Palm Desert City Council - Regular Meeting, May 28, 2026

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[00:31:20] Unknown Speaker: Oh, you know what? When I got to the...
[00:31:32] Mayor: Okay, welcome everyone. I now call to order the regular meeting of the Palm Desert City Council, the Successor Agency, the Palm Desert Redevelopment Agency, the Palm Desert Housing Authority, and the Palm Desert Board of Library Trustees for Thursday, May 28th, 2026. And if we could have a roll call, please.
[00:31:51] City Clerk: Councilmember Harnik?
[00:31:53] Councilmember Harnik: Here.
[00:31:54] City Clerk: Councilmember Moreno?
[00:31:55] Councilmember Moreno: Present.
[00:31:56] City Clerk: Councilmember Nestande?
[00:31:57] Councilmember Nestande: Here.
[00:31:58] City Clerk: Mayor Pro Tem?
[00:31:59] Mayor Pro Tem: Here.
[00:31:59] City Clerk: Mayor Troy?
[00:32:00] Mayor: Here.
[00:32:00] City Clerk: All council is present.
[00:32:01] Mayor: All right. Very good. If you would now please follow me as we lead in the Pledge of Allegiance.
[00:32:13] Audience: I pledge allegiance 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.
[00:32:30] Mayor: All right. Thank you very much. We will now have some words of inspiration from Councilmember Moreno, please.
[00:32:38] Councilmember Moreno: Thank you. I invite you to do a little time travel with me back to 1933, 93 years ago. The brand new technology: FM radio, electron microscope, photocopying, stereo records, the accelerograph registered the first ground movement that was caused by an earthquake. RCA launched the iconoscope, which was the early cathode ray television. That was 93 years ago. And now I ask you to time travel 93 years to the future. What will it look like? What kind of technology will we have? So much of the tech we're using today will be entirely obsolete that we can't fathom what that future will look like. Will our climate crisis improve? Did we do enough in the present to protect the future? And that's what we balance every day. Why 93 years? Because in 1933, my grandma was born, and she just turned 93 on May 22nd. And it made me think about all of the changes that she's seen in her lifespan and what we can do with our lifespan as well. So may the decisions we make today reflect our commitment to the people of Palm Desert today and the decades to come.
[00:34:13] Mayor: Very good. Thank you. And we will now move on to the report from closed session. Looking for any report.
[00:34:21] City Attorney: Thank you, Mayor. There is no reportable action taken at closed session this afternoon.
[00:34:25] Mayor: Very good. Thank you. On to item nine: awards, presentations, and appointments. We're going to begin with item 9A. I see a nice crowd here, I'm assuming all for the mini muster program presentation and art contest certificate distribution.
[00:34:41] Staff: And Mr. Mayor, we're going to begin with a video.
[00:34:43] Mayor: Very good. Thank you.
[00:35:08] Video Narrator: This is our 31st mini muster. So, this is year 31. We're having a great time. We do it with all of our third graders. So, if you come to Gerald Ford Elementary School or another school in Palm Desert, you're going to get this program. We're in partnership with the City of Palm Desert, the Palm Desert Historical Society, and then Cal Fire as well. And it just teaches the students how to make a plan and how to be prepared in the event of a fire, and then also how to prevent a fire.
[00:35:38] Video Narrator: We set up different events for the kids to do to get some hands-on experience doing actual fire drills while they're learning at the same time.
[00:35:45] Video Narrator: This year, one of the great things that the city did was we were able to procure a lot of new items that needed refurbishing because the program's been up and running for about 32 years now. So, we really wanted to go all out and improve this program that we have going. So this year the city went ahead and procured some new items that you'll see as part of the stations that are out there, as well as a new trailer. And one of the highlights is going to be the inflatable house, which teaches the kids a lot about fire safety within the home, covering smoke alarm exits, and what to do and how to evacuate in the event of a large fire.
[00:36:15] Video Narrator: We're really grateful for the new signage, the new gear, the trailer, the setup and tear down makes it much easier. These firemen are donating their time, so they're coming in on their day off for our students and we're really appreciative.
[00:36:36] Video Narrator: So the historical society leads the efforts in the mini muster program. This year, what's been great is we've been able to really expand on our partnership and ensure that we have pre-meetings leading up to this event and its coordination with Cal Fire, the city historical society, as well as Desert Sands Unified, and ensuring that we can hit up every school within Palm Desert City limits as well as one school in Indian Wells to really continue this program.
[00:36:57] Video Narrator: Obviously, just with the fire department itself, it would never be able to do this type of an operation by itself. So involving the school districts and the city leadership, it definitely brings it all together so that these kids can come out here, have a great enjoyable day and learn some fire education. So we've learned that when we teach kids fire safety at a young age, it sticks with them for the rest of their lives. We've been approached by multiple parents out here that actually went through the mini muster when they were kids and they said how great of an experience it was. So for the last 30 to 40 years, it's been around and it's a valuable thing for everybody.
[00:37:36] Mayor: All right. Very good. Excellent program. I love it. All three of my kids did it and thoroughly enjoyed it, still talk about it to this day. So, I guess my fellow council members will join me in the front and we'll do a presentation and distribution of the certificates.
[00:38:23] Mayor: All right. Very good. Okay. So, we have some art contest winners. I hope you all enjoyed what was out there in the front lobby. And as I read off the children's names, if they could come forward and we'll do a photo op and have some fun here. So, our first winner is Oshana Garcia.
[00:38:53] Mayor: Now, we have Gwen Rucker.
[00:39:03] Mayor: Very good. And in fact, you know what? I'm sorry. I want to mention the school they came from. So, we have James Carter Elementary. And Gwen, you are from Gerald Ford Elementary School. Congratulations. Very good. There we are.
[00:39:20] Mayor: From Abraham Lincoln Elementary School, we have Enzo Buckley. Congratulations.
[00:39:38] Mayor: From George Washington Charter Elementary School, we have Madison Stallings.
[00:39:53] Mayor: From Ronald Reagan Elementary School, we have Margarita Rios Suarez.
[00:40:10] Mayor: Great. So, we'll do... I'd like to bring up any representatives from the fire department and also the historical society. We'll do some photo ops here if you don't mind. I'd love to have you. Obviously, this would not happen without Riverside County Fire, without the work of the historical society. This is their baby for 31 years. And of course, very grateful for all the work and the Rotary.
[00:40:33] Councilmember: And the Rotary.
[00:40:34] Mayor: Yes, that's right. So, it takes a team effort here and we're so grateful for it. Thank you. Oh, a hat for everybody. Okay. As long as me. All right.
[00:41:24] Joelen Hughes: Hi, I'm Joelen Hughes. I'm with the historical society and this means so much to me because we're teaching children safety, not just fun, but they're learning safety and we really appreciate the fire department for all they do. Thank you.
[00:41:47] Cody Wright: Good afternoon, everyone. I'm Fire Chief Cody Wright. It's our pleasure to be here. Thank you guys for coming. This is a great program. Our firefighters are so excited. I actually think that our firefighters think about this more all year long than the kids do. So, they're that excited and that invested. And we're truly blessed that the city supports us in such a way. They've donated many items and truly made it remarkable. It's getting better and better each year. So, thank you very much. And it's our pleasure.
[00:42:27] Mayor: Yeah. Okay. I guess we'll go back.
[00:43:21] Rosemary Ortega: Good afternoon, members of City Council. My name is Rosemary Ortega and I'm a past president of Palm Desert Sister Cities Foundation. I'm here today with two other members of our what then started as a committee but now then became a Palm Desert Sister City Foundation. We do have a presentation for you. So if you would please look at the screen. Palm Desert Sister Cities Foundation is part of Sister Cities International that began after World War II when Eisenhower started this program. The mission statement, as you can see there, basically is about citizen diplomacy, and that is establishing relationships, collaboration, cooperation among different cities throughout the world along with United cities in the United States. The sister cities program in Palm Desert began in 1982 with a relationship being established with Gisborne, New Zealand. Since then, we also became sister cities with Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo, Mexico in 2003.
[00:44:26] Rosemary Ortega: Sister Cities International has a conference every year and they give acknowledgement and recognition to cities that have conducted programs that have had an impact in their communities and abroad. Palm Desert, I'm very proud to say, has received numerous awards on an international level. You can see them there.
[00:44:49] Rosemary Ortega: Could you go back a little bit, please? Innovation award in art and culture, humanitarian assistance, best practices, and that is competing with cities that are from 50,000 to 100,000 around the country. We received also... we were top 14 nationwide on their 50th anniversary in 2006. Distinguished civic leaders, which recognized and acknowledged those here in the community, and distinguished volunteers, as well as the innovation award for youth education program. Some of the examples that you'll see up on the screen: youth exchange, that was between Palm Desert Middle School and a school in Gisborne where the children exchanged information about their communities and it was from school to school. This McCallum Theatre aesthetic education program is a wonderful program in collaboration partnership with the McCallum Theatre. They have an AE program, a civic education program, and they invited us to have teachers from both of our sister cities who came and participated in this program during the summer where they worked and had relationships and exchanged a lot of wonderful experiences with local teachers. We have had actually... oh, let me see my notes here. I believe it was 54 teachers from both of our sister cities that have participated in this program. It was very successful. It was a collaborative effort and also community-based.
[00:46:33] Rosemary Ortega: Another is artists-in-residence program. This is also part of the art, culture, and education program that we had, and this is also a community-based program of cultural exchange and art exchange. It involved artists from the years from 2003, 2005, 2007 that visited each city. We had artists that would go to the city and create a piece of art and gift it to the city. I will mention a few names here. I have so much that I want to share with you and I know that I'm going a little bit fast, but I don't want to run out of time and want to give you time if you have any further questions. But this one here, we're so proud of it. We had several artists from our community, Russell and Linda Jacques. Some of you may remember Mike Watling, who produced some of the sculptures, rock sculptures that we have throughout the city. He took a trip to Gisborne, sourced local rocks and boulders, and created a rock sculpture that sits in a very prominent street in Gisborne. So that is a gift to them from the City of Palm Desert. We also had our Caliente tribal member OJ Venegas that traveled and created a mural. We also had Russell and Linda Jacques, as I said, produce a sculpture that is the picture that you saw up there. So that is a wonderful program that we're very proud of. In the same way, they sent several artists here that conducted some collaboration with some of our local artists and created some gifts that were gifted to the city.
[00:48:17] Rosemary Ortega: The other one that we're very proud of and it's a highlight is the Everest project. This included... how could I explain this? It was just so great, also community-based. We received the innovation award from Sister Cities International for this particular project. It involved the story of Jordan Romero, who was 15 at the time and the youngest to climb all seven of the highest mountains in the world. He wrote a book, and this became to us a catalyst for an interactive study course that involved schools in Palm Desert and Gisborne based on goal setting and how to achieve their goals. This really impacted about 2,700 elementary school children here and in Gisborne. It involved teachers, parents that were positively impacted by this experience. It was an exchange, a collaboration between two schools. And the project closed, I think Jan, you must remember this, it closed with Jordan Romero coming to the McCallum Theatre, who has been our partner in several of our programs. And he had a question and answer presentation. We had children from the various elementary schools that came to the McCallum and were able to ask questions of Jordan and were certainly inspired by his experience. And this again was a wonderful partnership and collaboration with schools in Gisborne, the McCallum Theatre, and schools in Palm Desert. So this is something that we're very proud of. And we also got an innovation award from Sister Cities International for art, culture, and education because of this particular project.
[00:50:10] Rosemary Ortega: Next one is the humanitarian assistance program. This involved several components. One of them was the bomb program. In that particular case, the bomb program had three components. One of them was the training of firefighters in Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo that was conducted by firefighters from our valley fire departments and coordinated by our former and retired now Ignacio, who worked for Cal Fire from Riverside County. He coordinated everything really to conduct this program. It involved... the first one was vehicle and equipment donation. Many sister cities sometimes send donated vehicles, but they oftentimes send them and that's it. We felt that we also needed to do another thing, and that is to help them in the maintenance and the repair of these vehicles, and that involved parts sending as well as a mechanic that would help them and assist them in maintaining these vehicles. So, vehicle and equipment donation, we were able to send, let's see, four ambulances equipped, three fire engines equipped with donated equipment. There was surplus equipment from throughout the valley and also parts and hospital equipment. In collaboration and partnership with Eisenhower Hospital, we were able to fill a 40-foot container of hospital equipment that went to a hospital in an area of Zihuatanejo, Petatlán, that had a clinic but no equipment whatsoever. Nothing.
[00:51:59] Rosemary Ortega: Firefighter training, as you can see here, involved forest... what do they call it? I'm sorry, I can't think of the name now, but how to train... they don't exactly have forests, but something similar to that, and also training in fires in high-rise hotels in Ixtapa. As you can see in the pictures, it was a wonderful contribution to their fire and safety programs in the municipality of Zihuatanejo. The other part of that was fire safety education. Our firefighters also went there and visited schools, not like the mini muster program that we have here, but a different version of it where they went to the schools and they handed out information and they gave education as to what to do in case of a fire. They did this in various schools throughout the whole area of Zihuatanejo. That was part of it as well.
[00:53:02] Rosemary Ortega: And the other part of the humanitarian assistance program, and also has to do with tourism, was the lifeguard training program. This was a great need that they expressed to us. They had an average of 15 drownings a year in this resort area. So they asked us if we could collaborate, and we were able to send three different instructors in collaboration with the American Lifeguard Association and the Mexican Lifeguard Association. We were able to send three instructors from the United States, two from Mexico, and they had a lifeguard training program. As a result of this, they had one drowning. I don't know what it has been lately, but it went down from 15 to one a year. So, this was an excellent program that involved the training and certification of 73 lifeguards.
[00:54:02] Rosemary Ortega: Another program that was also community-based was the scouts program, and that is a collaboration between Rotary clubs, Palm Desert Rotary Club with the Ixtapa Rotary Club. We were able to fund uniforms and membership so that children that were underserved could also participate in this wonderful and obviously international program throughout the world, and that is scouts. It made a huge difference with youth in that area.
[00:54:31] Rosemary Ortega: And another example is the youth... the YAS, what we call Young Artists and Authors Showcase, and that was a sister city program, Sister Cities International program, that we were able to at least work with Gisborne, and there were some young gals there, some young students, that participated and won awards.
[00:54:53] Rosemary Ortega: The other, if you could... the 9/11 concert. We joined Sister Cities International in their effort to commemorate this date of 9/11 and also had concerts that were held here in our civic center as well as at the McCallum. And we joined 200 other cities in the world, not just in the United States, 200 cities throughout the world that had a 9/11 concert in remembrance. We did that and we were very proud of that. And again, partnership with the McCallum and with the city as well. Also, we've had fundraising, that's always important, and our major fundraisers have been the honorary ambassador series where we honored and acknowledged what we considered ambassadors that could exhibit the whole reason behind Sister Cities International, and that is to promote collaboration, to have a collaborative spirit, and to represent the cities and the communities as well. So, we honored Bob Spiegel, Jean Benson, and more recently, Mary Helen Kelly. We also had a Tee to Green golf tournament that we partnered with our beautiful Desert Willow, and we had tournaments at Desert Willow Golf Resort in conjunction with a tournament in Gisborne. And so it was distance, you might say, but it was the same tournament.
[00:56:38] Rosemary Ortega: And the other... we've had... well, we don't have a picture there, but we have had other fundraisers in some of our art galleries, also at the Civic Center Park with a walk, and some community exchanges. You can see a picture there, that was in the early years. We've also had community trips to both Gisborne, New Zealand and to Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo where we coordinated and collaborated with their community to take citizens from our city to those two sister cities. Of course, everybody paid their own way. We all did. But it was a wonderful experience for citizens here to go and visit our sister cities, learn about their communities, learn about... we had wonderful tours that were conducted by people there in each one of the cities and coordinated by their sister cities association as well. So, I'm sorry that I'm kind of rushing here, but I'm so afraid that I'm going to run out of time and I'd like to give you opportunities to have... if you have any questions at all. Now, to end this, I still have time, right? I'm okay.
