The Twentynine Palms City Council meets at 6 pm this upcoming Tuesday, July 28, at City Hall for a regularly scheduled session. Attendees can likely anticipate a long meeting.

A packed agenda includes rescission of the zoning that was changed for the Ofland Resort development project, new permitting requirements for food establishments, proposed sewer regulations, and discussion of a potential million dollar grant opportunity with significant up-front application costs. For the sake of brevity, potentially significant discussion items are covered in this article.

The entire 301-page agenda packet for the meeting is linked here; coverage of the previous Council meeting is available here.

PUBLIC COMMENT

You can comment on agenda items and issues important to you at every City Council meeting. Comments on agenda items take place during discussion of that item, while comments on non-agenda items take place near the end of the meeting. The Brown Act prevents Council from commenting on non-agenda items. To comment, just pick up a form at the entry desk, fill it out, and hand it to the Clerk, who usually sits just in front of the Council dais toward the right.

Council email addresses and public comment information can be found on our resources page. Be sure to email prior to 2 pm on the day of the meeting so they have time to read your email prior to discussion. You can also copy the clerk at cvillescas@29palms.org and ask that your letter be made part of the public record.

Individuals can now comment remotely using the City’s WebEx system, a video conferencing application, with a unique meeting link at the top of each agenda. The City implemented this for the first time at its last council meeting, though there were some technical issues.

The unique WebEx link to participate in public comment remotely is available here.

CONSENT CALENDAR

The Consent Calendar consists of items usually approved with a single vote. The public can comment on these beforehand. Fill out a comment form at the meeting, or send an email in advance.

This meeting’s Consent Calendar includes a Warrant Register totaling $2,424,928.05. Noteworthy payments include a $1,677.78 City payment to San Bernardino County LAFCO, the Local Agency Formation Commission, $557,000 for law enforcement services, and a payment of $64,810.37 to Rutan & Tucker LLP, the City Attorney’s office.

Other consent calendar items include a routine Treasurer’s Report that summarizes the final quarter of the ‘25-26 fiscal year. The report states that the City currently has $22,118,033 total funds in the Treasurer’s custody, a well-diversified portfolio, and sufficient funds to meet its expenditure requirements for the next six months.

Wrapping the consent calendar is an item confirming a $200,000 contribution from the Twentynine Palms Water District toward funding of a crucial U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) on potential groundwater and nitrate contamination from septic discharges. The item notes that the City and Water District are:

collaborating to develop a Wastewater Management Plan that will provide a blueprint for a centralized sewer-collection system and wastewater treatment plant to replace aging septic systems.1

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PUBLIC HEARING

Intent to Levy Fees for Twentynine Palms Lighting and Landscaping Assessment District #1 for FY ‘26-’27

This is a routine agenda item Council addresses annually prior to the start of each fiscal year. Because it involves City finances, a public hearing must be conducted prior to the resolution’s approval.

Lighting and Landscaping Assessment District #1 covers the Historic Plaza and areas north of El Paseo Road, West of Encelia Avenue, south of Sunnyslope and east of Panorama Avenue. The new fiscal year started July 1. Per the resolution, the City engineer does not anticipate any fee increases for the continued landscaping, lighting, and irrigation upkeep for these areas. Though shops at Historic Plaza are privately owned, the plaza itself is owned by the City.

Coverage on this item from prior years and a map of the assessment district is linked here.

Vote to Rescind Special Zoning Created for Ofland

The council will hold a public hearing and vote on whether to reverse the entitlements given to the Ofland Resort development project and return the area back to residential zoning. As reported by Desert Trumpet, in a public court hearing on April 29, 2026, Ofland’s lawyers requested a temporary stay of litigation in response to a lawsuit filed in August of 2025 by the Center for Biological Diversity and Indian Cove Neighbors. The suit followed the City Council’s approval of the project in July 2025 of the resort without a full environmental review and despite strong public opposition.

The luxury resort project, which was proposed on an undeveloped 152-acre parcel in Indian Cove, would have consisted of multiple new structures including 100 freestanding guest cabins, 25 staff housing units, a restaurant, event space, and wastewater treatment facility. The property was taken off the market on November 19, 2025, and is not currently listed for sale.

To comply with the stay, and as requested by the developer, the City of Twentynine Palms must rescind all project entitlements within 90 days of the stay, or July 28, 2026. The City must certify they have done so in the public record, for example a consent item or a vote at a meeting, by August 31, 2026. These rescissions include:

• The amendment to the City General Plan Amendment to create a new zoning type for City land use, Open Space Conservation (OS-C), and corresponding development standards .

• The conversion of the 152-acre parcel from Single Family Residential - Estate (RS-E) to Commercial Tourist (CT) and the new OS-C zoning.

• Approval of the Mitigated Negative Declaration, which contained mitigation measures that must be met before development started to curtail significant environmental, traffic, noise pollution, light pollution, and archaeological impacts.

• A Conditional Use Permit to grant Ofland permission for the project in accordance with California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

A follow-up hearing on the lawsuit is scheduled for August 27, 2026. If the City votes to rescind the entitlements the lawsuit may be dismissed. However, if they are not rescinded, the lawsuit may continue. A notice for this public hearing was mailed to area residents and a notice was printed in the Hi-Desert Star. You can read previous reporting on the Ofland project here.

Ordinance for Sewer Regulations, Establishing a FOG Program, and Related Topics.

While the USGS survey on water quality and septic seepage bought Twentynine Palms more time on the citywide sewer question, the never-ending sewer saga continues.

Desert Trumpet took a deep-dive on sewers back in 2022- The WHO, WHAT, HOW and WHY of Sewer In Twentynine Palms.

In October 2021, the City received a $1,675,680 federal grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) to build the package wastewater treatment plant within the Project Phoenix/Freedom Plaza footprint.

This new ordinance proposes a number of regulations aimed at protecting the Project Phoenix package treatment plant from damage and also seeks to incorporate State of California requirements for sewage/wastewater. Though the ordinance is currently aimed at Project Phoenix, it proposes far-reaching policy implementations with potential of a Citywide sewer system in mind. Some of those changes include:

• Mandatory sewer connection for all new developments within 200 feet of the downtown wastewater line

• A citywide FOG (fats, oils, and grease) permitting and inspection program

• A citywide ban on industrial food waste grinders/liquefiers

• Any new residential, commercial, industrial, or institutional project must connect to a public sewer if located within 200 feet of it — no new septic is allowed in that zone.

Private septic systems will now have to comply with state requirements, governed through the use of the State Water Resources Control Board Onsite Wastewater Treatment System Policy (‘OWTS Policy’).

If passed, the ordinance would require food service establishments in Twentynine Palms, regardless of whether they are connected to septic, a private package plant, or a future city sewer, to obtain a FOG discharge permit, install grease interceptors, and submit to city inspections. The staff report does not list a specific cost for the proposed permits but suggests they would be valid for one year.

DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS

Community Resilience Center Grant

In 2024, Women of Color Global 29, a nonprofit organization, along with Councilmember Octavious Scott, brought a proposal to Council for a climate resilience center funded through a federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grant program. Their concept for a center and the grant was presented at an April 2024 Council meeting. The organization later withdrew from participating in the proposal, but the grant required partnership with a nonprofit.

Former City Manager Stone James then selected the Community Learning & Equipping Project (CLEP), a nonprofit associated with the Sanctuary Church, without issuing a formal request for proposals (RFP) and began the grant writing process without a formal Council approval of his choice.

In November of that year, with the federal grant application deadline fast approaching, a memorandum of understanding and a completed grant was presented to Council, who then formally voted to partner with CLEP. While the EPA grant program lost funding last year after Donald Trump became president, the idea of a resilience center for Twentynine Palms has remained.

This agenda item, introduced by Councilmember April Ramirez, revives that discussion with an opportunity for the City to pursue resilience center funding through a California Strategic Growth Council grant2 program. Per the staff report:

The Community Resilience Center Grant provides funding ranging from $1 million to $10 million for the development of a resilience center in Twentynine Palms. The grant does not require a local funding match, making it a highly competitive funding opportunity. Grant funds may only be used for the construction of a new facility or the renovation of an existing building.

While the grant itself may have changed, many of the key players involved are still present. On their IRS 990N form below, CLEP has listed “Hope Project 29 Palms, Inc” as the organization’s website URL. Per the 37-page staff report:

The Hope Center has expressed interest in partnering with the City and utilizing its recently acquired property, the former Rite Aid building, as the proposed Resilience Center. It should be noted that the partnership with nonprofit organizations, such as the Hope Center, are viewed favorably under the grant criteria and would likely strengthen the City’s application.

The staff report outlines grant details, city application requirements, and an optimistic timeline. The grant application deadline is September 25, 2026. Before the City can apply, the staff report says the following must be completed:

• Conducting community outreach and stakeholder engagement

• Evaluate site and land use considerations

• Complete the necessary environmental review

• Negotiate a long-term agreement with the Hope Center.

The City currently has $25,000 in its budget dedicated toward grant writing. The staff report estimates grant writing consultant costs for this fast-approaching deadline will be between $15,000 and $18,000. Though a request for proposals for qualified nonprofit partners was not listed on the City website prior to the agenda publication, the staff report specifically lists the Hope Center as a potential partner for this grant.

Despite what the staff report and Hope Center website claim, the Desert Trumpet is unable to verify whether the Hope Center (or Hope Project) is an independent 501c3 nonprofit — it is not listed in the California State DOJ Charitable Trust Registry or with the IRS. Whether the Hope Center has a nonprofit fiscal sponsor, such as CLEP, is not specified in the staff report.

A search of the IRS website for CLEP revealed the matrix of relationships surrounding the Hope Center, with Perry Ford, the Bishop of the Sanctuary Church listed as the Principal Officer of CLEP, “The Hope Project 29 Palms, Inc.”, listed as the website url (sic) and a PO Box for CLEP that appears to be shared with the Hope Center. The IRS allows organizations with less than $50,000 in revenue to file postcards, circumventing the more thorough financial transparency of a full 990 tax return.

The Hope Center, run by Executive Director Terrance Sandifer, provides a number of community services ranging from financial literacy, youth activities, to health and wellbeing. Per the Hope Center website:

Founded in December 2023, The Hope Center is a nonprofit organization recognized by the state of California. Our mission is to foster hope, connection, and inspiration within the community. We serve as a sanctuary where individuals can find support, discover their purpose, and reach their full potential. Through a variety of services and programs, we strive to address social, economic, and health challenges while building stronger community ties.

An expired DOJ registration shows “the Hope Project, The Hope Center” as a DBA of CLEP. However, the current registration has dropped that DBA.

The Desert Trumpet took a deep-dive into the City’s nonprofit partnerships in 2025, available here. Since then, Finance Director Abigail Hernandez-Conde and City staff have tightened requirements for organizations that seek City grant money, recently issuing termination letters that banned some nonprofits and individuals from future City funding for perceived flaws in required financial reports.

The policy requires that before nonprofits can meet eligibility requirements for grant funding, the City checks whether the recipient is in good standing with the state’s nonprofit requirements; if not, no funds are awarded. Yet it appears that no current policy exists regarding grant applications that the City applies for and who it chooses to partner with.

Other local nonprofits that participate in community resilience services include the Hi Desert Emergency Action Alliance and Morongo Basin Unity Home.

Though the City’s current grant budget is capped at $25,000, a future council initiated agenda item acknowledges a potential reallocation of homeless and housing funds to pursuit grants.

An ambitious September 25 deadline may prove to be the proposal's biggest obstacle, regardless of how the partnership question shakes out.

FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS

1. Shade Structures around Freedom Plaza and a possible art fixture with “Freedom Plaza” announcing the location.

2. Discussion on the use of City funds for grants and the potential reallocation of housing and homeless funds to grants.

3. Discussion on the next steps of reallocating $1.3 million for housing.

4. Review and revision to Municipal Code 5.08 related to Cannabis uses to bring the City up to par with new legislation and State Law.

5. Discussion regarding a Moratorium on Data Centers.

6. Discussion on reallocating funds that were set aside for City Hall shade structures to grant writing.

The meeting takes place July 28, 6136 Adobe Road at 6pm. See you there!

NOTE: Desert Trumpet staff members Cindy Bernard, Kat Talley-Jones, and Heidi Heard live in the Indian Cove neighborhood, adjacent to this proposed development project, and are on the executive committees of Indian Cove Neighbors and Say No to Ofland.

Run for City Council! Districts 3 (Mintz), 4 (Scott), and 5 (Wright) are up for election. The nomination period for candidates began July 13, 2026 and ends on August 6, 2026. Contact City Clerk Cindy Villescas for details and check out our article on How to Run for City and Town Council for general guidelines.

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Attendees of Tuesday’s meeting walked into Council chambers and were greeted with the sight of a command center for the City’s new remote-participation technology. Director of Information Services Elijah Marshall provided trouble-shooting for the system. That there were a few glitches is to be expected from a new system.

