Close connection

Watch City Council meetings live over the internet!!!

That’s what’s coming for Cathedral City residents. The first municipality in the valley to approve such a program, Cathedral City will offer streaming video technology through a company called Granicus Solutions.  Not only can citizens watch the Council meetings as they happen, but they can retrieve a specific section of any Council meeting at any time by using a simple keyword search. The system can also provide public education, public service announcements and video on demand training. 

From pancakes to business …

Dates to circle on the calendar for October ….

October 5 --- 7 a.m. Chamber of Commerce Power Breakfast at Doral Hotel.

October 7 – 7 p.m. Concert in the Square, featuring  jazz, ranchero and rap music.

October 10 – 6 p.m. Forum for candidates for Palm Springs Unified School District Board of Education election.

October 15 – 8:30 to noon, Fire Department Open House and Pancake Breakfast, at headquarters Fire Station, 32-100 Desert Vista Way.

October 19 – 4 to 7 p.m. Chamber of Commerce Business Expo in Town Square.

October 25 –11:30 a.m. State of the City Address, Doral Hotel 

Rink open throughout the winter

The ice rink will be operating at the former Heilig Meyers building on East Palm Canyon through April. The City Council approved an extension of the lease with the Desert Hockey Association to operate the Ice Gardens in the former furniture store.  Recreational skating and classes are available at the facility. The association is seeking a permanent facility.

Welcome Davison, Burt

Janet Davison, the city’s new Redevelopment Director, will report to work on Monday, Oct. 3.  She comes from Watsonville, where she held the same post, and wanted to move back to her roots in Southern California. Also nice to see Estela Burt back to work.  She is now assigned full time to Administration.

Mileage reimbursement up with IRS allowance

City employees using their personal vehicles for city business will now be reimbursed at 48.5 cents a mile, the rate allowed by the IRS.  In recognition of the recent increase in gasoline prices, the IRS approved an increase of 8 cents  in the final months of 2005. The city has historically matched the IRS rates, because they fairly reflect the cost of operating a vehicle.

Blazing trail north of I-10

Plans for construction of the first buildings north of I-10 in Cathedral City are moving ahead with the Council’s approval of a tentative parcel map for property owner Al Hertz.  He will subdivide 18.72 acres into 10 parcels that will be used primarily for expanding businesses that may be growing out of their present quarters.   

Capt.  Welsh says “Thanks” 

Fire Capt. Jeff Welsh says, “ Thank you!!”  to everyone for their support and caring for his family during the Hurricane Katrina aftermath.  His mother and stepdad have returned to the South and hope to rebuild their home.  Jeff’s sister-in-law and two kids have been living with him but plan to move to Louisiana by Thanksgiving.  They will live there in a FEMA trailer until their house can be rebuilt in Mississippi..  His brother is in Waveland, Miss. now, working on the clean up for FEMA.  Jeff said his immediate family lost four homes; aunts and uncles and other relatives lost another four homes, all in the Bay St Louis area of Mississippi; and then five more homes of family members were lost in other parts of the South. “Every day gets a little better,” he said.

Lesson learned … too late

Here’s where two stories merge. The theme of this year’s Fire Department students’ poster contest is “Use care with candles.  When you leave, blow them out.” There are 2,500 entries in the contest, so kids must be picking up on the message. Winners of the contest will be announced at the department’s Open House Oct. 15.  Just this week, a duplex caught on fire in the area of Navajo and 33rd.  It was cased when the homeowner left the house and did not extinguish a burning candle; its flame spread to upholstery and other household furnishings.   Fortunately, the fire did not spread to the second unit in the duplex, but it left the family without a home. With programs like the poster contest, the Fire Department hopes future generations will become aware of the dangers of unattended candles.  

Value of construction WAY up

In August, Cathedral City was the only city in the Coachella Valley (like the sound of that) to show an increase in building permit valuations, compared to last August.  The $17,853 represented a 316 % increase over the $4,293 the year before.  Overall, the valley’s nine cities suffered an almost 26% drop for the same time period. 

Three times elected 

City Clerk Pat Hammers is going to serve on two boards of directors for city clerk associations.  In Pomona, she was recently installed as the Recording Secretary on the Board of Directors of the Southern California City Clerks Association. This is a one-year term.  Then, next Thursday, she will be installed for a two-year term on the California City Clerks Association Board of Directors as the Professional Development representative for the Southern Division. She was elected to both posts by clerks throughout California and she is the elected City Clerk here.  

To reduce water waste, runoff in neighborhoods

Cathedral City has been awarded a state grant to conserve water at Panorama and Century Parks.  The State Water Resources Department is finalizing the grant, which will then be presented to City Council for official action.  The application presented to the State by City Environmental Conservation Manager Deanne Pressgrove would install innovative irrigation system control devices and upgrade the irrigation systems. 

Cathedral City was one of only 25 projects funded in the state for implementation of urban water use efficiency projects.  

Burgers, burgers everywhere

Rough grading has started on the In ‘n’ Out Burger site at East Palm Canyon and Date Palm.  In fact, five pads in the Plaza de Oro development have been issued rough grading permits.  In the meantime, farther north,  adjacent to the new Walgreen’s, the property is in escrow and the new owners want to put in a Sonic Drive In, which they have been discussing with the Planning Department. The chain, throughout the Southwest, features

a drive thru, as well as an old fashioned drive-in where customers eat in their vehicles.  At this Sonic, customers will also be able to eat on the patio.