Rancho Mirage City Council Meeting, July 17, 2025

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AI transcript text.

[00:00:13] Good afternoon everyone.
[00:00:15] What a uh what an auspicious group of
[00:00:18] people we have here today.
[00:00:21] Uh
[00:00:22] probably the best looking group we've
[00:00:24] had in years.
[00:00:27] Well, thank you all for being here. just
[00:00:29] wonderful.
[00:00:31] Uh it is Thursday, July 17th. That is
[00:00:34] approximately 100 p.m. This is the
[00:00:38] regular meeting of the Ranch Mirage City
[00:00:40] Council and Community Services District,
[00:00:44] Energy Authority, Housing Authority,
[00:00:48] Joint Powers Finance Authority,
[00:00:50] Library and Observatory, and
[00:00:53] Redevelopment Successor agency boards.
[00:00:58] I will now ask
[00:01:00] our assistant city manager to lead us in
[00:01:05] the flag salute.
[00:01:10] >> Please join me in honoring our country.
[00:01:12] I aliance to the flag of the United
[00:01:15] States of America and to the stands one
[00:01:20] nation
[00:01:21] indivisible with liberty and justice for
[00:01:24] all.
[00:01:32] May we have a roll call, please?
[00:01:34] >> Council member DS,
[00:01:35] >> I'm here.
[00:01:36] >> Council member Framberg Edin,
[00:01:38] >> present.
[00:01:38] >> Council member O'Keefe
[00:01:40] >> here.
[00:01:40] >> Mayor Prom Mulatto
[00:01:42] >> here.
[00:01:42] >> Mayor Wild
[00:01:43] >> here.
[00:01:46] The um
[00:01:49] the first item on the agenda and a
[00:01:53] wonderful item that I'm very proud to
[00:01:56] present
[00:01:58] is a
[00:02:01] moment of great pride for our city.
[00:02:05] The Rancher Mirage High School women's
[00:02:08] softball team made history this season,
[00:02:12] capturing the 2025
[00:02:15] CIF Southern Section Division
[00:02:19] 7 Championship.
[00:02:30] >> And boy, do you deserve to applaud
[00:02:32] yourself. That's all I can tell you.
[00:02:35] Uh, this is the first softball team in
[00:02:38] Coachella Valley history to do so in the
[00:02:42] 51-year history of the CIF Southern
[00:02:46] section. Boy, that's pretty darn
[00:02:48] remarkable.
[00:02:50] Their achievements don't stop there.
[00:02:53] The Rattlers became the first Coachella
[00:02:56] Valley team to advance to a California
[00:02:59] state championship softball game and the
[00:03:02] first to host one right on their own
[00:03:05] home field at Rancho Mirage High School.
[00:03:10] Although they finished as state
[00:03:12] finalist, their incredible season
[00:03:14] showcased unmatched determination,
[00:03:18] sportsmanship,
[00:03:20] and community pride.
[00:03:22] Let's take a minute and take a look at
[00:03:24] the video of their historic win if you
[00:03:28] would please.
[00:03:32] >> When one team from the valley does it,
[00:03:34] we all get to celebrate that, right? My
[00:03:36] name is Abraham Aparishio. I'm the head
[00:03:39] varsity softball coach here at Branch
[00:03:40] Marage High School. Our team just
[00:03:42] recently won the division 7 CIF title
[00:03:45] for the southern section.
[00:03:47] It's never been done before. It's uh the
[00:03:49] first time I believe in history in the
[00:03:51] desert and definitely for the first time
[00:03:52] for our program here.
[00:03:53] >> Hi, I'm Analisa Garcia and I'm the
[00:03:55] pitcher for Ranch Rush High School. I've
[00:03:57] been playing softball since I was like
[00:03:59] maybe six 6 years old. So, I've been
[00:04:01] doing it forever and it's it's been all
[00:04:04] I think about.
[00:04:05] >> I'm Aaliyah Marquez and I play shortstop
[00:04:07] for Rancho Lodge High School. Softball
[00:04:09] means everything to me because when I'm
[00:04:12] on the field like nothing else really
[00:04:14] matters. I'm just really into the game.
[00:04:16] >> Hi, I'm Mariah Botley. I'm center field
[00:04:19] and I play softball for Ranch Mirage
[00:04:21] High School. A lot of the girls that I
[00:04:22] play with now, I grew up playing with
[00:04:24] them since like little league t-ball.
[00:04:26] So, it's definitely like family and love
[00:04:29] to me.
[00:04:30] >> To finally bring a a championship in and
[00:04:32] squirrel softball is is a huge deal.
[00:04:35] >> Winning that championship was just it's
[00:04:38] everything that I've worked for. It's I
[00:04:40] can't believe that I was able to make it
[00:04:41] that far.
[00:04:42] >> I was really excited. It just felt like
[00:04:44] surreal. like I couldn't believe we had
[00:04:46] really made it this far and ended up
[00:04:48] winning the whole thing.
[00:04:50] >> So, what's next for our program
[00:04:52] obviously for us is just to continue,
[00:04:54] you know, the success that we've had,
[00:04:55] right? Um these girls have kind of set a
[00:04:58] foundation and a belief in in what we're
[00:05:01] trying to do here.
[00:05:02] >> I hope next season we're able to
[00:05:03] accomplish the same things and even win
[00:05:07] state this coming week. I'm hoping to
[00:05:12] hopefully play in college, going to Long
[00:05:14] Beach, so maybe I can try out there and
[00:05:17] see where it goes from there. My next
[00:05:18] step for softball is I'm definitely
[00:05:20] going to go play in college. I applied
[00:05:22] to Cood and I plan on playing at Cood
[00:05:24] and see where that takes me.
[00:05:26] >> The city of Ranch Mirage, um, obviously
[00:05:27] they supported us quite a bit here at
[00:05:29] Ranch Mirage High School. I know the
[00:05:31] I've been here since we opened as a
[00:05:33] teacher here at Ranch Mirage. So, I know
[00:05:35] what the community does for our school.
[00:05:36] We know how supportive they are of of
[00:05:38] what we're trying to do and and the
[00:05:40] culture and the community we're trying
[00:05:42] to create. And I hope that this means a
[00:05:44] lot to them as well.
[00:05:45] >> How about that? CIF champion rally.
[00:05:58] >> Hey, did I see some tears coming out of
[00:06:02] >> during that? I thought there's no crying
[00:06:04] in baseball.
[00:06:06] I saw some tears there and great, you
[00:06:10] know, tears of joy welld deserved.
[00:06:13] Um to recognize this amazing
[00:06:16] achievement, the city of Rancho Mirage
[00:06:18] has partnered with Rancho Mirage High
[00:06:21] School coaching staff to provide each
[00:06:24] player a customized finalist ring to
[00:06:29] memorialize this historic moment.
[00:06:38] Hey guys, I know you're going to wear it
[00:06:40] proudly. Absolutely.
[00:06:43] These rings are currently being created
[00:06:46] and will be be presented at an upcoming
[00:06:49] ring ceremony.
[00:06:51] My co council colleagues and I are
[00:06:54] honored to award you this gift to
[00:06:57] signify your hard work and achievements.
[00:07:00] You have made your city very proud.
[00:07:04] On behalf of the city of Rancho Mirage,
[00:07:07] we commend the players, the coaches, and
[00:07:10] staff for their hard work, dedication,
[00:07:13] and trailblazing accomplishments.
[00:07:16] At this time, I'd like to invite Palm
[00:07:19] Springs Unified School District
[00:07:21] Superintendent Marcus Bunches, Coach
[00:07:25] Abraham Apprecio Apparicio,
[00:07:28] Coach Alex Marquez, and Athletic
[00:07:31] Director Eddie Martinez to the front of
[00:07:34] the DAS, please.
[00:07:52] Good afternoon, council.
[00:07:54] I am Dr. Marcus Fanchez, the proud new
[00:07:57] superintendent of Palm Springs Unified
[00:07:59] School District, where we educate and
[00:08:01] develop our scholars at the highest
[00:08:03] levels of excellence. Let's give them a
[00:08:05] round of applause.
[00:08:10] Now, I want to thank our city council of
[00:08:13] Rancho Mirage for your encouragement,
[00:08:15] your advocacy, and your support for Palm
[00:08:18] Springs Unified School District. And
[00:08:20] especially today, those rings look
[00:08:22] beautiful up there. Maybe I'll get one.
[00:08:25] Uh, in all seriousness, I also want to
[00:08:28] thank our board of education. We have
[00:08:30] board president here, Mr. Sergio
[00:08:32] Espereta and also board member Karen
[00:08:35] Cornet
[00:08:39] for your tireless efforts and advocacy
[00:08:42] for our scholars. But as me being new
[00:08:45] here, I wanted to make sure that I did
[00:08:47] everything possible to draw attention to
[00:08:49] this wonderful staff of administrators
[00:08:51] and coaches at Rancho Mirage High
[00:08:53] School. So, I introduced at this time uh
[00:08:56] Mr. Eddie
[00:08:59] Martinez
[00:09:01] up to the stage at this time. I got
[00:09:03] that.
[00:09:09] Uh, good afternoon. Um, I just wanted to
[00:09:12] come up and say a few words. Um, before
[00:09:14] I begin, I just like to extend a
[00:09:16] heartfelt thank you to our new, um,
[00:09:19] district superintendent and our board
[00:09:20] members for being here. Uh your presence
[00:09:23] means a great deal to um our school, our
[00:09:26] athletes, and our Rattler community. So,
[00:09:28] thank you for being here. On behalf of
[00:09:31] Ranch Mirage High School, um thank you
[00:09:34] to the city council for having us here
[00:09:35] to recognize the incredible
[00:09:37] accomplishments of our 2025 softball
[00:09:40] team. Your generosity and hosting this
[00:09:43] reception and gifting our student
[00:09:45] athletes with championship rings is
[00:09:48] deeply appreciated. These rings will be
[00:09:50] more than a symbol of victory for our
[00:09:52] our team. They'll represent the hard
[00:09:54] work, the dedication, and the unity that
[00:09:57] really defined this historic season for
[00:09:59] them.
[00:10:01] This year, our Rattlers made school
[00:10:03] history by winning the CIF Division 7
[00:10:05] Championship and finishing runner up in
[00:10:07] the uh Southern Regionals. But in
[00:10:10] addition to the team success, we also
[00:10:12] had eight players earn all league
[00:10:14] honors. two were named to the all
[00:10:16] division CIF all division seven uh team.
[00:10:21] One of those athletes, Anaisa Garcia,
[00:10:29] Anna Lalisa was named CIF Division 7
[00:10:32] player of the year and our very own
[00:10:35] coach Abraham Aparicio uh earned the
[00:10:38] title of CIF Division 7 coach of the
[00:10:40] year.
[00:10:46] I am proud to share that both Anna Lisa
[00:10:49] and Coach Aparicio will be honored uh by
[00:10:51] the CIF on August 4th during a special
[00:10:55] pregame ceremony at Angel Stadium. Um so
[00:10:59] that's an exciting and well-deserved
[00:11:00] recognition for the both of them.
[00:11:07] And lastly, just as a small token of
[00:11:10] appreciation, um we have little gift
[00:11:12] bags for the city council members and
[00:11:14] Mayor Wales. So, thank you for making
[00:11:16] this celebration possible. Uh thank you
[00:11:18] for supporting our RMHS students, your
[00:11:21] commitment to our school and our
[00:11:23] community. It uplifts our programs and
[00:11:26] our community. So, thank you very much.
[00:11:32] [Applause]
[00:11:38] Come on over here.
[00:11:51] This is a proclamation
[00:11:53] recognizing
[00:11:54] Mr. Superintendent, please join us.
[00:11:59] Um,
[00:12:00] >> I think I can handle it, but thank you.
[00:12:04] >> I know,
[00:12:04] >> Eddie. Let's have you join, too.
[00:12:08] >> Um, the Rancho Mrage High School
[00:12:11] softball team 2025 CIF Southern Section
[00:12:16] Division 7 champions.
[00:12:20] Whereas Rancher Marage High School
[00:12:22] women's softball team has made history
[00:12:26] during the 2025 season, the Rattlers
[00:12:30] captured the CIF Southern Section
[00:12:34] uh championship, becoming the first
[00:12:36] softball team in Coachella Valley
[00:12:38] history to achieve this remarkable
[00:12:41] milestone.
[00:12:43] The Rattlers earned this distinction of
[00:12:46] being the first team in the Coachella
[00:12:47] Valley history to host a state
[00:12:50] championship softball game, a landmark
[00:12:54] event held on their home field at Rancho
[00:12:57] Mirage.
[00:13:00] Though the team finished as the state
[00:13:02] finalist, their ter determination,
[00:13:05] sportsmanship,
[00:13:07] and unreprecedented
[00:13:09] achievements have solidified their
[00:13:12] legacy as pioneers in the valley
[00:13:15] athletics.
[00:13:17] Whereas the city of Rancho Mirage
[00:13:20] commends the players, coaches, and their
[00:13:23] staff for their commitment, discipline,
[00:13:28] and teamwork.
[00:13:30] throughout a historic season that has
[00:13:33] inspired the entire community.
[00:13:37] Now, therefore, be it resolved that I,
[00:13:39] Ted while, mayor of the city of Rancho
[00:13:41] Mirage, and on behalf of the entire city
[00:13:44] council,
[00:13:46] do recognize
[00:13:49] Ranch's high school softball team 2025
[00:13:54] CIF Southern Section Division 2
[00:13:57] champions.
[00:13:59] In witness thereof, I present this
[00:14:01] proclamation recognizing your extreme
[00:14:05] success and achievement. And we can't
[00:14:08] thank you enough. Congratulations.
[00:14:17] And and I would like to invite my fellow
[00:14:20] council people to please come down and
[00:14:22] join us for a picture.
[00:14:24] >> And players, please come up as well to
[00:14:26] take a photo with
[00:14:28] All the champions.
[00:14:32] >> You guys did a great job. You
[00:14:34] >> deserve it.
[00:15:00] It's yours. You learn.
[00:15:04] >> Get in front of
[00:15:05] >> No, get in front.
[00:15:09] >> This is a big moment.
[00:15:11] >> And your shirts look good.
[00:15:15] I'm behind you if you want to go. I
[00:15:16] don't know which way you want.
[00:15:21] >> Behind you.
[00:15:22] >> Oh, goodness me.
[00:15:24] >> I'm very good.
[00:15:26] >> What a great moment. I know. It's
[00:15:28] fabulous. It's amazing.
[00:15:30] >> You and I both.
[00:15:42] Come
[00:15:46] on, everybody.
[00:16:04] Let's
[00:16:16] do it.
[00:16:31] >> And now Enjoy
[00:16:35] your reception.
[00:16:39] >> Great. Congratulations.
[00:16:46] >> Congratulations.
[00:16:47] >> Are you on the board now?
[00:17:00] >> We all get rings.
[00:17:16] Well, thank you.
[00:17:31] Submit. I'm too old to play.
[00:17:38] >> Yeah.
[00:17:52] >> It's really something here. the um the
[00:17:54] mayor prom and I were commenting that we
[00:17:57] were the shortest people on up there. We
[00:18:01] had to move around to get our picture in
[00:18:03] the front. Anyway, congratulations
[00:18:06] everybody. Great success. You deserve
[00:18:08] everything and enjoy your little
[00:18:10] reception. Now,
[00:18:13] uh I will now ask for uh council
[00:18:16] comments. Um,
[00:18:20] and you folks are welcome to stay or go
[00:18:22] enjoy your What's that? Oh, excuse me.
[00:18:27] Uh, I already blew it.
[00:18:30] I'm so excited about your success. I
[00:18:33] already uh hear Keith, our
[00:18:37] representative to the Palm Springs
[00:18:40] airport, who I specifically asked if he
[00:18:43] would be kind enough to to give us a
[00:18:46] presentation today.
[00:18:48] And um so I'm I'm just delighted that
[00:18:51] you're here. Dr. Young is our
[00:18:55] representative uh to the airport
[00:18:57] commission. The airport is owned by the
[00:19:00] city of Palm Springs, but we all have
[00:19:03] representatives and uh we're delighted
[00:19:07] to uh to have you here. Dr. Young has
[00:19:10] been our representative now uh for some
[00:19:13] time. Does a great job. is very thorough
[00:19:17] and uh so Dr. Young, thank you very much
[00:19:20] for being here today.
[00:19:22] >> Mayor Wall, thank you. Uh it's a
[00:19:24] pleasure as always to be with you with
[00:19:25] council members and with city staff.
[00:19:27] That's a very hard act to follow. So I I
[00:19:29] ask that you extend your grace during
[00:19:32] the course of this report. Um, one of my
[00:19:33] other favorite volunteer activities in
[00:19:35] the desert is I think like Council
[00:19:37] Middle Edstein, I have I serve on the
[00:19:39] the uh board of the foundation for Palm
[00:19:42] Springs Unified. And so it's always a
[00:19:44] wonderful delight to see the successes
[00:19:46] of uh the students and faculty and
[00:19:49] coaches uh in the school district. So I
[00:19:51] I join you in that celebration. Um if I
[00:19:54] could have the slides. Thank you.
[00:19:57] So, uh, it is as always a delight to
[00:19:59] share with you, uh, some of the progress
[00:20:02] and exciting developments, uh, at Palm
[00:20:04] Springs International Airport.
[00:20:08] Uh, the first thing I wanted to just
[00:20:09] review quickly is, uh, the economic
[00:20:12] impact report. Uh, this was commissioned
[00:20:15] by the Palm Springs airport in order to
[00:20:17] support the airport's case for the $2.2
[00:20:20] billion expansion that lies ahead over
[00:20:22] the next 15 to 20 years.
[00:20:24] um visit greater Palm Springs will use
[00:20:26] data from this to help determine routes
[00:20:29] uh which will have the highest likely
[00:20:31] demand from Palm Springs in the years
[00:20:33] ahead and to help market those. Uh data
[00:20:35] will also be helpful in the cities and
[00:20:38] airports advocacy uh for infrastructure
[00:20:41] funds from federal and other funding
[00:20:43] authorities. Uh, as you can see on the
[00:20:45] bottom part of this, it's anticipated
[00:20:47] that over the next 10 years, um,
[00:20:49] activity stemming from the airport's
[00:20:51] development will create some 10,000 new
[00:20:53] jobs and will result in tax revenue
[00:20:56] increases uh, approaching a4 billion
[00:20:58] dollars. So, it's a a great indicator of
[00:21:01] the economic engine that Palm Springs
[00:21:03] International Airport continues to be.
[00:21:06] Passenger traffic at the airport is one
[00:21:08] of the metrics obviously that gives us
[00:21:10] some sense of uh how we are doing and
[00:21:13] how the services of the airport are
[00:21:14] received. Got a couple of updates from
[00:21:17] uh last evening's uh airport commission
[00:21:19] meeting. Um but as this slide indicates
[00:21:23] uh March was the highest month on record
[00:21:24] in terms of passengers coming through.
[00:21:27] Just uh 7,000 short of a half a million
[00:21:29] people uh traveled through uh Palm
[00:21:31] Springs uh airport in the month of
[00:21:33] March. Uh June was not a record month uh
[00:21:36] but was still up 6% over the numbers for
[00:21:40] 2024.
[00:21:42] One of the things that the airport
[00:21:43] commission is following closely uh is
[00:21:45] the change in demand from our friends
[00:21:48] and neighbors in Canada. Um travel to
[00:21:51] the US uh from Canada has been declining
[00:21:54] as many of you are aware. Uh carriers
[00:21:57] from Canada report that there's
[00:21:59] increased demand from Canadians for
[00:22:02] Latin America, Caribbean and European
[00:22:05] routes. Uh and as a result, some of the
[00:22:08] aircraft capacity that had been used for
[00:22:10] routes in the US uh is declining. Uh the
[00:22:13] numbers have actually deteriorated a bit
[00:22:15] from this slide, which is what I had
[00:22:17] available at the time of this
[00:22:18] submission. uh reported last evening is
[00:22:20] that for October there will be 20 fewer
[00:22:23] inbound flights from Canada into Palm
[00:22:26] Springs. Uh 10 fewer flights in November
[00:22:29] and three fewer flights in December. So
[00:22:31] it is something for us to be aware of as
[00:22:34] we think about the economic impact of
[00:22:36] changes in travel patterns. That said,
[00:22:39] one positive development is that overall
[00:22:41] capacity into the airport continues to
[00:22:44] increase. Um the number of scheduled
[00:22:46] available seats for the August through
[00:22:48] November period of this year, at least
[00:22:50] based on current schedules, is up from
[00:22:52] both last year and the year before. So
[00:22:54] while there is this decline in seats
[00:22:57] from the Canadian market, the overall
[00:22:59] number of seats uh currently scheduled
[00:23:01] is actually still going to be up from
[00:23:03] last year.
[00:23:04] Couple of service announcements. You've
[00:23:06] likely heard about some of these in
[00:23:08] local press. Uh Aellow Airlines, which
[00:23:10] was a carrier into Palm Springs, uh has
[00:23:13] announced just this week that they are
[00:23:14] ceasing their West Coast operations. Uh
[00:23:17] so they're withdrawing from Burbank uh
[00:23:18] Palm Springs and all of their uh West
[00:23:21] Coast to redeploy aircraft out east. On
[00:23:24] the positive side, United announced this
[00:23:26] week for the first time in 5 years that
[00:23:27] they are returning non-stop service from
[00:23:30] Palm Springs to Newark Liberty
[00:23:31] International Airport. Uh so that's very
[00:23:34] exciting. If I'm correct in this, I
[00:23:36] think that means that for the first time
[00:23:37] in many years, United will service all
[00:23:39] of its domestic hubs from Palm Springs
[00:23:41] this upcoming season. So, that's an
[00:23:43] exciting development. That service will
[00:23:45] be daily at the beginning and end of the
[00:23:47] 4 month seasonal interval, dropped to 5
[00:23:50] days a week uh during the middle of
[00:23:52] that. They've also indicated that they
[00:23:53] are likely to um fly to LAX twice daily
[00:23:57] during part of the season. uh and they
[00:24:00] will be bringing back their Washington
[00:24:01] Dulles service which was uh present last
[00:24:04] year for the first time uh with the new
[00:24:07] United service to New York. There's
[00:24:09] actually now three carriers. So Delta,
[00:24:11] Alaska, and United will be all flying to
[00:24:14] the greater New York area uh in season,
[00:24:16] which is great for us both as travelers
[00:24:18] and for um travelers coming here.
