[Call To Order]
[00:00:09]
MEETING TO ORDER AT 6:00. COMMISSIONER TORRES, CAN I PLEASE GET THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE? I. READY, READY, I PLEDGE. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS. ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. THANK YOU. CAN I PLEASE GET ROLL CALL? COMMISSIONER TORRES, PRESENT. COMMISSIONER ODORICO. PRESENT. COMMISSIONER LARA, VICE CHAIRPERSON. FONSECA.
PRESENT. CHAIRPERSON. MURILLO. PRESENT. AT THIS TIME, THE COMMISSION MAY ANNOUNCE. OH,
[Approval of Agenda]
ARE WE GOING TO THE APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA? SO AT THIS TIME, THE COMMISSION MAY ANNOUNCE ANY ITEMS BEING PULLED FROM THE AGENDA OR CONTINUE TO ANOTHER DATE OR REQUESTED TO MOVE AN ITEM ON THE AGENDA. IS THERE A MOTION? IS THERE A WHAT'S ASKING? WE'RE GOING TO MOVE AN[Approval Of The Minutes]
ITEM FROM THE AGENDA. NO. OKAY. SO MOVING ON TO APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES, IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES OF MARCH 4TH, 2026. IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE AGENDA? I MOTION TO APPROVE THE AGENDA. SECOND. OKAY. COMMISSIONER TORRES. YES, COMMISSIONER. YES, COMMISSIONER. LARA. YES. VICE CHAIRPERSON FONSECA. YES. AND CHAIRPERSON.MARIA. YES. DO YOU HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES OF MARCH 4TH, 2026. I'LL GO AHEAD. SORRY. I'LL GO AHEAD AND MOTION TO APPROVE THE PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES FOR MARCH 4TH, 2026. OKAY. I SECOND. COMMISSIONER TORRES. YES, COMMISSIONER. YES, COMMISSIONER. LARA. YES. VICE CHAIRPERSON FONSECA. BEFORE. IT SAYS MARCH 18TH, FOR WHATEVER REASON. IS THAT IS THAT SOMETHING I'M SEEING WRONG, OR DOES IT SAY.
IT DOES SAY THE 18TH, RIGHT? YEAH. MINE SAYS YES. I DON'T KNOW. I DON'T KNOW. THAT'S WHY I WANT TO MAKE SURE I DON'T. MAYBE THE ONE IN THE WEBSITE IS IT HAS A SLIGHT TYPO. OKAY, WELL WE'LL ADDRESS THE TYPO. DO YOU GUYS WANT TO CONTINUE THAT? I'LL CONTINUE. YEAH, I JUST I JUST WANT TO MAKE NOTE OF THAT BEFORE I MAKE THAT. IT'S FUNNY BECAUSE YEAH, ANYWAYS, IT'S JUST MINOR TYPO. YOU CAN MAKE A MOTION RIGHT NOW SAYING FOR THE CORRECT DATE. SO YOU CAN MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE THE MINUTES TO IF THE MINUTES ARE CORRECT, RIGHT. YOU CAN MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FOR THE MEETING ON MARCH. WHAT DATE WAS IT? FOURTH, FOURTH, 20, 26. AND THAT'S FINE. THANK YOU. THAT WAY WE DON'T HAVE TO CONTINUE IT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. YEAH. SO YEAH, JUST MAKE THAT ADJUSTMENT TO MARCH 4TH. OKAY. AND. YES. OKAY. THANK YOU, CHAIRPERSON MURILLO. YES, MR. PEREZ, DO WE HAVE ANY WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS? THERE ARE NONE.
