September 25, 2025 Planning Commission - City of Rancho Mirage

Transcript text

AI transcript text.

[00:00:14] All right. Um, I'm going to call to
[00:00:16] order the Rancho Mirage Regular Planning
[00:00:20] Commission meeting of September the
[00:00:22] 25th, 2025
[00:00:26] at 2 p.m.
[00:00:31] [Music]
[00:00:36] And Jason, will you leave us lead us
[00:00:37] into the flag salute, please?
[00:00:39] >> Yes. Please stand, everyone. Place your
[00:00:41] hand after your heart. Repeat after me.
[00:00:43] I pledge allegiance
[00:00:45] >> to the flag of the United States of
[00:00:47] America and to the republic for it
[00:00:50] stands. One nation under God,
[00:00:53] indivisible, liberty, justice for all.
[00:01:10] Chrissy, may we may we have the roll
[00:01:12] call, please?
[00:01:13] >> Commissioner Agustinini,
[00:01:15] >> present.
[00:01:16] >> Commissioner Beiel,
[00:01:18] >> present.
[00:01:18] >> Commissioner Gray,
[00:01:19] >> present.
[00:01:20] >> Vice Chair Bryant,
[00:01:22] >> present.
[00:01:22] >> Chair Chanter. And we have a quorum. And
[00:01:26] may I have a motion uh to approve the
[00:01:29] absence of Chair Chanter, please?
[00:01:32] >> I will so move.
[00:01:34] >> May I have a second?
[00:01:35] >> Second.
[00:01:46] >> Excuse me. Motion carries 40.
[00:01:49] >> Thank you. Uh next will be the um
[00:01:53] commissioner comments. start with uh
[00:01:56] David.
[00:02:00] >> Thank you, acting chair.
[00:02:02] Uh I just like to welcome all of the
[00:02:05] participants and visitors to the meeting
[00:02:07] today. I think it's always great that we
[00:02:10] start off with the flag salute. Um,
[00:02:12] while some of the statements in the flag
[00:02:14] salute at times to me seem more
[00:02:16] aspirational than current reality, I
[00:02:20] think we are one nation under God,
[00:02:23] however we see it, and indivisible and
[00:02:25] hope that everybody will keep that in
[00:02:27] mind during the course of the
[00:02:28] proceedings today. Thank you.
[00:02:32] my comments. Um, I just one thing I want
[00:02:36] to point out is the newsletter that
[00:02:37] comes out weekly for the Ranch Mars
[00:02:39] newsletter. As we come in the season as
[00:02:41] traffic increases, I I I reviewed that
[00:02:44] and I noticed there's um street slurry
[00:02:47] going on. So, watch out for traffic
[00:02:49] throughout town. The other big thing
[00:02:50] coming up, October 9th is the shred day.
[00:02:53] So, just a great resource that we have
[00:02:55] here is to our residents of uh Rancher
[00:02:57] Mirage.
[00:03:00] Austin
[00:03:01] >> have a further comment. Thank you.
[00:03:03] >> All right. Um, thank you.
[00:03:06] Well, first, uh, is this is sort of the
[00:03:09] new season of hearings, so look forward
[00:03:11] to a lot of hearings, uh, this year. Uh,
[00:03:15] and also it's nice to see a large group
[00:03:17] of people here. Uh I wish really that
[00:03:21] every hearing we have and every planning
[00:03:23] uh city council hearing a lot of people
[00:03:26] would show up because that's really
[00:03:28] essence of um a good city and a
[00:03:31] democracy when people participate and
[00:03:34] regardless of their opinions. Uh we know
[00:03:37] that everybody doesn't agree on
[00:03:38] everything but it's important to have u
[00:03:41] participation by our residents and so uh
[00:03:45] welcome everybody. I do want to let you
[00:03:47] know there will be ample time for public
[00:03:50] comments of items not on the agenda as
[00:03:54] well as items on the agenda. So, I want
[00:03:58] to start out uh with a little shout out
[00:04:01] across the street. Uh Duke's Deli just
[00:04:04] opened this last uh past Monday.
[00:04:07] Unfortunately, they had a fire a year
[00:04:08] ago and it took them an entire year uh
[00:04:11] to u get going again. But it's a great
[00:04:15] little place, very nice people, very
[00:04:18] hardworking. And I was uh on Monday, I
[00:04:21] was the first one over there lined up to
[00:04:23] get my favorite chicken salad and
[00:04:25] kleslaw. So I encourage you to go over
[00:04:28] there and help them get going again. Um
[00:04:34] so our next item is the um approval of
[00:04:39] the minutes of June the 26, 2025.
[00:04:44] Uh, are there any commissioner questions
[00:04:47] on it or comments? David, start with
[00:04:50] you.
[00:04:51] >> I have none on the minutes.
[00:04:55] >> No comments here.
[00:04:56] >> None here.
[00:04:57] >> None. And uh I don't have any. Chrissy,
[00:05:01] do we have any cards for public comments
[00:05:03] on the minutes?
[00:05:04] >> Yes, we have one. Brad Anderson.
[00:05:10] >> Sir, would you state your name and
[00:05:12] residence?
[00:05:12] >> Of course. My name is Brad Anderson. I
[00:05:14] live within the city of Ranch Mirage on
[00:05:17] Forward Drive. Uh I just wanted to bring
[00:05:20] attention, I guess, to this board, uh
[00:05:23] this commission.
[00:05:25] I'm sure you're aware, but the minutes
[00:05:27] are inaccurate. The written minutes, um
[00:05:30] my statements were not presented, uh and
[00:05:35] my stances were not taken on public
[00:05:37] hearing items. And this is uh critical
[00:05:41] uh because even on the speaker form you
[00:05:44] have in favor and oppose but if it's not
[00:05:47] going to be recorded in the minutes of
[00:05:49] the written minutes it's it's senseless
[00:05:52] to even uh I guess have this on the
[00:05:56] speaker card. Uh this is a great change.
[00:05:59] I'm not going to lecture you. you
[00:06:01] already know that uh the city has
[00:06:04] changed how they record the minutes or
[00:06:06] they don't actually record public
[00:06:08] comments uh of the public now just so
[00:06:11] everybody knows that they speak today
[00:06:13] they will not be recorded into the
[00:06:15] written minutes of the city of Ranch
[00:06:17] Mirage so hopefully you can adjust that
[00:06:21] because it's it's critical that the
[00:06:22] historical actions of this commission
[00:06:26] and its residents me be recorded
[00:06:29] accurately and for future generations
[00:06:32] and uh and it's not and that's all I
[00:06:35] have. Thank you.
[00:06:37] >> All right. Thank you. Are there any
[00:06:39] other
[00:06:39] >> No, that was the only speaker.
[00:06:40] >> All right. Thank you. Um then if there
[00:06:43] are no more uh commissioner questions,
[00:06:45] comments, or public comments, um I'll
[00:06:48] ask for a motion to approve the June 26,
[00:06:53] 2025 regular planning commission meeting
[00:06:56] minutes.
[00:06:58] May I have a motion?
[00:07:00] >> Also move
[00:07:01] >> and a second.
[00:07:02] >> Second.
[00:07:03] >> All right, we have a a motion and a
[00:07:05] second.
[00:07:06] >> You know, um I'm having a little bit of
[00:07:08] a technical difficulty just on this
[00:07:10] particular item as far as putting in a
[00:07:11] vote. Can we just do a vote a voice
[00:07:13] vote, please? Could you restate the
[00:07:16] motion or who made the motion?
[00:07:18] >> This is uh Commissioner Gray. I made the
[00:07:21] motion to approve the minutes.
[00:07:23] >> Commissioner Be Commissioner Beal
[00:07:25] seconded.
[00:07:26] >> Thank you. And I'll do a roll call uh
[00:07:28] vote. Commissioner Agustinini,
[00:07:31] >> approve.
[00:07:32] >> Commissioner Beal,
[00:07:33] >> approve.
[00:07:34] >> Commissioner Gray,
[00:07:35] >> approve.
[00:07:36] >> Vice Chair Bryant,
[00:07:37] >> approve.
[00:07:38] >> Motion carries 4 Z. Thank you.
[00:07:40] >> Thank you. Um, next we move into the U
[00:07:45] public hearing.
[00:07:47] Uh, the only one today. Um, it's item 4
[00:07:51] A, minor conditional use permit, case
[00:07:54] number CUP25-00007-69640,
[00:08:02] Highway 111. The applicant is the
[00:08:05] Islamic Society of the Desert,
[00:08:08] consideration of a place of worship
[00:08:10] located at 69640
[00:08:13] Highway 111 APN674-490-042.
[00:08:22] Ben, may we have the staff report,
[00:08:24] please?
[00:08:25] >> Yes. Uh, good afternoon, planning
[00:08:26] commissioners. Uh, before I begin my
[00:08:29] presentation, I want to clarify a few
[00:08:30] points regarding the project we are
[00:08:32] about to discuss. Uh firstly, a house of
[00:08:34] worship is a permitted use in the
[00:08:37] general commercial zone with a minor
[00:08:38] conditional use permit which is what is
[00:08:41] being considered by the planning
[00:08:42] commission. No zone changes required for
[00:08:44] a house of worship use. Um there is an
[00:08:47] existing ministry coinoa life ministries
[00:08:50] which is located adjacent to the
[00:08:51] proposed mosque within the same zone
[00:08:53] general commercial. Uh the ministry is
[00:08:55] west of the project site and the Jewish
[00:08:57] federation is east of the site. The
[00:08:59] ministry was approved by the planning
[00:09:01] commission in 2021. uh with a minor
[00:09:03] conditional use permit as well. Um there
[00:09:06] is no new construction occurring, only
[00:09:09] minor interior changes to the existing
[00:09:11] building. No exterior changes are
[00:09:13] proposed other than repaving the
[00:09:14] existing parking lot, installing new
[00:09:17] landscaping, and fixing any exterior
[00:09:19] issues on the property that are
[00:09:20] currently boarded up. Um and per uh
[00:09:23] state and federal laws, the city can't
[00:09:25] discriminate on the basis of a religion
[00:09:27] or religious denomination. So I'll start
[00:09:30] my presentation. Um, the project site is
[00:09:33] located within an existing 9,032
[00:09:36] ft commercial building on a 1.37 acre
[00:09:39] parcel that was originally built as a
[00:09:41] Black Angus restaurant uh near the
[00:09:43] intersection of Frank Sinatra and
[00:09:45] Highway 111.
[00:09:47] As I previously mentioned, no physical
[00:09:49] changes to the site or building exterior
[00:09:50] are being proposed as part of this
[00:09:52] request other than typical property
[00:09:54] maintenance. Uh the current um project
[00:09:56] is a use determination to establish a
[00:09:58] mosque for the Islamic Society of the
[00:10:00] Desert with ancillary uses. Uh the
[00:10:03] proposed mosque is um designed to serve
[00:10:05] the western half of the Coachella Valley
[00:10:07] since there are currently no mosque or
[00:10:09] Islamic religious facilities within this
[00:10:10] area. All events are to be held indoors
[00:10:13] and no outdoor amplified uh sound will
[00:10:16] be used. In addition, a landscape plan
[00:10:18] was provided to enhance existing
[00:10:20] landscaping on the project site. uh 10
[00:10:23] new 36-inch boxed rosewood trees are
[00:10:26] proposed in addition to 26 Chihuahua and
[00:10:29] sage shrubs. As conditioned, the project
[00:10:31] meets all municipal code regulations.
