for report and recommendation at a future meeting. And city clerk, can we please have a few...
[00:55:54] City Clerk: For those on Zoom, if you want to participate in public comment, please click the raise hand button on your computer or smartphone. And if you're calling in by your phone, please dial *9 to raise your hand, and when called upon, press *6 to unmute yourself.
[00:56:07] Mayor: Okay. We do have a few blue cards here, and we'll start off with Erica Stelchi, although I don't see her here. Okay. Next up, we have Ron DeLuna.
[00:56:23] Ron DeLuna: Greetings. Hello. On April 29th, the Supreme Court ruled that race could not be used in determining a voting district to include municipalities. Some cities have already started addressing this by correcting that error. I am wondering if the city of Palm Desert has any interest or is doing that currently or intends to. And by not responding to the Supreme Court decision, does that make the city liable to litigation and a lawsuit? We went through that before, costing over $2 million in creating this district. And I would hate to see an expenditure, an excessive expenditure, because of inaction on part of the council. Thank you.
[00:57:15] Mayor: Thank you, Mr. DeLuna. Next up, we have Mr. Mike Morsch.
[00:57:23] Mike Morsch: Good afternoon, Mayor, council members, staff. This is probably more directed with city manager Chris and CUP manager Rosie. Going back and looking at the history of the bars that we've had in the city, whether they be Red Barn, and the history goes, you know, way back to where there's been issues. We just recently went through the planning commission vote, which passed, I think it was a 5-0 vote, on allowing the new bar to go in right next door to a restaurant. Now, the restrictions that were placed on that, or conditions, rather... I would like to see those same conditions be placed on any new bar that comes into the city, whether they're on El Paseo or not. The conditions... I'll just go off the top of my head a little bit. They have a bonded guard at security, rather, at entrance, both entrances. They have a smoking area that is way far of any public buildings, but I'd like to find out where that location is. I still haven't heard where the exact location of that smoking area is. And quite a few other conditions were placed on this Rockingham Avenue bar. I'd like to see it, as far as any new bars, whether they have food service or not, to fall into those same conditions. Thank you.
[00:59:22] Mayor: Right. Thank you, Mr. Morse. Next up, we have Norman Torres Terrace.
[00:59:33] Norman Torres Terrace: It's my first time in the City Council meeting or anything like that. I was a high school teacher for many years. I think I know Mr. Moreno. How are you? I'm still here. It was good. I just retired a year ago. I was a high school teacher for 28 years. And so now I've been living in Palm Desert. I have many hours now, free time and so on. And the thing that I want to address today is regarding...
[01:00:02] Public Speaker: Leaf blowers in the neighborhood. And the reason why I'm here, leaf blowers are, uh, noisy. They impact our health, our quality of life, which Palm Desert has a really great quality of life, but that's one thing that's really a nuisance. And I think that there's a way that we can compromise and address it. And, you know, with the noise and the stress that it provides with people and all the, the toxins and the climate change, the airborne dust, dirt, allergens, fecal matter blown into the air. Particles remain in the air for three, four days. We have to breathe this in. I can feel a difference living here and being around areas. I can, I notice a big difference. The desert has winds which blow this from house to house. Many times, you know, the, the equipment starts rather early. I mean, I know the law was changed to 7:00 a.m. 7:00 a.m. And that, I personally, I wake up at 5:30 in the morning so I can have an hour, hour and a half of quiet time so I can drink my coffee and hear birds, because once 7:00 hits or 6:45 hits, the, the cacophony of the noise is overwhelming. And even if I'm in my house with my windows closed and my doors, the low-frequency noise from these machines penetrates my house. I have no escape. I assume other people are like me as well. I get migraines and so I'm super sensitive. I assume other people would be the same as me. And my proposal, besides—it's a stressor. I was a psychology teacher, so I know about this stuff. It affects the sympathetic nervous system. It affects people, their concentration, relaxation. It raises cortisol levels. The impact, hearing loss for people who are sensitive to these kinds of things. Um, the people that are working, the landscapers that are doing this, they're at ground zero with, with masks and earplugs all day long. It's difficult for them. And what else? The, the last little bit that I have would be, uh, would be the habituation. There's no getting used to it because there's no sense of like a regular noise, street noise and those things that the brain can get used to. It's the, the on and off noises from these machines which our brain never gets used to, and it's the anticipatory stress that comes from it. I'd like to propose, sorry, is to go—
[01:02:42] Mayor Trubee: Yeah, we have to limit to three minutes. It's okay. You have more opportunities and other avenues to submit, um, the email to city staff.
