Rancho Mirage City Council Meeting, April 17, 2025

Transcript text

AI transcript text.

[00:00:08] April
[00:00:10] 17th, approximately 1:00. This is the
[00:00:14] regular meeting of the Rancho Mirage
[00:00:16] City Council and Community Services
[00:00:19] District, Energy
[00:00:21] Authority, Housing Authority, Joint
[00:00:24] Powers Finance Authority, Library and
[00:00:28] Observatory, and Redevelopment Successor
[00:00:31] agency
[00:00:33] boards. Uh, I will ask uh if you will,
[00:00:37] uh, join me in the flag salute. Please
[00:00:42] place your hand over your heart and
[00:00:44] repeat, I pledge allegiance to the flag
[00:00:48] of the United States of America and to
[00:00:50] the republic for which it stands, one
[00:00:53] nation under God, indivisible, with
[00:00:56] liberty and justice for all.
[00:01:02] May we have roll call, please? Council
[00:01:04] member DS, I'm here. Council member
[00:01:07] Framberg Edetostein here. Council member
[00:01:09] O'Keefe here. Mayor Prom Molatto here.
[00:01:12] Mayor While I am here.
[00:01:16] The uh first order of business today is
[00:01:21] um a presentation that gives me a great
[00:01:25] deal of personal pleasure and it's the
[00:01:29] recognition of the Hero and You
[00:01:32] Foundation which has been headed for a
[00:01:35] number of years by Rick and
[00:01:38] Benny by Rick and Bunny Beneron
[00:01:43] uh good friends. uh in addition to be
[00:01:47] being incredible philanthropist. Uh Rick
[00:01:51] and Bunny, would you kindly meet me up
[00:01:53] in the front of the uh
[00:02:13] room? Feels like old home week with you
[00:02:16] two
[00:02:26] guys. This really gives me a great deal
[00:02:29] of pleasure presenting this to both of
[00:02:32] you and it's a proclamation honoring the
[00:02:37] hero and you foundation.
[00:02:41] Whereas the Hero and You Foundation,
[00:02:43] founded in
[00:02:45] 2014 by Bunny and Rick
[00:02:48] Beneron, is committed to empowering,
[00:02:51] educating, and inspiring children and
[00:02:54] families with the tools to make better
[00:02:57] decisions during emergencies, ensuring
[00:03:01] their safety and well-being.
[00:03:04] The foundation's mission includes
[00:03:07] providing essential socio
[00:03:11] socio emotional health and safety
[00:03:15] education to children across the globe.
[00:03:19] Equipping equipping them with the
[00:03:21] critical skills needed to stay safe in
[00:03:25] the face of emergencies such as natural
[00:03:28] disasters and dangerous situations.
[00:03:32] The foundation developed the Rocket
[00:03:35] Rules for Safety program designed to
[00:03:39] teach essential socio emotional health
[00:03:43] and safety skills to children, helping
[00:03:46] them stay safe in calm and challenging
[00:03:52] situations. I'll I'll digress for a
[00:03:54] minute here. If any of you have ever
[00:03:57] seen the rocket in in
[00:04:01] person, and I had the privilege a number
[00:04:05] of years ago of watching at the
[00:04:07] Children's
[00:04:08] Museum how hypnotized the kids were to
[00:04:13] see the rocket in
[00:04:15] action. And not only that, to see the
[00:04:20] inhibi inhibitions of the children
[00:04:23] immediately removed and the confidence
[00:04:27] that they felt in giving themselves to
[00:04:31] this animated character, the trust, it
[00:04:34] was
[00:04:36] phenomenal and it just impressed me so
[00:04:39] much. And let me just continue a couple
[00:04:41] of wherees.
[00:04:44] The foundation has provided invaluable
[00:04:46] resources to over
[00:04:49] 250,000 families, teachers, and children
[00:04:53] through free educational toolkits.
[00:04:57] The foundation has shown its
[00:04:59] commitment by installing
[00:05:03] 30 Dalmatian puppy sculptures across the
[00:05:07] United States and the foundation's
[00:05:10] unwavering commitment to helping
[00:05:12] children and families has earned
[00:05:15] numerous awards and accolades.
[00:05:18] Now therefore, it be resolved that I,
[00:05:20] Ted While, mayor of the city of Ranch,
[00:05:24] on behalf of the entire city council, do
[00:05:28] honor the hero hero and you foundation
[00:05:33] to Rick and Bunny Benneron.
[00:05:42] Put this up though, Rick.
[00:05:45] She's my director. Let me say this. A
[00:05:47] typical typical DW wife giving
[00:05:50] direction.
[00:05:51] Yes. And much easier to just take it and
[00:05:54] go on.
[00:05:57] Well, thank you so much to every city
[00:06:00] council member, to everyone here in the
[00:06:03] city of Rancher Mirage um who works
[00:06:07] tires tirelessly to keep this city safe.
[00:06:10] And we have one of the best cities I
[00:06:12] think in the whole nation. Um we are
[00:06:15] trying so hard to keep kids safe in this
[00:06:18] area and all over all over the nation.
[00:06:21] And by doing and the way we do that and
[00:06:24] what Ted was saying is that we have a
[00:06:28] animated program where the children
[00:06:29] actually talk to a live dog while
[00:06:33] they're in the classroom and the dog is
[00:06:36] actually interacting with the children.
[00:06:38] So the children are getting taught by a
[00:06:41] little animated dog and it is a very
[00:06:44] unique program but it also brings out
[00:06:46] the best in the kids and also lets them
[00:06:49] give the their emotions out to out to
[00:06:53] the teachers and lets them know what
[00:06:55] they're feeling. So not only do we have
[00:06:57] an emergency preparedness um program but
[00:07:00] we also have a uh social emotional
[00:07:03] program where we're teaching kids how to
[00:07:05] manage their feelings. So we do bullying
[00:07:07] programs also but emergency preparedness
[00:07:10] is where we started with the city um all
[00:07:12] about earthquake safety and an update
[00:07:15] for everybody. We are also just been
[00:07:17] asked by shake alert to uh make another
[00:07:21] program for them for little children up
[00:07:24] through 11 years old. So we're working
[00:07:26] on that right now. And we just also
[00:07:29] finished a cyber security program for
[00:07:32] little kids. So again, all the way
[00:07:34] through uh elementary school. So we're
[00:07:36] very proud of that program that's being
[00:07:38] used in the Los Angeles school district
[00:07:39] right now. And we'll come right back
[00:07:41] down here to Ranchel Marage. And we did
[00:07:43] just start, we just finished 10 schools
[00:07:46] in the Palm Springs Unified School
[00:07:48] District, including Ranch Mirage
[00:07:50] Elementary School. So we're very proud
[00:07:52] of all that, but most of all proud of
[00:07:54] working with all of you who have
[00:07:56] supported us over all of these years. So
[00:07:59] thank you all so much.
[00:08:01] Thank you
[00:08:03] everybody. You're wonderful contributors
[00:08:06] to the city of Rancho Mirage as well as
[00:08:09] residents here. Thank you.
[00:08:18] Yes. I just wanted to give you somewhat
[00:08:22] of a background of Bunny. Bunny. Uh the
[00:08:26] um I met Bunny through a friend of hers
[00:08:29] who decided one night to uh invite Bunny
[00:08:32] over. Uh and that was a big mistake she
[00:08:37] made. So we got married and uh then I
[00:08:42] found out a few things about Bunny. I
[00:08:45] was reading her early elementary school
[00:08:48] uh report cards and although she always
[00:08:51] got A's through everything, there was
[00:08:53] always notes on it about she was the one
[00:08:56] that helped everybody in the class and
[00:08:59] she went on to become a teacher and she
[00:09:03] was a teacher for a number of years in a
[00:09:05] very difficult
[00:09:07] area and then she decided because I
[00:09:10] needed help in my business, I needed a
[00:09:13] dedicated computer
[00:09:15] operator. And in those days, the uh
[00:09:18] computers were about half the size of
[00:09:20] this uh area here. And Bunny came in and
[00:09:24] learned how to operate it. And uh you
[00:09:27] know, as you go through business, and
[00:09:29] we're in business for 45 years. Uh
[00:09:32] sometimes there's diff good times and
[00:09:34] sometimes there's difficult times. And
[00:09:36] this was a difficult time. And so she
[00:09:39] was uh operating the computer for about
[00:09:42] six months. And then all of a sudden
[00:09:43] these two guys come in with trolleys and
[00:09:46] uh they take the computer away because I
[00:09:49] couldn't pay for it. So what did Bunny
[00:09:52] do? She went into the warehouse and
[00:09:54] started to make boxes and put
[00:09:56] merchandise in boxes and ship boxes. And
[00:10:00] that's the way her life has been. And
[00:10:03] then she became the number one
[00:10:05] salesperson in our operation. and she
[00:10:07] handled accounts like Walmart and JC
[00:10:10] Penney and she flew all over the country
[00:10:13] taking midnight flights and uh they
[00:10:17] absolutely loved her and uh about
[00:10:19] uh 20 years a later uh 10 years 12 years
[00:10:24] ago we sold our business and wanted and
[00:10:27] particularly Bunny wanted to give back
[00:10:29] to the community and uh through our
[00:10:32] success we're able to form the the H
[00:10:35] hero and you foundation and do our best
[00:10:37] for young children. And that's Bunny.
[00:10:44] Thank you, Bunny. Great story.