[00:24:21] Progress PSP is a new effort with all
[00:24:23] the changes occurring at the airport. Uh
[00:24:26] there's an intentional effort in terms
[00:24:27] of marketing wanting to keep uh local
[00:24:29] leaders as well as local travelers and
[00:24:31] residents up to date on all that's going
[00:24:33] on. Uh there's a great website uh
[00:24:36] progressp.com
[00:24:38] uh which I invite you to look at. It's
[00:24:39] only been live for a couple of months.
[00:24:41] Uh it actually will provide updates for
[00:24:44] most all of the projects that are
[00:24:45] ongoing, both the sort of near-term and
[00:24:47] longerterm projects. There's also links
[00:24:49] there for vendors to click on to read
[00:24:51] about pro projects that they can
[00:24:53] potentially be involved in. This is a
[00:24:56] repeat slide from my last presentation.
[00:24:58] I simply offer it up though to give you
[00:25:00] a sense that in spite of the the
[00:25:02] individual uh airport improvements that
[00:25:04] I will describe shortly, uh they all are
[00:25:07] occurring independent of this longerterm
[00:25:09] plan and again over the next 3 to four
[00:25:12] years, the hope is that phase one of the
[00:25:15] airport uh will progress with new gates.
[00:25:18] the Federal Inspection Service, etc. So,
[00:25:20] this is just a reminder of context for
[00:25:22] the other current developments. As any
[00:25:24] of you who've flown through the airport
[00:25:25] in the last couple of months know,
[00:25:26] several new restaurants have also opened
[00:25:28] up uh including Venovolo uh and the
[00:25:31] opening of Trio. So, there are some new
[00:25:33] food and beverage outlets available
[00:25:35] there. Among the improvements, um that
[00:25:38] have either are underway or will be
[00:25:40] underway shortly, there are new flight
[00:25:42] displays. Uh, and I've lifted these
[00:25:44] slides directly from that that uh, Palm
[00:25:46] Springs Progress website so you can see
[00:25:49] the sort of information that is
[00:25:50] available. Uh, and of note, we do want
[00:25:52] to let folks know that no local taxpayer
[00:25:54] dollars are actually used for these
[00:25:56] improvements and that's that's something
[00:25:57] that's communicated effectively in these
[00:25:59] slides. Um, elevator placement is
[00:26:02] currently underway. So, the old uh
[00:26:05] cranky elevators, not the escalators, uh
[00:26:07] but those are are currently being uh
[00:26:09] replaced and we anticipate that uh those
[00:26:12] will be available later. There are
[00:26:13] porters in red shirts available to
[00:26:15] assist those who need baggage assistance
[00:26:18] uh to and from the Sunny Bono concourse
[00:26:21] during this time. Uh escalators. If you
[00:26:24] happen to be an airport commissioner,
[00:26:25] there's probably nothing you hear about
[00:26:26] more than escalators.
[00:26:28] Uh we have chronic problems with our
[00:26:31] escalators. as as you appreciate, they
[00:26:33] are in an outdoor environment. Uh they
[00:26:35] have been repaired repeatedly over many
[00:26:37] many years. Um and the parts and
[00:26:40] capacities to make effective repairs to
[00:26:42] keep them in service become more and
[00:26:44] more difficult. The airport commission
[00:26:46] has uh very specifically asked the man
[00:26:48] airport management team to really
[00:26:50] prioritize airport uh excuse me,
[00:26:52] escalator replacement. Uh and so that
[00:26:55] process is ongoing. Kickoff meetings for
[00:26:57] that are scheduled for next month. The
[00:26:59] hope is that a bid for replacement will
[00:27:02] have been selected by January of next
[00:27:04] year. So, as you all appreciate, these
[00:27:06] projects take time, but that is underway
[00:27:08] and it is clearly a priority of the
[00:27:10] airport commission.
[00:27:12] There is uh mid-century modern airport
[00:27:14] seating that will be uh installed next
[00:27:17] month uh outside the terminal. Uh this
[00:27:19] is from measured J funds from the city
[00:27:22] of Palm Springs. Uh the restrooms
[00:27:25] obviously both in terms of capacity
[00:27:27] needs and in terms of updates those
[00:27:29] require updates as you would also
[00:27:31] anticipate. This is a multi-year
[00:27:32] project. Uh over the next 50 to 52 weeks
[00:27:36] uh there will be design conceptual more
[00:27:39] specific design uh bidding etc. That
[00:27:42] will probably take about a year and by
[00:27:45] virtue of of the uh restroom needs this
[00:27:47] will obviously have to be a phased
[00:27:49] project. So, uh, the hope is some
[00:27:51] construction on new restrooms will begin
[00:27:53] early in the new year. Uh, but the
[00:27:55] process will probably take two to three
[00:27:56] years to complete.
[00:27:59] Uh, finally, just a couple of other
[00:28:01] projects to mention. One which is less
[00:28:03] sexy but entirely uh necessary is the
[00:28:06] outbound baggage system is going to be
[00:28:08] replaced. Uh, this is a $90 million
[00:28:10] project. Um the anticipated $60 million
[00:28:15] uh federal grants we're hoping to have
[00:28:17] confirmation of over the next couple of
[00:28:19] months if that all proceeds as expected.
[00:28:22] Some of the electrical work on that will
[00:28:24] occur probably later this year. Of note
[00:28:26] as it relates to all of our experience
[00:28:28] as passengers in the airport. Um this
[00:28:31] unfortunately is the kind of project
[00:28:32] that will impact travelers uh just in
[00:28:35] terms of construction and relocations
[00:28:38] and such that need to occur. Uh, so I
[00:28:40] will do my best to keep you updated on
[00:28:42] that. Uh, finally, just one fun thing.
[00:28:44] If you hadn't seen this in the news, uh,
[00:28:46] the Washington Post uh, a couple of
[00:28:48] weeks ago did a rating um, using their I
[00:28:51] think they call the expert their doctor
[00:28:54] of data or such of the top 50 airports
[00:28:57] in the United States. And Palm Springs
[00:28:59] came out ranking 35th amongst the 450 or
[00:29:03] so domestic airports researched. uh that
[00:29:05] was based on airport data, reader
[00:29:07] feedback from 2,300 readers and a review
[00:29:10] of over 450,000 Yelp reviews. Uh
[00:29:13] travelers valued easy access, clear
[00:29:16] navigation, good food and shopping, and
[00:29:18] what was I think this is a quote from
[00:29:21] the article, hard to define quirks that
[00:29:22] give an airport personality. Um so we we
[00:29:26] are proud of the Palm Springs airport. I
[00:29:29] know all of you use it, probably many
[00:29:31] with some regularity. Um, as always, I
[00:29:34] welcome the chance to uh hear feedback
[00:29:36] from you, your questions, um, and
[00:29:38] certainly we'll endeavor to continue to
[00:29:40] keep you updated on on important new
[00:29:41] developments. So, would be happy to take
[00:29:43] any questions if any of you have them.
[00:29:45] >> Well, thank you. Excellent report as
[00:29:47] always. U, I know that I speak for
[00:29:51] myself and probably everyone else that,
[00:29:54] you know, we look forward to using if
[00:29:57] we're going to fly anywhere, we'd like
[00:30:00] to do it out of Palm Springs. It is so
[00:30:02] comfortable, so easy, so convenient that
[00:30:06] um uh the service is wonderful and the
[00:30:10] intended improvements that you're
[00:30:12] planning uh are exciting. So, thank you
[00:30:15] so much. Um are there any specific
[00:30:19] questions anybody has?
[00:30:20] >> We do have a question, Mr. Mayor. So, uh
[00:30:22] Keith, the um plans for expansion of the
[00:30:25] airport, uh are they finalized? Now, for
[00:30:28] example, there was some discussion about
[00:30:29] um the Renar facility, which I believe
[00:30:31] has been finalized as in terms of where
[00:30:33] it's going to be, but all of the rest of
[00:30:35] the planning, is it on paper? Is it
[00:30:37] done? Is it fully approved as in terms
[00:30:39] of what we're going to do, or are there
[00:30:41] is there still some planning yet to be
[00:30:42] done?
[00:30:43] >> Uh fair to say that there's there's
[00:30:45] ongoing moving parts.
[00:30:46] >> Okay.
[00:30:47] Um yeah, it's a step-wise process and
[00:30:50] because as you appreciate uh council
[00:30:52] member DS that you know the funding
[00:30:53] sources for a lot of these um remain in
[00:30:57] question, the airport is looking at priv
[00:31:00] private partnerships and such. So there
[00:31:02] there are a lot of moving parts. Um some
[00:31:04] of the most fundamental things as you
[00:31:06] named uh the location of the rental car
[00:31:09] facility um that has effectively been
[00:31:11] decided but yes there's there's a lot
[00:31:13] still to be determined.
[00:31:14] >> Okay.
[00:31:17] Keith, thank you very much for another
[00:31:19] thorough report. Um, with those moving
[00:31:23] parts or one of the moving parts, any
[00:31:26] is there an anticipation of federal
[00:31:29] funding that could be cut uh towards
[00:31:32] your expansion at the airport? Are you
[00:31:35] aware or anticipating?
[00:31:38] I think it's safe to say there is
[00:31:43] concern
[00:31:44] uh about what that looks like. Um
[00:31:46] certainly the airport management team,
[00:31:49] our airport commissioner Corkran from
[00:31:51] Palm Springs, they are working closely
[00:31:53] with uh you know our local congressman
[00:31:56] uh to obviously do everything that can
[00:31:59] be done to advocate for those needs. Um,
[00:32:02] I don't know the specifics, but I
[00:32:05] anticipate we might get some sense when
[00:32:08] uh in the next few months we learn of
[00:32:10] whether the $60 million in hope for
[00:32:13] grants for the outgoing baggage um
[00:32:16] facility, whether we receive those as
[00:32:18] anticipated or not, but I know that
[00:32:20] there's there's certainly a lot of local
[00:32:22] advocacy to to try to uh to make sure
[00:32:25] that that that uh happens.
[00:32:27] >> Please let us know if we can be of
[00:32:28] assistance.
[00:32:29] >> Appreciate that. And the answer may well
[00:32:30] be yes. So thank you may well I'll just
[00:32:33] add one comment uh about yours your
[00:32:35] comments one of the most important
[00:32:37] factors for uh future
[00:32:40] route possibilities is the demand that
[00:32:43] that the airport experiences. So when we
[00:32:45] do all make choices to fly out of our
[00:32:47] local airport as opposed to travel to
[00:32:50] LAX or Ontario um we are providing
[00:32:54] support for um airlines to see that that
[00:32:57] there is demand here. Um, another way to
[00:33:00] do that, which I will confess I haven't
[00:33:01] done, but on the on the fly PSP website,
[00:33:04] if you go and actually do a search for
[00:33:06] your flights, regardless of where you
[00:33:08] book them, but if you search for them
[00:33:09] there, uh, that's something that is
[00:33:11] monitored um through airport marketing.
[00:33:15] Um, so it gives our marketing folks a
[00:33:18] sense of where people are searching for
[00:33:19] flights and every bit of data that is
[00:33:22] collected that indicates demand can be
[00:33:24] really helpful. uh as local marketing
[00:33:26] teams go to airlines and say please you
[00:33:29] know either increase the frequency or
[00:33:31] duration of the service or add new
[00:33:33] service in those areas. So those are
[00:33:34] just small little things that we can we
[00:33:36] can all do.
[00:33:37] >> I think that's great and I can
[00:33:39] understand if somebody's flying first
[00:33:41] thing they're going to check is are
[00:33:43] there any flights locally uh to our
[00:33:46] destination. So that's excellent. Um any
[00:33:49] other questions?
[00:33:51] Well again Keith thank you so very much.
[00:33:54] excellent report and uh keep up the good
[00:33:57] work and I know you're representing our
[00:34:00] city on the commission extremely well.
[00:34:02] >> Thank you. Good to be with you all.
[00:34:06] >> Uh that concludes um uh the
[00:34:09] presentations. We'll now go to council
[00:34:12] member comments.
[00:34:14] Um it seems
[00:34:22] >> I don't think there are
[00:34:23] >> there are
[00:34:24] >> for council comments. Yes, we do have
[00:34:26] one speaker card.
[00:34:27] >> Oh, for this issue.
[00:34:28] >> Yes, for this correct.
[00:34:29] >> Okay, thank you.
[00:34:30] >> Brad Anderson.
[00:34:37] >> Good afternoon. Brad Anderson. I
[00:34:39] currently live in the city. Um, again, I
[00:34:42] would like to give my comments when you
[00:34:45] give your comments. Uh, it doesn't make
[00:34:48] any sense for me to give my comments
[00:34:49] prior to any information being received.
[00:34:53] So, I would hope that maybe you can call
[00:34:54] upon me for my comments after you uh
[00:34:58] give your predetermined
[00:35:00] comments and show your videos. That
[00:35:03] would be great. Thank you.
[00:35:05] >> Thank you.
[00:35:07] >> That was the only speaker card. Okay, we
[00:35:10] now will go to our council member
[00:35:13] comments. I think the transition
[00:35:16] uh I'm going to call upon um council
[00:35:19] member uh E from Bergenstein which I
[00:35:23] think is only appropriate because we're
[00:35:26] transitioning from an airport
[00:35:29] presentation which she's very familiar
[00:35:31] with and uh uh she's familiar with
[00:35:35] airports. So therefore, any comments
[00:35:38] that she might have uh may or may not be
[00:35:42] appropriate. So with that, Council
[00:35:44] Member Edstein, if you would.
[00:35:46] >> Well, I really appreciate you
[00:35:48] acknowledging my deep love of airports
[00:35:51] um at this time and my newfound respect
[00:35:54] for airports in the last six months um
[00:35:57] time.
[00:35:58] >> Um I but I do appreciate what the city
[00:36:00] of Palm Springs is facing about that
[00:36:03] airport expansion. um that airport is
[00:36:06] truly a gift to our valley and it is the
[00:36:10] driver for all of these
[00:36:12] internationalbased events that we host
[00:36:14] in our cities and um anything that I
[00:36:17] think our city can offer to help with
[00:36:20] the heavy lifting of being a city with
[00:36:21] an airport I'm I'm happy to support.
[00:36:24] I've been to a few of the public
[00:36:25] hearings. They're handled very
[00:36:27] professionally. The consultants are very
[00:36:29] good and the airport staff and the city
[00:36:31] has been really open to hearing from the
[00:36:34] community and I have to commend them for
[00:36:35] that and the commission. Um I'd also
[00:36:38] like to comment on the Rancher Mirage
[00:36:40] Rattler softball team. First of all, I
[00:36:42] can support anything where your final
[00:36:44] gift is a ring. I think that is
[00:36:46] fantastic. It is also
[00:36:50] a really great day when you come out
[00:36:52] into the chamber and it's filled with
[00:36:54] young women who have achieved something
[00:36:58] great. Um, and watching them their faces
[00:37:02] when they saw themselves in the video
[00:37:04] and their pride for each other and their
[00:37:06] love for each other and their
[00:37:07] camaraderie as a team. I also like it
[00:37:09] when four men introduced them because
[00:37:12] they've done so great. So, I think it's
[00:37:14] wonder even the dog got excited. So, I
[00:37:16] think that that says something. Um, but
[00:37:18] I have to commend those ladies and I
[00:37:20] can't wait to see where they end up in
[00:37:22] the future. Um, they we might see them
[00:37:24] back in here again. Let's hope. Um,
[00:37:27] lastly, my comment today is on um an
[00:37:30] event we all attended yesterday. So, our
[00:37:32] council and many of our staff members
[00:37:34] attended the Rancharrage Chamber of
[00:37:36] Commerce speaker series lunchon, which
[00:37:39] is an incredibly uh great event that our
[00:37:42] chamber puts on. very informative,
[00:37:44] really helpful, and also very well
[00:37:46] attended by people across the valley,
[00:37:50] uh, including our local business
[00:37:51] members. But it it was really a
[00:37:53] fantastic lunchon yesterday, especially
[00:37:54] considering it's mid July and it's
[00:37:56] triple digits and people showed up in
[00:37:58] jackets. So, that was nice. Um, we had
[00:38:02] the opportunity yesterday to hear from
[00:38:03] Aua Kaliente Tribal Chairman Reed
[00:38:05] Milanovich. It was extremely informative
[00:38:08] in telling us how the tribe continues to
[00:38:10] grow and thrive in the valley and in our
[00:38:12] city and how much the tribal council and
[00:38:15] their staff value the growing and
[00:38:17] continuing partnerships with local
[00:38:19] cities especially with the city of
[00:38:20] Rancho Mirage. Further, there was a deep
[00:38:23] expression of friendship and history
[00:38:25] between our elder statesman, Mayor Ted
[00:38:27] while uh Reed over the years since Reed
[00:38:31] has become tribal chairman, which I
[00:38:32] think was in 2014 when he was first
[00:38:34] elected. Um,
[00:38:37] and the support that our city offered
[00:38:39] the tribe when we advocated in
[00:38:41] Sacramento, uh, when the tribe decided
[00:38:43] that they would like to build a casino
[00:38:45] in Cathedral City, uh, it was a really
[00:38:48] touching, uh, moment to watch you and
[00:38:50] Reed and your personal interaction with
[00:38:52] each other, your words of camaraderie
[00:38:55] and mutual respect for each other, and I
[00:38:58] think it's a testament to you and to
[00:39:00] him.
[00:39:00] >> Thank you. Um, for those of us who knew
[00:39:03] Richard Milanovich, which I did very
[00:39:05] well, and his sister, uh, Virginia
[00:39:08] Milanovich, the late tribal chairman,
[00:39:11] who's also Reed's father, and his
[00:39:13] leadership and ability to grow the
[00:39:15] trib's relationship with the cities of
[00:39:17] the Coachella Valley over I think his
[00:39:18] reign was almost 30 years as tribal
[00:39:21] chairman. Um, and it that grew and
[00:39:24] stabilized the trib's operations and it
[00:39:27] allowed the tribal members to truly
[00:39:29] thrive.
[00:39:30] Um, as Richard took the seat once held
[00:39:33] by his mother, Reed's grandmother, you
[00:39:35] can see the trib's commitment to respect
[00:39:37] and reverence for their elders and their
[00:39:39] continued stewardship to their lands and
[00:39:41] their people. This is an enormous
[00:39:45] example of legacy that you don't see a
[00:39:47] lot today and it was um it was really
[00:39:50] lovely. I would also like to say uh just
[00:39:54] say that Richard Milanovich and Dana
[00:39:56] Hobart had become very close colleagues
[00:39:58] when they both worked together and Ted
[00:40:00] and Reed have continued that close
[00:40:01] working relationship and history of
[00:40:03] mutual respect and I hope we all can
[00:40:05] continue to have those kind of
[00:40:07] relationships with tribal leadership and
[00:40:09] our leadership as time moves forward. uh
[00:40:12] we value the casino and the hotel and we
[00:40:15] value our relationship and the fact that
[00:40:17] tribal lands exist within our city
[00:40:19] boundaries and we look for more and more
[00:40:21] business opportunity and growth from
[00:40:22] that. The other thing that I noticed
[00:40:25] yesterday was at the at this luncheon,
[00:40:27] which was about 120 people in in
[00:40:29] attendance, was how many civic leaders
[00:40:31] were in attendance yesterday, including
[00:40:34] the staff from Eisenhower Foundation,
[00:40:36] Palm Springs Unified School District,
[00:40:38] including our new superintendent, Visit
[00:40:40] Greater Palm Springs, College of the
[00:40:42] Desert, and the College of the Desert
[00:40:43] Foundation, including the new U. Cood
[00:40:47] president Val Martinez Garcia,
[00:40:50] um various council members from other
[00:40:53] cities in our valley, uh as well as many
[00:40:56] ranch businesses and local nonprofits.
[00:40:59] It was an honor to have people in
[00:41:01] attendance who are so vested in the
[00:41:03] improved outcomes of the lives of
[00:41:04] Coachella Valley residents from our
[00:41:07] oldest members to our youngest members.
[00:41:10] If anyone ever wonders if the people
[00:41:12] that work here in public service are
[00:41:15] dedicated to their positions and are
[00:41:16] vested in the taking care of their
[00:41:18] citizens, I can safely say you could
[00:41:20] feel the love in the room yesterday. So,
[00:41:23] it was a really fantastic lunch and I
[00:41:24] think it's the best one I've been to so
[00:41:26] far since I've started and um all in all
[00:41:30] it's very very valuable and thank you to
[00:41:32] our chamber for facilitating such an
[00:41:33] event and thank you to the tribe for
[00:41:35] their openness and their communication.
[00:41:37] Thank you.
[00:41:38] >> Thank you. Thank you for the kind words.
[00:41:40] I appreciate it. And I I personally feel
[00:41:43] confident that the the relationship
[00:41:46] between the tribe and our city uh will
[00:41:49] continue to endure
[00:41:52] uh over the years. I think the
[00:41:54] foundation
[00:41:56] uh is solid, has been established, and
[00:41:58] will continue. So, thank you so very
[00:42:00] much.
[00:42:02] Uh Council Member O'Keefe.
[00:42:05] >> Um thank you, Mr. Mayor. Good afternoon,
[00:42:07] everyone. First, I couldn't agree more.
[00:42:09] Um, the Milanovich family is such an
[00:42:12] important part of our history and the
[00:42:15] relationship between them and our mayor
[00:42:18] is definitely something to be proud of.
[00:42:20] Uh, I'd like to talk about something
[00:42:21] else that we're proud of in Rancho
[00:42:23] Mirage.
[00:42:25] We place a high priority on the
[00:42:27] maintenance and operation of our
[00:42:29] roadways and our streets. And everybody
[00:42:32] knows, no matter which direction you
[00:42:34] come from, when you're in Ranch Mirage,
[00:42:38] because I have great streets, we have
[00:42:40] great medians. And part of that is our
[00:42:42] ongoing commitment to infrastructure
[00:42:45] excellence in our city. We follow a
[00:42:48] seven-year maintenance schedule to
[00:42:49] ensure that all public roads are
[00:42:51] routinely repaired and preserved. And
[00:42:54] this year, we are focusing primarily on
[00:42:56] Highway 111. Uh the planned improvements
[00:42:59] include uh crack sealing, localized
[00:43:02] asphalt repairs, and the application of
[00:43:05] a final surface coat using
[00:43:08] REAS, which stands for rubberized
[00:43:10] emulsion aggregate slurry. Now, this is
[00:43:13] an eco-friendly project uh product
[00:43:16] that's made from recycled tires. What
[00:43:20] that does is not only provide a smooth
[00:43:22] driving surface, but it also reduces
[00:43:24] road noise. That's why when you're in
[00:43:27] Ranch Mirage, you have a smoother ride.