The meeting saw a moving tribute to organizations and individuals who provide services for domestic abuse survivors, adoption of the new remote-comment policy, a wave of Councilmembers confirming reelection bids, and some very pointed public comments.

Useful links:

• Meeting agenda

• Desert Trumpet agenda preview

• Video of the meeting

ANNOUCEMENTS, PROCLAMATIONS, AND THE CITY MANAGER’S REPORT

The meeting opened with Councilmember April Ramirez presenting a community leadership award recognizing a coalition that pushed back against a proposed 43% cut to California’s Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funding.

Through relentless advocacy, bipartisan collaboration, and unwavering commitment to survivors, you turned a 43% cut turned into a $25 million one-time investment, and ultimately we finalized at a $50 million investment in the California state budget signed by the governor’s office, preserving critical services for victims and their families across our state. This remarkable achievement is a testament to the power of partnership and the belief that every victim deserves access to justice, healing, and hope.

Honored were San Bernardino County Supervisor Dawn Rowe’s office, the County’s Bureau of Victim Services, youth advocate Addison Bradshaw, and representatives of Partners Against Violence and Morongo Basin Unity Home for Domestic Violence Services, along with state senators Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh and Suzette Martinez Valladares. Partners Against Violence’s Gena Pliss told the Council

When we lose VOCA funding, we lose survivor services, and for a lot of people, those survivor services are life-saving. More than 13% of people who are sexually assaulted will think about suicide. We have a high rate of good things happening in our community with all of the VOCA funding, but when we lose that for our agency in particular, we take the chance of losing staff….When we lose staff, now somebody doesn’t have anyone to go to court with them, doesn’t have them to do counseling, doesn’t have them for those services that help them get back up on their feet.

Testing 1-2-3, Testing 1-2-3

City Manager Kevin Cole introduced the new WebEx call-in option that rolled out at this meeting, an option required by SB 707, a new state law requiring remote participation.

You may or may not know that at one time this building housed a jail, so running stuff through the ceiling sometimes is not so easy when you have to contend with some steel plates and some brick wall. And they managed to tear it all apart and put it back together with this new technology. We’ve been testing it the last couple of days. We think we got it pretty dialed in.

The system had early problems. Some remote speakers couldn’t connect, and one public commenter opposing the sales tax measure got disconnected before he could speak. The meeting paused while staff tried to fix it.

Later in the meeting, the Council formally adopted its policy implementing SB 707, which governs what happens if remote-meeting technology fails and sets rules for public speaking time.

In public comment Kimberly Zzyzx and Desert Trumpet Editor Cindy Bernard raised concerns that the policy’s time limits were ambiguous. Bernard said the policy doesn’t specify whether speaker-time limits apply per agenda item or to the entire meeting, warning that on a dense agenda the ambiguity “could read as an intentional effort to suppress public comment,” even if that isn’t the Council’s aim.

The time limit section of the policy as currently written could use improvement. Council used to complain of crickets in chambers, and now there appears to be a concern that the public is too engaged….I think that these limits need some clarification….While I understand the need to keep meeting lengths reasonable, the policy also reads as though the public is being penalized for engaging with Council during meetings through public comment.

The primary issue with the time limits is the policy fails to specify whether the number of speakers registered are per meeting, i.e. all items plus general public comment, per agenda item, or specific to general public comment. And it would be great to add clarifications to what we’re talking about when we’re talking about the number of speakers and the time limit. The policy also fails to take agenda length into account.

Zzyzx urged the Council to preserve longer speaking windows:

In the 10 years I’ve lived here, my civic engagement has bloomed. This is in part due to issues like our needs in education or California Environmental Quality Act…a number of recent developments that have had a lot of problems with how they interface with the environment that we all benefit from and have a duty to protect. When these occasions have come up where I wanted to use my civic rights and come speak on behalf of those things, I have done so much research and talked to people and really tried to put those thoughts together… And two minutes is a very short amount of time. So, with respect to the fact that I know there are issues where a great mass of people will come out to speak on behalf of something, I just wanted to throw my two cents in to say that the more time we allow people to speak on behalf of things they’re passionate about — that is important to me.

City Manager Cole said staff would “take a look” at the wording, but the Council adopted the policy as written, 5-0, without changes.

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Council Meetings Attended: All three incumbents up for re-election are running

All three council members whose seats are up this fall used their comments to make it official:

• Mayor Daniel Mintz (District 3)

• Mayor Pro Tem Octavious Scott (District 4)

• Councilmember McArthur Wright (District 5)

Check out our recent article on for how to run for City Council and other offices. Nomination papers are due August 6.

Beyond campaign news, Council comments were dominated by the Flock camera roundtable Mayor Pro Tem Scott hosted, which Councilmembers Bilderain and Ramirez attended. Scott called the discussion “contentious at times, but fruitful,” and said it “needed to happen.” Our reporting about the roundtable is here.

Councilmember Bilderain also thanked staff for the chambers remodel and Parks and Rec for the Fourth of July celebration at Knott’s Sky Park. Councilmember Ramirez reported attending a California Public Utilities webinar and meetings with tribal leaders on ecotourism and with Morongo Unified School District. Mayor Mintz cited a busy stretch of events including the Base YMCA Marine Recognition Luncheon, the Hope Center ribbon-cutting, and the Great Race vintage car rally celebrating Route 66’s centennial passing through town on its way from Chicago to Santa Monica.

City Manager’s report: cooling center threshold drops, EV chargers still down

City Manager Cole lowered the bar for opening the city’s public cooling center this year from a heat index of 115 to 110 and said the senior center will open to the general public, not just seniors, once the National Weather Service heat index hits that mark. He did not indicate how word would spread that the cooling center would be open.

Cole also gave an update on the Freedom Plaza EV chargers: two of three fast chargers and both slow chargers are working, but the third fast charger needs a roughly $12,000 repair the City is still trying to budget for, and a separate charger at Bucklin Park has been offline for about two years. Cole cited the lack of any local repair technicians as a recurring obstacle.

DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS

After the consent calendar passed 5-0 with no items pulled and no public comment, the Council designated Councilmember Ramirez as its delegate to the Cal Cities annual conference, with Mayor Mintz as alternate.

The 1% sales tax measure heads to voters

The Council voted 5-0 to send a 1% transaction and use (sales) tax measure to the November 3, 2026 ballot. One of two resolutions ordered the measure onto the ballot, the second set priorities for a ballot argument and directing the city attorney to prepare an impartial analysis.

City Manager Cole read the ballot language into the record at resident Mary Alice Amsler’s request. As written, the measure would fund:

Services for the City of Twentynine Palms residents, including those required for maintaining 911 and emergency response times, police officers and patrols, repairing streets, sidewalks, responding to floods and natural disasters, maintaining clean and safe public parks, and upgrading the animal shelter.

This would be via a 1% transaction and use tax generating roughly $2 million annually “until ended by voters,” with required audits and public spending disclosures and a local-use requirement.

Amsler, who said she had raised the same concern at a prior meeting, argued the measure’s language remains too vague, allowing money to be spent on unlisted priorities down the line. Kimberly Zzyzx spoke in support, describing years of positive experience with city staff, including help navigating permitting and licensing for a home-based childcare program, as evidence the city’s request for new revenue is “reasonable and overdue.”

Mayor Mintz emphasized that passage of the measure would not hand the Council a blank check: any revenue would still flow through the city’s standard annual budget process, including public hearings, the same as General Fund dollars have for years. Councilmember Ramirez added that the vote wasn’t really about raising taxes so much as “giving the people... an opportunity to vote on what kind of future you want.”

FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS

A data center moratorium and an opportunity zone

Mayor Pro Tem Scott requested a future discussion on a moratorium on data centers in the city, seconded by Mayor Mintz. Councilmember Ramirez requested two items: a discussion of the city pursuing federal Opportunity Zone designation, and a discussion of reallocating funds that had been set aside for a shade structure outside City Hall, a project she said has been “sitting in limbo,” specifically to explore grant-writing options.

What is an Opportunity Zone? And what would it mean for Twentynine Palms?

Opportunity Zones are low-income areas where investors get federal tax breaks for putting money into local projects, such as housing or businesses. If Twentynine Palms were to receive this designation from the IRS, it could make census tracts within the City more attractive to outside investors.

The Treasury Department recently opened a new recommendation window, which closes on September 28, 2026. Zones have to be nominated by state governors, and the deadline for that nomination is July 20. Unless it is extended, it is unlikely that Twentynine Palms will receive a designation this year.

PUBLIC COMMENT

Mining for data with Flock cameras and mining for rare earth minerals in Music Valley

Beth Sheffield thanked Mayor Pro Tem Scott for the Flock roundtable which she said drew roughly 80 attendees, "most opposed" to the surveillance system. Sheffield explained Flock's "pattern of life" feature, which compiles a vehicle's camera hits over a chosen time window, from two weeks to a month or longer, into a heat map of where it spends the most time:

Of note, Flock did not invent the phrase "pattern of life.” It's a counterterrorism and military intelligence term for building a behavioral template of a target by tracking their movements.

She also reported that the Los Angeles Police Department will not be renewing its contract with Flock because of its concerns about how the company stores its data.

Catherine Powell echoed the thanks to Scott and asked the Council to schedule a formal discussion on the record before the city’s Flock contract comes up for renewal and raised concerns that Flock’s contract terms grant the company a perpetual license to City data regardless of the City’s own retention rules. A written comment from Heather Huguenor, read into the record by Mayor Mintz, reiterated opposition to the cameras.1

Audrey Philpott, a Hanson tract homeowner, asked the Council to place a future discussion of mining activity in the city on a future agenda, saying the issue "can substantially change the character of our city." We cover the mining issue here.

Cindy Bernard commented on the Lear Solar Project (which she recently reported on in depth), saying that it appears to violate a county ordinance requiring development in the sphere of influence to follow City zoning. Bernard said the water district was never notified prior to construction, and that the project's staff report contained factual errors, including understating the site's distance to Joshua Tree National Park.

The County knows they screwed up. They owe us. Here are a few suggestions for compensating 29 Palms residents for this violation of our sphere of influence and county ordinances. They could reopen the Lear fire station. They could provide us with the sheriff's service officer that we desperately need. It's a community solar farm that could provide credits to Joshua Tree and 29 Palms residents — perhaps we should ask those credits go to 29 only. We can insist on a community benefits package from the developer, and perhaps you have ideas as well. But we should get something for this.

Lynette Ramirez did not name names, but suggested that City Councilmembers behave with the same decorum expected of the public when it speaks before the Council.

I was recently contacted by a group that advocates for the homeless, and they were distraught after the recent raid on encampments. Two things specifically bothered them. First, certain members made a video showing the individuals’ personal items and labeling them with them as trash…. to those homeless people, that was their home or the last outfit that maybe gave them some dignity, and we’ve got to show some respect.

Ms. Ramirez also objected to the music that accompanied the video.

Second is a song that was used in the video, “Sound of the Police.”2 It’s a song about slave catchers, dirty cops, and overseers. When I asked to remove the song, perhaps replacing it with “Lean on Me,” and take down the pictures of the individual’s property, the response was to laugh about it with another constituent.

While she did not recommend censure, she said:

I’ve watched Barstow, the Apple Valley School District, Atlanta, and Hesperia censor members who have done far less than what’s happening here, and these were recent censors. Again, I’m asking this Council to put a code of conduct and ethics with actual consequences in place. As long as one does not exist, every time this Council reminds citizens to conduct themselves professionally, remember this: you’re telling the public that the rules only apply to us, but not you. Thank you.

The next City Council meeting is Tuesday, July 28, at 6 pm. Based on notices already published in the Hi-Desert Star, it appears the agenda will be packed.

Hi, new subscribers! The Desert Trumpet understands you might not be interested in all of our coverage. That’s why it’s divided into separate newsletters allowing you to opt out of reporting that’s not important to you. For instance, you may want our County news but not City Hall 29.

Here’s how to opt out: go to your Substack settings, scroll down to “subscriptions,” and select “Edit” for the Desert Trumpet. Simply uncheck the box next to the newsletters you don’t want to receive in your email inbox. You’ll still be able to access all coverage online or read them later if you change your mind.

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Subscribing to the Desert Trumpet will always be free. That said, did you know that paid subscribers receive discounts on our DT Social events and invites to DT Front Porch, intimate discussions featuring local officials and notable residents?

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The Twentynine Palms City Council meets this Tuesday, July 14, at 6 pm at City Hall. This will be the rollout of the City’s new Webex system, which will allow you to watch the meeting and make written and audiovisual public comments. You’ll need to register ahead of time with this link; if you want to comment on a particular agenda item, include the item number on the pop-up form. You can note whether you are for or against an agenda item without making a comment.

The agenda packet for the meeting is here—we’ll include agenda numbers in our preview, but check the agenda to ensure you reference the right items.