[00:57:51] Rosemary Ortega: Okay. In closing, I would like to say that we started out as a subcommittee of the city, and then became a committee, and then the city asked us to become a nonprofit, which we did. So we created the Sister City Foundation. I don't want to get emotional here, but we made the difficult decision of dissolving our foundation. So, this will be our final report to you. And that's why I wanted to give you a brief synopsis of what we feel we have accomplished as representing the City of Palm Desert on a national level and international level. We would like to think that we are perhaps the only nonprofit in the valley that has been a representative of the city and have been ambassadors of the city beyond Riverside County, beyond the country as well. We have done it with dedication, I would say, with commitment, with focus, and very proud to be part of the City of Palm Desert. So we hope that we have done a good job in representing the City of Palm Desert and its citizens, its many other organizations, its community as a whole, its local government as well. And we'd like to say that what we have... we feel that is part of the history of the city, and in conjunction and in agreement with you, the City Council, we have given what we have, and particularly the funds as well, and we have donated them to the Palm Desert Historical Society. We feel that that is the best place for this to be for the future. So we are still in the process of working with the historical society to give them what we have, that they will be the keepers of this effort that some of us have been a part of. It is our hope that the relationship...
[01:00:02] Ms. Ortega: Between Palm Desert and both of our sister cities will continue because the relationship is still there. The agreement is still there. Those are our two sister cities. So we hope that both of our sister cities, Ajijic and Gisborne, will be able to thrive through ongoing friendship, collaboration, cultural exchange, and community engagement that the city will continue to support it. And in saying that, I also want to extend our gratitude to the Palm Desert City Council for its many years of support. And I must mention those that are no longer with us that served as the council representatives on our board since the very beginning. And that includes our dear former council member and mayor, Jean Benson, Buford Crites, Van Tanner, Kathleen Kelly, and Karina, who was there for a short time as well, and Gina as well, more lately, I should say. But we want to thank the city for everything that you have done to let us and allow us to continue what we did. Now we are closed.
[01:01:19] Ms. Ortega: Thank you. Are there any questions? I don't know if I have time.
[01:01:22] Mayor Evan Trubee: Sure.
[01:01:24] Council Member: Thank you, Ms. Ortega. That was beautiful and touching. Do you know approximately how much was donated to the historical society?
[01:01:32] Ms. Ortega: I believe it was $16,000. That's what we had left over from our funds.
[01:01:40] Mayor Evan Trubee: Okay, that's very good. Any other questions or comments?
[01:01:46] Council Member: Quite simply, thank you.
[01:01:49] Ms. Ortega: Thank you. And thank you, Mark.
[01:01:52] Ms. Ortega: Yes. Yes. I do want to acknowledge the two that are here now that actually were there from the very beginning in 1999. That is Nancy Joe McIntosh, our treasurer, and Mark Cowboys, past president, secretary. I don't know what else, but he has been there for us as well. And he is a native of New Zealand. I must mention that. Thank you very much.
[01:02:16] Mayor Evan Trubee: You know, would we like to get a photo just to, since this is the sort of swan song with all my council, we're going to do some more steps. We're going to go down and...
[01:02:23] Ms. Ortega: I would like to have a photo to remember this occasion.
[01:02:26] Mayor Evan Trubee: That would be wonderful. Thank you. Appreciate that.
[01:03:53] Mayor Evan Trubee: Thank you very much, Miss Ortega. I appreciate that. Next up, we have item 9C, a proclamation for Mr. Paul Vaoth. And we will begin with a video presentation. Actually, Mr. Vaoth, we're going to do the video first and then we'll bring you on up.
[01:04:24] Paul Vos: My name is Paul Vos and I've been a resident since 1965. Well, it kind of started, we got... I got bored just walking the dog and I saw some trash laying around. So I started picking it up and one thing led to another and now I got a bag that I put it in and I've been doing it for, oh, at least 15 years. One day I'll do this side of the street and another day I'll do that side of the street. We do about two and a half miles a day. I just don't like leaving stuff lay around. I mean, we were brought up that way. I enjoy, you know, the sidewalk being clean when I'm done with it. Sure, I'm in no danger of running out of a job because every day there's a new supply. You know, everybody likes to be acknowledged. I'm no different. Occasionally people, you know, will go by, they'll stop the car and, you know, ask why I'm doing it. And I get a positive response, but really, like I say, it's kind of boring just walking the dog around in circles. And I just started picking up trash and just kept at it.
[01:05:58] Mayor Evan Trubee: All right. Now, one more time, if you don't mind, I'm going to ask my fellow council members, come on down, and we're going to do a little proclamation.
[01:06:22] Mayor Evan Trubee: Okay, you want to come on back here? I'm going to read the proclamation and then we'll have a few words from you if you like as well. Okay. And actually, before I start, I'm going to just give you a little background if you don't mind. Actually, I've lived in Palm Desert since 1993 and just, well before I was on council or well before I was involved in city politics at all, I noticed Mr. Vaoth walking around the neighborhood just picking up trash and I just always admired that. You know, he wasn't... I think Jan shared with me a little saying the other day: 'It's about the cause, not the applause.' And it just appeared to me that Mr. Vos was just doing it to keep his city clean. He wasn't looking for any recognition, wasn't looking for any awards, didn't come out and brag about it, didn't make a big deal about it, didn't scold any of his neighbors for doing it, as far as I know. And here we are. And so I just thought, you know, more than anything, I just love to recognize people who are taking it upon themselves to do something for the good of the city or for the good of the community in general. Not complaining about a problem and going and saying, 'Hey, somebody ought to fix this,' just doing it themselves. And I'm sure there's other residents out there doing it. I just happened to notice Mr. Vaoth doing it. And I just feel that if all residents kind of took that attitude and approach, boy oh boy, we'd have the cleanest city in the nation, in the world. We already kind of do. But anyway, I'm going to read the proclamation and I just wanted to give you a little background. I don't know Mr. Vos actually. I just was out biking the other day, as I sometimes do in the mornings, ran into him, got his phone number, and that started the process of actually making a formal recognition. So, really important to me to make sure residents like this are recognized, and very, very proud of what you do. All right. Whereas Paul Vaoth has been a resident of Palm Desert since 1965 and has witnessed the city grow and evolve over many decades. Whereas for the last 15 years, Paul has made a quiet but meaningful contribution to the community by picking up trash during his daily walks with his dog, Bailey. Bailey's not here. We have a Mrs. Vos here, is that right? Okay, there we are. Whereas Paul walks approximately two and a half miles each day through Palm Desert neighborhoods, sidewalks, parks, and public areas, helping keep the city cleaner one walk at a time. And whereas Paul's quiet, consistent efforts reflect personal responsibility, civic pride, and everyday stewardship, inspiring others to care for the shared spaces that make Palm Desert a special place to live. And whereas Paul's service reminds residents that small, consistent acts can make a visible difference and help preserve the beauty, cleanliness, and welcoming character of Palm Desert. And whereas the city of Palm Desert is proud to recognize residents like Paul, whose everyday actions demonstrate care for the community and encourage others to take pride in the place we call home. 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 recognize and commend Paul Vaoth for his years of volunteer service, civic pride, and dedication to helping keep Palm Desert clean and for inspiring residents to care for our community and public spaces. There you are.
[01:09:50] Paul Vos: I'd just like to thank the mayor for his kind words and just quite by accident that we've met over the years now and again, and he took an interest in what I was doing, and so here we are. It's gratifying that somebody noticed, and it's just kind of kept on going over the years and gives Bailey and I a reason to get up in the morning. Thank you.
[01:11:21] Mayor Evan Trubee: All right, thank you so much. On to item number 10, city manager comments.
[01:11:27] City Manager: Mayor, I'll invite up Lieutenant Porras for a quick update.
[01:11:38] Lieutenant Porras: It's a little inside joke we have there. Anyways, good afternoon, Mayor and City Council. I'd like to provide a brief overview of the city of Palm Desert's crime trends comparing 2024 to 2025. So, as you can see up here, our calls for service went up just a little over three and a half percent, almost to 46,000 calls for service compared to 2024. And we're looking at our response times for our priority calls. Emergency response times for priority one calls stayed about the same. But as our staffing levels continue to improve and we implement our new computer-aided dispatch, or we call it CAD, we anticipate additional improvements for all of our priority calls. The new CAD platform will help dispatch and manage calls more effectively, and I'll provide you an update once that rolls out. We were operating in the '80s when it comes to our CAD systems, and we're now getting some more higher technology that can assist us with all this new information as we can roll out. And when it comes to looking at our part one crime statistics, we're seeing reductions across every major category. Overall, property crimes decreased 23%, while crimes against persons decreased by 11.8%. These are substantial reductions, and we're hoping to continue this trend into this year. One of the most important things is our outreach with our businesses. We're doing a lot of that, and we're getting good results with that, and we're going to hope to continue that trend as it goes on. One of the other things is obviously our automated license plate recognition system has significantly improved investigative efficiency by generating rapid leads, assisting with suspect identification, and accelerating case resolution. Our agency across the county is reporting substantial gains in improving investigative outcomes through the use of this technology. The system has functioned as a force multiplier by allowing deputies to solve cases faster, reduce investigative time, and focus personnel resources more effectively, benefits that are comparable to adding additional proactive enforcement on the street. Locally, the impact has already been felt significantly. To date, we have 245 arrests and recovery of over $1.2 million in property and assets due to the ALPR. These tools do not replace deputies, but they allow our personnel to work smarter, identify offenders faster, and spend time more proactively addressing crime in our community. At the same time, we recognize these statistics only tell part of the story. Every crime impacts a victim, a family, or a business owner. Our goal is not only to reduce crime, but to improve the overall sense of safety and quality of life in our community. I'd like to thank you for your continued support helping us do our job, and I'm open to any questions if you have any.
[01:14:31] Mayor Evan Trubee: Any questions for my colleagues?
[01:14:33] Council Member: I've got just one. Can you remind me the date when all six deputies that were hired were fully on board and on the force?
[01:14:44] Lieutenant Porras: So, the date that the council approved it was toward the end of September 2025, I believe, but we're continuing to add to our staff levels. We're not there yet completely. Since the last time I introduced those trainees that came, we've had a total of three classes come into our training bureau to go through our training phases. Sometimes people don't make training and they decide this job isn't for them, and through attrition. So we're expecting to be completely fully staffed by July of 2026 when it comes to our full staffing. I see some questions, or if you have any further questions on that.
[01:15:18] Council Member: Yeah. I mean, so these declines precede bringing that staffing level back up.
[01:15:24] Lieutenant Porras: Yeah. So, our staffing levels have been fluctuating back and forth depending, and what we're doing is we're filling in our staffing levels with additional bodies that don't normally work in the cities to meet that level of service. So I anticipate that this is going to get even better when we're fully staffed and everything's good to go.
[01:15:43] Council Member: Right. And I guess a more accurate way of characterizing it would be up to the 180 hours per service levels. Okay. Yeah, thank you.
[01:15:52] Lieutenant Porras: Thank you very much.
[01:15:53] Mayor Evan Trubee: Great. Thank you.
[01:15:56] City Manager: I'll ask Chief Cody Wright for a quick update as well.
[01:16:17] Chief Cody Wright: All righty. Good afternoon, Mayor, Mayor Pro Tem, and City Council. I prepared a presentation for you guys. We'll go over the third quarter statistics for 2026, which will be covering the months of January through March. So, our average response time is 4.6 minutes, which is awesome. We're trying to keep our calls under five minutes, so we're definitely meeting the mark there. We had a total of 3,284 responses for service. If you can see there, the engines and the medic units are broken down for those responses. And additionally, we had 125 calls to nurse navigation. And that's that program I discussed where somebody calls 911 and we don't necessarily send a fire engine or fire ambulance screaming Code 3 to their door. We are able to get them the help they need, whether it's just providing medication to them, whether it's a mental health issue, or just, a lot of times, transportation just to the hospital or their primary care provider. On the right side is our call breakdown of our statistics. 2,600 exact were medical aids, which represented 80% of our calls. We had 242 calls for false alarms, which was about 8% of our calls. A public service assist was about 5% of our calls, which is usually assisting people off the ground or various natures and things like that. About 121 calls for traffic collisions, which represented 3.7% of calls. Here's our response map for that time. As you can see, pretty much downtown was the majority focus of our calls. The blue dots represent medical aids, and then the red dots represent fires and traffic accidents. And then the other colors are various types of calls as well. And I know we just watched a little video on the mini muster, but I prepared another one, too. So, we'll go ahead and watch that now. It's mini muster day. All right. So for the significant incidents for that time period: January 30th, we had a room and contents structure fire in a detached building. February 2nd, we had a vehicle into a residence causing major damage. February 8th, we had a patio on fire at a multi-residential facility. February 24th, we had an oven inside of an apartment complex that caught fire. March 5th, we had an outbuilding on fire, which threatened a residential structure. And then on March 7th, we had a vehicle into a palm tree which resulted in major damage and a fully involved electrical vehicle fire. And that concludes the presentation. I'm available for questions.
[01:18:51] Mayor Evan Trubee: All right. Any questions from my colleagues? I have one. I would say this is a dumb question because I have it, but somebody smart asked it of me this morning. More than 98% of your activity is not related to fire. So, why are we still calling you guys firefighters?
[01:19:14] Chief Cody Wright: That's a great question. That's a great question. So, we're called firefighters, but we're all-hazard. We handle all types of hazards, whether it's traffic accidents, people falling down, getting hurt, medical emergencies. All of our pieces of equipment have paramedics on them, and so they have life-saving treatments. And what the paramedics can do, they have all kinds of medication treatments, things they can do. They could stop your heart, they could restart your heart, they can make you feel good, and they can make you feel bad with all these types of things and procedures they can do. So, a firefighter is an umbrella term for the thing we do, but we're a multi-function, multi-facility thing. Pretty much when someone calls 911, we like to say that they've lost control of what's going on and they need assistance. And we come in with the police department as well to mitigate that hazard, no matter what it is in nature. We're trained on various things. Hopefully, that answered your question.
[01:20:02] Mayor Evan Trubee: It does. Right. Anybody else?
[01:20:07] Chief Cody Wright: All right. Thank you so much. Thank you, guys.
[01:20:10] City Manager: Next, I'll ask Lauren Hancock, library services manager, for a quick program update.
[01:20:22] Lauren Hancock: Anyone need a program?
[01:20:26] Council Member: Did you get yours?
[01:20:27] Lauren Hancock: The monthly or the...
[01:20:29] Council Member: This is for summer reading.
[01:20:30] Lauren Hancock: Oh, summer reading. Okay, here we go.
[01:20:33] Mayor Evan Trubee: Yeah, bring it on up. Absolutely. We'd love one.