[00:43:30] Um, this year, the timeline for that
[00:43:32] starts right now in July with the
[00:43:34] asphalt repairs and that will continue
[00:43:36] through August.
[00:43:38] The slurry application will begin in
[00:43:39] late August. Once that process starts,
[00:43:42] it takes about 30 days to complete. So,
[00:43:45] there will be traffic impacts. And the
[00:43:47] reason I wanted to mention this is
[00:43:48] because I spent about 20 minutes stuck
[00:43:51] in Cathedral City the other day on 111
[00:43:54] and I thought we should all know what to
[00:43:56] expect here. Um,
[00:43:59] at least one lane in each direction will
[00:44:02] be open to facilitate traffic. So, I
[00:44:05] want to say congratulations to our
[00:44:07] assistant city manager, Ryan Stendle,
[00:44:10] and his entire team for the great work
[00:44:12] that they do.
[00:44:15] Um, I'd also like to mention one other
[00:44:17] thing.
[00:44:19] Some I'd like to give a thank you to
[00:44:21] Assemblyman Greg Wallace. Um, because as
[00:44:26] many of you may know, um, older adults
[00:44:30] get scammed
[00:44:32] online and through the phones and
[00:44:34] through deceptive email campaigns. And
[00:44:37] these scammers are targeting older
[00:44:39] adults uh every day through phone calls,
[00:44:42] deceptive emails, online schemes,
[00:44:45] praying on people who are vulnerable and
[00:44:48] expo exploiting their trust. So,
[00:44:51] Assemblyman Wallace is hosting a senior
[00:44:54] scam awareness seminar. Uh it's to help
[00:44:58] protect our older adults and their
[00:45:00] families, and it gives you the tools to
[00:45:02] stay informed and alert. This seminar is
[00:45:06] going to be on Wednesday, August the
[00:45:07] 13th at the Palm Desert Community
[00:45:10] Center. And the seminar is free. Uh but
[00:45:14] you do have to RSVP to guarantee space.
[00:45:16] Uh the best way to do that is by going
[00:45:18] on Assemblyman Greg Wallace's web page
[00:45:22] and then register registering for a
[00:45:24] seat. So, I hope if this affects you or
[00:45:26] your families that you will mark your
[00:45:28] calendar and consider inviting your
[00:45:31] friends and your family members who may
[00:45:33] benefit from this seminar. I think it's
[00:45:35] important that as a community we
[00:45:37] strengthen our resilience against
[00:45:40] scammers who pray on the elderly and and
[00:45:43] the vulnerable. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
[00:45:46] >> Thank you, Michael. We cannot be too
[00:45:49] careful
[00:45:51] as far as uh our diligence when it comes
[00:45:55] to
[00:45:56] uh being careful about opening emails or
[00:46:00] responding to anything uh or from anyone
[00:46:04] that we are not already aware of.
[00:46:09] Uh Council Member DS, if you would,
[00:46:12] please.
[00:46:13] >> Thank you, Mr. Mayor. It was great to
[00:46:15] see the high school softball players
[00:46:17] here today. What a what a great high
[00:46:19] school memory for all of them. When when
[00:46:21] I try to think about uh my high school
[00:46:23] years, it really is a memory exercise
[00:46:26] because it was deep into the last
[00:46:27] century. So, it was cool to see all of
[00:46:29] them here today. It was a lot of fun.
[00:46:30] So, here's what I want to talk about
[00:46:32] today. So, uh at each council meeting,
[00:46:34] we have non-aggenda public comment. And
[00:46:37] this is an opportunity for the public to
[00:46:39] uh comment on any issue that's important
[00:46:41] to them for up to three minutes. And
[00:46:43] it's uh an important opportunity for
[00:46:45] them to comment. It's a time for them to
[00:46:47] make their comments. It's not a time for
[00:46:50] interactive back and forth discussion
[00:46:51] between council and those who make those
[00:46:53] comments. So the public hears what the
[00:46:56] commenter has to say, but members of the
[00:46:58] public sometimes want to know the
[00:47:00] opinion of council members about the
[00:47:02] issues raised at non-aggenda public
[00:47:05] comments. Some of us here in the dis
[00:47:07] hear questions from the public about
[00:47:08] those issues that are raised. So today I
[00:47:11] want to make my comments and share my
[00:47:12] opinions about three of those issues
[00:47:15] that are often raised at non-aggenda
[00:47:18] public comment. First, it's a comment
[00:47:21] that is often made by a regular attendee
[00:47:23] at our council meetings. The comment is
[00:47:25] about our closed session meetings which
[00:47:27] often take place after these regular
[00:47:30] meetings. We'll have close session
[00:47:32] today. So this commenter complains that
[00:47:34] there is a lack of transparency in our
[00:47:36] closed sessions and he believes he is
[00:47:38] entitled to more information about the
[00:47:40] matters discussed in close session. He
[00:47:43] suggests a non-counsel observer or
[00:47:45] monitor attend close session so he can
[00:47:47] ask questions of the monitor. He also
[00:47:50] has suggested minutes be taken so that
[00:47:52] he can read them uh after the close
[00:47:54] session is concluded. So here are the
[00:47:56] answers to those two suggestions. No and
[00:47:59] no. And here are the reasons. According
[00:48:02] to the California Department of Justice,
[00:48:04] closed sessions are generally limited to
[00:48:06] discussions involving legal advice on
[00:48:08] pending litigation, personnel matters
[00:48:10] like uh employee discipline or
[00:48:12] performance evaluations, real estate
[00:48:14] negotiations, and labor negotiations.
[00:48:16] Now, these are separate confidential
[00:48:18] matters that require privacy for some
[00:48:21] obvious reason. First is adverse
[00:48:23] litigants must not be made aware of the
[00:48:26] city's litigation tactics and
[00:48:28] strategies. Second, employees have a
[00:48:30] legal right to privacy regarding
[00:48:33] personnel matters. And third, as with
[00:48:35] legal matters, when we're involved in
[00:48:38] either real estate activities or
[00:48:40] negotiations or labor negotiations,
[00:48:43] those other parties must not have access
[00:48:46] to the city's tactics and strategies. If
[00:48:48] information about these matters were
[00:48:50] made publicly available, the potential
[00:48:52] cost to the city and the residents who
[00:48:54] pay taxes in our city could be
[00:48:57] significant. Now, prior to a recessing
[00:48:59] for close session, the law requires that
[00:49:02] the council disclose the general subject
[00:49:04] matter to be discussed. Uh, after close
[00:49:06] session, council is required to disclose
[00:49:09] any final action taken, and that will
[00:49:11] happen today. So, the bottom line is
[00:49:13] that with respect to close session, we
[00:49:14] will abide by the law. We will maintain
[00:49:17] confidentiality for the protection of
[00:49:19] the public and the city's valuable
[00:49:20] resources. We'll report as required. We
[00:49:24] will not take the suggestions offered by
[00:49:26] our good neighbor who has commented
[00:49:27] about close session monitor or close
[00:49:29] session minutes. The second thing I want
[00:49:31] to talk about today is a comment made
[00:49:33] about law enforcement. We have law
[00:49:35] enforcement here today in Rancher
[00:49:37] Mirage. The commenter complains about
[00:49:38] two issues. First, the crime rate in
[00:49:40] Rancher Mirage and second, the number of
[00:49:42] law enforcement deputies in our city.
[00:49:45] When we come to item 7B on today's
[00:49:48] agenda, we'll have an opportunity to
[00:49:49] talk more about the crime rate issue.
[00:49:51] So, I'll save my comments about that
[00:49:53] until then. But on the subject of the
[00:49:55] number of deputies in the community, the
[00:49:57] city contracts for law enforcement
[00:49:59] service with Riverside County Sheriff's
[00:50:01] Department. The net result of the
[00:50:03] language in the contract provides for a
[00:50:05] little more than two deputies per 1,000
[00:50:08] residents. Now by comparison the ratio
[00:50:12] in cities on either side of us is.9
[00:50:16] per thousand in Cathedral City and 1.56
[00:50:20] per thousand in Palm Desert. And again
[00:50:22] here in Rancher Mirage we are a little
[00:50:24] over two per thousand. Now the commoner
[00:50:26] claims that we must not be getting what
[00:50:29] we pay for because he doesn't see them
[00:50:32] as he drives around the city. Understand
[00:50:33] that? That's what he said. I don't see
[00:50:35] him as I drive around the city. That's
[00:50:36] what he says. So, we must not be getting
[00:50:38] what we paid for. Now, two issues about
[00:50:40] his claim. He may not see them, but I
[00:50:43] do. I frequently see multiple law
[00:50:45] enforcement vehicles as I drive the
[00:50:46] length of Frank Frank Sinatra on my way
[00:50:48] to city hall. In fact, I've seen them
[00:50:50] every day this week. The second issue is
[00:50:53] that our contract does not contain a
[00:50:56] provision that says that we must have
[00:50:57] sufficient law enforcement deputies on
[00:50:59] the street. So, this commenter sees
[00:51:01] them. That's not what it says. It
[00:51:03] doesn't say that. what the contract does
[00:51:05] provide for and what the county bills us
[00:51:07] for and what we expect to get and what
[00:51:09] we do get is a little more than two
[00:51:12] deputies per 1,000 population. More
[00:51:14] about this person's comments on the
[00:51:16] crime rate in our city later in the
[00:51:18] meeting. And the third issue uh that I
[00:51:20] want to talk about uh and this is a
[00:51:22] little sensitive is the former Ranch
[00:51:24] Mirage resident who frequently comes to
[00:51:26] council meetings to complain that she no
[00:51:29] no longer lives in one of our senior
[00:51:30] affordable housing communities and
[00:51:32] claims that we must return her to a
[00:51:34] senior affordable apartment in the city.
[00:51:37] Now my heart goes out to her. I'm sure
[00:51:39] all of ours do. And I hope she finds a
[00:51:41] way to resolve her issues, primarily her
[00:51:44] issue about an address to call home.
[00:51:48] Now, regarding the claims that she must
[00:51:51] return to an apartment in one of the
[00:51:53] city's senior affordable housing
[00:51:54] communities, that will not be possible.
[00:51:56] And here's why. She has frequently said
[00:51:59] from the podium here in the council
[00:52:02] chambers that she was evicted. She's
[00:52:04] also said that she will not go back in
[00:52:06] front of a judge. Those two facts are
[00:52:08] things that she herself has spoken
[00:52:10] about. And those two facts should tell
[00:52:12] members of the public what you need to
[00:52:14] know about the fact that she no longer
[00:52:16] resides in a city-owned senior
[00:52:18] affordable housing community.
[00:52:20] Unfortunately, her behavior made
[00:52:22] eviction eviction action necessary.
[00:52:25] Eviction was processed through the
[00:52:26] courts. A judge heard the evidence and
[00:52:28] made the ruling. Judges do not make
[00:52:32] these kinds of decisions lightly. Based
[00:52:34] on the judge's order, she no longer
[00:52:36] resides in city senior affordable
[00:52:38] housing. We have no choice but to honor
[00:52:40] that that order and for that reason we
[00:52:42] cannot allow her to again reside in one
[00:52:44] of the city's senior affordable housing
[00:52:46] communities. Now that does not mean that
[00:52:49] we have not made every attempt to help
[00:52:51] her. We have city staff has referred her
[00:52:54] to Riverside County Adult Protective
[00:52:56] Services. APS has found housing for her.
[00:52:59] In at least one case, she has refused
[00:53:01] that housing, but APS staff continues to
[00:53:04] work with her to find affordable housing
[00:53:06] options. I'm sorry that she's not happy
[00:53:09] with some of those housing housing
[00:53:11] options that a APS has found for her and
[00:53:14] um I understand that she prefers her
[00:53:16] former Rancher Mirage affordable housing
[00:53:18] apartment, but be because of her actions
[00:53:21] and as a result of the eviction order, a
[00:53:23] return to our affordable housing is not
[00:53:26] an option. I do hope that she finds a
[00:53:29] way to work productively with adult
[00:53:32] protective services in finding
[00:53:35] acceptable housing. Now, I'm pretty sure
[00:53:37] that those who have made these various
[00:53:39] comments will find fault with everything
[00:53:41] I've said today. I might find that later
[00:53:44] on when we have non-aggenda public
[00:53:47] comment in this very meeting.
[00:53:50] But I do hope that this helps our
[00:53:51] rancher mirage res residents with a
[00:53:54] better understanding of some of the
[00:53:56] issues raised during non-aggenda public
[00:53:58] comment and what we can and can't do
[00:54:01] about it. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
[00:54:03] >> Thank you, council member
[00:54:06] and mayor promot.
[00:54:09] >> I will keep my comments brief today. Uh
[00:54:12] I'd like to uh echo my fellow council
[00:54:16] member uh Eve Framberg Edelstein's
[00:54:18] comments on our partnership with the
[00:54:21] tribe. I remember the days when Dora
[00:54:23] Prietto was head of the tribe along with
[00:54:26] Richard Milanovich. I knew Mr.
[00:54:28] Milanovich very very well. And yesterday
[00:54:31] as I shared with our mayor as I listened
[00:54:34] to Reed Milanovich speak,
[00:54:38] the tribe is in excellent hands with its
[00:54:40] current council and its chair. Um it's
[00:54:44] not just a community partnership. This
[00:54:47] is uh as I relayed to chairman
[00:54:50] Milanovich yesterday,
[00:54:53] it's it's it's working with they it's
[00:54:56] working with family and they are such
[00:55:00] great partners with not just Rancher
[00:55:03] Mirage but all the communities and and
[00:55:06] resources outside of their reservation.
[00:55:10] They truly believe in the value of not
[00:55:13] only supporting but thriving not just
[00:55:16] for today but for the future. So we are
[00:55:19] very very pleased um and we recognize
[00:55:23] and value our relationship with the
[00:55:25] tribe. Public safety,
[00:55:28] we treasure our public safety and last
[00:55:30] Friday night um at Aua Caliente Resort
[00:55:34] was a beautiful awards celebration for
[00:55:37] our deputies out there. It was just for
[00:55:40] the sheriff's department that night. We
[00:55:42] cheer on our fire department as well.
[00:55:45] But our fire our our sheriff's
[00:55:47] department is out there and I really
[00:55:49] appreciate them when they're on Dinosaur
[00:55:53] and Deval Road um monitoring speed and
[00:55:57] so um I I I do appreciate that because
[00:56:00] it keeps our our streets safe and they
[00:56:03] are very responsive whether it is for
[00:56:06] calls for service or if one of our my
[00:56:09] fellow council members or myself asks to
[00:56:12] come and and give a presentation.
[00:56:14] They're very very involved with this
[00:56:16] city and we are most most grateful for
[00:56:19] your presence, your work, your
[00:56:20] dedication. Thank you.
[00:56:23] >> Thank you, Mayor Protown. Well, well
[00:56:25] spoken.
[00:56:27] I too appreciate obviously our law
[00:56:30] enforcement and our fire.
[00:56:33] Uh and I can tell you I feel safer as a
[00:56:37] result. Um, and certainly I can attest
[00:56:41] to the fact that uh I'm safer as a
[00:56:44] result of my wife getting a speeding
[00:56:45] ticket. Um,
[00:56:50] and uh and she uh she did the crime and
[00:56:55] paid the fine and uh
[00:56:59] you're still here
[00:57:00] >> and uh and I will live with that the
[00:57:03] balance of my married years. So, thank
[00:57:06] you. Thank you guys for being out there.
[00:57:09] I appreciate that. Uh
[00:57:12] we will now transition into city manager
[00:57:16] comments and uh we will ask the
[00:57:20] assistant city manager to handle that
[00:57:23] today for us.
[00:57:25] >> Uh I have no comments this afternoon. If
[00:57:27] you don't mind, I'll just roll right
[00:57:28] into the consent calendar.
[00:57:29] >> Absolutely.
[00:57:30] >> All right. Good afternoon. Uh, honorable
[00:57:32] mayor and council members, you have nine
[00:57:33] items listed on your consent calendar
[00:57:35] for this afternoon, which I will
[00:57:37] summarize briefly. Um, item A is to wave
[00:57:39] full reading of any ordinance introduced
[00:57:41] or adopted pursuant to this agenda. Item
[00:57:44] B is the approval of the adjoined
[00:57:46] regular city council meeting minutes for
[00:57:48] June 18th, 2025.
[00:57:51] You have item C, an appointment to the
[00:57:53] Rancher Mirage Community Parks and
[00:57:55] Trails Commission.
[00:57:58] Uh item D, we have the annual
[00:58:00] appointments to the city council
[00:58:02] representatives to various outside
[00:58:03] agency boards, committees, and
[00:58:05] commissions.
[00:58:07] Moving on to item E, we have a final
[00:58:09] acceptance of improvements related to
[00:58:10] parcel map uh 38380,
[00:58:15] also known as sanctuary.
[00:58:18] Item F is consideration of transitioning
[00:58:21] to electric vehicles.
[00:58:23] Item G is a donation of surplus public
[00:58:27] safety equipment.
[00:58:29] Item H is contracts and item I is
[00:58:32] demands. Be happy to answer any
[00:58:34] questions that the council members may
[00:58:36] have on this.
[00:58:37] >> Thank you. Are there any um public
[00:58:39] comments regarding the consent calendar?
[00:58:41] >> Yes, I do have one speaker card. Before
[00:58:43] we do that, I just wanted to mention I'm
[00:58:45] sure you're noticing for some reason the
[00:58:48] consent item is not showing up on the
[00:58:50] left hand side in your screen. So, when
[00:58:52] we get to a motion and a vote for that,
[00:58:54] I'm gonna do a roll call vote, a voice
[00:58:56] vote.
[00:58:56] >> Okay. Thank you, Christie.
[00:58:58] >> And um the speaker is Brad Anderson.
[00:59:04] >> Oh, yeah.
[00:59:05] >> Thank you. I'm Brad Anderson. I
[00:59:06] currently live within the city of Ranch.
[00:59:09] I wanted to speak on the consent items
[00:59:11] today. Item 5 A, 5B, 5F, and 5G. Please.
[00:59:16] Starting with 5A. That's that's the
[00:59:19] waving of the fur rating. uh my concerns
[00:59:22] with transparencies in this transparency
[00:59:24] in the city. I think it may be
[00:59:28] proactive of the city to actually read
[00:59:31] these uh agenda items uh in for to the
[00:59:34] public so the public knows this
[00:59:38] to dictate 5G
[00:59:41] was it completely read into the record
[00:59:43] correctly? Public safety equipment yes
[00:59:46] but it's automatic license plate
[00:59:47] recognition equipment. So, I'll come to
[00:59:50] that in a moment. But, and 5B is just
[00:59:53] the minutes. Uh, again, I I I'm just
[00:59:56] really concerned about how the city has
[00:59:59] um taken it upon themselves to reduce
[01:00:04] uh the minutes to um
[01:00:07] unatt you can't even understand it if
[01:00:10] you go to read it. My public comments
[01:00:12] will not be mentioned in the minutes. Uh
[01:00:15] the items I'm speaking on right now
[01:00:17] won't be mentioned at all. and my stance
[01:00:20] on east items won't be be mentioned at
[01:00:22] all. That's just per governance and I
[01:00:24] think it's in it's it's primacre in a
[01:00:27] way and I'm I'm against that. So
[01:00:30] hopefully you can adjust that. I don't
[01:00:31] think you will since you have council
[01:00:33] members attacking public speakers now.
[01:00:35] So I'm going to go to 5F now and that's
[01:00:38] consideration of transitioning all all
[01:00:41] city veggers to electric vehicers. Yes,
[01:00:44] it's a California mandate. Yeah, but I
[01:00:46] think the city should step back from
[01:00:48] that a little bit and not rush in like
[01:00:50] you did with the garbage and burk waste
[01:00:52] cuz you bought a truck and you initiated
[01:00:55] that whole aspect when the county hasn't
[01:00:58] even done it yet in fur. So I think
[01:01:01] maybe put on the brakes a little bit on
[01:01:04] that and uh and uh 5G I'm going to go to
[01:01:07] that. That's the donation of surplus
[01:01:09] automated license plate recognition
[01:01:10] equipment to the Riverside
[01:01:13] uh city of Riverside.
[01:01:15] I want to remind the the city residents
[01:01:18] in 20123 the city purchased seven of
[01:01:21] those cameras at over $8,000 a piece and
[01:01:25] now they're up, you know, they're not
[01:01:28] going to be used at all by the city. So
[01:01:30] that's $76,000
[01:01:32] in in equipment that's not usable by the
[01:01:34] city or city refuses to use it. And now
[01:01:37] we're going to just give it away. And uh
[01:01:40] and that's it. I'm going to be done now.
[01:01:42] Thank you very much.
[01:01:44] >> Thank you for your comments.
[01:01:45] >> Is there anyone else who would like to
[01:01:47] speak regarding the consent calendar?
[01:01:50] That was the only speaker.
[01:01:51] >> Thank you. Are there any council
[01:01:53] comments regarding the consent calendar?
[01:01:56] >> If no comments, I'll move to approve the
[01:01:57] consent calendar.
[01:01:59] >> All right. There's there's a motion and
[01:02:01] a second.
[01:02:02] >> Please vote.
[01:02:04] >> Are we voting or roll calling?
[01:02:05] >> Yes. I'm going to do a roll call vote.
[01:02:06] Thank you.
[01:02:07] >> Okay.
[01:02:07] >> Council member DS.
[01:02:09] >> Yes.
[01:02:09] >> Council member Framberg Edelstein.
[01:02:11] >> Yes.
[01:02:11] >> Council member O'Keefe.
[01:02:13] >> Yes.
[01:02:13] >> Mayor Prom Mulatto?
[01:02:14] >> Yes.
[01:02:15] >> Mayor While?
[01:02:16] >> Yes.
[01:02:16] >> Motion carries 5. Thank you.
[01:02:21] >> We will now go to the U
[01:02:25] uh public hearings.
[01:02:27] First will be a uh zoning text amendment
[01:02:31] case number
[01:02:33] ZTA-25
[01:02:37] 25-02.
