Rancho Mirage City Council Meeting, November 06, 2025

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AI transcript text.

[00:00:12] Good afternoon everyone.
[00:00:15] It is Thursday, November 6th,
[00:00:18] 2025 at approximately 100 p.m.
[00:00:22] This is the regular meeting of the
[00:00:23] Rancher Mirage City Council and
[00:00:26] Community Services District, Energy
[00:00:29] Authority, Housing Authority, Joint
[00:00:33] Powers Finance Authority,
[00:00:35] Library and Observatory, and
[00:00:38] Redevelopment Successor Boards.
[00:00:42] I will now ask you to please join me in
[00:00:44] a salute
[00:00:46] to the flag and our great country.
[00:00:53] >> I pledge algiance to the flag of the
[00:00:56] United States of America and to the to
[00:01:00] stands. One nation under God,
[00:01:03] indivisible with liberty and justice for
[00:01:06] all.
[00:01:15] May we have roll call, please.
[00:01:18] >> Council member DS,
[00:01:19] >> I'm here.
[00:01:19] >> Council member Framberg Edstein
[00:01:21] >> here.
[00:01:22] >> Council member O'Keefe
[00:01:23] >> here.
[00:01:23] >> Mayor Prom Molatto
[00:01:25] >> here. And Mayor Why
[00:01:29] We have several presentations today
[00:01:32] and I will start with very exciting
[00:01:37] moment
[00:01:38] and this is a performance of the Star
[00:01:41] Spangle Banner
[00:01:44] uh by the Coachella AC Capella Alan
[00:01:48] Scott artistic director. If you would be
[00:01:51] kind enough Allan to come forward and
[00:01:54] introduce your your group. Good
[00:01:57] afternoon, mayor and council and city
[00:01:59] staff and community members. On behalf
[00:02:01] of the women of Coachella A Capella
[00:02:03] Women's Chorus, I want to tell you how
[00:02:04] delighted we are to be here to sing the
[00:02:06] national anthem for you today. Though
[00:02:08] technically we are in Palm Springs
[00:02:10] because it's at my mailing address.
[00:02:12] We've been rehearsing at Rancho Mirage
[00:02:15] High School since July of 2019. So even
[00:02:18] though some of our members are Rancho
[00:02:20] Mirage citizens, the rest of us like to
[00:02:21] think of ourselves as honorary citizens.
[00:02:24] We have about 17 people in our chorus
[00:02:26] and about 10 people in our youth
[00:02:28] outreach programs in Rancho Mirage High
[00:02:30] School, Palm Springs High School, Desert
[00:02:31] Hot Springs High School, and hoping to
[00:02:33] get Cathedral City High School next
[00:02:34] year. We're delighted to be here and
[00:02:36] present the national anthem. Thank you.
[00:02:43] Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early
[00:02:48] light,
[00:02:50] was so proudly we held at the twilight
[00:02:56] last gleaming.
[00:02:58] Whose rough stripes and bright stars
[00:03:02] through the perilous
[00:03:04] fight or the ramparts we watch were so
[00:03:09] gallently
[00:03:11] screaming
[00:03:13] and the rockets red glare. The bombs
[00:03:17] bursting in air gave proof through the
[00:03:22] night that our flag was still there.
[00:03:28] Oh, see does their stars spangle better
[00:03:35] way.
[00:03:38] For the land
[00:03:41] of the free
[00:03:44] and the home
[00:03:47] of the brave.
[00:04:02] Alan, thank you very much. That was
[00:04:03] wonderful. What a great way to start a
[00:04:06] meeting. That was terrific. Thank you
[00:04:09] ladies for all that you do.
[00:04:14] That was great. Our second presentation
[00:04:20] uh is
[00:04:22] uh to Betty Anne Cheryl who is the
[00:04:27] legislative chairperson for the retire
[00:04:30] teachers week and if Benny Cheryl if
[00:04:34] you'll join me
[00:04:52] And good morning to you.
[00:04:53] >> Good morning, Mayor. Nice to meet you.
[00:04:55] >> Thank you. Nice to see you. Good
[00:04:56] morning.
[00:04:57] >> This is Maggie.
[00:04:58] >> Maggie.
[00:05:00] Nice to meet you.
[00:05:02] >> Nice to meet you all.
[00:05:06] >> You've got some notes and I want to
[00:05:07] >> I do
[00:05:08] >> present this to you.
[00:05:12] And
[00:05:13] this is a proclamation. Yes.
[00:05:16] >> Uh recognizing California retired
[00:05:19] teachers week
[00:05:21] >> and it's uh was founded as you know by
[00:05:25] Laura Settle in 1929 at the start of the
[00:05:30] Great Depression.
[00:05:32] Uh the California Teachers Association
[00:05:36] provides continuing support to active
[00:05:38] and future teachers
[00:05:41] uh including grants and scholarships and
[00:05:43] donations.
[00:05:45] A vast majority of the retired teachers
[00:05:49] share a commitment to improving their
[00:05:52] communities through volunteer
[00:05:54] activities, which I know you do
[00:05:56] regularly.
[00:05:57] >> Yes.
[00:05:58] Uh statewide, uh teachers can be found
[00:06:01] serving their communities through a host
[00:06:04] of activities. Uh last year, as you
[00:06:07] know, the retired teachers provided over
[00:06:11] 27,000
[00:06:12] hours of volunteer service, valued at
[00:06:16] well in excense of a million dollars.
[00:06:18] And thank you so much for your service,
[00:06:21] ladies. Thank you.
[00:06:24] The annual dollar of volunteer time
[00:06:27] donated statewide by retired teachers
[00:06:32] reached more than $42 million during the
[00:06:35] most rep most recent reporting period.
[00:06:39] That's incredible.
[00:06:41] >> Yes.
[00:06:41] >> So you sure work hard. I know that
[00:06:43] >> we do.
[00:06:45] So therefore, be it resolved that I, Ted
[00:06:47] While, mayor of the city of Ranch
[00:06:49] Mirage, and on behalf of the entire city
[00:06:53] council, my colleagues right here,
[00:06:57] um is uh we honor you. We hand you this
[00:07:02] uh seal of the city of Rancho Mirage. We
[00:07:06] honor you with the proclamation,
[00:07:09] and we're honored to have you here
[00:07:11] today.
[00:07:12] >> Thank you so much. Thank you so much.
[00:07:16] Well, thank you, mayor, and city
[00:07:17] council.
[00:07:21] I brought a little lesson plan of what
[00:07:23] to say. Um, on behalf of the California
[00:07:26] Teachers Association, Division 43, which
[00:07:29] covers Palm Springs, which Pam
[00:07:32] represents, Desert Sands, which Maggie
[00:07:34] represents, Coachella, which I
[00:07:36] represent, and Palo Verie, which not uh
[00:07:39] Nancy, she represents Belfflower. she
[00:07:41] retired into our valley. Um, we want to
[00:07:44] thank you for recognizing the valuable
[00:07:47] contributions that retired teachers make
[00:07:49] to our valley. Uh, as working teachers,
[00:07:52] we of course contributed to our valley
[00:07:54] and now as retired teachers, we continue
[00:07:56] to do so. Um,
[00:07:59] and yes, we did contribute 27,000 hours
[00:08:03] here in the valley, which is worth over
[00:08:06] a million dollars, but we also very much
[00:08:09] enjoy contributing our pensions to the
[00:08:11] valley, too. So, we we uh appreciate
[00:08:15] everything the valley offers to us and
[00:08:17] we know the valley appreciates what we
[00:08:19] offer back to the to them. So, thank you
[00:08:21] very much for this beautiful
[00:08:23] proclamation and recognition. Well, uh,
[00:08:26] welld deserved. Uh, we're honored to
[00:08:29] have you here today, ladies. Thank you
[00:08:31] so much for all the time that you put in
[00:08:35] and, uh, you're welcome to come back and
[00:08:38] join us at any time.
[00:08:39] >> Thank you. Well, we're we're residents,
[00:08:41] so you might see that.
[00:08:42] >> Good. That's even that
[00:08:46] makes you even more valuable as far as
[00:08:48] I'm concerned.
[00:08:49] >> Anyway, thank you so much for being here
[00:08:52] today.
[00:08:52] >> Thank you.
[00:08:53] >> Thank you, ladies.
[00:08:54] >> Thank you, everybody. Thank you.
[00:09:19] What a nice way to start the meeting
[00:09:23] on a positive,
[00:09:25] you know,
[00:09:27] positive tone uh with good uh good
[00:09:30] feelings. With that, we will now uh move
[00:09:34] into council member comments.
[00:09:38] Uh and uh I will start with uh on my
[00:09:42] left I will uh call upon uh council
[00:09:46] member Michael O'Keefe to start us off
[00:09:49] today.
[00:09:50] >> Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Could I say we
[00:09:52] should start every council meeting with
[00:09:54] ac cappella music. That was fantastic.
[00:09:56] Beautiful.
[00:09:57] >> And thanks to the teachers also that are
[00:09:59] here today. Um this past week we paid
[00:10:01] tribute to Dana Hobart whose vision for
[00:10:03] the city was unparalleled. Uh he
[00:10:06] provided an elevated quality of life for
[00:10:09] our residents that we're going to enjoy
[00:10:11] for years to come. Uh and so I'd like to
[00:10:14] point out today a few things that I'm
[00:10:15] looking forward to over the next week.
[00:10:18] Uh first, the Ranch Mirage Certified
[00:10:20] Farmers Market returns tomorrow to the
[00:10:23] community park uh from 8:00 till 2. Uh
[00:10:26] the market will now feature some of the
[00:10:29] enhancements you may have read about or
[00:10:30] seen when our recent park expansion.
[00:10:33] That includes the newly completed
[00:10:34] parking lots, the pedestrian
[00:10:37] improvements. It's a lot safer to walk
[00:10:38] there now. Uh that are wrapping some of
[00:10:41] those will be wrapping up in the coming
[00:10:42] weeks. Um it's a great opportunity to
[00:10:45] come out, enjoy the park and support our
[00:10:47] local vendors. And also something I I'm
[00:10:50] even more excited about uh because you
[00:10:53] all know my passion for animal adoption.
[00:10:56] I'm thrilled to sh uh share that we've
[00:10:58] partnered with the Canyon Creek
[00:11:00] Mushrooms. Uh they are the operators of
[00:11:03] the farmers market and tomorrow we'll be
[00:11:05] hosting the Riverside County Animal
[00:11:07] Services uh special free dog adoption
[00:11:11] event tomorrow during the market. So uh
[00:11:14] please come by the Ranch Mirage
[00:11:15] Certified Market, support your local
[00:11:18] vendors, and you might just meet your
[00:11:20] new four-legged family member. Uh your
[00:11:22] best friend may be waiting for you
[00:11:24] there. I'd also like to say that two
[00:11:27] weeks ago,
[00:11:28] uh, Desert Theatricals staged, uh, The
[00:11:31] Adams Family at the amphitheater. It was
[00:11:33] a wonderful musical that was one of
[00:11:35] their best productions. And then this
[00:11:37] past Saturday, almost 1,000 guests were
[00:11:41] treated to an incredible evening with
[00:11:43] the Coachella Valley Symphony performing
[00:11:46] with four vocalists from the Palm
[00:11:48] Springs Opera Guild. It was a magical
[00:11:51] evening with aras and duets, sublime
[00:11:55] music. It was the perfect Rancho Mirage
[00:11:58] event at our beautiful amphitheater. Uh
[00:12:01] I want to compliment our city's event
[00:12:03] specialist, Haley Ty, who not only
[00:12:06] created this program, but also shephered
[00:12:08] it and executed it flawlessly. Uh I
[00:12:11] cannot imagine that Mayor Hobart could
[00:12:13] have hoped for more than this wonderful
[00:12:15] event at the beloved amphitheater.
[00:12:18] And finally, I am pleased to tell you
[00:12:20] that our city will be represented in the
[00:12:23] Palm Springs Pride Parade this Sunday.