[00:10:35] Um these are current photographs of the
[00:10:37] existing building and no exterior
[00:10:39] changes or additions to the building are
[00:10:40] proposed as part of this request other
[00:10:42] than building maintenance.
[00:10:45] Um staff would like to add the following
[00:10:47] additional condition of approval to
[00:10:48] require a minimum of four handicap
[00:10:50] parking spaces prior to building
[00:10:52] occupancy.
[00:10:54] Various written public comments were
[00:10:56] received after the posting of the agenda
[00:10:58] which have been distributed to the
[00:11:00] planning commission. Um staff at this
[00:11:02] time recommends that the planning
[00:11:04] commission one approve the filing of a
[00:11:06] notice of exemption pursuant to the
[00:11:08] California Environmental Quality Act
[00:11:09] SQUA section 15301 class one for
[00:11:13] existing facilities and two approve
[00:11:15] minor conditional use permit case number
[00:11:17] CUP25-00007
[00:11:21] subject to the conditions of approval
[00:11:23] and with the added condition and based
[00:11:25] on the content and findings in the staff
[00:11:27] report. That concludes staff's
[00:11:29] presentation and at this time I would
[00:11:30] like to invite the applicant to say a
[00:11:32] few words um to the podium. Thank you.
[00:11:53] Let me begin in the name of God the most
[00:11:55] merciful, the most compassionate. Peace
[00:11:58] be upon you all and good afternoon
[00:12:00] everybody.
[00:12:02] My name is Dr. Aayu Bilas and I'm a
[00:12:05] colon and rectile surgeon.
[00:12:07] Right. And I work at Eisen Hospital.
[00:12:11] I'm not a religious scholar. But I'm not
[00:12:12] a public speaker and uh my area of
[00:12:17] expertise is a very different one. I
[00:12:18] specialize in robotics and colon and
[00:12:21] rectal surgery.
[00:12:23] If you ask me to speak about it, I'll
[00:12:25] talk to you for 2 hours non-stop. I'm
[00:12:27] passionate about it.
[00:12:29] But on a lighter note,
[00:12:32] uh being a colarctal surgeon in the
[00:12:34] community, I've been here for about 5
[00:12:35] years.
[00:12:37] On a lighter note, again, I know the
[00:12:39] community more than many many of you.
[00:12:42] So I'm very comfortable talking to the
[00:12:44] community
[00:12:46] and uh I've been a surgeon for about 20
[00:12:50] plus years in my life and as I venture
[00:12:54] deeper into science
[00:12:57] the more I see the role of religion and
[00:13:00] God.
[00:13:03] Just this week, I was doing 6 and 12 to
[00:13:06] 7 hour surgery on someone, taking a
[00:13:09] tumor from a very critical aspect,
[00:13:11] pushing limits, doing it robotically so
[00:13:13] that our patients get the best outcomes.
[00:13:16] It's a very challenging procedure.
[00:13:20] But even though I control every step of
[00:13:22] the procedure, I always believe in
[00:13:25] divine help and the healing power.
[00:13:30] We do the surgeries but the healing is
[00:13:32] by God.
[00:13:34] For me faith is very personal.
[00:13:39] Why do I say this and I bring my
[00:13:41] profession into this is because making
[00:13:45] the right clinical decision
[00:13:47] for my patient not 99% of the time every
[00:13:52] time 100% of the time either before
[00:13:55] surgery or during surgery inoperatively
[00:13:58] it's a big burden and I feel it
[00:14:01] so I go to the mosque for clarity for
[00:14:05] peace for strength so that I make the
[00:14:09] right decision for my patients and for
[00:14:12] my community. Every time,
[00:14:15] every time. When I first joined
[00:14:18] Eisenhower,
[00:14:20] I had to drive all the way to Coachella
[00:14:22] to attend my Friday mandatory
[00:14:24] congregational prayers.
[00:14:27] My manager who is not a Muslim, she saw
[00:14:31] my situation. I was rushing between my
[00:14:33] patient during lunch break. My manager
[00:14:36] worked with the hospital so that I could
[00:14:38] or we could do the prayers in the chapel
[00:14:40] in the hospital. That meant a lot to us.
[00:14:44] But it was a small space only few of us
[00:14:46] could pray. Since then we arranged our
[00:14:49] prayers in another temporary facility in
[00:14:51] in Palm Desert
[00:14:55] and then we decided that because it's a
[00:14:57] small place over time we need a place
[00:14:59] for ourselves. So essentially doctors
[00:15:03] four and then later five two of them are
[00:15:05] surgeons three of them are other primary
[00:15:07] care practice physicians in the
[00:15:09] community. I actually wanted to call
[00:15:10] this as a doctor's mask and I thought
[00:15:12] it's mean don't do that you know I did
[00:15:15] tell them why don't you call this a
[00:15:17] doctor's mask
[00:15:19] between the five of us just want to give
[00:15:21] you how much we mean to the community
[00:15:24] I don't see I'm a subsp specialtity
[00:15:26] surgeon I don't see a lot of patient at
[00:15:27] the maximum I might see less than 100 in
[00:15:29] a week but between the other physicians
[00:15:31] and the surgeons they establish multiple
[00:15:34] other they their establishment they they
[00:15:37] have multiple other providers ers they
[00:15:40] see more than a thousand patients from
[00:15:42] this community from Ranch Mrage from
[00:15:44] Palm Desert and other adjacent cities in
[00:15:47] their establishments every week and
[00:15:49] they've been here for more than 25 to 30
[00:15:51] years. Fortunately unfortunately my
[00:15:54] friends who made this they are all
[00:15:55] partying in Europe now leaving me alone
[00:15:58] here.
[00:16:00] Anyho, when we so when we found this
[00:16:03] spot which we are talking about it
[00:16:06] right in front of the city hall between
[00:16:09] the Jewish Federation and a church.
[00:16:12] This is how we felt it. We felt right
[00:16:15] right away.
[00:16:17] It symbolized exactly what we believe
[00:16:19] in.
[00:16:21] Different faiths practicing
[00:16:24] side by side in peace along Highway 111.
[00:16:29] Frank Sinatra in front of city hall
[00:16:32] right in the heart of Francharaj.
[00:16:37] So, what will this mask look like in
[00:16:40] practice? Right, I need to give it to
[00:16:42] you.
[00:16:44] It'll be quiet,
[00:16:46] no changes to the existing structure.
[00:16:48] Like Ben mentioned, our community is
[00:16:50] small, mostly physicians, nurses,
[00:16:54] engineers, professors. We have two
[00:16:57] astrophysics professors in our group.
[00:17:00] Few businessmen and women, some retired
[00:17:02] members. You have seen them here.
[00:17:05] We normally congregate about 40 to 50
[00:17:07] people on Friday afternoon for our
[00:17:09] mandatory prayer. Like with every other
[00:17:11] religious group, people don't show up
[00:17:13] for regular prayers. They just come for
[00:17:15] a like Christians who show up for Sunday
[00:17:18] mass only like they come only for Friday
[00:17:20] prayers.
[00:17:22] Daily prayers are much smaller. Usually
[00:17:24] a few of us sometimes one or two even.
[00:17:28] So we don't expect big numbers. Nor do
[00:17:31] we expect any noise or parking issues. I
[00:17:34] think our our uh parcel has more than
[00:17:37] 100 parking lots around 95 whatever.
[00:17:41] So I can tell you one thing we will
[00:17:44] probably be the most boring neighbors
[00:17:46] you could ask for. People come in for a
[00:17:49] few minutes to pray, reflect and leave
[00:17:52] with peace of mind.
[00:17:55] This building was once a restaurant
[00:17:58] but now it has the chance to serve us
[00:18:00] something even more meaningful.
[00:18:02] A place of tranquility,
[00:18:05] a place that strengthens community ties,
[00:18:09] and a place that will add to the
[00:18:11] diversity
[00:18:13] and the spirit of the city.
[00:18:16] Imagine a church, a federation or a
[00:18:19] synagogue, and a mosque all next to one
[00:18:22] another, all visible from city hall. You
[00:18:25] could not have scripted this any better.
[00:18:28] That is not division.
[00:18:30] That is unity.
[00:18:34] That is the beauty of Abrahamic faiths.
[00:18:37] Judaism, Christianity, Islam, side by
[00:18:39] side, each honoring the same God, each
[00:18:42] worshiping in peace.
[00:18:47] I'll leave there. Thank you for
[00:18:48] listening and thank you for everybody,
[00:18:50] Ben and everybody else for considering
[00:18:51] our project. Happy to answer any
[00:18:53] questions. Like Mike, may I add some?
[00:18:59] I don't have a great resume like he
[00:19:01] does. Um, my name is Mike Hawk and I've
[00:19:04] been in the desert for about 20 years,
[00:19:06] uh, living and working here. Um, between
[00:19:10] my time in the military, my career in
[00:19:12] real estate, I've always been committed
[00:19:14] to projects that helps the desert grow
[00:19:17] and connect everyone. And that's always
[00:19:20] been my passion. And um I mentioned to
[00:19:22] the city staff in the past that we're
[00:19:24] looking forward to do other projects in
[00:19:26] the desert that's going to be even more
[00:19:28] helpful in the future beside this
[00:19:30] particular project. Uh we have worked
[00:19:33] closely with the city staff uh
[00:19:35] throughout this process and I want to
[00:19:37] thank them for all their hard work. You
[00:19:39] guys have done a tremendous amount of
[00:19:41] work at educating us on this process,
[00:19:43] how to move forward and what what steps
[00:19:45] to take in order to make sure it is all
[00:19:48] done properly.
[00:19:51] And also thank you for your
[00:19:53] recommendation of approval. Uh every
[00:19:55] requirement the city has set is been u
[00:19:58] addressed um from parking to landscaping
[00:20:01] compatibility with the surrounding
[00:20:02] areas. But beyond meeting those
[00:20:05] requirements, this project is is about
[00:20:08] the community. Uh the mosque will serve
[00:20:10] as a welcoming place for the families.
[00:20:13] uh a space for worship, gathering and
[00:20:15] connection that reflects the values of
[00:20:17] inclusivity and belonging here in the
[00:20:20] desert, especially in Ranch Mirage.
[00:20:24] I simply note that city staff has
[00:20:26] recommended approval because the project
[00:20:29] meets all findings required for SUP.
[00:20:32] We're proud of this work that we put
[00:20:34] into this project and this application.
[00:20:36] Um we trust in this process and also
[00:20:39] trust in all of you. Thank you for your
[00:20:41] time and consideration.
[00:20:48] Chrissy, are there uh public comments?
[00:20:50] >> There are, but first um Jerry Keller
[00:20:52] also wanted to speak as part of the
[00:20:54] applicants group.
[00:20:58] >> Is he here?
[00:21:24] I get three minutes or a minute 30.
[00:21:28] >> Okay. Thank you. Thank you so much.
[00:21:31] Thank you for the opportunity to be
[00:21:32] here. Um
[00:21:35] my family and I own that building. Um
[00:21:40] and um we are very
[00:21:44] comfortable with what's happening. A lot
[00:21:47] of the points that were made that I was
[00:21:50] going to make have been made already by
[00:21:53] the staff and by the preceding speakers.
[00:21:57] Quiet,
[00:21:59] non-obtrusive, wonderful place to be.
[00:22:04] Where we live is a Shangua. It's, as we
[00:22:08] all know, it's beautiful.