[01:02:40] Uh this is going to be handled by Pam
[01:02:43] Berky, our code compliance manager. Pam,
[01:02:47] delighted to see you up here. Uh this is
[01:02:50] Pam's first presentation as far as I
[01:02:53] know. Um, I hope not our last. She does
[01:02:57] a great job. Extremely professional uh
[01:03:01] in her job and I'm sure her presentation
[01:03:06] will likewise be as professional. So,
[01:03:08] thank you, Pam, for being here.
[01:03:11] >> Thank you, Mayor. I promise to keep my
[01:03:13] first presentation short and sweet for
[01:03:15] you. Um, I won't keep you too long.
[01:03:20] Good afternoon, mayor and city council
[01:03:22] members. For your consideration, we have
[01:03:24] zoning text amendment number
[01:03:26] ZTA25-00002,
[01:03:31] which is a proposed amendment to title
[01:03:34] 17 of the Ranch Mirage Municipal Code.
[01:03:39] The purpose of the this proposed
[01:03:41] ordinance and resolution is to introduce
[01:03:44] an amendment to section 17.30.270D
[01:03:50] of the Ranch Mirage Municipal Code to
[01:03:53] incorporate a tier-based penalty fee
[01:03:55] schedule for short-term rentals. It is
[01:03:58] important to note that the subject
[01:04:00] ordinance and resolution are only
[01:04:02] modifying monetary regulations and will
[01:04:05] not impact the current ban on short-term
[01:04:08] rentals.
[01:04:11] Displayed on the screen is a breakdown
[01:04:13] of the proposed changes. Please note the
[01:04:16] fines for operation remain the same as
[01:04:18] what is currently adopted in the
[01:04:20] municipal code.
[01:04:26] Staff recommends city council make the
[01:04:28] recommendations as seen on the screen or
[01:04:31] as listed in the staff report. That
[01:04:33] concludes my first presentation to city
[01:04:35] council and I'm available for any
[01:04:37] questions.
[01:04:38] >> Great job, Pam. Excellent. Thank you.
[01:04:41] Uh, are there any public comments
[01:04:43] regarding this item?
[01:04:45] >> Yes, Brad Anderson.
[01:04:50] >> Thank you again, Brad Anderson, City of
[01:04:51] Ranch. I wanted to speak on item 6B or
[01:04:55] 6A, I'm sorry. This concerning an
[01:04:56] amendment to uh make a tier based
[01:04:58] penalty free system. I I'm concerned
[01:05:01] that the city has time to do this type
[01:05:04] of thing. Uh, it's
[01:05:07] I guess I just want to emphasize to the
[01:05:09] people that have short-term rentals or
[01:05:11] had short-term rentals or may be accused
[01:05:13] of having short-term rentals or
[01:05:15] advertising short-term rentals to
[01:05:16] contact me uh because I am processing
[01:05:20] all this information as much as I can
[01:05:23] for later u not litigation but uh just
[01:05:27] reference uh but uh I I'm concerned
[01:05:30] about this because
[01:05:34] Well, I'm concerned about it because of
[01:05:36] the excessive fees and excessive
[01:05:38] penalties involved and and I know the
[01:05:41] city of Palm Springs uh actively um
[01:05:45] hunts down any any type of people that
[01:05:48] rent houses or or type of B&B type as
[01:05:52] effects. And I've gone I've been in
[01:05:55] attendance of those meetings uh where
[01:05:58] people are accused of such acts and and
[01:06:01] I'm really amazed that they are able to
[01:06:03] prosecute as they do and and just going
[01:06:07] off that a little bit uh on
[01:06:08] administrative fines and so forth to
[01:06:10] keep in the subject matter. Uh when
[01:06:13] people are accused of such a crime
[01:06:15] because it is a crime now uh it's a it's
[01:06:19] a private affair and it should be an
[01:06:21] open affair. Uh I've gone through the
[01:06:23] administrative process too,
[01:06:24] administrative citation process uh uh
[01:06:28] because of the city um uh
[01:06:32] initiation of that. Um and and it should
[01:06:36] be an open affair like a public meeting,
[01:06:39] a public hearing. other cities do it
[01:06:41] that matter and and this city should do
[01:06:42] it too because it's not a private affair
[01:06:45] when people are accused of crimes and
[01:06:47] and they have no defense or you can I've
[01:06:50] had attorneys and I have ones without
[01:06:52] attorneys and and it doesn't matter you
[01:06:55] will lose uh with this city so I I I
[01:07:00] guess I'm going off on the tangents here
[01:07:01] but uh I I'm against this I'm opposed to
[01:07:04] this and hopefully the minutes will
[01:07:05] reflect that. Thank you.
[01:07:07] >> Thank you for your comments. Is there
[01:07:09] anyone else who would like to provide
[01:07:11] public testimony on public hearing item
[01:07:13] 6A?
[01:07:14] >> That was the only speaker.
[01:07:16] >> Thank you. Are there any council
[01:07:18] comments regarding this item?
[01:07:20] >> I'd like to make a quick comment. Yes.
[01:07:22] >> So, in my prior life as a real estate
[01:07:24] attorney in town, um this issue comes up
[01:07:27] a lot. I get a lot of phone calls, we
[01:07:29] our office does from people who have
[01:07:31] been subject to fines um in cities that
[01:07:34] allow short-term rentals and they
[01:07:36] violated those rules and in cities where
[01:07:39] they don't allow them, they violate
[01:07:40] those rules. Um it is a large industry.
[01:07:44] It is challenging to manage. People list
[01:07:47] on Airbnb, Craigslist, all sorts of
[01:07:49] social media for their homes this way.
[01:07:52] It's disruptive to neighbors that don't
[01:07:54] want to live next to rent a short-term
[01:07:57] rental. It's important um that the
[01:08:01] people that in the cities where it's
[01:08:02] available that it's regulated for the
[01:08:05] for the quality of the residents that do
[01:08:07] not rent their homes in this manner. I
[01:08:10] also understand the viability of why it
[01:08:12] can be an important industry for some
[01:08:13] cities like Palm Springs in their choice
[01:08:15] to deal with it. But um I think the
[01:08:18] process
[01:08:20] is fair and I think us updating the code
[01:08:22] for this is is is extremely good for
[01:08:25] people that may stumble into this
[01:08:27] problem and not realize um what they're
[01:08:30] facing if they choose to be flagrant
[01:08:32] about using their home in this manner.
[01:08:34] Um, it's complex, but I respect the city
[01:08:37] for being up to date and looking at new
[01:08:40] approaches on how to enforce uh to
[01:08:43] balance out the penalty on homeowners,
[01:08:46] but also ensuring the quality of life in
[01:08:48] the city. So, thank you.
[01:08:50] >> Thank you. Good comments.
[01:08:52] Any other uh council comments?
[01:08:55] Seeing none, I'll entertain a motion,
[01:08:57] please.
[01:09:02] >> I'll go ahead and do the motion. Um,
[01:09:04] first let me ask uh the city attorney uh
[01:09:08] if it's appropriate to read the entire
[01:09:10] recommended action or if it's
[01:09:12] appropriate to simply move to uh um
[01:09:15] adopt the recommended action from uh
[01:09:17] from staff. Uh it it's better
[01:09:21] >> I'm happy to read the whole thing if
[01:09:22] need be.
[01:09:23] >> Uh reading it makes it a little bit more
[01:09:25] clear for the record. Um otherwise uh
[01:09:28] referencing the uh the staff report is
[01:09:30] okay but um reading it for the record
[01:09:32] makes it a little more clear. We'll read
[01:09:33] it for the record then. And by the way,
[01:09:35] welcome to the city manager who I have
[01:09:37] has joined us. Good to have you with us.
[01:09:40] So I move that the council adopt the
[01:09:42] recommended action from staff which is
[01:09:44] one find that the adoption of the
[01:09:46] ordinance has been reviewed in
[01:09:48] compliance with the provisions of the
[01:09:50] California Environmental Quality Act and
[01:09:52] SQA guidelines and that environmental
[01:09:55] quality act and and that environmental
[01:09:58] quality act pursuant to SQA guidelines
[01:10:00] section 15378 because it is not a
[01:10:03] project and 15061
[01:10:06] B3 because it can be seen with
[01:10:08] certainty. that there is no possibility
[01:10:10] that the activity in question may have a
[01:10:13] significant effect on the environment
[01:10:15] because the amendments involve general
[01:10:17] policy and procedurem. Two, introduce a
[01:10:20] ordinance ordinance number next in order
[01:10:22] first reading amending chapter 17.30
[01:10:26] standards for specific land uses section
[01:10:28] 17.30.270D 270D
[01:10:31] penalty of the Rancher Mirage Municipal
[01:10:33] Code and three adopt resolution number
[01:10:36] 2025 next in order adopting a tierbased
[01:10:39] schedule of fines regarding violation of
[01:10:42] short-term rental regulations.
[01:10:45] >> Second. There is a motion and a second.
[01:10:48] Please vote.
[01:11:02] Mayor Wild, could you try your vote one
[01:11:03] more time?
[01:11:05] >> Thank you. Motion carries. 5-0.
[01:11:11] We will now go to um item 6B which is
[01:11:14] the environmental assessment case number
[01:11:18] EA25
[01:11:20] uh -02
[01:11:23] and that's being presented by Mina Duk,
[01:11:28] director of development services. Mina,
[01:11:30] if you would please.
[01:11:32] >> Thank you. Before we get started, I just
[01:11:33] want to take a moment to take uh to
[01:11:35] thank Polar for all of her hard work on
[01:11:38] this project. She's not here to present
[01:11:40] today, but I have a sneaky suspicion
[01:11:42] that she might be watching. So, thank
[01:11:44] you, Polar, for all of your hard work.
[01:11:47] And could could we please switch? Thank
[01:11:49] you so much.
[01:11:52] Thank you. And good afternoon, Mayor
[01:11:53] Wing City Council members. For today's
[01:11:56] consideration, we have the Rancher
[01:11:58] Mirage Affordable Apartments, a proposed
[01:12:01] 150 unit multifamily housing
[01:12:03] development.
[01:12:06] Before we get into the project, I'd like
[01:12:08] to take a moment to remind us how we got
[01:12:10] here.
[01:12:11] To meet state housing mandates, the city
[01:12:13] of Rancher Mirage adopted and certified
[01:12:16] its sixth cycle housing element in 2022
[01:12:20] to plan for 1,746
[01:12:23] new units by 2029, of which 1,076
[01:12:27] must be affordable.
[01:12:29] The housing element identified the
[01:12:31] subject's site as inventory site B. To
[01:12:35] support affordable housing development,
[01:12:36] the city applied an affordable housing
[01:12:38] overlay and issued a request for
[01:12:40] qualifications for affordable housing
[01:12:42] development in late August of 2023 for
[01:12:45] the subject site. At the end of 2023,
[01:12:49] the city became aware of the state's
[01:12:51] resource designation for the subject
[01:12:53] site being downgraded, which would have
[01:12:55] directly affected access to funding and
[01:12:57] tax credits. The city council took
[01:13:00] immediate action and secured site
[01:13:02] control through three disposition
[01:13:04] development agreements approved in
[01:13:06] December of 20 2023 for the inventory
[01:13:09] site B
[01:13:11] National Corps in partnership with USA
[01:13:13] Properties Fund. Today's applicants were
[01:13:16] selected to develop the 5acre site and
[01:13:18] entered into a DDA with the city.
[01:13:20] Today's project is a direct
[01:13:22] implementation of that DDA.
[01:13:25] As of June, the city has planned or
[01:13:27] entitled 844 affordable units, meeting
[01:13:31] 78% of its RENA obligation, including
[01:13:35] the proposed 150 units on the site.
[01:13:41] The site is located immediately south of
[01:13:44] the Rosette Apartments by Pacific
[01:13:45] Companies, which was the first 10acre
[01:13:47] parcel that implemented one of the three
[01:13:50] DDAs. National Corps is now seeking
[01:13:52] entitlement for the second parcel, a
[01:13:54] 5acre piece.
[01:14:00] The proposed project features a desert
[01:14:03] modern design with clean lines, flat
[01:14:05] roofs, and desert tone finishes. Most
[01:14:08] buildings are three-story walkups with
[01:14:09] recessed balconies and articulated
[01:14:11] facades for visual interest. Native
[01:14:14] drought tolerant landscaping with
[01:14:16] boulders enhances the pedestrian
[01:14:18] experience and blends with the desert
[01:14:19] environment.
[01:14:24] On screen is the proposed site plan. The
[01:14:26] project includes two vehicle access
[01:14:28] points at the northeast and southeast
[01:14:30] corners connecting to the future via
[01:14:32] veil extension. The layout centers
[01:14:34] around two courtyards, one with a pool,
[01:14:36] game court, and pool house and another
[01:14:38] with a butterfly garden and shaded
[01:14:40] seating. There are seven walkup
[01:14:42] buildings two to three stories tall
[01:14:45] offering one, two, and threebedroom
[01:14:47] units with all ground floor units
[01:14:49] offering ADA access.
[01:14:52] A central community building includes
[01:14:54] offices, a community room, laundry, and
[01:14:56] bike storage. The site provides 219
[01:15:00] parking spaces, including 10 ADA spaces
[01:15:03] with solar carports covering 141 stalls.
[01:15:07] Sidewalks and paths connect all areas,
[01:15:10] including a pedestrian gate to the
[01:15:11] future public park.
[01:15:19] This slide shows the six proposed unit
[01:15:22] types which include one, two, and
[01:15:24] threebedroom layouts. The units are
[01:15:26] designed with open concept living and
[01:15:28] dining areas, full kitchens, and private
[01:15:30] patios or balconies. Each unit type is
[01:15:34] repeated across multiple buildings to
[01:15:36] provide a balanced distribution of
[01:15:38] housing sizes throughout the site.
[01:15:43] This slide shows the elevations for
[01:15:45] buildings two and five which are
[01:15:46] three-story walkups designed in a
[01:15:48] upscale desert modern style. The
[01:15:51] building features a mix of materials
[01:15:53] including smooth and sand finished
[01:15:56] stucco, woodlook sighting, stacked stone
[01:15:58] veneer, and dark metal accents. Parapit
[01:16:01] walls provide clean roof lines and
[01:16:04] screen any future rooftop equipment.
[01:16:09] Building 7 serves as the community
[01:16:11] building and is the most architecturally
[01:16:13] distinctive structure in the project.
[01:16:15] The exterior features a blend of
[01:16:17] materials and vertical stone elements
[01:16:19] which add visual rhythm.
[01:16:26] The landscape plan creates connected
[01:16:28] open spaces that encourage community
[01:16:30] interaction and walkability. The main
[01:16:32] entry is lined with palms and native
[01:16:34] plants leading to a loop road with
[01:16:36] shaded crossings and trees. A shaded
[01:16:39] plaza near the community building offers
[01:16:41] a welcome gathering spot. The design
[01:16:44] uses lowwater desert friendly plants
[01:16:46] like Palo Verde, Mosquite, and Texas
[01:16:48] Ranger.
[01:16:52] The project was reviewed under SQA and a
[01:16:55] mitigated negative declaration was found
[01:16:57] to be appropriate. With mitigation
[01:16:59] measures in place, all impacts were
[01:17:01] reduced to less than significant. The
[01:17:03] public review period closed on June
[01:17:05] 30th. One comment letter was received
[01:17:07] from the California Department of Fish
[01:17:09] and Wildlife and a formal response was
[01:17:12] provided.
[01:17:16] On June 26th, the planning commission
[01:17:18] held a public hearing to review the
[01:17:20] project. After discussion, the
[01:17:22] commission recommended approval. The
[01:17:24] developer is also requesting deferral of
[01:17:26] all city development impact fees to
[01:17:28] support outside funding efforts. If
[01:17:31] approved, a 55year fee deferral loan
[01:17:34] agreement will be executed. Public
[01:17:36] hearing notices were sent on July 2nd
[01:17:39] and three letters of support have been
[01:17:41] received. Staff recommends that the city
[01:17:43] council take the action shown on the
[01:17:45] screen.
[01:17:47] This concludes staff staff's
[01:17:49] presentation. I would now like to invite
[01:17:51] the applicant up to the podium to
[01:17:52] deliver their presentation. Thank you
[01:17:54] for your consideration.
[01:18:02] All right. Uh good afternoon, Mayor
[01:18:04] Mobile and members of the city council
[01:18:06] of Ranch Mirage. Um my name is Taylor
[01:18:09] and I'm here representing the
[01:18:10] development team behind the proposed
[01:18:12] project, the Rancher Mirage uh family
[01:18:14] apartments. It's a pleasure to join you
[01:18:16] today to talk a little bit more about
[01:18:18] the community team, how light highlight
[01:18:20] how we'll support the long-term success
[01:18:22] of the community and um very importantly
[01:18:25] express our deep appreciation to the
[01:18:27] city for making this community possible.
[01:18:31] So let me
[01:18:33] Okay. So the community reflects a very
[01:18:36] strong spirit of partnership and
[01:18:38] collaboration. National CPS and USA
[01:18:40] properties to recognize leaders in
[01:18:43] affordable housing nationally have
[01:18:45] teamed up for this opportunity to bring
[01:18:47] this community to life and to stay
[01:18:49] involved in the community for the long
[01:18:50] term. We've brought together a missional
[01:18:53] aligned and experienced design and
[01:18:54] entitlements team shown on the screen
[01:18:56] that includes RRM design group and the
[01:18:59] architect and landscape architect, Atlas
[01:19:02] Civil Design, our civil engineer,
[01:19:04] Terteranova Planning and Research, our
[01:19:06] environmental consultant. And I also
[01:19:08] want to mention that USA Properties will
[01:19:10] serve as the general contractor of the
[01:19:12] community as well.
[01:19:14] This team has worked really closely with
[01:19:16] city staff, architectural review working
[01:19:18] group, and the planning commission to
[01:19:20] design a community that's not only
[01:19:21] beautiful and functional, but that um
[01:19:24] allows us to serve the community well
[01:19:27] and that fits and enhances the existing
[01:19:29] neighborhood. Um we've provided a little
[01:19:32] more background on some of um our
[01:19:34] organizations in your in the
[01:19:36] presentation. I won't take too much time
[01:19:38] to go through that um but they are there
[01:19:41] uh to provide some background. Um we
[01:19:44] National CPS and USA Properties Fund
[01:19:46] have a lot in common. We're both kind of
[01:19:49] full-ervice um housing organizations um
[01:19:52] that are committed to affordable and um
[01:19:55] quality long-term housing solutions. Um
[01:19:59] so, uh with that, I will move to our um
[01:20:02] long-term ownership and management.
[01:20:03] You'll recognize those logos because
[01:20:05] it's the same as the development team.
[01:20:07] Um, as both developers and the long-term
[01:20:09] owners, we know that a successful
[01:20:11] community doesn't stop at construction.
[01:20:13] Uh, it demands thoughtful, consistent,
[01:20:15] and long-term operations. So, I want
[01:20:17] just to take a couple minutes to talk
[01:20:19] about our property management approach.
[01:20:21] So, National Core will serve as the
[01:20:23] long-term property management agency and
[01:20:26] we operate all of our communities with
[01:20:28] intention, care, and commitment to
[01:20:30] community. Um we were recently honored
[01:20:32] to be selected as the city of Ranch
[01:20:34] Mirage housing authorities property
[01:20:36] manager and actually just started that
[01:20:38] this um earlier this month and it's off
[01:20:40] to a great start. Um and so it'll be the
[01:20:43] same same team that's managing um the
[01:20:45] housing authority properties and this
[01:20:46] property. Um we're also um exploring a
[01:20:50] partnership um with our hope through
[01:20:52] housing foundation which is on all of
[01:20:54] our sites um who we are exploring a
[01:20:56] partnership with hope through housing
[01:20:58] foundation and desert recreation
[01:21:00] district to provide after school and
[01:21:02] summer programming on site. We do this
[01:21:04] in other desert communities and we found
[01:21:06] it to be an amazing partnership. Um so
[01:21:08] not only are we housing communities but
[01:21:10] we're providing programming and services
[01:21:12] to promote um health and well-being. Um
[01:21:15] services on site offered either through
[01:21:18] hope through housing or um uh desert
[01:21:21] recreation district um are focused on um
[01:21:25] economic mobility and equipping
[01:21:26] residents with the skills and support
[01:21:28] towards self-sufficiency.
[01:21:31] Um
[01:21:32] oops I went too far.
[01:21:35] Um it's all right. Our management
[01:21:36] approach a little bit more about our
[01:21:38] approach. It's um based in
[01:21:39] accountability and um best-in-class um
[01:21:43] con me uh metrics. Um one of the most
[01:21:46] important thing about the long-term
[01:21:48] management is our parking strategy. Um
[01:21:51] and so I just want to uh say a few
[01:21:53] things about about that. Um it parking
[01:21:56] is based on permits. Each unit is
[01:21:58] assigned one spot and then there's a
[01:22:00] pool of assigned spaces for cars that um
[01:22:02] residents can enter a lottery to get a
[01:22:04] second spot. Um residents must uh show
[01:22:08] that um their car they have a valid
[01:22:11] light driver's license, current
[01:22:12] registration, proof of insurance, and
[01:22:14] demonstrate that it's operable um in
[01:22:17] order to get a permit. And um there's
[01:22:19] strict enforcement. Um this is part of
[01:22:21] their leasing addendum. So adhering to
[01:22:23] the parking requirements is part of
[01:22:25] their ability to live here. Um and so we
[01:22:28] we really enforce our parking strategy
[01:22:30] because it is so important to our
[01:22:32] residents quality of life. Um and so
[01:22:34] just wanted again this works because um
[01:22:37] we as long-term owner and operators have
[01:22:40] um looked at the site, looked at our
[01:22:42] parking utilization across our other
[01:22:43] communities in the Inland Empire and in
[01:22:46] the valley and really rightsize the
[01:22:48] parking to what we think um will be
[01:22:50] demand.