[00:12:26] As a city that routinely scores the
[00:12:28] highest possible score on municipal
[00:12:31] equality index, I am proud that we
[00:12:34] support the LGBT community and equal
[00:12:37] rights for all. Our city is a great city
[00:12:41] that welcomes everyone. Thank you, Mr.
[00:12:43] Mayor. Thank you, Michael.
[00:12:49] Uh, I will now call upon council member
[00:12:52] E from Berg Edelstein for any comments
[00:12:55] that she might have.
[00:12:56] >> Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Um, I just really
[00:12:58] quickly wanted to mention the Children's
[00:13:01] Discovery Museum of the Desert uh hosted
[00:13:04] their Halloween fest on Halloween from 3
[00:13:07] to 5 and they had 1,200 attendees
[00:13:12] uh for 3 hours of trick-or-treating,
[00:13:15] um, arts and crafts, we ghosts, spiders,
[00:13:18] and spiderw webs and monster puppets um
[00:13:21] and activity centers. And they even had
[00:13:24] a um mystery box competition where you
[00:13:27] put your hand into a box and you had to
[00:13:29] guess what it was of bats ears and mice
[00:13:32] tails and um something that was
[00:13:36] supposedly carrots, but I still don't
[00:13:37] believe it was actually carrots. Um but
[00:13:40] it was really fun. A lot of really small
[00:13:42] children. And I have to say um as I
[00:13:44] remember uh being raised here and
[00:13:47] raising a son here, trick-or-treating is
[00:13:49] a hard thing to find in this valley,
[00:13:51] especially West Valley. uh neighborhoods
[00:13:53] where there's enough residents in
[00:13:54] October with homes and candy and taking
[00:13:57] home little kids that are crying because
[00:14:00] no one saw their costume and they didn't
[00:14:01] get enough Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.
[00:14:03] And uh so it's such a special event when
[00:14:06] when organizations like the Children's
[00:14:08] Discovery Museum or the Living Desert
[00:14:10] have Halloween fairs for children,
[00:14:13] especially little ones, where you can
[00:14:14] Halloween trick-or- treat safely. You
[00:14:17] don't have to worry about the candy. you
[00:14:18] don't have to worry about any problems
[00:14:21] and safety and it's not dark at night
[00:14:23] and where there's no lights. Um, so I
[00:14:25] really want to commend Cindy and her
[00:14:27] staff for putting on such an incredible
[00:14:29] day. The museum was decorated and this
[00:14:31] was free of charge to the community
[00:14:33] which is huge. And if you saw the amount
[00:14:35] of families for people that don't think
[00:14:37] that we have young growing families in
[00:14:39] this valley, they'd be sorely mistaken
[00:14:41] because there were a lot of little
[00:14:42] ghosts and little Mickey Mousees and
[00:14:44] little hop K-pops and all sorts of
[00:14:47] things. the costume of the year. A lot
[00:14:49] of six, seven couples. It was very
[00:14:51] exciting. Um, and anyways, I just want
[00:14:54] to commend their staff. Um, my son and I
[00:14:56] volunteered and it was a great day. So,
[00:14:59] again, that museum does a lot more than
[00:15:02] you see. And it's also important to
[00:15:04] recognize that that city is now in a
[00:15:06] great community partnership with Catino,
[00:15:08] bringing some Disney programming as well
[00:15:11] to their uh community events. So, keep
[00:15:13] your eye on the museum. It's doing great
[00:15:15] things. Thank you.
[00:15:17] >> Thank you. Yeah, another another
[00:15:19] contribution to uh you know our
[00:15:23] wonderful community. Uh Mayor Prom Lin
[00:15:27] Molatto.
[00:15:29] >> Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
[00:15:31] Well, building on my colleagues
[00:15:34] Halloween celebrations, last week, uh,
[00:15:36] Dio de los Muertos celebration was
[00:15:38] presented by the Rancher Mirage Cultural
[00:15:40] Commission. And this event also was free
[00:15:44] and open to the public, open to people
[00:15:46] of all ages. And uh as the library this
[00:15:49] year celebrates its 30th birthday, uh
[00:15:52] Dio de los Muertos celebration has
[00:15:54] become a community tradition to
[00:15:57] celebrate and remember those that are no
[00:16:00] longer with us by way of this annual
[00:16:02] bright colorful spirited event. Um
[00:16:07] people participated in making masks,
[00:16:10] different crafts. We ate some wonderful
[00:16:12] little pastries. Um and then everyone
[00:16:15] was treated to a phenomenal
[00:16:18] um
[00:16:19] concert that evening by Harab Mexicoo
[00:16:23] and um everyone was on their feet. They
[00:16:26] were singing along. Um it it was truly
[00:16:30] phenomenal. If you're not familiar with
[00:16:33] the Rancher Mirage Library, I encourage
[00:16:35] you to get a library card and you too
[00:16:38] can come to a lot of free events. Um,
[00:16:42] it's a spectacular resource not only for
[00:16:45] Ranch Mirage residents, but we have many
[00:16:47] residents that come from other cities.
[00:16:49] So, congratulations to Sally Trademan,
[00:16:51] who's the chair uh chairman of the
[00:16:53] cultural commission and to our library
[00:16:55] staff who never cease to amaze me what
[00:16:58] they pull out of the hat in um providing
[00:17:01] special events for our uh citizens.
[00:17:05] Another topic I'd like to talk uh about
[00:17:08] for just a minute. We're all aware of on
[00:17:11] a na national level of the many proposed
[00:17:15] cuts. Some are real.
[00:17:17] Some have yet to happen. Uh we're trying
[00:17:19] to be uh proactive and preemptive to
[00:17:23] help uh our most vulnerable, our seniors
[00:17:25] and those that that need services. Um
[00:17:28] I'm working with my colleague uh Council
[00:17:30] Member Eve Framberg. Um, I want to sp
[00:17:34] say uh special thanks to Eisenhower
[00:17:38] Medical Center and uh Marcus Alamman
[00:17:40] from our housing authority. Uh we
[00:17:44] scheduled a flu shot clinic over at
[00:17:47] Sanento Villas, one of our senior
[00:17:49] housing developments. It'll be the first
[00:17:51] of what we hope to be a few health fairs
[00:17:55] that will not only provide resources,
[00:17:57] health resources, but other resources.
[00:18:00] Um, in I had the opportunity in speaking
[00:18:02] with the nurses that came to this event,
[00:18:06] two of which interface with social
[00:18:08] workers. These cuts are real
[00:18:12] and what people are experiencing is very
[00:18:15] real. and they shared
[00:18:18] an experience an an elderly gentleman
[00:18:21] who was on the SNAP program
[00:18:25] uh lost his SNAP benefits for food. So,
[00:18:30] and in coincidentally in the same week
[00:18:32] he had a flat tire and what do you fix
[00:18:34] first? Fix the flat tire, no food,
[00:18:39] didn't have the money for the
[00:18:40] medications. And the unfortunate thing
[00:18:42] is is it's a domino effect. and this
[00:18:45] gentleman ended up in the urgent care.
[00:18:48] Well, you know, I understand that some
[00:18:51] legislators back in in Washington think,
[00:18:53] well, the urgent cares or the emergency
[00:18:56] rooms are a safety net. But if you
[00:18:58] multiply that by the millions, your
[00:19:01] usual 4 and 1/2 hour wait in the ER or
[00:19:04] in the urgent care can now double,
[00:19:06] triple, quadruple in time.
[00:19:09] Resources are slim.
[00:19:12] So, as I mentioned, we're trying to be
[00:19:14] proactive and preemptive. We'll be
[00:19:16] working with Eisenhower Medical Center,
[00:19:18] and great thanks to them. They're a
[00:19:19] wonderful community partner. We'll be
[00:19:21] unveiling next steps and ideas uh as to
[00:19:26] how we can meet the community's needs.
[00:19:28] Uh food is is a scarcity at this point
[00:19:32] in time. Many people are participating
[00:19:34] at our food banks. Um, if you're not a
[00:19:37] member of the Jocelyn Senior Center, the
[00:19:40] cities of Indian Wells, Palm Desert, and
[00:19:42] Rancher Mirage support the Joselyn
[00:19:44] Senior Center, which is located in Palm
[00:19:46] Desert on Catalina Way. They have a
[00:19:49] multitude of programs and resources that
[00:19:52] are available to you, including a food
[00:19:55] pantry on Friday. If you need those
[00:19:58] services, please go and sign up for a
[00:20:01] membership at Joselyn Senior Center.
[00:20:04] There are many, many resources
[00:20:05] available. Many people are afraid to ask
[00:20:07] or maybe feel they don't deserve those
[00:20:11] programs. You do deserve to participate.
[00:20:13] You paid taxes all your life. You worked
[00:20:15] hard all your life. Everybody needs a
[00:20:18] little help once in a while. And we're
[00:20:20] here to help in whatever way we can.
[00:20:24] And that's it from me.
[00:20:25] >> Well expressed.
[00:20:27] The Joslyn Center is remarkable. The
[00:20:31] programs that they have, I mean they are
[00:20:34] so varied. It can be from learning
[00:20:37] Spanish to knitting to dancing. Uh
[00:20:43] it is it is just a wonderful social
[00:20:47] environment
[00:20:48] uh that frankly provides a great deal of
[00:20:52] uh companionship for so many people. Uh
[00:20:56] they just do a remarkable job. can't say
[00:20:59] enough good things about uh about the
[00:21:02] center. Um
[00:21:05] I'll now call upon council member Steve
[00:21:08] DS. Steve, if you would please.
[00:21:10] >> Thank you, Mr. Mayor. So, uh I
[00:21:12] appreciate uh Mayor Promatto's comments
[00:21:15] about the uh government shutdown. Uh I
[00:21:18] think it was maybe at our last council
[00:21:19] meeting, I mentioned that the last time
[00:21:21] we had a government shutdown because of
[00:21:23] budget issues in the city of Ranch Mars
[00:21:24] was never. uh and uh it would be great
[00:21:27] if our representatives in Washington DC
[00:21:29] could uh take a page out of uh the way
[00:21:31] that we run uh business in our local
[00:21:34] governments here in the Coachella
[00:21:35] Valley. I want to talk about a couple of
[00:21:36] things today uh Mr. Mayor. First, I want
[00:21:38] to talk about uh conflicts of interest.
[00:21:40] It was about a year ago that we passed a
[00:21:42] conflict of interest resolution here on
[00:21:44] this in this council. Uh and I also want
[00:21:46] to give a very brief report on a recent
[00:21:49] SEAG transport traffic committee
[00:21:51] meeting. So on the conflict of interest
[00:21:54] issue, it was uh September 19th of 2024
[00:21:58] that this council unanimously voted to
[00:22:00] adopt a conflict of interest procedure.
[00:22:02] New member new vendors for the city
[00:22:05] submit a form uh and the form is
[00:22:07] designed to let us know if a council
[00:22:09] member will benefit financially uh from
[00:22:11] the business that we do with that
[00:22:12] vendor. And it's important to be aware
[00:22:14] um if a council member will benefit
[00:22:16] because that obviously could lead to a
[00:22:18] conflict of interest issue. It's a
[00:22:20] pretty simple form. It's up on the
[00:22:21] screen now. Uh, and it asks um new
[00:22:24] vendors to answer a very simple
[00:22:26] question. As a result of this contract
[00:22:28] or payment, does a current council
[00:22:30] member or council members business have
[00:22:32] a reasonably foreseeable financial
[00:22:34] interest in this contract or payment?