[01:02:52] Public Speaker: Just electric would be great.
[01:02:53] Mayor Trubee: Terrific.
[01:02:54] Public Speaker: That's all I can say. Sorry I ran a little bit long.
[01:02:56] Mayor Trubee: No problem. No problem. Thank you. Appreciate it. Okay, uh, any online non-agenda public comments?
[01:03:02] Staff: No online comments.
[01:03:04] Mayor Trubee: Terrific. Then we move on to item number nine, our consent calendar. All matters listed on the consent calendar are considered routine and may be approved by one motion. The public may comment on any item on the consent calendar for up to three minutes. We do have a speaker card on item 9D. So, I will call up Mr. Perry.
[01:03:25] Mr. Perry: Okay.
[01:03:30] Mr. Perry: Good afternoon, everyone. Okay, I had to redo my notes at the last minute. So, I'm going to try to get through this and keep within the three minutes. Okay, so I speak today as a current chairman of the Parks and Recreation—
[01:03:45] Mr. Perry: Recreation Committee.
[01:03:46] Mr. Perry: I have been a committee member for almost five years. I have truly enjoyed serving the city and Palm Desert residents. As Mr., uh, Mayor Trubee said, this is regarding item 9D on the consent calendar tonight. It's regarding the changing of the committee's schedule of meetings. Um, the changing of the committee's schedule was opposed 6 to 1 at our last Parks meeting. Um, well, first, I usually go along with things unless I think—I usually go along with things except when it crosses what I think is right. Um, I think the commission, the committee and that should have been given the opportunity to discuss this first before going to a yes or no vote on the city council. Um, so, we—this was a big surprise to us and it really, you know, came as quite a shock. Um, I just don't think that's good governance by enacting big changes without giving the committee, who represent the public, a chance to discuss it first. Where is the teamwork? This should have not been a surprise to us. There should have been more disclosure on the front end. And then we could have talked about it and come to a—there wouldn't be a 6 to 1 vote opposed to it. Okay, so, you know, that's all I have to say. All right, thank you.
[01:05:23] Mayor Trubee: All right, thank you, Mr. Perry. And—
[01:05:27] Staff: Mr. Mayor, Tammy Martin would like to speak on non-agenda public comment. So, after you take the vote on consent, I would ask if you could take that up.
[01:05:35] Mayor Trubee: Absolutely.
[01:05:36] Staff: Thank you.
[01:05:37] Council Member Quintanilla: Can we pull item C?
[01:05:41] Mayor Trubee: Item C, adoption of ordinance number 1446 repealing chapter 2.66 Environmental Resources Committee and chapter 2.7 Homelessness Task Force of Title 2 of the Palm Desert Municipal Code. We can pull that?
[01:05:58] Council Member Quintanilla: Mhm.
[01:05:59] Mayor Trubee: Okay. Anybody else? All right.
[01:06:03] Council Member: A motion to approve the remainder.
[01:06:05] Mayor Trubee: All right.
[01:06:06] Council Member: May I register a recusal on 9N, and it's because the subject property is in close proximity to my home. So, I would recuse myself from that vote.
[01:06:22] Mayor Trubee: Okay.
[01:06:22] Council Member: Move the balance—I mean, second the motion.
[01:06:25] Mayor Trubee: Okay.
[01:06:32] Mayor Trubee: Motion passes 5 to 0. Okay, very good, and now we open up discussion on item 9C, which is—
[01:06:43] Council Member Quintanilla: Need a staff report. It was just I wanted to pull that one to vote on it separately. Um, as was mentioned in the public comment, that I think that the committee members and commissioners should have been more involved in the decision of canceling or rescheduling or what we could do. So, I just wanted to register that complaint, and after doing so, I know how the rest of my colleagues feel, and I would, um, move forward with, um, item C just so that I can vote separately.