[01:22:53] Okay. And um so that's uh mostly what I
[01:22:56] wanted to to highlight on um the
[01:22:58] property management side. Um really I
[01:23:01] just want to close thanking the city for
[01:23:03] its vision and its leadership in making
[01:23:05] this possible. I also want to call out
[01:23:07] Par who I am sure is online watching
[01:23:10] this. She's been an incredible she's
[01:23:12] gone above and beyond the role of a
[01:23:13] planner. Um and she's just not only
[01:23:16] technically excellent but just has a
[01:23:17] passion for for this that comes through
[01:23:20] in her work. So just really grateful for
[01:23:21] her work. Um and just the the leadership
[01:23:24] of the council. It's rare to see the
[01:23:26] city not only um give lip surface to
[01:23:28] housing but to shape the conditions for
[01:23:30] a successful community. Um and we
[01:23:32] believe that the community will be a
[01:23:34] lasting reflection of that vision. And
[01:23:36] so thank you again for the opportunity
[01:23:37] to speak and to be here this afternoon.
[01:23:40] Um we are honored by your partnership
[01:23:42] and look forward to continue to working
[01:23:44] with the city to bring this community to
[01:23:46] life. Thank you.
[01:23:47] >> Thank you. It's an exciting project.
[01:23:50] We're all very excited about it.
[01:23:53] Uh are there uh any uh public comments?
[01:23:58] >> Yes, the first speaker is Brad Anderson.
[01:24:05] >> Thank you again, Brad Anderson, City
[01:24:07] Rage. Uh I'm concerned uh about the uh
[01:24:11] the staff report. Uh I understand
[01:24:14] there's three letters of support uh from
[01:24:16] the Desert Well, from left to right. You
[01:24:19] like that? and and and the desert health
[01:24:22] not desert healthcare district but the
[01:24:23] desert record I can't pronounce but
[01:24:25] anyway all all addressed to Mayor Kite
[01:24:29] uh but my point is I have a letter of
[01:24:32] opposition to the planning commission uh
[01:24:36] and that wasn't mentioned uh not that it
[01:24:38] matters I understand how the city
[01:24:40] operates uh I I'm opposed to this
[01:24:43] hopefully my stance will be taken in the
[01:24:45] minutes u and there's many aspects of it
[01:24:49] that they defer deferred uh what do they
[01:24:52] call it? Deferred something deferred
[01:24:53] agreement and well for the fees and so
[01:24:56] forth. That's a 55 year agreement.
[01:24:58] That's an excessive amount of time. I
[01:25:00] don't think any of us is going to be
[01:25:01] here in 55 years. I hope I'm wrong. Uh
[01:25:04] but
[01:25:06] that aspect and then the IID substation
[01:25:10] aspect is a big one. Uh I I know why
[01:25:13] it's being done is to push other
[01:25:14] derailment into the area at the cost of
[01:25:17] the tax bail. and that's why I'm
[01:25:19] opposed. Thank you.
[01:25:20] >> Thank you for your comments.
[01:25:23] >> The next speaker is James Brownard.
[01:25:36] >> Good afternoon, mayor, members of the
[01:25:38] city council. I'm putting on my Chamber
[01:25:40] of Ranch Mirage Chamber of Commerce hat
[01:25:43] as the director of governmental affairs.
[01:25:45] Uh Katie apologizes she cannot be here.
[01:25:48] Uh moving four air four doors down into
[01:25:52] uh another office space. So she's asked
[01:25:54] me to read this letter. On behalf of the
[01:25:57] Ranch Mirage Chamber of Commerce, I am
[01:25:59] pleased to express our strong support
[01:26:01] for item 6B, which advances the Rancher
[01:26:03] Mirage affordable apartments, a 150 unit
[01:26:08] affordable housing community that will
[01:26:09] serve local working families.
[01:26:12] This project supports the economic
[01:26:14] vitality of Ranch Mirage by providing
[01:26:17] housing to the workforce that powers our
[01:26:19] region's businesses, schools, hospitals,
[01:26:22] and hospitality sector. Um, access to
[01:26:26] stable, affordable housing close to
[01:26:28] employment is essential for attracting
[01:26:30] and retaining talent, reducing commute
[01:26:32] burdens, and fostering a stronger local
[01:26:35] community and economy.
[01:26:38] We are also proud to recognize National
[01:26:40] CPS, the developer of this project as
[01:26:42] both a member of the Ranch Mirage
[01:26:45] Chamber and a long-standing partner of
[01:26:47] Coachella Valley. With a portfolio of
[01:26:51] highquality affordable communities
[01:26:52] throughout Riverside County, National
[01:26:54] Corps brings deep regional experience
[01:26:57] and a commitment to long-term
[01:26:59] stewardship. We rec we commend the city
[01:27:02] of Ranch Mirage for leveraging
[01:27:04] city-owned land to serve an urgent
[01:27:06] community need. Moving swiftly to keep
[01:27:09] this important project on track for
[01:27:11] funding and construction. Partnering
[01:27:14] partnering with a trusted missiondriven
[01:27:18] developer to deliver highquality housing
[01:27:20] that reflects the values of this
[01:27:22] community. This is an opportunity.
[01:27:25] Invest in Ranch Mirage's future,
[01:27:27] supporting both our workforce and our
[01:27:29] business community. We urge you to
[01:27:32] approve item 6B and thank you for your
[01:27:34] continued leadership. Thank you.
[01:27:37] >> Thank you, James. Thank you for being
[01:27:38] here today and uh good luck to you and
[01:27:42] Katie on the move today.
[01:27:44] Uh are there any other uh comments?
[01:27:47] >> That was the last speaker card. Is there
[01:27:49] anyone else who would like to provide
[01:27:50] public testimony on item 6B?
[01:27:54] No more speakers.
[01:27:55] >> Are there any council comments regarding
[01:27:57] this item?
[01:27:59] >> I do, Mr. Mayor. Uh, first I also would
[01:28:03] like to say if Par is watching, thank
[01:28:05] you.
[01:28:06] >> We know how hard you've worked on this.
[01:28:08] Um, I want to say congratulations to you
[01:28:12] for this project. affordable housing is
[01:28:17] such a monumental task and it takes a
[01:28:20] collaboration through so many different
[01:28:22] people and so many different efforts.
[01:28:25] So, I am thrilled that we're at this
[01:28:28] point here today. Um, one thing that I
[01:28:30] did like about your presentation
[01:28:33] is about ongoing on-site property
[01:28:37] management reviews. Um my experience
[01:28:40] with some affordable housing is is that
[01:28:42] you get a property management that
[01:28:44] starts great and then sometimes doesn't
[01:28:48] keep it up. So I I hope your commitment
[01:28:51] is genuine and real and I thank you for
[01:28:54] that and I personally I can't speak for
[01:28:57] the rest of council but I would really
[01:28:58] appreciate periodic reports from you to
[01:29:01] the council uh once that this is
[01:29:03] approved. Thank you Mr. Mayor.
[01:29:06] >> Good comments. Any other comments?
[01:29:09] >> I would like to make one quick comment.
[01:29:11] This was a dream when I was on the
[01:29:13] housing commission probably going on 15
[01:29:15] years ago was to talk about um
[01:29:18] affordable housing for families in the
[01:29:20] city of Ranch Mirage. And so to be here
[01:29:22] sitting up here while we talk about this
[01:29:26] is really full circle. So I have to
[01:29:28] commend the city on its dedication to
[01:29:32] affordable housing and making it a
[01:29:33] reality. Thank you. Well, you can say it
[01:29:36] became a reality when you uh became a
[01:29:39] council member.
[01:29:42] Any other comments?
[01:29:45] >> I do. I do. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
[01:29:46] >> Yes, please.
[01:29:47] >> Um
[01:29:48] >> so, uh for this, um council over the
[01:29:50] last couple of years, uh commitment to
[01:29:51] affordable housing is one of our most
[01:29:53] important initiatives and I think one of
[01:29:56] the by the way uh Par did do a great
[01:29:59] job. I did watch her presentation uh at
[01:30:01] the planning commission meeting. She did
[01:30:03] a wonderful job. But Mina, you did a
[01:30:05] pretty good standin for her today, too.
[01:30:07] So, thank you. Anyway, so what one of
[01:30:09] the statistics that I thought was really
[01:30:11] important in the presentation today, uh,
[01:30:14] Mina, was that 78% number. So, uh, our
[01:30:17] achievement of, um, the income
[01:30:19] restricted affordable housing number is
[01:30:21] pretty significant. So, uh, over the
[01:30:23] 8-year, um, housing element cycle that
[01:30:26] started a couple of years ago, uh, we
[01:30:29] need to need to eventually entitle uh,
[01:30:31] as many as about,00 of those units, and
[01:30:34] we're well into 800 now, uh, that we
[01:30:36] have entitled. So, in a very short time,
[01:30:38] we've come a very long way. Uh, so, um,
[01:30:41] I am happy to have been part of that
[01:30:43] process uh, the last couple of years,
[01:30:45] and I salute everyone on this dis uh,
[01:30:47] for being part of that process. So, I'm
[01:30:49] really excited about this. I'm I'm glad
[01:30:51] to see it coming and and it's important
[01:30:53] for us all to recognize that affordable
[01:30:56] housing is important for a couple of
[01:30:58] reasons in this city. One is of course
[01:31:00] the economic reason. Um housing at every
[01:31:04] level is critically important for any
[01:31:06] city. Uh we must provide housing at
[01:31:09] every economic level and workforce
[01:31:11] housing is critically important for our
[01:31:13] economy for an for our employers. So it
[01:31:16] must be done in order to support the
[01:31:18] economy in our city. And the second
[01:31:20] reason that I've often also referred to
[01:31:22] is from a social perspective, it's just
[01:31:25] the right thing to do. Thank you, Mr.
[01:31:29] Mayor.
[01:31:29] >> Thank you for your comments. Any other
[01:31:32] comments? Council comments.
[01:31:33] >> Yes, Mr. Mayor.
[01:31:36] >> This is truly a dream come true to see
[01:31:38] the reality of affordable housing coming
[01:31:41] to Rancher Mirage. And as my colleagues
[01:31:43] have indicated in their comments, it
[01:31:47] it's been a long time coming.
[01:31:50] We appreciate your partnership. We
[01:31:52] appreciate your management style in in
[01:31:55] doing continuous review so that way we
[01:31:57] can maintain a quality place of living
[01:32:01] for our future tenants. Um, as it's been
[01:32:06] indicated in past comments, this is this
[01:32:09] is vital to the economy
[01:32:12] and our in our legacy of our city.
[01:32:16] this is really happening and I'm and
[01:32:20] with that um we look forward to seeing
[01:32:23] the progress, measuring that progress
[01:32:25] and celebrating the the final product uh
[01:32:29] when we see those wonderful residents
[01:32:33] having the opportunity to have a roof
[01:32:35] over their head, not having to travel
[01:32:37] 25, 35 miles to work. for our employers
[01:32:41] in our community that have been
[01:32:43] requesting this for decades. It's
[01:32:47] happening and we're thrilled. And with
[01:32:49] that, I'd like to make the motion, if I
[01:32:50] may.
[01:32:51] >> Please do.
[01:32:54] that the city council adopt resolution
[01:32:56] number 2025 next in order adopting and
[01:33:00] approving the mitigation monitoring and
[01:33:03] reporting program and mitigated negative
[01:33:05] declaration
[01:33:07] SCH number 20205959
[01:33:13] for the proposed project based on
[01:33:15] environmental assessment case number
[01:33:18] EA25-00002
[01:33:22] adopt resolution number 2025. Next in
[01:33:25] order, approving preliminary development
[01:33:27] plan case number PDP25-00002
[01:33:33] regarding the proposed Rancher Mirage
[01:33:35] affordable apartments and three adopt
[01:33:38] resolution number 2025 next in order
[01:33:42] approving a development impact fee
[01:33:44] deferral agreement in support of
[01:33:46] National Community Renaissance of
[01:33:48] California's development of affordable
[01:33:50] housing in the city of Rancher Mirage on
[01:33:52] real pride. property having assessor's
[01:33:55] parcel number 685-090-016
[01:34:00] and authorizing the city manager to take
[01:34:02] all related actions necessary to
[01:34:04] negotiate, prepare, and execute the
[01:34:07] necessary agreements and other documents
[01:34:10] necessary to effectuate the same and
[01:34:12] finding the action exempt from the
[01:34:14] California Environmental Quality Act.
[01:34:17] >> I'll second.
[01:34:18] >> There is a motion and a second. Please
[01:34:21] vote.
[01:34:26] Motion carries 5-0.
[01:34:29] >> Excellent. Congratulations. We look
[01:34:30] forward to a completed project and your
[01:34:34] success and I echo the comments
[01:34:37] regarding the uh the active management
[01:34:40] and uh hopefully we will get periodic
[01:34:44] reports. So, thank you very much. Thank
[01:34:47] you for being here.
[01:34:49] We will now go to the um action calendar
[01:34:52] and the first item is 7A in the
[01:34:56] construction agreement for Rancho Mirage
[01:34:59] Community Park expansion. Ryan
[01:35:02] Standelle, our assistant city manager,
[01:35:05] who has changed positions on this dis
[01:35:09] today.
[01:35:09] >> We're playing musical chairs today, uh
[01:35:11] mayor. So, uh bear with me while my
[01:35:13] presentation comes up. Um,
[01:35:18] here we go. Honorable mayor and council
[01:35:20] members, I'm here uh to present for your
[01:35:22] consideration an expansion project
[01:35:24] that's been in the works for some time
[01:35:26] related to Ranch Mirage Community Park,
[01:35:29] specifically its parking and access.
[01:35:33] First, before I get into the
[01:35:34] presentation, by way of vicinity, on the
[01:35:36] screen, I have Highway 111, Indian
[01:35:38] Trail, and San Hasinto Drive um notated
[01:35:42] just in case anybody is curious where
[01:35:43] we're speaking. In purple, I have
[01:35:45] outlined the approximate boundary of
[01:35:47] Ranch Mirage Community Park as it exists
[01:35:49] today. And the 2.75 acres, as we
[01:35:52] indicated in the staff report, is
[01:35:54] indicated in the blue.
[01:35:59] So, where have we been on this? Ranch
[01:36:01] Mrage Community Park went through a
[01:36:02] significant expansion between the years
[01:36:04] of 2014 and 2017, taking it from a very
[01:36:07] passive park to a very active park. Um,
[01:36:11] where we have now children's playground
[01:36:12] areas, multiple sports courts, a
[01:36:15] bustling amphitheater, um, picnic
[01:36:17] pavilions which are often packed with
[01:36:19] birthday parties on the weekends, uh,
[01:36:21] active fitness equipment and, uh, other
[01:36:23] amenities.
[01:36:25] And also I want to uh note that there
[01:36:28] are classifications of park types that
[01:36:30] help uh city planners and public works
[01:36:33] uh staff decide things like how much
[01:36:35] parking should we provide at a facility
[01:36:37] like this. Uh Ranch Mirage Community
[01:36:39] Park sort of straddles the line between
[01:36:41] a community park that services just the
[01:36:43] adjacent community within a 1 to three
[01:36:45] mile radius and a regional facility
[01:36:48] that's that's meant for more kind of
[01:36:49] multi-jurisdictional
[01:36:51] um attendance. And what do I mean about
[01:36:53] that? Um, a community park would
[01:36:55] normally be a place where people walk
[01:36:57] to. It's not heavily programmed, uh, or
[01:37:00] you have incidental trips in and out on
[01:37:03] a daily basis. But what we all know of
[01:37:04] Rancharrage Community Park is that we
[01:37:06] have our amphitheater performances
[01:37:08] drawing upwards of a thousand people. We
[01:37:10] have weekly farmers markets drawing
[01:37:12] hundreds of folks. And that our daily
[01:37:14] visitors come from not only Rancher
[01:37:16] Mirage, but throughout the Coachella
[01:37:17] Valley. And this drives an interesting
[01:37:19] anomaly in that the parking provided is
[01:37:22] consistent with a community park and
[01:37:23] during some of these performances we
[01:37:25] find ourselves lacking significantly.
[01:37:29] So to address this appropriately, staff
[01:37:32] has been working for the last several
[01:37:33] years on acquiring um properties in the
[01:37:36] effect of about uh just under uh 3 acres
[01:37:39] that can pave the way for 152 additional
[01:37:43] parking spaces of which we have eight uh
[01:37:46] electric vehicle charging stations and
[01:37:48] 12 handicap parking stalls. We'll be
[01:37:51] adding sidewalk safety lighting, updated
[01:37:53] landscaping, um, and plenty of conduit
[01:37:56] running in every different direction to
[01:37:58] make sure that we're solar ready in the
[01:38:00] future. But more importantly, we're also
[01:38:02] taking a look at pedestrian safety in
[01:38:04] the area. And at the intersection of
[01:38:06] Sennosinto and Button, we're going to be
[01:38:09] implementing or proposed as an all-way
[01:38:11] stop control, high visibility crosswalks
[01:38:13] with inground pedestrian activated
[01:38:15] lighting uh in advanced signage for
[01:38:18] vehicles that warn that there's
[01:38:19] pedestrians in the area.
[01:38:23] So, the PI public bidding process uh
[01:38:26] concluded last Thursday, a week a week
[01:38:28] ago today. Initially, we had five bids
[01:38:30] submitted. The low bidder was just under
[01:38:32] $3 million. Um just Tuesday of this
[01:38:36] week, however, we were notified by that
[01:38:38] low bidder of their formal intent to
[01:38:41] withdraw their bid, which they are
[01:38:43] provided a process to do under public
[01:38:45] contract code. uh if you do so within
[01:38:47] five business days, um the city is
[01:38:51] permitted to accept that consent and
[01:38:53] award to the next lowest responsive
[01:38:55] bidder, which the matrix on the screen
[01:38:58] indicates what the net result would be
[01:39:00] after uh the original low bidder was
[01:39:02] removed from the process. Now, I wanted
[01:39:05] to point out real quick that the
[01:39:07] apparent low bidder at this point is
[01:39:09] Universal Construction and Engineering.
[01:39:11] This is a company out of Palm Desert,
[01:39:12] California that we uh have worked with
[01:39:14] in the past and their bid price amount
[01:39:17] is almost uh at par with the engineers
[01:39:21] 100% estimate that was produced on June
[01:39:24] 12th of this year. So when we did
[01:39:26] receive the initial five bids, there was
[01:39:28] a little bit of concern that the low was
[01:39:30] under and the mistakes that they noted
[01:39:32] they made are appearing to be correct.
[01:39:35] So, at this point, because we sent out a
[01:39:38] supplemental staff report late yesterday
[01:39:40] afternoon memorializing all of these
[01:39:42] requested changes, I wanted to reiterate
[01:39:44] if there is a motion um to be made by
[01:39:47] this council on this project, that we uh
[01:39:50] use the three recommendations found in
[01:39:52] the supplemental staff report. that is
[01:39:54] to find the project exempt from SQA,
[01:39:57] that we consent to the withdrawal from
[01:39:58] asphalt, fabric, and engineering, and
[01:40:01] that we approve the construction uh
[01:40:03] agreement with Universal Construction
[01:40:04] Engineering, and that supplemental is
[01:40:07] included uh in your packet digitally.
[01:40:11] So, with that, um
[01:40:15] I believe I'm concluded with my staff
[01:40:16] report. I'd be happy to answer any
[01:40:18] questions that the council may have on
[01:40:19] this. Thank you.
[01:40:21] >> Great. Thank you. Are there any public
[01:40:23] comments? I did not receive any speaker
[01:40:25] cards. Is there anyone who would in the
[01:40:26] audience who would like to speak on item
[01:40:28] 7A? Okay, please step up and state your
[01:40:30] name.
[01:40:33] >> Thank you. I think you can see me. Uh,
[01:40:35] awesome. Brad Anderson, city man. I have
[01:40:38] a circuit, but I must have not submitted
[01:40:40] a card. Sorry about that. Uh, uh, a
[01:40:43] couple concerns. My concern is the
[01:40:45] agenda and you did get the 15th. I
[01:40:47] believe the other company pulled out of
[01:40:49] this um process and now the city is on
[01:40:54] the hook for the next lowest bidder
[01:40:55] which is roughly $700,000 more. Correct.
[01:40:58] Uh
[01:41:00] I think maybe we should table this for
[01:41:02] the next meeting just because of the yes
[01:41:04] you have a supplement but I didn't find
[01:41:07] out about it till today coming in the
[01:41:08] meeting and it's listed on my agenda for
[01:41:10] the old company. So I would think it
[01:41:13] would be best interest of the city and
[01:41:14] the residents to postpone this until uh
[01:41:17] proper notice can be given. Uh that's my
[01:41:20] concern. Uh other than uh
[01:41:24] I'm going to go into transparency. uh my
[01:41:27] concern cuz I found out that you were
[01:41:30] the city was buying this land uh uh
[01:41:34] quite a while back and and and I brought
[01:41:37] that up to the city and I wish they
[01:41:39] would have told me what the intent was
[01:41:42] instead of keeping it secret or keeping
[01:41:44] it quiet in close session. Uh and
[01:41:47] because you're buying up properly and
[01:41:49] even if that's um uh the city's aspect
[01:41:54] to do that, meaning the tech or the how
[01:41:58] they do it and how secret and and but
[01:42:01] still it's not the right thing to do.
[01:42:03] It's not the right thing to do to buy up
[01:42:04] a neighborhood and and whatever the
[01:42:07] issue is with the other properties in
[01:42:09] the neighborhood.
[01:42:12] Well, I guess I'm going off on the
[01:42:14] tangents again, but that's one of the
[01:42:16] closeest topics that I'm talking about.
[01:42:18] When you're when you're doing this type
[01:42:20] of
[01:42:22] years you were saying you're doing this,
[01:42:23] so this is in the best interest of the
[01:42:26] city. The city should know about it and
[01:42:28] and and I happened to find out about it.
[01:42:31] I brought it up to the council and then
[01:42:32] you took that tech and you took that
[01:42:34] process of letting the public know of
[01:42:37] this type of action when it's concluded
[01:42:40] or when it's Yeah. when it's concluded.
[01:42:43] I I know a lot of people probably don't
[01:42:44] understand what I'm talking about, but
[01:42:46] and then you took that away and gave it
[01:42:48] to the city manager to do on his own
[01:42:49] without any public dis disclosure or
[01:42:52] public comment. And that's concerning
[01:42:55] and that's maybe why. But um and I want
[01:42:58] to remind people in the city that there
[01:43:00] was an easement well site that was uh
[01:43:03] sold under market I believe to Porcupine
[01:43:06] Ranch with easements
[01:43:08] from that whitewater park too. So,
[01:43:10] that's an aspect of close session that
[01:43:12] people don't know about probably. Uh,
[01:43:14] but um I I guess I'm I'm against that
[01:43:17] just because really we need to digest
[01:43:20] this more. The residents of the city, I
[01:43:22] want to remind everybody that the
[01:43:24] counselor agenda packet was over a
[01:43:27] thousand pages this time. It's a lot to
[01:43:28] digest and that's all I have. Thank you.