[00:22:36] Yes or no. Pretty simple. I think all of
[00:22:38] you want us to know that. Um, now we do
[00:22:41] have a former council former council
[00:22:43] member who resigned over this issue. She
[00:22:45] said it was designed to keep business
[00:22:46] people off the council. She did not want
[00:22:48] to be subject to this conflict of
[00:22:50] interest procedure. She didn't seem to
[00:22:52] have a good idea as to what the
[00:22:54] procedure procedure would do as she used
[00:22:57] an example of uh how the procedure might
[00:23:00] um might prevent uh a council member
[00:23:03] from doing business uh with the city
[00:23:06] which itself is against the law. So she
[00:23:08] used an example that was against the law
[00:23:10] and she suggested that those responsible
[00:23:12] for this decision uh should be held
[00:23:14] accountable by the voters. Well, I am
[00:23:16] happy to be held accountable by every
[00:23:18] one of you in this room for uh for
[00:23:20] engaging in conflict of interest uh
[00:23:23] regulations that prevent problems for
[00:23:25] this city. And I think all of my
[00:23:26] colleagues would agree with that. Now,
[00:23:28] she resigned and she left the chamber in
[00:23:29] the middle of that council meeting. And
[00:23:30] after she left the chamber, the measure
[00:23:33] unanimously passed. Now, as this was
[00:23:35] adopted more than one year ago, I wanted
[00:23:37] to check to see uh if this procedure has
[00:23:41] been the problem that the former council
[00:23:42] member claimed it would be. So, here's a
[00:23:45] couple of answers. First, I checked with
[00:23:47] uh with city administration, and there
[00:23:50] have been a number of these forms that
[00:23:52] have been submitted by new vendors over
[00:23:54] the past year. Not one time have we had
[00:23:56] a conflict of interest issue. Not once.
[00:23:59] And it's also the case that uh we have a
[00:24:01] couple of members of this council uh who
[00:24:03] u uh continue to uh to work
[00:24:05] professionally
[00:24:07] and not a single time has this been a
[00:24:09] problem for either one of them. So, I'd
[00:24:11] have to say that this procedure has been
[00:24:13] a success. We've had no issues in
[00:24:14] dealing with vendors. We've had no
[00:24:16] issues for our council members who are
[00:24:17] still engaged in professional careers.
[00:24:19] Uh, and the ranch mirage public has been
[00:24:21] and will continue to be protected from
[00:24:24] the dangers of conflict of interest.
[00:24:26] And, um, we also, as a result, have our
[00:24:28] newest council member who has been doing
[00:24:29] a great job for our city, council member
[00:24:31] Eve Framber Edstein. Thank you. So the
[00:24:33] second thing I wanted to talk about is
[00:24:34] just a brief report on the most recent
[00:24:37] SEAG uh CALR I'm sorry traffic committee
[00:24:40] which was uh Monday. Uh we had a
[00:24:43] presentation from the CALR district
[00:24:45] director responsible for Riverside
[00:24:48] County and he shared uh with us I 10
[00:24:51] projects that affect the Coachella
[00:24:53] Valley stretching from Banning to uh the
[00:24:55] California border with Arizona. Let's go
[00:24:57] to that next slide. Um so these are the
[00:25:00] various project that that he brought us
[00:25:02] up to speed on. Uh these are 10 pavement
[00:25:04] projects that um cover about a 15-year
[00:25:08] period uh from a project that was
[00:25:11] completed prior to 2020 to those
[00:25:12] projects that run through 2035. Now
[00:25:15] these projects um were a significant
[00:25:18] portion these are projects where a
[00:25:20] significant portion of the pavement is
[00:25:22] ground away and new pavement is poured.
[00:25:24] The purpose is to keep the roadways in
[00:25:26] good working condition for the public
[00:25:28] and to asssure our economy continues to
[00:25:30] flourish. As I think we all know, uh the
[00:25:33] I 10 is a major trucking and logistics
[00:25:35] corridor and it supports the economy of
[00:25:37] this entire desert. So the new concrete
[00:25:40] pour is similar by the way to
[00:25:41] resurfacing material that we use in
[00:25:43] Ranch Mirage. There's a rubberized
[00:25:45] compound that is added uh to to the
[00:25:47] repour of the concrete and it results in
[00:25:49] a smoother ride for all of us. It res
[00:25:51] results in less wear and tear on our
[00:25:53] vehicles and it's better
[00:25:54] environmentally. The there is a lower
[00:25:56] road surface temperature as a result.
[00:25:58] Now, here's what's I think important for
[00:26:00] all of us to know. Total funding for
[00:26:02] these projects over that 15-year period
[00:26:05] is $1.235
[00:26:08] billion or an average of about 75 to$100
[00:26:11] million annually to keep the economy
[00:26:14] rolling in this desert. So important.
[00:26:16] It's important, I think, for the public
[00:26:18] to be aware of what CALR, what the
[00:26:20] Southern California Association of
[00:26:21] Governments, what the Riverside County
[00:26:23] Transportation Commission, and what
[00:26:25] CABAG are doing to keep traffic and our
[00:26:28] economy rolling. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
[00:26:30] >> Thank you, Steve. And indeed, uh,
[00:26:33] there's a lot going on. Uh, I'll make a
[00:26:37] couple of very brief comments. Uh,
[00:26:40] Council Member DS, excuse me, uh,
[00:26:42] O'Keefe mentioned uh, uh, the ME
[00:26:45] memorial service on Tuesday
[00:26:49] uh, for
[00:26:53] Dana Hobart who passed away several
[00:26:56] weeks ago. Uh, Dana's contributions
[00:27:00] uh, to the city are are
[00:27:04] legendary.
[00:27:06] Um, one of the things, uh, Michael
[00:27:09] mentioned that, uh, he he's very fond of
[00:27:12] is the, um, the animal, uh, shelters.
[00:27:17] And Dana often, as you might recall,
[00:27:21] would have uh, dogs here at the meeting,
[00:27:27] and he would use the expression that if
[00:27:30] you want to bring a little love into
[00:27:31] your life, you know, get a dog. and uh
[00:27:35] he did that regularly uh with uh uh with
[00:27:40] great conviction and indeed uh he lived
[00:27:43] by it because uh he and his wife Vicki
[00:27:46] uh adopted a number of dogs. The other
[00:27:50] thing that I'll mention is that uh
[00:27:54] two weeks ago we had uh a week ago we
[00:27:58] had a state of the city. Um and I want
[00:28:02] to congratulate
[00:28:04] uh the great job that our chamber did in
[00:28:09] coordinating that event. And I also want
[00:28:12] to thank our marketing department for
[00:28:15] everything that they did. uh uh to to
[00:28:20] put this together and the marketing
[00:28:22] department coordinated it with all of
[00:28:26] the departments in the city. Everyone
[00:28:29] played a role and uh frankly it
[00:28:34] highlighted the things that are most
[00:28:36] important to the city, things that are
[00:28:39] going on now that I think that uh were
[00:28:44] described in great detail. I mean in
[00:28:46] addition of course to the major master
[00:28:50] plan community cino which was discussed
[00:28:53] in detail but we also talked about um
[00:28:58] our affordable housing and the necessity
[00:29:03] uh for creating housing
[00:29:06] uh for the workforce
[00:29:09] uh that provides services for our
[00:29:13] hospitality area. um for the doctors and
[00:29:18] nurses that work at Eisenhower and so
[00:29:22] forth. Every one of the departments uh
[00:29:25] were heralded. We talked about uh our
[00:29:29] building department and our uh
[00:29:32] development resources.
[00:29:35] And I will tell you this that we're a
[00:29:37] city that has
[00:29:40] uh very
[00:29:42] uh concerned details as far as the
[00:29:46] quality of our projects. Yet on the
[00:29:50] other hand, we do not want to make it so
[00:29:53] difficult for somebody to come into our
[00:29:56] city and develop a project. We want to
[00:29:59] make it easy for them. Consequently, we
[00:30:02] encourage them to meet with our planning
[00:30:04] director
[00:30:06] u and she will uh uh lead them uh along
[00:30:10] a path and let them know what will work
[00:30:14] and what will not work so that they
[00:30:17] don't waste time andor their money
[00:30:20] before developing a project and it has
[00:30:23] worked out extremely well. So again,
[00:30:26] thank you for an incredible
[00:30:30] uh state of city u presentation
[00:30:34] marketing. Uh you should be applauded.
[00:30:36] Thank you so very much. Uh with that, I
[00:30:40] will now go into um our city manager
[00:30:44] comments and uh ask him to handle that
[00:30:49] and if not uh segue directly into
[00:30:54] uh the consent calendar.
[00:30:57] >> Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Uh no comments
[00:30:59] today, so we'll jump right into the
[00:31:01] consent calendar. The council has items
[00:31:03] 5A through 5 on the consent calendar.
[00:31:07] Item 5 A is to wave the full reading of
[00:31:10] any ordinance introduced or adopted
[00:31:12] pursuant to this agenda. Item 5B is the
[00:31:16] October 16th, 2025 regular city council
[00:31:20] meeting minutes. Item 5 C is the October
[00:31:24] 28th, 2025 special city council meeting
[00:31:27] minutes for state of the city. Item 5D
[00:31:31] is to appoint Mark Jacobs to the Ranch
[00:31:35] Mirage Traffic Safety Commission. Item
[00:31:38] 5E is the city capital project CP14-313
[00:31:45] congestion mitigation and sand fence
[00:31:47] installation
[00:31:49] with a recommendation to reject all
[00:31:52] bids.
[00:31:54] Item 5F is to adopt a resolution to
[00:31:59] approve the Coachella Valley Association
[00:32:01] of Governments CVAG transportation
[00:32:04] uniform mitigation fee TUMF inflation
[00:32:07] adjustment. Item 5G is the uh extension
[00:32:12] of completion date for partial map
[00:32:15] number 38106.
[00:32:18] Item 5H is to receive and file the
[00:32:22] September 30th, 2025 quarterly
[00:32:25] treasurers report and item 5 are the
[00:32:29] demands. Before we go to any council
[00:32:32] comments or questions, I'll ask the city
[00:32:34] clerk to take any public comment on the
[00:32:36] consent calendar.
[00:32:37] >> Thank you. I did not receive any speaker
[00:32:39] cards. Is there anyone who would like to
[00:32:40] speak on an item on the consent
[00:32:42] calendar?
[00:32:44] >> No speakers.
[00:32:46] >> Thank you.
[00:32:48] Um, I will now ask for any council
[00:32:51] comments as it relates to the consent
[00:32:54] calendar.
[00:32:58] Seeing none, I will ask for a motion to
[00:33:01] approve the consent calendar.
[00:33:02] >> I'll make the motion to approve the
[00:33:04] consent calendar. Is read.
[00:33:06] >> I'll second.
[00:33:09] >> There's a motion in a second. Please
[00:33:11] vote.
[00:33:22] It did. I'm waiting on Council Member
[00:33:24] O'Keefe. Could you try yours one more
[00:33:26] time?
[00:33:40] >> Roll call.
[00:33:42] >> Okay.
[00:33:43] Right.
[00:33:46] >> Sorry about that. Um, council member DS.
[00:33:49] >> Yes.
[00:33:50] >> Council member Framber Edstein.
[00:33:51] >> Yes.
[00:33:52] >> Council member O'Keefe.
[00:33:53] >> Yes.
[00:33:53] >> Mayor Prom Molatto.
[00:33:55] >> Yes.
[00:33:55] >> Mayor While?
[00:33:56] >> Yes.
[00:33:56] >> Motion carries. 5-0.
[00:33:58] >> Uh, m Mr. Mayor, can we have a one
[00:34:00] minute recess to fix this issue?
[00:34:02] >> I move chairs.
[00:34:04] >> We are now in recess for a moment.
[00:37:50] uh triple03
[00:37:52] and it's going to be presented by Joy
[00:37:55] Sai, senior planner. Joy, if you would
[00:37:58] please.
[00:38:02] >> Good afternoon, mayor, members of the
[00:38:04] city council. for your consideration.
[00:38:06] Today is tenative trackm number 38636.
[00:38:10] Entitlement applications for this
[00:38:12] project include environmental assessment
[00:38:14] case number EA23-
[00:38:17] 00003,
[00:38:19] variance case number V24-00002
[00:38:23] and tenative trackm case number
[00:38:25] TTM23-00001.
[00:38:30] Today's request is for the approval to
[00:38:32] subdivide 5.04 04 gross acres into nine
[00:38:36] single family lots with lot sizes
[00:38:38] ranging from 16,122
[00:38:41] to 16,841
[00:38:43] square ft and to grant a variance
[00:38:45] reducing the minimum lot size
[00:38:47] requirement from 18,000 to 16,000 square
[00:38:50] ft. There are no residential development
[00:38:52] plans proposed with this request.