[00:11:09] And now to continue another great
[00:11:12] story and we have a presentation for the
[00:11:16] Coachella Valley Valley Rescue Mission
[00:11:20] and I'll ask Michael O'Keefe if he would
[00:11:22] handle that please. Thank you Mr. Mayor
[00:11:25] and congratulations Bunny and Rick. It
[00:11:28] was uh welld deserved and thank you for
[00:11:29] all that you do. Um recently I was able
[00:11:33] to spend the day at the Coachella Valley
[00:11:35] Rescue Mission and like most of you I
[00:11:39] knew that the mission helped a lot of
[00:11:40] people uh but seeing the facilities uh
[00:11:43] up in person and meeting with the staff
[00:11:46] and the clients and learning about the
[00:11:48] programs really made it a more urgent
[00:11:51] thing for me. It made it more real. And
[00:11:54] folks, this is as real as it gets. Uh
[00:11:57] you know since 1971 the Coachella Valley
[00:11:59] Rescue Mission has been an oasis, a
[00:12:02] place of refuge for the homeless and the
[00:12:04] neediest in our valley. Uh it is a safe
[00:12:07] haven, a place of rest for the weary and
[00:12:10] a place where daily needs can be met. So
[00:12:14] over the years the mission has continued
[00:12:17] to meet the ever growing needs of
[00:12:19] individuals who you know for a variety
[00:12:21] of reasons have found themselves without
[00:12:24] the basic necessities of life. They may
[00:12:26] have lost a job. They may have lost a
[00:12:28] home or had a major health emergency. Uh
[00:12:31] they may have experienced emotional,
[00:12:33] mental, physical, substance abuse. Um
[00:12:37] but they have a dedicated staff and
[00:12:38] volunteers there that serve more than
[00:12:41] 340,000 meals a year. They provide shel
[00:12:45] shelter to thousands of people, some
[00:12:47] with young children. And they also
[00:12:50] provide food, clothing, counseling, and
[00:12:52] hygiene products.
[00:12:54] uh their belief is that no one should
[00:12:57] face homelessness alone. So the
[00:13:00] Coachella Valley Rescue Mission offers
[00:13:02] more than just a place to stay. They
[00:13:04] offer hope and dignity and a path to
[00:13:08] independence. Uh so I had the honor to
[00:13:10] meet Darla Burrat, the extraordinary uh
[00:13:14] executive director who has just
[00:13:16] announced her retirement and she will be
[00:13:18] sorely missed. Uh, and I worked with
[00:13:21] Scott Wolf, uh, the development director
[00:13:23] who does so much at the mission, but I
[00:13:26] was really lucky to meet Kristen Pavia.
[00:13:29] Uh, she's the business development
[00:13:31] coordinator. She spent too much time
[00:13:33] with me. I really appreciated it. And
[00:13:35] I've asked Kristen to come here today
[00:13:37] and to let all of you know what's going
[00:13:39] on at the Coachella Valley Rescue
[00:13:40] Mission. So, Kristen, if you could come
[00:13:42] forward, please.
[00:13:47] Morning. I mean, good afternoon. Sorry.
[00:13:52] Um, so I'm here. Put that right there.
[00:13:54] Thank you. So, thank you, Michael, for
[00:13:57] introducing me, and I appreciate you
[00:13:58] guys um, welcoming me here today. Just
[00:14:01] to talk a little bit about the mission.
[00:14:03] Um, we are currently going to be opening
[00:14:06] up our new women's and children's center
[00:14:09] that's going to be um, opening up on
[00:14:11] April 29th. So, we're encouraging
[00:14:13] everybody to attend. Um, our ribbon
[00:14:15] cutting will be at 8:00 a.m. Um, we
[00:14:18] offer two, uh, programs. We also, uh,
[00:14:21] for gateway vocational programs, which
[00:14:24] provides job readiness, food, shelter,
[00:14:26] case management, and, um, support
[00:14:29] services. And that's a 6 to9month
[00:14:31] program. And then we also have our New
[00:14:33] Life program, which is a faith-based
[00:14:35] residential program, and that is 9 to 12
[00:14:38] months. And that is also um it's just
[00:14:41] faith-based for residential uh program
[00:14:43] offering shelter counseling and life
[00:14:46] skills to break the cycles. Um we have
[00:14:50] an 85% success rate and a 1% return
[00:14:54] rate. So we do pretty well for
[00:14:55] ourselves.
[00:14:57] Um, we also, like I said, we have
[00:14:59] volunteer opportunities, referral
[00:15:00] services, full wraparound services, um,
[00:15:03] rapid rehousing for just, um, not just
[00:15:06] for our residents, but also for anybody
[00:15:08] that's residing in Riverside County that
[00:15:10] might need help with shelter. So, I'm
[00:15:14] going to show you a short video. It's
[00:15:15] about 5 minutes. It's a pretty much it's
[00:15:17] a good overall view of our mission, and
[00:15:21] hopefully you guys will like it. If you
[00:15:22] have any questions, um, please ask me
[00:15:25] after the video. Thank
[00:15:37] you. Coachella Valley Rescue Mission
[00:15:40] started over 50 years ago and has grown
[00:15:43] over the years into the Coachella
[00:15:45] Valley's largest homeless shelter. We
[00:15:47] provide a safe place where people can
[00:15:50] rebuild and renew to find their way back
[00:15:53] from hopelessness to a life of
[00:15:55] self-sufficiency. Currently, CVRM has
[00:15:58] 250 beds. We are at full capacity in all
[00:16:02] of our programs, providing not only
[00:16:04] meals and shelter, but a fullervice
[00:16:07] approach to ending homelessness, one
[00:16:09] person at a time. We're excited to have
[00:16:12] you with us today and share a little bit
[00:16:14] more about who we are and who we serve
[00:16:17] and the miracles that happen here every
[00:16:19] day.
[00:16:21] [Music]
[00:16:22] The first place our clients visit when
[00:16:24] they arrive is our emergency shelter. We
[00:16:26] welcome our clients into our shelter
[00:16:28] directly from the streets and we start
[00:16:30] to meet their needs immediately. We
[00:16:32] provide showers, clothing, meals, a bed
[00:16:36] to sleep in and we start to case manage
[00:16:38] them from the first day that they are
[00:16:40] here. Our goal in the shelter is to
[00:16:42] prepare them for long-term programs,
[00:16:44] housing options, or referrals to outside
[00:16:46] agencies for further
[00:16:48] care. We meet the needs where it's most
[00:16:51] important, on the streets of Coachella
[00:16:52] Valley. Every day, we encounter people
[00:16:55] who are in the greatest need of comfort
[00:16:57] and assistance. We provide a helping
[00:16:59] hand with food and water, clothing,
[00:17:01] showers, and toiletries. And most
[00:17:03] importantly, we always offer a ride back
[00:17:06] to the mission for further services.
[00:17:08] The Rescue Mission offers two programs
[00:17:10] for those in need of more than just
[00:17:12] shelter. Our gateway and new life
[00:17:14] programs are designed to provide the
[00:17:16] skills and tools needed to transition
[00:17:19] into independent living. We have life
[00:17:22] skill classes, job skill training,
[00:17:24] counseling and support groups, as well
[00:17:26] as assistance with finding housing. We
[00:17:29] take a personal approach with every
[00:17:31] client as an individual with a unique
[00:17:34] set of goals and victories to achieve.
[00:17:37] With homelessness among women and single
[00:17:39] moms growing so quickly, I'm grateful
[00:17:41] that we offer a safe place for them to
[00:17:43] heal and restore. CBRM has shelters for
[00:17:46] both the Gateway and New Life programs
[00:17:49] as well as our family shelter for our
[00:17:51] moms with kids. The programs here at
[00:17:54] CBRM give the women an opportunity to
[00:17:57] take part in a personalized plan for
[00:17:59] them to work on themselves as people and
[00:18:02] to get the tools that they need to get
[00:18:04] back out into independent living. Our
[00:18:06] client moms have an excellent support
[00:18:08] system around them so they can
[00:18:10] concentrate on making family unity a
[00:18:13] priority as they move forward. Our
[00:18:15] housing department is an important part
[00:18:17] of how we provide every opportunity for
[00:18:19] client success. Making sure that clients
[00:18:22] have a home when they graduate is very
[00:18:24] important to the program here at the
[00:18:26] mission. The housing staff works with
[00:18:28] each client to make sure that if they
[00:18:30] need help with finding housing, we are
[00:18:32] here to assist them. Transitioning to
[00:18:34] independent living is one of the final
[00:18:36] steps in completing our program. And it
[00:18:39] is so rewarding to see our clients
[00:18:41] achieve that success.
[00:18:44] Our kitchen is a vital part of the care
[00:18:45] we provide for our clients every day.
[00:18:47] Ensuring everyone gets proper nutrition
[00:18:50] and has access to three meals daily goes
[00:18:53] a long way in making the path to
[00:18:55] restoration easier. The clients we serve
[00:18:58] are precious to us and we know that a
[00:19:00] healthy body is essential with restoring
[00:19:03] the whole person. We serve over 300,000
[00:19:07] meals a year at the mission and we also
[00:19:10] operate mission catering. The catering
[00:19:12] program here provides work experience
[00:19:14] for our clients to work in the
[00:19:16] hospitality industry and we are one of
[00:19:19] the best catering companies in the
[00:19:20] valley. The New Life Resale Boutique is
[00:19:23] a great place to buy gently used items
[00:19:25] at a great price for over 15 years. The
[00:19:28] boutique has been a fixture in the
[00:19:30] community, serving the public and CBRM
[00:19:33] clients alike. We train clients to work
[00:19:36] in the retail industry as part of their
[00:19:38] program, working with them to develop
[00:19:40] skills that they can use to obtain
[00:19:42] employment here in the valley. For over
[00:19:45] five decades, the Coachella Valley
[00:19:47] Rescue Mission has cared for the most
[00:19:49] vulnerable people in our community.
[00:19:52] Those who come through our doors are
[00:19:53] broken, addicted, hungry, and most times
[00:19:56] without any hope of finding help. We
[00:19:59] serve them with love, respect, dignity,
[00:20:01] and compassion, sharing with them the
[00:20:04] joy of God and the hope of a newfound
[00:20:06] independence. I want to thank you all
[00:20:09] for your friendship and support of
[00:20:11] assisting us with everything we do at
[00:20:13] the Rescue Mission, for helping those in
[00:20:15] need the very most.
[00:20:20] [Music]
[00:20:37] Hey Kristen, thank you for bringing that
[00:20:39] video. I don't know if most people know
[00:20:41] that right out here in our lobby, we
[00:20:43] have a donation box for Coachella Valley
[00:20:45] Rescue Mission right here at city hall.
[00:20:48] And would you like to tell folks here
[00:20:50] what you're looking for right now? I
[00:20:52] know that socks and shoes and diapers
[00:20:54] are always in demand. Right. Right.