OKAY. PUBLIC COMMENTS. THE PUBLIC MAY ADDRESS THE COMMISSION ON ANY ITEM OF INTEREST TO THE PUBLIC. THAT IS NOT ON THE AGENDA, BUT IS WITHIN THE MATTERS, THE SUBJECT MATTER JURISDICTION THEREOF. PLEASE LIMIT YOUR COMMENTS TO THREE MINUTES. I'LL OPEN THE PUBLIC COMMENT AT 604. IF THERE IS ANYBODY ONLINE, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND ON ZOOM IF YOU'D LIKE TO COMMENT. THERE ARE NONE. THANK YOU. SO I'LL BE CLOSING PUBLIC COMMENT AT 604. MOVING ON TO REPORTS AND REQUESTS. THERE ARE NONE. THANK YOU. NON-HEARING ITEMS. SO BEGINNING
[Non-Hearing Items]
WITH THE FIRST ITEM WOULD BE NOMINATION FOR THE POSITIONS OF PLANNING COMMISSION CHAIRPERSON AND PLANNING COMMISSION VICE CHAIRPERSON. THANK YOU. WHEN YOU GUYS ARE READY, YOU CAN MAKE NOMINATIONS FOR THOSE POSITIONS AND DISCUSS AMONGST YOURSELVES. OKAY. I'LL OPEN UP THE FLOOR. SO I WOULD LIKE TO NOMINATE COMMISSIONER LARA. SHE HAS A LOT OF PLANNING BACKGROUND. SHE WAS FORMERLY A PLANNING TECHNICIAN FOR THIS CITY. AND THEN NOW SHE'S STILL DOING PLANNING IN A DIFFERENT CITY. SO I FEEL LIKE SHE BRINGS A LOT OF THAT TO THE TABLE. BUT NOT ONLY THAT, SHE SEES THE STAFF PERSPECTIVE OF WHAT IT'S LIKE TO PRESENT TO US. SO SHE GETS SHE SEES BOTH SIDES. AND I FEEL LIKE THAT WOULD BE VERY BENEFICIAL AND VALUABLE FOR US TO HAVE AS A CHAIR. YES. AND SO YOUR MOTION IS TO NOMINATE HER, COMMISSIONER LARA FOR[00:05:01]
CHAIRPERSON. YES. SO I'M MOTIONING FOR COMMISSIONER LARA FOR CHAIRPERSON. I DON'T KNOW IF WE HAD IT OPEN FOR SUGGESTIONS DISCUSSION. SO IT CAN BE JUST IT COULD BE DISCUSSION. BUT JUST TO CLARIFY IT'S FOR CHAIR. OKAY. YES. MOST MOTIONING FOR CHAIR. YES. OKAY.I WOULD LIKE TO MOTION. GIVEN LIKE THE YEARS IN HERE. I WOULD LIKE TO MOTION VICE CHAIR FONSECA FOR CHAIR AND COMMISSIONER LARA FOR VICE CHAIR, BECAUSE I DO BELIEVE THEY'RE THE STRONGEST CANDIDATES. WOULD YOU GUYS LIKE TO DISCUSS FURTHER, OR WAS THERE A SECOND? I THINK AT THIS POINT WHERE WE STAND, I MEAN, I WANT TO RESPECT WHAT THE DAIS WANTS TO GO DO. SO LET'S JUST DO A VOTE AND THEN AND THEN LET LET THE VOTES COUNT. IS THAT EVERYBODY FEELS THE SAME WAY. I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS THE AWKWARD PART OF THIS, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, I THINK WE'RE ALL LEADERS IN THE COMMUNITY, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER IT IS HAPPENS.
AND I, I'M STILL GOING TO SUPPORT THE CITY NO MATTER NO MATTER HOW I'M, I'M ELECTED. SO I DON'T HAVE AN ISSUE WITH THAT. SO HOW DO WE GO ON? SO WE HAVE TWO MOTIONS. AND SO WE NEED A SECOND FOR EITHER OR. AND THEN THE THIRD VOTE WOULD BE THE DETERMINING VOTE. OKAY. AND IF YOU GUYS WOULD LIKE TO DELIBERATE MORE YOU CERTAINLY CAN AS WELL. YEAH. WELL, IF THERE'S REMAINING I WILL. SO THIS IS FOR CHAIRPERSON. CHAIR. THAT'S FOR EITHER THE MOTION THAT COMMISSIONER TORRES PUT FORWARD OR THE MOTION THAT CHAIRPERSON MARIO PUT FORWARD.
SO WE'RE NOW WE'RE DOING CHAIR AND THEN WE'RE DOING VICE CHAIR. CORRECT. YOU COULD SEPARATE THEM OUT OR YOU CAN KEEP THEM TOGETHER. TOGETHER AS THE WAY THE MOTION WAS. OR YOU CAN MOVE FORWARD WITH JUST THE CHAIRPERSON RIGHT NOW, AS A MOTION BY COMMISSIONER TORRES.
OKAY. I THINK I WANT A MOTION TO HAVE COMMISSIONER TORRES AS VICE CHAIR, JUST BECAUSE OF THE FEW TIMES THAT I'VE SPOKEN TO HER. SHE SEEMS TO BE VERY DEDICATED TO THE COMMUNITY.