[00:22:11] These wonderful people work at
[00:22:13] Eisenhower, saving lives, doing things
[00:22:16] every day that are very important, very
[00:22:19] capable, wellrespected
[00:22:21] staff. I think for our valley,
[00:22:25] they are extremely important and
[00:22:28] valuable. But there's a couple of other
[00:22:30] points I want to make. At Eisenhower,
[00:22:34] they train a number of doctors and
[00:22:37] nurses. And when they graduate, when
[00:22:40] they get ready to leave, many of them
[00:22:43] leave for bigger cities where there's
[00:22:46] some job opportunities and many mosques
[00:22:49] to pray in. I think this mosque being so
[00:22:54] convenient and quiet and beautiful will
[00:22:58] help to convince them to stay. Take
[00:23:01] these trained people who Eisenhower has
[00:23:04] spent a lot of money to train and keep
[00:23:07] them here because they'll have a
[00:23:10] wonderful place to pray nearby. A small
[00:23:13] beautiful community that's really
[00:23:15] important. So keep these people who
[00:23:20] have spent years training and not have
[00:23:23] them go other places. Really, really
[00:23:26] important. And equally as important, the
[00:23:29] word will get out that
[00:23:33] this Shangrila with a wonderful mosque
[00:23:35] 10 minutes away is a wonderful place to
[00:23:39] work. There's a huge shortage of
[00:23:42] doctors, nurses, engineers
[00:23:45] in the country and the world.
[00:23:48] This could be a wonderful way of getting
[00:23:51] these very talented people to come here.
[00:23:55] Eisenhower is continually looking for
[00:23:58] solid qualified people. This will help
[00:24:01] immensely. Um,
[00:24:04] I think that's really important for all
[00:24:06] of our health because I think all of us
[00:24:09] have benefited from Eisenhower in a
[00:24:11] minor way or a major way. I know they
[00:24:14] saved my life. So, growing up in New
[00:24:18] York and Brooklyn and Long Island, I see
[00:24:21] the hassidum. I see how they live and
[00:24:25] how they have to have a place to walk to
[00:24:27] work to to worship. The same thing with
[00:24:30] the Muslim people. So, I'm really very
[00:24:33] very happy this is happening. When we
[00:24:35] first heard about it, um we thought,
[00:24:38] isn't this a wonderful place? The
[00:24:40] building has a high ceiling. It's
[00:24:42] comfortable. Um so, we felt very happy
[00:24:47] about it. Um
[00:24:52] I think basically it will be a
[00:24:55] tremendous value for the valley in many
[00:24:58] ways. I think throughout the country now
[00:25:02] there are many religious groups working
[00:25:04] together, Muslims, Jews, Christians to
[00:25:08] work together to show that this country
[00:25:10] is an inclusive
[00:25:13] part of the world and all religions can
[00:25:17] practice and
[00:25:19] be comfortable with each other.
[00:25:22] This I'm very sure will happen in this
[00:25:26] microcosm with the Jewish Federation and
[00:25:30] the Muslim mosque together. Um I
[00:25:36] I'm so sure that it will be a wonderful
[00:25:40] wonderful relationship. I want to read
[00:25:42] something that my daughter
[00:25:45] sent to me.
[00:25:48] If we at if we are at all religious or
[00:25:51] spiritual people, we must be willing to
[00:25:54] embrace what all scriptures guide us to
[00:25:57] do, which is to love our neighbors and
[00:26:00] to love ourselves,
[00:26:02] to be good to our neighbors who are or
[00:26:05] who are not our family. The term faith
[00:26:09] also represents faith in one another.
[00:26:12] One of the things I love about our
[00:26:15] community is the spirit of calm, warmth,
[00:26:19] welcome, and stability. Our reputation
[00:26:23] has drawn many US presidents and many
[00:26:25] other important people to live here.
[00:26:29] In this particular city and the
[00:26:31] Coachella Valley, we can and always be
[00:26:35] at our best even during the most
[00:26:37] challenging of times. We can set an
[00:26:40] example by living up to a well
[00:26:43] well-earned reputation and being a
[00:26:46] positive model for others. In closing,
[00:26:50] there's a phrase I think we all know
[00:26:52] well and it applies beautifully here.
[00:26:57] Be the change we want to see in the
[00:27:00] world. Thank you so much for your time.
[00:27:09] So Chrissy now uh public comments.
[00:27:13] >> Yes. The first speaker is Betatina
[00:27:14] Riddle.
[00:27:22] >> No, I want to say the three minutes
[00:27:28] >> and ma'am. So be sure to state your
[00:27:30] name, where you're from and there is a
[00:27:32] threem minute time limit on each person
[00:27:34] speaking. Perfect.
[00:27:35] >> We have quite a few people want to speak
[00:27:37] today.
[00:27:37] >> Yes, of course.
[00:27:38] >> All right. Thank you.
[00:27:40] >> Uh, good afternoon. Uh, my name is
[00:27:42] Betina Riddle. I currently live in
[00:27:44] Cathedral City, but I'm born and raised
[00:27:47] here in the desert. I grew up in
[00:27:49] Lintita, and for the last 30 years, I
[00:27:53] have seen this desert grow tremendously.
[00:27:56] Um, and it's a desert that I've come to
[00:27:59] love.
[00:28:02] This mosque in Rancher Mirage will offer
[00:28:04] a wonderful additioning addition to the
[00:28:07] continuing growth of our desert
[00:28:10] especially in the diversity of our and
[00:28:13] my home.
[00:28:15] Diversity makes our communities better.
[00:28:18] The positioning of this mosque between
[00:28:21] the Jewish Federation
[00:28:23] and a Christian church as neighbors will
[00:28:26] foster a beautiful example of inner
[00:28:28] faith, conversation, and peace.
[00:28:32] The more we get to know our neighbors
[00:28:34] with curiosity and celebration of our
[00:28:37] differences, the stronger and richer our
[00:28:40] lives become. And I have seen that in my
[00:28:42] own life here in this desert, becoming
[00:28:45] friends with my neighbors who have had
[00:28:47] different faiths, different experiences
[00:28:49] in our lives. And I think welcoming and
[00:28:53] supporting
[00:28:55] our
[00:28:57] fellow desert dwellers uh is a beautiful
[00:29:01] example of that connection.
[00:29:04] Thank you for seeing the value in the
[00:29:06] diversity of our desert and cultivating
[00:29:09] the safety and freedom of religious
[00:29:11] practices. Thank you.
[00:29:15] >> Thank you,
[00:29:16] >> Muhammad Hawk.
[00:29:31] >> Hello. Uh, I'd like to open with the
[00:29:35] very common Muslim greeting ofalam
[00:29:37] alalaykum. Peace be onto you and all of
[00:29:39] you that are gathered here. I greatly
[00:29:41] appreciate your time and consideration
[00:29:44] and while I wasn't prepared to come
[00:29:46] today as you could probably tell by my
[00:29:48] attire um I begin with a prayer and that
[00:29:51] prayer in Arabic starts with
[00:29:54] which basically was what Moses used to
[00:29:57] say Lord expand my breast and allow me
[00:30:01] to be uh effective in my speech. And I
[00:30:05] call on this prayer from Moses to remind
[00:30:07] us of our unity, of our similarities and
[00:30:09] our diversity and the beautiful uh
[00:30:11] upbringing we have in America.
[00:30:14] I like many of us am a first generation
[00:30:17] immigrant from Bangladesh originally. I
[00:30:18] grew up in Queens, New York and I'm
[00:30:21] proud to say I've been in the valley
[00:30:22] since 2018. I'm a registered dietician.
[00:30:25] I've served in all three of the
[00:30:27] hospitals in the valley and uh it is
[00:30:29] truly a struggle to get out of work for
[00:30:32] an extra hour. on top of that hour of
[00:30:34] worship that's two hours right in a very
[00:30:38] busy workday as a clinician furthermore
[00:30:40] the Muslim community is not limited to
[00:30:43] clinicians right we are indeed engineers
[00:30:45] for CALR we are indeed business owners
[00:30:48] and we have law enforcement in the back
[00:30:49] and I I really want us to think for a
[00:30:52] moment has any house of worship any
[00:30:54] house of worship ever done anything but
[00:30:56] good for a community
[00:31:00] I feel very strongly that the Muslim
[00:31:02] community needs needs to expand and feel
[00:31:04] comfortable here. Like the gentleman
[00:31:06] said earlier, it's not only for
[00:31:08] Eisenhower, it's for the development of
[00:31:10] the city. In the last 7 years,
[00:31:13] especially with CO, I've seen a huge
[00:31:14] boom in our development.
[00:31:18] And I would love the opportunity for our
[00:31:20] Muslim community to grow and prosper and
[00:31:23] serve this community as Muslims should.
[00:31:27] It would be a great honor to be next
[00:31:29] door to a Christian church and a Jewish
[00:31:32] synagogue and really just symbolize all
[00:31:35] of the beautiful things in this country
[00:31:38] rather than the negativity.
[00:31:40] I thank you very much for your time and
[00:31:42] consideration and I pray and I hope that
[00:31:45] we do indeed extend this masid, this
[00:31:48] mosque and our community. Thank you very
[00:31:51] much for your time. Take care.
[00:31:55] The next speaker is Alan Goldstein.
[00:32:16] [Music]
[00:32:17] Alan Goldstein. I'm married to Mary
[00:32:20] Lavine. We live in Morningside in Rancho
[00:32:23] Mirage.
[00:32:25] My wife and I moved to Rancho Mirage in
[00:32:27] 1996
[00:32:29] and we've been in love with it ever
[00:32:31] since we came here. The beauty of this
[00:32:34] place is that most of our people work
[00:32:35] and play well together. We are known for
[00:32:38] taking care of our residents and our
[00:32:40] businesses. That is one of the reasons
[00:32:42] we're rated one of the best cities in
[00:32:44] the state of California.
[00:32:46] This cooperation was clearly
[00:32:48] demonstrated by our city when we put it
[00:32:50] to a vote for the CV link which supposed
[00:32:52] to run through it. There were over,200
[00:32:55] votes and it was voted down by 81% of
[00:32:57] the residents. We laed the work of the
[00:33:00] city council and the planning commission
[00:33:03] and thank you very much for all the
[00:33:04] efforts that you put in to what you do
[00:33:06] for us. However, there are many
[00:33:08] conflicting opinions on this proposal.
[00:33:12] There are a number of contentious issues
[00:33:14] which it is the possible traffic jams
[00:33:18] that will be created on Highway 111.
[00:33:21] This is supposed to be and I looked at
[00:33:23] the website. It's supposed to be bosso a
[00:33:25] community school and a community center.
[00:33:28] So there could be a lot of cars coming
[00:33:30] in and out. Currently there are no
[00:33:32] religious institutions on Highway 111 in
[00:33:34] Rancho Mirage. I might add that one of
[00:33:37] the reasons
[00:33:38] the CV link was rejected was that there
[00:33:42] were a lot of traffic on Highway 111
[00:33:46] causing congestions.
[00:33:48] Certainly, we welcome all religions in
[00:33:50] our city, but a place like this might be
[00:33:52] best in a less congested area. My
[00:33:55] suggestion is to replay the CV link vote
[00:33:58] scenario on this and let the voters
[00:34:01] decide which would take a lot of
[00:34:03] pressure off of our city council and
[00:34:05] planning commission and which would show
[00:34:07] that everyone has a voice in our city.
[00:34:10] No one could possibly be accused of
[00:34:12] anything such as clandestine, secretive
[00:34:15] or otherwise behavior. Please put this
[00:34:18] on a ballot and let's take this to the
[00:34:20] people during season when the majority
[00:34:22] are here. Then everyone will feel good
[00:34:25] about our community. I thank you for
[00:34:27] listening to me and I wish you all well.
[00:34:34] Abdul Jalil Osam Kumlay.