[01:43:31] >> Thank you for your comments.
[01:43:32] >> Is there anyone else who would like to
[01:43:34] speak on this item?
[01:43:35] >> That was the only speaker. Are there any
[01:43:38] council comments?
[01:43:41] Seeing none, I'll entertain a motion.
[01:43:46] I'll make the motion. Uh I move that the
[01:43:49] council find the project exempt from
[01:43:51] California Environmental Quality Act SQA
[01:43:53] pursuant to guidelines uh section
[01:43:56] 15061B3,
[01:43:58] section 15304 class 4, and section 15332
[01:44:03] class 32. Two, consent to the withdrawal
[01:44:06] of bid from Asphalt Fabric and
[01:44:08] Engineering Incorporated
[01:44:10] as complying with public contract code
[01:44:12] section 5103. And three, approve a
[01:44:16] construction agreement with the lowest
[01:44:18] responsive bidder, Universal
[01:44:20] Construction and Engineering in the
[01:44:22] amount of 3,430,57.39
[01:44:27] for the expansion of the Branch Mirage
[01:44:29] Community Park CP22-378.
[01:44:33] funds are available in the fiscal year
[01:44:36] 2526 capital improvements project
[01:44:38] budget. And this is an important
[01:44:40] project.
[01:44:41] >> And I'll second.
[01:44:43] >> There's a motion and a second. Please
[01:44:45] vote.
[01:44:53] >> Mayor, could you try yours one more
[01:44:54] time? You may have to touch your screen
[01:44:56] to get that to show up. There you go.
[01:44:59] Thank you. Motion carries. 5. Thank you.
[01:45:04] Uh the next item will be u the Riverside
[01:45:08] County Sheriff's Service contract
[01:45:11] amendment. Tyler Folks, senior
[01:45:14] management analyst. Tyler, welcome.
[01:45:17] >> Thank you, mayor. Good afternoon, mayor
[01:45:20] and members of the city council. Today,
[01:45:22] I'm presenting a recommended amendment
[01:45:24] to our existing sheriff services
[01:45:26] contract with the county of Riverside.
[01:45:30] This amendment, this amendment proposes
[01:45:32] two key changes. First, we're
[01:45:35] recommending reallocating one daytime
[01:45:38] patrol unit to add two additional
[01:45:40] deputies to form a problem orientated
[01:45:43] policing pop team. Second, we're
[01:45:47] proposing the addition of a shared motor
[01:45:49] sergeant position cost shared equally
[01:45:51] with Indian Wells.
[01:45:54] These changes are based on a recent
[01:45:56] evaluation of crime trends and staffing
[01:45:59] effectiveness.
[01:46:00] The two added POP deputies will enhance
[01:46:02] our proactive response in combating
[01:46:04] burglaries, thefts, vehicle related
[01:46:07] crimes, and other property offenses, as
[01:46:10] well as addressing broader community
[01:46:12] policing goals and emerging public
[01:46:14] safety concerns.
[01:46:16] while the motor sergeant position will
[01:46:18] improve traffic enforcement and
[01:46:20] supervision.
[01:46:22] Financially, the contract amendment adds
[01:46:24] about $157,600
[01:46:27] to our law enforcement contract costs.
[01:46:30] However, with a 50% reimbursement from
[01:46:32] Indian Wells for the motor sergeant
[01:46:34] position, we expect expect a net
[01:46:37] contract savings of just under 15,000
[01:46:40] annually. Although the adjustment
[01:46:42] results in a modest cost savings, its
[01:46:45] primary objective is to enhance the
[01:46:47] operational effectiveness by aligning
[01:46:49] law enforcement resources with Rancho
[01:46:52] Mirage's evolving public safety
[01:46:54] priorities.
[01:46:56] In summary, this amendment aligns our
[01:46:58] law enforcement deployment with the
[01:47:00] city's evolving needs, improves service
[01:47:03] delivery, and maintains fiscal
[01:47:05] responsibility.
[01:47:06] To provide further context for these
[01:47:08] recommendations, Lieutenant Turnis from
[01:47:10] the sheriff's department will now
[01:47:12] present the city's recent crime data,
[01:47:14] which emphasizes the reasoning behind
[01:47:16] these changes and highlights the strong
[01:47:18] progress made by our law enforcement
[01:47:20] team.
[01:47:27] Good afternoon, mayor, members of the
[01:47:29] city council, and staff. I would like to
[01:47:32] present a few slides describing our
[01:47:34] efforts to dis decrease crime in the
[01:47:36] city.
[01:47:38] Based on this chart, the vast majority
[01:47:40] of offenses in the city are property
[01:47:43] crimes, namely burglaries, thefts,
[01:47:46] including autotheft.
[01:47:48] Non-property crimes, including violent
[01:47:50] offenses, and drugrelated incidents,
[01:47:52] make up a small percentage of our daily
[01:47:54] calls for service.
[01:47:57] Since implementing our current law
[01:47:58] enforcement strategies and the close
[01:48:00] working relationship between the city of
[01:48:02] Rancho Mirage and the sheriff's office,
[01:48:05] we've seen a steady and measurable drop
[01:48:07] in crime rates.
[01:48:12] On this slide, you will find two tables.
[01:48:15] One presenting five years of property
[01:48:17] crime data and the other offering a
[01:48:19] quarterly comparison for the first
[01:48:21] quarter of 2025.
[01:48:23] As shown in the tables, the city has
[01:48:25] seen significant reductions in property
[01:48:27] crimes, including burglaries, thefts,
[01:48:30] and autothefts from 2021 through 2024,
[01:48:34] with early 2025 data confirming that
[01:48:37] this downward trend is continuing.
[01:48:40] From 2021 to 2024, the city experienced
[01:48:43] a 45%
[01:48:45] decrease in total property crimes.
[01:48:49] Comparing January through May of 2025 to
[01:48:52] the same period in 2024, we've seen a
[01:48:55] further 39% reduction.
[01:48:59] This sustained decline is largely due to
[01:49:01] our proactive policing strategies and
[01:49:03] strategic investments in technology such
[01:49:06] as the deployment of the automated
[01:49:07] license plate reader, our ALPR cameras.
[01:49:11] Despite this progress, property crimes
[01:49:13] remain one of our highest daily calls
[01:49:16] for service categories. As highlighted
[01:49:18] in the previous slide,
[01:49:20] the proposed addition of two problem
[01:49:22] oriented policing POP deputies will
[01:49:26] enhance our ability to proactively
[01:49:28] address these offenses and further
[01:49:30] improve our clearance rates.
[01:49:36] Law enforcement clearance rates are the
[01:49:38] percentage of reported crimes that law
[01:49:39] enforcement clears by either arresting a
[01:49:42] suspect or closing the case due to other
[01:49:45] factors such as lack of cooperation by
[01:49:47] the victim.
[01:49:49] In 2023, Rancho Mirage law enforcement
[01:49:52] achieved a 57% clearance rate for
[01:49:55] property crimes, significantly
[01:49:58] surpassing the national average of 12.1%
[01:50:01] reported by the Pew Research Center for
[01:50:04] 2022.
[01:50:06] This high clearance rate indicates that
[01:50:08] more than half of reported property
[01:50:10] crimes such as burglaries, thefts, and
[01:50:14] vehicle thefts resulted in the
[01:50:16] identification and arrest of suspects,
[01:50:19] effectively reducing the risk of repeat
[01:50:21] offenders.
[01:50:24] It is our number one priority keeping
[01:50:26] this great city safe for our residents
[01:50:28] and for our visitors.
[01:50:31] Thank you for allowing me to speak
[01:50:32] today. I will be available for any
[01:50:34] questions at the end of our
[01:50:35] presentation.
[01:50:37] >> Thank you, Lieutenant Turis. Based on
[01:50:40] the data and analysis presented, staff
[01:50:42] recommends that the city council
[01:50:44] approved the third amendment to the
[01:50:46] agreement for law enforcement services
[01:50:48] between the city of uh city of Ranch
[01:50:49] Mirage and the county of Riverside. As
[01:50:52] outlined in the staff report and today's
[01:50:54] presentation, this amendment would
[01:50:56] reallocate one daytime patrol unit to
[01:50:58] add two additional deputies forming a
[01:51:00] problem orientated policing team and a
[01:51:03] shared motor sergeant position to be
[01:51:05] cost shared equally with the city of
[01:51:07] Indian Wells. This concludes our
[01:51:09] presentation. Staff are available to
[01:51:11] answer any questions you may have.
[01:51:13] >> Thank you, Tyler. Excellent
[01:51:15] presentation. Thank you, Lieutenant.
[01:51:16] >> Thank you
[01:51:17] >> as always for being here.
[01:51:19] Um, you know, we just can't say enough
[01:51:22] about the job you do. Uh, we're just so
[01:51:26] pleased. Um, and the numbers speak for
[01:51:30] themselves. Anybody that, you know,
[01:51:33] complains about crime in Rancho Mirage,
[01:51:38] uh, is is missing the boat. There's
[01:51:40] going to be a certain amount of crime in
[01:51:42] every city. We can't avoid every single
[01:51:45] crime. But what you have demonstrated is
[01:51:48] how it has decreased so dramatically and
[01:51:52] that's outstanding and so we so
[01:51:56] appreciate that so very much. Uh are
[01:51:59] there any u public comments on the
[01:52:02] subject?
[01:52:02] >> I did not receive any speaker cards. Is
[01:52:04] there anyone in the audience who would
[01:52:06] like to speak? Okay, please come up and
[01:52:07] state your name.
[01:52:12] >> Hi again. Brad Anderson. I have a circum
[01:52:15] I'm sorry I didn't do the speaker card.
[01:52:17] My intent was to do that. Um I have no
[01:52:21] issues at all with this. Um I don't even
[01:52:25] know why it's on this agenda. If there
[01:52:27] is a modest savings of 15,000, which I
[01:52:29] think is not modest, I think $15,000 is
[01:52:31] a lot of money. Uh that's to me. Uh and
[01:52:36] and as far as Mr. down's previous
[01:52:39] comments concerning other speakers that
[01:52:41] speak about law enforcement activities.
[01:52:44] U I see them often and and in my
[01:52:49] neighborhood and and just walking on
[01:52:51] Highway 111 as I do quite often now. Um
[01:52:55] as far as crime goes, I think most
[01:52:58] cities can probably say that crime has
[01:52:59] reduced since the uh homeless population
[01:53:02] has u receded a little bit. U not that
[01:53:06] that's the main driver. Uh but uh I
[01:53:08] think uh I think everything's looking
[01:53:11] good. I have no complaints about this at
[01:53:13] all except last time I came I I did
[01:53:16] mention that I found mayo um on my way
[01:53:19] over to the council meeting and I did
[01:53:20] again today uh in the wash and uh so
[01:53:23] that's a concern. Nothing that like m
[01:53:26] like the mayor said that there's going
[01:53:28] to be certain aspects of crime and this
[01:53:30] is one of them. uh unsecured mail. I
[01:53:32] guess maybe unsecured, but uh I'm going
[01:53:35] to give it to the clerk and hopefully he
[01:53:36] can dispose of it or give it network it
[01:53:39] to its original owner. Thank you.
[01:53:42] >> Thank you for your comments.
[01:53:43] >> Is there anyone else who would like to
[01:53:45] speak? Okay, thank you. Please come up
[01:53:46] and state your name.
[01:53:54] Well, this
[01:53:58] I'd like to uh ask the uh the lieutenant
[01:54:03] to address uh
[01:54:07] the uh functions of ICE out in this area
[01:54:12] and how the sheriff's department
[01:54:18] works with the ICE.
[01:54:20] And uh
[01:54:23] what kind of protective
[01:54:25] measures
[01:54:27] does law enforcement like the sheriffs
[01:54:30] have to protect
[01:54:33] citizens from the unlawful
[01:54:38] uh things that ICE is making by order of
[01:54:43] uh Trump.
[01:54:50] >> Thank you for your comments.
[01:54:53] >> Any answer from the sheriff?
[01:54:56] >> It's a public comment period, not Q&A.
[01:54:58] You can go ahead and take your seat.
[01:55:01] >> Is there anyone else who would like to
[01:55:02] speak? That was the last speaker.
[01:55:06] >> Thank you. Are there any any council
[01:55:09] comments?
[01:55:09] >> I do, Mr. Mayor. I'd first like to say
[01:55:11] to Tyler,
[01:55:13] thank you since you've been in your new
[01:55:15] job for these incredible work that
[01:55:17] you're doing. Uh we didn't get reports
[01:55:19] like this before and I want to thank
[01:55:22] Lieutenant Turnis for the incredible
[01:55:24] work that you do and all of the
[01:55:25] officers.
[01:55:27] I think that people generally and Ranch
[01:55:29] Mirage think that we live in a safe city
[01:55:32] and sometimes you hear from people who
[01:55:34] are concerned about it. And of course,
[01:55:36] as the mayor said, there's always going
[01:55:37] to be some crime. But these statistics
[01:55:39] prove that we live in a safe city. And I
[01:55:44] think our population, our residents
[01:55:47] expect us to maintain that. And with
[01:55:50] this modest restructuring, it sounds
[01:55:54] like we're enhancing it in order to
[01:55:55] maintain that level of public safety.
[01:55:58] So, I support it and I thank you. Thank
[01:56:01] you, Michael. Any other comments?
[01:56:07] Thank you again. We we we speak often
[01:56:10] about how we revere our public safety
[01:56:13] and this is the very reason why. We
[01:56:15] appreciate your daily efforts, your
[01:56:17] constant uh monitoring, maintaining and
[01:56:23] helping our city thrive. We appreciate
[01:56:25] it.
[01:56:28] Uh, I'd like to comment on um
[01:56:32] the execution of a great plan of
[01:56:34] partnering with the neighboring city to
[01:56:36] provide law enforcement in a more
[01:56:38] affordable way for both cities. I think
[01:56:40] that that is thinking outside the box
[01:56:42] and I think that's the future for fiscal
[01:56:44] responsibility. So, thank you for
[01:56:46] whoever at staff level and at the
[01:56:49] sheriff's department that was able to
[01:56:51] negotiate that and their city council.
[01:56:53] Uh, we greatly appreciate partnerships
[01:56:55] like that. for two smaller cities that
[01:56:58] can share resources and of course you
[01:57:00] guys do a great job. These statistics
[01:57:02] were remarkable to read and observe and
[01:57:05] I think that that's really really
[01:57:07] valuable for our citizens to be aware of
[01:57:09] because I think there sometimes is a
[01:57:11] misleading message that the world's
[01:57:13] becoming more and more unsafe but Ranch
[01:57:15] Mirage is not. So that's great. Thank
[01:57:17] you.
[01:57:19] >> Yeah, we do have some excellent
[01:57:21] cooperation between the cities without a
[01:57:24] doubt.
[01:57:25] Uh any other council comments?
[01:57:28] >> I do. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. So, uh
[01:57:30] public safety should be job one for any
[01:57:32] city council and for uh this city
[01:57:35] council. We take this job very very
[01:57:37] seriously. So, um we intend to do
[01:57:40] everything we can to provide the best
[01:57:42] law enforcement services, fire services,
[01:57:44] and emergency me medical services to our
[01:57:46] to our city. Now, in past years, uh it
[01:57:49] was typical for Ranch Mirage violent
[01:57:52] crime rate to be marginally above the
[01:57:54] average for the Coachella Valley. Um it
[01:57:58] was also the I'm sorry, for violent
[01:57:59] crime to be marginally below the average
[01:58:02] for uh the Coachella Valley. Uh it was
[01:58:04] typical for our property crime rates to
[01:58:06] be marginally above uh the rate rates
[01:58:09] for the entire Coachella Valley. And I
[01:58:11] think there were some general reasons
[01:58:13] for this that kind of make sense if you
[01:58:15] think about them. So, uh, in this city,
[01:58:17] the average household income is higher
[01:58:20] than the average for the rest of the
[01:58:21] Coachella Valley. Roughly about 30% or
[01:58:23] so higher. And in this city, our average
[01:58:25] home values are also higher than the
[01:58:27] average for the rest of the Coachella
[01:58:29] Valley. Again, roughly about 30% higher.
[01:58:31] And it's also the case that people love
[01:58:33] to live in this city. So, we have a
[01:58:35] larger than average number of second
[01:58:37] homes in the city. So what that means is
[01:58:39] that we have a um large number of
[01:58:43] expensive homes filled with expensive
[01:58:45] things that end up being vacant for
[01:58:47] large portions of the year. So what that
[01:58:49] also means is that for a burglar, we are
[01:58:52] a target-rich environment.
[01:58:54] So what do you do about that? Well, what
[01:58:56] you do about that, I think, is that you
[01:58:58] put as many law enforcement officers on
[01:59:00] the street as you can and you provide
[01:59:03] them with the tools that they need to
[01:59:05] get the job done. And I think we have
[01:59:07] done that over the last couple of years
[01:59:08] in this city. So a couple of years ago
[01:59:10] we did increase uh law enforcement count
[01:59:13] deputies essentially on the street uh to
[01:59:16] uh I mentioned earlier in the uh in this
[01:59:19] meeting today that the number is roughly
[01:59:21] about uh a little over two deputies per
[01:59:24] thousand population and I talked about
[01:59:26] how that compares to our neighboring
[01:59:27] cities.
[01:59:29] Um, and we also then asked uh law
[01:59:32] enforcement, what tools do you need to
[01:59:34] get the job done? And one of the things
[01:59:36] they told us they really really needed
[01:59:38] was uh a significant increase in
[01:59:41] automated license plate readers. So a
[01:59:42] couple of years ago, I think we had
[01:59:44] maybe a couple dozen ALPRs around the
[01:59:46] city and over the last year or so we've
[01:59:48] increased that to I believe the numbers
[01:59:49] were at roughly around 100 or so. Is
[01:59:51] that about right, Lieutenant? Somewhere
[01:59:53] in that neighborhood. And so as a result
[01:59:56] of those activities over the last couple
[01:59:58] of years, our crime rates have dropped
[02:00:01] dramatically. Now I talked about a
[02:00:03] public commenter earlier in the meeting
[02:00:06] who u suggested or he talked about our
[02:00:08] crime rate right here at this podium uh
[02:00:10] within the last month or so. Uh he said
[02:00:13] that the crime rate in this city has
[02:00:15] increased about 19% over the past year.
[02:00:18] Well, it has not.
[02:00:22] Every year since 2021, the property
[02:00:24] crime rate is down. So down 13% 2021
[02:00:27] versus 2022 based on the numbers Tyler
[02:00:29] just showed us. Down 15% 2022 versus 23,
[02:00:32] down 27% 23 versus 24, and down 39%
[02:00:38] for the first five months of this year
[02:00:40] versus last. So the stats show that the
[02:00:42] actions that uh this council has taken
[02:00:45] in terms of more deputies and better
[02:00:47] tools have provided great results for
[02:00:49] our residents. We've got a great
[02:00:51] partnership with our sheriff's
[02:00:52] department team. We value that
[02:00:53] partnership and we intend to continue to
[02:00:56] u to broaden that partnership uh in the
[02:00:58] years to come. Now, a word of caution.
[02:01:01] Because of the added expense of more
[02:01:03] deputies and better tools along with
[02:01:05] substantial increases in inflation in
[02:01:07] recent years, our public safety costs
[02:01:09] have been growing at double-digit rates
[02:01:12] uh in recent years, but our city
[02:01:14] revenues have only been growing at low
[02:01:15] singledigit rates. That's been going on
[02:01:17] for several years now. Now, public
[02:01:19] safety is the largest component of our
[02:01:21] expense budget. And this disparity
[02:01:23] between the increase in public safety
[02:01:26] cost at a double-digit level and only a
[02:01:28] singledigit level in the increase in
[02:01:30] revenues, sooner or later, some
[02:01:32] something has to happen about that. And
[02:01:34] all I'm suggesting is with respect to
[02:01:35] that disparity, we have to engage in a
[02:01:37] conversation about it. I don't know what
[02:01:39] the answer is, but I'm sure that we'll
[02:01:41] figure that out in the coming months and
[02:01:43] years. But it's an issue that we are
[02:01:45] going to have to address. Um, and I
[02:01:48] think we will find a way to do that. So,
[02:01:49] thank you, Mr. Mayor.
[02:01:50] >> Thank you, Steve, for your comments. Are
[02:01:53] there any other council comments?
[02:01:57] >> Seeing none, I'll entertain a motion.
[02:02:00] >> I'll make the motion that we approve the
[02:02:02] third amendment to the agreement for law
[02:02:04] enforcement services between the city of
[02:02:06] Rancher Mirage and the county of
[02:02:08] Riverside. I'll second the motion.
[02:02:12] >> Uh, there is a motion and a second
[02:02:14] before vote. uh city manager would like
[02:02:16] to make a comment.
[02:02:18] >> Thanks, mayor. Uh just real quick, so uh
[02:02:21] being involved uh and seeing uh the
[02:02:25] activity of our law enforcement on a
[02:02:26] day-to-day basis is uh you know quite
[02:02:30] eye opening and I wish every person
[02:02:31] could see what I see every day. And uh
[02:02:35] behind these numbers, they're great
[02:02:37] numbers, but behind those numbers is a
[02:02:40] lot of hard work and dedication uh by
[02:02:43] the staff on the streets. Uh we have
[02:02:46] some of those members in our audience
[02:02:47] today that are directly their efforts
[02:02:52] and dedication are a direct result of
[02:02:54] those numbers that you see. And we have
[02:02:56] great personnel uh assigned to the city
[02:03:00] of Ranch Mirage from the sheriff's
[02:03:01] department. Um they are extremely
[02:03:04] dedicated. They care about the people in
[02:03:06] this city and they work very hard, very
[02:03:09] uh abstract hours most of the time
[02:03:12] chasing down leads uh trying to um be
[02:03:16] proactive in what they do and responding
[02:03:18] to the issues within our community. So I
[02:03:20] just wanted to take a second to
[02:03:22] acknowledge the hard work and dedication
[02:03:25] uh behind those numbers and what we see
[02:03:27] every day. So thank you guys. Uh a few
[02:03:29] of them are moving on. uh as is typical
[02:03:32] within our service when they start doing
[02:03:34] a good job. Uh that means they're
[02:03:36] getting promoted and moving on to other
[02:03:38] things. Uh but it's great for them
[02:03:39] personally. Uh some of them are sticking
[02:03:42] around, but uh just the great work that
[02:03:44] they do. It's been a pleasure to work
[02:03:45] with you guys and thank you for all of
[02:03:48] that. Uh and then just to close uh no
[02:03:50] city of Ranch Mirage personnel or assets
[02:03:52] are involved with immigration
[02:03:53] enforcement. Thank you, mayor.