SHE'S ALWAYS READING THE STAFF REPORTS, WHICH I KNOW THAT A LOT OF PLANNING COMMISSIONERS DON'T DO, YOU KNOW, AND SO I APPRECIATE THAT. I KNOW THAT, SHE SAYS, LIKE SHE'S TOLD ME THAT SHE SENDS YOU EMAILS ALL THE TIME JUST ASKING QUESTIONS. AND, YOU KNOW, AS FAR AS LIKE BEING IN THE COMMUNITY, SHE WAS A JUDGE WITH ME WHERE BOTH THE JUDGES AND THE CHRISTMAS PARADE AND ALSO SHE'S BEEN JUDGE IN OTHER LIKE FESTIVAL FESTIVITIES HERE IN THE, IN THE, IN THE, IN COACHELLA IN THE COMMUNITY. AND I THINK SOMETHING THAT'S VERY INTERESTING THAT SHE TOLD ME THAT I THOUGHT WAS REALLY COOL WAS THAT IF YOU GO TO THE, THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN COACHELLA, OUR LADY OF SOLEDAD, SHE'S THE ONE THAT DOES THE BULLETINS. SO EVERY SINGLE WEEK THE BULLETINS GO OUT. SHE'S THE ONE THAT MAKES THEM SO LIKE, I THINK SHE'S VERY INVOLVED IN THE COMMUNITY. SHE REALLY CARES FOR THE COMMUNITY. AND THEREFORE, I THINK SOMEONE WHO'S VERY INVOLVED AND CARES FOR THE COMMUNITY SHOULD BE WARRANTED TO BE VICE CHAIR BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, SHE'S DEMONSTRATED THAT SHE CARES. WELL, I'LL, I'LL GO IN AND SPEAK ON ON MY BEHALF.
RIGHT. I THINK MY RECORD SHOWS THE INVOLVEMENT THAT I HAVE IN THE COMMUNITY. I DON'T NEED, YOU KNOW, TO SHARE WHAT TYPE OF INVOLVEMENT I HAVE HAD OR HAVEN'T. I THINK I'VE BEEN VERY VOCAL OF, OF WHAT MY PERSPECTIVE HAS BEEN, WHERE I WOULD LIKE THE CITY TO GO. AND I'M IN MY PERSPECTIVE, BUT IN, IN THE PERSPECTIVE OF HOW I WOULD LIKE THE CITY TO GO THROUGH. BUT I THINK AT THE END OF THE DAY, I'M NOT HERE TO LEAD BY WHAT I SAY. I'M HERE TO LEAD BY WHAT I'VE DONE. SO I THINK AT THE END OF THE DAY, I FEEL VERY CONFIDENT THAT NO MATTER WHAT POSITION I GET, I'M STILL GOING TO MAINTAIN THE SAME PERSPECTIVE OF BEING A TEAM LEADER IN THIS COMMUNITY. SO THAT'S THAT'S MY PERSPECTIVE. SO. I'D LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO MY NOMINATION FOR COMMISSIONER LADA AS CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON. FONSECA TO REMAIN VICE CHAIR. THAT'S MY MOTION. SO WE HAVE WE HAVE FOUR MOTIONS.
SO I WOULD. OH, GO AHEAD, GO AHEAD, GO AHEAD. SO WHAT I WAS GOING TO SAY IS SO THAT WE KIND OF AVOID THE MIX UP. WE JUST HAVE ONE MOTION FOR THE CHAIR. FIRST. WE GO THROUGH THAT ONE AND THEN WE DO A MOTION FOR THE VICE CHAIR AND GET THROUGH THAT. THAT WAY WE DON'T HAVE A DUAL MOTION FOR THE POSITIONS, AND IT'LL BE EASIER FOR STAFF AS WELL TO CLEAR THAT UP. SO IF THAT'S OKAY, PERFECT. I'M OKAY WITH THAT. YEAH, JUST, JUST A RECOMMENDATION. BUT IF YOU GUYS
[00:10:01]
WANT TO DO. THAT'S A GOOD IDEA TO DO ONE AND THEN THE OTHER. OKAY. SO THEN REELING BACK WE'LL START WITH CHAIRPERSON. SO THEN I MOTION FOR COMMISSIONER LADA TO BE THE NEXT CHAIRPERSON FOR THE PLANNING COMMISSION. AND SO WE WOULD NEED A SECOND ON THAT SECOND. AND THEN WE WOULD NEED A ANOTHER VOTE. OH I GUESS A THIRD I DON'T KNOW HOW DO I SAY THAT? WELL, WE WOULD WE WOULD TAKE IT TO A VOTE NOW. SO COMMISSIONER. SO, COMMISSIONER TORRES. YES, COMMISSIONER. YES. COMMISSIONER. LARA. YES. VICE CHAIRPERSON FONSECA. NO.CHAIRPERSON MURILLO. YES. MOTION CARRIES. AND THEN NOW, THIS IS FOR THE ROLE OF VICE CHAIRPERSON. OKAY. OKAY. SO IN THIS CASE, I WOULD LIKE TO MOTION VICE CHAIR FONSECA TO STAY AS VICE CHAIR. SECOND. COMMISSIONER TORRES NO. COMMISSIONER. YES, COMMISSIONER LARA. NO. VICE CHAIRPERSON. FONSECA. NO. CHAIRPERSON. MARIA. HE DOESN'T WANT IT. NO. OKAY.