[00:34:45] Good afternoon. Um thank you so much for
[00:34:47] the opportunity to opportunity to um be
[00:34:50] here today and um address the um public
[00:34:54] hearing.
[00:34:55] So um I live in Palm Desert. I'm
[00:34:58] originally from Nigeria. Um I lived
[00:35:01] about 5 years um in Los Angeles where I
[00:35:05] worked as a lab manager at the
[00:35:06] University of Southern California.
[00:35:08] um my um interest in um advancing my
[00:35:12] career brought me to um the valley. So
[00:35:16] currently I work as a chemist at the
[00:35:18] Coachella Valley Water District. So
[00:35:21] anytime you open your tab, so always
[00:35:23] remember that we are behind the scene,
[00:35:24] you know, keeping the um community safe
[00:35:27] by providing you with um good drinking
[00:35:29] water and also um ensuring that the
[00:35:32] environment is um protected. So um when
[00:35:36] I came for the interviews I think in um
[00:35:38] June or July 2024
[00:35:42] um I decided to move around you know I
[00:35:46] went to Palm Desert I came to Rancho
[00:35:48] Mirage I went to Coachella Valley um one
[00:35:51] of the reasons that gave me um the
[00:35:54] assurance that if we leave here with my
[00:35:55] family that will be okay was the
[00:35:58] opportunity that we had um a small place
[00:36:01] you know to worship. Uh the other opport
[00:36:03] the other alternative we had was in
[00:36:05] Coachella Valley which is a little bit
[00:36:06] farther away from work you know. So
[00:36:08] currently I live in P desert. I need you
[00:36:10] know somewhere very close by you know
[00:36:12] where we could worship and you know feel
[00:36:14] um welcomed you know in the um
[00:36:17] community. So this um project is very
[00:36:20] important to myself, to my family um and
[00:36:24] also I believe there are other
[00:36:26] professionals out there you know
[00:36:27] foreigners trying to you know find
[00:36:29] somewhere to you know to live and um um
[00:36:32] and work. So I believe um
[00:36:37] an approval for this project would give
[00:36:40] us you know an additional assurance you
[00:36:42] know to um live in the valley um and um
[00:36:46] um worship and um go buy our businesses
[00:36:49] um as much as possible. So um I see
[00:36:53] myself as a you know public public
[00:36:55] health professional you know because of
[00:36:58] what I do you know trying to keep the um
[00:37:00] water clean keep the environment safe
[00:37:02] and all that. So, um, thank you so much
[00:37:05] for the opportunity to be here to, you
[00:37:07] know, to address you, to talk to you,
[00:37:09] and, um, we look forward to an approval
[00:37:11] of the project. Thank you,
[00:37:15] >> Molly Anne Thorp.
[00:37:24] >> Good afternoon. My name is Molly Thorp.
[00:37:26] I reside at Three Terrace Place,
[00:37:28] Thunderbird Heights, and Ranch Mirage.
[00:37:30] As a 22-year resident of the city, I've
[00:37:33] always deeply appreciated that our civic
[00:37:35] leaders put the safety and well-being of
[00:37:37] our residents, community members, and
[00:37:39] guests first, making this the very best
[00:37:42] city in our valley in which to work,
[00:37:44] recreate, and reside. Thank you for this
[00:37:46] opportunity to speak before you today
[00:37:48] regarding the approval of the petition
[00:37:50] by the Islamic Worship Center to
[00:37:51] establish a mosque on Highway 111 in
[00:37:53] Ranch Mirage next to the existing Jewish
[00:37:56] Federation of the Desert Building. Our
[00:37:58] first amendment guarantees some of our
[00:38:00] most precious rights, including the
[00:38:02] freedoms of religion and assembly. I'm a
[00:38:04] congregant and board member of the
[00:38:06] Jewish congregation Harell, which a
[00:38:08] number of years ago participated in an
[00:38:10] outreach visit to the current Islamic
[00:38:12] worship site in Coachella. It was a very
[00:38:15] meaningful experience in an opportunity
[00:38:17] for two religions, often portrayed as
[00:38:19] enemies, to meet and begin to establish
[00:38:22] a connection. What could be more
[00:38:24] meaningful than to establish a positive
[00:38:26] nexus between two groups that are often
[00:38:28] perceived as at odds? Respect,
[00:38:31] friendship, and coexistence could prove
[00:38:34] a wonderful model for others to emulate.
[00:38:37] I am concerned about the location of the
[00:38:39] propo proposed worship center. Its close
[00:38:42] proximity to the wellestablished Jewish
[00:38:44] Federation of the Desert. Due to the
[00:38:46] many threats and aggression towards
[00:38:48] Jewish institutions, the Federation must
[00:38:50] have armed security to protect its
[00:38:52] employees and event attendees.
[00:38:54] Unfortunately, we are living in
[00:38:56] dangerous times. Never before have we
[00:38:58] witnessed such crazed, demented, and
[00:39:00] psychopathic hatreds towards those who
[00:39:03] only want to show reverence towards
[00:39:04] their religion. The assassination of
[00:39:07] Charlie Kirk is the most significant
[00:39:08] example of this since the tragic
[00:39:11] assassination of the Reverend Dr. Martin
[00:39:12] Luther King Jr. The October 7th, 2023
[00:39:16] massacre in Israel by the Palestinian
[00:39:19] Islamic terror group Hamas slaughtered,
[00:39:22] rape, and took hostage innocents
[00:39:24] attending a music festival. Families,
[00:39:26] the elderly, and babies residing in the
[00:39:28] Kabits nearby. Nearly two years later,
[00:39:31] we continue to advocate for the release
[00:39:33] of these hostages held in unthinkable
[00:39:36] conditions by the radical Islamic
[00:39:37] captives. Should the Islamic Worship
[00:39:40] Cent's petitions for their mosque
[00:39:42] occupancy be granted, it will be the
[00:39:44] city's responsibility to ensure the
[00:39:47] safety of both of these religious
[00:39:49] entities as each have undergone public
[00:39:52] scrutiny for decades and center a
[00:39:54] controversy. I do not fear the
[00:39:56] responsible citizens of our community,
[00:39:58] but rather I worry about a deranged
[00:40:00] outlier motivated by the hate spewed so
[00:40:03] easily within recent months. how tragic
[00:40:06] it would be for either of these entities
[00:40:08] to be targeted by some craze lunatic.
[00:40:13] As the city of Ranch Mirage contemplates
[00:40:15] this very important decision, it is my
[00:40:17] hope that you'll take the safety and
[00:40:19] sanctity of both the Jewish and Islamic
[00:40:21] members of these two institutions
[00:40:22] seriously and proactively prepare to
[00:40:25] ensure for their welfare, safety, and
[00:40:27] protection. Thank you,
[00:40:31] Jim Greenbomb.
[00:40:49] my
[00:41:08] good afternoon commissioners. My name is
[00:41:11] Jim Greenbomb. I'm a resident of Rancher
[00:41:14] Mirage and a proud member of the Jewish
[00:41:16] community here in the Coachella Valley.
[00:41:18] Over the decades, I've been privileged
[00:41:20] to serve in this community as a member
[00:41:23] of the board of directors of Eisenhower
[00:41:24] Medical Center, 32 years of service on
[00:41:27] the Betty Ford Center, and as president
[00:41:29] of the Jewish Federation of the Desert.
[00:41:32] This valley is my home, well-being is
[00:41:36] deeply personal to me. I'm here today to
[00:41:39] speak in favor of approving the permit
[00:41:41] for the Islamic Center of the Desert to
[00:41:43] convert the former restaurant into their
[00:41:44] newest center. As a Jew, I know what it
[00:41:47] feels like to be in a minority in this
[00:41:49] country. And I also know how deeply
[00:41:51] meaningful it is to have a place to
[00:41:54] gather, to pray, to celebrate our
[00:41:56] traditions and safety. Having the
[00:41:58] Islamic Center next to the Jewish
[00:42:00] Federation, it's not a threat. It's an
[00:42:03] opportunity. It is a chance for us to
[00:42:05] live out our values of diversity,
[00:42:07] coexistence, and love of neighbor in a
[00:42:10] very, very real way. I understand that
[00:42:13] some of my own community, members of my
[00:42:15] own community feel anxious about this
[00:42:17] project, and I appreciate their concern,
[00:42:19] but we have to move on, but fear should
[00:42:22] not guide our decisions. Inclusion,
[00:42:25] understanding, and respect should.
[00:42:27] Approving this center sends a message
[00:42:29] that Ranch Mirage is a city where people
[00:42:31] of all faiths are welcome and that is a
[00:42:34] message we can all be proud of. Thank
[00:42:36] you for considering this request and for
[00:42:39] helping us build a community rooted in
[00:42:41] dignity, peace, and mutual respect.
[00:42:43] Thank you,
[00:42:47] >> Henry Bates.
[00:42:57] I actually live in Palm Springs, but I
[00:43:00] uh manage uh rental properties from
[00:43:02] Rancho Mirage. You know, Rancho Mirage
[00:43:05] has got a almost a worldwide reputation
[00:43:07] as being a very quiet and safe
[00:43:11] community. It's uh astounding to me. You
[00:43:15] I hear from people from Quebec, Canada,
[00:43:18] people from France. They told me you're
[00:43:21] Palm Springs, you live next to that
[00:43:22] wonderful ranch garage.
[00:43:25] So anyway,
[00:43:27] my thought on this is I'm not in favor
[00:43:29] and I'm not I'm not opposed. Uh I
[00:43:32] believe good things come to those who
[00:43:35] wait. Good things come to those who
[00:43:38] wait. And I think with the world
[00:43:41] conditions that they are right now, with
[00:43:44] all the shootings that we see, all the
[00:43:46] craziness that's going on in the world,
[00:43:48] the the fights in the Middle East, etc.,
[00:43:52] etc., around the the globe that why
[00:43:57] bring something in to all that and to
[00:44:00] ransom Mirage as a very safe, quiet
[00:44:04] community.
[00:44:06] So, I'm not opposed. I'm not in favor. I
[00:44:10] say wait. Wait until things calm down.
[00:44:14] Wait until things calm down. Thank you,
[00:44:20] >> Allison Hyman.
[00:44:35] First of all, I want to thank all of you
[00:44:37] for all the work you do for the
[00:44:39] community. Lived in Ranch Mirage this
[00:44:42] time for about eight years and it's a
[00:44:44] wonderful experience. So, thank you. My
[00:44:47] name is Allison Hyman and I live
[00:44:50] directly up the hill from here.
[00:44:53] And I'm quoting here, "The intersection
[00:44:56] of Frank Sinatra Drive and Highway 11 in
[00:44:59] Ranch Mirage has been noted for a high
[00:45:02] rate of car accidents. including a
[00:45:06] recent fatal incident invol invol
[00:45:09] involving a bicyclist.
[00:45:11] Factors contributing to these accidents
[00:45:14] include heavy traffic and reckless
[00:45:16] driving behaviors in the area.
[00:45:19] I know from personal experience
[00:45:23] the recklessness and dangerousness of
[00:45:24] the driving there as many cars have run
[00:45:27] the red light at that junction in front
[00:45:29] of me every day as it's my only route to
[00:45:32] highway 111.
[00:45:34] Personally, I have three close neighbors
[00:45:37] literally in my street
[00:45:40] in a matter of a few years who have been
[00:45:42] in serious car accidents there,
[00:45:45] all requiring hospitalization.