If you merely want to watch the meeting as in the past, here is the link for the City’s YouTube page.

There is a five-page Public Participation Policy in the agenda packet (pages 17 to 21), which will be voted on as part of agenda item 5. We cover it in more depth below, along with other changes mandated by California State Senate Bill 707.

You can still submit an email to Council. Be sure to email them prior to 2 pm on the date of the meeting so they have time to read your email. You can also copy the clerk at cvillescas@29palms.org and ask that your letter be made part of the public record.

Again, here are useful links:

• The meeting’s agenda packet

• The link to make public comments on the new Webex system

• The YouTube link to view the meeting

• The email address for the City Clerk cvillescas@29palms.org

PUBLIC COMMENT

Since we’re talking about public comment and the new Webex system, be assured that you can still comment on agenda items and issues important to you at every City Council meeting. Comments on agenda items take place during discussion of that item, while comments on non-agenda items take place near the end of the meeting. The Brown Act prevents Council from commenting on non-agenda items. For this meeting, to comment, pick up a form at the entry desk, fill it out, and hand it to the Clerk, who usually sits just in front of the Council dais on the right.

Keep in mind that the City has been falling short on documenting public comments. See our analysis here. Indeed, the minutes for the last City Council meeting, held on June 23, are not included in this agenda’s Consent Calendar, as they generally (but not always) are.

CONSENT CALENDAR

3. Information on the Importance of Periodic Septic System Maintenance.

The City has been placing educational materials on septic systems and groundwater safety prepared jointly by the City and the Water District in most agenda packets, as we covered here. The City intends to place this item on the Consent Calendar as a standing reminder to residents to maintain their septic systems, although it is a very under-the-radar way to do so. The Water District has similar information on septic safety linked here.

Also tucked into the agenda packet is the information that three of the City’s eight batch treatment systems are failing. On March 10, the Desert Trumpet pointed out:

The report does not identify their locations, nor does it provide a count of the individual residential and commercial septic systems operating within city limits. For a community that relies entirely on septic systems for wastewater management and is actively tracking groundwater contamination risk, that seems like information the public has a right to know.

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DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS

There are no public hearings included in the agenda, and the meeting will move directly to potential action items.

4. Designation of Delegate for the Annual CalCities Conference

The League of California Cities will host their annual Cal Cities Expo in September at the Anaheim Convention Center. According to the its website, the League is a non-profit organization composed of 476 cities throughout the state. They lobby at the state and federal level, advocating for legislation that affects policy decisions that come down from the State Capitol in Sacramento. The City of Twentynine Palms will be sending a delegate and an alternate delegate to the expo, where they will participate and vote on the League’s annual business, and will be choosing their delegates at this meeting.

The fee for the event is $725 for each delegate, covered by the City budget, as are hotel and transportation costs. Last year, then-Mayor Pro Tem Daniel Mintz and Councilmember April Ramirez attended the conference in Long Beach in October. Membership in the League of California Cities, event fees, and travel costs are not broken out separately in the City’s budget.1

5. Senate Bill 707 (SB707) Introduction of Policies Related to Brown Act Changes.

On October 3, 2025, Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill 707 into law. This bill updates the Brown Act, a law that controls how local governments hold public meetings. The goal of the bill is to make it easier for more people to get involved in local government. Some parts of the law started on January 1, 2026, but the biggest changes begin July 1, 2026. Hence the City’s new Webinar system.

The system will change how residents make public comments. There is a new Public Participation Policy on pages 17-21 of the agenda packet; if you find the policy problematic, bring it up in comment on item 5. Here are some key items:

• Time limits scale with turnout: 3 minutes/speaker if 10 or fewer speakers sign up, 2 minutes if 11–15 speakers, 1 minute if 16 or more. The Mayor has discretion to adjust. You cannot cede your time to another speaker. The policy does not make it clear whether the count is per item or is based on the number of speakers signed up for the entire meeting session.

• In-person speakers go first, ahead of video/phone participants. When a remote speaker is called, they get only 15 seconds to respond before the next speaker is called, so be ready.

• Sign-up deadlines: in-person speaker slips are encouraged by 4pm the day of the meeting. They are accepted until 6 pm, just before the meeting starts. This means that if something comes up in the meeting you want to talk about, you will not be able to submit a slip. Telephonic participants must register by email in advance to get dial-in instructions.

• Remote participants are muted by default and only unmuted when called on (audio auto-mutes again once time is up); video participants are prompted to enable audio/video when recognized.

• Bring copies if submitting handouts: in-person commenters supplementing their remarks with hard copies should bring at least eight copies for the Clerk/Council.

• Decorum rules: comments must be directed to the Council as a whole, kept professional and courteous. Threats, incitement to imminent lawless action, and obscenity are not protected and can get a speaker warned or removed. This applies to remote commenters too. They can be muted, have video disabled, or be removed for disruption).

SB 707 has also extended pandemic-era teleconference rules through January 2030 and allows Councilmembers to participate remotely without publicly identifying their location under “just cause.” This includes for childcare, illness, family emergencies, work travel, or military service. Councilmembers can participate remotely for up to five meetings a year.

The bill also extended social media guidelines for Councilmembers. On topics within their jurisdiction, Councilmembers can use social media to:

• Answer questions from the public

• Provide information to the public

• Solicit information from the public

They can also freely comment on, like, or interact with posts from members of the public. They cannot respond directly to anything another member of the same body posts, comments, or shares on social media about Council business. The law restricts not just written comments but also emojis, "like" buttons, and other reactions.

6. Adoption of Resolutions to Place the Proposed Sales Tax on the November 3, 2026 General Election Ballot

The sales tax ballot item is moving closer to being a reality. The agenda includes a pair of resolutions that would place the 1% sales tax measure on the ballot for residents to vote on in the November 3, 2026, general election.

For the guide that goes out to voters, the City Council can choose one of its members to write an official argument supporting the sales tax measure, capped at 300 words, to go in the voter guide that is sent by the State to every registered voter. This rationale is due to the City Clerk by Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at 5:30 pm. If the Council skips this step and multiple residents submit their own arguments for or against the measure, the Clerk must pick one of each based on priority rules, starting with the Council, then citizen groups or sponsors, then individual voters. The City Attorney will also write an impartial analysis (500 words max) explaining the measure's legal effects, due the same day. The state deadline to place a measure on the November ballot is August 7.

The draft ballot measure is very specific about what the sales tax might pay for, such as funding sheriff patrols, street repairs, park upkeep, and an animal shelter upgrade. Remember, however, that the this is a general tax, which isn’t legally tied to any particular use. Once the money comes in, it goes into the City’s General Fund, and whichever Council is in office at the time can spend it on anything. (In our recap of the last Council meeting, we covered what is and isn’t taxable.)

Placing the measure on the ballot requires a three-quarter vote of the Council. That means at least four of the five members have to say “yes.” If that vote isn’t there, the measure doesn’t move forward.

The City Council meeting will also include the City Manager’s report. The list of future council-initiated items is much leaner. This is the current list:

1. Shade Structures around Freedom Plaza and a possible art fixture with “Freedom Plaza” announcing the location.

2. Discussion on the use of City funds for grants and the potential reallocation of housing and homeless funds to grants.

3. Discussion on the next steps of reallocating $1.3 million for housing.

4. Review and revision to Municipal Code 5.08 related to Cannabis uses to bring the City up to par with new legislation and State Law.

Items resolved or pulled from the list by City Manager in the last City Council meeting include:

• Discussion of a policy regulating the use of City Attorney resources

• Discussion on creating a “Recognized Neighborhood Program”

• Discussion of Code Enforcement and compliance with Proposition 36, including finding a pathway to meet Governor Newsom’s new guidance

• Discussion about annexing parcels APN 0634-05-124 and 0634-05-109 (Set Free Ranch) in Wonder Valley

• Discussion of a possible safe passage with CalTrans around Donnell Hill

• Discussion on collaboration with Liberty Military Housing to update RHNA numbers

• Study Session regarding the FLOCK cameras

The next Twentynine Palms City Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, July 28, 2026 at 6 pm.

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The Twentynine Palms City Council met on the evening of June 23 for a wide-ranging session covering City finances, the sales tax ballot measure, and an inspiring overview of the future tile mural slated for Freedom Plaza. Mayor Daniel Mintz presided. All council members were present: Councilmember Steven Bilderain, Councilmember McArthur Wright, Councilmember April Ramirez, and Mayor Pro Tem Octavious Scott.

City Manager Kevin Cole gave a heads-up that council chambers at City Hall are about to undergo renovation in July, which will lead to the possible cancellations of the Planning Commission meeting on July 7 as well as other meetings; “we’ll make those announcements as they come up,” Cole said. The first meeting slated will be the July 14 City Council meeting.

The City will be installing new two-way audiovisual systems to comply with California Senate Bill 707, which requires extensive rewiring of Council chambers. (The Desert Trumpet reported on the details in our preview of the April 14, 2026, City Council meeting.)

Our agenda preview is here.

The meeting’s agenda packet is linked here.

Here is the video link.

“We are stronger together..we are limitless…we are innovators:” The Groundwork Arts Tile Mural Project

Rhonda Coleman, Director and Lead Artist of Groundwork Arts, updated Council on the Freedom Plaza tile mural, a permanent ceramic installation driven by hundreds of student and community contributors. (See our initial report from February 24, 2026, here.) Input included inspirational phrases that students came up with, including,

we are stronger together, we are grounded, we are the future, we are limitless, we are dreamers, we are innovators, we are resilient, we are resourceful, we are definitely resourceful, we are persistent, we are tradition, and tomorrow we are future leaders, we are full of possibility.

A survey that brought in 1,563 responses from students and community members is shaping the design around themes of desert landscape, community belonging, and future generations. Residents said they want viewers to feel welcome, inspired, and connected.

Students are creating Individual hand-made tiles, guided by professional artists, which will be unified through color into a single organic image. Workshops began June 15 in Morongo Unified schools. Community residents voted to place the mural on the north wall of the National Park Visitor Center at Freedom Plaza, with a September 30 California Arts Council grant deadline driving the timeline.

REPORTS OF MEETINGS ATTENDED AND CITY MANAGER’S REPORT

Although intended as a means of accountability so residents could understand how City funds were being used to underwrite necessary travel for Council members, this agenda item has evolved to be a way for some Council members to communicate on initiatives of interest to them and to the community. As the Desert Trumpet noted in its report on the May 26, 2026, Council meeting, when the segment expands to include high school sporting events, community barbecues, and personal commitments alongside City-funded travel and policy claims, that transparency purpose gets lost.

Councilmember Bilderain attended the Juneteenth flag-raising at City Hall and all-star baseball games in Banning featuring local teams. Councilmember Ramirez met with transitional and temporary housing organizations and the San Bernardino Office of Homeless Services to discuss options for the community:

keeping in mind the direction that the state is pushing us with Prop 36 and also being mindful of the new funding sources that are going to come out through the Encampment Resolution Fund, which will also cover rapid rehousing and wraparound services for homelessness in our community.

She announced a town hall with SoCal Edison on grid upgrades and appliance swap programs, which was held on June 24 and reported on by Z1077 (“SCE Town Hall draws few, blames outages on sensitive protective equipment”).

Although it’s not clear that Councilmember Ramirez attended meetings about state cuts to regional funding of the federal Victims of Crime Act, she has advocated for Partners Against Violence at past City Council meetings:

I got into this because Partners Against Violence, which is a victim advocate organization that we have here, let me know that they were slated—our region was slated to receive a 43% budget cut from the state funding….The California State Senate did approve a one-time $25 million increase for VOCA funding instead of the proposed cuts.

The reality with VOCA funding is a little more complex and has a long history. That funding has dropped nearly 80% since the first Trump administration in 2018. California temporarily filled the gap, but Governor Newsom's 2026 budget didn't include replacement funds. The Trump administration then withheld even the remaining federal funds, tying access to immigration enforcement cooperation. California Attorney General Rob Bonta sued for the funds and won. The California state legislature added $50 million in state backfill funding to the current budget.

Mayor Pro Tem Scott attended the Juneteenth flag raising at City Hall and the event at Knott’s Sky Park sponsored by Women of Color Global 29. He met with a builder of tiny houses and had a fruitful discussion, he said. Councilmember Wright apologized for not attending the Juneteenth flag raising because of personal travel.

Mayor Mintz highlighted representing Twentynine Palms at the Mojave Desert Air Quality Management District that featured a $4 billion rail facility in Barstow. Funded entirely by the BNSF railroad, the transfer station is designed to streamline the national supply chain, it allows for direct cargo transfers between Port of LA/Long Beach ships and cross-country trains, significantly easing highway congestion and emissions. The transfer station is projected to eliminate 800,000 truck trips. Although few of these trucks pass through the Morongo Basin, the station is intended to improve air quality throughout the region.