[00:20:56] Well, right now what we're looking for
[00:20:57] is for bedding um for our new women's
[00:20:59] and children's facility. Um I didn't
[00:21:02] mention earlier, but that that's going
[00:21:03] to be an additional 60 beds um on top of
[00:21:06] the 270 beds that we have now. So that
[00:21:09] so that is a great need is bedding and
[00:21:13] blankets, pillows, whatnot for our
[00:21:15] women's and children's facility.
[00:21:18] Any questions with anyone? What size
[00:21:20] bedding do you need? Full and twin.
[00:21:23] Okay. Yes. Thank you. Do you need
[00:21:25] children's clothes and toys, too?
[00:21:27] Always.
[00:21:29] Thank you guys. I don't have any
[00:21:30] questions, but I think it's important to
[00:21:31] note that the city is a contributor
[00:21:32] through our special assistance fund
[00:21:34] program to the mission. So, thank you.
[00:21:36] Thank you guys for your time. Appreciate
[00:21:37] you. Thank you. Thank you for being
[00:21:39] here. Thank you.
[00:21:42] Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
[00:21:45] Thank you. And thank you for the
[00:21:47] presentation. That concludes the
[00:21:49] presentations and we now will go to
[00:21:52] non-aggenda public
[00:21:54] comments. This is an opportunity for the
[00:21:57] public to speak on issues not on the
[00:21:59] agenda for a maximum of three minutes
[00:22:03] per speaker. Should you approach the
[00:22:06] three minute mark uh I will advise you
[00:22:09] to kindly conclude your comments. Uh may
[00:22:13] we have this first speaker please? Of
[00:22:15] course. The first speaker is Julie Olaf.
[00:22:26] Hello, uh, Mayor While, uh, Mayor Prom
[00:22:28] Molatto, council members, city staff,
[00:22:30] and guests here today with a very
[00:22:32] special call out to the emergency
[00:22:34] services in the back that I spotted.
[00:22:35] Thank you. My name is Julie Olaf, and I
[00:22:38] am terrified of public speaking. Um, but
[00:22:40] thank you for having me here. I'm also
[00:22:42] the general manager of a beautiful
[00:22:44] little spot called Sensei Porcupine
[00:22:46] Creek down the road. Um, and I have the
[00:22:48] great pleasure of serving as the chair
[00:22:50] of the board for the Rancho Mirage um,
[00:22:52] Chamber of Commerce and our fearless CEO
[00:22:55] who keeps us in line or does her best to
[00:22:57] because we're a little out of control.
[00:22:58] But the Chamber of Commerce is um deeply
[00:23:01] focused right now on being uh a trusted
[00:23:04] leader for this community and for the
[00:23:06] businesses amongst it and for our
[00:23:07] members and putting together a strong
[00:23:10] program of work um to really ensure that
[00:23:12] we remain a dynamic and steady and
[00:23:14] reliable resource to our community. And
[00:23:16] speaking of bodies of work, I I know
[00:23:18] that a few of you were able to attend
[00:23:19] yesterday's lunchon, but it was a
[00:23:21] signature speaker series where we were
[00:23:23] lucky to welcome the US Chamber from DC
[00:23:25] and they presented on artificial
[00:23:27] intelligence. It was educational. It was
[00:23:30] eye- openening and just a little bit
[00:23:31] scary. Um, but not all about Terminator
[00:23:34] 2 at my great
[00:23:36] disappointment. Later this month, uh,
[00:23:38] the chamber is going to celebrate a meet
[00:23:39] and greet mixer at Catalan just across
[00:23:41] the way. If you haven't tried it, their
[00:23:42] octopus is to die for. Um, it is under
[00:23:45] new ownership and we'll also be holding
[00:23:47] a young professionals network event.
[00:23:50] In other news at Sensei Porcupine Creek,
[00:23:53] I'm actually here to thank you on behalf
[00:23:54] of the 165 souls that I have the the
[00:23:57] great honor uh of serving. We are about
[00:24:00] to open our new operations buildings.
[00:24:02] And we've existed for the last 3 years
[00:24:04] trying to provide a life-changing
[00:24:06] experience for every guest and team
[00:24:08] member that came through our doors. And
[00:24:10] we've done so under the opices of it
[00:24:12] being a private estate. Um, but now with
[00:24:14] these buildings, my team is going to
[00:24:16] have a real cafeteria, real locker
[00:24:18] rooms, real showers, and the space that
[00:24:20] I deeply feel they deserve. And that's
[00:24:23] with many thanks uh to the planning and
[00:24:25] permissions that we were able to get
[00:24:26] from the city. So, we are so grateful
[00:24:28] for your partnership. Um, and from a
[00:24:30] very deep human level, thank you from my
[00:24:32] team. We could not be more appreciative
[00:24:35] for the ability to have a job in this in
[00:24:37] this beautiful city, but also to be able
[00:24:38] to work in that environment will be
[00:24:40] truly life-changing. One quick happy
[00:24:43] note. Um, as someone who did survive the
[00:24:46] hospitality business in the great
[00:24:47] recession as well as COVID, I'm always
[00:24:50] really super happy to have a job, but
[00:24:52] I'm especially happy right now because
[00:24:54] this year, more so than last year, um,
[00:24:56] our business is truly booming and we've
[00:24:58] been able to welcome twice as many
[00:25:00] guests year-over-year um, and go from,
[00:25:02] you know, four buyouts to eight. So my
[00:25:04] team also gets to stay employed and
[00:25:06] we're all just deeply grateful to be in
[00:25:08] this vibrant business community and to
[00:25:10] keep uh doing the jobs that we truly
[00:25:12] love and enjoy doing. So thank you very
[00:25:14] very much. We appreciate you very much.
[00:25:17] Thank you.
[00:25:21] Thank thank you Julie. I think uh all of
[00:25:25] us have expressed uh the relationship
[00:25:28] that we have with the chamber with and
[00:25:31] indeed I think uh we all express the
[00:25:34] fact that it's a partnership uh that we
[00:25:37] covet very much uh we hold it very dear.
[00:25:42] We know the contribution that the
[00:25:44] chamber makes
[00:25:47] uh to for the benefit of small business
[00:25:50] throughout the valley and throughout
[00:25:53] Rancher Mirage. Um it's just a a
[00:25:56] blessing to have you people here and uh
[00:25:59] we appreciate all the effort. Thank you
[00:26:02] so very very much.
[00:26:05] The next speaker is Susan Ragsdale.
[00:26:13] [Applause]
[00:26:14] Good afternoon, city council. My name is
[00:26:17] Susan Ragsdale. I am a peaceloving,
[00:26:20] innocent
[00:26:21] 73year-old. In 2018, I moved into
[00:26:24] so-called fair housing Rancho Mirage
[00:26:27] City apartment where I was continually
[00:26:30] victimized by mentally ill tenants. For
[00:26:33] four years, my apartment was sandwiched
[00:26:36] between two sets of predatory bullies.
[00:26:39] For amusement, they targeted me in an
[00:26:41] outof control hostile living
[00:26:43] environment. The Rancho Mirage Housing
[00:26:46] Authority, including Mayor Ted While,
[00:26:49] the city council members, and most
[00:26:52] especially Isaiah Hagermanerman, the
[00:26:55] city
[00:26:56] manager. This is his heinous crime.
[00:27:03] The Rancho Mirage Housing Authority
[00:27:05] fostered long-term vulgar misogynist
[00:27:08] harassment, breaching their duty of
[00:27:11] care. They trashed me. Me. Furthermore,
[00:27:15] these Rancho Mirage quote civil servants
[00:27:18] ruthlessly victimized me because they
[00:27:21] erroneously assumed I protested real
[00:27:24] estate development. I had nothing to do
[00:27:27] with this, but they scapegoated me.
[00:27:30] These public officials are guilty of
[00:27:33] sadistic
[00:27:35] sadistic,
[00:27:39] intentional elder abuse, lifethreatening
[00:27:42] defamation, gross negligence, and city
[00:27:45] quote fair housing fraud. My meager
[00:27:49] retirement was 1,700 social security
[00:27:52] monthly plus affordable housing for
[00:27:54] whistleblowing a hostile living
[00:27:56] environment. The self-serving sererving
[00:27:59] malicious property manager Sonia Cabrera
[00:28:02] framed me in order to conveniently evict
[00:28:06] the victim. Ultimately, I was made
[00:28:09] homeless living in my car by this crime.
[00:28:12] Cabrera evicted me from city housing
[00:28:15] based on 14 false allegations of
[00:28:18] harassment served upon me during a 2 and
[00:28:22] 1/2year period. The housing authority
[00:28:24] never gave me a chance to testify in my
[00:28:27] own self-defense. According to the Fair
[00:28:30] Housing Act, this is illegal. The
[00:28:33] housing authority subjected me to a sham
[00:28:36] eviction predicament. I was it was
[00:28:40] traumatic and unmanageable. I had no
[00:28:42] idea how to save my life. As a victim in
[00:28:45] court, I became emotionally disabled and
[00:28:48] was able was unable to promptly testify
[00:28:51] on my own behalf. The housing authority
[00:28:54] had switched judges. That is the worst
[00:28:57] thing. You know, they say my eviction
[00:29:00] was I'm sorry, I'm having a hard time,
[00:29:03] but they switched judges from the expert
[00:29:06] on unlawful detainers to an
[00:29:08] unsympathetic novice judge who quickly
[00:29:10] rubber
[00:29:11] stamped my eviction. You've seen the
[00:29:15] pictures and I don't know why you don't
[00:29:18] restore me to what is rightfully mine.
[00:29:21] You swindled me and you ruined my life
[00:29:23] completely.
[00:29:28] Wally Melendez
[00:29:53] Uh good afternoon um city council
[00:29:58] uh and
[00:30:01] administration. I wish
[00:30:03] that one day
[00:30:07] somebody will when saying the pledge
[00:30:12] allegiance to say I pledge allegiance to
[00:30:15] the flag of the United to the flag and
[00:30:20] to the US
[00:30:21] Constitution of the United States of
[00:30:27] America.
[00:30:31] So, uh I wish somebody would do that.