[00:45:48] One for a long period of time, all
[00:45:51] getting their cars totaled. One neighbor
[00:45:53] this year, coincidentally an employee of
[00:45:56] Eisenhower Hospital, was out of work for
[00:45:59] months, is still recovering, broke loads
[00:46:01] of ribs, has got metal all over him, and
[00:46:04] then when he was driving his new truck
[00:46:06] because he bought a big truck, it was
[00:46:08] rearended again.
[00:46:11] On January 1st this year, I think it was
[00:46:14] January the 1st, we actually witnessed a
[00:46:15] fatality when a cyclist was
[00:46:17] unfortunately killed. And it's horrific.
[00:46:22] And I'm sure many of you that work in
[00:46:23] this building have experienced how
[00:46:26] dangerous that crossing is. You've put
[00:46:28] up lights. You've tried to fix the
[00:46:30] problem. But it is a serious serious
[00:46:35] All this is to say that a building like
[00:46:38] any house of worship or any other
[00:46:40] building perhaps a theater or whatever
[00:46:43] would materially increase the traffic
[00:46:46] where there would be a large number of
[00:46:47] cars at different times
[00:46:51] different times of the year different
[00:46:52] times of the day and I truly believe
[00:46:54] that it's not safe and it would add
[00:46:57] further risk to all these already many
[00:47:00] many accidents and so I would ask you to
[00:47:03] seriously as the planning committee to
[00:47:05] serious commit seriously consider that
[00:47:09] issue because it is a matter of life and
[00:47:11] death. Thank you
[00:47:16] >> Rick Stein.
[00:47:30] Hello, I'm Rick Stein. I've lived in
[00:47:32] Ranch Omarrage about 22 years. I've been
[00:47:35] out in the desert longer than that. Um,
[00:47:38] I'll just have some brief comments
[00:47:39] because
[00:47:41] I'm I have very good feelings about
[00:47:44] every religion and every person I've
[00:47:46] ever known. I'm that way. But I know
[00:47:49] that the decision that this this uh
[00:47:54] court has to make or this commission has
[00:47:56] to make has to be based upon reality and
[00:48:00] has to be based upon very solid
[00:48:03] thinking. And I'm very concerned
[00:48:06] notwithstanding all the good things
[00:48:08] everybody said and I don't disagree with
[00:48:10] them about the Muslim religion and about
[00:48:13] everybody getting along. But if the
[00:48:18] mosque goes up
[00:48:21] and if later something happens that we
[00:48:25] know is very very much a possibility
[00:48:29] some violence comes from the mosque to
[00:48:32] the Jewish federation or in this area
[00:48:35] where there's as the last speaker said
[00:48:38] were very crowded that it's it's a very
[00:48:43] bad
[00:48:45] act, I believe, to approve it because
[00:48:48] the mosque can go anywhere.
[00:48:50] And and
[00:48:52] we're not trying to say the mosque can't
[00:48:54] be anywhere. We all love Muslims and
[00:48:56] everybody else. That's not the issue.
[00:48:58] The issue is what kind of problem are we
[00:49:01] creating if we put a mosque right there
[00:49:04] where they want it, next to the
[00:49:06] federation in one of the busiest
[00:49:07] intersections in the in the valley.
[00:49:10] Thank you.
[00:49:13] >> Brad Anderson.
[00:49:22] >> Uh, good afternoon. My name is Brad
[00:49:24] Anderson. I currently live within the
[00:49:25] city of Rance Mirage. Um, and I wanted
[00:49:28] to speak on this item 4A. It's a public
[00:49:31] hearing item. Um, and I my stance is
[00:49:36] really in support right now because I
[00:49:39] think this this planning commission has
[00:49:41] no choice to except to approve this and
[00:49:44] push it off on city council and see what
[00:49:46] they do with it. That's that's what I
[00:49:49] want to see. And uh but uh I guess a
[00:49:53] couple points I would like to bring up
[00:49:55] is um I know with the river uh when that
[00:50:00] was going through its debated were um
[00:50:03] approval process there had to be a plan
[00:50:06] for security and um kind of like a
[00:50:10] shopping cart thing where you had to
[00:50:12] keep everything together and and so not
[00:50:16] that the city can do that or or maybe
[00:50:18] just suggest maybe some kind of security
[00:50:21] plan for that area because I wasn't
[00:50:24] aware of all the uh religious activity
[00:50:26] in that area. Um
[00:50:29] so maybe that is a concern uh and maybe
[00:50:32] the city should be involved in that and
[00:50:35] and on the plan itself I never saw any
[00:50:38] signage uh anything about the signage.
[00:50:40] So that's something probably is going to
[00:50:42] come uh along eventually. Uh that could
[00:50:46] be an aspect uh uh not that really
[00:50:51] matters but uh I think it should be
[00:50:54] addressed sooner than later. Um and uh
[00:50:58] that's I guess that's really all I have.
[00:51:00] I just want to remind everybody that's
[00:51:01] speaking today that uh in the minutes
[00:51:04] the written minutes of this meeting uh
[00:51:06] more than likely your your opinions and
[00:51:09] your stances oppose or or in support
[00:51:12] will not be noted. Thank you
[00:51:16] >> Jeffrey Bert.
[00:51:33] Good afternoon. I'm Jeff Bert. I'm the
[00:51:35] head chaplain and director of spiritual
[00:51:37] care at Eisenhower Health. I've been in
[00:51:39] this position for two and a half years.
[00:51:42] And during this time, I've seen my
[00:51:45] Muslim colleagues, doctors, nurses,
[00:51:47] other professionals, most of whom are
[00:51:50] part of this proposed center, make
[00:51:52] devoted daily use of our interfaith
[00:51:54] chapel. These are honorable,
[00:51:58] hard-working professionals.
[00:52:00] And while we're happy to host these good
[00:52:02] folks in our chapel, it's wonderful that
[00:52:05] they have this opportunity to have their
[00:52:08] own worship space. And so I just want to
[00:52:10] speak my support for this proposal.
[00:52:13] Thank you.
[00:52:15] [Applause]
[00:52:18] Yasmin Fosley.
[00:52:30] Hello. So I'm Yasmin Fazley. I'm
[00:52:32] actually one of the resident physicians
[00:52:34] at Eisenhower. I'm in the family
[00:52:36] medicine program and I'm in my last and
[00:52:38] final year. Um I was not somebody who
[00:52:41] lived in Coachella Valley before. I'm
[00:52:42] from Orange County um which has multiple
[00:52:46] establishments of different religions
[00:52:48] including masjids which is where I would
[00:52:50] go with my family. I was part of the
[00:52:52] Islamic community there and it was
[00:52:53] really nice. It actually helped get me
[00:52:55] into medical school cuz it brought me a
[00:52:57] lot of guidance. When I came here, I did
[00:53:00] feel very disconnected in my first year
[00:53:03] because there wasn't a place that I
[00:53:05] could go to pray. But even then, the
[00:53:07] Muslim community here um and the
[00:53:10] Christian community, the Catholic
[00:53:11] community, the Jewish community, the
[00:53:13] Buddhist community were all very
[00:53:14] welcoming. They helped guide me to a
[00:53:17] small group of people who would pray in
[00:53:19] certain locations. Eisenhower, just as
[00:53:22] we heard, I've prayed in their chapel
[00:53:24] multiple times. And it's nice. It's nice
[00:53:27] to feel like the place that I am
[00:53:30] actively getting my training, helping
[00:53:33] hundreds of different people, multiple
[00:53:35] diseases. I don't think twice about the
[00:53:37] people that I help. The only question I
[00:53:39] have is how do I get better? How do I
[00:53:41] make sure they get better and not get
[00:53:43] sick again? So that when they come see
[00:53:45] me in the primary care clinic, we can
[00:53:47] just talk about how good their dog is or
[00:53:49] their grandkids. It would be really nice
[00:53:52] to be able to also have a place that I
[00:53:54] could pray for my family and future
[00:53:56] grandkids. Coachella Valley is a very
[00:53:58] growing place. I know transportation is
[00:54:00] a concern with accidents. However, this
[00:54:04] may not be what people want to hear, but
[00:54:05] it's inevitable that this place is going
[00:54:07] to be filled with people. It's a great
[00:54:09] place and people are finding Orange
[00:54:11] County and LA very expensive. And just
[00:54:13] like how they all moved to Bakersfield
[00:54:15] and Riverside, they're going to keep
[00:54:17] moving farther out which includes
[00:54:18] Coachella Valley. Regardless of this
[00:54:21] mosque being put up, Highway 111 is
[00:54:23] going to get packed. But just like
[00:54:26] humanity, we are adaptable. I hope
[00:54:28] Coachella Valley can also be adaptable
[00:54:30] to this mosque. Thank you very much,
[00:54:35] >> Osama Ahmed.
[00:54:48] Good afternoon.
[00:54:50] Um
[00:54:52] um honorable commissioners and members
[00:54:56] of the community. My name is Imam Usama
[00:55:00] Ahmed. Uh I serve as imam uh or the
[00:55:04] religious leader for Muslim community in
[00:55:07] Coachella. Our mosque is located in
[00:55:10] Coachella. Um I'm here today to uh
[00:55:15] express my full support uh for this
[00:55:19] Islamic center. Um, in my experience
[00:55:23] working with uh families, uh, children,
[00:55:27] youngs in our area,
[00:55:30] uh, I have seen firsthand how important
[00:55:33] it is for our community to have,
[00:55:37] um, a a safe and um, uh, a a safe place
[00:55:45] for worship. By the way, the mosque is
[00:55:49] not only a prayer place, but it's also a
[00:55:54] place where young people come to learn
[00:55:59] values. Um, families find support. Um,
[00:56:04] also Muslim and non-Muslim alike come to
[00:56:09] encourage interfaith dialogue and to
[00:56:12] understand each other. Uh by the way uh
[00:56:16] mosque is uh uh essential for
[00:56:19] reinforcing
[00:56:20] religious identity and keeping
[00:56:23] connection with God uh and providing
[00:56:25] righteous role models. It's also a
[00:56:28] mosque is against bad behaviors and
[00:56:31] drugs and such things. So today uh I'd
[00:56:36] like to say I truly believe that um uh
[00:56:42] the approving for this uh project uh
[00:56:46] will not benefit not only uh Muslims but
[00:56:49] also the the city of Aran Mirage as a
[00:56:53] whole uh to encourage peace and
[00:56:56] education and to work together,
[00:56:59] understand together to understand
[00:57:01] between Muslims and Christians and Jews.
[00:57:05] So, thank you so much for this
[00:57:07] opportunity and uh thank you so much,
[00:57:12] >> Joel Johnson.
[00:57:22] >> Good afternoon, members of the
[00:57:23] commission, ladies and gentlemen. My
[00:57:26] name is Joel B. Johnson. I am former
[00:57:30] consumer fraud construction advisor to
[00:57:32] the city of Los Angeles
[00:57:35] and I have been involved for the past 46
[00:57:39] years in development of various projects
[00:57:42] in the desert. I resigned at in at
[00:57:47] number five Sarrano in Rancho Mirage.
[00:57:51] During the course of my experience of
[00:57:53] the past 35 years and as council for or
[00:57:55] builders, we have been involved in
[00:57:58] building,
[00:58:00] remodeling and constructing more than
[00:58:03] five major religious facilities,
[00:58:06] churches and synagogues in the desert
[00:58:09] have appeared in their behalf before the
[00:58:12] city councils all the way from Palm
[00:58:14] Springs, Indian Wells to Indo.