OKAY. SO MOTION FAILS. MOTION FAILS. SO WE NEED ANOTHER MOTION. OH, I, I MOTION COMMISSIONER TORRES TO BE AS VICE CHAIR. IS THERE A SECOND? I GUESS I'LL SECOND MYSELF THEN.
COMMISSIONER TORRES. YES, COMMISSIONER DORIA. YES, COMMISSIONER. LARA. YES. VICE CHAIRPERSON FONSECA. NO. CHAIRPERSON. MARIA. NO MOTION CARRIES. SO WOULD YOU LIKE TO SIT OVER HERE SO I CAN SEE? WHAT? WOULD YOU LIKE TO FINISH THE MEETING OUT AS IS WITH THE.
WE CAN FINISH THIS MEETING AS IS AND THEN WE CAN START NEXT. START AT THE NEXT MEETING. YEAH.
OKAY. SO CONGRATULATIONS. CONGRATULATIONS. THANK YOU. MOVING ON TO ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT, THE APR FOR HOUSING IN GENERAL PLAN IMPLEMENTATION UPDATE 20. GOOD AFTERNOON, CHAIR AND MEMBERS OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION. ANA FERNANDEZ MANAGEMENT ANALYST I'LL BE GIVING AN UPDATE ON OUR 2025 HOUSING APR AND GENERAL PLAN IMPLEMENTATION. SO CALIFORNIA GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION SIX 5400 REQUIRES THE CITY TO PREPARE AN ANNUAL STATUS REPORT ON THE 2035 COACHELLA GENERAL PLAN IMPLEMENTATION. THE HOUSING APR IS PRESENTED TO CITY COUNCIL, AS WELL AS OUR PLANNING COMMISSION FOR REVIEW AND ACCEPTANCE, AND THEN SUBMITTED TO HCD AS WELL AS LCI EACH YEAR BY APRIL 1ST. THE APR ASSESSES HOW THE GENERAL PLAN IS BEING IMPLEMENTED AND PROVIDES INFORMATION REGARDING THE CITY'S PROGRESS IN MEETING ITS REGIONAL HOUSING NEEDS. SO FOR 2025, THE CITY PERMITTED A TOTAL OF 129 ADUS. OUT OF THE 100 2951 ADUS WERE APPROVED USING THE ADU PRE-APPROVED PLANS FOR THE CITY. THE CITY ALSO PERMITTED 34 SINGLE FAMILY DETACHED UNITS WITHIN THE PYRAMID RANCH DEVELOPMENT. NO PERMITS WERE ISSUED FOR MULTI-FAMILY UNITS, BUT WE DID ENTITLE 53 LOW INCOME MULTI-FAMILY UNITS AS PART OF THE SIXTH STREET SENIOR APARTMENTS PROJECT. SO THIS GRAPH SHOWS THE TREND OF ADUS BETWEEN 2020 AND 2025. AS YOU CAN SEE, THE NUMBER OF ADUS PERMITTED IN THE CITY HAS GROWN THROUGHOUT THE YEARS, SO THIS PROVIDES ADDITIONAL AFFORDABLE HOUSING FOR COACHELLA RESIDENTS. HDD DOES ALLOCATE THE CITY A REGIONAL HOUSING NEEDS ALLOCATION NUMBER. FOR COACHELLA. IT IS 7886, SO THIS IS FURTHER BROKEN DOWN INTO INCOME LEVELS BY VERY LOW INCOME, LOW INCOME, MODERATE INCOME AND ABOVE MODERATE INCOME. IN 2025, WE DID PERMIT 129 UNITS WITHIN THE LOW INCOME CATEGORY AND 34 UNITS IN THE ABOVE INCOME CATEGORY. THE ABOVE MODERATE INCOME CATEGORY.
SORRY. AND THAT'S A TOTAL OF 163 UNITS SOLD TO DATE. FROM 2021 TO 2029, WE HAVE PERMITTED A TOTAL OF 952 UNITS. WE STILL HAVE ARENA NUMBER REMAINING OF 6934 UNITS, SO THAT'S A PRETTY BIG NUMBER. BUT THE CITY HAS BEEN DOING AS MUCH AS IT CAN TO ACCOMMODATE FOR FUTURE HOUSING THROUGH ZONING CODE AMENDMENTS. WE DO HAVE POWER CONSTRAINTS IN THE CITY THAT KIND OF IMPEDES US FROM HAVING MORE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT, AS WELL AS HIGH INTEREST RATES AND THE HIGH COST OF CONSTRUCTION AS WELL. THAT IMPACTS THOSE NUMBERS. SO FOR THE GENERAL PLAN IMPLEMENTATION. SO THE GENERAL PLAN DOES SERVE AS A BLUEPRINT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CITY.