[00:38:57] The subject property is a corner lot
[00:38:59] located at the northeast corner of
[00:39:00] Ginger Rogers Road and Landy Lane. The
[00:39:03] project site is zoned RL2 for very low
[00:39:06] density residential. Existing single
[00:39:09] family residences in the Sienna Vista
[00:39:11] and Echo developments are located to the
[00:39:13] north and east. There is a vacant lot
[00:39:17] zone for office uses to the west and a
[00:39:19] vacant lot zone for residential uses to
[00:39:21] the south. The project lies uh the the
[00:39:24] project site lies well within a
[00:39:26] lowdensity residential context
[00:39:28] surrounded predominantly by similar
[00:39:30] single family developments.
[00:39:34] The subdivision proposes nine
[00:39:37] residential lots accessed by a private
[00:39:39] culde-sac street off Ginger Rogers Road
[00:39:41] and includes common area lots for the
[00:39:44] private street, perimeter landscaping,
[00:39:46] and two retention basins. The
[00:39:49] residential subdivision will be gated
[00:39:51] with access to the lots provided by the
[00:39:53] private culde-sac street off Ginger
[00:39:55] Rogers Road.
[00:39:57] The topography is near the elevation of
[00:40:00] adjacent properties and roadways with an
[00:40:02] average elevation of 326 ft above mean
[00:40:06] sea level. The project grading and
[00:40:09] drainage design ensures that all storm
[00:40:11] water will be contained on site.
[00:40:14] The proposed subdivision complies with
[00:40:16] the city's development code standards
[00:40:18] pertaining to the project density and
[00:40:20] lot dimensions. The proposed project
[00:40:23] density is 1.78 dwelling units per acre,
[00:40:26] which is under the maximum allowable
[00:40:28] density of two units per acre in the RL2
[00:40:31] zone.
[00:40:32] All the project's development standards
[00:40:34] are met except for the minimum lot size
[00:40:36] which is being mitigated by this
[00:40:38] variance. The property will be able to
[00:40:40] meet the development standards without
[00:40:42] the rightway dedications on both street
[00:40:45] frontages which results in constraints
[00:40:47] not shared by interior lots in this
[00:40:49] area. Any future development will be
[00:40:52] required to go through the development
[00:40:54] review process and must comply with
[00:40:56] development standards for the underlying
[00:40:58] zoning district. Overall, the
[00:41:01] subdivision design mirrors existing
[00:41:03] residential subdivisions that have nine
[00:41:05] lots such as Echo, Lana, and Sienna
[00:41:08] Vista.
[00:41:11] A conceptual landscape plan has been
[00:41:13] submitted for the common areas. Uh the
[00:41:15] desert appropriate pallet in includes uh
[00:41:18] acacia trees, fruitless olive trees and
[00:41:20] day palms and accent shrubs and ground
[00:41:22] covers. In addition, the perimeter walls
[00:41:25] and fencing will match adjacent
[00:41:27] communities to maintain visual
[00:41:29] continuity. The project has been
[00:41:31] designed to comply with the city's
[00:41:32] landscape standards and the section 30
[00:41:35] design guidelines.
[00:41:39] An environmental assessment form was
[00:41:41] submitted for this project and the
[00:41:43] determination was made that the project
[00:41:45] required an initial study. An initial
[00:41:47] study has been prepared resulting in the
[00:41:49] recommendation to adopt a mitigated
[00:41:52] negative declaration.
[00:41:55] As a part of the subdivision review,
[00:41:57] staff routed the project for comments to
[00:41:59] city departments and responsible
[00:42:01] agencies and any applicable comments
[00:42:03] received have been incorporated into the
[00:42:05] conditions of approval. The proposed
[00:42:08] subdivision with approval of a variance
[00:42:10] is in conformance with the city's
[00:42:11] general plan and zoning section 30
[00:42:14] design guidelines and all applicable
[00:42:15] requirements of the subdivision map act.
[00:42:18] The subdivision design mirrors other
[00:42:20] nine lot residential subdivisions in the
[00:42:23] neighborhood.
[00:42:24] No public comments have been received
[00:42:26] for the city council. Uh any public
[00:42:29] comments received for the planning
[00:42:30] commission are included in agenda packet
[00:42:33] on October 9th, 2025. The planning
[00:42:36] commission recommended approval of the
[00:42:38] project by 40 vote recommending that the
[00:42:41] city council approve one the filing of a
[00:42:43] mitigated negative declaration. Two,
[00:42:46] variance case number V24-00002
[00:42:50] and three tenative trackmap case number
[00:42:53] TTM23-00001
[00:42:56] subject to the conditions of approval
[00:42:58] and based on the content and findings in
[00:43:00] the staff report.
[00:43:02] This concludes my presentation and I'd
[00:43:04] be happy to address any questions the
[00:43:06] council may have. Thank you.
[00:43:08] >> Thank you, Joy. Uh, are there any public
[00:43:11] comments regarding this item?
[00:43:13] >> I did not receive any speaker cards for
[00:43:15] this item. Is there anyone in the
[00:43:16] audience who would like to provide
[00:43:18] public testimony for public hearing item
[00:43:20] 6A?
[00:43:22] No speakers.
[00:43:24] >> Are there any council comments regarding
[00:43:27] this item?
[00:43:29] >> Uh, Mr. Mayor, I do have a couple of
[00:43:30] questions if I may.
[00:43:32] So, uh, I'm pretty sure I understand
[00:43:34] this. We're still we're talking about
[00:43:36] nine parcels on 5 acres. So, we're not
[00:43:38] violating the zoning integrity. It's
[00:43:40] still going to be RL2. The only thing
[00:43:42] we're asked to do here is to reduce lot
[00:43:44] size by about 10% from 18,000 to between
[00:43:48] 16 and 17,000, which is still a pretty
[00:43:50] sizable lot size. Correct.
[00:43:52] >> Yes, that's correct.
[00:43:53] >> Okay. Um, condition of approval number
[00:43:56] 32. It's a blow sand mitigation plant.
[00:43:58] What do we typically expect them to
[00:44:01] submit to us, a developer to submit to
[00:44:04] us with respect
[00:44:06] to blow sand mitigation?
[00:44:11] >> I'll jump in on that one if you would,
[00:44:13] Council Member DS. Um, there are some
[00:44:15] very standard BMPPS that you see best
[00:44:17] practices in the field. Construction
[00:44:19] fencing, uh, active and regular
[00:44:22] watering. Um, you'll see at the storm
[00:44:24] drain inlets, they'll have uh certain um
[00:44:27] sandbags to keep some of the water and
[00:44:29] dust and debris from getting into our
[00:44:31] our storm drain system. Um, mostly it's
[00:44:34] the it's the things that you're already
[00:44:35] used to seeing out there, pre-watering a
[00:44:37] site to make sure you're not just
[00:44:38] pushing around dust and um things of
[00:44:40] that nature.
[00:44:41] >> Do we have uh some guidelines that we
[00:44:43] provide to a developer so that they can
[00:44:45] prepare a mitigation plan?
[00:44:47] >> Yes. In fact, it's one of the many um
[00:44:48] things that we're doing with an initial
[00:44:50] grading plan effort is addressing that
[00:44:52] right there.
[00:44:53] >> Okay. All right. Second question that
[00:44:54] that I have is uh with respect to uh the
[00:44:57] location of this uh uh uh of these
[00:45:00] parcels. Uh this is in the section of
[00:45:02] the city that uh where energy is
[00:45:04] delivered by IID. Correct.
[00:45:07] Um and so uh we approved a partnership
[00:45:12] uh with the county with uh Palm Desert,
[00:45:14] the city of Palm Desert and the Burger
[00:45:16] Foundation so that um a substation could
[00:45:19] be built up there um to service uh that
[00:45:23] part of the city. Um, how are we
[00:45:26] planning to recover costs from
[00:45:28] developers for uh that uh substation
[00:45:32] >> and and and do we have a plan to recover
[00:45:34] in in uh with from the developer of
[00:45:38] these parcels?
[00:45:39] >> Yeah. So, um I'll take that one since uh
[00:45:42] I've been working with IID. The capacity
[00:45:45] that the city is procuring through the
[00:45:47] partnership that you referenced is
[00:45:49] actually project specific to our
[00:45:52] affordable housing developments. So this
[00:45:55] project is not part of that capacity
[00:45:57] project. So um they will have to go to
[00:45:59] IID and uh pay for that on their own.
[00:46:02] Got it. Okay. Thank you. That's all I
[00:46:04] have.
[00:46:05] >> Thank you. Are there any other council
[00:46:08] comments?
[00:46:10] Uh, seeing none, I will ask for a
[00:46:13] motion, please.
[00:46:15] >> I'll make the motion to that we approve
[00:46:18] the filing of the mitigated negative
[00:46:20] declaration
[00:46:22] number 2025051428
[00:46:27] based on environmental assessment case
[00:46:29] number EA23-00003.
[00:46:33] And number two, approve variance case
[00:46:35] number VR2
[00:46:38] 24-00002.
[00:46:41] And up number three, approved tenative
[00:46:44] track map case number TTM23-00001,
[00:46:50] TTM 38636,
[00:46:53] subject to the conditions of approval
[00:46:55] and based on the content and findings in
[00:46:57] the staff report.
[00:46:59] >> I'll second.
[00:47:00] >> There is a motion and a second. Uh,
[00:47:03] please vote.
[00:47:08] >> Thank you.
[00:47:09] >> Motion carries 5-0.
[00:47:11] >> Thank you.
[00:47:13] We will now go to the item 6B on our
[00:47:17] public hearings and that's environmental
[00:47:20] assessment case number EA24-09.
[00:47:27] And that's going to be presented by Ben
[00:47:29] Taus, our planning manager.
[00:47:31] >> Mr.
[00:47:33] Mr. Mayor and Council, uh staff would
[00:47:35] actually like to request that the the
[00:47:37] item 6B uh be continued to the November
[00:47:40] 20th city council meeting to allow staff
[00:47:43] to uh further more time to analyze and
[00:47:46] address some of the comments we received
[00:47:48] during uh the comment period and to
[00:47:51] further identify uh the best practices
[00:47:54] for circulation in the area. We'd like
[00:47:56] to go ahead and do the presentation at
[00:47:58] this time since we do have some
[00:47:59] residents in the audience and allow for
[00:48:01] public comments. Uh but recommend that
[00:48:03] the action to continue the item to
[00:48:05] November 20th be taken.
[00:48:08] >> Okay. Uh why don't we go ahead and and
[00:48:12] take the comments now and then uh uh
[00:48:16] >> Ben can give his report and then we'll
[00:48:18] go to public comment.
[00:48:19] >> Yeah.
[00:48:21] >> Okay. Ben.
[00:48:22] >> Good afternoon, mayor and city council
[00:48:23] members. I'll now give a brief overview
[00:48:25] of the project and I'll provide a
[00:48:27] detailed presentation at the upcoming uh
[00:48:29] November 20th city council meeting. So,
[00:48:31] we'll just wait for the presentation to
[00:48:33] pop up here on the screen. Perfect.
[00:48:36] So, the 19.81 acre project site
[00:48:39] currently consists of eight parcels and
[00:48:41] is located north from the intersection
[00:48:43] of Mirage Cove Drive and Peterson Road.
[00:48:45] Uh the project site has street frontages
[00:48:47] along Mirage Cove Drive, Neielen Road,
[00:48:50] Peterson Road, and Kelly Lane.
[00:48:53] Uh the existing general plan and zoning
[00:48:55] designation for the project site is
[00:48:56] residential estate. The project site is
[00:48:59] mostly surrounded by properties also
[00:49:01] zoned residential estate, but some
[00:49:03] portions to the north are next to the
[00:49:04] whitewater storm channel. Some portions
[00:49:06] to the west next to a mobile home park
[00:49:09] and a small portion to the south is next
[00:49:11] to medium density residential zoned
[00:49:13] land.
[00:49:15] Uh the proposed project will subdivide
[00:49:17] 19.81 81 acres as I previously mentioned
[00:49:19] into 16 single family residential lots.