[00:58:18] Common responses to applications
[00:58:21] and recommendations have been we are a
[00:58:24] desert community, we are a resort
[00:58:26] community. The appearance of Highway 111
[00:58:30] is sacrosanked
[00:58:32] and various concerns have been with
[00:58:35] regards to denials, consistent denials
[00:58:39] for religious facilities,
[00:58:41] churches mainly or synagogues on the
[00:58:44] basis of the following. There's
[00:58:46] expansion
[00:58:49] As council of the California Medical
[00:58:51] Association, I highly respect everything
[00:58:53] I've heard from you wonderful people at
[00:58:55] Eisenhower representing physicians for
[00:58:58] 50 years. I my heart goes out to you
[00:59:01] with regards to everything you've
[00:59:02] professed.
[00:59:05] >> Speak into the microphone, please.
[00:59:06] >> Although you have 40 or 50 people at
[00:59:08] this time,
[00:59:09] >> thank you.
[00:59:10] >> There may be 100 to 200 to 300 new
[00:59:13] applicants in future years. The concerns
[00:59:16] of the cities and commissions have been,
[00:59:18] hey, expansion. We have requests for
[00:59:23] remodification. We have requests for
[00:59:25] things that no one ever anticipated. It
[00:59:28] would be wonderful to have a mosque that
[00:59:30] could hold 250 people just as a
[00:59:33] synagogue.
[00:59:35] And uh my comments are made with respect
[00:59:38] to the fact that Montterrey Avenue, Fred
[00:59:42] Wearing, Raone Drive and other major
[00:59:45] streets having great thorough affairs
[00:59:47] have been the recommended locations for
[00:59:50] various churches who have followed those
[00:59:52] suggestions and this might be another
[00:59:54] recommendation at this time. Thank you.
[00:59:59] [Applause]
[01:00:02] >> That was the last speaker card. Is there
[01:00:03] anyone else who would like to provide
[01:00:05] public testimony on this item?
[01:00:09] >> That was the last speaker.
[01:00:10] >> All right. Is there no more public
[01:00:13] comments? Uh, commissioner comments. Uh,
[01:00:16] David, start with you.
[01:00:20] >> Thank you, acting chair.
[01:00:24] Uh, first of all, I'd like to thank
[01:00:26] everybody who made uh made a comment
[01:00:29] today. Uh my personal attitude tends
[01:00:33] towards cynicism
[01:00:36] uh and seeing the bad. Maybe that's a
[01:00:39] professional uh
[01:00:43] professional sacrifice uh that I make as
[01:00:45] an attorney that often has to see the
[01:00:47] bad and figure out a way to make good
[01:00:49] out of it. But tonight or this
[01:00:51] afternoon, today I heard most speakers
[01:00:55] talk from a place of positivity and
[01:00:59] faith whether they were on either side
[01:01:02] of this particular issue. Uh everybody
[01:01:06] seemed to
[01:01:09] contribute their testimony in a positive
[01:01:13] u and respectful way and I'm grateful
[01:01:15] that that has happened thus far. Um I
[01:01:18] have a number of questions and comments
[01:01:21] relating to the presentation and what I
[01:01:23] heard. I will say at the outset I think
[01:01:26] our role here as members of the planning
[01:01:28] commission is somewhat limited. We are
[01:01:32] supposed to determine whether a
[01:01:34] particular application or project falls
[01:01:37] within the guidelines that have been
[01:01:39] presented to us that hopefully we know
[01:01:41] from our time on the commission and that
[01:01:43] will also been shared and presented to
[01:01:45] us by staff. And I'll say in advance
[01:01:47] that reviewing all those guidelines and
[01:01:49] looking at this application.
[01:01:52] Um it appears to me that it is one that
[01:01:55] should be approved and that I will be
[01:01:56] voting in favor of. Um but I do still
[01:02:00] have some questions and concerns
[01:02:03] before I finally vote. Um oh so for one
[01:02:07] thing I uh I like to do some additional
[01:02:10] study sometimes on matters that are
[01:02:12] before us. And one of the things that I
[01:02:14] did is I went to the website for the
[01:02:17] Islamic Society of the Desert for this
[01:02:20] particular project. And I I might ask
[01:02:23] the applicant to come forward because I
[01:02:25] I might I hope that you could address
[01:02:28] some of these questions that I have. Um,
[01:02:30] one, the first question is that it
[01:02:32] appears
[01:02:34] from the website that the website
[01:02:37] represents this the current mosque uh or
[01:02:41] majid I think is what you call it.
[01:02:43] >> Masid.
[01:02:44] >> Sorry for my pronunciation.
[01:02:46] >> I have trouble with English.
[01:02:48] >> All right.
[01:02:49] >> I can see that. The website seems to
[01:02:51] represent it as operational
[01:02:54] and my understanding is that is not the
[01:02:56] case or am I what what is it?
[01:03:00] >> No, right now we pray at a place in Palm
[01:03:03] Desert. It's an urgent care. One of the
[01:03:05] suite belonged to one of the founders of
[01:03:07] this we converted into temporary what we
[01:03:10] call a masjid but it is not a full
[01:03:12] structure to one suite about thousand
[01:03:14] square ft building.
[01:03:16] >> So that is what it is. This website was
[01:03:19] not totally done professionally. You
[01:03:21] have to understand these are five
[01:03:23] doctors trying to pull it off. We are
[01:03:25] good at something else not at this. So
[01:03:27] that's why in the up front I said you
[01:03:30] know I wanted to literally call this
[01:03:32] doctor's m so that you know less
[01:03:33] scrutiny about it. But that's what it
[01:03:36] is. That that was built by somebody who
[01:03:39] works in MercedesBenz who knew he
[01:03:41] thought he can pull off a website and we
[01:03:43] pulled it off and then I did end up
[01:03:46] paying for him. But then again, I think
[01:03:47] it needs to be refined. Uh that's not
[01:03:50] finally upside. So the bottom line is
[01:03:52] there is a temporary structure in one of
[01:03:54] our founders building within the
[01:03:57] compound, one of the suite. We use it to
[01:03:59] pray particularly on Friday afternoons
[01:04:02] and we do think that that is smaller for
[01:04:04] now. That's why we've been looking for
[01:04:06] this for about 4 years and we did find
[01:04:09] you know strangely about 2 years odd
[01:04:11] years ago we similarly found another
[01:04:13] place in between technically in between
[01:04:16] another church and a synagogue in
[01:04:18] Monteray right yes
[01:04:19] >> Monteray so like I don't know this has
[01:04:21] been a repetitive pattern for us but you
[01:04:23] know we couldn't pull it off because
[01:04:24] that was expensive for us
[01:04:26] >> so and ultimately uh this is a related
[01:04:29] question the is the approval by the
[01:04:32] planning commission and ultimately the
[01:04:34] the council. Is that the last impediment
[01:04:36] to you closing on the purchase of the
[01:04:38] building?
[01:04:38] >> Yes. Yes.
[01:04:39] >> Okay.
[01:04:39] >> It's what I suspected. One thing that I
[01:04:42] noted in the staff report talks about uh
[01:04:46] continued maintenance and operation of
[01:04:47] the building and also from your website
[01:04:50] which I understand was somewhat
[01:04:52] amiterish.
[01:04:53] It indicates that there's been $650,000
[01:04:57] raised towards a $2 million operating
[01:04:59] budget. What happens if you can't close
[01:05:02] that gap and raise the
[01:05:04] additional,350,000?
[01:05:06] >> We I can be honest and open about it. We
[01:05:09] have taken individual loans on all of
[01:05:11] us. Individual physicians have t because
[01:05:13] this website is this organization is
[01:05:16] very young and very new and I'm sure no
[01:05:19] bank is going to give a loan on for to
[01:05:21] the organization. We have a not for-p
[01:05:23] profofit status but this is essentially
[01:05:26] five doctors putting money from their
[01:05:28] pockets into it just so that these
[01:05:31] doctors have been lived in this valley
[01:05:33] so long some of them want to keep their
[01:05:35] kids who are doctors who completed
[01:05:37] residency to come back and join their
[01:05:39] practice. We all have nefarious reasons
[01:05:42] to do this. One of us is to keep this
[01:05:45] going in the desert.
[01:05:47] >> Okay, I appreciate that response. Um I
[01:05:50] had a question again also covered in the
[01:05:53] application to some degree on the
[01:05:55] website that about the the call to
[01:05:58] prayer which I understand is se five
[01:06:00] times a day is that
[01:06:02] >> so uh uh the call to prayer is within
[01:06:04] the building within the area so even if
[01:06:06] you stand outside the door you will not
[01:06:09] be able to hear it even let's say you
[01:06:11] are in the restroom within the building
[01:06:13] you may not hear it so let alone you
[01:06:15] hear it outside you know we we have to
[01:06:18] differentiate The way we profess faith
[01:06:20] in different parts of the world is
[01:06:21] different because we are expected to
[01:06:25] adhere to the local laws and rules. So
[01:06:28] even if you within the restroom within
[01:06:30] the building, you may not hear the call
[01:06:32] to prayer. That's how noise level is
[01:06:35] going to be. That's how boring we're
[01:06:39] >> Well, boring. I hope not. I hope it'll
[01:06:41] be more inspirational. Um,
[01:06:44] another question and I think somebody
[01:06:46] touched on it but without asking the
[01:06:48] question directly u the I know there are
[01:06:52] 99 parking spaces what is the what is
[01:06:55] the occupancy limit of the building. Do
[01:06:58] does anybody know that?
[01:07:01] >> I think initially what the with when the
[01:07:04] restaurant was there at 384
[01:07:08] that was occupancy that was what we saw.
[01:07:11] So that would be substantially less than
[01:07:14] the current anticipated occupancy.
[01:07:16] >> Absolutely.
[01:07:22] >> All right. And this is for staff. Thank
[01:07:25] you, gentlemen. I appreciate it.
[01:07:27] >> Um, have there been were there any
[01:07:30] objections or comments filed by any
[01:07:31] adjacent property owners that were
[01:07:33] notified of this application?
[01:07:38] Not that staff's aware, but um um there
[01:07:42] was a thousand foot mailing radius that
[01:07:44] was um sent out as part of this
[01:07:46] application and uh the uh public hearing
[01:07:48] notice was posted in the desert sun as
[01:07:50] well.
[01:07:54] >> All right. I I I'll say two final things
[01:07:57] in closing. I haven't heard anything.
[01:07:59] This isn't one of them, but uh I haven't
[01:08:02] heard anything that changes my
[01:08:04] conclusion that this is a uh
[01:08:08] an application that I am compelled under
[01:08:11] the law to approve. Um,
[01:08:16] one speaker, I don't want to single out
[01:08:18] anybody in particular, but one speaker I
[01:08:20] found particularly ironic today because
[01:08:24] I don't know if everybody fully knows
[01:08:26] the history of the Coachella Valley in
[01:08:27] general and Rancho Mirage in particular.
[01:08:30] And this might have actually been before
[01:08:32] Rancho Mirage was incorporated as a
[01:08:35] city, but um there were institutions
[01:08:38] throughout this valley that banned
[01:08:41] people from certain backgrounds and
[01:08:43] certain faiths. There's some that did
[01:08:45] not allow uh um African-Americans to
[01:08:50] participate and many that didn't allow
[01:08:52] Jews to participate as members either.
[01:08:55] happily through the evolution as I see
[01:08:58] it of our society and the enforcement of
[01:09:02] the Bill of Rights to our Constitution,
[01:09:05] most of those restrictions are now gone.