[02:03:55] >> Thank you for the comments. Uh obviously
[02:03:58] we I think everybody on this dis uh
[02:04:01] echoes those statements. So thank you so
[02:04:04] much. We have a motion and a second. Uh
[02:04:08] please vote.
[02:04:16] >> Motion carries 5-0.
[02:04:18] >> Thank you. Congratulations.
[02:04:22] The next item will be the shop local
[02:04:26] Rancho Mirage gift card program.
[02:04:29] Uh, and that's going to be discussed by
[02:04:31] Gabe Coding, our director of marketing.
[02:04:35] >> Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Uh, members of the
[02:04:38] council. Um, so now that we've talked
[02:04:41] public safety, let's talk economic
[02:04:42] development and how we're going to pay
[02:04:44] for it.
[02:04:45] So, uh, staff is is excited here to
[02:04:48] present and recommend,
[02:04:50] uh, an implementation of of another
[02:04:52] limited bonus campaign. If you remember,
[02:04:54] we just got done doing one for
[02:04:55] restaurant week, which was wildly
[02:04:57] successful and, uh, you all saw the
[02:04:59] stats on that. So, what we'd like to do
[02:05:01] is align one with Taste of Summer that's
[02:05:03] kicks off next week. Um, this would be
[02:05:06] our third our third bonus installment.
[02:05:08] So, as you know, Taste of Summer is an
[02:05:10] annual city sponsored event held in
[02:05:12] partnership with Ranch Mirage Chamber of
[02:05:14] Commerce. This program is designed to
[02:05:17] stimulate the local dining and support
[02:05:19] nonprofits during slower summer months.
[02:05:21] Guests purchase a $10 wristband sold
[02:05:24] directly by over 35 local nonprofits,
[02:05:27] and in return, they gain access to
[02:05:29] special deals at over 30 participating
[02:05:31] Ranch Mirage restaurants. the nonprof
[02:05:34] the nonprofits get to keep 100% of those
[02:05:36] proceeds creating an economic win for
[02:05:38] both our small businesses and our local
[02:05:40] charitable organizations. And this
[02:05:42] program has ran for many many years with
[02:05:44] this kind of same format. However, what
[02:05:47] didn't happen last year is we didn't
[02:05:48] have a shop local campaign or the
[02:05:50] ability to create a campaign bonus. So,
[02:05:54] what we're say what we're suggesting,
[02:05:55] what staff is suggesting complement
[02:05:57] this, we're proposing the allocation of
[02:05:59] a $25,000
[02:06:01] uh bonus um that would existing shop
[02:06:04] local that would come from our community
[02:06:06] economic development budget for uh for
[02:06:09] this campaign. Specifically, we're
[02:06:11] requesting the same type of bonus we've
[02:06:13] done with the previous two. 50% match
[02:06:15] incentive on gift card purchases,
[02:06:17] meaning for every $100 purchased, you
[02:06:19] would get $50 uh in bonus money to spend
[02:06:23] to participating restaurants. Uh this
[02:06:25] model has already proved successful. Our
[02:06:27] holiday bonus campaign late last year
[02:06:30] resulted in over,300 cards being issued
[02:06:33] totaling $150,000
[02:06:36] uh in spending all here in Rancho
[02:06:38] Mirage. At those we have we're up to 62
[02:06:41] participating businesses now. 30 plus
[02:06:44] restaurants. Uh the second campaign that
[02:06:47] was just uh about a month ago tied the
[02:06:50] visit greater Palm Springs Restaurant
[02:06:52] Week. This program had 330 cards uh and
[02:06:56] issued over uh about 51,000 in spending
[02:06:59] and 75% of that redemp redemption goes
[02:07:01] to restaurants. So given the continued
[02:07:04] popularity uh and impact of the shop
[02:07:07] local program, we believe this bonus
[02:07:09] will once again help stimulate spending
[02:07:11] during one of the slowest business
[02:07:12] periods of the year and further support
[02:07:14] the goals of Taste of Summer. We
[02:07:17] respectfully recommend approval of a
[02:07:19] $25,000 bonus campaign to keep local
[02:07:21] dollars circulating, support our
[02:07:22] business community, and enhance the
[02:07:24] success of the Taste of Summer Rancher
[02:07:26] Mirage. This concludes my presentation.
[02:07:29] I'm available to answer any questions.
[02:07:31] Thank you, Gabe. Are there any public
[02:07:33] comments?
[02:07:34] >> I did not receive any speaker cards. Is
[02:07:36] there anyone in the audience who would
[02:07:37] like to speak on item 7 C?
[02:07:39] >> No speakers.
[02:07:41] >> Thank you. Are there any council
[02:07:44] comments?
[02:07:47] >> Well, Mr. Mayor, thank you.
[02:07:48] >> I think it's an outstanding program and
[02:07:50] I look forward to uh uh to approving it.
[02:07:54] Yes. So, um, as James Brownard mentioned
[02:07:57] to us a short while ago, uh, Katie and
[02:08:00] her team are moving offices today.
[02:08:02] Otherwise, I'm pretty sure she would be
[02:08:03] here to talk about this and to let us
[02:08:05] know just how important these programs
[02:08:07] have been to to our business community.
[02:08:08] So, um, since she's not here, I'll sort
[02:08:11] of fill in for her and tell you how how
[02:08:14] and tell all of us how how grateful our
[02:08:15] business community is, uh, for the work
[02:08:17] that we do with this gift card program.
[02:08:19] Uh, so I think it's terrific that we're
[02:08:20] doing this. I know that our uh our
[02:08:22] business community, particularly our
[02:08:23] restaurants, very much appreciate what
[02:08:25] we do with the gift card program. Uh so
[02:08:28] uh if there's anybody else who wants to
[02:08:29] make a comment, uh otherwise
[02:08:31] >> continue. Um, I'll go ahead and make the
[02:08:33] motion uh that the council approve
[02:08:36] implementation of a shop local ranch
[02:08:38] mirage gift card bonus program to
[02:08:40] coincide with Taste of Summer Rancher
[02:08:42] Mirage July 24 to August 17, 2025
[02:08:46] utilizing a $25,000 bonus fund to
[02:08:49] provide a 50% match incentive on gift
[02:08:52] card purchases.
[02:08:54] >> I'll second.
[02:08:55] >> There is a motion and a second. Please
[02:08:57] vote.
[02:09:06] Motion carries 5-0.
[02:09:08] >> Great. Congratulations,
[02:09:10] Gabe. You're still up. And this has to
[02:09:12] do with the economic development shop
[02:09:15] local resort partnership program.
[02:09:18] >> I'm back with one more creative ways on
[02:09:20] how to spend this economic development
[02:09:22] budget money. So, um, first of all, I'
[02:09:26] I've I've been here, if I can take a
[02:09:28] minute, I've been here about six years.
[02:09:29] My father-in-law and my mother-in-law
[02:09:31] watch this meeting religiously and I
[02:09:33] don't think in six years I've ever given
[02:09:34] them a shout out. So Jim and Geraldine
[02:09:37] uh he always likes to break down game
[02:09:39] film and so as I was presenting the
[02:09:41] previous one I imagined him going, "Hey
[02:09:43] Gabe, let's talk about that shop local
[02:09:45] program." So I just realized I've never
[02:09:47] given him a shout out. So Jim Gerlin,
[02:09:49] thanks for your support and watching. Um
[02:09:51] >> how to get love at home.
[02:09:53] >> Yep.
[02:09:55] Exactly. Exactly. What's for dinner?
[02:09:58] Okay. Um,
[02:10:00] so, uh, one thing I appreciate
[02:10:03] appreciate mostly about our city manager
[02:10:06] is we'll go into a meeting and he's
[02:10:09] very, as most of you have known that
[02:10:10] worked with him, is very
[02:10:11] resultsoriented.
[02:10:13] So, we've uh, when he first brought up
[02:10:16] this program, when we first learned
[02:10:17] about this program, he came to our team
[02:10:19] and said, "Hey, I kind of like what I'm
[02:10:21] hearing about this program. I'd like for
[02:10:22] you to dig in and dig into the shop
[02:10:23] local program." We dug in, kind of gave
[02:10:26] him some stats, and our team all agreed,
[02:10:28] wow, this could really, really benefit
[02:10:29] our business. And we've been really,
[02:10:31] really pleased with the results so far.
[02:10:33] Um, to the fact that even YFY, the the
[02:10:36] gift card platform, have asked us to do
[02:10:39] some testimonials and some endorsements
[02:10:41] and some some best practices uh for how
[02:10:44] we've been able to do this. So, uh, at a
[02:10:46] recent meeting, um, Isaiah and I met
[02:10:49] with our resorts and out of that
[02:10:51] meeting, they said, "Hey, we could
[02:10:53] really use some help, um, with our
[02:10:56] October and shoulder season." And so,
[02:10:58] kind of what we're proposing to hear is
[02:10:59] kind of a is something that uh, Isaiah
[02:11:02] kind of brought up as an idea and asked
[02:11:04] us to kind of workshop. So, I'm here to
[02:11:06] kind of present an opportunity that
[02:11:08] we're what we're kind of calling the
[02:11:09] economic development shop local resort
[02:11:11] partnership program. Uh, and this would
[02:11:14] be designed to challenge, you know, the
[02:11:17] lower occupancy rates during the fall
[02:11:19] and shoulder the fall shoulder season
[02:11:21] and provide a targeted cost-effective
[02:11:24] solution that benefits our resorts,
[02:11:26] local businesses, and city revenues.
[02:11:29] Um,
[02:11:31] occupancy support, you know, occupancy
[02:11:34] historically in our peak season reaches
[02:11:36] 70 to 80%. We're slightly, we're kind of
[02:11:39] right in line with the whole valley. So,
[02:11:42] in peak season, the Januaries, February,
[02:11:45] Marches, our hotels are getting to 80%
[02:11:47] and they're doing fine. Um, but those
[02:11:50] can those can reach as low as 49%
[02:11:53] uh in September and October. And those
[02:11:56] are really the pivotal months because if
[02:11:58] the weather's decent, if there's events,
[02:12:00] if there's things like that, if they
[02:12:01] have a little bit of incentive, uh they
[02:12:03] can really move the needle there. So,
[02:12:05] this represents a clear opportunity to
[02:12:07] intervene with a solution that builds on
[02:12:09] something that's already working in the
[02:12:11] economic development area and that's
[02:12:14] already uh and that that's our shop
[02:12:16] local ranchers gift card. This proposed
[02:12:18] pilot program would take $65,000 from
[02:12:21] the economic development budget and
[02:12:23] allocate that towards this pilot program
[02:12:25] with our resorts. The goal is to help
[02:12:27] stimulate bookings during that slower
[02:12:29] months. Resorts would distribute shop
[02:12:32] local gift cards, e gift cards, to
[02:12:33] guests who check in for weekday stays.
[02:12:36] Funding distribution to resorts would be
[02:12:38] based on factors such as their daily
[02:12:40] average rate, their occupancy levels,
[02:12:42] and their toot contributions.
[02:12:45] When we originally uh pitched this to
[02:12:48] the GMs, they were all supportive of it.
[02:12:51] So, here's kind of why it matters and
[02:12:52] here why we think this could be a good
[02:12:53] test run. A modest 5% increase during
[02:12:57] those months.
[02:12:59] uh would generate approximately 60 to
[02:13:02] 70,000 in toot which essentially would
[02:13:05] be offset the full cost of what we're
[02:13:07] suggesting and allocate through this
[02:13:08] program. Importantly, these gift cards
[02:13:10] can be can can only be used uh in our
[02:13:14] community. So all those incentive
[02:13:15] dollars stay exactly in our community.
[02:13:17] They don't go out anywhere. And it's
[02:13:19] important to note that our resorts are
[02:13:21] already part of this program. So their
[02:13:22] spas, their dining establishments, their
[02:13:25] golf courses if applicable are all cost
[02:13:27] centers in these. So those cards can
[02:13:29] only be used at their resorts, but they
[02:13:31] can be used at 60 other businesses
[02:13:33] across our community, including
[02:13:34] restaurants. So if you're staying here
[02:13:36] for 3 4 days and you don't want to eat
[02:13:38] in the restaurant another time, go enjoy
[02:13:41] another 30 restaurants in our valley and
[02:13:43] get the whole Ranch Mirage experience.
[02:13:45] This supports small businesses, enriches
[02:13:47] enriches the guest experience, and helps
[02:13:49] strengthen our local economy heading
[02:13:51] into the fall.
[02:13:53] If successful, this program could become
[02:13:55] a model for future initiatives,
[02:13:57] potentially even including a city a city
[02:13:59] matching incentive or expanding
[02:14:01] participation. It also provides valuable
[02:14:04] performance data to help us shape future
[02:14:06] seasonal strategies in collaboration
[02:14:08] with the with the hospitality sector. Uh
[02:14:11] our recommendation is that uh there'd be
[02:14:15] approval here today to implement a shop
[02:14:18] local resort partnership program with
[02:14:21] $65,000 funding allocation. We believe
[02:14:24] it's a smart strategic investment and
[02:14:26] strengthens our tourism economy and
[02:14:29] supports the broader business sector.
[02:14:31] with with the tourism with toot being
[02:14:33] one of our largest revenue streams right
[02:14:36] now. We don't have a tie between our
[02:14:38] shop local program and our resorts. So,
[02:14:43] we would love to kind of test this
[02:14:44] concept that we think we could make
[02:14:46] work. And it's also important to note
[02:14:48] this isn't all front-loaded. If it's not
[02:14:51] successful, even in the short term, if
[02:14:53] it's successful, you keep adding those
[02:14:55] funds to it. If it's not, you can
[02:14:57] quickly pivot and it gives the resorts
[02:14:59] the opportunity to have a customized
[02:15:01] program that's specific to their
[02:15:03] business needs. So, if they know a a
[02:15:05] sunny weekend's coming up, they have low
[02:15:07] occupancy, they want to create a deal,
[02:15:09] they have access to these cards and can
[02:15:11] move on that on a dime. They don't have
[02:15:12] to go through these all this corporate
[02:15:14] red tape to create some type of
[02:15:15] incentive program. So, um that concludes
[02:15:18] my presentation. I'm happy to answer any
[02:15:20] questions and uh thank you for allowing
[02:15:23] me to present.
[02:15:27] I did not receive any speaker cards on
[02:15:28] this item. Is there anyone in the
[02:15:30] audience who would like to speak on item
[02:15:31] 7D?
[02:15:33] No speakers. Um, mayor, uh, you need to
[02:15:37] reset your screens. So before, uh, now
[02:15:39] that public comments closed on this
[02:15:40] item, before we go to council
[02:15:42] discussion, uh, can you call a fivem
[02:15:45] minute recess so we can reset your
[02:15:46] screen?
[02:15:47] >> All right, we will have a fivem minute
[02:15:49] recess now. Thank you.
[02:17:18] This is
[02:17:40] >> Nice to meet you. We'll
[02:17:50] see you.
[02:19:06] This is
[02:19:40] Okay.
[02:20:00] Okay. Uh on item 7B, the uh again
[02:20:05] economic development
[02:20:07] uh shop local. Is there any additional
[02:20:10] discussion?
[02:20:11] >> I'd like to say really quickly to the
[02:20:14] marketing department, great work and I
[02:20:17] really love this program. I think it's
[02:20:20] easy. I think the citizens enjoy it. I
[02:20:22] think the businesses enjoy it. It is
[02:20:25] It's great when they're not complex and
[02:20:27] it works. So, thank you for your
[02:20:30] creativity. Thank you to your staff and
[02:20:33] all the city staff that implements the
[02:20:34] programs. Um I um I think it's perfectly
[02:20:40] in line with who we are as a city and
[02:20:41] how we're going to build business. So, I
[02:20:43] just want to applaud you again for your
[02:20:45] creativity and the opportunity to get to
[02:20:47] do this program. And um my dad watches,
[02:20:50] so I'll just say hi, Dad. Uh,
[02:20:54] everybody's covering the home base.
[02:20:57] >> The nice thing about this program, of
[02:20:59] course, is the fact that it's on a
[02:21:01] shoulder season. You know, it's a a time
[02:21:05] that is just really challenging as far
[02:21:08] as traffic is concerned. So, I think
[02:21:11] that's the unique part of it and that's
[02:21:14] what makes it uh so valuable. Any
[02:21:16] additional comments? I
[02:21:18] >> I do I've got a question if I may, Mr.
[02:21:19] Mayor. So um help me again understand
[02:21:22] where the funds will be spent. So it'll
[02:21:24] be specifically aimed at our resorts.
[02:21:27] >> Yeah, correct. So we would sit down with
[02:21:29] primarily our Ritz Carlton, our omni and
[02:21:32] our and our uh Weston properties and
[02:21:35] based upon their you know based upon you
[02:21:37] know so let's say the Weston has 50%
[02:21:40] occupancy in in September and and Omni
[02:21:43] has 55. We would create a value
[02:21:46] proposition based upon their rate
[02:21:48] because Ritz and Weston aren't going to
[02:21:49] have the same rate in September,
[02:21:50] October.
[02:21:51] >> Is it specifically aimed though at room?
[02:21:54] >> Correct.
[02:21:54] >> Yeah. So, it's incentive for somebody to
[02:21:57] book a stay.
[02:21:58] >> So, you know, kind of what we've talked
[02:22:00] about with the resort general managers
[02:22:02] is during this period of the year, they
[02:22:04] can usually do okay on weekends. So,
[02:22:07] we're not going to subsidize room stays
[02:22:09] on weekends. This will be a midweek and
[02:22:11] it'll be advertised by the resorts. Hey,
[02:22:14] you know, book a night or two with us
[02:22:16] midweek and get a local uh, you know,
[02:22:19] gift card. Yes, that can be used on
[02:22:23] site. So, some people will choose to use
[02:22:25] that on-site at the resort, but it can
[02:22:29] also be used offsite at any of our other
[02:22:31] businesses that participate in the
[02:22:33] program. So, according to the resort
[02:22:35] general managers, programs like this, in
[02:22:38] their opinion, go a long way in getting
[02:22:40] customers to book at their specific
[02:22:42] resource because usually somebody's
[02:22:44] already looking at the Coachella Valley.
[02:22:45] That decision's been made. Now, it's,
[02:22:47] hey, where do I want to be? And so they
[02:22:49] felt like that a program like this where
[02:22:52] upon check-in they're going to get their
[02:22:54] local gift card and then they can choose
[02:22:56] where to use that will really help them
[02:22:59] be able to market and attract that
[02:23:01] business to them. You know kind of from
[02:23:03] a staff perspective
[02:23:05] uh since this is the first time that
[02:23:08] we're trying to kind of merge uh you
[02:23:11] know let's drive to uh and people to our
[02:23:14] resorts with this shop local program. We
[02:23:16] said, "Hey, you know, we think that this
[02:23:18] is going to work, but let's measure the
[02:23:20] results, and if it does work, which I
[02:23:23] suspect it will." Um, then in the
[02:23:26] future, you we have real data. And then
[02:23:28] we go to those resorts, and you might
[02:23:29] find uh that we, you know, because the
[02:23:33] resorts are winning, they're getting
[02:23:34] more customers, they're doing more
[02:23:35] business, and we could say, "Hey, let's
[02:23:38] let's go in this 50/50." And you're
[02:23:40] essentially operating, you know, a mini
[02:23:42] BOGO program. uh and they get skin in
[02:23:45] the game and we have skin in the game.
[02:23:47] At the end of the day, that money can
[02:23:48] still only be used at our, you know,
[02:23:50] businesses that are signed up for the
[02:23:52] program. So, it's uh I think a unique
[02:23:55] opportunity to uh partner with our
[02:23:57] resorts, help them during a difficult
[02:23:59] period. Let's drive some new new
[02:24:01] business to them. At the same time, it
[02:24:03] you know, the only place you can spend
[02:24:04] this money is in our local businesses.
[02:24:06] So, uh, we're pretty excited about the
[02:24:09] prospect of how this goes, but we're
[02:24:11] going to measure the results and we'll
[02:24:12] be able to report back, uh, and report
[02:24:15] on how the program did.
[02:24:16] >> Okay, good. And I recall when we
[02:24:18] instituted the gift card program some
[02:24:19] time back, that is exactly what we
[02:24:21] talked about is at specific times of
[02:24:23] year of the year aimed at specific uh,
[02:24:25] businesses in our community. So, this
[02:24:27] this um, achieves that objective. And
[02:24:29] it's also the case that if I recall the
[02:24:31] numbers, for the most part, our gift
[02:24:33] card program up to now has been utilized
[02:24:36] at our restaurants. So this is a way in
[02:24:39] which for us to expand the program to um
[02:24:42] specifically our hotels. So okay, good
[02:24:44] job. Appreciate that. Thank you for
[02:24:46] answering the question.
[02:24:47] >> I think we all agree with that. Any
[02:24:49] other council comments?
[02:24:51] >> I do just briefly. First, I'd like to
[02:24:53] give a shout out to Gab's mother-in-law
[02:24:55] and father-in-law,
[02:24:57] but I'd also like to give a shout out to
[02:24:58] Gabe because um at least for the last
[02:25:01] couple of years, we've been talking up
[02:25:03] here about economic development and the
[02:25:06] plans for that. And then when you look
[02:25:08] in at our budget where fully 50% of our
[02:25:13] revenue is from toot and sales tax, this
[02:25:16] seems like a no-brainer and I think it's
[02:25:19] an excellent idea. So, thank you for
[02:25:21] developing this.
[02:25:24] >> Any other comment? Any other family
[02:25:27] members that want to be covered?
[02:25:30] >> Well, I should acknowledge our team like
[02:25:32] our team has done a fantastic job. So,
[02:25:34] they may not be blood family, but they
[02:25:36] uh Tyler, Alex, uh Kai, Haley, and Lori,
[02:25:40] our team has worked really hard to to
[02:25:42] get this program and and the IFY
[02:25:44] platform has has said there's not many
[02:25:46] places and communities that put this
[02:25:47] much firepower into a program like this.