[01:07:21] Mayor Trubee: Understood. Any other comments? Okay, entertain a motion.
[01:07:28] Council Member: Move approval.
[01:07:30] Council Member: I will second.
[01:07:37] Mayor Trubee: Motion passes 4 to 1, with Council Member Quintanilla voting no.
[01:07:44] Mayor Trubee: Very good. Okay, we move on to item number 10. Uh, I'm sorry. Excuse me. If we could take, uh, item number 10—
[01:07:50] Mayor Trubee: I beg your pardon. You're right. Sorry. Let's get Ms. Tammy Martin up here for, uh, non-agenda public comments. Thank you. Sorry about that.
[01:08:03] Tammy Martin: Good afternoon, Mayor Trubee and council members. I'm here to thank the city on a few items. First, I want to thank Council Member Harnik on the comment you made about the, uh, conserved lands. Friends of the Desert Mountains has helped conserve and preserve over 63,000 acres, and we currently hold title to 18,000 acres. So, I really appreciate you acknowledging that. Um, second is I want to thank the City of Palm Desert for being the presenting sponsor for the Coachella Valley Wildflower Festival that took place in March. And as usual, the winds, you know, never escape us. So, we decided to move it behind the Desert Recreation District, which turned out to be extremely well. We had a lot of space. We were protected and looking at moving the festival behind the YMCA and the Desert Recreation District in the future. So, um, I just wanted to give you a few stats. We had over 10 vendors, 15 exhibitors, six food trucks, 10 kids zone activities, which we had over 500 kids come to our kids zone leaving with activities from each one of those 10 exhibitors there. We had a native planting demos and giveaways, art contest that quadrupled, so we had about 1,500 pieces of artwork that was returned back into us for judging. Live aerial performances, pollinator live radio remote and activation. We also promoted our shoe drive, which we just got report back that we collected over 2,000 tons of shoes here in the Coachella Valley. So, that was a great accomplishment. We had over 20 locations where we were collecting shoes. And then it took approximately 100 volunteers, board and staff members. On top of that, I want to thank the Parks and Rec Committee that I always attend. And I—
[01:10:01] Ms. Martin: I also want to thank Shawn for always including Friends of the Desert Mountains in any activities that take place here in Palm Desert, especially on the trails. So kudos to Shawn and her department. And last but not least, the Santa Rosa Mountains National Monument Visitor Center has just been autism certified, so we're pretty proud of that. So you'll see that announcement coming out. That's it.
[01:10:29] Mayor: Thank you, Ms. Martin. It was a great event. I was able to go this year. It was fantastic. Okay, on to item number 10, action calendar. We start with item 10A, artist selection for San Pablo phase two roundabout and consideration of second installation at East Dinah Shore Drive roundabout.
[01:10:51] Erica Jimenez: Thank you.
[01:10:52] Mayor: Staff report.