The City Manager has moved his report closer to the beginning of the meeting. In addition to renovations to Council chambers, Kevin Cole had several updates:

• Cooling center at the Senior Center (6539 Adobe Road) will open when the heat index reaches 110°F (lowered from the previous 115° threshold). National Weather Service data will be used to make that call.

• City Council nomination period runs July 13–August 6. Contact City Clerk Cindy Villescas at City Hall to make an appointment. We have more information on this process here.

• Hemmings Great Race: a 9-day, 2,300-mile classic car rally with 120 antique automobiles stopped in 29 Palms this Saturday, June 27, 11:30am–3pm at Luckie Park.

• Fourth of July celebration at Knott Sky Park, July 4, 6–10pm. Free event with a special Declaration of Independence reading by the Kiwanis Club (250th anniversary), water slides, food vendors, and fireworks over Tortoise Rock Casino.

• Code enforcement shoutout: the team completed a major cleanup at a property on Sherman Hoyt Avenue, removing more than 1,000 tires and several tons of trash.

• USGS Hydrology Study: The City met recently with the U.S. Geological Survey and the 29 Palms Water District and is making progress on the multi-year sewer study. (More here about the saga of a sewer in Twentynine Palms.)

PUBLIC HEARINGS

FY 2026-27 budget revisions

Proposed Budget Revisions to Special Revenue Funds, Capital Projects Funds, and Successor Agency Fund

After passing the Consent Calendar 5-0 without discussion, the Council turned to a report by Finance Director Abigail Hernandez-Conde to present the final piece of the City’s FY 2026-27 budget: $14.2 million in planned spending across the special revenue funds, capital project funds, and successor agency fund.

Major projects include $4.2 million for the Split Rock Bridge, $3.7 million for the Hatch Road bike path, $1.2 million for street repaving, and $501,000 for Hwy 62 improvements. The Finance Director said:

For other projects, we have the design for the new animal shelter for $589,000 and also $178,000 and for the animal control building upgrades, those fundings have been approved in prior years, but we haven’t utilized all the funding, so we continue to carry over those funds until the project gets completed.

Councilmember April Ramirez raised concerns about long-term financial stability, questioning whether Measure I, a San Bernardino County sales tax that funds many projects, was a reliable source. Hernandez-Conde said the picture was complex and that none of the City’s special revenue funds are guaranteed permanently, pointing to Article 8 funding as an example. That program once covered 50% of public employee salaries before the state eliminated it in 2021-22, forcing the City to absorb those costs.

City Manager Cole added a reality check that:

it doesn’t even have to be something catastrophic that stops the funding, but simply the rising cost of these projects affects how much “project” we can get. Price of oil goes up, which we’re all seeing right now. $6 a gallon for gasoline, well, that affects the price of asphalt. And so, as these prices go up, these funding mechanisms generally don’t.

Hernandez-Conde said the City evaluates each project individually and may seek additional funding sources or abandon projects if necessary.

The budget revision was approved unanimously.

Proposed Budget Revisions for Project Phoenix Funds and Enterprise Fund for Fiscal Year 2026-27.

Because of family business interests in the Freedom Plaza area, Mayor Mintz recused himself from this discussion and vote.

Finance Director Hernandez-Conde presented budget revisions for two specialized City funds: the Project Phoenix fund and the sewer fund.

Hernandez-Conde reported that Project Phoenix, the City’s downtown Freedom Plaza revitalization effort, has $204,000 remaining from an original $2.3 million commitment, plus $1.1 million in housing bond funds for local housing activities. Active projects include a business loan program, storefront improvements, public art, and street furniture. A newly approved tile mural, discussed earlier in the meeting, will receive $18,000 from a California Arts Council grant.

The sewer fund covers services for Freedom Plaza businesses. The City is currently conducting a five-year study funded primarily by $1.9 million in state grants and a $200,000 contribution from the 29 Palms Water District. However, the project faces a $99,000 shortfall that the City plans to address in partnership with the water district.

The council voted 4-0-1 (recusal) to approve $70,000 to subsidize the sewer fund and $25,000 for a separate sewer study.

DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS

Sales tax on the ballot for residents to decide

Item 16 was a return visit for the proposed 1% local sales tax ballot measure, which the Council is aiming to place before voters in the November 3, 2026 general election. No vote was taken, but City Manager Cole and the Council used the discussion to make the case for the sales tax.

Cole was direct about the stakes: road maintenance, public safety contracts, animal control, park upkeep, all are areas where costs are climbing while revenues stay flat. A 1% general tax on retail sales in Twentynine Palms would, if approved by voters, generate an estimated $2 million or more annually. (Although how this was calculated is unclear.) Cole emphasized that this would not be a tax imposed by the Council. It goes on the ballot, and residents decide.

Mayor Pro Tem Scott pointed out that tourists, not just residents, would also pay the tax. With a significant number of visitors passing through the City each year, a sales tax spreads the burden across a wider group. “A lot of our visitors — they’re driving on our roads, they stop at the gas station, they grab some food,” Scott said. He pointed out that this makes difference when online shopping has cut into the sales tax revenue that smaller cities like Twentynine Palms used to count on.1

Resident Mary Alice Amsler questioned the language in the flyer the City sent out in April. She said she supported the tax but wanted sharper language:

I’m okay with the 1% tax increases. However, in reading this possible ballot question, it’s very vague and is not specific about services so it says basic necessities like groceries and prescription medications are not going to be taxed, so what is going to be taxed?

City Manger Cole explained that “approximately” is necessary because revenue will fluctuate with tourism, a point Councilmember Ramirez echoed, noting that the previous city manager had told her the same thing. Cole evaded the question of what will be taxed and who will be paying the taxes. We took a deep dive when a proposed sales tax appeared in a survey conducted in fall of 2023. The Desert Trumpet pointed out:

A sales tax is considered a regressive tax, especially in a disadvantaged community like 29. People who earn less, such as those who support the tourism industry, pay a larger share of their salary in sales tax when compared to those with higher earnings.

These items are taxable in Twentynine Palms:

• Clothing

• Newspapers, books, magazines, and periodicals

• Over-the-counter medicines (like aspirin or cough syrup) unless prescribed by a physician and purchased from a pharmacist.

• Hot prepared foods, items sold for immediate consumption (like a deli sandwich eaten in the store), and food sold through restaurants

Not taxable:

• Most groceries (excluding hot prepared food), cold prepared food sold to-go, certain medical devices, and purchases made with CalFresh benefits

• Prescription medications

• Diapers and menstrual hygiene products

• Wheelchairs, crutches, canes, and walkers under the direction of a physician

• Professional services (legal, accounting, consulting), educational services, and healthcare services

Cole also clarified that the full resolution, with more specific language, would come before Council on July 14, and he encouraged Amsler to attend.

In discussing accountability, Cole pointed to the City’s track record: Twentynine Palms has maintained a balanced budget every year going back to 1987, built up reserves through lean years, and holds regular public hearings on budget priorities. “We’ve always been prudent when it comes to using the funds that we are able to secure,” he said, “and I want to assure the public that it won’t change.”

The measure is expected to appear on the November ballot after the formal vote at the July 23 meeting.

FUTURE COUNCIL INITIATED ITEMS

Possibly because this agenda item comes late in City Council meetings, it is largely given short shrift. City Manager Cole took the time to give a status update on the running list of nearly a dozen initiatives the Council has flagged for further action.2

On shade structures, Cole said staff is actively looking for grant funding. The city doesn’t have enough general fund money to pay for these outright, but he acknowledged that shade in the desert is a real and valuable need. (Our research shows that Councilmember Scott proposed these shade structure for future agenda consideration at the October 14, 2024, meeting. The item has languished on the list ever since.)

On regulating the city attorney’s resources, Cole said he is putting in place an internal administrative policy: staff and councilmembers who want to use city attorney time should come to him first. He pointed out that legal services are in high demand across code enforcement, policy development, and major projects. Being deliberate about how that time is used is a matter of responsible management.

On a recognized neighborhood program, Cole said he hopes to bring something concrete back to Council in late August or early September.

Items related to homelessness, housing, and Proposition 36 were noted as connected and ongoing. Cole said that one persistent challenge is that some unhoused individuals decline offers of housing, which complicates how the City can respond.

On the annexation of two parcels associated with Set Free Ranch in Wonder Valley, Cole reported that legal counsel has flagged a significant obstacle: the parcels are not contiguous with City limits. Under the rules of LAFCO (the Local Agency Formation Commission), annexing a non-contiguous “island” requires going through surrounding property first. Councilmember Ramirez had proposed this annexation as a future agenda item at the April 14, 2026, meeting.

On the Donnell Hill pedestrian safety issue, Cole said Caltrans has already cleared a path on the south side, and a graded dirt path exists on the north side. He nonetheless advised residents not to be on that road after dark.

Cole also told Council he had distributed information on Flock surveillance cameras and would bring the issue back at a future meeting, noting that Mayor Pro Tem Scott has a town hall planned on the topic on July 9.

PUBLIC COMMENT

Although Flock surveillance devices have been the primary focus of public comments in the last months, no advocates for removing these cameras spoke at this week’s meeting. Carlos Blandon addressed development in the Hi Desert.

FUTURE MEETINGS

The next City Council meeting will take place on July 14 at 6 pm in City Hall and will feature new technology to make meetings more accessible to those who cannot attend. Check the City website and social media to find out if other meetings have been cancelled.

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In a meeting that lasted just under an hour on Thursday, July 18 the Twentynine Palms Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) board met to discuss revised grant and sponsorship guidelines. While they did not come to any conclusions, issues covered included changing amounts available for grants and sponsorships, the types of events TBID wants to attract, and how to ensure funding goals and guidelines are met. Present were Vice Chair Ashton Ramsey and board members Liz Shickler and Ben Uyeda. Chair Rakesh Mehta had an excused absence. Former board member Maria Madrid stepped down last month.

Director of Marketing update and welcoming a new visitor center employee

The meeting began with a short update from Breanne Dusastre, the TBID Director of Marketing. She introduced TJ Williams, who will be working in the City of Twentynine Palms Visitor Center Tuesday to Saturday.

Dusastre highlighted upcoming summer Twentynine Palms events. She specifically mentioned Fourth of July in the city and the Hemmings Great Race that will be in the city on June 27th celebrating 100 years of Route 66. She also mentioned that there are seasonal summer pieces on the Visit29 website, including an article about summer star gazing. She is currently working with Palm Springs Life on a two-page advertorial that will run this fall.

Dusastre also showed the SoCal episode of Get to Going, which features Twentynine Palms destinations including Hotel Reset, Ramsey 29, Desert General, Tin Town, and the Sky’s the Limit observatory, many destinations that are associated with TBID board members. It is currently live online and will be featured on Sun Country Airline’s in-flight entertainment.

Discussion of grant and sponsorship program and application guidelines

Discussion of the grant and sponsorship program was the meeting’s main agenda item. The program has been a focus of the TBID meetings for the past few months. Community members, local business owners, grantees, lodging stakeholders, and board members have all had feedback on how the process could function smoothly and more effectively drive overnight stays. Comments have included how to hold grantees accountable for reporting on the funds they receive, how grantees can show impact on overnight stays, and how marketing can be a greater focus for grantees. Past discussion has also focused on the type of events that are funded and the TBID’s interest in cultivating both larger signature events and regular series.

Following the May 21 TBID meeting, the TBID Events Subcommittee, comprised of Liz Shickler and Ben Uyeda, met twice to review the existing TBID Sponsorship & Event Grant Program Guidelines, application and scoring process. They developed a draft of revised guidelines reflecting the discussion and feedback received to date, although the document does not include redlined changes that show specific differences from the current application.

Public comment raises question about the type of events TBID cultivates

The meeting’s one public comment focused on the need to rethink the process of grants and sponsorship from the ground up. The written comment by Cindy Bernard recommended a public conversation about what is and is not working in the grants process. Bernard has experience producing large events focused on experimental music through the nonprofit SASSAS and was on the subcommittee that originally developed the TBID grant requirements.

She recommended holding the public meeting at a time when small business owners, lodging stakeholders, and community members can attend. Her comment focused on producing larger, signature events that draw people to Twentynine Palms and as an example she brought up Spacecraft, a new weekend-long festival in Pioneertown in mid-August that features performances by Tangerine Dream and ESG.

She wrote,

Speaking as a person who suggested and then helped design the current system, it’s broken and is failing to produce what the city needs. If the TBID wants to demand heads and beds, then they need to invest in a system that will deliver larger scale events. The amount being granted is too small to attract professional producers capable of events like Spacecraft.

She also mentioned that local businesses and individuals that come up with great ideas, like the Area 29 weekend organized by Rediscover 29, lack time and resources needed to scale up their events. The contrast between Area 29 and Spacecraft was also a focal point of discussion at the May 21 TBID meeting. In Bernard’s analysis the grant timeline, currently just a few months in advance, is too short for larger events that would need to secure larger sponsorships and professional producers. She suggested increasing the amount of sponsorship money available and forming a committee with TBID board members and local event producers to brainstorm signature events and then bring in professional producers to execute them.