[00:49:22] No single family residence architectural
[00:49:24] plans are currently proposed as part of
[00:49:26] this project. The applicant has
[00:49:28] confirmed that access to the proposed
[00:49:29] parcels will be from Peterson Road. Uh
[00:49:32] the two yellow parcels uh shown here on
[00:49:34] the screen are part of the minor
[00:49:35] variance request and a 2% reduction in
[00:49:38] the minimum 1acre lot size is requested
[00:49:40] due to these parcels requiring rightway
[00:49:42] dedications along three street front
[00:49:44] edges. Uh the proposed single family
[00:49:46] residential parcels will range in size
[00:49:48] from.98
[00:49:50] acres to 1.55 acres for an overall
[00:49:53] project density of.9
[00:49:56] units per acre. On screen is the first
[00:49:58] phase of the subdivision. Uh the
[00:50:00] proposed subdivision complies with the
[00:50:01] city's development standards pertaining
[00:50:03] to minimum lot size density dimensions
[00:50:06] uh for the residential estate zone um
[00:50:09] with the proposed minor variance. And
[00:50:11] then this shows the second phase of the
[00:50:13] project um which is the northern half of
[00:50:15] the project site which will involve the
[00:50:17] subdivision and development of the
[00:50:19] remaining seven parcels. Each parcel
[00:50:21] will have its own retention basin to
[00:50:22] manage storm water on site and complies
[00:50:24] with all municipal code regulations. I
[00:50:27] will now turn it over to Mr. Standell to
[00:50:29] discuss circulation within the
[00:50:30] neighborhood.
[00:50:32] >> So as Mr. Torres mentioned we'll be
[00:50:35] bringing this back at the 20th meeting
[00:50:36] which will have some um likely
[00:50:38] subsequent slides, but if I can keep
[00:50:40] that PowerPoint presentation back up.
[00:50:42] There's a couple of additional slides
[00:50:44] related to circulation that I'd like to
[00:50:46] uh present. Uh Peterson Road and area is
[00:50:50] generally
[00:50:52] as Ben's mentioned bound by Highway 111
[00:50:54] and accessed via Mirage Cove Drive and
[00:50:56] Peterson Road uh as identified in the
[00:50:58] orange oval on the screen and the
[00:51:00] project site laid in uh in light orange
[00:51:02] as well.
[00:51:03] One of the biggest comments and
[00:51:04] questions that we get out there is
[00:51:06] related to the existing U
[00:51:08] infrastructure. Um, and what we've got
[00:51:11] on screen right now is a 1981
[00:51:14] um, plan that was approved for the
[00:51:15] circulation network for the
[00:51:17] neighborhood. Um, this is what was
[00:51:19] supposed to be built. Um, and it's
[00:51:22] interesting in that specific plan. Um,
[00:51:25] this was there was no mention of whether
[00:51:27] or not these were public roadways or
[00:51:28] private roadways. This was just the
[00:51:29] layout that the community had designed
[00:51:31] at that point. As you'll note, you have
[00:51:33] the two entrances, Mirage Cove, and
[00:51:35] Peterson Road. Uh, with three smaller
[00:51:38] streets, smaller lot streets, Elmwood,
[00:51:40] Neielson, uh, and then paralleling
[00:51:42] Peterson Road.
[00:51:44] We have a network of, uh, horse trails
[00:51:47] with the intent of accessing the
[00:51:48] Whitewater River Channel and ultimately
[00:51:50] now the Butler Abrams Trail as we know
[00:51:52] it. Real quickly, where we're at today
[00:51:56] is a little bit more about what we've
[00:51:58] got on the screen here and laid in with
[00:52:00] the project site. We have a couple of uh
[00:52:02] fully improved roadways which is largely
[00:52:04] Peterson Road and Mirage Cove. Uh little
[00:52:07] bits or street Desert Cove Avenue and a
[00:52:10] small portion of Kelly are also fully
[00:52:11] improved. The areas I've indicated uh
[00:52:14] with the dash line which are a bit hard
[00:52:16] to see on the screen would be Elmwood,
[00:52:18] Neielson, Peterson, and portions of
[00:52:21] Kelly. And when I say partially improved
[00:52:23] roadways, that's probably an
[00:52:24] overstatement. If you've been out there,
[00:52:26] there's um uh dirt and some combination
[00:52:29] of decaying asphalt. uh existing out
[00:52:31] there in the field. Um we do have the
[00:52:34] one existing connection to Butler Abrams
[00:52:36] Trail that exists on Desert Cove Avenue
[00:52:39] and we do have access uh an access point
[00:52:42] easement on the north side right now uh
[00:52:44] that's adjacent to this residential
[00:52:46] project that we'll discuss uh at a
[00:52:48] future meeting.
[00:52:50] So that's essentially what we have out
[00:52:53] there, which is we do have a planned
[00:52:56] street network and we do have an
[00:52:57] existing condition that's nowhere near
[00:52:59] that. And as um both Mina and Ben have
[00:53:02] mentioned, a lot of the comments
[00:53:03] received from the public revolve around
[00:53:05] that circulation. So we thought it was
[00:53:07] wise to maybe take a bit more time to
[00:53:08] analyze that and see if we could come to
[00:53:10] some solutions. So that concludes my
[00:53:12] portion of the report. I'll pass it back
[00:53:14] to Ben Mus if there's anything else.
[00:53:16] >> I believe that concludes staff's
[00:53:17] presentation.
[00:53:19] >> All right. Um
[00:53:22] we will now then go to um
[00:53:26] public comments.
[00:53:32] Thank you. The first speaker is Janine
[00:53:34] Bar.
[00:53:46] Hi, I'm Janine Bar. Um, I've lived in
[00:53:49] the desert since 1963.
[00:53:53] Um, I originally moved to Rancho Mirage
[00:53:56] in ' 91 on Jamie Way, which is a deadend
[00:53:59] street. And then we built a house at 45
[00:54:02] Clancy Lane South, which is on a
[00:54:04] culde-sac, and I now have property at um
[00:54:09] Neielson M. Lwood that are both deadend
[00:54:12] streets. Um, and I I just want to tell
[00:54:15] you we're we're okay with everything
[00:54:18] that you guys want to do with these
[00:54:19] lots. The only thing I'm concerned about
[00:54:21] is the road connections at my street.
[00:54:26] Um, at the last meeting I was told that
[00:54:29] there were no easements on my property,
[00:54:32] but um, February 1st of 2022, I got an
[00:54:36] email from Leland Cole that referenced a
[00:54:40] 15 foot either a horse trail or street
[00:54:45] easement on my north side. And then I
[00:54:49] got a topographical map from my um,
[00:54:52] engineer that also showed that easement.
[00:54:54] So, I'm not sure if you've abandoned it
[00:54:57] or if it I I don't know, but there is an
[00:55:01] easement there because my my um fence is
[00:55:05] off of that. So, while we're okay with
[00:55:09] what's going on with the the property,
[00:55:11] we would like to have a discussion, and
[00:55:14] I'm really glad it's going to be
[00:55:16] waiting. We'd like to talk to the fire
[00:55:18] marshals about either doing a hammerhead
[00:55:21] or adding fire hydrants so that we do
[00:55:25] not have roads coming and dropping
[00:55:29] traffic into our streets where we now
[00:55:31] are allowed to have our kids play in the
[00:55:33] middle of the street and do softball and
[00:55:35] and all this kind of stuff. It's it
[00:55:37] that's the way I've lived forever and
[00:55:39] I'd just like to continue to see that. I
[00:55:42] have a meeting um next week with the
[00:55:44] fire marshal to talk about that and
[00:55:47] maybe now with this going on it that
[00:55:49] isn't going to be necessary but I would
[00:55:51] like for you guys to consider that and I
[00:55:54] appreciate your time and I appreciate
[00:55:56] that we've been here four times now
[00:55:58] talking about that. I really appreciate
[00:56:01] everybody on the council and and your
[00:56:03] helpers.
[00:56:04] >> Thank you for your comments. Vicky
[00:56:06] Peterson,
[00:56:21] mayor, city council, and everyone here.
[00:56:25] Thank you for listening to us today. Our
[00:56:28] community is something we're very
[00:56:29] passionate about. And actually, Dana
[00:56:32] Hobart was one of our biggest fans. He
[00:56:35] told us never to let anybody touch our
[00:56:37] neighborhood because it's very special
[00:56:38] to Ranch Mirage. It's tucked away
[00:56:41] amongst a hodgepodge of different
[00:56:43] structures, but yet it's set apart. The
[00:56:46] atmosphere is that of living in the
[00:56:48] country, and yet three blocks away is
[00:56:50] the city. It's comprised of customuilt
[00:56:53] homes, mostly on one acre plus lots
[00:56:56] zoned estate and equestrian. Over the
[00:56:59] years, Sinatra owned 15 acres of this
[00:57:02] proposed subdivision and was going to
[00:57:04] build a ranch on it. After that, part of
[00:57:07] this land became a home for abused
[00:57:09] horses. It is the country equestrian
[00:57:12] feel that led us all to love this
[00:57:14] neighborhood.
[00:57:15] Now, we welcome oneacre parcels
[00:57:17] surrounding us, but want to make sure
[00:57:19] that we keep the same feel, the
[00:57:22] preservation of what this unique
[00:57:23] property really truly is. It's the last
[00:57:27] of the horse property in Rancho Mirage.
[00:57:30] Existing common use trails were formed
[00:57:32] prior to the city of Rancho Mirage even
[00:57:35] existing and I believe new trails were
[00:57:37] added past Peterson Road with the new
[00:57:39] builds. However, in the center of these
[00:57:42] horse trails, a road is being proposed
[00:57:44] instead of the common use trails which
[00:57:47] would no longer connect Elmwood to
[00:57:49] Neielson Road, Neielson to Peterson
[00:57:51] Road, and on to the 2.4 four mile Butler
[00:57:54] Abrams Trail. Incidentally, the butlers
[00:57:57] lived on Neielson Road where the
[00:57:59] Trombinos now reside. I have a picture
[00:58:02] in my home painted by Marjgerie Nielsen
[00:58:05] of Neielen Road who lived across the
[00:58:07] street. A well-known architect, Robert
[00:58:10] Stevens, also lived in the Neielen home,
[00:58:13] and I own the last signed modernism home
[00:58:16] plans that he designed, hoping to build
[00:58:19] in our community.
[00:58:21] The Neielson home is now owned by Janine
[00:58:23] Bar, who you just heard, who moved here
[00:58:25] from Clancy Lane, because we know what
[00:58:28] happened there.
[00:58:31] When we asked the planning department
[00:58:33] what the proposed road was actually for,
[00:58:36] they said it was for the large fire
[00:58:37] truck and utility vehicles. For 60
[00:58:40] years, fire trucks, garbage trucks, mail
[00:58:42] trucks have all made their way in and
[00:58:44] out of our roads without a problem.
[00:58:46] Since all of the new homes will have
[00:58:48] access off of Peterson Road, there isn't
[00:58:50] really a need for thoroughfare from
[00:58:52] Peterson to Neielson and down Neielen or
[00:58:54] from Peterson all the way to Elmwood.
[00:58:57] The 15t easement in existence on the
[00:58:59] north side between Elmwood and Neielen,
[00:59:01] we were told, did not specify horse
[00:59:04] trail, but it would make sense that 40
[00:59:06] ft would have been designated if it was
[00:59:08] meant to be a road. Makes no sense to
[00:59:10] break up the horse trail for a road in
[00:59:13] the middle of the common use horse
[00:59:14] trails existing already, does it? And I
[00:59:17] I sent a picture. This is the existing
[00:59:19] horse trail. It's already to the left of
[00:59:22] my home. You put a road there and then
[00:59:25] there's horse trails to the right of my
[00:59:26] home. So, the horse trail goes away with
[00:59:28] a road.
[00:59:29] >> Kindly conclude your comments, please.
[00:59:32] >> Am I Am I already at three minutes? Oh,
[00:59:35] jeez. Okay.
[00:59:38] All right.