[01:10:54] Erica Jimenez: Thank you, Mayor and members of the City Council. My name is Erica Jimenez, Public Works. Today's item is the selection of public art installation for the San Pablo phase two roundabout located at the east entrance to College of the Desert, as well as a recommendation or a request for direction regarding an optional potential second installation at the Dinah Shore roundabout near Gerald Ford Drive. Oh, there we go. This project continues the public art vision established during phase one of the San Pablo Corridor improvements and supports the corridor's identity, placemaking, and visual character. Let me just slide through. In July 2025, the city issued a request for qualifications for a signature roundabout artwork installation. The city received 214 artist submissions demonstrating significant interest in the project. The Cultural Arts Committee conducted a multi-step evaluation process that included initial screening, shortlist development, and a finalist review. A standardized scoring rubric was used to evaluate conceptual design, fabrication approach, durability, lighting, engineering, maintenance, budget, and project timeline. Five finalists were shortlisted and ultimately two finalists advanced for community input and City Council consideration. The scoring between the two finalists was extremely close with Dewitt Godfrey receiving 284 points and Gordon Huether with 282 points. The next highest ranked proposal trailed by 38 points. This is the artwork from phase one. And here's our phase two roundabout. Moving on to Gordon Huether's proposal for Cactus Blossom, the proposal draws on inspiration from the desert landscape, the themes of resilience and growth. The sculpture incorporates weathering steel elements arranged around a central blossom feature and was designed specifically for visibility within a traffic environment. The proposal includes two options for the sphere element: a polished stainless steel sphere, which staff recommends, and also an illuminated acrylic sphere, which would involve additional operation and maintenance considerations. Dewitt Godfrey, the title is actually untitled currently. This proposal is inspired by desert trumpet flowers and incorporates abstract geometric forms derived from natural patterns, also called Voronoi forms. The layered steel structure is dynamic with light and shadow effects throughout the day and includes integrated light features. Here are day and night pictures. Staff conducted extensive public outreach for a month and a half. Outreach included Engage Palm Desert, Palm Desert school events, and working with all of the different art teachers, local art galleries, social media outreach on Facebook and Instagram. The feedback demonstrated strong preference for Gordon Huether's proposal. It received 74.5% of responses. Based on community preference, project suitability, artist experience, and maintenance considerations, staff recommends the selection of Gordon Huether's Cactus Blossom proposal. Staff also recommends the polished stainless steel sphere due to its low maintenance requirements and reduced operational complexity. Oh, sorry about that. Because the committee scoring between the two finalists was so close, staff is also requesting City Council direction regarding a second installation opportunity at the East Dinah Shore Drive roundabout near Gerald Ford Drive. Following council direction, staff would conduct additional community outreach, evaluate the site compatibility, design considerations, and return to City Council with a funding strategy and a formal recommendation. For our current San Pablo phase II roundabout, this is our total project budget. The funding would come from the public art budget and would not impact the general fund. And with that, I'll take any questions.
[01:15:41] Mayor: Okay, well before I bring it back to the council, I don't have any blue comment cards. Do we have any online comments?
[01:15:50] Staff: No online comments.
[01:15:51] Mayor: Okay, closing the public comment, let's hear from my colleagues. Questions?
[01:15:59] Council Member: Hi, Erica. At yesterday's cultural arts meeting, we were looking at various sculptures that could be purchased now. And would any of those sculptures be a good fit for this roundabout that you're presenting as an option?
[01:16:17] Erica Jimenez: Those sculptures would be too small in size for a roundabout. The roundabout that's located on Dinah Shore is actually larger than our San Pablo phase II roundabout.
[01:16:26] Council Member: Okay, 'cause I know there was one that seemed larger than the others, which might save the city some money. That's the reason I'm bringing this up, but you're saying they're all too small.
[01:16:38] Erica Jimenez: The scale is much smaller for that roundabout.
[01:16:41] Council Member: Okay, thank you.
[01:16:42] Erica Jimenez: Absolutely.
[01:16:43] Council Member: There's a great point that you brought up in terms of can we put something else there? The last time we chose between two pieces and two locations is because it was very close. This time I think there's a substantial disparity. If only 25% of people liked it, would the people in that area rather wait to get something that we could purchase from one of the collections now or in the future or whenever instead of, well, 25% of the people during this time span kind of liked that one and now we're stuck with it?
[01:17:20] Mayor: Any other questions? I actually have a question before we go to the comments. The eastern traffic roundabout on Dinah Shore, isn't it going to have to be redone at a certain point to bring it up to standards?
[01:17:35] Erica Jimenez: It is, and this would go in conjunction with that if the council should consider a second artwork.
[01:17:42] Mayor: Okay, good. Okay, now let's hear some comments from my colleagues. Opinions. My only opinion is if we move forward, I prefer the stainless steel sphere over the one that requires more maintenance.
[01:17:59] Erica Jimenez: Thank you.
[01:18:00] Council Member: Agreed.
[01:18:02] Council Member: I agree with the direction the art committee came up with. I think, and I do like that sphere that might change colors. I get that. That's, you know, it's shiny and, you know, it's that shiny object, but I think for all the obvious reasons, the stainless steel sphere makes sense. I also think the other that is not yet named, we can name it Pollinator. I think it's good. It works. I think it's great also. I think the art committee has done its work. They came up with good solutions, and I support both of those that they have recommended. I think they'll be great additions in those neighborhoods.