[00:30:41] So, so right now,
[00:30:45] uh,
[00:30:47] DC, the federal
[00:30:50] government, the
[00:30:52] billionaires have the upper
[00:30:55] hand in running the federal uh,
[00:31:01] government. Uh, Mr. Elon uh Musk, the
[00:31:05] great brain that shoots up rockets and
[00:31:08] wants to colonize
[00:31:11] Mars, is stealing a lot of
[00:31:14] our personal
[00:31:17] data wherever he
[00:31:25] can. And this guy Musk is a good friend
[00:31:31] of Putin.
[00:31:33] the dictator of
[00:31:35] Russia that has his population
[00:31:40] enslaved like real slaves people and
[00:31:44] throws them into the meat grinder to
[00:31:47] attack
[00:31:50] Ukraine because he wants Ukraine because
[00:31:55] he says that he owns Ukraine. Just think
[00:31:59] about that.
[00:32:02] And our president is also a good buddy
[00:32:06] of Mr. Putin.
[00:32:13] So I have very few seconds but I want
[00:32:17] to re
[00:32:20] reiterate about the and believe it or
[00:32:24] not I got this idea from what they do in
[00:32:27] Russia about the equity participatory
[00:32:32] agreement versus the rental agreement.
[00:32:36] And this girl here, you know, or this
[00:32:39] ladies here have the program uh, you
[00:32:43] know, to help the homeless people. But I
[00:32:46] have news for you. The homeless people
[00:32:48] will remain homeless people because the
[00:32:50] little money they have, if they are
[00:32:53] happy, lucky enough to get a little
[00:32:55] apartment is going down the drain
[00:32:58] instead of getting equity from that
[00:33:00] little money that they have. Because you
[00:33:04] know, you can't just throw
[00:33:06] people into a building and give them
[00:33:09] food and a shower and say, "Oh, now you
[00:33:12] now you're Please conclude your
[00:33:15] comments." Coming up, but they need
[00:33:18] equity in the places that they live.
[00:33:23] Brad Anderson.
[00:33:30] Good morning. Uh, good afternoon. My
[00:33:32] name is Brad Anderson. I currently live
[00:33:34] in the city of Ranch. I just want to
[00:33:35] take this opportunity just to address a
[00:33:37] few items. I did well I'm talking I did
[00:33:40] submit some written comments. Uh
[00:33:43] hopefully they're in the record and
[00:33:44] people can take a look at those if they
[00:33:46] can find them. Um, I'm just uh I'm
[00:33:49] becoming disfranchised of the operations
[00:33:51] of this city have really the only thing
[00:33:53] I talk about or fight for is things that
[00:33:55] have been taken away over the past few
[00:33:57] years and one of them being an open and
[00:34:00] free election uh for us residents to
[00:34:02] vote for elected count council members,
[00:34:06] but we don't get to do that anymore
[00:34:07] either. So, um hopefully uh things will
[00:34:10] change. Uh but uh I don't foresee it.
[00:34:13] Uh, but I just want to tell you I I'm
[00:34:15] one of many disparans. I people don't
[00:34:18] even watch the meetings anymore in my
[00:34:19] neighborhood, the people I talk to. Uh,
[00:34:22] because it's more self-gratitude type
[00:34:24] attitude. I I don't mean to come down on
[00:34:26] you, especially your first presentation.
[00:34:28] Uh, we have a special interest that
[00:34:31] works throughout the city that infects
[00:34:33] infects probably is not the right word,
[00:34:35] but affects my uh my livelihood and my
[00:34:38] and my uh enjoyment of my property. uh
[00:34:40] having one of the vendors that lives
[00:34:42] next door and that's been going on for a
[00:34:44] number of years. But uh so I think the
[00:34:47] only way to change that is to actually
[00:34:49] have an elected counselor that
[00:34:51] represents everybody that lives in this
[00:34:53] city and and and and people vote for
[00:34:56] those people and I think that's the only
[00:34:59] way out of this right now at this point.
[00:35:01] But I just wanted to share that with
[00:35:02] you. Thank you. Thank you for your
[00:35:05] comment. That was the last speaker card.
[00:35:07] Is there anyone else who would like to
[00:35:08] provide comments on something not on
[00:35:10] today's
[00:35:11] agenda? That was the last speaker. Thank
[00:35:13] you. That concludes the non-aggenda
[00:35:16] public comments. We will now go into
[00:35:18] council member comments. Uh Mr. Mayor,
[00:35:21] uh there is a uh request for public
[00:35:24] comment on city council member comments.
[00:35:26] So, uh if you would like, we can take
[00:35:28] that now. Sure. Brad Anderson.
[00:35:38] Hello again, Brad Anderson, City of
[00:35:40] Mans. I did write some comments for this
[00:35:42] item, too. Uh, but again, I'm at a
[00:35:45] disadvantage because there's no staff
[00:35:46] reports of any of the comments and even
[00:35:48] if you show a video, there's nothing
[00:35:49] that I can say before that. I would have
[00:35:52] to see it. Uh, so I have nothing further
[00:35:55] to say uh if you don't allow me to speak
[00:35:58] after your comments. Thank you. Thank
[00:36:00] you. Is there anyone else who would like
[00:36:02] to speak? That was the only speaker.
[00:36:06] Okay. Again, that will conclude the
[00:36:08] non-aggenda public comments. I will now
[00:36:11] ask for council member comments and I'll
[00:36:14] start on my right with council member
[00:36:18] DS.
[00:36:21] Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Good afternoon,
[00:36:23] everyone. I do have a couple of items I
[00:36:25] would like to speak to today. first uh
[00:36:27] is about an article that appeared in the
[00:36:29] Desert Sun regarding the lease of Desert
[00:36:32] Regional Hospital to Tenant Healthc
[00:36:34] Care. Now, the Desert Healthc Care
[00:36:36] District owns the hospital but doesn't
[00:36:39] have the ability to operate the
[00:36:40] hospital. So, it leases the hospital to
[00:36:42] tenant which is a huge publicly traded
[00:36:45] operator of hospitals around the
[00:36:47] country. And here on the screen is the
[00:36:49] title of the article. You can find it in
[00:36:51] the Desert Sun online archives if you'd
[00:36:54] like to read the full article. Now, the
[00:36:56] original lease for the hospital was
[00:36:58] signed back in
[00:37:00] 1997, and it is due to expire in 2027.
[00:37:04] The new lease, the new 30-year lease was
[00:37:06] approved by a ballot measure in November
[00:37:08] of
[00:37:09] 2024. So, why is this an issue today
[00:37:12] since that new lease was approved by the
[00:37:15] voters of the district in 2024? Well,
[00:37:17] here's the reason. The Desert Healthcare
[00:37:20] District has filed what is called a
[00:37:22] validation action with the Riverside
[00:37:25] County Superior Court. And the
[00:37:27] validation action asks the judge to
[00:37:30] validate the lease. Now, the purpose is
[00:37:32] to cut off potential future legal action
[00:37:36] challenging the validity of the lease.
[00:37:39] Now, this lease contains a non-compete
[00:37:41] clause, and that non-compete clause was
[00:37:43] the single most debated issue during the
[00:37:45] voting uh on this lease last year. The
[00:37:49] non-compete clause is aimed at a single
[00:37:52] institution, Eisenhower
[00:37:55] Health. Now, the non-compete is included
[00:37:58] in the lease because tenant did not want
[00:38:01] any grant revenues flowing from the
[00:38:04] Desert Healthc Care District to a
[00:38:07] hospital that tenant views as
[00:38:09] competition to its operation of Desert
[00:38:11] Regional Hospital. And here's the issue.
[00:38:14] The district makes grants to a wide
[00:38:16] range of organizations providing health
[00:38:18] care services to district residents.
[00:38:21] Now, this is a big district. It
[00:38:23] stretches from north of Desert Hot
[00:38:26] Springs down to the Sultan Sea. It
[00:38:28] covers some
[00:38:29] 457 square miles and about 400,000
[00:38:33] residents. Now, this is almost as big as
[00:38:36] a couple of states. There are four
[00:38:38] 540,000 residents in Wyoming and 640,000
[00:38:41] in Vermont. So this gives you some scope
[00:38:44] for the size of this district and the
[00:38:46] desert healthcare district mission
[00:38:48] statement is and I quote to achieve
[00:38:50] optimal health care at all stages of
[00:38:52] life for all district residents. Now
[00:38:55] it's not possible for desert regional
[00:38:57] hospital to provide health services to
[00:38:59] such a huge de geography and population
[00:39:02] without help from many healthc care
[00:39:04] providers who receive grants from the
[00:39:07] district. That's one of the reasons that
[00:39:09] the district makes grants to a wide
[00:39:11] range of healthcare providers throughout
[00:39:13] the district. But based on this
[00:39:15] non-compete provision, no grants to
[00:39:17] Eisenhower because it competes with
[00:39:19] Desert Regional Hospital operated by
[00:39:21] tenant in a small area of this sprawling
[00:39:25] district. I say a small area because
[00:39:27] these two hospitals are separated by 13
[00:39:30] miles. 13 miles in a
[00:39:33] 457 square mile district. Now,
[00:39:36] Eisenhower is probably the best choice
[00:39:39] for a wide variety of medical services
[00:39:41] for residents in this far-flung
[00:39:43] district, and there is no funding from
[00:39:46] the district for any part of Eisenhower
[00:39:49] based on this ill-advised non-compete
[00:39:52] provision. Now, funding for the district
[00:39:54] grants comes from the lease payments
[00:39:56] made by tenant to operate the hospital,
[00:39:58] but funding also comes largely from
[00:40:01] property tax dollars. Most district
[00:40:04] residents, you and me, we pay a portion
[00:40:07] of our property tax dollars to support
[00:40:09] this district in its mission. Now, this
[00:40:12] non-compete means that your public tax
[00:40:15] dollars are restricted in the way those
[00:40:17] dollars are spent for public health in
[00:40:19] this district. Restricted by a
[00:40:22] Texasbased company, Tenant Healthcare. I
[00:40:25] ask you to consider, does this make
[00:40:27] sense? Does it seem fair that your tax
[00:40:30] dollars collected to provide grant
[00:40:32] funding for public health in this
[00:40:34] district are restricted? Does it seem
[00:40:36] fair that this restricted is aimed at a
[00:40:38] single entity, Eisenhower Health, an
[00:40:41] organization most able to provide health
[00:40:43] care services to district residents?