Bernard’s public comment highlights an ongoing points of tension around the TBID event funding that has been brought up in discussions in multiple past meetings. These tensions include the type of events that are effective in bringing overnight visitors to the city, the amount of funding that’s impactful, who should be producing the events, whether TBID should invest in large scale events or smaller events that activate the downtown, and how the existing infrastructure in Twentynine Palms can and cannot support the types of events that the TBID might want to cultivate.

Revised guidelines emphasize simplicity and impact

Board member Uyeda opened the board discussion of the events and grants sponsorship program by walking the board through the revised guidelines he and Shickler drafted. He introduced the discussion explaining,

Throughout my tenure on the board, probably the most feedback I’ve heard from both the stakeholder side and from the community at large is about the events. On the stakeholder side, I’ve heard that there’s a lack of accountability, and these events don’t actually meet any of what they consider the goals of the tourism board to be. On the community side, I hear a lot of complaints about the application process itself, too time consuming, not clear on how the funding decisions are made.

Uyeda explained that the draft, updated guidelines strip out redundancies in the application, reduced the number of questions asked of applicants from 29 to 18 and explicitly stated the TBID’s goals for funding events.

As outlined in the draft guidelines, the goals are:

1. Increase overnight visitation and lodging demand within the City of Twentynine Palms.

2. Support events and programming that activate Twentynine Palms for visitors and enhance the overall visitor experience.

3. Foster the long-term growth, sustainability of events and reoccurring events that contribute to the local tourism economy and advance Visit 29 Palms’ destination marketing objectives.

Uyeda noted that events may lean more heavily toward one goal or another but, “We would ideally like it to hit on all three, but some people will specialize and adapt accordingly.” As an example of events that hit the mark he brought up the Twentynine Palms Book Festival, organized by Patrick Zuchowicki of Desert General, and the Vacation Races event, which brings in an outside organization and trusted brand for a signature event, which previously took place in Joshua Tree, but will take place within the city of Twentynine Palms this year.

Ramsey supported the revised goals, saying that enhancing the visitor experience in Twentynine Palms is important in addition to overnight stays saying, “It’s been pointed out in the past that we do have these events that seem to be more of a local event, but they make the downtown pop, and I’m all for that.”

Grants and sponsorship budgets will be combined, but amount caps raise questions

The draft guidelines propose several changes in how grant and sponsorship money would be allocated. These include increasing the amount available for sponsorships and combining the grant and sponsorship budget. In the current 2025-2026 fiscal year TBID allocated $150,000 to the program. $120,000 was designated for event grants, which are designed to support signature events and range from $3,000 to $20,000 in funding per event. $30,000 was designated to sponsorships, with a maximum of $3,000 of funding available per event.

In the revised guidelines, the budget will not be divided between grants and sponsorships, which will enable more flexibility in funding. The sponsorship amount was adjusted up to $5,000, and grants would be available from $5,000 to $20,000. Uyeda explained the proposed sponsorship changes saying,

Part of the feedback we had heard was that actually some people that had gotten sponsorships and decided it simply wasn’t worth the hassle on the paperwork side on the back end to accept it …. That tells us that we need to sort of make some adjustments.

The potential to adjust the maximum amount for grants was also a point of discussion for the board. Uyeda argued in favor of raising the maximum for grants because $20,000 is not enough money for many larger events. However, he expressed concern that if the maximum is raised, applicants will ask for it without justifying why. In contrast, Shickler suggested that lowering the maximum for grants would enable the TBID to spread out the money more and support a wider range of events.

TBID members suggested several ideas to correlate grant dollars to room nights including:

• Units of grant money available pegged to room nights, such as $75 of grant money to room night.

• A tiered system where events with certain projected attendance numbers or room nights could apply for a certain amount of money.

The board did not reach a decision, but Shickler acknowledged accountability is a continual challenge for the TBID grants, saying, “People can just, they can tell us, oh yeah, we expect to fill every room, but they don’t. How can we make them prove that?”

A holistic system for tracking and measuring impact across TBID events was not included in the revised guidelines. If the TBID decides to correlate room nights to grant and sponsorship dollars, creating a system that grantees can use to measure impact, such as a booking link or code, across all events could help with reporting and right-sizing grants in the future. Currently this is left up to each individual event producer, which can add stress and keep results ambiguous.

Scoring and evaluation criteria still need to be further defined

The proposed changes aim to clarify the grants and sponsorship application scoring criteria, which will focus on four areas:

• Economic efficiency

• Feasibility track record

• Marketing

• Alignment with TBID mission tourism goals

Each application would be evaluated with a point system and each focus area is worth up to 25 points, with a maximum of 100 total points. Events must receive at least 80 points to move forward for funding consideration, which is similar to how the applications have been scored over the last cycle.

Uyeda acknowledged that there’s still work to do, saying, “We will still need to put a little bit more color and define the terms for what economic efficiency, feasibility, and track record [mean].” A persistent issue has been what the scoring criteria actually means, with scores varying widely between reviewers. In these revised guidelines the TBID did not spell out what “good” looks like and, for example, what would receive a 5, versus a 15, versus a 25. Without clearly defining the criteria for scoring and providing clear guidance for reviewers, scores for funding will still be subjective and inconsistent.

Approach to events still under discussion

The TBID’s overall approach to events still remains mostly undefined. Uyeda asked Shickler and Ramsey the types of events they’d like to see, and they suggested the following ideas:

• Events that target the summer, traditionally the slow season for tourism.

• Recurring and series events, like the Sky’s the Limit monthly series, possibly a full moon or new moon party.

• Markets, like a health or craft market.

• Events that build on the success of other activities, such as gatherings adjacent to the farmer’s market.

The question of whether and how to professionalize events remained. Uyeda underlined this tension saying, “It’s not our role to teach people how to be professional. I’m happy to help out in workshops and kind of lead by example,” but also brought up that there can also be pushback from community members on the kind of accountability professionalism requires.

Uyeda also suggested that local organizers don’t need to “cosplay” as professional event producers, but instead simply explain how they will reach out to and activate their grassroots and peer networks to help spread the word about events in lieu of a professional marketing service. “If you’re going to take a grassroots approach, you need to build that coalition,” he explained.

In past discussions the TBID has also outlined the types of events they want to see, but these guidelines do not yet go so far as to explicitly state what they are looking for. If the TBID wants certain kinds of events, they could also still define what they are looking for and write that into the requirements.

Reporting, coordinated TBID advertising, and plan for public workshop still missing from next steps

While the discussion focused on the type of events and how much to grant, it did not touch on other approaches the TBID could take to help events professionalize and draw crowds. These strategies could include TBID sponsored advertising for multiple events, a holistic reporting system that all producers can use, and workshops with event producers and a committee of local event producers and business owners to come up with event ideas, as had been previously suggested in public comment.

Coming to any kind of conclusion was a challenge, as only three board members were present and the board is currently down a member following Madrid’s departure. The board suggested that Mehta send in comments on the proposed guidelines in writing. Following the discussion Shickler and Uyeda will further revise the guidelines and Mehta will send in written comments. A vote on the finalized guidelines will take place at the next meeting.

In other business, Shickler and Mehta will serve on the budget subcommittee. They will begin the development of the TBID budget for the 2026-2027 fiscal year, which will be discussed at the August TBID meeting and be presented to the City Council in September. It is unclear if the TBID is going to be pursuing conversion from the 1989 law, which requires yearly renewal, to the 1994 Property and Business Improvement District Law to enable a five-year renewal term. The TBID voted not to pursue conversion last year, and while conversion was part of their 2025-2026 marketing plan, it has not been a focus so far this year.

The TBID is also currently searching for a new board member to replace Maria Madrid. The board member must be a lodging stakeholder in Twentynine Palms. Eligible applicants include owners, operators, and authorized representatives of lodging businesses located within the district, including hotels, motels, vacation rentals, and RV resorts. The deadline to submit a resume a letter of interest was Friday, June 19, but it’s not clear if any applications were received.

If you are interested, letters of interest and resume can be submitted to the City Clerk by email, mail, or in person.

By Email: Cindy Villescas, City Clerk, cvillescas@29palms.org

By Mail or In-Person: Twentynine Palms City Hall, Attn: City Clerk, 6136 Adobe Road, Twentynine Palms, CA 92277

A date for the next meeting was not set.

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This last Tuesday, June 16, the Twentynine Palms Planning Commission held a regularly scheduled meeting where they hosted a study session on continued Land Use and General Plan discussions.

Four of five Commissioners were present with Commissioner Alex Garcia having an excused absence. This study session was the third of many as the City takes on the initial stages of its General Plan rewrite in-house.

The City of Barstow, similar in size to Twentynine Palms with a population of 25,000,1 just approved its latest 2048 General Plan this month. This followed a five-year process that entailed numerous town hall discussions, advisory committees, stakeholder roundtables, community surveys, and focus group sessions.

Coverage of the agenda packet is available here; the first four minutes of the meeting are available here. The study session, which lasted just under an hour, was not recorded by the City.2

PUBLIC COMMENT

None

STUDY SESSION - Public / Open Space / Utility / Flood Control on Maps 1-4

The Process

The General Plan is a legally required document that every California city and county must maintain. It covers seven mandatory elements: Land Use, Circulation, Housing, Conservation, Open Space, Noise, and Safety. Twentynine Palms has also added Recreation, Equity and Social Justice, and is in the process of adding a final element— Arts.

For pertinent background information, our previous General Plan coverage is available here:

• June 16 Planning Commission Agenda

• June 2 Planning Commission Recap

• May 19 Planning Commission Recap

The City inherited most of its zoning from San Bernardino County back when it was incorporated in 1987 and retains inconsistencies that City staff is attempting to sort as part of its General Plan rework— residential parcels owned by utility companies, County flood control, federal agencies, and tribal territory, lot sizes that don’t match actual zoning designations, and zoning that does not reflect what’s physically on the ground, such as commercial businesses in residentially zoned areas.

During the previous study session, Commissioners sifted through a plethora of questions regarding specific land use types, utility owned parcels, and neighborhoods with mismatched zoning acreages on the southwest end of town. The approach was to go map by map and present all potential changes at once — off-limits parcels, real-world mismatches, and future development potential together.

At the last workshop, Commissioners provided city staff with direction on the following:

• Properties owned by federal, state, county, or private/non-profit organizations for the purposes of conservation should not be shown as having development potential by the City.

• Properties owned by utility companies should not be shown as having development potential by the City.

• Parcels owned by County Flood Control should be converted to the “F” land use designation.

• Parcels owned by the City will be considered on a case-by-case basis for redesignation, depending on the intention of that property.

For this meeting, Community Development Director Keith Gardner shifted to tackling the “off limits” category first across all maps before moving to the other categories. The reasoning was sequencing: establish what cannot be developed (federal land, utilities, flood control, tribal lands) before wrestling with what should be developed or redesignated. Gardner described these as areas representing “optimistic developments” that would realistically never be built on regardless of their current zoning.

At the end of the presentation, Gardner posed a methodology question directly to the commission — did they want to keep doing the off-limits pass first, or go back to the all-at-once approach? Krushat and Walker both said they preferred the off-limits-first approach, and Cure agreed. Gardner said the streamlined focus would likely let them move faster, expecting to cover at least four maps per session going forward.

The Commission went through Maps 1, 2, 2A, 3, and 4. Maps 3 and 4 covered Knott Sky Park, Project Phoenix, Theatre 29, and surrounding neighborhoods. City staff shifted focus to which parcels should be removed from residential zoning, either due to being owned by utility companies, or issues with terrain causing the land to be unideal for development. These specific parcels would be deemed as “off-limits” to development. Per a presentation slide from staff, these include:

Those having [been] owned by a Public entity, those areas that may be suited for an Open Space designation, those areas that are owned by Utility companies, those areas that are owned by County Flood Control, and those areas that have been recently added to Tribal Lands.

To Offset SB330, Staff Suggests Possible Density Changes

Due to California’s SB 330 requirements, changing a parcel from residential zoning to a different land use category requires a no-net-loss policy implementation—if residential housing capacity in one area is reduced, then residential capacity elsewhere must make up for it. This is a component of the General Plan’s Housing Element, which is due for a rewrite in 2029.

Chair Max Walker inquired whether the commission would have its net-loss and net-gain calculations completed before the 2029 Housing Element deadline:

What happens if we just don’t have the numbers… and we’re at a net loss?

Community Development Director Keith Gardner clarified:

Having a net loss is not an option.

To mitigate this, Gardner provided one example of a 315-acre region on the west end of town between Kern Blvd and Lee Road, on the south side of Highway 62, that is currently zoned as RL (Rural Living) 2.5.