[01:20:45] Lauren Hancock: Good afternoon, Mayor and City Council. My name is Lauren Hancock, the library manager, and I'll provide an update on the summer reading program and information about our next poet laureate, the summer reading cup. This year, our theme is the men's FIFA World Cup. Our library programs, crafts, activities, and prizes are celebrated with cultures from around the world and soccer. Sorry, I'm a little nervous. It's getting my voice. All right. The program starts on June 8th and runs through July 24th. Pre-registration begins this Sunday at the library, May 31st. Registration prizes and completion prizes are free books for you to build your home library. They're available for all ages. And we will have weekly prizes, weekly performances, and weekly crafts as well. We will continue to do our story time every week for our early readers and our bimonthly Pokemon Smash Bros. World Cup competitions. There will be poetry workshops, writing workshops for the whole summer. I'd like to thank the Literary Society of the Desert, the Friends of the Palm Desert Library, and the city for your generous support. It would not be possible without your support. This is our second summer reading program, and along with the excellent planning of the library staff, it wouldn't be possible. On Saturday, July 17th from 12:00 to 2:00, we will do a pizza and ice cream party with a raffle. So, please join us for that. And do I change the slide? Oh, thank you. And second, we are on the search for our next poet laureate. Our current poet laureate, Lorie Davis, ends her term in September, and applications are now open through Tuesday, June 30th. The poet laureate works to uplift artistic achievement throughout the city, raise awareness of poetry, provide access to poetry, and encourage community members to develop their own creative interest. Applications can be emailed to me, lhancock@palmdesert.gov, or they can be physically mailed to the library. Again, that deadline is Tuesday, June 30th. The panel meets in July to review applications. We have final interviews in August. In September, we will make our recommendations to City Council, and then their term will begin in October. If there's a QR code on the screen, that will take you to the website for additional information like application requirements, how to submit eligibility, or anything else related to the position. So if there's any questions, they can go there or they can ask me. Those are our two updates. If you have any questions, I'm happy to answer them.
[01:23:23] Mayor Evan Trubee: Yeah, absolutely.
[01:23:25] Council Member: Yeah. When is the... you said Pokemon and Smash Bros., is that monthly? Is that a certain day of...
[01:23:31] Lauren Hancock: It's bimonthly. It's in the program. It is the second and fourth Wednesday of the month. It's a very popular program. We will be celebrating the 10th anniversary of Pokemon Go on July 8th.
[01:23:45] Council Member: Yeah, I've been very excited to hear about that and see how we've shifted a lot of things to make Palm Desert a center of that. So, thank you for...
[01:23:55] Lauren Hancock: Center of Pokemon, such great partners.
[01:23:58] Council Member: That, and I also wanted to comment that we go to a lot of different places, and when we were at a conference in Vegas, someone saw the shirts and said, 'Oh, Palm Desert, I've gotten XYZ reasons.' And someone happened to mention how great the library is.
[01:24:13] Lauren Hancock: Oh, that's wonderful.
[01:24:14] Council Member: I wanted to pass that on. Just nothing but love and appreciation for everybody in the staff and how wonderful and welcoming the library is. So, please pass that on from somebody out of state that came to share that with us.
[01:24:28] Lauren Hancock: Thank you. We like to provide services for our residents and our visitors as well.
[01:24:33] Council Member: Yeah.
[01:24:34] Mayor Evan Trubee: And just as an aside, you mentioned the poet laureate nominations. There was also... you put together a compilation of poetry, something, something in marmalade. I've got it set on my bedstand ready to go.
[01:24:45] Lauren Hancock: Yes. Marmalade... I forget the title of it. It was for National Poetry Month in April. And Lorie Davis hosts a workshop twice a month at the library, and she gets wonderful attendance and regulars. There's anywhere between 20 and 30 people that show up, and they write and critique each other's poetry, and then they put it together in the anthology, present it, do somewhat of a poetry open mic in April, and put that anthology together.
[01:25:16] Mayor Evan Trubee: That's available at the library.
[01:25:17] Lauren Hancock: It's available at the library. We have them here, and then they're also in front of the city manager's desk.
[01:25:22] Mayor Evan Trubee: How much they cost?
[01:25:24] Lauren Hancock: They're free.
[01:25:24] Mayor Evan Trubee: Just kidding. All right. Thank you.
[01:25:25] Lauren Hancock: Everything at the library is free. You do not have to pay for anything at the library.
[01:25:29] Mayor Evan Trubee: Perfect. Thank you.
[01:25:29] Lauren Hancock: We have books, too.
[01:25:31] Mayor Evan Trubee: All right. Thank you.
[01:25:34] Mayor Evan Trubee: Thank you. Anyone else? No, we're good. Okay. Thank you.
[01:25:37] City Manager: And to close us out, Andrea Staley, HR director, to recap our internship program. Oh, you're punting it. Okay. Todd Butts.
[01:25:57] Todd Butts: Mayor, Mayor Pro Tem, council members, city staff, thank you for the opportunity to present to you today. Todd Butts, marketing and communications coordinator for the city of Palm Desert. I'm joined by our communications interns, Anelise Torres and Guy Guzman. And we're here to talk very briefly about the city's internship program. This semester, we hosted six COD students that were working both here at City Hall and then over at the Palm Desert Library. And what made this internship program really rewarding was the opportunity for these students to contribute in ways that were visible to the public, whether those were public outreach or communications efforts to special events and arts and literature programs. And as part of that experience, our communication interns, Anelise and Guy, worked really hard to put together a short video highlighting some of the projects that the interns worked on, including the aforementioned reading cup for this summer at the library. And they also wanted to talk about the value of the programs to the students. So, we'll watch that video right now.
[01:27:07] Todd Butts: That's very trippy.
[01:27:17] Anelise Torres: The Palm Desert Internship Program was designed to give College of the Desert students firsthand experience with the daily operations of local government while helping us build practical skills, knowledge, and professional growth. Hi, my name is Anelise Torres, and I'm an intern for the communications division. As this internship program continues to expand, students are getting more opportunities to work on real projects contributing to both the community and the city. Programs at the library and public works are making literature and art more accessible to the public.
[01:27:46] Ivana Sanchez: My name is Ivana Sanchez, and I'm currently interning at the Palm Desert Library. I'm working on the summer reading program. I'm working on the logo, working on a booklet. This is the first one that I've ever worked on, and I hope that it shows through it, and I hope that people get to enjoy it.
[01:28:01] Natalia Sherar: Hi, my name is Natalia Sherar, and I am with the public art department. I just finished the virtual tour website. We have to put in all the pictures, put in a description and everything. Next, we're going to go around, take more pictures of the art pieces that are left, and we're pretty much done with it.
[01:28:18] Anelise Torres: For our interns like Ivana and Natalia, that means working closely with city staff to create programs that the community could experience and enjoy. However, some of the projects didn't stay within one department. Palm Desert's Arbor Day celebration brought together the efforts of multiple interns across departments from communications, the city clerk's office, and public works to make an annual event better than ever.
[01:28:38] Guy Guzman: Hi, I'm Guy Guzman. I am interning for the communications department. One of the projects that I worked on was the logo for the Arbor Day event. They had asked me to create this visual identity, this branding. Very interesting to see all these teams just bringing ideas, different insights, everyone from different backgrounds, and how thought processes and meetings just all lead up to a bigger project.
[01:28:59] Alisa Sherar: So, hi there. My name is Alisa Sherar, and I'm an intern here at the city clerk's office. When I first had to print out, like actually write up and print out a proclamation which was presented on Arbor Day, and the mayor signed it and then presented it to the council, and I think that was kind of a cool moment.
[01:29:18] Elena Monke: So my name is Elena Monke, and I am interning with Public Works. And what I did was I helped with Arbor Day. I learned that a lot of planning goes on that I didn't even think that we had to focus on that, but we did, and like every step counts.
[01:29:33] Anelise Torres: After all that work across different departments, we got to see everything come together in a real community event.
[01:29:43] Guy Guzman: I was fully aware that this logo was going to be put on shirts as well as social media and websites. But it wasn't until Arbor Day itself where I came out and I saw everyone wearing the logo. I saw everyone wearing the shirts and this identity that I had created in an actual community event, which was really...
[01:30:01] Video Speaker: Hit me. It all felt a bit surreal.
[01:30:03] Video Speaker: I had no idea that other interns were also working on this. And then it also went out to other people who got to enjoy the event and saw that proclamation being presented. So I think that's just cool. It feels like I'm part of something big.
[01:30:16] Video Speaker: As for my project, you are watching it right now. Gail and I collaborated on this very video. From directing interviews to editing this final cut, everything came down to how we wanted to present this experience, not just to the city, but also to future interns, too. Outside of our projects, we were also building our professional skills by working on resumes, practicing interviews, and getting a better idea of what comes next in our future journeys.
[01:30:37] Video Speaker: I think art is really important to me, and I didn't know that if I were to work in this department, I would be able to learn so much about art and how I can put my own stuff out there. And I think it will help me figure out how I can go about, I guess, marketing myself. Whatever career I decide to take, I just feel like after this, it's going to help me in any other projects that I decide to take.
[01:31:00] Video Speaker: If you're thinking about applying to be an intern one day, my advice, just do it. You're not only getting the chance to learn and grow here, but also the opportunity to make great connections with great people and be a part of something meaningful. Thank you for joining us on this journey.
[01:31:23] Staff: I think it's safe for me to speak for the other staff mentors, but we were really, really impressed with all of the interns' dedication, their enthusiasm, and their hard work through this process. So, thank you guys, and we're going to miss you. And if you have any questions, we're available to answer them.
[01:31:41] Mayor: Any questions or comments?
[01:31:44] Council Member: You know, at Arbor Day, we all had our t-shirts on, and a young woman came over to me and just commented on what a great logo it was. I looked around for you so I could introduce you and she could tell you the same, but I didn't get to, but I got to tell you now. So, a lot of comments on that shirt.
[01:32:03] Intern: Thank you so much.
[01:32:07] Council Member: Congratulations on being a part of the internship program and leaving a legacy for the city. I would like to know what you are going to be carrying with you from your experiences, and it doesn't have to be a professional skill, right? But what about working here is going to be something you'll keep with you, right?
[01:32:27] Mayor: Pop quiz.
[01:32:29] Council Member: Close.
[01:32:30] Intern: No pressure. My takeaway from this was it was a great experience. I learned a lot. I learned how to work in a professional setting and this public service community. And going back to this, my takeaway was I was able to create something that will create a legacy beyond just myself. This is for the entire city. And being able to collaborate on such a big project, it gave me a sense of pride and I was so happy to be a part of this.
[01:33:09] Intern: Yeah, I think for me, I was fortunate enough to be a part of the first round of the internship program. So this was my second time, and I got to learn a lot about the city itself and how much work goes into behind the scenes that as a resident you kind of just accept and not really know all that time and effort and stuff like that. But honestly, the people here have been truly the greatest thing of this experience. Every person I came across, whether it was my department or not, truly welcomed me and made me feel accepted and genuinely wanted to know what are you going to do next, and if you ever need recommendations, please reach out. The people here are really great. So, yeah.
[01:33:55] Mayor: Perfect. All right. Thank you. I love the synergy, and don't forget they weren't just great interns, we had great mentors. So, thank you to staff as well.
[01:34:05] Mayor: All right. Anything else?
[01:34:06] Staff: Nothing additional.
[01:34:07] Mayor: All right. Excellent. Thank you. On to item number 11. And I am a creature of habit, so I'm going to start off to my left. I know, Council Member Moreno, we're going to go with the traditional left, my left to right, and so we'll start with you.
[01:34:24] Council Member Moreno: You just like me to do all of the work to say, "Yeah, and the mayor was there, too." Let's see. As part of the board of directors for SunLine, I want to share with my colleagues, and I know I sent the letter already to our city manager and city clerk, that funding is short all across the state, all across everywhere. And we need to speak up and reach out to ARB, which is one of the air quality monitors, because there is a chance that the funding for the Hal Pass (HAL), which funds the student passes to get around the valley, may be endangered. So that was something to keep in mind as our local agencies may turn to the cities for more funding. So just something to put out there. I mentioned the library. Let's see what else. Oh, SunLine also said phase two of SunLine Reimagined is coming soon. So we'll keep posting the surveys and keep everyone engaged because soon we'll be able to see the two proposed maps for what we're going to see: either more routes with greater intervals, so you're going to have to wait longer, or less routes with quicker intervals. And that's going to be up to the community feedback to let us know what you think will work best for you and for the community overall. A reminder for everyone, you know, the elections are coming up. The sooner you vote, the sooner that you'll stop getting the mailers, you're going to stop getting the texts, you're going to stop getting the phone calls. Just a reminder to sign and date just as it is on your driver's license because that's what they're going to look at. So that's a nice, easy, simple one. May is Mental Health Awareness Month and also Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month. So, congratulations to my pinsan. And, request for action, I did submit that in writing to direct staff to create an ordinance to ban data centers. That's one of the reasons where my considerations in the inspiration and invocation was, are we doing enough in the present to protect the future? So, I hope that I can get some support for that.
[01:37:04] Council Member: I would second an opportunity to at least revisit or to visit a policy about it, not weighing in one way or the other.
[01:37:12] Council Member Moreno: Absolutely. That's all we're asking.
[01:37:14] Council Member: Have the discussion. Happy to do that.
[01:37:15] Council Member Moreno: Thank you.
[01:37:16] Council Member: And I would like to point out that we had a presentation from staff on our goals, and it included a lot of work that we're doing, and every time we move and shift things, it reallocates those resources. I would like to suggest as we do that to include this in our conversation about the development code that we're already doing.
[01:37:34] Council Member Moreno: Yes.
[01:37:35] Council Member: So that it's not creating additional work, but kind of considering this use as we consider our development code as a whole.
[01:37:42] Council Member Moreno: Absolutely. I was told not to get into too much detail so it didn't appear as deliberation, but I'm right there with you.
[01:37:50] Mayor: Terrific. Okay. Council Member Standi? Very good. Council Member Hornick.
[01:37:57] Council Member Hornick: Thank you, Mayor. I have a few things. I was with Southern California Association of Governments in Washington, D.C., I think it was last week. It's hard to tell. But we did a lot of really good work about housing, and it will affect us here and it'll affect us regionally, and also for the IGA, which is the former name of the infrastructure bill, now to be known as Build America 250. And that is one of those things we need for our bridges, our highways, and just our general infrastructure. We also did a lot of work for LA28 and FIFA. And though sometimes we don't think LA28 is important here, if we don't have a traffic demand model that works well in LA, it impacts the goods movement that comes here. We all saw what happened during COVID, and we don't want that to happen again with empty shelves. So we got to meet with the Department of Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency, senators, congressmen, etc. I think we did a lot of good work, and SCAG is a strong advocacy body. Also tomorrow in Temecula, there is, and this is for Riverside County and will touch us eventually if this works well, the launching of the smart freeways project on the 15. It's the first in California. It has been in Australia, and it's also in Colorado. We're going to see how it works. It may just really help ease up on all traffic and avoid having to build more lanes and more highways. So, we'll see how that goes, and I will report out as we find out how the smart freeway project works. And I'm sure there's more, but that's enough.
[01:39:48] Mayor: All right. Mayor Pro Tem? Nothing. Okay. Just want to highlight two things that I was able to participate in the last two weeks. Of course, Council Member Moreno and I, along with staff, Amy Lawrence and Martine, were able to attend, among others, the International Conference of Shopping Centers in Las Vegas. It's a three-day conference, and it's an opportunity for us to meet with potential developers who may have an interest in coming to Palm Desert, to sort of sell Palm Desert as a destination for them. And it was great. Of course, a lot of this, and I've been two or three times, really a lot of the discussions are sort of in the very early stages. So, but it's an interesting process. Development happens slowly. It's a lot of moving parts: infrastructure, market forces, etc., etc. And so those discussions happen, but one real big takeaway which I loved, staff was able to set up a visit, sort of a field trip, to Henderson, Nevada, where they're building an indoor sports facility somewhat similar to what is being sort of proposed, discussed—we'll say that's a good word for it—discussed here in the city of Palm Desert. It was encouraging. It was good. It was a chance to see what worked there, to learn from their process of how it came to be. They're not quite open yet, but we were able to meet with some representatives from the city and some of the developers and learn about the process, about what works for these types of facilities, what doesn't, and very, very worthwhile. Really enjoyed that. And it's encouraging. And then second, of course, last night as mayor, I had the opportunity and honor to attend the Palm Desert High School graduation. And I also get to go on a monthly basis to honor the students of the month. And it's just always so encouraging and uplifting to be around these kids, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, full of energy. And it was a real honor to be a participant in this huge milestone in their life. So, very proud to have that high school. Terrific staff, terrific coaches, great mentors, great program. They're achievers both academically and athletically. Very proud to have that high school in our city and to be a part of that. And the city does support them. In fact, one thing that was brought to mind with the internship presentation, we do have a civic engagement day where we bring about 30 or so high school kids to take a tour of City Hall, get familiar with what we do here. So, again, I love the way the city interacts with students and gives them an idea of what city government, local government is, both to educate them in what they can do as residents or perhaps for a future job. So, again, love the synergy there, and that is all. So, we will move on.