[00:40:46] Does it seem fair that a public company
[00:40:49] based in Texas, wants to restrict the
[00:40:52] way that your tax dollars are spent?
[00:40:55] Now, it might seem fair to some folks,
[00:40:57] but doesn't seem fair to me, and I don't
[00:40:59] think it probably makes sense to many of
[00:41:00] you. So, it seems to me that the Desert
[00:41:02] Healthcare District might consider
[00:41:04] changing its mission statement from to
[00:41:06] achieve optimal health at all stages of
[00:41:08] life for all district residents to this,
[00:41:11] to achieve optimal health at all stages
[00:41:14] of life for all district residents
[00:41:16] except when that optimal health is
[00:41:19] provided by Eisenhower. So, what is
[00:41:21] Eisenhower doing? Eisenhower did not
[00:41:24] file legal action against the Desert
[00:41:26] Healthcare District. Eisenhower is
[00:41:28] merely responding to the district's
[00:41:30] validation action with the Riverside
[00:41:32] County Superior Court. Eisenhower is
[00:41:34] take talking to the court and asking
[00:41:36] them to refuse to validate the lease in
[00:41:39] particular the non-compete provision for
[00:41:41] an important reason. This provision
[00:41:44] prohibits a the district, a public
[00:41:46] entity, from awarding the grant of
[00:41:48] taxpayer derived funds to an important
[00:41:51] local healthc care nonprofit,
[00:41:53] Eisenhower, essentially one publicly
[00:41:56] funded charity, the district, is
[00:41:58] prohibited from awarding publicly
[00:42:00] generated funds to yet another
[00:42:02] charitable non-profit hospital. A
[00:42:04] hospital that clearly has the ability to
[00:42:06] provide optimal health care to all at
[00:42:09] all stages of life for residents of this
[00:42:11] district. Now, here's what I propose we
[00:42:14] do as a result. I ask the city clerk to
[00:42:17] include an item in our next council
[00:42:19] meeting agenda, the subject of the item
[00:42:21] to be consideration of passing a
[00:42:22] resolution of support for Eisenhower's
[00:42:24] challenge to the district's validation
[00:42:27] action. That the agenda item also
[00:42:29] contain a provision that if approved, a
[00:42:31] copy of the resolution be provided to
[00:42:33] the CEO of Eisenhower Health and the
[00:42:35] chairperson of the Desert Healthcare
[00:42:36] District. So would the city clerk please
[00:42:38] work with the city attorney to develop
[00:42:41] an agenda item and also proposed
[00:42:43] resolution for discussion at the next
[00:42:45] council meeting. Now the second issue
[00:42:47] that I want to talk today is an issue
[00:42:49] that may have impact on the city
[00:42:52] collection of tax revenues. So I am the
[00:42:54] city's representative on visit crater
[00:42:56] palm springs. VGPS is the organization
[00:42:59] in this desert that uh encourages travel
[00:43:02] and travel is extremely important to
[00:43:04] this desert. It's our biggest industry.
[00:43:06] So, there was an agenda item uh at the
[00:43:08] last VPS board and executive committee
[00:43:11] me meeting. It was a presentation by the
[00:43:14] executive director of visit greater Palm
[00:43:16] Springs and it included this graph.
[00:43:17] Let's put the graph up. It's a graph
[00:43:20] that shows the intent of Canadian
[00:43:23] residents to travel to the US. So, I'll
[00:43:25] tell you a little bit about what this
[00:43:26] graph means. The top line in the graph
[00:43:29] uh at the end of the graph on my right
[00:43:31] side, your left hand side, the blue line
[00:43:33] shows a drop of 16%. What does that
[00:43:35] mean? It means that over just the last
[00:43:37] couple of months, Canadian residents
[00:43:39] have dropped their interest in travel to
[00:43:41] the United States of America by 16%. And
[00:43:43] the lower graph shows that the blue line
[00:43:46] on the lower graph shows that in the
[00:43:47] state of California, it's dropped. We're
[00:43:49] we're in good shape. It's only dropped
[00:43:51] by 15% in in the state of California.
[00:43:53] Now, this is important because we are
[00:43:55] beginning our 2-year budget cycle. We'll
[00:43:57] be projecting revenues and expenses over
[00:43:59] the next two years. And a little over
[00:44:01] 30% of the city's revenues comes from
[00:44:04] transit occupancy taxes from our hotels,
[00:44:07] a little over 20% from sales taxes. Now,
[00:44:09] it's a good bet that these stats for
[00:44:12] Canada are pretty similar to other
[00:44:14] countries. So, it could have an impact
[00:44:17] on our transient occupancy tax and sales
[00:44:19] tax revenues by a few percentage points.
[00:44:21] Now, that doesn't sound like much, but
[00:44:23] about 3% of say around a $35 million
[00:44:26] annual revenue budget is more than $1
[00:44:29] million. Now, our special assistance
[00:44:31] funds, we just had a presentation from
[00:44:33] the uh the Coachella Valley Rescue Miss
[00:44:36] mission. In our special assistance
[00:44:37] funds, we provide revenues to the CVRM.
[00:44:42] Now, our special assistance fund program
[00:44:44] is about $120,000 a year. Our annual
[00:44:47] contribution to the Macallum is about
[00:44:48] $50,000. Our annual support to our
[00:44:50] Chamber of Commerce is about $150,000
[00:44:53] annually. Now, if our revenues drop by
[00:44:56] 3%. How many of these programs and
[00:45:00] others will be impacted? And we just
[00:45:03] received a recent message from the
[00:45:05] president and CEO of VGPS. Consumer
[00:45:08] sentiment studies show that since
[00:45:10] September of 2024, the percent of
[00:45:12] travelers who say politics will greatly
[00:45:14] influence their travel decisions jumped
[00:45:16] from 24% to 42%. So, as of today,
[00:45:19] there's no way to measure how our city
[00:45:21] revenues will be impacted by this
[00:45:23] administration's policies. And my
[00:45:25] purpose is not to argue the politics of
[00:45:28] the administration's approach to tariffs
[00:45:30] or other issues with respect to our
[00:45:32] allies. My purpose is simply to make
[00:45:34] sure that Rancher Mirage residents know
[00:45:38] how the administration's policies might
[00:45:40] have a direct effect on Ranch Mirage
[00:45:43] revenues. Now, two thoughts that I'll
[00:45:45] end with today. First is last weekend,
[00:45:47] Desert Theatricals presented a Broadway
[00:45:49] under the stars production of at the
[00:45:51] Ranch Mirage Amphitheater is a terrific
[00:45:53] production of a Broadway musical um
[00:45:55] Hairspray. The lead character, Tracy,
[00:45:58] had a great line of dialogue that I
[00:46:00] think has some bearing on the two issues
[00:46:02] that I spoke to today. Uh, it's after
[00:46:05] she has some legal difficulties and
[00:46:07] prior to her ultimate win at the end of
[00:46:09] the play and it's after she is u uh
[00:46:12] railroaded, I guess, by a couple of uh
[00:46:15] her um uh she thought friends uh and uh
[00:46:19] in a contest. And uh what what Tracy
[00:46:22] said, as I said, I think applies to both
[00:46:24] of my comments here today. Her line at
[00:46:26] the end of the movie is manipulating our
[00:46:28] judicial system just to win a contest is
[00:46:31] unamerican. And the last thought that I
[00:46:33] have for you today is I don't know which
[00:46:35] direction the economy will take. I don't
[00:46:37] have a crystal ball. No one does. But
[00:46:39] the indications at this point of time
[00:46:41] caution us and point to potentially some
[00:46:44] pain. What I do know is this. My city
[00:46:47] council colleagues and I will do that
[00:46:49] which this council has done for decades.
[00:46:52] We will responsibly and intelligently
[00:46:54] shepherd this city's revenues and
[00:46:56] expenses and its financial condition
[00:46:58] regardless of the direction that this
[00:47:01] economy takes. Thank you everyone. Thank
[00:47:02] you Mr. Mayor. Well, thank you Steve.
[00:47:04] That was certainly an indepth discussion
[00:47:08] on several
[00:47:09] subjects as it relates to the um the
[00:47:13] healthc care district. I've always
[00:47:15] maintained that the non-compete
[00:47:19] uh frankly um you know touches on the uh
[00:47:23] restraint of trade issue and uh to me
[00:47:28] that's what has been so vital uh in
[00:47:32] providing health services for our area
[00:47:35] here. Any restraint is a detriment to
[00:47:39] our area. I think so too. So, uh, I
[00:47:42] appreciate your comments. Uh, next
[00:47:46] comments by, uh, Mayor Proam Mulatto.
[00:47:50] Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I have no comments
[00:47:52] on issues, but I do want to wish our
[00:47:55] residents, those that celebrated
[00:47:57] Passover last weekend, and those that
[00:47:59] are celebrating Easter, I wish you a
[00:48:02] very um, a very peaceful, enjoyable
[00:48:06] holiday season with your family. That's
[00:48:08] it for me today.
[00:48:10] Well, thank you for
[00:48:12] both.
[00:48:14] Uh, and welcome back. Uh, may I uh uh
[00:48:19] welcome Eve from Berg Edstein. Do you
[00:48:22] have any thoughts today? No comments
[00:48:24] today, Mayor. All right. Welcome. Thank
[00:48:27] you. Uh, Council Member O'Keefe. Thank
[00:48:30] you, Mr. Mayor. I have a couple of
[00:48:31] items. First, I'm excited to tell you
[00:48:34] about our Earth Day celebration next
[00:48:37] Tuesday, April 20th the 2nd. It's a free
[00:48:41] familyfriendly event uh with hands-on
[00:48:44] activities and sustainable information
[00:48:48] uh right here in Ranch Mirage. Um we're
[00:48:51] going to start the day bright and early
[00:48:53] on um with a walk the washes nature
[00:48:56] stroll where we will clean up uh the
[00:48:58] washes at Ranch Mirage Community Park.