WE DO HAVE SEVEN ELEMENTS WHICH IS LAND USE CIRCULATION, HOUSING CONSERVATION, OPEN SPACE NOISE, AS WELL AS SAFETY. WITHIN THE GENERAL PLAN, WE DO HAVE GOALS AS WELL AS POLICIES TO HELP US ACHIEVE THOSE GOALS. SO FOR EXAMPLE, FOR THE HOUSING ELEMENT, SOME OF THE GOALS ARE
[00:15:01]
TO PROVIDE ADEQUATE HOUSING, ESPECIALLY FOR LOW INCOME HOUSEHOLDS, CONSERVE EXISTING HOUSING AND ENSURE IT'S WELL MAINTAINED, REDUCE ENERGY USAGE AND ENSURE EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITIES. SO WE ALSO HAVE ACTION ITEMS WITHIN THE GENERAL PLAN. SO THESE ACTION ITEMS HELP US ATTAIN THOSE GENERAL PLAN GOALS. THEY ARE BASED ON PRIORITY LEVEL AS WELL AS TIME FRAMES AND DEPARTMENTS WHO ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR IMPLEMENTING THOSE ACTIONS. FOR EXAMPLE, FOR LAND USE, ONE OF THE ACTION ITEMS IS TO HAVE CLIMATE APPROPRIATE DESIGN STANDARDS.THIS WAS APPROVED BY COUNCIL LAST YEAR IN 2025 WITH NATIVE PLANT AND SHADE CANOPY STANDARDS. ANOTHER ACTION ITEM FOR LAND USE IS TO REDUCE PARKING MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS, AND THIS IS GOING TO BE DONE THIS YEAR AS PART OF OUR CODE AMENDMENTS. ONE OF THE OTHER ACTION ITEMS FOR LAND USE IS TO ALLOW FOR AND ENCOURAGE ADUS, AND THIS WAS COMPLETED THROUGH ADU PRE-APPROVED PLANS, WHICH WERE APPROVED IN NOVEMBER OF 2023 FOR THE HEALTH AND WELLNESS ELEMENT. SOME OF THE ACTION ITEMS IS TO ALLOW FOR EDIBLE LANDSCAPING. THIS WAS DONE THROUGH THE PYRAMID RANCH DEVELOPMENT THAT INCLUDES EDIBLE LANDSCAPES IN THE PARKS, AS WELL AS THROUGH THE COMMUNITY RESILIENCE CENTER. SOME OF THE OTHER ACTION ITEMS ARE TO INCLUDE MULTI-USE FACILITIES, EMERGENCY FOOD, GARDENING TOOLS AND RESOURCES, AS WELL AS COMMUNITY GARDENS AND COMPOSTING EDUCATION. AND THIS IS GOING TO BE DONE THROUGH OUR COMMUNITY RESILIENCE CENTER, AS WELL AS IT IS A MULTI-USE FACILITY WITH REGENERATIVE GARDENS. ANOTHER HEALTH AND WELLNESS ACTION ITEM IS TO HAVE PLAZA VENDORS, WHICH IS CREATE A HEALTHY FOOD TRUCK PERMIT PROGRAM TO OPERATE AROUND PARKS AND PLAZAS. AND THIS WAS DONE LAST YEAR. IN 2025, THROUGH THE ADOPTION OF OUR COACHELLA HEALTHY FOOD TRUCK PILOT PROGRAM. SO THOSE ARE JUST SOME EXAMPLES. ANOTHER EXAMPLE WOULD BE THE HAVING FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS INCORPORATE WALKING AREAS WITHIN THE RETENTION BASINS. THAT WOULD BE ANOTHER EXAMPLE. AND THEN FOR MOBILITY TO INCREASE MULTI-MODAL TRANSPORTATION, WE DO HAVE THE CV LINK AS WELL. AND THAT'S THE END OF MY REPORT. I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT THE PLANNING COMMISSION MAY HAVE. THANK YOU. AND I, COMMISSIONER TORRES, ANY QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? NO, NOT RIGHT NOW, COMMISSIONER, I DO I DO HAVE QUESTIONS. SO I SAW THAT THERE WAS ONLY 34 UNITS APPROVED FOR HOUSING. THAT'S LIKE VERY LOW BECAUSE I KNOW OTHER CITIES LIKE PALM DESERT ARE ALMOST COMPLETED WITH THEIR ARENA NUMBERS, WHICH IS INCREDIBLY INSANE, BUT IT'S INCREDIBLE AT THE SAME TIME. SO WHAT WHAT I'M JUST WONDERING WHAT'S WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THE CITY OF COACHELLA, WHY WE ONLY APPROVED 35 SINGLE FAMILY HOMES OR ACTUALLY 34 AND 2025. THAT'S A VERY LOW NUMBER. THIS WAS FOR THE AMOUNT OF UNITS THAT RECEIVED BUILDING PERMITS, AND THOSE WERE AT PYRAMID RANCH. WITH THE CONSTRAINTS THAT WE HAVE BEEN FACING WITH ELECTRICAL CAPACITY, IT HAS HINDERED SOME OF OUR DEVELOPMENT ALONG WITH WITH INTEREST RATES FOR HOMES AND CONSTRUCTION INTEREST LOAN RATES AS WELL. I KNOW THAT THESE ARE SIMILAR ISSUES THAT OTHER COMMUNITIES ARE FACING.