[01:42:22] Council Member Moreno: I'll tack on one thing. Thank you, Amy, for being such a gracious driver. You did such a great job. And thanks, Martine, for not getting the Tesla truck. So, that was great. And one of the best things about Henderson is it was a desert climate, because a lot of times people will say you're hearing from people out of state, but we went somewhere where the climate is very similar. And, you know, I think that really will enhance the discussions as they come about. But I really enjoyed being there and seeing the potential.
[01:42:56] Mayor: Again, kudos to Amy for all the logistical planning that made our lives easy. Thank you. Okay, on to item number 12, 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.
[01:43:25] 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 joining in by calling in on your phone, please dial star nine to raise your hand. And when called upon, press star six to unmute yourself.
[01:43:38] Mayor: Okay. So, I will now open the floor for non-agenda public comments. I have two blue speaker cards, and we will begin with Leslie Miller.
[01:43:54] Leslie Miller: Good afternoon, everybody. Okay, this is an item that I think you've known about for about 20 years. I've been a resident here for about 20 years. I'm just going to jump right into it. On the 20th and 21st of this month, we had another transformer that blew up. And I'll make this fairly directed at your attorneys. I have experienced over the 20-year period everything from palm tree heads being cut off, which is upsetting enough aesthetically—I have a big background in art and aesthetics—to a dead dog, to a burned-out group of fruit trees. And then last week on the 21st, this took the cake. Transformer blew out. We have a new lady on our block who just paid over $2 million for her house. She was in her swimming pool. She got out of her swimming pool. The wires from a big transformer blew out. If she had been in that swimming pool, I hardly need to tell any of you that we may have a wrongful death case against the City of Palm Desert. It didn't occur this time, but heaven help us if it occurs another time. For 20 years, I have been on this situation. I was joined by Mary Lee—I think you remember her, Mary Lee Coloulton. She has since moved to up north, I think it's Sacramento. But we both had experience with this. In Newport Beach, we managed to get poles and wires down in my neighborhood. In approximately two years—it's true there had been some activity before I got involved, but you know, two years. I think Mary Lee had been involved in something else in Northern California, and the poles and wires, and it was within a reasonable period of time to get the petitions, to get the signatures, to do the public relations, all of it. My understanding, this was before the pandemic, was that we had obtained all the necessary signatures and letters and so forth. I'm just, you know, warning everybody. Oh dear, we're at three minutes.
[01:46:29] Mayor: 30 seconds.
[01:46:30] Leslie Miller: 30 seconds. Just, it's a warning. It's a warning. And I myself had returned to Palm Desert the day before. It's just sort of funny because I'd had a blowout of my tire on the freeway, so I had no car. And then I came in and I had no electricity, so no air conditioning, and my phone couldn't be charged. So, virtually isolated in Palm Desert of all places. I just encourage you, in particular your attorneys, to take note.
[01:47:04] Mayor: Thank you, Miss Miller.
[01:47:05] Leslie Miller: Thank you very much.
[01:47:06] Mayor: We have your address, contact information.
[01:47:08] Leslie Miller: And I'd be happy to help, you know, in any way I can.
[01:47:11] Mayor: Might connect you with our Public Works Department.
[01:47:13] Leslie Miller: Everything. Oh, well. All right. I think that's it. No more time. Thank you.
[01:47:18] Mayor: All right. Thank you so much. Next up, we have Mr. Donald Ziggler.
[01:47:36] Donald Ziggler: Good afternoon, Mayor. Good afternoon, Council. My name is Donald Ziggler, and I'm a year-round resident of Palm Desert. As a member of the now-discarded Resource Preservation and Enhancement Committee, I would just like to point out that if you click on the environmental programs on the city's website, it pulls up the screen that I think you have in front of you, and that still says that the city's environmental programs serve as a liaison for the Resource Preservation and Enhancement Committee, and it helps to support and move forward the sustainability initiatives recommended by the committee. Obviously, that no longer applies. Last year, you scolded me and other members of the RPC for not sticking to the agenda for its meetings that had been prepared by the city staff. It looks to me, from how I read that website, that it was the job of the committee to provide initiatives and come up with ideas, not just to rubber-stamp what you had already decided. Then last week, I got an email that said, "I'm writing to let you know that on May 14th, the Palm Desert City Council took action to dissolve the Environmental Resources Committee. In taking this action, the City Council determined that sustainability and environmental efforts will continue through existing city programs, staff work, and regional coordination initiatives." Since then, I've waited two weeks just to see how you would change the website to reflect eliminating the committee. But as with so much in government these days, it's very easy to break things, but it's a little harder to replace them. So, I think it's time to update the website to now include the language that's reflected in the letter I got and admit that there is no formal citizen involvement now in the city's future sustainability and environmental efforts. Actually, I'm afraid it seems you are intent on reducing the role of citizen committees in general. You may have seen the Coachella City Council meeting last night with hundreds of people showing up to protest their decision to allow a data center, which looks like they're going to have to undo. You had hundreds show up here in your attempt to remove the gay pride banner. If you and the Coachella City Council had let those topics be discussed in citizen committees before putting them to a vote, you could have saved yourselves and your cities a lot of embarrassment. I think you're missing the whole point of having these committees, and I hope at some point you will remember again why you need them and how to use them. Thank you.
[01:50:29] Mayor: All right. Thank you very much. That is the only blue cards we have submitted. Are there any online public comments?
[01:50:37] City Clerk: No online comments.
[01:50:38] Mayor: All right. Thank you very much. We will now move on to item number 13, 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. I see no blue cards here for the consent items. Are there any online?
[01:51:00] City Clerk: No online comments.
[01:51:01] Mayor: Okay. Thank you very much. Any council member wish? Well, actually, I will start by saying I need to recuse myself from item 13D due to proximity. Any council members wish to pull an item for further discussion?
[01:51:13] Council Member Moreno: Item F and item H, please.
[01:51:20] Council Member: I'll make a motion to approve the remainder.
[01:51:23] Council Member: I also need to register an abstention to 13D, D as in dog, and that's just due to a possible perception of a business conflict with my husband's business.
[01:51:38] Mayor: Okay, very good. So, we have a second. Okay. Motion to approve moving the consent calendar minus those items.
[01:51:50] City Clerk: Motion passes five to zero.
[01:51:53] Council Member Moreno: Okay. Now, open discussion on items, is it 13F and H? They're just really quick, and they just came to me right before, so I completely would understand if staff doesn't have the information. Very quickly for item H, in discussing the windows, I think it's a great idea. Is there any chance that we might know how much has been saved over time by having the great insulated windows?
[01:52:24] Mayor: Just for a point of clarification, I'll just read out loud. Item 13—
[01:52:27] Council Member Moreno: Oh, so sorry.
[01:52:28] Mayor: Yeah, no problem. Item 13H is award construction contract for energy-efficient windows at City Hall.
[01:52:36] Staff: No, I don't have those exact numbers, but we can put them together, I mean, after the windows are installed.
[01:52:42] Council Member Moreno: Yeah, that was just kind of out of curiosity, but I know that as we discuss sustainability and all that we can do, I think this is something that would be beneficial to have in our records and as we continue to be liaison and keep saying Palm Desert's still committed to being green.
[01:53:00] Staff: Thank you.
[01:53:02] Mayor: Okay, any other comments?
[01:53:05] Council Member Moreno: Okay. And then item 13F,
[01:53:07] Mayor: which is a ratification of a letter supporting the Palm Desert Charter Middle School charter renewal.
[01:53:16] Mayor: Okay. And do we know who's presenting for that one, or—
[01:53:20] Staff: I would be available to answer the questions related to the letter.
[01:53:24] Council Member Moreno: Perfect. In preparing that support, I know that something that has been ongoing was the discussions on how many students are from Palm Desert or getting transfers. Do we know if they expressed—I know they'd mentioned some time ago that they were going to reduce the number of transfer vouchers. I'm wondering if that came up in any of the conversations in preparing the letters or the requests from the school district.
[01:53:58] Staff: I don't have any information on that.
[01:54:00] Council Member Moreno: Okay. And I would like to, in that case, advance those items for a vote and that we vote on them separately, please.
[01:54:12] Council Member: I will second.
[01:54:15] Mayor: Vote on them separately.
[01:54:16] Council Member Moreno: Oh, as two separate items. Yes.
[01:54:18] Mayor: Okay.
[01:54:19] Council Member: I'll move 13H.
[01:54:21] Council Member: And I'll second.
[01:54:28] City Clerk: Motion passes five to zero, and that's item H regarding the windows.
[01:54:32] Council Member: And I'll move 13F.
[01:54:34] Council Member: I will second.
[01:54:43] City Clerk: Motion passes four to zero with Council Member Moreno abstaining.
[01:54:49] Mayor: All right, very good. On to item 14, action calendar. We'll begin with item 14A, introduction of an ordinance amending Palm Desert Municipal Code, section 2.52.075F, accrued vacation time buyback, to authorize tiered vacation leave buyback amounts of up to 160 hours per calendar year. Looking for a staff report, please.
[01:55:14] Veronica Chavez: Honorable Mayor, members of the City Council, Veronica Chavez, Director of Finance. This item is before you to ensure alignment between the 2026 MOU with the Palm Desert Employees Organization and our municipal code. The specific change is going from 80 hours of vacation buyback to 160 hours. And the vacation buyback program provides staff flexibility as well as allows the city to manage accumulated liabilities with regards to compensated leaves and also reduces potential separation payouts. This item also authorizes an initial implementation period so that we can have it coincide with the MOU start date of July 1. Staff is available for any questions.
[01:56:03] Mayor: Okay. Before I bring it back to Council for discussion, I'd like to open up for public comment. I don't have any blue cards. Are there any online public comments?
[01:56:11] City Clerk: No online comments.
[01:56:12] Mayor: All right. Very good. Then do we have any clarifying questions from my colleagues? All right. Let's open up for discussion. Any comments?
[01:56:23] Council Member: Okay, I'll move approval.
[01:56:25] Council Member: Second.
[01:56:31] City Clerk: Motion passes five to zero.
[01:56:33] Mayor: Very good. On to item 14B. Receive and file a recap of the 2026 Fashion Week El Paseo and Palm Desert Food and Wine Festival events and provide direction regarding a future sponsorship agreement with Palm Springs Life, and looking for a staff report.
[01:56:56] Staff: Mayor, we're going to start with two videos first.
[01:56:58] Mayor: Okay. Very good.
[01:57:21] Video Narrator: Fashion Week El Paseo continues to define Palm Desert as one of the West Coast's premier destinations for style, culture, shopping, and design. In 2026, Fashion Week El Paseo once again brought energy and excitement to Palm Desert, welcoming more than 6,000 guests for six runway shows featuring celebrated designers, emerging talent, and fashion industry leaders, including Trina Turk, Sergio Hudson, Kevin Hall, students from Istituto Marangoni in Miami, and more. The week created energy across the city with pre-show receptions, VIP experiences, designer pop-ups, sponsor activations, and retail engagement that extended the event beyond the runway and into Palm Desert's restaurants, hotels, shops, and local businesses. Attendees traveled from across the United States, Canada, and around the world. In fact, 58% of guests came from outside the Coachella Valley and nearly one-third visited specifically to attend Fashion Week El Paseo. For the city of Palm Desert, this event continues to serve as a powerful destination marketing platform, attracting a high-income, style-conscious audience while reinforcing the city's connection to fashion, design, shopping, dining, and luxury lifestyle. In 2026, Fashion Week El Paseo earned more than 16 million media impressions across print, digital, social media, and public relations. The event also generated more than $2.2 million in economic impact for the Palm Desert area, supporting spending at restaurants, hotels, retailers, and other local businesses. With continued support from the city of Palm Desert and key partners, Fashion Week El Paseo remains a major cultural and economic asset for the community. For more information, visit fashionweekelpaseo.com.
[01:59:28] Video Narrator: Palm Desert Food and Wine is recognized as one of Southern California's premier culinary events, bringing together celebrated chefs, vintners, brew masters, restaurants, and food lovers in the heart of Palm Desert. More than a festival, Palm Desert Food and Wine positions Palm Desert as a premier culinary destination, attracting visitors from across the region and beyond. In 2026, nearly 5,000 guests explored 33 unique food, wine, and spirit
[02:00:00] Video: ...experiences, including live cooking demos and celebrity chef book signings from a lineup of national and local culinary stars. The festivities began with a James Beard Foundation press dinner in New York, introducing Palm Desert's culinary story to an influential national audience. That momentum continued with the James Beard Gourmet Four-Course Luncheon. Saturday and Sunday featured the Grand Tasting, an immersive celebration where guests sip, sample, and connect with chefs, vendors, and sponsors. Household names like Curtis Stone, Alex Guarnaschelli, and Jet Tila took the stage for crowd-pleasing demos throughout the weekend. Experiences also included a celebrity chef reception and a guided tour of local Coachella Valley date farms, culminating in a farm-meal rooted in the region's agricultural heritage. Nearly 70% of attendees traveled from outside the Coachella Valley, and 45% came specifically for this event. With 56% of guests reporting a household income of $150,000 or more, Palm Desert Food and Wine delivers an affluent, experience-driven audience, generating nearly $1.9 million in economic impact and nearly 17 million media impressions across print, digital, and social channels in 2026. Palm Desert Food and Wine returns in 2027, bringing exceptional culinary talent, engaged visitors, and measurable economic impact to greater Palm Desert. For more information, visit palmdesertfoodandwine.com.
[02:01:48] Thomas Soul: Good afternoon, Mayor and members of the City Council. I'm Thomas Soul, your marketing and tourism manager, and I want to get us started. You've just seen a recap of the two events, and so we're also here to talk about the sponsorship overview. So I want to give a little grounding of context, and then Paulina Larson from Palm Springs Life will give a little more detail and some of their vision for the future for these events. So to start off with, and just as a reminder, the current sponsorship agreement that we have began in 2023 and ends June 30th of this year. So, as we look forward, we're looking toward a new sponsorship agreement. And as a reminder, the combined total of that sponsorship was $300,000 for both events for the past three years. In the staff report, I listed some statistics for you, and I don't want to read them, but I'm going to pull out a couple of points that we can glean from that. So, you'll see from the chart that attendance softened over the three-year period for Fashion Week El Paseo, but the event's economic value actually strengthened over that time and rebounded strongly in 2026 for the best performance that they'd had out of this three-year period. Fashion Week continues to generate consistent visibility for Palm Desert and El Paseo, which really continues to deliver meaningful promotional exposure for the street and for the city despite the shifting attendance. And then one thing that's not in the chart that I think is important to know is the reach that this has throughout the district, the El Paseo district. So we had 21 paid and free events at the event venue at the tent, but there were also 161 events that were created by 23 different retailers throughout the street, which really highlights that this is not just a visitor draw, but it's also a great business platform for our businesses, for the district itself to generate business. Turning our attention to Palm Desert Food and Wine, the attendance there also fluctuated a bit, but the event continues to deliver as a destination draw, which really—the draw of out-of-state visitors continued to grow over these three years, which really is a strategic move for us because it continues to strengthen our position and appeal as a culinary and lifestyle destination. And then this event also remains relatively consistent in terms of economic impact and the promotional value that it provides. So to frame the sponsorship discussion as we're moving forward, as I mentioned before, the amount that we've sponsored for the past three years has been $300,000. Palm Springs Life is requesting $450,000 for the sponsorship moving forward, and Paulina will give some more detail about that. And to put that in the budget context, in the budget that you saw at the study session, $300,000 was allocated in the sponsorship budget for this sponsorship. But there are additional funds available within that budget, depending on Council's direction for how to move forward with this sponsorship. Another thing that I want to point out is that there are certain hard costs associated with these events that the city is looking to see if there are ways that we can help reduce some of those costs. And if we're able to do that, then this sponsorship request would also be reduced by the commensurate amount. So we're still working on that. We'll come back to you, depending on your direction, we'll come back to you with more information about that at a later date. And so with that, I'd like to introduce Paulina Larson from Palm Springs Life.