[01:09:08] But to hear someone speak against the uh
[01:09:11] inclusion of a faith that they may be
[01:09:16] concerned about or feared
[01:09:18] um but coming from a place that used to
[01:09:21] ban people like them from living in it
[01:09:24] is astounding to me. I think that we
[01:09:27] have to put aside any personal fears or
[01:09:29] prejudices we have and welcome new
[01:09:31] neighbors and hope that an interfaith
[01:09:33] dialogue helps decrease all of the
[01:09:35] hatred and violence that we see
[01:09:37] throughout the world. Thanks.
[01:09:40] >> Thank you, David, Jason.
[01:09:42] >> Um,
[01:09:45] so I I want to excuse me agree with a
[01:09:48] lot of what David said. most importantly
[01:09:50] um having resources for the community uh
[01:09:52] not just for families but community
[01:09:54] members leaders in our community having
[01:09:56] outlets and and
[01:09:58] opportunities um it's going to where
[01:10:01] there was one speaker mentioned um I
[01:10:03] think she was a medical student coming
[01:10:05] that's that's what drew things like that
[01:10:07] will draw more people to the valley so
[01:10:10] we're a valley that's growing and we
[01:10:12] have to make the right decisions in that
[01:10:14] growth and part of that is is supporting
[01:10:17] community and families and educating the
[01:10:20] youth and having giving them the
[01:10:21] opportunity to to continue what we've
[01:10:25] already established here in a great city
[01:10:26] of Ranch Mirage. So, um
[01:10:30] I I think
[01:10:32] I don't again I I agree with a lot of
[01:10:35] what David said in that we're reviewing
[01:10:37] the project in itself. We're not
[01:10:39] debating
[01:10:41] um a lot of the prejudices or biases,
[01:10:45] but I don't have any reason or need or I
[01:10:49] don't see anything that would be outside
[01:10:51] of what was presented to us by staff
[01:10:54] here today.
[01:10:56] >> All right. Thank you. Uh Austin,
[01:10:59] >> on the whole, I think it was commendable
[01:11:01] um the the amount of mutual respect that
[01:11:04] was displayed uh amongst most of the
[01:11:07] speakers today. Um,
[01:11:10] one general thought that crossed my mind
[01:11:12] listening to everybody speak and there
[01:11:13] was a theme of concern around traffic.
[01:11:16] This was a steakhouse previously or a a
[01:11:19] restaurant. Correct.
[01:11:20] >> U, the building was designed as a Black
[01:11:22] Angus steakhouse um in the 80s. Um, and
[01:11:25] I believe it was a steakhouse until
[01:11:28] 2012. And so being a restaurant, uh,
[01:11:33] it's reasonable to expect an increase in
[01:11:35] traffic around 5 to 900 p.m. generally
[01:11:38] speaking. Um, and I think one of the
[01:11:42] other speakers mentioned that the
[01:11:44] um, occupancy
[01:11:47] um, for the building was north of 300.
[01:11:50] And so I think any argument that
[01:11:54] there is going to be an increase at uh
[01:11:56] level of traffic at this building is
[01:11:58] unwarranted. And that's all I have to
[01:12:01] say. Thank you.
[01:12:04] >> All right. Yeah. Thanks, Austin.
[01:12:09] As a prelude to my comments specifically
[01:12:12] on the uh the project,
[01:12:15] I look at the when you that strip along
[01:12:19] there from the uh other side of the
[01:12:23] car dealership down and on the right
[01:12:26] hand side, what we call the cove in
[01:12:29] there where Rancho Mirage is, that is
[01:12:32] the entrance to Rancho Mirage.
[01:12:35] at this point to be blunt it's an
[01:12:37] eyesore and one of the goals of the city
[01:12:42] um is and someone mentioned Highway 111
[01:12:46] is to make Highway 111 from one end of
[01:12:49] the other as well as other streets as
[01:12:53] many of them we have uh Morningside
[01:12:56] Drive Frank Sinatra
[01:12:58] uh to one from 111 to Bob Hope so on so
[01:13:01] on to make those boulevards and really
[01:13:04] make them a wow. So when someone comes
[01:13:06] into the city uh uh it leaves a really
[01:13:10] good impression
[01:13:12] uh because people are coming to this
[01:13:14] valley they're looking at other cities.
[01:13:16] We are in competition with other cities
[01:13:18] to get people and businesses here and we
[01:13:21] want people and businesses here. Um, and
[01:13:25] so I want to say 19, 2019 or 20 on the
[01:13:32] cove side as you're coming from Ced
[01:13:33] City, the right hand side that land up
[01:13:35] against the cove. Uh, we recommended
[01:13:37] approval for a hotel, condo, hotel
[01:13:40] units, uh, couple buildings of
[01:13:43] commercial, but as part of that was
[01:13:46] great landscaping along there. So that
[01:13:49] area again would create a wow when you
[01:13:52] came in and on the other side of the
[01:13:54] street where these buildings are uh
[01:13:58] they're old buildings and so as things
[01:14:00] come along it's our opportunity to
[01:14:03] improve the drive. So when they're all
[01:14:07] things either change or whatever the
[01:14:09] left hand side of it is going to look
[01:14:11] just as good. So, uh, we have to think
[01:14:14] about decisions we make today and what
[01:14:17] it's going to look like in 10, 20, 30
[01:14:20] years, uh, all over the city. And this
[01:14:22] is one of those areas, uh, that
[01:14:25] definitely needs to, uh, be approved.
[01:14:29] Uh,
[01:14:30] could the applicant come up? I do have a
[01:14:32] couple questions. Uh, Mike, it may have
[01:14:35] been you. I'm not sure.
[01:14:45] Yeah, thank you. And David, you asked
[01:14:48] asked a lot of questions that uh
[01:14:50] answered some things for me about the
[01:14:52] structure and the viability of the
[01:14:54] entity. Has your charitable, your 501c3
[01:14:58] or whatever it's going to be been
[01:14:59] formed? Do you have your IRS letter?
[01:15:02] >> We do. Yeah, you do.
[01:15:02] >> It's a not for-p profofit. Yeah.
[01:15:04] >> Okay. All right. Good. Um, I did uh read
[01:15:07] your business plan, your nine-page
[01:15:09] business plan, which is helpful. So,
[01:15:10] thank you for uh submitting that. Um,
[01:15:14] and I think David, you touched on it.
[01:15:17] Uh, uh, do you have the the assets now
[01:15:21] to complete the purchase as well as to
[01:15:24] fund the ongoing operations?
[01:15:27] Uh uh as you know when you have a 45
[01:15:30] year old building I know because our
[01:15:33] house was built in 1980 and it's a
[01:15:36] constant you always have to put money
[01:15:38] into it to keep it up and do you have
[01:15:41] the funds to sustain that because there
[01:15:44] will be not only conditions up front the
[01:15:48] paving you know which is a disaster the
[01:15:50] landscaping so on so on initially but to
[01:15:54] be able to maintain that and uh uh
[01:15:57] because if it's not of course uh you'll
[01:16:00] have code enforcement knocking on your
[01:16:03] door every day.
[01:16:04] >> Yes.
[01:16:04] >> So
[01:16:04] >> the simple answer is yes.
[01:16:06] >> Okay. All right. Um and and one of the
[01:16:09] reasons for asking that um
[01:16:14] there are the last time I looked there
[01:16:16] are approximately 200,000
[01:16:18] nonprofit charitable organizations in
[01:16:20] the state of California plus or minus
[01:16:22] 10% depending on where you pull your uh
[01:16:26] your numbers from. And so, uh, being
[01:16:29] involved in charities, being on boards
[01:16:31] of various charities for the last 30
[01:16:33] years, fundraising,
[01:16:35] uh, it is not easy when you're competing
[01:16:37] with 200,000 other charities. And of
[01:16:41] course, we know this valley is a very
[01:16:43] charitable organization. And I have no
[01:16:46] idea how many charities there are in
[01:16:47] this valley, but there's quite a few.
[01:16:50] So, um, uh, you know, it is a daunting
[01:16:53] subject, and and that is a
[01:16:55] consideration. So, uh, we'll take your
[01:16:57] word for it that you have it. And I
[01:16:59] think you noted that a number of the
[01:17:01] doctors are ponying up and they're
[01:17:03] willing to to put their own personal
[01:17:05] funds there. That's always a good sign.
[01:17:08] So, uh, thank you. That's my questions
[01:17:11] for you.
[01:17:12] >> Appreciate it. Thank you.
[01:17:14] >> Um, all right. So, I'll turn to
[01:17:16] landscaping, one of my favorite
[01:17:18] subjects. Uh and and David, we'll let
[01:17:21] you deal with the cactus in 3 ft of the
[01:17:24] sidewalk and and uh mine's favorite
[01:17:27] crushed big jagged rock. Okay, you can
[01:17:29] deal with that. I won't even touch on
[01:17:31] it. Okay, I promise. Um so Monday,
[01:17:35] um this last Monday morning, I did go
[01:17:38] over there again and drive around, took
[01:17:40] about 30 pictures and look very
[01:17:42] carefully at every piece of the ground
[01:17:44] over there. Um, and there are a lot of
[01:17:47] conditions, uh, you know, trees,
[01:17:49] landscaping. Um, uh, uh, Mina did tell
[01:17:54] me that the strip along the front, the
[01:17:57] sidewalk area, and the strip along the
[01:18:00] back is a common area. It's an HOA and
[01:18:04] the HOA is responsible for that
[01:18:07] landscaping. Is that correct, Mina?
[01:18:09] >> Correct. There's property management out
[01:18:11] there that maintains that portion.
[01:18:13] >> Okay. So we're asking the applicant to
[01:18:16] do a lot of landscaping, bring the pace
[01:18:18] up, probably the irrigation system, so
[01:18:20] on so on, all that sort of thing, and
[01:18:22] planting. Um, but the those strips are
[01:18:26] deplorable. Uh, and in the back along
[01:18:29] the wash, uh, there are many dead trees,
[01:18:32] dead trees that are just fallen over,
[01:18:34] dead brush, and it looks terrible. Uh,
[01:18:37] and and I understand that's the common
[01:18:40] area. So, we hopefully we can get
[01:18:43] something done on that soon. Um, and as
[01:18:47] far as the dead brush and dead trees,
[01:18:48] even though it's the HOA, uh, I don't
[01:18:51] know why the applicant with their
[01:18:53] volunteers go out and cut down the dead
[01:18:55] trees, get rid of it, cuz it's actually
[01:18:57] a fire hazard along there. Uh, but I
[01:19:00] would hope we would push the HOA to get
[01:19:03] that
[01:19:05] uh, upgraded as quickly as possible. Uh,
[01:19:09] one of the things in there it mentioned
[01:19:11] uh, I think condition of 10 trees, 36-in
[01:19:13] box. I did walk around there and look
[01:19:16] for plantings. I actually think it ought
[01:19:18] to be about 20 trees. They don't have to
[01:19:20] be all 36in box. Uh, could be 24in box.
[01:19:24] The other 10, but I don't think 10 trees
[01:19:26] are actually going to do it. U, the palm
[01:19:30] trees, it makes note there are some
[01:19:31] current robustas there, the real tall
[01:19:33] skinny ones. Uh Ben, would you bring up
[01:19:36] the picture of that and show on there?
[01:19:39] >> Um the presentation's pulled up here.
[01:19:42] >> Okay.
[01:19:45] Uh just to show it.
[01:19:49] Can you bring this one up?
[01:19:50] >> Oh, that one right here. Perfect.
