Accomplishments

KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Neighborhood Involvement

I believe in a participatory government as being the best government, which is why I advocated for and helped write the Ordinance that established the Office of Neighborhood Involvement in 2005.  The Ordinance recognizes the important voice of citizens, opens up channels of communication between citizens and government, and increases City responsiveness to neighborhood needs.  City government cannot operate in a vacuum, it must be a reflection of the values and concerns of residents and businesses and empower people to make a difference in their community.   To find out more about the Office of neighborhood Involvement and the great work of neighborhoods in people building community and improving their neighborhood, visit the Palm Springs Neighborhood Involvement Committee’s website at www.palmspringsneighborhoods.com.   I am also a member of the Vista Las Palmas Neighborhood Organization.  As a Councilmember, I attend the annual meetings of many of our now 23 Palm Springs Neighborhood Organizations.

Quality of Life

Quality of life is measured by the level of satisfaction people have in calling Palm Springs home.  It has to do with safety, security, pleasure, and feeling a part of a community. 

·   Comfort

    People have the right to live safely and comfortably in their homes.   In 2007, I was a moving force, with the help of the Palm Springs Neighborhood Involvement Committee, in passing the Vacation Rental Ordinance and Event Rental Ordinance, that protects the sanctity of people’s home environment and adds Transient Occupancy Tax revenues to our general fund.  The Ordinance provides clear direction for vacation and event rental properties concerning noise, parking, number of guests and a tiered fine structure for repeated violations.

·   Protecting against City blight

    Concerned about blight in our downtown and our neighborhoods, and the deterioration of the aesthetic and economic qualities of our City, I supported the adoption of a vacant and abandoned building ordinance and the hiring of additional code enforcement officers to ensure that maintenance of these properties was enforced.

    In 2008, Palm Springs saw an unprecedented increase in the number of homes in or in the process of foreclosure.   As time went by, these properties were becoming neighborhood nuisances as they were not being maintained.  Dying plants, drained pools breeding mosquitoes, and other issues prompted my support in adopting an Ordinance requiring the lending institution or property manager to maintain these properties.

·   Parks and trails

    Residents of the Tahquitz River Estates, Deepwell Estates, Warm Sands and Historic Tennis Club neighborhoods, came to me about the condition of the Tahquitz Creek area that lies between S. and N. Riverside Way.  Their compelling vision for the future of this area, that benefits residents and Palm Springs visitors alike, caused me to champion this project at the City.  We are now in the final stages of developing a master plan for improved landscaping and walking and biking trails in this area.  Finding the funding for this project will be a priority for me.  Visit www. www.trenops.com  to find out more.

    We have secured federal stimulus transportation dollars to build a new pocket park on Gene Autry Trail that will include 2 bocce ball courts and a landscaped median on Gene Autry, which will greatly improve the look, feel and experience at this northern gateway into Palm Springs and provide a much needed park in the northeastern section of our City.

    Working with the Friends of Palm Springs Mountains, I assisted in developing a Chino Canyon conservation strategy that compensates landowners and maintains most of this area as protected landscape and habitat.  

    I was also a supporter of the new Palm Springs sign and visitor welcome area, just north of the Palm Springs Visitor Center, where people can stop and admire the inspiring vista of Chino Canyon and the San Jacinto Mountains.

·   Safety

    In 2008 I was a City Council representative on the committee that selected our new police chief, David G. Dominguez.  I strongly advocated for Chief Dominguez for many reasons, including his experience in community policing, state-of-the art program development and the breadth of his experience.  Under his leadership, we now have a new "Neighborhood Policing Officer" program, which enables citizens to work together with their police officers to reduce crime and protect the security and comfort of their neighborhood.  And the best news yet, our overall crime rate is down, including an 18% decrease in residential burglaries. 

·   Education

In 2006, I was part of a team that developed the proposal to attract the west valley College of the Desert Campus for Palm Springs. I also helped to secure philanthropic dollars, that as part of the proposal, was an important factor in COD’s decision to choose Palm Springs.

Business Expansion and Retention

In 2008 we put the Hotel Incentive Plan in place that encouraged the multi-million dollar renovations of some of our finest hotel attractions, including the Ace Hotel and Swim Club, The Riviera Resort and Spa, and the Hyatt and Wyndham hotels. This has brought new jobs to our city, generated over $105 million of spending in our area, contributed to Palm Springs cache and will continue to fortify our economy, including our convention center business.