[00:59:40] Uh,
[00:59:44] all right. In the past, the idea of a
[00:59:46] road from Elmwood through Neielson was
[00:59:47] abandoned twice before getting past the
[00:59:49] tenative stage map. I suggest a fire
[00:59:52] hydrant along the utility area and and
[00:59:54] um perhaps a hammerhead turnaround on
[00:59:57] the north end of Elmwood. Our
[00:59:58] neighborhood here in Ranch, where many
[01:00:00] of of us have lived for decades, is
[01:00:02] special to us. Our children grow up
[01:00:04] safely playing on the streets and
[01:00:06] enjoying feeding neighborhood horses and
[01:00:07] goats and chickens. We want our
[01:00:09] grandchildren to enjoy the same thing.
[01:00:11] There's a reason why the road that
[01:00:13] obstructs the middle of our horse trails
[01:00:15] have been abandoned twice. It changes
[01:00:17] the feel of our entire community and
[01:00:19] takes away the freedom of horseback
[01:00:21] riding trails. Um the recommendation we
[01:00:24] were told by the planning department of
[01:00:25] road was due to the lack of horses in
[01:00:27] the community. Now, what I shared at the
[01:00:30] beginning that Frank Sinatra had a ranch
[01:00:32] there and there was a home for abandoned
[01:00:34] horses there. We want to have that same
[01:00:37] opportunity to preserve this special
[01:00:39] location and not take away the ability
[01:00:40] to ride horses freely in the future. And
[01:00:44] I just want to say this is so important
[01:00:45] to us that my husband had a heart
[01:00:48] procedure this morning at Eisenhower and
[01:00:50] we're both here. It's very special. But
[01:00:53] we love this neighborhood and we really
[01:00:55] really want you to preserve it and look
[01:00:57] at what it really is and we'll privatize
[01:01:00] the roads in order to keep it if that's
[01:01:02] what we need to do. We need we don't
[01:01:03] need another cookie cutter community. We
[01:01:06] need to take pictures and write about
[01:01:08] our community in the next coffee table
[01:01:10] book of Rancho Mirage.
[01:01:13] >> Thank you for your comments.
[01:01:14] >> Thank you for your consideration.
[01:01:19] The
[01:01:19] >> next speaker is Jack Swinsson.
[01:01:29] Mayor, council members, Jack Swinsson,
[01:01:32] live on Peterson Road. Uh, been a
[01:01:35] resident of Ranch Mirage for 40 years.
[01:01:38] Uh, lived on Peterson Road for 20 years.
[01:01:40] Seems like yesterday, though. That's
[01:01:42] partly my age. But um I agree with the p
[01:01:46] the last uh presenter that uh we like
[01:01:49] the country feel. Uh we're my wife and I
[01:01:53] are generally in favor of this project.
[01:01:55] We think it's um pretty well thought out
[01:01:58] and it's uh a good project. Our concerns
[01:02:02] are twofold.
[01:02:04] One, uh the tamaris trees at the end of
[01:02:07] Peterson Road at the dead end have been
[01:02:09] a place for homeless people to
[01:02:11] congregate. Uh we would like to see
[01:02:14] those removed during this project
[01:02:16] because you know it's taken 20 years for
[01:02:19] nothing to happen so far. This may not
[01:02:21] be be a while before we have more ho
[01:02:24] houses there. You know it's not going to
[01:02:26] happen in 6 minutes. So we'd like to see
[01:02:29] safety. We'd like to see uh you know
[01:02:33] less issues with homeless people.
[01:02:36] And the second thing is we like the
[01:02:38] country feel. We like the idea of
[01:02:40] private roads. rather than ma major
[01:02:44] developments. I agree with the past uh
[01:02:47] presenter on that regard. So I we hope
[01:02:50] you consider our our thoughts. Thank
[01:02:52] you.
[01:02:52] >> Thank you for your comment.
[01:02:55] >> K Williams.
[01:03:04] >> Good afternoon, Mayor and City Council.
[01:03:07] And I apologize for anybody who is here
[01:03:09] during the planning commission meeting
[01:03:11] because this is going to be repetitive.
[01:03:13] Um, first off, thank you for letting us
[01:03:16] make comments and thank you to the
[01:03:18] neighbors who were able to take the time
[01:03:20] today to be here and address any
[01:03:21] concerns and show support. Um, my name's
[01:03:24] Kay Williams. My husband Ron and I live
[01:03:27] within the proposed subdivision under
[01:03:30] discussion today. Um, we too also grew
[01:03:33] up here near the area. Um, but we built
[01:03:37] our home on Peterson Road and moved in
[01:03:40] August of 2001. So, we love our little
[01:03:43] rural area that's so close to the main
[01:03:46] roads and we look forward to the homes
[01:03:49] being built on these residential estate
[01:03:51] lots. As members of the community, we
[01:03:54] appreciate the city council's work. And
[01:03:56] I only have a couple of items that I
[01:03:58] wish to address orally. One, as was
[01:04:01] mentioned, the Tamaris trees at the
[01:04:02] north end of Peterson must be taken out.
[01:04:05] They're overgrown and over the past few
[01:04:07] winters, the homeless have found it a
[01:04:09] desirable location. Um, this has led to
[01:04:11] trash in the area, outright damage of
[01:04:14] local property, and altercations with
[01:04:16] individuals with mental health issues.
[01:04:19] For the proposed homes to be built
[01:04:20] safely, the tamaris trees must be
[01:04:23] removed. Two, it's desired that the lots
[01:04:26] in the proposed area be cleaned of dead
[01:04:28] brush for fire prevention. I have emails
[01:04:31] with code enforcement promising action
[01:04:33] over the last several years. Three,
[01:04:36] Peterson is a quiet street. However,
[01:04:38] when there are accidents or delays on
[01:04:40] Highway 111, travelers unfamiliar with
[01:04:43] the area drive speedily down Peterson or
[01:04:46] Mirage Cove, thinking incorrectly that
[01:04:48] they are able to get through to other
[01:04:50] major streets. And so this is why we
[01:04:53] would appreciate the developer
[01:04:55] considering placing structures at key
[01:04:57] points to give drivers a visual clue
[01:04:59] that they're entering private areas.
[01:05:02] Four, while researching the development,
[01:05:04] I noticed there's no mention of the
[01:05:06] equestrian trail, which is being
[01:05:08] mentioned. Um, when we built, we were
[01:05:11] required to put in an equestrian trail
[01:05:13] split rail fence, as did other neighbors
[01:05:17] at that time. And so if you drive around
[01:05:19] the area, some homes have it, some
[01:05:21] don't. Um, and I don't see a trail
[01:05:24] designated on any of the maps in
[01:05:26] attachment six. Maybe that'll get
[01:05:28] changed before November 20th. So for the
[01:05:31] con continuity of the area, it seems
[01:05:33] this needs needs to be added. And so
[01:05:36] thank you for your considerations
[01:05:38] regarding the above statements and to my
[01:05:40] neighbor statements. Thank you.
[01:05:42] >> Thank you,
[01:05:44] >> Murray Bryant.
[01:06:12] You wanted to use this, right? Okay. Do
[01:06:14] you think this is fine?
[01:06:19] Take these things.
[01:06:32] Mayor, just uh noting for um the benefit
[01:06:35] of everyone, uh there will were several
[01:06:38] speakers that opted not to speak and uh
[01:06:42] offered to donate their time to Mr.
[01:06:44] Bryant. So, uh he's going to be given a
[01:06:47] little bit of extra time to speak today.
[01:06:48] Yes, I told Murray that we would give
[01:06:50] him a little leeway.
[01:06:53] Um,
[01:06:58] >> uh, before I get started, my name is
[01:06:59] Murray Bryant. Uh, I'm glad to see that
[01:07:03] my odds are only 12 to one. I like a
[01:07:05] good fight, so uh, I'm ready to go here.
[01:07:09] Uh, I'm only kidding, of course. Smile,
[01:07:12] Mayor While.
[01:07:13] Okay. Uh uh said my name is Murray
[01:07:17] Bryant. I am a Rancho Mirage planning
[01:07:20] commissioner. So I want to make that
[01:07:22] full public disclosure. Uh at the
[01:07:24] October hearing, planning commission
[01:07:26] hearing where this subject came up. I
[01:07:28] not only recused myself uh but I left
[01:07:31] the room and did not come back until it
[01:07:35] was through and it was voted on. So I am
[01:07:37] here speaking as a private citizen. Uh I
[01:07:40] own uh our house is in this area. uh uh
[01:07:45] the first five acres when you go in on
[01:07:47] Peterson uh we share a common property
[01:07:50] line across Kelly Lane and uh so again
[01:07:54] I'm here as a private citizen uh who has
[01:07:56] a great interest in this area and would
[01:07:59] you'll hear uh so first I want to a a
[01:08:02] quick uh history and background some of
[01:08:04] it was said by some of the other folks
[01:08:06] and I won't uh repeat all that uh my
[01:08:10] late wife and I bought our property uh
[01:08:12] in the fall of uh 84 a few months before
[01:08:15] we were married. We didn't live here. Uh
[01:08:18] but we were in Orange County, but we our
[01:08:21] intent was to come back here and when we
[01:08:23] had children, raised our children here
[01:08:25] kind of in a country area and uh I
[01:08:28] scoured the entire desert looking for
[01:08:30] property and I stumbled on this area uh
[01:08:33] and ended up buying it. Um as they said,
[01:08:37] this is a unique area. Uh it's the last
[01:08:40] of its kind in Rancho Mirage and uh Miss
[01:08:43] Dubick, don't uh I know you can say
[01:08:46] there's other horse property in the
[01:08:48] city, but out the the uh uh subject that
[01:08:54] just came before here. uh that's all
[01:08:56] being cut up into small lots and there
[01:08:59] are a few properties out there that are
[01:09:01] zone for horses but as an area and also
[01:09:05] uh the history of it the Raven's Trail
[01:09:07] was all put in and so on uh it's really
[01:09:11] the last of its kind
[01:09:14] um
[01:09:16] over the years uh my neighbors and I and
[01:09:18] I'm the last of the Moheakans I'm the
[01:09:21] longest surviving property owner the
[01:09:23] properties have changed hand multiple
[01:09:25] times
[01:09:26] the Williams family. Uh they've been
[01:09:28] here 24 years or so. Uh I'm not sure if
[01:09:32] Lisa McFaden is here, but her dad bought
[01:09:34] the property, their house close to me in
[01:09:37] the 70s. Um and so she grew up there, is
[01:09:41] living back here. But as far as the
[01:09:42] property has turned hands multiple
[01:09:45] times, and over the years, we've had a
[01:09:47] lot of battles with developers
[01:09:50] trying to come in and cut it up into
[01:09:52] small lots. uh everything from way back
[01:09:55] when somebody wanted to put a campground
[01:09:57] there and uh multiple people have bought
[01:10:00] it. Uh and one of them was uh when it
[01:10:05] used to be a Sinatra horse ranch when we
[01:10:07] moved here in December of 90 I guess it
[01:10:11] was uh the ranch Mrs. Sinatra had her
[01:10:14] five or six horses there. She came over
[01:10:17] every Sunday morning and rode had her
[01:10:19] friends bring horse trailers in and they
[01:10:21] rode up and down the streets. Um and
[01:10:24] then uh later on when uh Frank Sinatra
[01:10:28] passed away, of course it was sold and
[01:10:31] it was sold to someone who wanted to
[01:10:33] come in cut up in small lots. They came
[01:10:36] to me and offered me substantially more
[01:10:40] than the value of my house with a
[01:10:42] proviso that I would support small lots
[01:10:45] and go to the neighbors and campaign. I
[01:10:49] told them not only no, but hell no.
[01:10:53] and further that if they tried to do it,
[01:10:56] we would sue. And so I raised a fund, a
[01:10:59] legal fund to sue, engaged a land use
[01:11:02] attorney in Orange County who I'd worked
[01:11:04] with for many years and we were prepared
[01:11:06] to sue everybody and his brother. Uh he
[01:11:09] eventually went bankrupt and the
[01:11:11] property was foreclosed and then it
[01:11:13] changed hand a few more times. I go into
[01:11:16] that to show the commitment that I and
[01:11:19] our neighbors have to keep this a rural
[01:11:22] area.