[01:19:52] >> Showing the uh Yeah, the palm trees
[01:19:54] here. U so I think it's saying that
[01:19:58] planting more of these type of palm
[01:19:59] trees the robustas it would be much more
[01:20:02] aesthetic to put some uh fifas the
[01:20:06] shorter palms in there rather than just
[01:20:08] more of these really tall cuz the these
[01:20:11] things don't do anything to kind of
[01:20:15] screen soften the building mass as an
[01:20:18] easy example Desert Springs Resort I'm
[01:20:20] sure you all know it over there uh that
[01:20:22] was built in ' 86 it's basically a box.
[01:20:25] Uh the architecture is not that great,
[01:20:28] but when you look through there and they
[01:20:29] have all those date palms and it it
[01:20:32] softens the building mass, it it makes a
[01:20:35] totally different kind of statement. And
[01:20:37] again, it's not only for this building,
[01:20:39] but it's for people driving along. We're
[01:20:42] trying to create a boulevard effect. And
[01:20:44] so the buildings and all the landscaping
[01:20:46] do make a difference. So I would
[01:20:48] recommend that rather than more
[01:20:49] robustas, those palms that are there,
[01:20:52] they put in flifas or the flifa robusta
[01:20:54] hybrids, which they're shorter and the
[01:20:57] crowns are higher, and then put some
[01:20:59] trees around there and it would have
[01:21:00] that effect.
[01:21:12] Uh we did they did their condition is
[01:21:15] four handicap parking spaces and given
[01:21:18] the numbers is that actually sufficient.
[01:21:21] Uh I know it meets code. Uh but again I
[01:21:25] would ask the applicant to think about
[01:21:26] that are four handicap spaces uh
[01:21:29] sufficient for their congregation if
[01:21:31] they know their congregation.
[01:21:35] Uh is there are there any plans to
[01:21:37] repaint uh the building?
[01:21:40] As far as the applicant has expressed,
[01:21:42] uh they're not proposing any exterior
[01:21:44] changes. Uh the only exterior changes
[01:21:45] that are going to happen are uh the
[01:21:47] repaving of the parking lot, the
[01:21:49] additional landscaping, and any um
[01:21:52] building maintenance that needs to
[01:21:53] happen with some portions of the
[01:21:55] building being boarded up, but uh no
[01:21:56] painting and no signage are proposed.
[01:21:59] >> All right. If they do repaint, does that
[01:22:01] have to get approved? I know over the
[01:22:03] counter doesn't have to come to us, but
[01:22:04] is that an over the count? Does it have
[01:22:06] to come to the building department or
[01:22:08] anything for the code? Obviously signs
[01:22:10] do. I understand they're going to take
[01:22:11] down the sign and they're not going to
[01:22:13] have a sign at this point.
[01:22:15] >> So, they would have to submit a minor
[01:22:17] mod application to the planning
[01:22:18] division. It's not an over-thec counter
[01:22:20] review, but uh it's approved by planning
[01:22:21] staff.
[01:22:22] >> Okay. All right. And on the interior, uh
[01:22:25] there are no structural changes on the
[01:22:27] interior.
[01:22:29] >> Um that's up to the applicant to
[01:22:31] determine what type of uh building
[01:22:32] improvements are going to be required on
[01:22:34] the interior. Uh but they would need to
[01:22:36] submit the appropriate uh building plans
[01:22:38] and u apply for building permits for any
[01:22:40] changes that would require that.
[01:22:42] >> Okay. Uh being that it was a restaurant
[01:22:44] before, there's a fullervice restaurant,
[01:22:47] commercial kitchen there, uh they're not
[01:22:49] going to operate it as a commercial
[01:22:51] facility, of course, uh they're going to
[01:22:53] use it for their uh their congregation
[01:22:56] that comes in. Uh but because it is a
[01:22:59] commercial kitchen and probably hasn't
[01:23:01] been used in a long time, uh are there
[01:23:03] fire and safety issues that they have to
[01:23:05] have permit? Someone's got to go in and
[01:23:08] make sure the hoods are right. They have
[01:23:09] the the things you can press the button
[01:23:12] and the fire, you know, retardant comes
[01:23:15] down, all that sort of thing. When you
[01:23:16] have is that going to have to be
[01:23:18] approved before they get an oxy permit?
[01:23:21] >> Um so we do have a condition of
[01:23:23] approval. It's condition approval number
[01:23:25] 15. uh that the applicant shall ensure
[01:23:27] that all Riverside County environmental
[01:23:28] health requirements are met for any use
[01:23:30] of the kitchen. In addition, as part of
[01:23:32] our um typical use and occupancy
[01:23:35] process, which is required before
[01:23:36] somebody can obtain a business license
[01:23:38] to occupy a building, um they would
[01:23:40] require inspections from our building
[01:23:42] and safety division, um fire department,
[01:23:45] and then um as well environmental
[01:23:47] health.
[01:23:47] >> Okay. Um, and in there I believe there
[01:23:51] was a September 26 deadline for certain
[01:23:54] improvements. Clarify that for me. Who
[01:23:57] who is that? Is that for the applicant?
[01:24:01] >> So along the properties Highway 111
[01:24:04] frontage, uh, that uh, strip of land is
[01:24:07] managed by the association. Um, so it's
[01:24:10] not under the control of the applicant.
[01:24:12] Um, we have been in contact with the
[01:24:15] property management for the um, area.
[01:24:17] Um, and they do have a plan that uh
[01:24:19] they're working on to improve the
[01:24:21] Highway 111 frontage um for those
[01:24:24] buildings. Um, but uh that's something
[01:24:26] that's in the works. So, we added a
[01:24:28] condition of approval um to um have
[01:24:32] those improvements done within a year.
[01:24:35] >> Okay. Thanks. Um and then my last
[01:24:38] comment, I would like a condition that
[01:24:40] they put security cameras on the outside
[01:24:42] of the building. I think it's important
[01:24:45] uh given uh all the things that are
[01:24:49] going on in this world not just u you
[01:24:52] know how many times we seeing these
[01:24:54] people they're ramming into jewelry
[01:24:56] stores 15 people are going in uh it's
[01:24:59] all over and although we live in a
[01:25:02] basically a safe place it can happen
[01:25:04] anywhere people get murdered on the
[01:25:07] streets in Beverly Hills so uh I I think
[01:25:10] it's important not only for this
[01:25:12] facility but other things that come
[01:25:14] along that uh that they have exterior
[01:25:17] security cameras, not only for their own
[01:25:20] security, but I also read almost every
[01:25:23] other day that a security camera on a
[01:25:26] building actually caught something going
[01:25:28] on outside the property, which would
[01:25:31] enable law enforcement to track down and
[01:25:34] find out, catch the people or whatever,
[01:25:36] and it had nothing to do with someone
[01:25:38] doing something to the building. So, I
[01:25:40] do think that's an important issue and
[01:25:42] I'd like to make that a a a condition of
[01:25:46] uh our recommendation for approval.
[01:25:48] >> Commissioner Brian, if I could um maybe
[01:25:50] uh make some comments about that
[01:25:52] potential condition.
[01:25:54] >> Uh it'd be staff's recommendation that
[01:25:57] you uh don't make that a formal
[01:25:59] condition.
[01:25:59] >> Okay.
[01:26:00] >> Uh there are no municipal code
[01:26:02] requirements that support that
[01:26:04] condition. Okay.
[01:26:05] >> Perhaps it can just be uh verbalized as
[01:26:08] a recommendation for the applicant to
[01:26:11] consider that.
[01:26:12] >> Okay. All right.
[01:26:13] >> And then if I may add to that too,
[01:26:15] attachment number five in the staff
[01:26:17] report, the project description uh page,
[01:26:20] I believe it's nine. Um they do have a
[01:26:23] brief mention on security there and
[01:26:25] security cameras are mentioned there as
[01:26:26] well.
[01:26:28] >> Okay. Um so Isaiah, you can send me to
[01:26:31] the corner. Put a dunce hat on me. uh
[01:26:34] make me write on the blackboard 100
[01:26:36] times. I will not make that
[01:26:38] recommendation in the future. So, uh
[01:26:41] thanks for pointing that out. So, I will
[01:26:43] withdraw uh saying it was condition and
[01:26:45] it's just a a thought is something that
[01:26:48] I think is important. So, are there any
[01:26:50] more um uh commissioner comments on
[01:26:53] this?
[01:26:58] >> Nope. Uh then I would uh call for a
[01:27:02] >> before you guys vote. I just wanted to
[01:27:04] note that this is a minor conditional
[01:27:07] use permit.
[01:27:08] >> Right.
[01:27:08] >> And so if the planning commission
[01:27:10] approves this today, you are the final
[01:27:12] approval. It does not go to the city
[01:27:14] council.
[01:27:14] >> Okay. All right. Um then I do want to
[01:27:18] make one more comment and uh our uh
[01:27:21] public works director is here and
[01:27:24] assistant city manager Ryan. Uh it's
[01:27:27] been brought up about traffic on 111. Uh
[01:27:30] it is not great. It's going to get
[01:27:32] worse. So as a city, we've got we could
[01:27:36] not have any more development. We could
[01:27:38] stop all development of any other
[01:27:40] property along 111. That might be one
[01:27:43] way to uh uh stop any increase in
[01:27:46] traffic. That's not going to happen. Uh
[01:27:50] but one person did say uh the the as
[01:27:56] rational people we do have ways to try
[01:27:58] to mitigate certain things and I know
[01:28:01] that's something that the city does look
[01:28:03] at in terms of the traffic lights the
[01:28:06] speed and all that sort of thing and
[01:28:08] it's going to be a continuing issue. Um
[01:28:12] I think this particular facility is not
[01:28:14] going to draw more traffic than say the
[01:28:16] restaurant that was there with a se
[01:28:18] seating of 300 and some people. Uh it's
[01:28:21] not going to draw uh more traffic than
[01:28:23] that. Um so uh that's just the fact of
[01:28:28] life that we're going to have to be
[01:28:29] careful of uh in in the city as far as
[01:28:33] traffic along 111. So with that then I
[01:28:36] will ask for a motion uh uh on this
[01:28:40] agenda item.
[01:28:41] >> All right. I'd like to make a motion
[01:28:43] that the planning commission one approve
[01:28:45] the filing of a notice of exemption
[01:28:47] pursuant to the California Environmental
[01:28:49] Quality Act PN squa closed PNS section
[01:28:53] 15301 PNS class one- existing facilities
[01:28:58] and two approve minor conditional use
[01:29:01] permit case number CUP25-00007
[01:29:07] subject to the conditions of approval
[01:29:09] with the added condition and based on
[01:29:11] the content and findings in the staff
[01:29:13] report.
[01:29:15] >> May I have a second?
[01:29:17] >> I'll second that.
[01:29:31] >> Motion carries 4.
[01:29:33] >> All right. So, um it is approved.
[01:29:37] Uh so at this point uh we will conclude
[01:29:41] the planning commission hearing.
[01:29:44] >> Excuse me. Oh, we still have a
[01:29:45] non-aggenda public comments.
[01:29:47] >> Oh, I'm sorry. No. Oh, excuse sorry. Uh
[01:29:50] we still have uh That's right. We moved
[01:29:52] to the last non-aggenda public comments.
[01:29:55] Does anyone have anything to speak as
[01:29:57] far as not on the agenda at this point?
[01:29:59] >> I do have one speaker card from Brad
[01:30:01] Anderson.
[01:30:02] >> Okay. All right.
[01:30:02] >> I don't see him. I think he may have
[01:30:05] left. Is there anyone else who would
[01:30:07] like to speak on something not on
[01:30:09] today's agenda?
[01:30:11] >> No speakers.
[01:30:12] >> Okay. So, with that, sorry. Then we'll
[01:30:15] conclude today's hearing.