In the past two years we have had two major shopping centers open, occupied by brand tenants and local businesses that provide additional service to our residents and general fund revenues. I was a representative for the City at three consecutive International Conference of Shopping Centers, working to attract major stores to Palm Springs. This effort resulted in the successful completion of The Springs and Smoke Tree Commons centers. A third shopping center is scheduled to open in the fall.

As a member of the Business Retention Council Sub-Committee, I helped create the Downtown Facade Improvement Program that provides businesses with funding for new signage, repainting their storefronts, replacing windows and other beautification projects. To date, 40 businesses have completed improvements under this program, and a growing list of businesses will soon follow in their steps.

In response to the business community, I worked to craft a new sign ordinance that provides businesses with greater latitude on the types of signs they can use to attract customers to their place of business. As a member of the Council Sign Sub-Committee, I am currently working on an interactive "way-finding" kiosk to be located near the Welwood Murray Library, which will help visitors and residents locate stores, restaurants and attractions throughout downtown.

I have met with downtown landowners to encourage them to get involved in downtown, asking for their cooperation in reducing rates to help our small businesses, and to allow the City to use their empty storefront windows for displays to improve the visual experience of downtown.

Continually working to revitalize our downtown and help our local businesses succeed, I endorsed the Downtown Development Design plan, which allows for new uses, such as mixed use buildings, in our downtown core, and have recently been working on a Specific Plan for properties associated with the Fashion Plaza.  I also support allowing the City to use redevelopment dollars and seek private/public partnerships to aid in the revitalization of the Fashion Plaza site.

A few months ago, I voted to adopt a local preference purchasing policy to support our local businesses and keep our tax dollars in the Coachella Valley.

On behalf of our small hotels, I successfully negotiated an easing of food service restrictions with the County Health Department, so that these hotels could expand their guest services.

I have supported the preservation of the Santa Fe Bank Building, Casa Cody annexation of the Winters Property, Palm Hills and La Serena Villas to retain our City’s identity and character as a cornerstone for stimulating our economy and enhancing our quality of life.

Fiscal management

The health of our City budget has always been a priority for me, and I have strongly advocated for prudent spending and investing in programs that provide an economic return to our City.

My first experience with Palm Springs City government was as a member of the budget task force.  I identified many opportunities to streamline spending during this process, which was one of the reasons I ran for City Council in 2003.

As a long-time member of the Riverside County Transportation Commission, I strongly advocated for securing stimulus dollars to fund the 1-10 interchange at Gene Autry Trail.

As a member of the Budget Subcommittee, I closely examined how the City could meet the challenges of the economic downturn and additional State cuts, and still protect essential services such as police and fire.  This was a very difficult task, and there will additional challenges ahead, but I believe we have done an admirable job in balancing all aspects of City service funding, and protecting our future. 

Health and well-being

I am proud to have championed the new Palm Springs Animal Shelter, securing $5 million in bond funding, and serving on the architect selection committee that resulted in a state-of-the art building design.  As a member of the Friends of the Palm Springs Animal Shelter Board of Directors, I am helping to raise the money needed to match the bond funding.

As the co-chair of the Homeless Blue Ribbon Taskforce, it became clear to me that homelessness was not an issue that Palm Springs could tackle alone, so I helped spearhead the drive within CVAG to create a sub-committee that would craft a regional approach to homelessness.   One of the difficult issues that I have worked on for several years is securing the new homeless shelter that will provide food, shower facilities, and coordinated social services and job training to help individuals and families overcome the catastrophic effects of homelessness. 

Having worked for 10 years with HIV affected children and families, I have seen the benefits of medical marijuana.  However, as medical marijuana dispensaries started popping up all over town, I became concerned about the need for City protocols to govern and monitor their activities, and to ensure that they were truly serving the patient community.  I put together a taskforce that included patients, advocates, City staff and business community members, which resulted in an Ordinance limiting the number of collectives to two, directing where these businesses can operate and assuring that patients who truly need this medication can obtain it legally.

I am especially proud of my work to bring the national tour of “Eyes Wide Open” peace display to Palm Springs.  This exhibit, sponsored by the American Friends Service Committee, honors the sacrifice of service men and women who have died in Iraq.