SO IT'S NOT JUST ISOLATED TO THE CITY OF COACHELLA. AND I KNOW OUR NUMBERS ARE A BIT LOWER THAN SOME OF OUR NEIGHBORING CITIES THAT ARE FACING SIMILAR CONSTRAINTS, LIKE THE CITY OF LA QUINTA AND CITY OF INDIO. BUT IN OUR DISCUSSIONS WITH DEVELOPERS, THAT IS WHAT THEY'VE BEEN POINTING BACK TO AS A AS A POINT AS TO WHY DEVELOPMENT HAS HAS STALLED BETWEEN LAST YEAR AND THIS YEAR. SO IT'S BASICALLY MAINLY BECAUSE OF INFRASTRUCTURE. OKAY, SO IT'S BECAUSE OKAY, BECAUSE I KNOW WE HAVE A LOT OF LAND AND I KNOW THAT. WHAT ELSE IT'S IT'S LIKE CHEAPER IN COACHELLA, RIGHT? IT'S MORE AFFORDABLE, I SHOULD SAY, THAN LA QUINTA AND INDIO. EVEN NOW, EVEN INDIA IS GETTING MORE EXPENSIVE. SO YEAH, THAT'S A VERY LOW NUMBER. WE HAVE CONTINUED TO SEE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS COME INTO THE CITY, SOME OF WHICH THAT HAVE BEEN BROUGHT BEFORE YOU GUYS, SOME OF WHICH WERE WHICH ARE GOING TO BE COMING BEFORE YOU GUYS WITHIN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS, NEXT FEW MONTHS. SO WE ARE STILL SEEING AN UPTICK IN DEVELOPMENT, RECEIVING ENTITLEMENT APPROVALS. IT'S JUST TRANSITIONING, TRANSITIONING FROM THOSE ENTITLEMENT APPROVALS TO BUILDING PERMIT ISSUANCE AND CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY ISSUANCE THAT WE'RE SEEING IT STALL A BIT MORE. OKAY. I THINK THAT'S SO CAN I SEE THE NUMBERS, THE NUMBERS BETWEEN 2024 AND 2025? BECAUSE I DON'T THINK I SAW A SLIDE THAT KIND OF REPRESENTED THE DIFFERENT NUMBERS 2024, I BELIEVE THERE WAS 101 HUNDRED AND SOMETHING UNITS 100. I WANT TO SAY IT WAS 196. I THINK IT'S IN THE STAFF REPORT. SO THAT'S PERMITTED UNITS OR THOSE WERE THOSE WERE I THINK IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN 112 THAT RECEIVED THEIR RECEIVED PERMITS. OKAY. SO IT IS A IT IS A DRAMATIC DIFFERENCE FROM LAST YEAR. OKAY. IS THERE ANYTHING THAT THE CITY IS DOING FOR THE
[00:20:08]
INFRASTRUCTURE? THE CITY HAS BEEN WORKING WITH ID TO FORM A JPA. SO AT THE LAST CITY COUNCIL MEETING, THAT WAS AN ITEM THAT WAS DISCUSSED. IT WOULD BE SIMILAR TO WHAT INDIO HAS DONE, ALTHOUGH THERE WOULD BE SOME SOME KEY DIFFERENCES WITH THE CITY OF COACHELLA ONE, BUT WE HAVE BEEN IN TALKS IN COMMUNICATIONS WITH ID TO HELP TRY TO BRIDGE THE GAP WITH SOME OF THOSE ELECTRICAL CAPACITY ISSUES THAT WE'RE FACING. YEAH, BECAUSE I REMEMBER I WAS TALKING TO A PLANNER AND INDIO, AND HE DID MENTION THAT THEY HAVE LIKE ALREADY FOUND HOW TO DO THE INFRASTRUCTURE WITH ID. SO OKAY, AS LONG AS WE'RE TALKING, THEN THAT'S THAT'S GOOD. YEAH. AND THAT PROCESS WITH INDIO STARTED AROUND 2021 OR 2022. AND FROM, FROM THE, THE START OF THOSE DISCUSSIONS UP UNTIL RECENTLY WHEN THEY HAD THEIR GROUNDBREAKING FOR THEIR AVENUE 42 EXPANSION, IT'S TAKEN ABOUT FOUR YEARS. YEAH. WHEN DID WE START THE CONVERSATION? I'VE BEEN AT THE CITY FOR ABOUT A YEAR, SO AROUND AROUND A YEAR. SO WHEN I STARTED, THAT'S KIND OF WHEN I THINK A LOT OF THIS BEGAN. OKAY, OKAY. YEAH. ALL RIGHT. SO THOSE WERE MY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU COMMISSIONER ORDORICA NO QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM ME.VICE CHAIR FONSECA YEAH, I WANTED TO KNOW, HAVE WE EVER HAD I THINK WE LAST TIME WE HAD THIS KIND OF REPORT, IT WAS SOMETHING. AND I KNOW THINGS HAPPENED. RIGHT. BUT HAVE WE EVER THOUGHT ABOUT DEVELOPING LIKE A GIS MAP? RIGHT. A MAP THAT HELPS, YOU KNOW, NOT ONLY US AS COMMISSIONERS, RIGHT, BUT THE CITY AND THE PEOPLE INVOLVED TO KIND OF KNOW WHAT'S BEEN APPROVED, WHAT HASN'T BEEN APPROVED. RIGHT. I ALSO KNOW THAT PRIOR TO THE SITUATION THAT HAPPENED WITH DOCTOR MARTIN, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS THERE WAS SOME THINGS IN THE WORKS AND THEN OTHER THINGS DIDN'T HAPPEN BECAUSE OF THAT SITUATION. AND SO MAYBE THE NUMBERS CAN REFLECT THAT. OBVIOUSLY, THE CITY HAS BEEN GOING THROUGH A LOT. NOT THAT IT'S AN EXCUSE, BUT IT'S A REALITY, RIGHT, THAT THE CITY IS GOING THROUGH. AND, AND TO BE IN THAT REGARD. SO MAYBE SOMETHING AND I DON'T KNOW, I THINK I'VE SHARED THIS BEFORE TOO, NOT JUST CITY OF COACHELLA'S WEBSITE, BUT I THINK THE MAJORITY OF CITY WEBSITES ARE A LITTLE DIFFICULT TO NAVIGATE. RIGHT? WE CAN NEVER REALLY FIND THE SECRET SAUCE. RIGHT? BUT MAYBE COACHELLA, THAT COULD BE A WAY. RIGHT. AND I THINK, KENDRA, YOU AND I HAVE TALKED ABOUT FINDING WAYS. AND AGAIN, MAYBE THAT'S JUST MY PERSPECTIVE. IT'S ALWAYS GOOD TO OR ALWAYS MINDFUL TO TALK ABOUT THE REALITIES OF THE CHALLENGES THAT THE CITY IS GOING THROUGH. BUT I REALLY WANT TO THINK ABOUT WHAT WE CAN DO TO FIND WAYS OF CELEBRATING. I KNOW, YOU KNOW, WE USE SOCIAL MEDIA, BUT I DON'T THINK WE USE SOCIAL MEDIA AS BEST AS POSSIBLE BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THE MEDIA IS ALWAYS GOING TO PICK UP WHAT'S HAPPENING NEGATIVELY, RIGHT? AND THAT'S JUST UNFORTUNATE, RIGHT? BUT I JUST FEEL THAT AS A CITY, YET AGAIN, WE NEED TO REALLY FIND A GREAT WAY. AND AGAIN, IT CAN PROBABLY START WITH A GREAT WEBSITE, RIGHT? OR A GREAT GIS TOOL, RIGHT? I DO KNOW SEE THAT THE COACHELLA VALLEY ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP, THROUGH SOME OF THE PEOPLE THAT WORK THERE, WORK VERY WELL WITH GIS. AND SOME OF THEM ARE PROBABLY JUST WAITING FOR A PHONE CALL TO MAKE THIS THING HAPPEN, RIGHT? IF WE CAN HAVE THAT TYPE OF INTERACTION AND OUR WEBSITE AND MAKE MAKE AN INVESTMENT IN THAT, IF WE'RE, IF THERE'S THE FUNDS TO HAVE SOMETHING REALLY ENGAGING AND INTERACTIVE FOR CITIES TO SEE WHERE WE'RE AT, WHERE WE'RE GOING, AND WHERE POTENTIALLY WE'RE LOOKING AT AS A CITY, THE CITY DOES HAVE A DEVELOPMENT DEVELOPMENT, DEVELOPMENT DASHBOARD, IF YOU WILL, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES MAP THAT DOES SHOW PROJECTS THAT HAVE RECENTLY BEEN APPROVED ARE CURRENTLY IN THE PROCESS OR UNDER REVIEW. THAT WAS ACTIVE UNTIL ABOUT LAST WEEK OR THE WEEK BEFORE. THERE WAS A RECENT UPDATE THAT WAS DONE. SO IT'S CURRENTLY NOT SUPPORTED RIGHT NOW, BUT THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT IS WORKING ON TRYING TO ACQUIRE SOME ADDITIONAL RESOURCES TO GET THAT THAT DATABASE UPDATED, SO WE CAN HAVE THAT GIS MAP BACK UP AND RUNNING. OH, SO IT WAS A GIS MAP. WE DID HAVE ONE. YES. YEAH.
ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. I STAND CORRECTED. I APOLOGIZE, BUT WE'LL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH OUR OUR CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE TO SEE IF THERE IS ANY RESOURCES THAT CAN BE ALLOCATED TO IMPROVING OUR WEBSITE AND, AND UPDATING OUR GIS MAPPING TO MAKE IT EASIER AND MORE ACCESSIBLE FOR OUR RESIDENTS. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? I ACTUALLY DO. SO THE INFRASTRUCTURE TALK JUST STARTED A YEAR AGO. OKAY, SO BUT THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR A COUPLE YEARS, RIGHT? THE WHOLE INFRASTRUCTURE SITUATION, AND I WOULD HAVE TO SAY THAT LIKE WE CAN'T PIN IT ON WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE CITY. IN THE PAST YEAR, SINCE THIS HAS BEEN
[00:25:02]
AN ISSUE FOR LONGER THAN A YEAR AND IT'S BARELY BEEN TALKED ABOUT AND BARELY DONE, SOME SOMETHING IS BEING DONE ABOUT IT. SO. I DON'T THINK IT SHOULD BE PINNED ON ANYTHING POLITICAL.IT'S CLEARLY BEEN AN ISSUE FOR A LONG TIME, SO I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE TO PUT THAT OUT THERE.
AND WE STILL HAVE THE PROBLEM BECAUSE NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE. SO YEAH. THAT'S THAT'S THAT'S ALL MY COMMENTS. THANK YOU. SO WE DON'T HAVE ANY MORE COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS. IT'S A NON HEARING ITEM. OKAY. SO WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON TO PUBLIC HEARING CALENDAR. THERE ARE NO
[Informational]
ITEMS ON THIS AGENDA. THANK YOU. AND INFORMATIONAL. I WANTED TO PROVIDE YOU GUYS WITH AN UPDATE ON THE SORRY, WITH AN UPDATE THAT OUR FORMER CITY MANAGER, BILL PATTERSON, RETIRED EFFECTIVE YESTERDAY, AND WE NOW HAVE AN INTERIM CITY MANAGER. HIS NAME IS MR. GABRIEL GONZALEZ. THE CITY HAS ACTIVELY BEGUN THE PROCESS OF FINDING A MORE PERMANENT CITY MANAGER, BUT OUR INTERIM, MR. GABRIEL GONZALEZ IS IS GOING TO BE HERE UNTIL UNTIL THEY FIND A NEW ONE.AWESOME. AND THEN I JUST WANTED MR. GONZALEZ, AND THEN I JUST WANTED TO PROVIDE AN AN UPDATE AS WELL THAT THE CITY HAS THE MARIACHI MARIACHI FESTIVAL THIS WEEKEND IF YOU GUYS ARE ABLE TO ATTEND. AND IF YOU'RE INTERESTED, I CAN PROVIDE YOU WITH MORE INFO. I CAN EMAIL YOU MORE INFORMATION ON THAT AS WELL. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. SO WE'RE DONE WITH INFORMATIONAL JUST FOR THE REST OF THE DIAS. I DO HAVE AN UPDATE. I THINK NEXT MEETING WILL BE MY LAST MEETING FOR A COUPLE MONTHS. JUST SO YOU GUYS KNOW, I'M NOT LEAVING. I'M JUST GOING TO GO GIVE BIRTH AND THEN COME BACK. SO YEAH, I'M ABOUT TO GIVE BIRTH. YOU'RE SO SKINNY.
THANKS. THANK YOU FOR THAT. OH MY GOD. YEAH. SO I HAVE BEEN TALKING TO DIRECTOR KENDRA AND WE'LL PROBABLY BE JOINING VIRTUALLY AFTERWARDS IN THE SUMMER OR AFTER THE SUMMER, BUT IF NOT, I WON'T BE HERE FOR A FEW MONTHS. BUT GOOD LUCK AND CONGRATULATIONS. THANK YOU. I THINK THAT IT LOOKS SO GOOD. I GOTTA PAY BETTER ATTENTION. IT WAS HIDING FOR A LONG TIME.
OKAY, SO ANYTHING ELSE? ANY INFORMATION? SO I WOULD LIKE TO ADJOURN THIS MEETING AT
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.