Under current zoning, this region has 2.5 acre minimum allowed density, which equates to 126 potential housing units. Gardner has suggested that changing the allowable density from 2.5 acre minimums to a 1 acre minimum would result in a net-gain of residential housing capacity and reflect what’s actually on the ground in terms of parcel makeup.

In the example provided in the image above, converting this 315 acre space to 1-acre minimum zoning could result in an extra 189 potential housing units.

Gardner presented the RL-2.5 to RL-1 example purely as an illustration of how the gain side of the no-net-loss calculation could work. Addressing the Commission from the public was Carlos Blandon who was the sole commenter from the audience. Blandon pushed back on staff’s framing that the zoning problems inherited by the county during the City’s incorporation were simply an oversight.

Overarching Discussion: “Simple Questions With Profound Impacts”

City staff has posed a series of overarching questions to the Commission throughout these workshops. Some of those questions include:

• Should an "Open Space - Conservation Land Use District" be created?

• Should a "Utility Land Use District" be created to reflect ownership of the various utilities? Or should their properties be shown changed to the "Public (P) Land Use District"?

• Should we have a "One Map" system, whereas the General Plan Land Use Map and the Zoning Map are the same? Or should we have a "Two Map" system, whereas the General Plan shows broad categories, and the Zoning Map gives more detail?

• Should the minimum Land Use District size be maintained, or revisited?

Addressing a section of residentially zoned County Flood Control land between Mariposa Avenue and Lupine Avenue on Map 2A, one of five maps created by City staff so far, Commissioners were in consensus that residentially zoned properties owned by County Flood Control were not ideal for development.

“No one would have ever built there anyway,” said Vice Chair Jim Krushat.

Regarding a parcel on the southern end of Adobe Road acquired by the Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians, Commissioner Paahana asked if tribal land counted within the City’s residential housing capacity, which it does not.

Commissioner Cure pushed for taking each overarching question seriously and examine what it means in the bigger picture, seeking clarification from staff on an ongoing question that staff has posed to the Commission in prior sessions: whether the City land use map should change from one single map to a two-map system, and what that would entail.

Currently, the city’s Land Use map and zoning map are the same document — so changing a parcel’s density requires amending both simultaneously, a process that starts at roughly $15,000 in application fees. A two-map system would let the General Plan carry broader categories while the zoning map handles finer distinctions, meaning a density change could be accomplished with a simpler, cheaper rezoning alone.

A two-map system would allow certain density changes to be completed via rezoning alone, if that change falls within the General Plan’s permitted range — saving applicants time and money compared to the General Plan Amendment process.

Cure was attuned to the concept of a “drop-down” framing, in which Public land use type would be defined in the Land Use map, then be subdivided into further categories such as Public Parks, or other City owned land. The two-map system would accommodate this, while cutting developer costs.

Gardner suggested that this could make it less costly for a developer to “up-zone,” for instance, with an example of upzoning a parcel from RS-2 (two dwelling units per acre) to RS-4 (four dwelling units per acre). Under the current one-map system, that requires both a rezoning and a General Plan amendment — starting at about $15,000 in application fees. Under a two-map system, it would just be a rezoning at a cost of $5,000.

Gardner emphasized:

They seem like simple questions. They have profound impacts. I guess that’s kind of what I’m getting at.

Chair Walker inquired how often the staff gets requests for such developments. Gardner said it happens but not frequently, implying that once applicants learn the cost of the application process under the current one-map system, they often do not follow through:

Given the restrictions now, given the policies now, once we tell them what the costs are of each of these application types, they, especially on a parcel by parcel basis, don’t follow through because of the cost.

Commissioners agreed that future study sessions would continue to focus on identifying parcels not suitable for development, with approximately 18 more maps anticipated for discussion.

Community Development Director Updates

Director Gardner previewed the Commission’s upcoming schedule:

• July 7: A potential public hearing and a workshop.

• July 21: Meeting cancellation

• August 4 and 18: General plan workshops anticipated.

• September 1: General plan workshop.

• September 15: Discussion on updates to accessory dwelling units to reflect changes in state law.

The next Planning Commission meeting takes place Tuesday, July 7 at 5 pm. See you there!

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The June 23 City Council agenda is a busy and varied one. The Council will take steps toward shoring up the City's pension fund, formalize the November election, wrap up a road sealing project, and, with an August 7 state deadline looming, will move closer to placing the proposed 1% sales tax measure on the ballot. The full agenda is here. The meeting begins at 6 pm at City Hall, 6136 Adobe Road.

PUBLIC COMMENT

You can comment on agenda items and issues important to you at every City Council meeting. Comments on agenda items take place during discussion of that item, while comments on non-agenda items take place near the end of the meeting. The Brown Act prevents Council from commenting on non-agenda items. To comment, just pick up a form at the entry desk, fill it out, and hand it to the Clerk, who usually sits just in front of the Council dais toward the right.

Council email addresses and public comment information can be found on our resources page. Be sure to email prior to 2 pm on the day of the meeting so they have time to read your email prior to discussion. You can also copy the clerk at cvillescas@29palms.org and ask that your letter be made part of the public record.

AWARDS AND PRESENTATIONS

The evening opens with two presentations. First, the Cash for Trash program will honor Twentynine Palms High School’s Impact/Host Club and Explorer Scouts Post 509 for their recycling efforts. Second, Groundwork Arts will give an update on the City Tile Mural Project at Freedom Plaza. In February, Rhonda Coleman outlined the project before Council, who had many thoughts about where the mural should be placed. (They have since gotten input from residents through an online survey.) We reported on that discussion here.

CONSENT CALENDAR

The Consent Calendar consists of items usually approved with a single vote. The public can comment on these before the Council votes. Fill out a comment form at the meeting, or send an email in advance.

This meeting’s Consent Calendar includes meeting minutes from June 9, plus two notable items:

Item 5 — Hatch Road and Sullivan Road Bike Path Project: The City is asking to extend the contract with HRGreen Pacific for this bike path project by one year, since the current contract expires June 30, 2026. No new money is being requested and the extension just keeps the project alive while work continues. The staff report doesn’t note why the extension is needed.

A little background: At its June 11, 2024, meeting, Council approved funds for a Hatch Road and Sullivan Road Bike Path. Per the staff report, this is an east-west corridor located south of Twentynine Palms Highway (SR-62) on Sullivan Road and Hatch Road. It will include 2.1 miles of paved shoulders to provide bike lanes and a pedestrian walking area. It is being paid for with $518,930.50 from a state fund.

Item 6: Sidewalk at Ace Hardware (5152 Adobe Road): The Council will consider a reimbursement agreement for new sidewalks, curbs, and gutters along the front of the Ace Hardware property on Adobe Road. This is a standard arrangement where the City pays back a property owner for installing public infrastructure on their frontage.

DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS

Item 7: An Aggressive Strategy to Save City Pensions

This is the most financially complex item on the agenda, and it will have a big impact on the City’s long-term budget health.

Like most cities in California, the City provides retirement benefits to employees through CalPERS, California’s state pension system. (Sheriff’s deputies, although funded by the City, receive pensions through San Bernardino County.) Over the past several years, the City’s pension debt, which is the gap between what it has saved and what it owes retirees, has grown. As of 2024, that gap stood at $2.4 million, and the funded ratio (how much of the pension is covered) had dropped to 89.4%. That means the City is on the hook for more money each year, and those payments are growing faster than City revenues.

To get ahead of this problem, staff recommends opening a dedicated savings account called a Section 115 Pension Trust managed by a company called Public Agency Retirement Services (PARS). The idea is to set aside money now, invest it, and use those funds later to smooth out the City’s required pension payments. Think of it as a rainy day fund specifically for pension bills.

The initial deposit would come from an unexpected source: the City’s separate retiree medical benefits fund (called the OPEB Trust) is currently overfunded by about 40%, sitting at roughly $3 million for a liability of only $2.2 million. Staff plans to pull $231,525.70 back from that account and redirect it into the new pension savings account. An additional $200,000 has already been budgeted for FY 2026-27 for the same purpose.

The Council is also being asked to choose an investment strategy for these funds. Staff recommends a Balanced-Strategic Blend, which PARS describes as more aggressive than the strategy used for the medical benefits account. (The full presentation from PARS is here.) The reasoning: since the City won’t need to tap this pension account anytime soon, it can afford to take on more investment risk in pursuit of better long-term returns.

If this aggressive investment strategy makes you feel uneasy, apparently this approach is common among California cities and hundreds of public agencies use similar trusts through PARS or CalPERS. However, once money goes into this type of trust, it’s locked in; it can only ever be used for pension purposes.1 And $231,000 is a small start against a $2.4 million liability. The more important question is whether the City has a plan to keep contributing over time. The staff report acknowledges budget constraints but doesn’t lay out a long-term funding commitment.

Item 8: Road Sealing Project Officially Finished

The 2026 Chip Seal Project is done. Pavement Coating Co. completed the work for a total of $308,460.28, and staff is recommending Council formally accept it and file a Notice of Completion. This is a routine closing step required before any retained contractor funds can be released. (The Desert Trumpet covered more about chip sealing in our report on the December 16, 2025 Planning Commission meeting.)

Item 9: The November Election Will Now Be Official (Almost)

Council will vote on a resolution officially calling the November 3, 2026, General Municipal Election. Seats in Districts 3, 4, and 5 will be on the ballot. The resolution also requests that the City’s municipal election be consolidated with the statewide General Election, a standard move that saves money on election administration by sharing the cost with the County.

Districts 3 (Mintz), 4 (Scott), and 5 (Wright) are up for election. The nomination period for candidates begins July 13, 2026 and ends on August 6, 2026. Contact City Clerk Cindy Villescas for details and check out our article on How to Run for City and Town Council for general guidelines.

Items 12 and 13: Budget Revisions for the Current Fiscal Year

Item 12 covers Special Revenue Funds, Capital Projects Funds, and the Successor Agency Fund. Item 13 covers the Project Phoenix Funds and the Enterprise Fund (sewer operations), which includes a $70,000 transfer from the General Fund to help cover sewer operating costs, plus $25,000 for a new sewer rate study. We looked in-depth at these revisions in our April 27, 2026 City Council recap.

We also noted in our June 21, 2026, coverage of the May 19, 2026, County Board of Supervisors meeting that the City of Twentynine Palms had allowed the county contract for downtown sewer and septic maintenance to lapse on March 31. Will there be a discussion of the budget implications of the delayed contract renewal?

Item 14: The Sales Tax Measure Moves Closer to the Ballot

If you’ve been following the City’s push for a 1% local sales tax on the November ballot, this is the meeting where it moves forward. At the June 9 meeting, Council directed staff to proceed and indicated that a formal vote on ballot language would return June 23.

As the staff report noted, and this has come up repeatedly in City Council meetings, Twentynine Palms faces a growing budget gap. Expenses are rising faster than revenues, which remain flat or are declining. Without new funding, the city may have to cut services like road maintenance, parks, law enforcement, and support of the animal shelter.

Nearby cities like Yucca Valley and Palm Desert have passed sales tax measures to address similar problems. The city is now considering a 1% sales tax measure. Per the staff report:

Starting in 2023, the City of Twentynine Palms conducted two scientific surveys to gather community input from residents about key issues, City priorities, and possible future funding considerations. Additionally, the City conducted extensive outreach through one-on-one conversations and started a comprehensive and multi-channel engagement strategy….These efforts achieved a total of 184,000 impressions, 13,455 clicks, with a click-through rate of 7.31%, along with 41,726 post engagements. Following that first mailer, a second mailer was sent to residents reporting back what was heard in the survey and outlining the next steps.

Results, the staff report says, showed strong community input, helping the City Council decide whether to move forward with a 2026 ballot measure.

The ballot measure is estimated to raise about $2 million a year. As a general tax, it requires only a simple majority to pass. It also means the money would go to the General Fund with no legally binding requirement to spend it on any specific service.

The state deadline to place a measure on the November ballot is August 7. A Council vote to finalize ballot language is targeted for July 28, so June 23 is a key step in that timeline.

The City Council meeting will also include reviewing future council-initiated items and the City Manager’s report.

Two words have been on the minds of Twentynine Palms planning staff the last few weeks — Land Use. The merry-go-round continues Tuesday at 5 pm as the Planning Commission reviews another set of land use and zoning maps, now totaling four of an anticipated 22 maps as the City dips its toes into its General Plan revamp.

The general plan has the following components—

• Land Use

• Circulation

• Housing (due to be updated in 2029)

• Conservation / Open Space

• Noise

• Safety

• Recreation

• Equity / Environmental Justice (adopted in 2023)

Because the 2026 City budget has not included money for an outside planning consultant, Community Development Director Keith Gardner has opted to take on the General Plan process in-house for now. So far, Gardner has presented two land use maps in the last two study sessions, as we covered here and here.