[01:11:23] uh and there are planning issues uh and
[01:11:27] some of it is a conundrum uh from a pure
[01:11:30] technical planning standpoint
[01:11:32] uh uh there's there are some uh issues
[01:11:36] that have to be resolved but I think
[01:11:38] when uh committed people to a particular
[01:11:41] goal uh put their heads together they
[01:11:44] can come up with a solution. A final one
[01:11:47] that we did fight against, unfortunately
[01:11:49] we lost, was the uh memory care facility
[01:11:52] on the corner of Peterson
[01:11:56] and
[01:11:59] and and Mirage Cove. Um it was very
[01:12:03] hotly debated that none of the neighbors
[01:12:05] wanted it. Do not belong there. It I'm
[01:12:08] sorry. Should I pause for a moment? Is
[01:12:11] there
[01:12:14] >> there's a distraction in the back?
[01:12:16] >> You can go ahead.
[01:12:17] >> Okay.
[01:12:19] Uh All right. You need to add another 15
[01:12:21] minutes for me since I was cut off.
[01:12:24] Okay. All right. So, uh uh so uh it was
[01:12:28] residential zone property. It was the
[01:12:31] zoning was changed. There was nothing
[01:12:33] wrong with the facility. It just did not
[01:12:35] belong there. Unfortunately, at and of
[01:12:38] course none of you were here at that
[01:12:39] time. the city council was divided. It
[01:12:41] was two to two and it was broken by the
[01:12:44] mayor at that time. A big mistake uh
[01:12:47] that we have to live with it, but we
[01:12:50] don't want to see other things like that
[01:12:51] come in and negatively affect the uh
[01:12:54] area. Uh the other one uh was in I guess
[01:12:59] 13 145 uh CV link uh was proposing at
[01:13:04] that time to come in and uh uh had it
[01:13:08] gone through it would have been an
[01:13:09] unmitigated disaster for the city
[01:13:11] financially, operationally uh
[01:13:14] aesthetically
[01:13:15] uh and would violated every principle
[01:13:17] that I know you all live by. And that is
[01:13:20] job number one is the uh uh the uh the
[01:13:26] residents the to maintain the the
[01:13:30] quality of for the residents of Rancho
[01:13:33] Mirage. Um I went to uh in fact the uh
[01:13:40] some folks in Thunderbird Country Club
[01:13:42] and I formed a political action
[01:13:44] committee to support the city's fight
[01:13:47] against CV Link. I went to every CVG
[01:13:51] hearing. Uh, and at that time in
[01:13:55] football parliament, Dana Hobert was the
[01:13:58] running back and Mayor Wild was the
[01:14:00] blocking back. They took many hits and
[01:14:03] many shots. They did not make any
[01:14:05] friends. And one of the things that Dana
[01:14:08] Hobert always said is stick by your
[01:14:09] principles even if it's going to cause
[01:14:11] you personal harm. And uh uh I'm sure uh
[01:14:16] the uh both Mayor While and of course uh
[01:14:21] Dana Hbert uh did not make any friends
[01:14:24] by their uh stand against CV Link. It
[01:14:28] was eventually voted out which was the
[01:14:30] right thing and then a referendum took
[01:14:32] place overwhelmingly
[01:14:34] supported not to have CV Link. So uh
[01:14:38] bring us up to date. The current owner
[01:14:40] of this property is uh Mr. Evangelos
[01:14:43] Pistoli. He is from Greece when they
[01:14:46] bought it four or five years ago. Uh I
[01:14:49] did get in contact with him. We had a
[01:14:51] zoom call. Uh he was very uh cordial and
[01:14:55] we went over he said what their points
[01:14:57] were. He asked what the citizens what
[01:15:00] our residents we talked about the the
[01:15:03] large parcels 1 acre equestrian private
[01:15:06] streets. He was all for it. And then uh
[01:15:09] over the years his asset manager I guess
[01:15:12] business manager Mr. uh Kasus uh uh
[01:15:17] Potus uh he and I have had not only many
[01:15:20] calls but face toface meetings. I talked
[01:15:23] to him last Saturday. We had a zoom
[01:15:25] call. He was in Europe and going over
[01:15:28] again our neighbors are supportive of
[01:15:30] this with some of the issues that you
[01:15:32] heard about circulation private streets
[01:15:35] and so on. Um,
[01:15:38] so, uh, I'm going to go through just
[01:15:41] some factual things. Some have been
[01:15:43] covered, so I'll skip over. Uh, and
[01:15:46] again, our neighborhood welcomes the
[01:15:48] proposed, uh, uh, development. Uh,
[01:15:52] they'll enhance the property, uh, and
[01:15:55] maintain and develop the last equestrian
[01:15:58] country field area in the city.
[01:16:01] Um, I know none of you are old enough to
[01:16:04] remember there was a TV show called
[01:16:06] Dragnet. Uh, and the uh uh the uh Joe
[01:16:11] Friday was his name. Now the staff is
[01:16:14] going, "Huh?"
[01:16:17] >> Uh, but anyway, his famous saying was
[01:16:19] just the facts, ma'am.
[01:16:21] >> And and so I'm going to give just the
[01:16:24] facts. It's already been discussed. Get
[01:16:26] rid of the tamistries, homeless people.
[01:16:28] Uh, great problem. I I look back, I have
[01:16:31] 40 emails from myself and my neighbors,
[01:16:35] sheriff, code enforcement, everything
[01:16:36] else about that. Enough said. They need
[01:16:38] to come down quickly. They have to do it
[01:16:41] anyway. It's just get it done soon. Uh
[01:16:44] number two is maintain the equestrian
[01:16:47] trails. Some those that are by deed
[01:16:49] easement and others going back 60 years.
[01:16:52] And I know that for a fact because the
[01:16:55] property on my north, which now has a
[01:16:57] house on it, the four acres, was
[01:16:59] purchased in 44 by a wonderful family
[01:17:02] from Pasadena 1944. So he was here
[01:17:05] through all of that, uh, through when
[01:17:08] Southern Bird Country Club now was a
[01:17:10] dude ranch and the Sinatra ranch and so
[01:17:14] on. Uh, and there were many horses back
[01:17:17] then and they used the trails. Uh and
[01:17:19] again some of them I understand they're
[01:17:21] not dedicated easements but through
[01:17:23] common use over 60 years and we would
[01:17:25] like to have those uh continued um
[01:17:30] uh and there as was spoken uh there in
[01:17:33] common usage the north end of Elwood
[01:17:35] Peterson and uh Elwood Neielen and
[01:17:39] Peterson there was a trail in the north
[01:17:41] end coming down uh and we would like to
[01:17:44] see that continued as part of that do
[01:17:46] not put a road from the north end of
[01:17:48] Elmo to Neielson to Peterson Road. Uh it
[01:17:52] would take one it would be it would be
[01:17:54] bad for the developer because they're
[01:17:55] going to take 40 ft of his property on
[01:17:58] the north of there and uh that's going
[01:18:00] to uh devalue his property. It's not
[01:18:03] needed. Uh and when I say equestrian
[01:18:06] trails, I also mean walking, hiking,
[01:18:11] biking, just like the Butler Ravens
[01:18:13] Trail. It's not just for horses. It's
[01:18:16] for other things. And uh it said we we
[01:18:19] would like to see Peterson and uh uh and
[01:18:24] Mirage Cove Mirage Cove east of Peterson
[01:18:29] private streets. Uh the neighbors are
[01:18:31] 100% for it. Uh it takes a lot of doing
[01:18:34] to make it happen. U but we would like
[01:18:37] to see that done. And again, even at
[01:18:40] private streets, whether you have gates
[01:18:42] or not, even if we had gates, we would
[01:18:45] always leave access for horses walking.
[01:18:48] We do not want to cut off. This is a gym
[01:18:51] for the city and the residents. And we
[01:18:54] want everybody to be able to come along
[01:18:56] and walk, bike, hike in there. We're not
[01:18:59] trying to cut the public off. We would
[01:19:00] never do that. Um,
[01:19:03] so no road from the north end of Elwood
[01:19:06] to Neielson to Peterson. It's already
[01:19:09] been said cut the weeds down because
[01:19:10] there are fire hazard and it's also
[01:19:13] being talked about the entry and exit
[01:19:14] onto Peterson. That's part of it. So
[01:19:18] desired by our consensus of our
[01:19:21] neighborhood. again, Peterson Road,
[01:19:24] north of uh uh uh uh north of Mirage
[01:19:30] Cove, a private street. You can have
[01:19:33] gates maybe. Yes or no? That's another
[01:19:35] issue. And then Mirage Cove east of
[01:19:39] Peterson to become a private street down
[01:19:42] to Kelly Lane, my street, which is
[01:19:44] actually private. It's actually a
[01:19:46] private drive. It serves two houses. Uh
[01:19:48] and with that, no curb and gutters. you
[01:19:51] know, the country feel like Clancy Lane
[01:19:53] if you no doubt going down Clancy Lane.
[01:19:56] Um, and again, even if we had gates,
[01:19:59] whether or not we do, uh, it's all open
[01:20:02] for horses, pedestrians, bicycles, and a
[01:20:05] few people that have pet ducks that walk
[01:20:07] their pet ducks along there. We want to
[01:20:09] maintain that. Uh thirdly, um I know
[01:20:13] this is not about the houses now, but
[01:20:16] when that gets around, we would like to
[01:20:18] not see modern contemporary white flat
[01:20:21] roof white boxes there. We'd like to see
[01:20:24] the Spanish Mediterranean ranch
[01:20:26] farmhouse, modern farmhouse, so on. Um
[01:20:29] the fourthly uh as someone mentioned
[01:20:33] construction of houses may be a few
[01:20:35] years out and we would like to see the
[01:20:39] uh the two streets going into uh uh on
[01:20:43] the going from on Peterson
[01:20:46] uh north of Mirage Cove on the left and
[01:20:49] the right hand side there's a 2 and a
[01:20:50] half acre piece and a 5 acre piece. uh
[01:20:52] plant some trees and get those going and
[01:20:55] that will help the developer because
[01:20:56] when they start selling because while
[01:20:58] it's better to have some trees so people
[01:21:00] can see it. Uh that's it and I'd be
[01:21:03] happy to answer any questions. I know
[01:21:06] the area very well and so if you have
[01:21:08] any questions be happy to answer any
[01:21:10] questions.
[01:21:11] >> Thank you Murray. I think that uh
[01:21:17] we we appreciate you being here today.
[01:21:22] Is there anyone else who would like to
[01:21:23] provide public testimony on public
[01:21:25] hearing item 6B?
[01:21:27] >> Yeah.
[01:21:29] >> That was the last speaker.
[01:21:31] >> Okay. Um what we're going to do is um
[01:21:37] I'm now going to uh call for a motion to
[01:21:42] continue this item to the uh to the next
[01:21:46] meeting. And so uh it will be continued.
[01:21:50] Obviously there's a lot of complexities
[01:21:53] that go into this uh development. Uh
[01:21:57] you've heard many of them today. Uh the
[01:22:00] planning commission will consider all of
[01:22:02] those. Um but they need the time to fair
[01:22:06] it out uh the details and in order to do
[01:22:10] so, we're going to uh continue this item
[01:22:13] until the next meeting. So with that,
[01:22:16] may I hear a motion to continue the
[01:22:18] item?
[01:22:19] >> Move to move to continue item 6B to our
[01:22:21] next council meeting.
[01:22:22] >> And I'd be happy to second it.
[01:22:24] >> There's a motion and a second to
[01:22:26] continue the item. Please vote.
[01:22:32] >> Motion carries. 5.
[01:22:34] >> All right. We thank you all for being
[01:22:36] here and this will give time to our
[01:22:41] planning department to uh go through all
[01:22:44] of the items that were reviewed today.
[01:22:46] So, thank you so much.
[01:22:51] Uh the next item will be on the action
[01:22:54] calendar and that will be a revision of
[01:22:57] the library and observatory collection
[01:23:00] development policy.