[01:18:49] Council Member: And I do too support the cultural arts committee. They really do deliberate, and it's thought out and well done. So, yeah, I agree.
[01:19:01] Council Member: Just to be sure, if we move forward tonight with staff recommendation, it would be just to approve this?
[01:19:07] Erica Jimenez: It would be to approve the current selection, and then it would just be a consideration to bring back a formal presentation for a second. So, nothing would be decided on a second this evening.
[01:19:17] Council Member: Got it. Okay. Perfect. Any other comments?
[01:19:21] Council Member: I have a question.
[01:19:22] Mayor: Go ahead.
[01:19:24] Council Member: I'm thankful that you explained that this is two separate things. So, I wanted to be sure that they were separate even though they weren't separate items on here. So, if you were to then bring it back, would this go back to the cultural arts committee for them to look at maybe what third or fourth runner-up had been? Or what would that look like in case, 'cause I really do think that we should hold off on putting something there. We always have amazing art, but what would that process look like?
[01:19:59] Erica Jimenez: Because this was so close, these two...
[01:20:01] Staff: Were so close at the very top, and the next there was such a disparity between the second and third, there wouldn't be another runner-up per se. Um, it was that the community were choosing between the two. There was also some feedback from that community, um, in regards to the landscape renderings. So, I'm not sure that we got a true, um, test on that second art sculpture. However, I don't think we'd be bringing back a, a third runner-up. It would just be for the one and then they would, um, deliberate and bring it back to council after that.
[01:20:38] Council Member: Is there any—do you have a rendering of what the Godfrey one looks like at night? Cuz this one did a great job at, at, um, highlighting the nocturnal view. And I love how that is with the skies and—
[01:20:50] Council Member: This is a great angle. And again, the stainless steel is—
[01:20:56] Council Member: Do I recall correctly you said that on the one, the unnamed, that there was specific lighting to highlight—
[01:21:04] Staff: Yes.
[01:21:06] Council Member: —and you showed that. There's the picture you showed us.
[01:21:08] Staff: Yes, and unfortunately this doesn't have the landscaping, um, as part of the rendering, um, but there will be landscaping.
[01:21:16] Council Member: That's wonderful.
[01:21:24] Council Member: Interesting. Well, at least for right now, the, the only vote that we're taking is to approve the first one with the silver or the stainless steel dome or sphere.
[01:21:40] Mayor: Any further questions?
[01:21:43] Council Member: I don't. I guess it all's good. Okay.
[01:21:45] Council Member: I would—I would support the recommendation with the stainless steel.
[01:21:49] Council Member: Okay. Second.
[01:21:59] City Clerk: Motion passes 5 to 0.
[01:22:01] Mayor: All right, terrific. Now we move on to item 10B, introduction of an ordinance amending the Palm Desert Municipal Code relating to city council agendas and request for action. There we go. And staff report, please.
[01:22:16] Staff: Mr. Mayor and City Council, uh, this item follows the council's prior direction from April 26th regarding the request for action process. The ordinance requires, uh, request for action to be submitted in writing prior to the meeting, uh, while still, uh, requiring support from at least one additional council member. It also simplifies outdated agenda administration language in the municipal code, and I'm available for questions.
[01:22:38] Mayor: Okay. Any questions from my colleagues? Okay. Any comments from my colleagues? Oh, I beg—I beg your pardon. I see no blue cards for public comment. And, uh, city clerk, do we have any?
[01:22:51] City Clerk: No online comments.
[01:22:51] Mayor: Okay, I beg your pardon. Great. Okay. Any questions from colleagues?
[01:22:55] Council Member: Move approval.
[01:22:56] Council Member: Us more organized, and I'll second the motion.
[01:22:59] Mayor: All right, very good.
[01:23:07] City Clerk: Motion passes 5 to 0.
[01:23:09] Mayor: Terrific. Okay, on to item 11, public hearings, there are none. Item number 12, I do hereby declare this meeting adjourned at 5:19, May 14th. Thank you very much.