City of Cathedral City
68700 Avenida Lalo Guerrero
Cathedral City, CA 92234
(760) 770-0340

From: Allen Howe
August 28, 2007

North City Specific Plan Community Workshop

The first of three planned community workshops for the North City Specific Plan (NCSP) will be held on Tuesday, September 18, 2007 from 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at City Hall, 68-700 Avenida Lalo Guerrero, in the Study Session Room on the first floor. The workshop will focus on how best to plan the nearly 5,000 acres north of Interstate 10, including development opportunities, site constraints, and a vision for the Specific Plan area.

Since its incorporation in 1981, Cathedral City’s population has grown to over 50,000 and the city is home to a wide range of commercial land uses and residential neighborhoods. Most of the development in the City has occurred south of Interstate 10, which is largely built-out. Significant growth is expected to continue in the City and the region - the Coachella Valley is one of the fastest growing areas in Riverside County, with a projected population growth of approximately 600,000 over the next decade. Now is the time to plan for future development and public improvements in the largely vacant northern portion of the City.

The NCSP is important to City residents because it will take a long-term view of what land uses are appropriate for this area and establish a clear vision and implementation strategy for future development. The Specific Plan will determine market potential, establish standards and guidelines as to land use and form, address circulation and parking strategies, and identify overall design elements for the project area.

The Specific Plan Project Area includes several physical constraints, such as slopes and drainage courses, which will strongly influence the ultimate land uses and circulation patterns. The Specific Plan boundary encompasses all land north of Interstate 10 within the City limits of Cathedral City, as well as 1,300 acres of County land that is currently under consideration for annexation. More than half the land will be preserved as an open space conservation area through the Coachella Valley Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan (CVMHSCP).

During preparation of the North City Specific Plan, the community will have an opportunity to actively participate in the Specific Plan process by attending three community workshops that will be held at key stages of the project. These include:

In addition to providing information about the project, the workshops are designed to encourage discussion and solicit feedback from the community so that the Specific Plan expresses the vision, goals and ideas of the community as a whole.

The goal is to have developed the final Specific Plan by Summer 2008.

“The NCSP community workshops are an opportunity for the public to participate in planning for Cathedral City’s future,” Leisa Lukes, Cathedral City Planner. We encourage all interested members of the public to attend.

For more information visit the NCSP website at www.cathedralcity.gov/ncsp or call the Planning Department at 760-770-0370.

VALLEYWIDE HOMELESSNESS TOPIC OF UPCOMING PUBLIC FORUMS

Starting in September, the public will have several opportunities to comment on the Coachella Valley Association of Governments (CVAG) Strategic Plan to address homelessness in the Coachella Valley. The Strategic Plan, developed by CVAG’s Homelessness Committee, was recently endorsed by CVAG’s Executive Committee on July 30th.

Three Public Forums will be held across the Coachella Valley: Friday, September 14th, 6:00 p.m. at the Indio City Council Chambers; Monday, September 17th, 6:00 p.m. at the CVAG Offices in Palm Desert; and, Tuesday, September 18th, 6:00 p.m. at Palm Springs City Council Chambers. CVAG’s Homelessness Committee Chairwoman, Lupe Ramos Watson, who also serves as Mayor Pro Tem for the City of Indio, will be on hand with CVAG staff and Riverside County officials to present the Strategic Plan and listen to public input.

The Strategic Plan is a three-year phased process with priorities of establishing a Western Coachella Valley Multi-Service Center (West-MSC) and an Eastern Coachella Valley Multi-Service Center (East-MSC). These MSCs will provide an array of services including food, showers, emergency shelter, mental health, health services, and employment services, to name a few.

The CVAG Homelessness Committee consists of one elected official from each member jurisdiction and eight ex-officio members representing homeless service agencies, and meets on the third Wednesday of the month at 10:30 a.m. at CVAG Offices in Palm Desert. The monthly meetings are open to the public. The Strategic Plan to End Homelessness can be viewed and downloaded from CVAG’s website: www.cvag.org under Press Releases. For more information contact: CVAG @ (760) 346-1127.

Savvy Awards

Deanna Pressgrove, Environmental Conservation Manager, was notified on August 21st that two of her publications – the 2007 Student Creative Recycle Art Program (S.C.R.A.P.) Calendar and 2007 Refuse & Recycling Guide are finalists in the in the City-County Communications and Marketing Association (3CMA) Savvy Award Competition.. Whether these publications win the Savvy Award, the Silver Circle or Award of Excellence won’t be known until the 3CMA Conference this October in Kansas City, MO, but Deanna promised to keep us informed of her winner status.

This Year there were 780 entries in various media categories. The awards recognize outstanding local government achievements in communications, public-sector marketing and citizen-government relationships. The Savvies salute skilled and effective city, county professionals who have creatively planned and carried out successful innovations in communications.