At the current rate of discussion, the Planning Commission is expected to continue Land Use discussions for at least another 10 meetings, or five to six months contingent on the schedule.

Aside from approval of last meeting’s minutes, the only item on Tuesday’s agenda is a study session with the following topic: Public / Open Space / Utility / Flood Control on Maps 1-4:

As of now, the procedure is to review each of the area of the City per the existing Land Use Element, then review the goals and policies of the Land Use Element that may need to be updated. The first part of this review will be to determine those areas that may be redesignated as "P", "OS", "U", "F" or "TL"; then identify those areas where real-world situations do not match the current land use designations. When complete, the other elements of the General Plan will then be reviewed.

A copy of the 27-page agenda packet is here. Coverage of the previous Planning Commission study session is available here.

Because the City has not yet begun recording or live streaming its study sessions, those interested in this topic are encouraged to attend in person.1

Study Session #3 - Land Use & the General Plan Update

Opting for a simpler process than the previous meeting, where Commissioners tackled a series of questions for each map, the Community Development Director is focusing on just four potential land use categories for this meeting– P for public, OS-C for Open Space-Conservation, U for Utility owned parcels, and F for properties owned by San Bernardino County Flood Control. Per the staff report:

Instead of suggesting a multitude of changes, only those areas that would be removed from development potential are the subject of this workshop.

In other words, only those parcels that are currently zoned with development potential, such as County Flood Control properties that have residential zoning, will be discussed. One of the city’s goals in this process, per the staff report, is to adjust “land use designations to reflect real-world situations.”

Included in the staff report are calculations for potential changes in residential housing capacity, which the City will need to offset elsewhere to maintain compliance with its Regional Housing Needs Allocation under state no-net-loss law.

Tallying residential zoning losses proposed so far in Maps 1 through 4, if all proposed staff changes go through, the subtotal would be 339.2 potential housing units lost.

One example of this would be a section of San Bernardino County Flood Control property between Highway 62, Lupine, and Mariposa Avenue, shown above in blue. Currently zoned as residential, the City is suggesting that the land use here be changed to F for Flood Control. If the change takes place, overall residential housing capacity decreases.

What has been mapped so far?

Areas circled in yellow in the image above have been mapped by City staff with proposed zoning changes. Maps 1 and 2 include a federally owned parcel in the far southwestern section of town, the Indian Cove neighborhood, and a county-owned section of flood control property adjacent to John’s Place. Maps 3 and 4, which cover Smoke Tree and Theatre 29, are the eastern continuation of maps 1 and 2.

All four maps have proposed zoning changes. After this meeting, there is an expected 18 maps left for Commissioners to sift through.

At the June 9 City Council meeting, public commenter Paul Nugent called upon Council to allow the Planning Commission to establish a citizens advisory committee for its General Plan:

Our community includes individuals with valuable expertise and experience who can provide insight on land use, zoning development and other planning issues.

And for that reason, I would like to suggest that the city council authorize the planning commission to establish a citizens advisory committee to assist with the general plan update. When the general plan was last amended, the city created a 12 member general plan advisory committee to help gather community input and provide recommendations. A similar approach would ensure that the current update benefits from broad public participation and the diverse perspectives of our residents.

Map 3 - Hatch Road & Knotts Sky Park

Map 3 focuses on the Smoke Tree neighborhood, which includes Knotts Sky Park, headquarters for the Twentynine Palms Water District (in light blue), Monument High School, and single-family residential neighborhoods zoned RS-4, which allows a maximum of four units per acre.2

North and West of Monument High School is a private parcel zoned as (P) for public with a gray color coding labeled “Study Area.” Because it is a privately owned parcel, its current Public zoning is not appropriate as it is not owned by the city or a government entity. Staff is suggesting this parcel be changed to a different designation. Further details on the parcel, such as ownership information, are not included in the agenda packet.

Map 4 - Sullivan Road, Palms N Paws, Public Works, Theatre 29, Reset Hotel

In continuity with Map 3, Map 4 encompasses the eastern developed portion of Sullivan Road up to Adobe Road. Map 4 introduces the first appearance of Tribal Lands (TL) in the series, reflecting an area across the Casino that is now under jurisdiction of the Twenty-nine Palms Band of Mission Indians.

This map includes the City’s Public Works building, Palms-N-Paws Animal Shelter, and Theater 29, all of which are City owned properties. In pink is a large private property tied to Reset Hotel, which is labeled as not intended to be developed as residential.

According to the housing chart calculations, proposed changes to Map 4 would entail a reduction of 176 in potential housing units.

The meeting takes place at 5 pm, 6136 Adobe Road. See you there!

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The June 9 Twentynine Palms City Council meeting wrapped in just over an hour with a full agenda and no pulled consent items.

Beneath the brisk pace was real substance. Right out of the gate, Mayor Daniel Mintz announced that in closed session the Council had voted to forgive a debt the public had not previously known existed. The agenda moved efficiently from there. Discussion items included a resolution backing a state public records bill, direction on a 1% sales tax measure headed for the November ballot, and a solid waste rate adjustment, all passing 5-0.

Relevant links:

• Meeting agenda

• Our agenda preview

• Video of the meeting

A debt forgiven in closed session raises more questions than it answers

Reported out of the closed session by Mayor Mintz was a decision that the City

…not take formal action to pursue collection of the amount of $31,982.08 due to the City by Morongo Basin ARCH related to the former agreement related to the City’s Elm Avenue property.

The vote was unanimous, with Councilmember McArthur Wright abstaining, citing a conflict of interest; the basis for the conflict was not stated. The nature of the debt was likewise not disclosed.

The reference is to a project with a long history at City Hall, involving Morongo Basin ARCH, a local nonprofit that has operated in the basin since 2008, providing emergency shelter, rapid rehousing, outreach, and eviction prevention services. In December 2021, the Council accepted a Community Development Block Grant–Coronavirus (CDBG-CV) Homekey award of more than $713,000 from the California Department of Housing and Community Development to purchase and rehabilitate four units at 6937–6943 Elm Avenue as permanent housing for very low-income residents. As then-City Manager Frank Luckino described it, the City would facilitate the grant while Morongo Basin ARCH would operate and maintain the units, leaving the City with “no long-term annual costs.” ARCH president Astrid Johnson appeared before the Council that night to outline the nonprofit’s approach.

The staff report, however, identified the risks of that arrangement in writing. The grant carried a 55-year affordability commitment; ARCH would need to remain a functioning operator for that period, or the City would have to “find another organization or run it ourselves”; and the General Fund would “backfill any shortfalls” if the nonprofit could not meet its obligations. Councilmember Joel Klink questioned whether the planned $5,000 annual replacement reserve was adequate and asked about a memorandum of understanding allowing the City to inspect the units.

By the time the Council formally closed out the project on March 23, 2026 — the same evening it rejected the E-Group solar proposal — the operating structure had changed. The completed units are now covered by a Housing Assistance Payments contract between the City and the Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino and reserved for HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing referrals, with case management provided by the VA. Morongo Basin ARCH did not appear in the close-out record. The project’s final accounting showed roughly $713,000 in grant funds and about $108,000 in City General Fund money, the latter driven in part by the federally required relocation of an income-ineligible tenant and a subsequent major rehabilitation of one house.

What remains unexplained in the public record is what the $31,982.08 represents, and when and why the City’s “former agreement” with ARCH ended. Neither the figure nor the nonprofit appears in the project’s close-out documents, leaving the June 9 decision as the first public indication that the arrangement concluded with a balance the City has now chosen not to recover.

Anna Stump named 2025 Arts Advocate of the Year

On a warmer note, Public Arts Advisory Committee (PAAC) Vice Chair Sarah Lyons presented a slightly belated 2025 Arts Advocate of the Year award to Anna Stump, a former PAAC chair who played a key role in landing a Levitt grant funding free concerts for the city. Lyons called Stump “an outstanding representative for the arts in 29 Palms, as well as the greater Morongo Basin” and “a pillar of our creative community.” Stump expressed her appreciation for the Council’s recognition of how important the arts are to the community’s overall health, happiness, and economic prosperity.

Council Comments: Graduations, a food bank, and the mysterious Pelican Club

Councilmember Wright gave the dais a run for longest council comment, clocking just over four minutes on topics ranging from food banks to happy birthdays. Councilmember April Ramirez still holds the 2026 record at nearly seven minutes.

Graduations were a universal theme: every member of the dais mentioned attending at least one end-of-year school celebration.

Both Councilmember Steven Bilderain and Mayor Pro Tem Octavious Scott reported attending the Pelican Club dinner, with Scott adding that the dinner was well attended. The Pelican Club was established in 1950 by a local businessman to bridge the considerable distance between the Morongo Basin and the seat of San Bernardino County government by providing an informal forum for local business owners and other interested parties to meet with County officials. Why Pelican? The businessman had brought the idea with him from an Orange County beach city organization, hence the club’s name.

City Manager Kevin Cole keeps it moving

In his City Manager report, Kevin Cole highlighted summer programming (swim, day camp, and a free pet adoption program), reported that Public Works had striped Utah Trail that evening, and noted that a grant-funded sidewalk project is two-thirds complete.

Cole asked Council for support in opposing AB 1383, a state bill that would lower the retirement age for public safety employees under CalPERS. The change would increase retirement liabilities for fire and police, and for cities like Twentynine Palms that contract with the County Sheriff, those costs get passed through in higher contract rates. Cole raised this item in response to a question Councilmember April Ramirez asked at the May 26 meeting.

Consent Calendar passes without comment or objection

The consent calendar passed 5-0 with no discussion, no public comment, and no items pulled. That included the raising of Council monthly pay to $700, a $2,424,428.26 warrant register, an emergency well repair at Luckie Park, the FY 2026-27 SB1 road project list, and a three-year Granicus subscription for the Visit 29 Palms Twentynine Palms Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID). For more detail on the full calendar, see our agenda preview.

The evening's only public hearing, a resolution placing Burrtec's solid waste service charges on the County property tax roll with a rate increase of $3.18 per month, followed the same pattern: 5-0, no questions, despite Burrtec representatives standing by to answer them.

The City backs a CPRA reform bill while its own compliance is challenged

The Council voted 5-0 to support AB 1821, a state bill that would extend the time agencies have to respond to public records requests. City Manager Cole introduced the item by noting the burden the California Public Records Act (CPRA) requests place on City resources, and cited Prop 42's elimination of state reimbursement and a 2020 California Supreme Court ruling restricting agencies from recovering staff time for producing records.

The vote still carried some tension. Desert Trumpet Editor-in-Chief Cindy Bernard spoke during public comment about the City's handling of an active CPRA request filed March 16 seeking documents related to the E-Group solar project. Bernard told the Council that ten weeks into the request, after the City had confirmed responsive records existed and set a June 10 production date, staff emailed asking her to provide specific keywords to "refine the search" or the request would be closed within five days. The language, she said, echoed direction she had previously described as coming from a councilmember: exact-keyword-match searches rather than the reasonable-search standard required under Government Code section 7922.530.

"I don't believe the staff handling our requests are the problem," Bernard said. "They are trying to do their jobs. The problem is the direction they are being given." She asked the Council to direct staff to apply the reasonable-search standard and to honor the June 10 production date.

A 1% sales tax measure takes shape, and the clock is ticking

Twentynine Palms isn’t the first city to consider a sales tax to bolster revenues. Neighboring cities including Yucca Valley, Palm Desert, Indio, and Cathedral City have already passed similar measures. City Manager Cole was direct: the city faces a “severe and increasing structural deficit.” Without new revenue, Cole warned, “cities may be forced to reduce or eliminate key quality of life services.”

Clifford Moss representatives Joshua Emeneger and Amanda Clifford joined the meeting by video, the second time that outside consultants arrived prepared to answer public questions and received none.

Mayor Pro Tem Scott framed the Council’s role simply: “City council is not the one that’s going to put a tax on our residents. Only the voters can do that.” Clifford Moss rep Amanda Clifford reinforced that framing: “You don’t impose taxes on your voters, they have the opportunity to make that choice for themselves.”

The proposed measure is a general tax, requiring only a simple majority to pass rather than the two-thirds supermajority needed for a specific tax, a distinction Wright raised and which we flagged in our agenda preview. Ramirez noted that post-election state mandates would likely increase the City's costs regardless, and Cole added that a general tax would give the City discretion over how the revenue is spent.

The City is working against a firm timeline. June 23 is the next scheduled discussion, with a Council vote targeted for July 28. The state deadline to place a measure on the November ballot is August 7.

Future agenda items: three trimmed, one questioned

The 14-item future agenda list received a light pruning. Scott requested removal of Item 6 (guidelines for elected and appointed officials’ use of City Hall meeting rooms), saying he had discussed it with the City Manager. Cole resolved two more without further Council action, noting that existing policy already covers Item 4 (new federal holidays vs. the City holiday schedule) and that Item 13 (cooling center hours) would be handled administratively.