[00:49:01] that starts at 7 in the morning next
[00:49:03] Tuesday. Uh this is going to be a
[00:49:05] wonderful way to get out. Weather is
[00:49:06] good and nature while helping uh keep
[00:49:10] our community beautiful and litterree.
[00:49:13] Then at uh 9:00 until noon, uh we will
[00:49:17] have a celebration at the Ranch Mirage
[00:49:19] Library. It's going to be filled with a
[00:49:21] lot of different activities for all
[00:49:23] different age groups. We will have free
[00:49:25] document shredding, uh, e-waste
[00:49:28] disposal, donation for a drop offs on
[00:49:31] gently used items. We will have recycled
[00:49:34] art created by local artists. We will
[00:49:37] have interactive stations where you can
[00:49:40] make your own eco-friendly laundry
[00:49:43] detergent. You can build a bird feeder.
[00:49:46] You can create recycled crafts and you
[00:49:49] can plant pepper seeds and other uh
[00:49:52] plants. Uh we're also going to have
[00:49:55] local microgreen and date farmers there
[00:49:58] telling you how to grow your own food.
[00:50:00] And if you are kids under 10, you're
[00:50:03] going to receive free tickets to the
[00:50:04] Children's Discovery Museum of the
[00:50:07] Desert. And we will be raffling off some
[00:50:09] great prizes throughout the day,
[00:50:11] including tickets to the Living Desert,
[00:50:13] uh the Escape Room passes, and a lot of
[00:50:16] different gift cards. Um all the
[00:50:18] recycling and donation services are open
[00:50:20] to the public. Uh there are no
[00:50:23] residential restrictions. Uh if you are
[00:50:25] going to drop off something for
[00:50:26] recycling, just drive through the gravel
[00:50:28] area there at the library before you
[00:50:30] park and come in to enjoy the uh um
[00:50:35] festivities. So we can celebrate Earth
[00:50:38] uh day together, which is one of my pet
[00:50:40] projects. So I I hope you'll join all of
[00:50:42] us and have a good time. The second item
[00:50:44] I'd like to talk to today about is the
[00:50:47] we were talking about protecting the
[00:50:48] environment with the Earth Day, but this
[00:50:51] is about protecting our residents. Uh
[00:50:53] currently the city of S uh Rancho Mirage
[00:50:56] is served by two fire stations. Um and
[00:50:59] someday soon uh in the not too distant
[00:51:02] future, we will add another fire
[00:51:03] station. But in the
[00:51:05] meantime, Fire Station 50 is located on
[00:51:09] the south end of the city along Highway
[00:51:10] 111, right next to Thunderbird Country
[00:51:13] Club. Um, Fire Station 69 is centrally
[00:51:16] located on Gerald Ford Drive, right next
[00:51:18] to the Children's Discovery Museum. Each
[00:51:22] fire uh house uh has an ambulance. Uh
[00:51:26] Medic 50 is at station 50 and medic 69
[00:51:30] is at station 69 and it's all part of
[00:51:32] the city's emergency medical services. A
[00:51:36] third unit, medic 269, uh serves as a
[00:51:40] reserve
[00:51:41] ambulance. So uh maybe you saw it on the
[00:51:44] news. I'm happy to announce that very
[00:51:46] soon the city will welcome a new
[00:51:48] ambulance, medic, which will also be
[00:51:51] stationed at fire station 69. So with
[00:51:54] this additional ambulance, Ranch Mirage
[00:51:57] will have three active ambulances in
[00:52:00] service and one in reserve. Uh we've
[00:52:03] already hired additional personnel and
[00:52:06] uh Medic 52 is expected to go into
[00:52:08] service within the next few months once
[00:52:11] it's fully equipped and upboarded. So
[00:52:14] we're excited to expand this emergency
[00:52:16] medical services. Uh it enhances our
[00:52:18] ability to respond quickly and
[00:52:21] effectively to residents and to
[00:52:22] neighbors. Uh this investment in public
[00:52:25] safety reflects the city's ongoing
[00:52:28] commitment to keeping Ranch Mirage safe.
[00:52:31] Uh we are responsive and
[00:52:33] wellprepared. And remember this, as a
[00:52:36] Rancho Mirage resident, you are
[00:52:38] protected from any outofpocket costs
[00:52:41] related to emergency paramedic or
[00:52:43] ambulance transportation services. Uh we
[00:52:47] live in a great city and we have a short
[00:52:50] video for you to
[00:52:55] see. As the Coachella Valley's
[00:52:58] population continues to
[00:53:00] grow, fire station 69 in the city of
[00:53:03] Rancho Mirage is expanding its resources
[00:53:06] to meet the rising demand for safety
[00:53:08] services. The reason why we're doing
[00:53:10] this, we're seeing an increase of calls
[00:53:11] for service within the city of of
[00:53:13] Rancher Mirage. Battalion Chief Matthew
[00:53:16] Coats says this station is adding a new
[00:53:19] ambulance and has already added new
[00:53:21] staff to operate it. Adding these
[00:53:23] upgrades improved public safety by
[00:53:25] ensuring faster response times in
[00:53:27] critical situations. We could uh provide
[00:53:29] our advanced life support measures. We
[00:53:31] could handle um more calls than we used
[00:53:33] to. by having uh an additional ambulance
[00:53:37] within the city.
[00:53:39] Firefighter paramedic Ashley Ksky says
[00:53:41] the additional equipment and personnel
[00:53:43] could prove to be life-saving in
[00:53:45] emergencies.
[00:53:47] As a paramedic, when we come on scene,
[00:53:49] we have a larger scope of practice where
[00:53:51] we're able to care to specifically
[00:53:54] critical
[00:53:56] patients where we can provide those
[00:53:58] services to them early.
[00:54:01] The new ambulance is being built in
[00:54:03] Houston, Texas with plans to have it in
[00:54:06] service later this year. First
[00:54:08] responders say these additions will
[00:54:09] improve public safety as our community
[00:54:12] continues to grow.
[00:54:17] Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Thank you,
[00:54:19] Michael. Um, you know, we are fortunate
[00:54:23] uh I I might tag on to that that uh as
[00:54:27] the video said and as Michael
[00:54:31] uh
[00:54:33] referenced there is no charge to our
[00:54:36] residents when there is an ambulance
[00:54:39] service uh called to their home. Uh what
[00:54:44] they ask for if there's any insurance
[00:54:47] that can reimburse part or all of it
[00:54:51] that is collected. U but if there is
[00:54:55] none there is no charge. You know, years
[00:54:57] ago, it used to be the joke was that uh
[00:55:02] god forbid if something happened to you
[00:55:04] and you were in Cathedral City, drag the
[00:55:07] body across the line into Rancho Mirage,
[00:55:11] call an ambulance, and then go to the
[00:55:14] hospital. Um that uh may or may no
[00:55:18] longer be the case today, but we're very
[00:55:20] fortunate and it's a great it's a great
[00:55:22] service. So, uh thank you, Chief. Thank
[00:55:25] you for being here today and uh we
[00:55:29] appreciate the service. I I will tag on
[00:55:32] one last thing and one of the the
[00:55:36] wonderful assets that we have uh in
[00:55:39] ranch in
[00:55:40] ranch uh is the Annenburgg estate uh
[00:55:45] called Sunnylands. Uh the Annenburgg
[00:55:49] Trust was founded in
[00:55:52] 1966 by Ambassador uh Walter Annenberg
[00:55:56] and his wife. Uh it is a fabulous place
[00:56:00] to visit. The gardens are open uh to
[00:56:04] everyone. There is no charge. There is a
[00:56:08] coffee shop restaurant available to the
[00:56:10] public.
[00:56:12] There is a u a fee if you want to take a
[00:56:16] tour of the house and the grounds. Uh
[00:56:20] about an hour and a half trip. Um most
[00:56:25] memorable. Um this is a facility that
[00:56:29] has housed frankly the kings, queens,
[00:56:33] and generals of the world. So with that,
[00:56:35] I'd like a video up uh showing
[00:56:38] Sunnylands, please.
[00:56:50] We're talking about the college
[00:56:51] internship program. A large part of the
[00:56:53] Annenburgg history is and their legacy
[00:56:56] is education. So we have created a model
[00:56:58] here where we use college interns
[00:57:00] instead of dosets to interpret the story
[00:57:02] of the Annenburggs and things that
[00:57:04] happen at Sunnyland. Each year we
[00:57:06] recruit a new guide class that comes in.
[00:57:08] They spend a month with us training and
[00:57:10] then they are the ones that are running
[00:57:11] the front desk when you arrive. Yes,
[00:57:13] sir. My next availability. And they're
[00:57:15] the ones taking people onto the property
[00:57:16] to interpret the history. I like to say
[00:57:18] that there's something for everyone on
[00:57:20] the tour. The benefits of this program
[00:57:22] is not only do they get paid, they get
[00:57:24] college credit and we schedule around
[00:57:26] their classes. So, our priority is
[00:57:28] college first and then Sunnyland second.
[00:57:30] As a college student, since I'm studying
[00:57:32] art history with the Annenberg's
[00:57:33] collection of artwork here at
[00:57:34] Sunnylands, it's really pushed me
[00:57:36] forward in my studies. Every day is
[00:57:39] completely different. You get to meet
[00:57:41] different people from all over the
[00:57:42] world. People should consider being a
[00:57:44] tour guide because it can help you
[00:57:46] improve your public speaking. It can
[00:57:47] help you get more comfortable um with
[00:57:49] other jobs. The requirements are that
[00:57:51] you are enrolled in a trade, a college
[00:57:53] or university in September when the
[00:57:55] program starts and that you're available
[00:57:57] in the month of August to train. If
[00:58:00] you're interested in applying, you can
[00:58:01] find the links at sunnylands.org. So,
[00:58:04] what we've seen with this program is
[00:58:06] that guides come in shy, uncomfortable
[00:58:09] with the information, not really sure
[00:58:10] what's going to happen. When they leave,
[00:58:12] they have developed skills that even
[00:58:14] some of the colleges report back to us.