[02:05:25] Councilmember: Before you go on, could you elaborate on what some of those hard costs are?
[02:05:30] Thomas Soul: So, one of them is the cost for police at the event. So, when we first began these events, there was no cost. The police presence was included in the city's agreement with the sheriff. And then, recently that's grown to $20,000 a year. So, we're looking to see if there are ways that we can have a meaningful presence there that provides safety but doesn't come to that hard cost.
[02:05:57] Councilmember: And then Thomas, in terms of funding capacity, you said there's other pots of money. Where are those other funds coming from?
[02:06:11] Thomas Soul: So, as part of the budget, we have a couple of contingency components, and that would be where we set it aside for the sponsorships. We have a contingency component for sponsorships—
[02:06:21] Councilmember: And there's $150,000 in the budget for—
[02:06:24] Thomas Soul: Currently there's $100,000 for that.
[02:06:26] Councilmember: Okay. Thank you.
[02:06:30] Councilmember: So the only hard cost we could reduce is getting the sheriffs to donate their time or reduce the bill?
[02:06:36] Thomas Soul: It wouldn't be donating their time. It would be how many officers we have to have on site at the time versus having fewer on site, and then if there was an emergency, reaching out to officers that were on duty versus paying for specific officers to be there throughout the entire event. So there's considerations like that.
[02:06:57] Councilmember: Okay. Thank you.
[02:07:01] Thomas Soul: All right, then I'll bring in Paulina.
[02:07:07] Paulina Larson: Thank you, Thomas. He's a little taller than me, not used to that. Good afternoon, Mayor, members of City Council, and city staff. Thank you for the opportunity to be here today, and thank you for your continued partnership of Fashion Week El Paseo and Palm Desert Food and Wine. You've seen the recap videos and Thomas has walked you through some of the metrics on the event and the history of our agreement, but I would like to go over the value that these events delivered to Palm Desert and explain why the cost structure has changed and share where we see opportunity over the next three years. Fashion Week and Palm Desert Food and Wine have become destination drivers for the city and helped position Palm Desert as a premier Southern California lifestyle destination. Both events deliver measurable value in media exposure, attendance, economic impact, tourism activity, El Paseo activation, as well as brand value for Palm Desert. Each event has its own identity, its own marketing platforms, its own audiences with very little overlap and separate operating budgets. Fashion Week supports Palm Desert in positioning as a fashion, retail, and luxury lifestyle destination, while Palm Desert Food and Wine supports the city's position as a culinary and hospitality destination. These positive impacts, along with the ones that you've seen in the videos, have cost increases we'd like to share with you today. Four of those cost increases, as mentioned earlier, are our sheriffs, which is a new expense at $20,000, as well as our hosting expense at the Gardens on El Paseo for $35,000. Those two are new expenses that we have incurred, as well as the increase of cost in tenting, food, talent, and labor. In total, we have seen $320,000 in expense increases. And while ticket sales and sponsorships have been steady, they have not been able to keep pace with cost increases. It is for this reason that we are requesting an additional $75,000 for each event, along with the new three-year agreement. However, looking ahead at the next three years—2027, 2028, and 2029—our goal is to expand Palm Desert's signature events. Fashion Week and Palm Desert Food and Wine have established a very strong brand value, regional awareness, and measurable destination appeal for Palm Desert and El Paseo. The opportunity we see is to build a broader March destination season around Palm Desert. Continuing the strength of Palm Desert Food and Wine via its celebrity chef component, it gives ticket buyers access to nationally and internationally recognized culinary talent and distinguishes it from other food and wine festivals. This should continue as a significant branding agency for the city. We also see opportunities to expand to smaller curated events throughout the city. We are currently exploring new activations around two key El Paseo properties. The first one is the Mitch restaurant complex and the Galleria on El Paseo, both under new ownership or soon to be. Together, these properties create opportunities to activate the corridor of both ends of Palm Desert's core retail and dining corridor, which is El Paseo. In addition, the opening of Desert Surf also creates a new destination opportunity for Palm Desert. As a distinctive lifestyle and tourism asset, Desert Surf could support programming unlike anything we've been able to see being offered in the food and wine festival landscape. It connects the culinary programming, hospitality, outdoor recreation, lifestyle, and tourism in a way that could be unique to Palm Desert. This is the type of experience that helps Palm Desert stand apart, not by copying what other destinations are doing, but by building something that is authentic to the city. And lastly, we plan to launch a new event in March of 2027, which is the Palm Desert Design Summit. The El Paseo shopping district has emerged as a leading destination for home and design in the desert, representing a unique intersection of interiors, art, landscape, architecture, and luxury living. The Palm Desert Design Summit is intended to formally introduce and elevate the extraordinary professional talent shaping the region's design culture to a broader public audience. Through curated experiences, exhibitions, conversations, and home tours, the Palm Desert Design Summit will organize and showcase the depth of talent that has defined Palm Desert for generations. This includes designers, architects, collectors, artists, makers, and other cultural tastemakers. The long-term vision for the Palm Desert Design Summit is to become an annual cultural event for the region, one that celebrates design leadership while driving tourism, economic activity, and international awareness for Palm Desert and El Paseo. It is our goal that we would incorporate another ticketed event and additional programming into our existing tent operations. That would create a third event revenue stream that would help support the fixed costs of operating the shared event infrastructure. I think it's important because we are building efficiencies around one shared physical plant that supports multiple destination events: Fashion Week, Food and Wine, and now the Design Summit. Thank you for your consideration and continued partnership. I'm happy to answer any questions.
[02:13:34] Mayor: Thank you very much. And before I bring this back to Council, I want to open up for public comment. I don't see any blue cards. Do we have any online comments?
[02:13:45] Staff: No online comments.
[02:13:47] Mayor: Okay. Any questions from my colleagues, or do we want to go right into comments?
[02:13:52] Councilmember Hornick: I have a—I do have a question. Um, I like seeing the out-of-town visitor percentage. I think that's meaningful, and certainly as far as revenue generated for the city, it is. How do we gather that information? Is that when they buy their ticket, or—
[02:14:09] Paulina Larson: Yes. So we have a ticketing system that is activated for any transaction. One of the things that we capture is credit card information and zip code. So we are able to pull all the zip codes from the credit card transaction. That's the number one way we do it. The second is we also conduct a post-event survey, probably within a few hours of the event concluding, both for Fashion Week and Food and Wine, because we've captured their emails when they purchased a ticket or when a ticket was issued. And so when we ask for their survey results, we also ask again—one of the questions is where they came from, and we're able to ask additional questions. So we have two ways of measuring that number.
[02:14:53] Councilmember Hornick: Great. I have another question. Has the Gardens ever expressed what the benefit is to them? Do they ever—
[02:15:02] Paulina Larson: Yes, they very much know that as a result of our event, their stores have had high sales. When we had a closer relationship with Saks—and I only say 'had' because things have changed—we know that March was always their best month, and that was as a direct sale of our events and our partnership. Although we've expressed that to them and they know very much, we have a very close relationship with Patrick Klein and he's been very open about how well the Gardens does. But we are dealing with major owners. Taubman was the previous owner, and now Simon, and so they are operating in a complete different method. And so they've got a lot of legal, and it's been very difficult for us to make any headway about allowing us to have the events. And to be frank with you, Councilmember Hornick, most people would pay us to come in and produce the event. Actually, that's a lot of what people do. But when we were in the dirt lot and we were looking for new locations, it was incredibly important that we stayed in Palm Desert because of El Paseo, and we didn't want to compromise the experience. We certainly wanted to continue our goal, which is always to position El Paseo as a premier shopping destination, and so going anywhere else was not an option for us.
[02:16:36] Councilmember Hornick: Okay. One other question: Has Hotel Paseo given any feedback on how it impacts them during these?
[02:16:44] Paulina Larson: Yeah, so Hotel Paseo was actually a sponsor and partner this year. They hosted a lot of our celebrity chefs as well as our designers. We also do room blocks and rates with them. Most of the people that come from out of town—not only chefs, but also production teams—we're able to book rooms for them, and that's not comp rooms. Those are actually booked rooms, and they extend a very nice offer. And I say very nice because, as you know, March is traditionally high season, and so they are gracious enough to offer a discount. The general manager just left, but I can tell you that I've been in close communication with his team and they're very happy with the event. I love the fact that they're our official hotel, in a sense, because of the close proximity. But I will say that one of the things that we did this year with them was we had an activation in their lobby for the week—for actually the whole month of March—that promoted that Fashion Week was coming. They also allowed the Fashion Week and Food and Wine programs into their rooms because they thought it was a benefit for people staying in the hotel room to know the events that were happening or upcoming. And so we've developed a really nice partnership with them.
[02:18:05] Councilmember Hornick: Thank you.
[02:18:07] Mayor: Any other questions? I've just got two quick questions going.
[02:18:12] Councilmember Marino: Oh, begging. Councilmember Marino, sorry. No worries. I know that I had passed some of these questions on to our City Manager in terms of the continuity of continuing—obviously that's redundant, continuity of continuing to support and how every year it's growing. So, I see that if the Gardens aren't contributing, who else is contributing to put this event on?
[02:18:42] Paulina Larson: Oh, that's a very good question. So in your recap at the back, we have a list of sponsors. We have sponsorship levels and we have sponsors. These are all of our partners, and they support us by sponsoring the event, which we give deliverables to. In some cases, these are trade partnerships where there's no money exchange per se, but there is an exchange that would offset some of the event cost. And so, rest assured that our number one goal is to continue to seek sponsorship from these businesses. And that's something that we have a dedicated sales team, myself included as well. I seek sponsorships to offset some of these costs. I think where we are running into issues, as you see, is the increased cost of events, and I think we've seen that across categories. And so, even though our sponsorships have been pacing as well as ticket sales, they have not been able to match.
[02:19:47] Councilmember Marino: Yeah. So how much do you receive, ballpark, from all of those contributors?
[02:19:54] Paulina Larson: I don't have the budget here with me, but we can share that with you and we can break it down exactly.
[02:19:59] Councilmember Marino: High end.
[02:20:00] Paulina Larson: Our sponsorships start at $5,000, and then our highest sponsorship is obviously with you at $300,000, but that's where it starts.
[02:20:08] Councilmember Marino: But what I meant is not the tiers. By the time that sales and everybody comes in and you've got your big pot, how much do you get from sponsorships? Like, what part of your budget do you get from all of this? Because the concern is that every time it's going to be more and more, and yes, there's going to be a change, but as you're telling us that you need $150,000 more, but now there's the potential to create another event near Desert Surf, does that mean you're going to come back and ask for more money for a third event? And that's where—I mean, it was a great question that Councilmember Hornick asked, but what are you getting from the Gardens, right? We all want to know where that reciprocity comes in. So, I wanted to know if you have a ballpark.
[02:20:54] Paulina Larson: Well, I would actually say that what you just brought up is an excellent point. No, we are not coming back to you for additional funding for the Palm Desert Design Summit. This is part of the efficiencies that we talked about, and I'm sorry if I wasn't clear. By us adding a third event, the revenue of that event will help us stabilize. So by year two, we are hoping to drive activations in the white tent that we're able to sell tickets to and sponsorship. So then now these monies that we need are now coming through that, and it allows us to run three events. So when you're looking at the investment of Fashion Week and Food and Wine, it's not just $450,000 or whatever the figure is for one event. It's actually two, with a potential of three. And these are not one-day events. These are week-long events with two distinct media plans, two distinct media impressions and values, talent, as well as budgets. And just for reference, the City of Palm Springs, they probably sponsor the Palm Springs International Film Festival Gala, a one-day event, for close to $300,000 or more. And that's just a one-day gala because of all the press and the celebrities. This is three events, again, with different audiences, budgets, and media and marketing value. But what I'll do following this meeting is I can send you our sponsorships, and you can sort of take a look at all the financials there because I don't have that information in front of me.
[02:22:38] Councilmember Marino: Another question I have is similar to what Councilmember Harnick asked, is looking at the data and where these numbers come from. Every year since this has come up, I've asked about the methodology. How many have responded to that? Because as one of our business owners said, 'I can't take percentages to the bank.' So what percentage of 42 are we talking? Three? Are we talking 700? Where is that number, and why is it missing every single year if every single year I ask? That's for the sake of transparency. I want to know. I need to know if I'm going to support an ongoing ask without getting something that I've been asking every year for years.
[02:23:26] Paulina Larson: So, I apologize. I recall your request to see the recap, and it was submitted to the city, and I don't know if it didn't make it to you. But just to answer your question on the surveys and the results: to get a sample that is accurate, the normal response rate is a little over 10%. I can tell you that our responses on the surveys and the questions of people making a purchase is over 10%. So, that's sort of the average. If you look at our surveys following the conclusion of our events, we always give an incentive for those to respond. It's part of the reason why we collect data when we issue a ticket, and we have a sophisticated ticketing platform to allow us to market to them. And so, absolutely, I can give you how many total respondents to the survey, but we wouldn't be giving you these results if we didn't have enough people to give you a sample. But yes, that's not an issue.
[02:24:35] Councilmember Marino: Yeah, from what I had seen in going through, again, it's the same thing. And when we had our meeting earlier in the year, I remember saying this presentation's great, it's colorful, but it seems almost like your marketing materials to say, 'We are Palm Springs Life, hire us for something,' and less of a report that says, 'Here's what we're doing.' And I remember that being a very specific conversation because of the way that your colleague responded, and it was a very negative experience. So I remember saying, 'Can we get the data broken down a little differently?' and I'm sure unfortunate meeting that that happened.
[02:25:15] Paulina Larson: Well, Councilwoman Marino, I do remember the request. I do remember doing the work, and I do remember submitting it. And if I remember correctly, you also wanted me to aggregate all the data into one document. So, I'm sorry you don't have that. I can get that to you. Some of it you've seen on the staff report, so I know it's here. But yes—
[02:25:45] Councilmember Marino: Thank you. Did that come to you, Chris, or—
[02:25:49] City Manager: I'm not aware of it, but I can follow up and make sure we get it to—
[02:25:52] Councilmember Marino: Okay. Did—
[02:25:54] Thomas Soul: It's the first part of the report included all those statistics and—
[02:26:00] Councilmember Marino: But is this the same one that has the statistics being where it's all of the images and screenshots and the conversions? Is that what you're talking about, the report?
[02:26:13] Paulina Larson: Yes. The report that you requested in our meeting was you wanted to see all of the data points for all the things that we analyzed over the last five years. And as I mentioned, it's essentially a recap of what Thomas showed you at the beginning that has all those different numbers.