[01:23:02] Uh, and that's going to be handled by
[01:23:04] Aaron Espinosa, our library
[01:23:08] and observatory director. Um, Aaron,
[01:23:13] it's nice to see you up here as opposed
[01:23:15] to uh sitting in the audience in your
[01:23:18] normal position. So, welcome and thank
[01:23:20] you.
[01:23:21] >> Well, thank you, but I'd much enjoy
[01:23:23] being down there.
[01:23:24] >> I don't. And by the way, I don't doubt
[01:23:26] that for a moment.
[01:23:28] >> All right. Uh good afternoon, mayor,
[01:23:30] members of city council, and city staff.
[01:23:32] Uh today, I'm here to present the
[01:23:34] Library and Observatory updated
[01:23:36] collection development policy, which we
[01:23:38] are asking council to review and approve
[01:23:40] to ensure compliance with the California
[01:23:42] Freedom to Read Act, Assembly Bill 1825.
[01:23:46] Our mission is to provide free and open
[01:23:48] access to educational, scientific, and
[01:23:50] general interest materials for all
[01:23:53] people of all ages and backgrounds while
[01:23:56] m while maintaining a sa safe welcoming
[01:23:59] environment that encourages reading,
[01:24:02] learning, and community connection.
[01:24:05] Under AB183 or 1825, public libraries
[01:24:09] receiving state funding must have a
[01:24:11] written publicly accessible collection
[01:24:13] development policy in place by January
[01:24:16] 1st, 2026 or risk losing eligibility for
[01:24:20] state library funding. To meet this
[01:24:23] requirement, staff reviewed and updated
[01:24:25] our policy to reaffirm our commitment to
[01:24:27] intellectual freedom and to maintaining
[01:24:30] a balanced, diverse, and inclusive
[01:24:32] collection that reflects our community.
[01:24:34] It outlines how materials are selected
[01:24:37] based on merit and relevance and
[01:24:39] includes a clear process for patrons who
[01:24:41] may wish to request reconsideration of
[01:24:43] materials.
[01:24:45] There are no fiscal impacts associated
[01:24:47] with adopting these updates. The library
[01:24:49] and Observatory Advisory Commission has
[01:24:51] reviewed and approved the revisions and
[01:24:53] recommends that the city council do the
[01:24:55] same. Thank you for your time and
[01:24:57] support as we ensure that the Ranch
[01:24:59] Mirage Library and Observatory continues
[01:25:01] to meet the state requirements while
[01:25:03] upholding our mission for open access,
[01:25:05] lifelong learning, and community
[01:25:07] enrichment for all.
[01:25:10] >> Thank you, Aaron. Are there any uh
[01:25:12] public comments on this item?
[01:25:14] >> I did not receive any speaker cards. Is
[01:25:16] there anyone who would like to provide
[01:25:17] comments on item 7A?
[01:25:20] No speakers.
[01:25:22] >> Thank you. Uh, and I will say this,
[01:25:24] Aaron, the the library and observatory
[01:25:27] uh are probably
[01:25:30] you know uh two of the greatest uh
[01:25:33] assets of our city. I mean they are uh
[01:25:36] without a doubt beyond compare and make
[01:25:40] our city extremely proud. So thank you
[01:25:43] for all the work that you and your staff
[01:25:45] do each and every day. And it was was
[01:25:49] commented earlier I believe by the mayor
[01:25:51] prom
[01:25:53] uh the amount of programming that the
[01:25:58] library
[01:25:59] uh performs on a day in dayout basis is
[01:26:04] absolutely remarkable and it's not just
[01:26:07] volume it's quality of the work. So
[01:26:11] again thank you so very much for that.
[01:26:13] >> Thank you sir. Uh, may I hear a motion
[01:26:16] uh uh comment
[01:26:19] >> regarding uh this item, please?
[01:26:21] >> Public comment.
[01:26:22] >> You have a comment?
[01:26:24] >> Is there a public comment?
[01:26:25] >> Mayor, we need to take public comment on
[01:26:27] this item.
[01:26:28] >> Did we do anything?
[01:26:28] >> We did. Yes, there are no comments.
[01:26:31] >> I've already asked for that.
[01:26:33] >> Uh, is there a motion?
[01:26:35] >> I'll make the motion. Uh, motion to
[01:26:38] introduce ordinance number next in
[01:26:40] order, first reading, amending section
[01:26:41] 9.30.072.
[01:26:43] 072 collection development policy of
[01:26:46] chapter 9.3 use of library and
[01:26:48] observatory of division 3 offenses
[01:26:51] against public peace of title 9 public
[01:26:53] peace morals and welfare of the ranch
[01:26:55] mirage municipal code.
[01:26:56] >> I'll second there's a motion and a
[01:26:59] second. Please vote
[01:27:02] >> and motion carries 50.
[01:27:05] >> That concludes the action calendar.
[01:27:08] We will now go to non-aggenda public
[01:27:11] comments. And uh who is uh first request
[01:27:15] for a speaker?
[01:27:17] >> Wally Melendez.
[01:27:47] Uh hi everybody.
[01:27:51] A lot of uh bad things are happening uh
[01:27:55] to our country
[01:27:58] at this time.
[01:28:02] Convicted felon Donald Trump
[01:28:08] is trying to burn the country down so he
[01:28:12] can rule over the ashes.
[01:28:18] Mike uh Johnson, the speaker of the
[01:28:21] house,
[01:28:24] refuses to
[01:28:27] seren uh a represent uh house of
[01:28:31] representatives
[01:28:33] member Deita uh Ghaba
[01:28:39] because uh him and Trump and the
[01:28:43] Republicans don't want to uh release the
[01:28:47] Epstein at the files.
[01:28:54] So they shut the government down. The
[01:28:57] the government is shut right now and
[01:29:01] it's been shut for more than a month.
[01:29:06] Things are not good. Things are going
[01:29:08] downhill.
[01:29:11] Convicted felon. I don't know who voted
[01:29:14] for him. They must be idiots.
[01:29:19] Erh
[01:29:22] so so so everything
[01:29:25] is being criminalized.
[01:29:28] The US marshalss
[01:29:31] have their responsibility to arrest any
[01:29:35] official
[01:29:37] of the federal government. But they are
[01:29:40] under the jurisdiction
[01:29:43] of the um
[01:29:47] uh
[01:29:50] Department of the the uh justice, the
[01:29:53] Department of Justice, the the DOJ,
[01:29:57] who is run
[01:30:00] by a psychopant
[01:30:02] and maniac
[01:30:05] of uh convicted felon Donald J. Trump.
[01:30:14] But good news, yesterday or the day
[01:30:17] before
[01:30:19] there was elections and a bunch
[01:30:23] of Democrats
[01:30:24] got voted in. So, thank God for that.
[01:30:31] So, I hope we're all learning our
[01:30:33] lessons and I hope that we're not uh all
[01:30:37] just thinking of ourselves
[01:30:40] but thinking of our country. Thank you
[01:30:42] very much.
[01:30:43] >> Thank you for your comments.
[01:30:46] >> K. Williams.
[01:30:48] >> Mr. Mayor, may I um I don't see the
[01:30:50] timer on here for public comments. Do we
[01:30:52] have a problem with the timer?
[01:30:53] >> No, the timer.
[01:30:54] >> It's in the upper left hand corner of
[01:30:55] your screen.
[01:30:56] >> Must be on mine. Okay.
[01:30:58] >> I'm sorry. Thank you.
[01:31:02] >> So, hi. Just a quick comment about your
[01:31:05] fireworks ordinance or whatever, letting
[01:31:08] um the public know when celebrations are
[01:31:10] going to be occurring at the country
[01:31:11] clubs. I love it. I have We have two
[01:31:15] adopted dogs and it's nice to know when
[01:31:18] something's going to happen so that we
[01:31:20] can plan for it like this weekend. So,
[01:31:22] thank you.
[01:31:24] >> Thank you,
[01:31:25] >> Susan Ragsdale.
[01:31:35] Hello, mayor and city council. It's
[01:31:38] always a pleasure for me to see you. It
[01:31:41] really is. I kind of almost feel like a
[01:31:43] family member. It's strange cuz I have a
[01:31:45] long relationship with all of you. I
[01:31:48] know you might have not have noticed,
[01:31:50] but anyway, I want to read what somebody
[01:31:54] sent me today. This is from the UK and
[01:31:56] this is precedent setting.
[01:31:59] Barnett resident wins court case
[01:32:03] um forcing removal of LED street lights
[01:32:07] once called a conspiracy now proven
[01:32:11] toxic to eyes, insects, birds, and bats.
[01:32:16] I'm a little bit like ahead of my time.
[01:32:19] I've always been this way. Um, I I met a
[01:32:23] guru at Santa Monica Beach in 1974 and
[01:32:26] it changed my life completely. And then
[01:32:29] I got into yoga in 1977 on Main Street
[01:32:33] in Santa Monica. And then I became a
[01:32:36] they call it whole food plant-based. Now
[01:32:39] I went on the macrobiotic diet when I
[01:32:41] was 28 in order to cure the beginning of
[01:32:44] cancer. and I was successful and I uh
[01:32:48] it's a fabulous knowledge to have.
[01:32:50] Anyway, I became a chef and all that. Um
[01:32:54] but what I wanted to talk about was I
[01:32:56] had started the last time I was here
[01:32:59] about how um
[01:33:03] Dana was sitting here and I had my
[01:33:07] 150page report. I had researched it in
[01:33:10] depth about the harms of blue lights.
[01:33:13] You know, it's a very very high
[01:33:15] wavelength, completely unnatural to any
[01:33:19] living thing here on our planet. And
[01:33:22] it's being forced on us in a very, very
[01:33:25] scary way. And I got so scared about it,
[01:33:29] seeing it proliferate in the desert, it
[01:33:32] really hurts my eyes badly. And that's
[01:33:35] because this blue light goes and zaps
[01:33:38] the back of the eyeball and then you get
[01:33:41] macular degeneration. So I was very
[01:33:44] concerned and Dana got it and he said we
[01:33:48] should take a 15inute meeting with her
[01:33:51] and so I scheduled it and unfortunately
[01:33:55] Mr. Heerman didn't take me seriously in
[01:33:58] any way and he actually was like trying
[01:34:00] to get me out of here. I hate to say
[01:34:02] anything negative. I've written about
[01:34:04] it. Okay. Um and then all of a sudden
[01:34:08] the whole situation changed for me. Um,
[01:34:12] I became like a a a hated person that I
[01:34:17] don't deserve in the least. I'm like one
[01:34:19] of the most laidback, loving. I'm
[01:34:22] totally loving. I spent a whole decade
[01:34:26] creating artwork here in Rancho Mirage
[01:34:29] on how to be a loving and compassionate
[01:34:32] person. You got the wrong girl here and
[01:34:35] I need help. I'm not doing well. Thank
[01:34:38] you so much for listening.
[01:34:39] >> Thank you for your comment.
[01:34:41] That was the last speaker card. Is there
[01:34:43] anyone else in the audience who would
[01:34:44] like to speak on something not on
[01:34:46] today's agenda?
[01:34:48] >> That's the last speaker.
[01:34:49] >> All right. Well, that concludes our
[01:34:51] non-aggenda public comment. Uh we are
[01:34:54] going to um uh in a moment recess to our
[01:34:59] uh close session and uh I'll ask our
[01:35:03] city attorney to review uh the agenda
[01:35:07] for the close session.
[01:35:09] >> Thank you, mayor. We'll be convening in
[01:35:11] the close session for the item before
[01:35:12] you on the agenda listed as 9A,
[01:35:14] conference with legal counsel, existing
[01:35:16] litigation pursuant to government code
[01:35:18] section 54956.9D1.
[01:35:23] Case name unspecified since disclosure
[01:35:25] may jeopardize existing settlement
[01:35:26] negotiations.
[01:35:29] >> Thank you. We are now recessed into
[01:35:32] close session.
[01:35:42] We are back in session. I will ask the
[01:35:46] our attorney to review items that were
[01:35:49] covered.
[01:35:50] >> Thank you, mayor. No reportable action
[01:35:52] taken today.
[01:35:54] >> That concludes the meeting. The meeting
[01:35:56] is adjourned.