[00:58:16] They're different students. If you're
[00:58:17] thinking about becoming a tour guide, I
[00:58:19] think you absolutely should do it. There
[00:58:20] are so many different elements to this
[00:58:22] job that really benefits anyone from any
[00:58:24] walk of life. For those thinking about
[00:58:26] applying, I highly recommend. uh you get
[00:58:28] to make new friends and learn new skills
[00:58:32] and develop those skills into something
[00:58:35] that will help you in the future to work
[00:58:36] with all the different areas that
[00:58:38] Sunnylands has. I think it's a a unique
[00:58:40] opportunity for our students in our
[00:58:42] desert
[00:58:46] that is just so great. Again, uh we're
[00:58:49] also very proud of another wonderful
[00:58:51] asset uh that's de doiciled here in the
[00:58:55] city of Rancho Mirage. Uh that concludes
[00:58:59] our uh uh our council comments and I
[00:59:03] will now I ask the city manager uh for
[00:59:06] any comments. If uh he has none, he can
[00:59:10] then go directly into the consent
[00:59:12] calendar.
[00:59:14] Thank you, Mr. Mayor. No comments today,
[00:59:15] so we'll go right to the consent
[00:59:16] calendar. Uh the council has three items
[00:59:19] on the consent calendar for
[00:59:21] consideration. Item 6A is the approval
[00:59:24] of the April 3rd, 2025 regular uh
[00:59:28] meeting minutes. Staff is proposing an
[00:59:31] amendment to those minutes uh to reflect
[00:59:34] that public comment was provided for
[00:59:37] agenda item number four, which was
[00:59:40] council board member comments.
[00:59:42] So, if when the council makes a motion,
[00:59:44] if they could include that amendment for
[00:59:46] the minutes, that would be appreciated.
[00:59:48] Item 6B are the approval of the
[00:59:50] contracts. Item 6 C are demands. Before
[00:59:54] we go to council comments or questions,
[00:59:56] I'll ask the city clerk to take any
[00:59:58] public comment on the consent calendar.
[01:00:01] Brad Anderson.
[01:00:08] Thank you again, Brad Anderson. uh I
[01:00:10] currently live within the city. Uh I
[01:00:13] wanted to speak on item 6A which is the
[01:00:15] u the regular city council meetings of
[01:00:18] the of April 3rd and uh thank you for
[01:00:21] that one small amendment. Um and I
[01:00:25] wanted to speak on uh item 6C demands
[01:00:28] too briefly. Um my I did write uh some
[01:00:32] comments concerning these items that I'm
[01:00:34] speaking on. I may have even added
[01:00:35] contracts into my I don't remember. Uh
[01:00:38] but uh I know for minutes for sure uh I
[01:00:42] did bring up some some issues that were
[01:00:45] incorrect and and I just want to
[01:00:47] emphasize again that public comment
[01:00:50] everything I'm saying here you did amend
[01:00:52] that. So my stance on or my position on
[01:00:56] any of the items I'm speaking on would
[01:00:58] not be recorded and that's uh because of
[01:01:02] the way you changed to the titled action
[01:01:04] minutes. And again, I did write some
[01:01:07] comments, so hopefully that will be more
[01:01:09] detailed if you can understand my
[01:01:11] scribbling and how I write. Um, but
[01:01:14] please take a look at those. Uh, just
[01:01:16] briefly, my understanding is in 2014,
[01:01:19] there was an embarrassing aspect to the
[01:01:23] clerks association, uh, the association
[01:01:25] of clerks, I believe it is. And so in
[01:01:28] 2015 they wrote this summary of how they
[01:01:31] want to do minutes in the future to take
[01:01:33] off the um my opinion to take off the
[01:01:36] pressure of them uh doing the correct
[01:01:38] job in the beginning and this is where
[01:01:41] we are roughly 10 years later because of
[01:01:43] that there's no set precedent to do what
[01:01:46] you're doing uh by censoring really this
[01:01:49] is censoring the public uh you steer
[01:01:52] recording commissioner reports uh in a
[01:01:56] manner that you can understand them. But
[01:01:58] the public comments, we have a right to
[01:01:59] speak there. There are government codes
[01:02:02] associated with that. It appears that
[01:02:04] they're going to have to be some legal
[01:02:05] action to change this and and that's
[01:02:07] shameful because I don't want to spend
[01:02:09] my money on this, but I'm going to have
[01:02:11] to, I think. So, just be on notice to
[01:02:13] that. And on demands, too. I noticed
[01:02:16] there was a 40,000 or
[01:02:18] $25,000 aotment for the flock group,
[01:02:22] which is the automatic license plate
[01:02:24] readers that the city has. Uh apparently
[01:02:27] that's some kind of administrative that
[01:02:28] could be associated with the contract
[01:02:30] that you approved at the previous
[01:02:33] meeting. Uh but again I don't know that
[01:02:35] for sure. Uh I just uh I just think that
[01:02:38] type of a lotment of spending should be
[01:02:40] really classified and maybe u read aloud
[01:02:43] at these meetings so people could know
[01:02:46] the how resources are being spent and be
[01:02:48] as transparent as possible. And that's
[01:02:50] it. Thank you.
[01:02:53] Is there anyone else who would like to
[01:02:54] I'm sorry. Is there anyone else who
[01:02:56] would like to speak on the consent
[01:02:57] calendar? That was the only speaker.
[01:03:01] Are there any council comments regarding
[01:03:03] the consent
[01:03:05] calendar? If not, I will ask for a
[01:03:07] motion uh along with the amendment
[01:03:10] that's suggested by the
[01:03:13] uh by Isaiah.
[01:03:18] So moved including the proposed
[01:03:20] amendment.
[01:03:23] Second. There's a motion and a second.
[01:03:25] Please vote.
[01:03:29] Motion carries. 5-0. And the consent
[01:03:32] calendar is approved. We will now go
[01:03:35] into the action calendar. And the first
[01:03:37] item is the intention to enex territory
[01:03:42] comprising 5.05 acres to community
[01:03:46] facilities. Uh district number one.
[01:03:49] Jacob de la Cruz, financial analyst. if
[01:03:52] you would, Jacob. Thank you, mayor, and
[01:03:55] good afternoon, council. This item is
[01:03:57] the first step in the city's annexation
[01:03:58] process for developments within the
[01:04:00] city's jurisdiction. The second and
[01:04:02] final step is planned to be considered
[01:04:03] at the June 5th council meeting. The
[01:04:05] territory proposed for annexation is
[01:04:07] located approximately 2,000 ft south of
[01:04:09] Frank Sinatra Drive on the east side of
[01:04:11] Vistadels Soul. The territory is
[01:04:13] approximately 5.05 acres and the project
[01:04:16] is slated slated to subdivide into four
[01:04:18] single family residential lots. Tenative
[01:04:21] parcel map 38899 was originally approved
[01:04:23] by the planning commission on September
[01:04:25] 26th, 2024. Condition of approval number
[01:04:28] 14 for the project requires the
[01:04:30] territory be annexed into community
[01:04:32] facilities district number one. In
[01:04:34] accordance with the condition of
[01:04:35] approval, the owner of the annex
[01:04:36] territory submitted a petition for
[01:04:38] annexation requesting that the city
[01:04:39] council initiate proceedings to annex
[01:04:41] the territory into CFD1 and provide for
[01:04:44] expedited approval of the annexation and
[01:04:46] the levy of the special tax. Upon
[01:04:49] approval of the resolution, the city
[01:04:50] will be able to accept the petition
[01:04:52] submitted by the owner for annexation,
[01:04:54] consent to the levy upon the annex
[01:04:56] territory, allow for the shortening of
[01:04:58] the time for the special election to
[01:04:59] expedite the annexation, accept and
[01:05:01] preliminarily approve the annexation
[01:05:03] map, and direct the city clerk to record
[01:05:04] the map, and finally, establish the date
[01:05:07] and time of the public hearing on the
[01:05:08] annexation of the territory. That
[01:05:10] concludes my presentation. I'd be happy
[01:05:11] to answer any questions. Thank you,
[01:05:13] Jacob. Uh, are there any public
[01:05:15] comments? I did not receive any speaker
[01:05:17] cards. Is there anyone in the audience
[01:05:19] who would like to speak on item
[01:05:21] 7A? No speakers. Thank you. Are there
[01:05:24] any council comments regarding this
[01:05:26] item?
[01:05:30] Seeing none, I'll ask for a motion
[01:05:31] regarding item 7A. I'll make the motion
[01:05:35] approve and that the council approve and
[01:05:37] adopt resolution number 2025 next in
[01:05:40] order declaring the city's intention to
[01:05:43] annex territory to community facilities
[01:05:46] district number one and to levy a
[01:05:48] special tax therein for additional
[01:05:50] police and fire services. Preliminary
[01:05:53] approve a map of the area proposed to be
[01:05:56] annexed and schedule a public hearing to
[01:05:59] consider the annexation and the levy of
[01:06:01] the special tax for annexation number
[01:06:04] 198. Second. There is a motion and a
[01:06:08] second. Kindly vote.
[01:06:12] Motion carries 5.
[01:06:15] That approves item 7A. We will now go to
[01:06:20] uh the next item. 7B is the annual
[01:06:22] appointment to city boards and
[01:06:25] commissions. Uh Christy Ramos, our city
[01:06:28] clerk, will handle that item. Thank you.
[01:06:32] Good afternoon, honorable mayor and
[01:06:34] council members. As you know, the city
[01:06:37] annually seeks volunteers to serve on
[01:06:39] its boards and commissions. Beginning in
[01:06:41] February, the city clerk's office issued
[01:06:42] a notice inviting applications. The
[01:06:45] notice was published twice in the Desert
[01:06:46] Sun newspaper and included in several
[01:06:49] city eblasts. It was also posted at city
[01:06:51] hall, at the library, and on the city
[01:06:53] website. Applications received are on
[01:06:55] file in my office. Copies of all
[01:06:58] applications were promptly provided to
[01:06:59] the city council for review and
[01:07:01] consideration. Each council member
[01:07:03] provided me with their nominations,
[01:07:04] which shall be confirmed by a majority
[01:07:06] vote of the council. In a moment, I will
[01:07:08] read all nominations. You may make one
[01:07:10] motion to confirm the entire slate of
[01:07:12] appointments. Any nomination requiring
[01:07:14] further consideration may be pulled from
[01:07:16] the slate for separate action. Are there
[01:07:18] any questions before I read the slate of
[01:07:22] nominations? Okay, so for the community
[01:07:25] emergency preparedness commission
[01:07:27] nominees are Mitch Brown, Al Paro York,
[01:07:30] Ron Stillman, Tonia Haims, Gary Jones,
[01:07:34] technical adviser Katie Stice, and
[01:07:36] technical adviser Mary Lou Sudter.