[02:26:30] Councilmember Marino: Okay. And I look forward to getting that with the data, because this again seems one year the same format with great pictures and fashion and food, but I reiterate data-driven decision-making, and I have not seen anything that is that detailed. And I would greatly appreciate—I'm not sure where the lapse in communication came from, but I have not seen anything that has multiple years.
[02:26:58] Paulina Larson: Okay. And so just to recap, so when you look at the data points on our decks, like for example on the media and the marketing promotional value, the economic impact, all of that, you want me to break that down even further, more than just the advertising value and the total readerships and impressions? What other data would you like me to pull? Just if you can be very, very clear with me so I don't get it wrong.
[02:27:22] Councilmember Marino: Absolutely. When we had that conversation, that's when I said, 'This is great for somebody that—'
[02:27:29] Paulina Larson: Do you mind telling me what page that is?
[02:27:31] Councilmember Marino: This is just a sample. This is just a sample of editorial and public relations media. That's the one that has in bright bold red 896,550 editorial and public relations.
[02:27:44] Paulina Larson: Is there a page number below it?
[02:27:46] Councilmember Marino: I have our agenda number. Oh, okay, 196. So, I'm not sure what it does.
[02:27:51] Paulina Larson: Okay. Yeah, I don't have one. My report's not 196 pages.
[02:27:54] Councilmember Marino: No, no worries. But the conversation that we'd had was again, these are great screenshots of the influencers and all of that, but that doesn't mean anything to me as I'm looking at how has this grown year-over-year. I personally, and I respect all that you do, but out of respect for my colleagues as well, I don't think any of us want to go back and look at five years of the last booklets and compare what's there.
[02:28:20] Paulina Larson: Oh, okay. Do you mind, City Clerk, if you went back to the presentation that Thomas had up? I just want for clarification. Again, I just want to make sure that I'm very crystal clear.
[02:28:36] Councilmember Marino: I appreciate very much. I know you're very thorough.
[02:28:43] Paulina Larson: If you can go to the next slide. The next slide, please. So just taking the economic impact, you can see that I've given you 2024, 2025, 2026, also the out-of-market attendance over the years, as well as the media and promotional value, so you can see how it's been trending. Is that what you want?
[02:29:09] Councilmember Marino: It's yes and more extensive than that. And I know I can go back to the notes of what that was, and I don't want to—
[02:29:17] Paulina Larson: I don't want it to seem adversarial. I—
[02:29:20] Councilmember Marino: No, I just want to be clear because—absolutely, absolutely. This is good as a start. This is good as a start, but we know—I've had residents specifically say this was supposed to be a short-time deal. It was supposed to be this amount. It's grown. Yes, it's great, but not everybody benefits. And in order to justify that to say, 'Yes, it's a signature event. It gets our name out there. It's going to keep growing.' But then we see the years where it's not so excellent, and as things change and as markets and trends, and we don't know what's—
[02:30:00] Council Member: ...ahead. But for me to be able to justify a substantial increase every year—I understand that costs are, but the city's also facing costs that increase for everything that we do as well.
[02:30:16] Mayor: Yeah, go ahead.
[02:30:17] Council Member: Is this your favorite part of the job?
[02:30:20] Speaker: It's my favorite. Well, you know, at least I'm not up here pregnant, ready to deliver like I was a couple years ago. So, uh...
[02:30:28] Council Member: And your baby is adorable, by the way. She's such a cute.
[02:30:30] Speaker: Um, I—I'm a Palm Desert resident, and I can tell you that I am very proud of where I live, and I'm really thankful for the support that the city provides. Um, this event is not only, you know, part of my work, but it's also part of my life. I—I enjoy seeing people that discover Palm Desert because they're visiting here, and next thing I know, I run into them at the Palm Desert Historical Museum, and they tell me that they're buying a house. Um, I love to see the kids who are meeting designers, being behind the scenes, and, you know, thinking that they want a career in fashion or production, or did not even know that something like this existed. So it's very much, uh, a very rewarding experience. Um, you know, I—I started working, and I was completely impressed at what Palm Springs Life has built. And my—my job, and why I'm so passionate about it, is because I just want to contribute to—to, um, what has been established here. And I think we see the opportunity when I—you know, we're always planning two to three years, and, uh, when we came up with the design concept to add to everything that is being offered for residents as well as visitors alike. I mean, those kinds of things is really what gets me excited. And so, um, and I also do know that, uh, these events drive people, and they're spending dollars. And so, you know, when a resident asks, 'Well, this event isn't for everybody,' it actually is, because it's driving people into businesses. It's bringing tax dollars, and, um, so I think it's something that, um, is a benefit.
[02:32:09] Council Member: That was more—and just to clarify, last thing was that those were business owners in—in other parts. So, again, just—just keeping it all in mind. But I thank you very much for your patience as we try to outs all of that. And I'll have, um, our city manager follow up with some of what those questions were. You answered questions that I was, uh, going to elicit, but the next question is—and these—this might be elementary: if we don't sponsor, does the event happen?
[02:32:34] Speaker: That's a very good question. Um, yes, the event will be happening, but it will be shrinking. Um, and that's never good in the event business. Um, we have to make decisions. Obviously, we can't continue to operate an event at—at this level. Um, we certainly don't want to disappoint Palm Desert, but unfortunately, you know, there's—if we are not able to raise, uh, the funds, we will have to shrink. Um, we have already made some cost adjustments, um, in certain things that we've done. We used to do a flip. We no longer do a flip. Um, that required a lot of things. So we've done these cost increases—what haven't just been happening this past year. It's been a little bit in the works. And so we've been doing some things, but we—we can't sustain that. And so, absolutely, we will be reducing, uh, the scope of the events, which is never good. And also, you know, one of the things that, um, Palm Desert is really special. Um, I think a lot of people, other cities, wish they had El Paseo. And I—I would just say that I think it's really important that you—we don't take our foot off the gas pedal. You know, a lot of the stores, Saks Fifth Avenue, a lot of the great shopping that we now have in Palm Desert used to be in Palm Springs. And I'm sure they never thought they were going to lose it. And I was just seeing a—a video of an empty mall in Palm Springs that used to be Saks Fifth Avenue. And so I think it's really important that you look at this as an opportunity to not take your gas off the pedal and—and use and maintain El Paseo and continue to position it as a premier Southern California shopping destination.
[02:34:12] Council Member Hornik: Council Member Hornik. I—I did want to add something because knowing that this is the favorite part of your job, as Mayor Pro Tem mentioned. Um, I—I appreciated what you just said, that this truly everyone benefits, because when we generate revenue, we pave our streets, we pay for public safety, we maintain our parks. So it really is for everyone. And maybe not everyone wants to go see chiffon and sequins—I do, but maybe not everyone does—but other people go for the food, but everyone benefits by the paving of our streets. So we have to look at it in a holistic way. And that's why I was asking if the Gardens had talked about how they benefit by it, because do—are they now generating more sales tax revenue? Because we do benefit by that. The other thing I—I wanted to mention about sponsorship: I don't recall us ever saying that sponsorship was one year or two years. Sponsorship is one of those things that continues because it's marketing, it's branding, it's advertising, it's getting your name on something. I don't recall us ever saying, 'Well, this is just going to be once or twice.' It's an ongoing effort because we want our name out there. It's part of our marketing effort. So whether or not we decide to sponsor, I just want to clarify that. And I also want to mention, yes, we might have to pull back, as you've said. It would be a shame to see it go somewhere else. And if another city wanted to step up and fund it, we could lose it. And I do think it's important for drawing people. But these are all 'if-thens' and things that we can't know, but they're things we have to think about and anticipate. So, I—I thank you for all this information. As I look at some of these, you know, this has six years of attendance here. That's interesting to me. And I—I think Palm Desert—it appears to me Palm Desert Food and Wine is a great and growing—uh, potent—has great and growing potential to it. So, those are just a—a few comments I wanted to make.
[02:36:39] Mayor: Thank you.
[02:36:40] Mayor: Council Member Nestande.
[02:36:41] Council Member Nestande: Yes. So, mine are more comments, uh, because we all have had—had this data. You still have more? Okay. Because people are making comments. It's not just questions.
[02:36:51] Speaker: We do have the data. You're right.
[02:36:54] Council Member Nestande: Well, I just want to review a couple. Sorry. All right.
[02:36:58] Mayor: No, I'm just saying people are making comments. It's not just questions. But go ahead.
[02:37:03] Council Member Nestande: Okay. So, a couple questions. Uh, on the presentation, you mentioned there's a $35,000 increase in, uh, hosting costs.
[02:37:11] Speaker: Yes.
[02:37:12] Council Member Nestande: And is that just in the form of rent?
[02:37:13] Speaker: Yes.
[02:37:14] Council Member Nestande: Okay. And there's no negotiation there? Gardens is pretty set on that. Okay. And—
[02:37:20] Speaker: In fact, they made us sign a contract outside of our three-year agreement, and we—or so. No, that's not negotiable.
[02:37:28] Council Member Nestande: Okay. Uh, another part of the presentation, you mentioned that ticket sales have been a little bit flat.
[02:37:34] Speaker: Uh, steady.
[02:37:35] Council Member Nestande: Steady, steady. Okay. So growth has been steady, or—
[02:37:37] Speaker: Yeah, I mean, that was in reference of our increased cost. So even though things have been trending, we're still seeing, you know, I think in some cases 30% increases. So even though ticket sales have remained steady, not enough to make up that difference.
[02:37:51] Council Member Nestande: Got it. So ticket sales have not been commensurate with the increase in—in—
[02:37:56] Speaker: Yeah. I mean, our labor cost, our talent cost have gone up. We used to be able to get Curtis Stone here, you know, uh, for a lot less than we have to get him here now. So, I mean, it's not—we can't keep up at that.
[02:38:09] Council Member Nestande: Okay. So in other words, the ticket sale growth, is that in any way, shape, or form limited by the venue's space and size, or could you accommodate more?
[02:38:18] Speaker: For—and that's a really good question. For Food and Wine, that's why we were proposing expanding the footprint and activating other places on El Paseo.
[02:38:27] Council Member Nestande: Okay. So we can create more experiences that could be ticketed.
[02:38:30] Speaker: Because, yes, at that event—and I—I believe you attended—I mean, we're sort of bursting, and so we would have to be looking at other spaces, which is what we're actively doing now.
[02:38:40] Council Member Nestande: Perfect. Um, and that third program, the design—
[02:38:42] Speaker: The Palm Desert Design Summit.
[02:38:48] Council Member Nestande: Got it. Uh, that would be taking place in the same venue, uh, sort of after or before?
[02:38:55] Speaker: Good question. That would be at the beginning of March. So we would capitalize from the international—that audience that will be here from BNP. Our goal is always to incentivize the visitor to stay longer and give them reasons to come to Palm Desert. Um, we would like to launch it at the beginning of March. Um, it would be an—an event that would be on El Paseo in different act—different showrooms, different stores would have design summits, home tours, and as mentioned in—in, uh, earlier, we would have programming that would take place in the big white tents.
[02:39:28] Council Member Nestande: So does that mean that currently, it basically goes from Friday evening to Sunday evening on a 10-day run between the two festivals? That means the design would now all of a sudden run it into a—
[02:39:38] Speaker: It would start—it would—it would probably about probably three days to start, and then depending on where we are with programming. But I think to start, we would probably look at 3 days of—of a design summit.
[02:39:51] Council Member Nestande: So you'd turn a 10-day, uh, commitment on the tent and the—and the venue and the infrastructure into a 13-day commitment?
[02:39:57] Speaker: Potentially. And again, it goes back to the efficiencies. The cost of getting the tent out here is going to be what it is. But if we're activating extra days, we—it makes more sense, right? Because now we're bringing a different audience, a different media impression, a different set of—a marketing plan. So, we're going to be getting more in a sense, right? We're building another event within the infrastructure that we're investing in to help us offset some of those costs and bringing it in.
[02:40:25] Council Member Nestande: And so, the $450,000 that you're asking for, um, would include that third event as well. So—
[02:40:31] Speaker: Yes, we're not—it's—it would be—it would be part of that. Correct. And that's why when I—when I, um, when you look at this line item in your budget, it's not just one event. It's three—it's two events and it's what it's been, plus the opportunity of us doing the third one because, again, we are trying to offset some of those hard costs that we—that we have. And so if we add another event under that structure, we can raise sponsorship dollars outside of you, we can sell tickets to that, and it can help us, uh, offset some of those costs.
[02:41:00] Council Member Nestande: Got it. So you're asking for a 50% increase in sponsorship dollars, and in return, we're getting roughly 25 to 30% more days of exposure because we would still be listed for this design event as a presenting sponsor.
[02:41:15] Speaker: You'd get a new event platform. So it would be a com—like, just as I mentioned earlier, it would be—
[02:41:20] Council Member Nestande: No, that's good. Exactly. I'm thinking mathematically. Yeah. Instead of a 10-day run, we're all of a sudden getting exposure for a 13 to 14 day run.
[02:41:28] Speaker: Correct, because we would be launching Palm Desert Design Summit, and we would—and it'd have its own marketing campaign, its own audience, its own PR, its own reach, and we would still be funneling that. So you, Palm Desert, would have this trifecta effect where you, you know, right? There's, uh, the, uh, fashion and retail for El Paseo, then you have food, the culinary element of El Paseo and Palm Desert, and now the design and art, which are all representative of your city in terms of what you—what you represent.
[02:42:06] Council Member Nestande: Got it. And—and one last question for me, and then I'll turn it over to Gina or, uh, Joe. Um, first Gina, then Joe, if you don't mind. She's been waiting. Um—
[02:42:16] Council Member Mareno: No.
[02:42:16] Council Member Nestande: Oh, I beg your pardon. I guess I need to clarify that. I apologize. That is usually the order. I apologize. Um, so now you threw me off my game. Um, that's it. I turn over to Joe. I might have—I might come back with one more, though, Joe. So I reserve the right to ask another question.
[02:42:37] Council Member: Are you asking for 450 for multiple years?
[02:42:41] Speaker: So, it's correct. It would be—we—we were, uh, our—the consideration here would be a contract for 300,000 for three years plus an additional 75 for Fashion Week and Food and Wine. So 450, correct, for three years.
[02:42:56] Council Member: Over three years.
[02:42:57] Speaker: Correct.
[02:42:57] Council Member: And three—a multi-year commitment is important for planning purposes, is it not?
[02:43:05] Speaker: Correct. Yes. And as Thomas mentioned, um, there also—one of the opportunities, or one of the ways that we, uh, again, this is trying to offset some costs. If at the beginning we did not have the sheriff increase, so if we are able to take that out, then that—we can remove that from our ask because, at the end, we're trying to offset some of those costs. Um, so that's also an option as well.
[02:43:32] Council Member: Although we are listed as sponsors, does it not feel more like we are partners?
[02:43:39] Speaker: Oh, correct. That's why the Palm Desert Food and Wine is called Palm Desert Food and Wine, and Fashion Week El Paseo is Fashion Week El Paseo, because we try to blend your name. And Palm Desert Design Summit would be Palm Desert Design Summit. Um, we're integrating you into the event. Uh, we—we—we don't say 'sponsored by' or 'presented by' because you are the event.
[02:44:04] Council Member: Thank you.
[02:44:06] Mayor: Everybody done with questions? All right. Should we start with comments now?
[02:44:17] Mayor: No, go ahead. Go ahead. Council Member Hornik, please ask away.