[02:25:49] So these guys have knocked on doors and
[02:25:51] our chamber partners have been great as
[02:25:53] well. So it's taken a big group effort
[02:25:54] and it's great to see the fruit pay off.
[02:25:56] So thank you for the thank you for the
[02:25:58] endorsements.
[02:25:59] >> Well, and by the way, I don't have to u
[02:26:01] shout out u over the screen to a uh
[02:26:04] family member. She's right here. Uh and
[02:26:07] by the way, she also was referred to by
[02:26:10] my good colleague Eve is having the
[02:26:11] worst job in the desert for being
[02:26:14] married to me yesterday.
[02:26:15] >> You learned something very important,
[02:26:17] >> I guess. Oh,
[02:26:19] >> I'm still
[02:26:22] >> That being said, uh may I impose upon
[02:26:26] anyone here?
[02:26:27] >> We've lost full control of this meeting.
[02:26:30] >> I will get us back I will make the
[02:26:31] motion get us back on track.
[02:26:34] >> Uh I make the motion to approve the
[02:26:36] implementation of an economic
[02:26:37] development shop local resort
[02:26:39] partnership program. That's a mouthful.
[02:26:41] and authorize the allocation of $65,000
[02:26:43] to support occupancy incentives at ranch
[02:26:46] and Mirage resorts during the September
[02:26:49] to October 2025 shoulder season.
[02:26:52] >> Second. There is a motion and a second.
[02:26:54] Please vote.
[02:26:59] >> Motion carries 5-0.
[02:27:01] >> Okay,
[02:27:03] that uh that concludes the formal p
[02:27:06] portion of our agenda. will now go to
[02:27:09] non-aggenda public comments.
[02:27:12] Again, an opportunity for the public to
[02:27:15] speak on issues not on the agenda for a
[02:27:18] maximum of three minutes per speaker.
[02:27:22] Should you approach the three minute
[02:27:24] point, I will ask you to conclude your
[02:27:27] comments. Are there any requests?
[02:27:30] >> Yes. First speaker is Deborah Miller.
[02:27:46] Good afternoon, mayor, council members,
[02:27:48] and other members of the city council
[02:27:49] meeting. Um, I'm a resident of a
[02:27:52] manufactured home community here in the
[02:27:53] city. Part of our rules is that we have
[02:27:55] to maintain the landscaping of the
[02:27:57] property we rent from the property
[02:27:58] owners, which means we have to pay for
[02:28:00] landscapers and gardeners to maintain
[02:28:01] our properties. However, every year we
[02:28:04] have been instructed by our property
[02:28:05] owners that our palm trees need to be
[02:28:06] trimmed and the property owners use
[02:28:08] their own vendor and charge those of us
[02:28:09] who have these trees on our space. We
[02:28:11] were given no options in the past. This
[02:28:14] past this year, the residents were given
[02:28:16] the option to use the property owner's
[02:28:17] vendor or one of our own. To use our own
[02:28:20] vendor, we had to provide to the owners
[02:28:21] the vendor's business license,
[02:28:23] insurance, and for them to be bonded.
[02:28:25] However, if we did not have our trees
[02:28:27] trimmed by a certain date, the property
[02:28:28] owners would have their vendor take care
[02:28:30] of it and charge our resident. Just to
[02:28:32] note, we were given less than 30 days
[02:28:34] notice to get this service done in time.
[02:28:36] I discovered during this process that
[02:28:38] the vendor that the property owners
[02:28:39] utilize does not have current licenses
[02:28:41] at all. Not a current contractor's
[02:28:44] license for the state of California. Um,
[02:28:46] which uh was suspended by the state on
[02:28:49] 331 2025, nor a city of Rancher Mirage
[02:28:53] business license. I contacted your
[02:28:56] business, your building and safety
[02:28:57] department to inquire about whether or
[02:28:59] not this vendor was allowed to even work
[02:29:01] in Rancho Mirage. On my first phone
[02:29:03] call, I was told that the city would
[02:29:04] send out code enforcement to ascertain
[02:29:06] the situation. It was at this time that
[02:29:08] I was informed that this vendor did not
[02:29:10] have a city business license for this
[02:29:12] year, nor had they ever had a city
[02:29:14] business license, and they have been
[02:29:15] working on our property for at least the
[02:29:17] last 10 years that I have lived there.
[02:29:19] FYI, I could not find in any
[02:29:21] documentation that this company even has
[02:29:23] a city business license for the city
[02:29:24] that they are located in. After a week
[02:29:27] with no visit from your code enforcement
[02:29:29] representative, I contacted your
[02:29:30] building and safety department again and
[02:29:33] spoke to a different person and was told
[02:29:34] that code enforcement doesn't take care
[02:29:36] of this type of situation and that they
[02:29:38] basically weren't worried about them
[02:29:39] having a city business license.
[02:29:42] I looked over your requirements to
[02:29:43] obtain a city business license on your
[02:29:45] website, but it's unclear as to what is
[02:29:47] required of vendors who have no physical
[02:29:49] address in the city. In other words,
[02:29:51] their physical address is in another
[02:29:52] city in the valley. So, here are my
[02:29:54] concerns. Outside vendors, what
[02:29:56] documentation do they require to perform
[02:29:59] services in Rancher Mirage? If they do
[02:30:01] not have this documentation, what is the
[02:30:03] city's responsibility to his residents
[02:30:05] to ensure that they are dealing with a
[02:30:06] reputable company? and what actions can
[02:30:09] a resident like myself take when
[02:30:10] confronted with a non-licensed vendor.
[02:30:13] Just a note, the city of Ranch Mirage
[02:30:15] has more gated communities than non-HN
[02:30:18] HOA residences,
[02:30:21] which means that we are at the mercy of
[02:30:22] our property owners and HOAs as to whom
[02:30:25] they hired to take care of our
[02:30:26] properties. Something to think about.
[02:30:29] Thank you very much. I also have a copy
[02:30:31] if the board uh the city council would
[02:30:34] like a copy. If you would leave it with
[02:30:35] the city clerk, that'd be
[02:30:36] >> I shall.
[02:30:38] >> Great. Thank you for your comments.
[02:30:39] Thank you for coming and waiting as long
[02:30:42] as you did today.
[02:30:44] >> Not a problem.
[02:30:46] >> Kimberly McKini.
[02:30:56] >> Thank you for having me, Mr. Mayor and
[02:30:58] City Council. I'm Kimberly McKini from
[02:31:00] Guy Dog of the Desert, and you've all
[02:31:02] observed Arlo. Arlo, I'm his breeder
[02:31:05] host for the guy dogs of the desert,
[02:31:07] which means that he's goes to work with
[02:31:11] me. He goes home with me and he's mine,
[02:31:13] but he's not legally mine. He belongs to
[02:31:16] the guy Dogs of the Desert. They take
[02:31:18] care of all his grooming, which he needs
[02:31:19] right now. And they also take care of
[02:31:22] all his vet bills while he's a breeder.
[02:31:24] So, he's two and a half years old. He's
[02:31:27] been raised by puppy razors, some maybe
[02:31:30] even here in Rancher Mirage. We have
[02:31:32] over 250 volunteers that volunteer at uh
[02:31:36] Guy Dogs of the Desert mostly to take
[02:31:38] our puppies. We have uh Labradors and we
[02:31:41] have pools. They take them at three
[02:31:43] months. They take them home. They do
[02:31:45] eight weeks of classes online or in
[02:31:47] person on our campus in Whitewater. And
[02:31:50] then they bring them back in uh 18
[02:31:52] months or two years. And at that time
[02:31:55] they're assessed. They're either going
[02:31:58] into training to be a guide dog. Not all
[02:32:01] dogs want to be guide dogs. Some of them
[02:32:04] uh want to do their own thing. So, um
[02:32:07] but they're trained so well that they're
[02:32:09] canine support. So, right now we have um
[02:32:13] two in Palm Springs, one fire, one um
[02:32:17] police department. We had we just
[02:32:19] retired one in Desert Hot Springs.
[02:32:21] Orange County has probably 10 of our
[02:32:23] dogs um in various offices. Okay. Oh, he
[02:32:27] watches TV. He's seen me on TV. He does.
[02:32:31] That's what he's looking at the screen.
[02:32:33] Um, so what I I want to thank the city
[02:32:35] for all the volunteers that have been
[02:32:37] helping us out. We're redoing a lot of
[02:32:40] our website and all of our programs. And
[02:32:42] we we just have a new board member, Mary
[02:32:45] Willis, who's known in the city of Ranch
[02:32:47] Mirage. And another board member is
[02:32:49] Guido
[02:32:53] Poritante General. And um so they're
[02:32:56] both Rancho Mirage residents.
[02:32:59] But we um just really quick, we're
[02:33:02] looking for volunteers. We're going to
[02:33:04] need 17 breeder hosts, uh poodles and
[02:33:07] labradors. This year, we're going to
[02:33:10] need um probably 30 or 40 more puppy
[02:33:13] razors. That commitment is two years. I
[02:33:16] didn't catch the superintendent, but I'm
[02:33:18] going to because students get four hours
[02:33:21] a day puppy raising. Um so on college uh
[02:33:25] applications, it looks pretty good. They
[02:33:27] have tons. But also, we're another
[02:33:29] resource. We have a huge uh auditorium
[02:33:32] in Whitewater. The view is spectacular.
[02:33:35] And it if you have any businesses or
[02:33:38] people that are looking for a cheap
[02:33:40] venue, they can come up. We also have
[02:33:43] dormitories for our blind, our love.
[02:33:47] Anyway, so we'll invite you to a
[02:33:49] graduation in October for our our our
[02:33:52] dogs that have been trained and have
[02:33:54] been working with um their people for 28
[02:33:57] days. So, and I'll come back with um a
[02:34:01] new presentation soon, but thank you for
[02:34:03] having me and putting up with him all
[02:34:04] day long.
[02:34:05] >> Thank you for coming. Thank you for your
[02:34:07] comments. Guide Dogs is a wonderful
[02:34:09] organization.
[02:34:10] >> We appreciate you being here.
[02:34:13] >> Thank you,
[02:34:14] >> Brad Anderson.
[02:34:22] Good afternoon, Brad Anderson, city
[02:34:23] master. Uh, this is non-aggenda public
[02:34:26] comments. I'd like to speak uh
[02:34:28] concerning uh council member D's
[02:34:30] comments earlier and some of my own. Um,
[02:34:35] I guess I want to just point out that
[02:34:38] non-aggenda public comments was moved
[02:34:41] from the beginning of the meeting, which
[02:34:43] it has been from the beginning of the
[02:34:45] city to towards the end of the meeting
[02:34:48] now and council comments stayed the
[02:34:51] same. Uh, the reason I'm bringing that
[02:34:54] up is because that was my belief a
[02:34:57] conspired upon issue. the city manager.
[02:35:02] Well, I really don't know who decided to
[02:35:05] do this, but I feel it was conspired
[02:35:07] upon by all the council members in some
[02:35:10] aspect to do that, and that's to quiet
[02:35:14] critics like myself uh of the city
[02:35:17] politics of city council actions and
[02:35:20] politics. And and and speaking of closed
[02:35:24] session items, which you will be having
[02:35:25] another one today, another conspired
[02:35:28] upon aspect where you're going to go
[02:35:30] into close session and then come back
[02:35:33] into action session for the city clerk's
[02:35:36] contract just like you did with the city
[02:35:39] manager a few meetings back.
[02:35:43] This is the aspect that I'm I'm talking
[02:35:46] about when I talk about closed session.
[02:35:47] I brought up a log book, a minute book,
[02:35:50] which is common in California that city
[02:35:53] councilors uh fill out and and actually
[02:35:57] approve at the meetings at the at the
[02:35:59] next meetings.
[02:36:01] That was just the suggestion and I think
[02:36:03] you should do it because of transparency
[02:36:05] of this city. the lack of and that's and
[02:36:09] and having a a emergency staff person
[02:36:13] like a fire chief or police chief is
[02:36:15] another aspect I thought would be
[02:36:18] beneficial for the city residents for
[02:36:20] transparency and not just transparency
[02:36:23] but I have no faith in our city
[02:36:25] attorney's office right now and and if
[02:36:28] we could have another contracted city
[02:36:30] attorney that would be great too because
[02:36:32] maybe I could feel more comfortable in
[02:36:35] having closed discussion of city
[02:36:37] politics like we're talking about land
[02:36:39] deals before where city residents could
[02:36:42] have been squinted squinted possibly out
[02:36:45] of property not knowing the aspects of
[02:36:47] of uh what that property was going to be
[02:36:51] used for and also you're taken out of
[02:36:52] the tax base forever and you've done
[02:36:54] that before with other properties in the
[02:36:56] city and area assessment 31 I have
[02:36:59] issues with that uh of prior council
[02:37:02] members voting on that and I have a and
[02:37:05] I have a a somewhat issue with Mr. DS of
[02:37:08] his location and residential location
[02:37:10] and aspect of his community that he
[02:37:12] lives in. Uh and it's going to get this
[02:37:16] worse from here because I'm just I I
[02:37:18] love your statistics and I will be
[02:37:20] looking into those and and giving you
[02:37:22] some of mine later on. But uh let's add
[02:37:25] transparency city and maybe honor our
[02:37:27] maybe ethical standards. Thank you.
[02:37:30] >> Thank you for your comments. Wally
[02:37:32] Melendez.
[02:37:55] Uh, good afternoon
[02:37:57] everybody.
[02:38:01] RMU
[02:38:04] Rancho Mirage University.
[02:38:08] Why?
[02:38:12] So that people in this area can learn
[02:38:15] about climate change,
[02:38:18] global warming,
[02:38:21] nonfossil fuel vehicles,
[02:38:29] and
[02:38:34] pseudo
[02:38:37] affordable housing.
[02:38:40] You people
[02:38:42] up on the dice
[02:38:45] still
[02:38:46] don't pay attention.
[02:38:52] There is no such thing as affordable
[02:38:57] housing.
[02:39:02] What we need is
[02:39:05] equity participatory
[02:39:09] housing.
[02:39:13] You can't put a bunch of people in an
[02:39:16] apartment complex and ask them all about
[02:39:20] their finances and so on.
[02:39:25] When people go into an apartment, it's
[02:39:27] because of a necessity.
[02:39:31] Trust me, people want to own their own
[02:39:34] home. They don't want to rent. Why would
[02:39:37] anybody want to rent and make somebody
[02:39:40] else rich?
[02:39:45] So, the city, all you real estate people
[02:39:48] that know so much
[02:39:51] ought to get together. You the
[02:39:53] government are together with private
[02:39:55] industry
[02:39:57] and come up with a plan
[02:40:02] that that that that addresses equity
[02:40:07] participatory housing. Why?
[02:40:12] Well, I'm repeating myself, but
[02:40:17] when you're a poor person, poor people,
[02:40:21] there's a lot of those up there.
[02:40:25] They don't want to make somebody else
[02:40:27] rich. They don't want to make a
[02:40:29] multi-billion dollar company that makes
[02:40:31] this affordable housing, apartment
[02:40:33] complexes. They want something for the
[02:40:36] money. They may get their money from
[02:40:39] social security. They may get their
[02:40:41] money from uh the the uh from the VA.
[02:40:44] They may get their money from uh uh from
[02:40:47] the union.
[02:40:50] And lastly,
[02:40:52] all this workforce housing that they
[02:40:55] want to put up, workforce housing, is
[02:40:58] that going to be union or non union?
[02:41:02] >> Thank you for your comment.
[02:41:04] >> That was the last speaker card. Is there
[02:41:06] anyone else in the audience who would
[02:41:07] like to speak on something not on
[02:41:09] today's agenda?
[02:41:11] >> That was the last speaker.
[02:41:13] >> Okay, that concludes the non-aggenda
[02:41:15] public comments.
[02:41:17] We are going to be recessing into close
[02:41:20] session shortly. I'll ask our city
[02:41:23] attorney to review the agenda.
[02:41:26] >> Thank you, mayor. Before I do, I just
[02:41:27] want to jump on the bandwagon and give a
[02:41:29] shout out to Eve's dad, who owes me a
[02:41:30] rematch on the golf course. Um
[02:41:35] but we will be convening in a close
[02:41:36] session for the two items listed before
[02:41:38] you. The first being conference with
[02:41:40] legal council public employee
[02:41:42] performance evaluation pursuant to
[02:41:44] California government code section
[02:41:46] 54957.
[02:41:47] The public employee is the city
[02:41:49] clerk/board secretary. And the second
[02:41:52] item being conference with the labor
[02:41:53] negoti negotiator regarding
[02:41:56] unrepresented employee pursuant to
[02:41:57] California government code section
[02:41:59] 54957.
[02:42:01] City representative is myself, Colin
[02:42:02] Kirkpatrick, the city attorney, and the
[02:42:04] unrepresented employee is the city
[02:42:06] clerk/board secretary.
[02:42:08] >> And mayor, we do have one public
[02:42:10] comment.
[02:42:12] >> Brad Anderson.
[02:42:16] >> Thank you again, Brad Anderson, city of
[02:42:18] Answ. And thank you for allowing the
[02:42:20] city attorney to give his counselor or
[02:42:23] give his remarks before I spoke. Uh,
[02:42:29] I'm I'm all in favor of people making an
[02:42:31] honest and ethical living and the city
[02:42:34] clerk I feel is doing a
[02:42:39] a good job at what she's doing. Uh,
[02:42:42] the performance evaluation will probably
[02:42:45] see that. Uh, but I I wanted to just
[02:42:48] voice my concerns about as well. I did
[02:42:50] write them down. I did submit them last
[02:42:52] time this came up for a close session.
[02:42:54] So if people are interested, I do have
[02:42:56] written comments to that. uh I had
[02:42:59] aspects of uh when city council races
[02:43:02] were being run and when I did the uh I
[02:43:05] guess pulling of papers uh aspect and
[02:43:09] and I wasn't
[02:43:11] uh I guess I didn't have the uh a
[02:43:15] capability of being seen in a timely
[02:43:17] fashion on two occasions and and and
[02:43:22] that could have been just uh it could
[02:43:24] have been a lot of a lot of aspects but
[02:43:26] I just wanted to bring to note that
[02:43:29] that's the the issue I had and I
[02:43:32] remember Mr. Kite using city um city
[02:43:36] materials in his re-election campaigns
[02:43:38] and the city clerk should have brought
[02:43:40] that to attention. Uh that's that's
[02:43:43] something that that I think she should
[02:43:45] should have done uh by using city city
[02:43:48] equipment in that matter. And since
[02:43:51] we're since the city clerk's association
[02:43:55] uh in or the city clerk used the city
[02:43:58] clerk's association aspect to reduce the
[02:44:02] minutes of these proceedings of all city
[02:44:05] subcommittees, all city meetings, public
[02:44:08] meetings.
[02:44:10] Uh that should be saving tons of money
[02:44:13] and tons tons of time according to the
[02:44:15] city staff report. So,
[02:44:18] I think maybe a modest increase like the
[02:44:20] city manager received would be in order.
[02:44:23] And that's all I have. Thank you.
[02:44:24] >> Thank you for your comments.
[02:44:26] >> That was the only speaker card.
[02:44:28] >> All right. Uh that concludes uh the uh
[02:44:32] non-aggenda public comments. We are now
[02:44:35] into recess uh for a close session.
[02:44:50] Okay, the meeting is um back in order. I
[02:44:54] will ask the council to review any
[02:44:57] activities
[02:44:59] uh that took place during the close
[02:45:00] session.
[02:45:02] >> Thank you, mayor. No reportable action,
[02:45:03] but we'll move to the action calendar to
[02:45:05] discuss the item further.
[02:45:10] Chrissy, do you want to do we have any
[02:45:11] public comments?
[02:45:12] >> Yes. Brad Anderson,
[02:45:23] >> city of Raras, Brad Anderson. Um,
[02:45:28] I'm complex. I don't know what's going
[02:45:30] on. And we did this before where we had
[02:45:32] no reportable asin, but we're in the
[02:45:34] discussion aspect of item 10A. Uh, and
[02:45:39] you asked to give my public comment. So,
[02:45:41] are we going to have the council,
[02:45:43] Council DS, I'm asking questions of the
[02:45:46] council that you can't answer. So, I
[02:45:48] have nothing further to say until after
[02:45:51] you add your discussion. Thank you.
[02:45:54] >> Thank you for your comment.
[02:45:56] >> And that was the only speaker.
[02:45:58] >> Thank you, Christie. Um, so in close
[02:46:01] session, uh, the city council tenatively
[02:46:03] offered and the city clerk, uh,
[02:46:05] tenatively accepted subject to city
[02:46:07] council formal vote and, uh, potential
[02:46:10] approval of an increase in the city
[02:46:13] clerk's salary to a total of $148,500.
[02:46:18] Also, um an update to her employment
[02:46:22] agreement to increase her health savings
[02:46:25] account to the IRS maximum as well as to
[02:46:27] sync her holiday schedule to match theou
[02:46:31] with the Ranch Mirage Employees
[02:46:32] Association. Uh if so um desired, the
[02:46:36] city council can make a motion to
[02:46:38] approve the aforementioned increase in
[02:46:41] Christiey's compensation package.
[02:46:43] >> I will make the motion.
[02:46:44] >> Second.
[02:46:46] There's a motion and a second to
[02:46:48] increase the compensation
[02:46:51] as per the description of council.
[02:46:54] Um,
[02:46:56] all in favor
[02:46:59] or do you want to put it on the screen?
[02:47:01] >> Yes, please.
[02:47:03] >> Roll call.
[02:47:05] >> You want to do a roll call?
[02:47:06] >> It's not popping up.
[02:47:07] >> Oh, okay.
[02:47:09] >> Screen is not popping up.
[02:47:10] >> Okay. Council member DS.
[02:47:13] >> Yes. Council member Fberg Edstein.
[02:47:15] >> Council member O'Keefe.
[02:47:17] >> Yes.
[02:47:17] >> Mayor Prom Mulatto?
[02:47:19] >> Yes.
[02:47:19] >> And Mayor Why?
[02:47:20] >> Yes.
[02:47:20] >> Motion carries 5.
[02:47:23] >> Okay. Congratulations, Christie.
[02:47:28] >> Is there any other issues?
[02:47:30] >> No, we're done.
[02:47:31] >> Okay, that concludes this the matter.
[02:47:34] This meeting is now adjourned.