[01:07:38] Community parks and trails commission
[01:07:40] nominees are Leslie Malloy, Dennis
[01:07:43] Constant, Warren Schneider, Eric Wright,
[01:07:46] and Nathan JRO. Historic Preservation
[01:07:48] Commission nominees are Carol Liowitz,
[01:07:51] Frank Lopez, Christian Braraw, Craig
[01:07:54] Trapin, Curt Penn. Housing Commission
[01:07:57] nominees are Jennifer Karedi, Isaiah
[01:07:59] Harris, Scott Newton, Lee Jennison, Jack
[01:08:03] Malder, and Linda Madison. Library and
[01:08:07] Observatory Advisory Commission nominees
[01:08:09] are Ron Treat, Don Stein, Dom Suma, Lois
[01:08:13] Ree, Guido Portante, and technical
[01:08:16] adviser Patrick
[01:08:18] Lambrite. Library and Observatory
[01:08:20] Foundation board nominees are Robert
[01:08:22] Moon, Lucy Tagmire, Christine Hughes,
[01:08:25] Lesie Uso, Eric Cunningham, Peter
[01:08:27] Samuels, James SOA, Gary Galton, and
[01:08:31] Mary Willis Yoshioa. Mobile Home Fair
[01:08:33] Practices Commission nominees are
[01:08:35] Marlene Cassetta, Mike Rener, Diane
[01:08:38] Lynn, Kenneth Easley, and Stan Marowitz.
[01:08:41] Planning Commission nominees are Murray
[01:08:43] Bryant, David Gray, Austin Beiel, Pamela
[01:08:46] Chanter, and Jason Agustinini. Traffic
[01:08:49] Safety Commission nominees are Gary
[01:08:51] Frell, Ken Ringold, Steven Shuy, Peter
[01:08:55] Javier, Sheriff Sergeant Emo Stan, and
[01:08:59] COPS Captain Alfonso Carpenter. That
[01:09:02] completes the list of nominations. Any
[01:09:04] vacancies remaining may be considered at
[01:09:06] a future meeting and I can take public
[01:09:08] comment if you would like. Please feel.
[01:09:11] Brad Anderson.
[01:09:19] Good afternoon again, Brad Anderson. Um,
[01:09:21] I wanted to speak on this item of the
[01:09:23] appointment of city boards and
[01:09:24] commissions. Um, I'm I'm just really
[01:09:27] concerned about the transparency of the
[01:09:29] operations of how the city select these
[01:09:31] and and I know uh last time I had to
[01:09:36] actually do a public records request to
[01:09:38] get the application or get the names. I
[01:09:41] I asked for very letter and that's
[01:09:42] really all I wanted was the name and the
[01:09:44] positions that they were applying for.
[01:09:47] Uh, and that's that's concerning uh
[01:09:50] because we have recycled or not
[01:09:52] recycled, that's the right word, but uh
[01:09:54] people that uh are reappointed that uh
[01:09:57] currently served and I I would like to
[01:10:00] see or not requesting, I'm just uh
[01:10:03] suggesting that u more an open process
[01:10:07] of selection be considered for people
[01:10:09] that uh that uh wish to serve the city
[01:10:12] in that aspect. Um, and I am and and
[01:10:16] that goes into you're going to wave uh
[01:10:19] any type of term limits to uh I know the
[01:10:22] city of Indian Wells had term limits on
[01:10:24] some of the commissioners and they went
[01:10:25] to great lengths to allow certain
[01:10:29] members to serve longer and that's
[01:10:31] really what this board should do. This
[01:10:33] this council should do is when people
[01:10:36] are all just just the awesomest people
[01:10:40] there is. Let's keep them on. But uh
[01:10:42] let's go ahead and have a public process
[01:10:44] where everybody knows about it. And uh
[01:10:47] and uh I guess that's all I have. I know
[01:10:49] we have outstanding people that want to
[01:10:51] serve the city and and do currently and
[01:10:55] uh but uh let's go ahead and seek out uh
[01:10:57] other qualified candidates too. Thank
[01:10:59] you.
[01:11:01] Is there anyone else who would like to
[01:11:02] speak on this item? That was the only
[01:11:05] speaker.
[01:11:06] Thank you. Are there any u comments of
[01:11:10] my colleagues? I do, Mr. Mayor, if I
[01:11:12] may. Uh so I'd like to say thank you
[01:11:15] very much to all of those who have uh
[01:11:19] volunteered to serve on our various uh
[01:11:22] commissions and boards. Um it's a
[01:11:24] volunteer job. Uh and your time is very
[01:11:27] valuable. We much appreciate it. There
[01:11:28] are four of you in here in the chamber
[01:11:30] today and I'd like to mention those of
[01:11:33] you. Marlene Cassetta is in the chamber.
[01:11:35] Dennis Constant is here. Guda Bortante
[01:11:38] is here and Ron Pit is here. So, thank
[01:11:39] you for being here. If I missed anybody,
[01:11:40] please stand up and let me know. Uh yes.
[01:11:44] Oh, Lesie, a new you're you're the
[01:11:47] newest commission member, I think, uh uh
[01:11:50] that to be added today. So, thank you
[01:11:51] for standing up and and letting us know.
[01:11:53] Thank you that I appreciate that, Leslie
[01:11:54] Malloy. Uh okay, that's all I wanted to
[01:11:57] say is thank you very much. And I wanted
[01:11:58] to point out those uh commission members
[01:12:00] who are present here in the chamber
[01:12:02] today. And I likewise will echo that
[01:12:05] again. Uh this is part of the service to
[01:12:08] the city. Uh your time is invaluable. We
[01:12:11] appreciate uh the
[01:12:14] dedication. Uh many of you have served
[01:12:17] for many years. Dennis, I know you have
[01:12:20] served
[01:12:20] for significant number of years and made
[01:12:23] great
[01:12:24] contributions. Uh you personally have
[01:12:27] inspected uh the facilities uh regularly
[01:12:31] over the years. So thank you very much.
[01:12:34] Uh, and we look forward to the the new
[01:12:37] people participating as well. Are there
[01:12:40] any other
[01:12:41] comments? No. Um, I will ask for then a
[01:12:46] motion to approve the list of nominees.
[01:12:49] I'd be happy to make that motion, Mr.
[01:12:50] Mayor, that the city council ratify the
[01:12:52] nomination of members to serve on
[01:12:54] various cities boards and commissions as
[01:12:57] presented and wave any applicable term
[01:12:59] limits. I'll second. There's a motion
[01:13:02] and a second. Please vote.
[01:13:06] Motion carries 5-0. And congratulations
[01:13:10] to all of you who are now uh
[01:13:12] commissioners and serving uh the fine
[01:13:16] city of Rancho Mirage.
[01:13:19] [Applause]
[01:13:25] Um do you want to I was just going to
[01:13:28] let you know we have a request for
[01:13:30] public comment on close session.
[01:13:34] Okay, go ahead. Yeah, if the city clerk
[01:13:37] would. Brad Anderson.
[01:13:41] Thank you. Uh, sorry causing conflict.
[01:13:44] Uh, my name is Brad Anderson again for
[01:13:46] for the record, not that it matters, but
[01:13:49] I wanted to speak on item 8A, which is
[01:13:52] the potential litigation or initial
[01:13:55] litigation. uh if I can read correctly
[01:13:57] today. Um I just maybe the city attorney
[01:14:01] when he gives his report uh can possibly
[01:14:05] uh confirm if that's the same case that
[01:14:08] you were talked about at the last recent
[01:14:10] most recent city council meeting. Uh
[01:14:13] it's important because I noticed on the
[01:14:15] timestamps of the last
[01:14:17] minutes I'm hoping that's correct that
[01:14:20] um that you spoke over an hour on that
[01:14:23] one one in. And I did write some
[01:14:25] comments, so hopefully people can look
[01:14:27] at those. But I'm kind of concerned
[01:14:29] about the length of time that's spent on
[01:14:31] these items and and maybe there's other
[01:14:33] items. And I know that's an ethical
[01:14:35] issue, and I don't want to say you're
[01:14:37] not ethic. Well, I think I have said
[01:14:39] that before, but I just want to say in
[01:14:41] this aspect, u but if you're eating back
[01:14:44] there, if you're, you know, doing some
[01:14:47] other items or maybe walking back and
[01:14:50] forth, I don't know how long it takes to
[01:14:52] get to your meeting place, maybe that
[01:14:54] time could be accounted for uh in the
[01:14:56] public record, too. And that's all I
[01:14:58] have. Thank you.
[01:15:00] Thank you for your comments.
[01:15:03] Um, I will now ask uh the city attorney
[01:15:06] if he will summarize those items that
[01:15:09] are going to be covered during the close
[01:15:10] session. Thank you, mayor. We'll be
[01:15:13] meeting in close session pursuant to the
[01:15:14] item before you on the agenda 8A,
[01:15:17] conference with legal counsel, potential
[01:15:19] initiation of litigation pursuant to
[01:15:21] government code section
[01:15:23] 549
[01:15:26] 56.9D41, potential case.
[01:15:29] We are now recessed into close
[01:15:49] session. We are uh reconvened. Um for
[01:15:54] the record, all members are present and
[01:15:56] accounted for. City Attorney, would you
[01:15:58] please review items that were covered in
[01:16:01] the closed session? Thank you, Mayor. No
[01:16:04] reportable action taken
[01:16:06] today. Thank you. This meeting is now
[01:16:09] concluded.