[02:44:22] Council Member Hornik: I feel—I feel guilty. Um, number three on the recommendation, it does say, uh, return with any necessary agreement and, I think, appropriate actions for future city council. But what I'd like to know is, you know, we've mentioned the—the sheriff, we've mentioned—is there no budge from Simon with? And that's kind of why I was asking about the Gardens. Is there a benefit? Should there be some sort of compensation for what they're charging for you to be there to benefit them? So, I—I'm just wondering where there might be areas that can—there—where there might be some movement.
[02:45:04] Speaker: Sure. I know that there were some discussions early on that the city might have an easement to that parking lot. Um, so potentially there—I—I don't want to speak out of turn, but I know that maybe you can speak to it a little bit more than I can.
[02:45:17] Staff Member: To your question, Council Member Hornik, uh, following your direction, that's exactly what we'll do is we'll sit down. The two main cost factors are the rental amount there, and we do have an easement there that gives us ability to have a say in that discussion. Uh, we'll exercise that after this discussion, as well as sit down with Lieutenant Porras and his team to determine the safety levels in terms of sheriff cost.
[02:45:40] Council Member Hornik: Okay. And that would be great. And I, you know, I'm—I am quite sure there's no one up here that wouldn't like to see as much reduction as possible. So any place we can see that, that would be great, and I appreciate that effort. Thank you.
[02:45:53] Mayor: Okay, I suppose we're done with questions. Should we move on to comments, please? I'll start with Council Member Nestande.
[02:45:59] Council Member Nestande: I just want to say that, uh, Fashion Week and Food and Wine event that you put on is such a wonderful, wonderful event, and it's—it's really growing internationally. And so I just want to thank—thank you and—and everything you've—you've been doing all these years. And—and I understand what—what you're—what you're trying to do. You're—you have hard costs. There's nothing you can do about those costs. So you're thinking outside the box, and you're looking at ways to expand revenue, hence the reason for the third event. And I think that's brilliant to—to have the Palm Desert Design Summit. And—and also, I just attended the—the Chamber of Commerce, um, board meeting a few days ago, and, um, Patrick Klein was there and—and others, and they were just, uh, so ecstatic with the lowest vacancy rate on El Paseo in over 20 years, and it's been trending down. Is there any correlation to—to this wonderful event? Well, you didn't present data to that regard. I—I think there is a very strong correlation. And our—our city, as we all said, our number one source of revenue is sales tax. We need to do everything we can to support the world-class destination of El Paseo. And these events put Palm Desert on the map. We all talk about how we want to be known as Palm Desert. We get sometimes in the shadow of Palm Springs. Everything's called Palm Springs this, Palm Springs that. But here we have this wonderful event that highlights Palm Desert. And I—I believe we really need to nurture this event and work with you on this. So, I'm very supportive. Thank you.
[02:47:55] Council Member: What she said.
[02:47:58] Mayor: Any other comments?
[02:48:00] Mayor Pro Tem: Well, I agree. Um, really, I see the value in it. Uh, absolutely no question in my mind you've delivered on what you promised, and it's been a huge boon for our city. And adding a third event, uh, totally justifies to me the additional sponsorship revenue you ask. So, I'm all in favor of pursuing this.
[02:48:21] Speaker: Thank you.
[02:48:21] Speaker: Thank you.
[02:48:22] Speaker: Thank you very much. Thanks.
[02:48:26] Mayor: All right. It's not question time anymore, but should we move? We should move. Motion time, should we not?
[02:48:34] Council Member: Yeah.
[02:48:34] Council Member: Sorry, bad. I move—
[02:48:36] Council Member: Move approval with a recommendation to have staff craft back a sponsorship at the ask or close to whatever we can figure out.
[02:48:46] Mayor: Yep. All right. Do you need a second?
[02:48:49] Council Member: I second.
[02:48:54] Mayor: Motion passes 4 to 0 with, uh, Council Member Mareno abstaining.
[02:48:59] Mayor: Okay, very good. Uh, we are done with the action calendar on item 15, public hearings. But before we do, I want to ask my colleagues if they would like to take a little short break.
[02:49:09] Council Member: Motor through.
[02:49:10] Council Member: Yeah.
[02:49:11] Mayor: Okay, here we go. Joe's going to stand up to stretch the legs, but, uh, here we go. Item number 15, the public—this is public hearings, of course. The public may comment on individual public hearing items within the three-minute time limit. The applicant and appellant will be provided up to 10 minutes to make their presentations. Following public testimony, the appellant and applicant will be given an opportunity to offer rebuttal comments for up to three additional minutes. We'll begin with item 15A, a public hearing on city vacancies, recruitment, and retention efforts as required by Assembly Bill 2561. May we have the staff report, please?
[02:49:52] Amber Molina: Good afternoon, Mayor and Council Members. My name is Amber Molina, Senior Human Resources Analyst for the City of Palm Desert. As required by AB 2561, public agencies must present the status of their vacancies to the governing board prior to the adoption of the budget. In compliance with this mandate, the staff report before you today provides an overview of the city's current vacancy status. I'm pleased to share that the City of Palm Desert is maintaining a vacancy rate of less than 5%. This low rate reflects the city's commitment to proactive recruitment strategies and streamlined hiring processes. Beyond recruitment, employee retention also plays a critical role in maintaining our low vacancy rate. The city places high value on retaining talent and has implemented several initiatives to support this goal. These include professional development programs to promote employee growth, team building activities to strengthen the workplace connections, an internship program to cultivate future talent, and recognition opportunities that celebrate employee contributions. In addition, the city offers competitive compensation and benefits that support long-term employee satisfaction and retention. Aligned with our culture of continuous improvement, both our recruitment and retention strategies are regularly evaluated and refined based on feedback from employees and job applicants. Thank you for your time, and I'm available to answer any questions.
[02:51:24] Mayor: Okay. At this time, I will open the public hearing, and I see no speaker cards.
[02:51:32] City Clerk: No online comments.
[02:51:33] Mayor: No online comments. Okay. No further speakers. The public hearing is now closed. And does the City Council have any clarifying questions? Miss Molina?
[02:51:46] Council Member: Amber,
[02:51:47] Mayor: Miss Molina, are you—
[02:51:48] Amber Molina: Thank you.
[02:51:48] Mayor: But looking over here,
[02:51:50] Council Member: Which way we going?
[02:51:51] Mayor: Uh, sorry, Miss Mareno, do you have clarifying questions for Miss Molina? Thank you.
[02:51:57] Council Member Mareno: Um, not a—a question, a comment. Does anyone have an actual question?
[02:52:04] Mayor: Yeah. Do any of my colleagues have questions? Okay. Okay. Well, then we'll open up for discussion.
[02:52:07] Council Member Mareno: Okay. I just wanted to say this is excellent to always consistently hear that we are at 5% if not lower. And it really does speak to our culture here. And I love going around and hearing the laughter and the giggles, whether it's training or just the—the bonding that's happened, whether it be Palm Desert University or—or whichever, um, elements. And my—my gratitude to HR and to all of the department heads that keep it evolving and growing to show that Palm Desert is a team. And again, my—my gratitude.
[02:52:45] Mayor: All right. Anybody else? Anybody care to make a motion?
[02:52:49] Council Member: I move to approve as presented.
[02:52:51] Council Member: I second.
[02:52:56] Mayor: Motion passes 5 to 0.
[02:52:58] Mayor: Terrific. Okay. On item 15B, appeal of Planning Commission decision approving an addendum to mitigated negative declaration, finding the project exempt from CEQA under guidelines section 15183, and approving a precise plan and tentative tract map 39307, the Portola Springs project. Staff report.
[02:53:19] Carlos Flores: Thank you. Good evening, Mayor, members of City Council. Carlos Flores, Deputy Director of Development Services. Tonight's item is the appeal of the Planning Commission approval of the Portola Springs residential development project, including the associated CEQA determinations for precise plan 25-00006 and tentative tract map 39307. Staff's recommendation today is to deny the appeal, uphold the Planning Commission approval, and confirm approval of an addendum to the previously adopted mitigated negative declaration, confirm CEQA streamlining under guidelines section 15183, and approve precise plan 25-00006 and tentative tract map 39307. The project site you're considering today is located at the southwest corner of Frank Sinatra Drive and Portola Avenue on approximately 18 acres. Surrounding area includes residential and resort-related uses, as shown on the map on the screen. The site is designated Town Center Neighborhood under the General Plan and zoned Plan Residential 22. This project proposes 156 single-family homes at approximately 9.2 dwelling units per acre, which is consistent with both the General Plan and zoning. On February 17th, 2026, the City of Palm Desert Planning Commission approved the project, including the precise plan, tentative tract map, addendum to the—to the prior mitigated negative declaration pursuant to the CEQA guidelines section 15164, and CEQA streamlining under section 15183 by unanimous 5 to 0 vote. The site was previously approved in 2022 for a higher intensity 394-unit multi-family apartment project. That project included adoption of a mitigated negative declaration and mitigation monitoring and reporting program. City Council later denied a CEQA appeal in January 2023 and upheld that original approval. The CEQA statute of limitations for that project expired in July 2023. The apartment project was never constructed, and some entitlements later expired. The current proposal represents a lower density and lower intensity residential development than what was previously analyzed under CEQA. The environmental review for this project relies on two primary CEQA determinations. First, an addendum was prepared pursuant to CEQA guidelines section 15164. The addendum evaluated the modified project and determined there are no new significant environmental impacts, no substantial increase in the severity of impacts previously identified, no substantial changes in circumstances, and no new information requiring further environmental review under CEQA guidelines section 15162. Updated technical analysis was prepared where appropriate, including transportation and vehicle miles traveled analysis. The transportation analysis included nearby projects, including Katavina, and concluded transportation impacts remain less than significant because the proposed project is lower density than the previously approved apartment project. Impacts are equal to or less than those already analyzed. Second, staff determined that the project qualifies for CEQA streamlining under guidelines section 15183 because the project is consistent with the city's General Plan and the development assumptions evaluated in the certified 2016 General Plan EIR. The proposed density is within the allowable range, and no peculiar impacts have been identified. The appellant, Supporters Alliance for Environmental Responsibility, which I'll refer to as SAFER, raises several CEQA-related claims, including that the addendum is improper, cumulative impacts were not adequately analyzed, the project does not qualify for section 15183 streamlining, appendices were not made available, and that the project was improperly piecemealed from the nearby Katavina development. SAFER requests preparation of a new initial study and/or project-specific EIR. This slide here, um, provides the appeal claims with the key findings. So staff reviewed the appeal materials, supplemental comment letters, and applicant responses. Based on the administrative record, staff concludes the appeal does not provide substantial evidence requiring additional environmental review. There is a City Attorney memo and applicant letter, um, that was part of your packet that also responds to all the claims, which I'm going to go through, um, somewhat briefly. Regarding the addendum, staff found it complies with CEQA guidelines section 15164, and that none of the triggers requiring a subsequent or supplemental environmental document under section 15162 are present. Regarding cumulative impacts, the prior MND included a cumulative impact analysis, and the updated VMT and transportation analysis evaluated nearby approved projects, including Katavina. The analysis demonstrates impacts remain equal to or less than those previously analyzed. Regarding section 15183, the project is consistent with the General Plan and zoning designations evaluated in the city's certified General Plan EIR, and no peculiar impacts have been identified. Additional concerns were raised in SAFER's April 8th and April 9th letters, which have also been addressed. The appendices to the addendum were made available as part of the public record for both of the City Council hearings on this. Updated biological surveys were completed in 2025 and incorporated into the environmental review. The technical analysis concluded impacts remain less than significant with mitigation measures. There was a City Attorney's memorandum which further explains that SAFER's claims related to wildlife movement, bird window collisions, domestic cat predation, and wildlife-vehicle collisions are speculative and unsupported by project-specific evidence. With respect to piecemealing, Portola Springs and Katavina are separate and independent projects. Neither project depends on the other for implementation, and CEQA does not require separate projects to be combined solely because they are adjacent or similar in nature. Based on the administrative record and environmental analysis prepared for the project, staff concludes the addendum was properly prepared. The project qualifies for CEQA streamlining under section 15183, and the appeal does not raise substantial evidence requiring additional environmental review. Therefore, staff recommends City Council adopt the resolution denying the appeal and confirming the Planning Commission approval of precise plan 25-00006, tentative tract map 39307, the addendum to the previously adopted mitigated negative declaration, and the section 15183 CEQA determination. That concludes my presentation. Available for questions.
[03:00:01] Mayor: Okay. At this time, I will now open the public hearing. The applicant will have up to 10 minutes for their presentation. And please proceed.
[03:00:21] David Hubard: Good afternoon, Mayor, Council Members. My name is David Hubard. I'm with the firm of Gatzke Dillon & Ballance, and I am legal counsel for the applicant, Bluefern. You've been bombarded with a lot of material, probably two or three hundred pages' worth, but the matter is actually pretty simple, so I'm going to try to keep it to the essentials. First of all, staff's report was excellent and got to the main points. I will probably hit a couple of those as I go through. The appeal challenges the Planning Commission's decision to approve the project, but it does so in two distinct ways. First is challenging the addendum that was approved. That addendum tiers off of the 2022 Mitigated Negative Declaration that the City approved when the Hayes-Dietrich project that was originally proposed for this site went to you on appeal in January of 2023. Now, what happens in CEQA is that when the Council approved the project and denied that appeal, anyone wanting to challenge that MND had 30 days to do so. No one did. Once that statute of limitations runs, no one can tear the lid off of that MND and challenge it unless they meet very exacting criteria. They have to demonstrate that somehow the project that was approved, or in this case a less intense project on the same site, creates impacts that no one anticipated, that weren't studied, and could not have been brought to the City's attention in 2023. SAFER has not met any of those criteria. Nevertheless, they're trying to ask you, 'Let's reopen your decision on the 2022 MND.' They don't want it to be used as a source document for the addendum. The law does not allow them to do that. They have not met their burden. The second thing that occurred at the Planning Commission is that the Commission agreed with staff that the Portola Springs project, because it's consistent with the General Plan, consistent with the zoning code, and consistent with the density parameters, absolutely meets the Section 15183 criteria for streamlining or an exemption. The only way of defeating that exemption is if SAFER can prove that the project creates a significant impact that is peculiar, that wasn't already studied in the 2022 MND. They have failed in that regard as well. So what SAFER did is they came up with a very interesting theory. They are now saying that what the City failed to do was to analyze these two projects as one, to combine their impacts. And when you combine their impacts, you will get an exceedance of an air quality threshold established by the South Coast Air Quality Management District as to a single pollutant known as ROG, which stands for reactive organic gases. It's a precursor to smog. Well, the only way that you can combine those two projects to get that exceedance is if the City piecemealed their analysis. Piecemealing in CEQA is where you take a single project and you break it up into pieces and you analyze each piece individually as a way of sort of masking the overall impact of the project. But piecemealing in CEQA is very, very tightly defined. You only need to combine projects and view them, analyze them as a single project if they are what's known as interdependent. That's where Project A and Project B rely on each other. Project A cannot go forward unless Project B is implemented, and vice versa. If they have separate independent utility, you have to review them under CEQA as independent, separate projects. And that is exactly what the City has done. It's exactly what staff has continued to do because it is clear that the Katavina project is completely independent of Portola Springs, and vice versa. The law is absolutely clear that in that situation, there is no piecemealing. You look at them individually. And when you look at these two projects individually, there is no significant effect, not a single one, which is why the Planning Commission and staff determined that the project could be processed with an addendum, not an EIR, and also why the 15183 exemption still applied. So to summarize, SAFER's attempt to reopen and litigate the 2022 MND fails because it comes three years too late. And SAFER's evidence of significant and peculiar impacts is weak and unpersuasive. It does not rival the significant evidence that staff has already produced in favor of the project's determinations. Nothing that SAFER has prepared and submitted to you defeats the 15183 exemption. And SAFER's attempt to get around the legal hurdles by calling this piecemealing also fails because the two projects are completely separate and independent. They are not relying on each other. For these reasons, we request that the Council deny SAFER's appeal and confirm the Planning Commission's decisions on all counts. But before I go, I would like to enter three documents into the record as they bear on key issues in this appeal. The first one is a memorandum that I prepared and provided to the City's Council in relation to the Katavina project. And the reason I'm providing it here is because it addresses some of the air quality and biological issues that SAFER has raised as to Portola Springs, but they're the same arguments they made in Katavina and the same response applies. So I'd like this entered into the record. The other two documents that I'd like to enter into the record are letters from the firm Holland & Knight, which is one of the premier CEQA land use law firms in the state of California. Holland & Knight represented builders for housing projects, one in Garden Grove and one in the city of Los Angeles, where they were challenged by SAFER. And what they wanted the city councils to understand is who SAFER really is. So let me just read you an excerpt from the first letter. This is dated January 7, 2025. And I will enter this into the record, but let me just read you the following: 'SAFER. This association has been known to exploit CEQA to secure project-related labor agreements across the state, as only a quick online search of the association confirms. They were even the subject of an article known as "Documented Construction Union Abuse of CEQA 2014 to 2024: Phony Union Tree Huggers, Labor Union Abuse of CEQA."' The letter goes on: 'Given SAFER's documented history of CEQA abuse, strategic absence from the public participation process, lack of any indicia as to how it is an interested party, and baseless appeal, it is clear that SAFER is not concerned whatsoever with the environment. Accordingly, while exercising your discretion, we request that the city view SAFER's appeal through a lens of skepticism given the organization's background and absence from the environmental review process of the project.' End quote. The last quote I will read, this was from the Holland & Knight letter to the city of Los Angeles: 'SAFER's appeal is a textbook example of using CEQA as leverage for non-environmental purposes. The appellant states that its members live and/or work in the vicinity of the proposed project, but provides no evidence of its connection to the project site. SAFER has a documented history of using CEQA challenges to extract project labor agreements from developers. According to public records, the organization has filed approximately 200 CEQA challenges statewide between 2014 and 2024, targeting projects throughout California regardless of actual environmental impacts.' End quote. I provide this to you to give you some context that this city and my client have been targeted not because of their environmental impacts, but for other reasons. Thank you.
[03:10:24] Mayor: Okay. Thank you very much. The appellant will now have up to 10 minutes for their presentation.
[03:10:29] Brian Flynn: And if I could get those letters.
[03:10:35] Brian Flynn: All right. I'll wait for you to get the letters. Can you hear me in the meanwhile?
[03:10:40] Mayor: Yep. Yes, we can hear you and you can begin.
[03:10:43] Brian Flynn: All right. Thank you, Madam. Good evening, Mr. Mayor, honorable Council Members. My name is Brian Flynn. I'm a CEQA attorney with the law firm Lozeau Drury, here on behalf of Supporters Alliance for Environmental Responsibility, or SAFER. SAFER is respectfully requesting that the Council grant the appeal and send this back to planning for two main reasons. First, it doesn't qualify for streamlined CEQA review under CEQA guidelines Section 15183. And second, the addendum is improper under CEQA, and instead the project requires an Environmental Impact Report or Mitigated Negative Declaration. In a quick response, SAFER is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit with members throughout the state of California, including in and around Palm Desert. For standing and for challenging CEQA actions, geographical proximity is enough to establish that you have a right to challenge those actions. And so that is what SAFER is doing here. I want to just quickly respond to what we just heard. Let me just say that the applicant's attorney, Mr. Hubard, he's incorrect that we're trying to take the lid off the previous MND and challenge that 2022 MND. I'm a CEQA attorney. I'm aware you can't challenge an MND years down the road. That is not what we are doing here. Our challenge is to this project, and particularly to the Planning Commission's decisions that the project is exempt from CEQA and that the addendum is proper. There are standards you need to meet to exempt a project under Section 15183. There are standards you need to meet to adopt an addendum. The project doesn't meet those standards. Mr. Hubard also kept mentioning piecemealing. He's correct that we brought up piecemealing as an issue where you have two projects that rely on each other. But really the core here, and something that Mr. Hubard ignored, is that we really were focusing on cumulative impacts, which is a separate issue entirely from piecemealing, and I don't think Mr. Hubard would disagree that CEQA requires that you look at cumulative impacts of projects. So you're not looking at just the project; you're looking at the project and other projects around it, or other projects being constructed at the same time in this case. So to start with the cumulative impacts, that's an issue that impacts the Section 15183 exemption as well as the addendum. So about, you know, about three months ago, I was before this Council discussing the Katavina residential project, and that abuts the project site here directly to the west, and the Council approved that project. And then in the following day or two, we get notice that the Planning Commission is going to be considering the Portola Springs project proposed by the same developer on an abutting parcel in the same one- to two-story single-family home type project. There was no mention of this project when you were considering the Katavina project. And likewise, none of the documentation for this project mentions the Katavina project. And I will return to these cumulative impacts as I go through my points here, but I want to highlight this issue from the get-go: the fact that the City was well aware that these projects were being proposed virtually simultaneously, and the environmental review for each project entirely ignored the other project, didn't mention it at all, was a huge red flag under CEQA. So, let's just get into the issue of whether or not this project qualifies for this exemption under Section 15183. And if you were here a few months ago, I apologize if this is repetitive, but I do want to get into that. You know, Section 15183 says, you know, if you have a project that's consistent with your General Plan densities and you have an EIR for that General Plan, you do an initial analysis to determine whether you need to do a more in-depth CEQA analysis like an EIR or a Negative Declaration. And you need to do that more in-depth review if that initial analysis reveals peculiar impacts that are not substantially mitigated by uniformly applied development standards or policies. And I want to talk about this term 'peculiar'—these peculiar impacts. The courts have explained that in the context of Section 15183, 'peculiar' does not mean strange or unusual. Instead, it means project-specific impacts as opposed to the more general impacts that you analyzed when you adopted the General Plan EIR in 2016. So if you have a project that's compliant with the density and any significant project-specific impacts are less than significant due to uniform measures, then it qualifies for this exemption and you don't need to do anything else. But that's not the case here. We know from the addendum and from the 2022 MND that this project requires mitigation to get impacts to less than significant for biological resources and for geology and soils. But I'll focus on the biological resources. Importantly, one of the biological mitigation measures from the 2022 MND has been modified in this addendum to address the specific peculiar impacts of this project. And that would be mitigation measure BR2. In the 2022 MND, mitigation measure BR2 dealt only with mitigating impacts to the burrowing owl. In the course of preparing this addendum, it was determined that BR2 needed to be expanded to also mitigate impacts to Crotch's bumblebee, which is a California endangered species. In other words, the addendum identified a peculiar, that is project-specific, impact of this project to the Crotch's bumblebee and then formulated a mitigation measure to reduce that impact to less than significant. So if you have a mitigation measure in the context of Section 15183, it's only appropriate if it is a uniformly applied standard that applies automatically to this project and other projects in Palm Desert. And the answer is no. There's not a general Crotch's bumblebee mitigation measure for all of Palm Desert. The mitigation measure is not found in the 2022 MND. It's not found in the 2016 General Plan EIR. It's a specific mitigation measure that was formulated to address the specific impacts of this project. And so for that reason, you cannot exempt this project from CEQA under 15183. And to go back to the cumulative impacts, that is another basis for denying this exemption. Section 15183 plainly states, quote, 'This section does not affect any requirement to analyze potentially significant cumulative impacts if those impacts were not adequately discussed in the prior EIR.' And the prior EIR for this case is the 2016 General Plan EIR for Section 15183. And the General Plan EIR explicitly acknowledged that it was a general 10,000-foot view of possible impacts. The General Plan EIR stated, quote, 'The analyses in this EIR do not examine the effects of site-specific development projects that may occur within the overall umbrella of the program. The nature of general plans is that many proposed policies are intended to be general with details to be worked out during implementation.' So again, if there are project-specific impacts, you can't use Section 15183 unless there's uniform measures. And here, SAFER's air quality experts from the consulting firm Baseline found that the cumulative air quality impacts of this project and the Katavina project would be significant. First of all, again, this is all stuff that was not in the documentation for either project, which is really concerning. There's an overlap in the timing of construction for both projects. Specifically, between 2027 and 2029, both projects will be under construction. And if you look at the emissions of reactive organic gases, those are known as ROGs. Sorry to get wonky with terms, but ROGs. If you look at the emissions of those gases from the air quality reports that were prepared for the addendum and for the Katavina project's Negative Declaration, the 2029 construction-related ROGs exceed the South Coast Air District significance threshold. Similarly, for operational emissions, the combined ROG emissions during summer for both projects exceed the significance threshold for operational emissions. Both construction-related and operational emissions are significant peculiar cumulative impacts of this project, which means that the project cannot qualify for the exemption under 15183. And as one last point on the 15183 exemption, we have our wildlife expert, Dr. Sean Smallwood, who identified multiple peculiar impacts of this project that were not addressed in the General Plan EIR and that are not being mitigated by uniform measures. Based on his review of the biological report that was prepared for this project as well as site visits, he found the diversity of wildlife has been vastly underestimated on the project site. He also found that there are multiple impacts that were not addressed, including habitat loss, impacts to movement, collisions with traffic, and again cumulative impacts that have not been addressed or mitigated. So because these are significant project-specific impacts, they are the exact type of peculiar impacts that take this project out of the 15183 exemption. And also mitigation measures would need to be applied to reduce these impacts. But again, unless the city has uniform standards that apply to all projects for impacts to habitat loss, wildlife movement, and vehicle collisions, Section 15183 cannot and does not apply. So because of Section 15, you've got two things here. We've got the 15183 exemption, which we're saying doesn't apply, and then the Planning Commission also adopted an addendum.
[03:20:47] Mayor: Okay. Thank you very much. The 10 minutes...
[03:20:49] Brian Flynn: Oh, 10 minutes is up already?
[03:20:51] Mayor: Yes, sir.
[03:20:51] Brian Flynn: Oh my gosh. All right. Thank you.
[03:20:53] Mayor: Thank you. I will now open the floor for public testimony. I have no speaker cards on this matter. Are there any online comments?
[03:21:01] Staff: Uh, no online comments.
[03:21:03] Mayor: Okay, very good. I will now offer the applicant up to three minutes, or the applicant has three minutes for rebuttal.
[03:21:16] David Hubard: Very quickly, counsel for SAFER, I'm afraid, doesn't quite understand how Section 15183 works. He makes it sound like it doesn't matter if you're consistent with the General Plan, consistent with zoning, consistent with the density parameters, but if you have a project-specific impact, which every project does, then suddenly you're outside 15183 and the only way you can get back in is with mitigation measures. That is flipping the exemption on its head and basically making it completely unusable. The fact is, and the way the courts have interpreted this, is that if you meet those threshold criteria, someone has to show that they've got a significant effect that is peculiar, not something that was anticipated, that is unique to your project. Only then does the issue of whether you have a mitigation measure that can deal with that peculiar impact even arise. We don't even get there here. The whole idea that there's a cumulative impact is bogus. He talks about the ROG, reactive organic gases, as being over the construction limit, which is 75 pounds per day, or the operational limit, which is 55 pounds per day. But the only way that they can get to those numbers is if you combine Katavina with Portola Springs. If you take them individually, which is what you're required to do because they are separate, independent projects, neither one of them meets the 55 or the 75-pound threshold. You don't get to add them together. The South Coast Air Quality Management District thresholds that we're talking about, they are project-specific. They're not cumulative. So you don't get to add every project that's emitting ROG and put it into the hopper and come out with a number and then test it against the 55 or the 75 pounds. It is project-specific. So if you look at Katavina, it's below 55. It's below the 75 for construction. If you look at Portola Springs, also well below both thresholds. The only way that SAFER is trying to convince you otherwise is they are adding them together when they can't. That's not permissible. If you have any further questions, I'm happy to answer them.
[03:23:56] David Hubard: Any questions?
[03:23:57] Mayor: Okay. I don't actually think this is the time to do it. Okay. So, the appellant now has three minutes for rebuttal.
[03:24:06] Brian Flynn: Thank you very much. And just very quickly, I mean, as it comes to 15183 and do I know what I'm talking about? I'm an attorney. I've litigated and won cases on 15183, so I do have some knowledge of it. Just need to respond to that. Very quickly, as I didn't get it in before, I'm just going to quickly talk about the addendum here. The addendum is based off a Mitigated Negative Declaration. The standard for when you have an addendum to a prior MND is that the addendum is improper if the new project may produce a significant environmental effect that has not been previously studied. That is a 'fair argument' standard that is in favor of environmental review if there is any evidence in the record of a substantial impact. So when we go and look at the prior MND and you say, 'Were the cumulative impacts of this project actually analyzed?' the 2022 MND does not mention and/or analyze any sort of development happening on the Katavina site. It only mentions that the land to the west, which is the Katavina site, was vacant land. So the impacts of any development on the Katavina site in conjunction with this site were not addressed in the 2022 MND. So because it doesn't address the cumulative impacts of getting built right next door, that means you can't use an addendum if there's a fair argument that there will be significant cumulative impacts. And there's certainly a fair argument. This project will have cumulative air quality impacts. We have significant emissions of ROGs during construction and operation. Mr. Hubard is saying, 'Oh, we can't add those together.' This is a cumulative impact. A cumulative impact is the impact of two projects together. CEQA recognizes that projects may have individually insignificant impacts, but their cumulative impacts can be considerable, and that is what's happened here. So, you can't rely on an addendum. We have significant operational emissions of ROGs during the summer. We have significant ROG emissions during the overlapping construction. So an addendum is not proper here. Instead, you should go back and prepare an EIR or MND for this project that actually looks at the cumulative impacts. Go do that analysis on the front end so that is presented to the public and the decision makers of what the cumulative impacts of this project is going to be. So I appreciate you taking the time to listen to all of this. I know there's been a lot of paper and a lot of words. We're respectfully requesting the Council grant the appeal, find that it is not exempt under 15183 and that the addendum is not proper, and that the proper course of action here is to require an EIR or MND to ensure that all impacts of this project have been addressed, disclosed, and mitigated to the extent feasible. Thank you.
[03:26:59] Mayor: All right. Thank you very much. I have no blue speaker cards. Are there any online comments?
[03:27:04] Mayor: Public comments? Sorry. Any public comments? Okay, seeing no further speakers, the public hearing is now closed. And does the City Council and my colleagues have any clarifying questions for staff?
[03:27:22] Mayor: Okay. Um, any discussion points you'd like to bring up? Okay. Well, then I will entertain a motion.
[03:27:32] Council Member: I do have one bit. I understand, and there has been the trend of attempts to weaponize CEQA, and we know CEQA does need to be reformed, and until we do that, we're going to keep experiencing these matters. But I think that the need for housing supersedes a lot of those things. And when we combine the need for housing and the way that we can't fight nature, we have to acknowledge that between 2019 and 2025, there were 57,288 wildfires which burned 9,497,090 acres. None of that will be able and ready to go and build. We don't have the infrastructure or anything, or let's not even say the magic words of insurance. We won't be able to catch up as a state. So, as a city, I think it's our responsibility to ensure that we have housing that's going to continue to keep us ahead of rain, and I can see that we need to move ahead and not fall for the weaponization of CEQA.
[03:28:48] Mayor: Thank you very much. Anybody care to make a motion?
[03:28:53] Council Member: I'll move the item as presented.
[03:28:58] Council Member: Second.
[03:29:03] Mayor: Motion passes five to zero.
[03:29:07] Mayor: Okay. And with that, we are on to adjournment at 7:30 p.m. Thank you all very much.