The remaining items, including the Flock camera study session, the $1.3 million housing reallocation question, and the Set Free Ranch annexation, remain in queue. See our agenda preview for the full list.

Flock cameras continue to dominate public comment: “Privacy issues are democracy issues”

General public comment brought six speakers, including some new faces, and two written submissions. The dominant theme was Flock surveillance cameras, many speakers beginning by thanking Mayor Pro Tem Scott for scheduling the upcoming July 9 community roundtable.

Chris Carraher of Wonder Valley said the cameras had generated genuine anger among neighbors and framed routine surveillance as incompatible with a free citizenry, calling for further transparency and for the city to take the cameras down altogether. “Just because we could use it doesn’t mean we should use it,” Carraher said.

Beth Sheffield noted that camera numbers had continued to increase despite persistent community opposition, and cited California surveillance rules including California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA 2020) and SB 34: “Privacy issues are democracy issues,” Sheffield told the Council:

Arguing that you don't care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don't care about free speech because you have nothing to say.

Stacey Solie, who has spoken on Flock at previous meetings, raised concerns about the data being privately owned, about access by ICE and federal authorities, and about potential violations of California state law. Solie asked when the contract expires and whether the City could end it or physically cover the cameras.

Mayor Mintz read into the record a written submission from Heather Huguenor, who opposed AI surveillance in all forms as well as tax increases from a government Huguenor described as lacking transparency and ignoring the will of its residents.

A General Plan proposal, a farewell, and a question about Set Free Ranch

Paul Nugent raised the overdue General Plan update, proposing that the Council authorize the Planning Commission to establish a citizens advisory committee to assist with the process:

The city’s general plan is overdue for an update, and I think it’s important that residents have meaningful opportunities to participate in that process. Our community includes individuals with valuable expertise and experience who can provide insight on land use, zoning development, and other planning issues, and for that reason I would like to suggest that the city council authorize the planning commission to establish a citizens advisory committee to assist with the general plan update. When the general plan was last amended, the city created a 12-member general plan advisory committee to help gather community input and provide recommendations. A similar approach would ensure that the current update benefits from broad public participation and the diverse perspectives of our residents.

It was the first time a member of the public brought the idea to City Council, though the same proposal was raised at the June 2 Planning Commission meeting.

Mayor Mintz read a letter from BreeAnna Sullivan of the MUSD Nutritional Services Department, thanking the City and community partners for their support of their successful third annual summer meal kickoff event. Pastor LeeAnn Clarke offered warm words for Anna Stump, and bade farewell to Community Events Coordinator Scott Clinkscales, whom Clarke described as someone who “always brought excellence to the table” and would be tremendously missed.

Desert Trumpet Editor-in-Chief Cindy Bernard also spoke during general public comment, raising concerns about Future Agenda Item 9, the proposed annexation of two parcels occupied by Set Free Ranch, a church running a Christian discipleship program. Bernard told the Council the county had confirmed that the parcels are non-contiguous and not on the city border, and the state confirmed that Set Free holds no license to operate a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program, despite what is described as rehabilitative activity taking place there. Bernard questioned whether the annexation was worth staff time and raised separation of church and state concerns.

Bernard tied these concerns to the evening’s recurring theme:

We talk about the amount of money that’s being spent, and we’re talking about staff time, and I’m just asking that we really think thoroughly about what that staff time should be spent on.

The Brown Act prohibited Council from responding to any of the general public comments.

The next meeting is on June 23, 2026, the 1% sales tax will again be discussed. Looking to the summer, City Council is cancelling July 14 and August 11 meetings.

Run for City Council! Districts 3 (Mintz), 4 (Scott), and 5 (Wright) are up for election. The nomination period for candidates begins July 13, 2026 and ends on August 6, 2026. Contact City Clerk Cindy Villescas for details and check out our article on How to Run for City and Town Council for general guidelines.

Hi, new subscribers! Desert Trumpet understands you might not be interested in all of our coverage. That’s why it’s divided into separate newsletters allowing you to opt out of reporting that’s not important to you. For instance, you may want our Education news but not City Hall 29.

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The June 9 City Council meeting is mostly routine, but not entirely. The Council opens with yet another closed session, holds a public hearing that comes with a residential trash-rate increase, considers a resolution backing a state public-records bill, and gives direction on a 1% sales tax measure headed for the November ballot, with a formal vote set for June 23. The full agenda packet is available here. The closed session starts at 5:30 pm and the regular session begins at 6 pm.

1. Anticipated Litigation, Significant Exposure to Litigation, Gov. Code Section 54956.9(d)(2)(1 case)

The meeting opens, for the seventh time in 2026, with a closed session. The stated basis is significant exposure to litigation under Government Code § 54956.9(d)(2), with no further detail in the published agenda. Of the City’s six closed sessions earlier this year, three (April 9, 14, and 27) concerned the City Manager transition following Stone James’s April 9 resignation, and those ultimately surfaced in public: the Council accepted James’s resignation on a 5-0 vote and later appointed Kevin Cole.

The litigation sessions have been harder to follow. Consulting legal counsel in closed session is squarely permitted under the Brown Act; what is worth watching is how these items are described on the agenda and what, if anything, is reported afterward. The February 10 session cited a threat to public services and a consultation with the City Attorney. The January 27 session, like the one set for June 9, was listed only as anticipated litigation, “one case,” and afterward the Council reported nothing. The exception was January 13, when a last minute revised agenda named the matter directly: the Indian Cove Neighbors’ challenge to the City’s facility fee waiver policy.1

The Brown Act requires closed-session items to be described on the agenda with their statutory basis and certain actions to be reported out afterward, though how much detail those require depends on the circumstances. Across these sessions, the City has generally provided the minimum: a bare citation going in, and little or nothing coming out.

PUBLIC COMMENT

You can comment on agenda items and issues important to you at every City Council meeting. Comments on agenda items take place during discussion of that item, while comments on non-agenda items take place near the end of the meeting. The Brown Act prevents Council from commenting on non-agenda items. To comment, just pick up a form at the entry desk, fill it out, and hand it to the Clerk, who usually sits just in front of the Council dais toward the right.

Council email addresses and public comment information can be found on our resources page. Be sure to email prior to 2 pm on the day of the meeting so they have time to read your email prior to discussion. You can also copy the clerk at cvillescas@29palms.org and ask that your letter be made part of the public record.

AWARDS, PRESENTATIONS, APPOINTMENTS AND PROCLAMATIONS

Item 2 is a presentation by the Public Arts Advisory Committee (PAAC), the City Council-appointed body that supports public art programming and maintains the City's permanent art inventory. No staff report is included and no subject is described.

CONSENT CALENDAR

The Consent Calendar consists of items usually approved with a single vote. The public is given a chance to make public comment on these items prior to the Council motion. Fill out a comment form specifying the item you wish to address and submit it in person, or send an email in advance regarding any of the items on this meeting’s Consent Calendar.

Items 3 and 4 are routine: a procedural step allowing Council to adopt Ordinance No. 328 (the salary increase, addressed under Item 6) by title only rather than reading it aloud, and approval of the minutes from May 26, City Manager Kevin Cole’s first regular meeting.

Item 5. Approval of Warrant Register Totaling $2,424,428.26

The warrant register covers all payments issued by the City during a given period; this meeting's register totals $2,424,428.26, covering payments issued between May 12 and June 3, 2026. A few line items stand out. Clifford Moss LLC, the sales tax campaign consultant, received $16,352.49, roughly double its reported monthly rate. This could reflect two billing periods or additional scope, but the agenda packet provides no explanation.

Also appearing is a $9,000 payment to Culper Consulting LLC, the firm of Yucaipa Deputy Mayor Justin Beaver. As reported in the May 12 recap, outgoing City Manager Stone James contracted the firm to produce a code enforcement manual days after announcing his resignation. The City Attorney issued a work stop order shortly after, and Stone James pulled the Council approval item from the agenda the same day the payment cleared, meaning the $9,000 was paid without formal Council authorization for the policy governing the production of the manual.

Item 6. Second Reading of Ordinance No. 328 — City Council Salary Increase

The second and final reading of Ordinance No. 328 comes after its initial reading at the May 26 meeting, where it passed unanimously. If adopted, it would raise Council members’ monthly compensation from $465 to $700, the first increase in 24 years. The increase takes effect following the November 2026 election. For a deeper-look at the Council salary discussion, check out our previous coverage from the March 10 recap.

Item 7. Information on the Importance of Periodic Septic System Maintenance

The recurring septic system maintenance education item is a standing fixture at every meeting as part of the City's collaboration with the Twentynine Palms Water District on groundwater quality. As the May 26 recap noted, resident Heather Drake urged Council to extend septic enforcement to rental property management companies, citing personal experience with a management firm that failed to maintain systems in properties she had rented and later purchased.

Item 8. Three-Year Granicus Subscription Agreement — Visit 29 Palms TBID

The Tourism Business Improvement District’s marketing website, Visit29.org, runs on the Simpleview platform, now provided by Granicus. This item renews the subscription for three years, beginning at $26,449.46 in year one and rising to $29,094.41 and then $32,003.85 — roughly $87,500 over the full term. Funding comes from the TBID’s budget, not the General Fund.

The renewal was placed on the TBID Advisory Board’s consent calendar on March 19 and now appears on the City Council’s consent calendar, meaning a three-year contract is on track to be approved at both bodies without public deliberation unless a Councilmember or resident request discussion on the item.

It also carries some recent history. At the TBID's January 29 meeting, lodging partner Susan Peplow raised concerns in public comment about the rollout timeline for the platform's new business portal and the value of the events calendar as a resource for lodging partners and local businesses. A review of Visit29.org this week found the events calendar current and 102 lodging listings, suggesting the calendar and listings concerns have started to be addressed, despite the lodging listings representing about one-third of what’s available.2

Item 9. Emergency Repair of Luckie Park Well

The southeast well at Luckie Park failed in February 2026, prompting an emergency repair completed by Chambers Choice Drilling to keep the park’s irrigation, restrooms, and pool running. Once underway, the work turned up additional problems, pushing the cost to $28,231, beyond the City Manager’s spending authority and requiring the vendor to be paid before Council could act. Council is now being asked to ratify the expenditure after the fact. The cost falls within the $50,000 budgeted for well repairs in the General Capital Projects Fund for FY 2025-26.

Item 10. SB1 Road Project List for FY 2026-27

The Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017 requires the City to adopt a resolution each year identifying which road projects will be funded with SB 1 gas tax revenues. The City anticipates approximately $795,609 in SB 1 funds for FY 2026-27. The money will pay for asphalt overlay totaling about 22,000 linear feet, with work scheduled from July 2026 through June 2027, across 12 street segments:

Per the staff report, the City’s pavement condition index is currently above the SB 1 benchmark of 80 and rated “good.” Cities must maintain that threshold to remain eligible for the funding.

PUBLIC HEARING

11. Placement of Solid Waste Service Charges on the County Property Tax Roll

This is the meeting’s only public hearing. Each year the City must pass a resolution authorizing San Bernardino County to collect Burrtec’s residential solid waste charges through the property tax roll, a practice in place since 2005 that the City Attorney’s staff report says saves residents money over direct billing. The County began requiring annual re-authorization in 2025.

The hearing is not a vote on the rates themselves. According to the staff report, standard residential service will rise by $3.18 per month effective July 1, 2026, and most of that increase happens automatically under the City’s existing franchise agreement with Burrtec, without Council action. It includes a 3.09% cost-of-living adjustment, $2.10 representing the third year of a four-year phase-in of state-mandated organic waste recycling costs under SB 1383, and $0.43 in added recycling costs.

The single component actually before the Council is a 1.07% increase, about $0.28 per month for standard residential service, to cover Burrtec’s costs of complying with SB 1383’s organic waste procurement mandate. The staff report presents the $3.18 figure as the overall change to residential rates on July 1, so this $0.28 charge appears to be one part of that total rather than an addition to it.

DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS

12. Support for AB 1821: California Public Records Act Amendment

AB 1821 would amend the California Public Records Act (CPRA), the state law that gives the public the right to obtain government records. Current law requires an agency to determine whether requested records are disclosable and to notify the requester within 10 days, a window understood under state law to mean 10 calendar days. AB 1821 would change that to 10 business days and would similarly shift the permitted extension under unusual circumstances from 14 calendar days to 14 business days.34

As of late May 2026, the bill had passed the Assembly and moved to the Senate, which means it is not yet law. The Council is being asked to adopt a resolution supporting it. City Manager Cole will present the item; no staff report is included in the published agenda packet, which is unusual for an action item and leaves the public and Council members without written analysis before the vote.

For residents who have submitted records requests to the City of Twentynine Palms, the response window may already look like what the bill proposes: City Clerk Cindy Villescas has consistently treated the deadline as 10 business days rather than 10 calendar days, giving the understaffed City more time to respond.

The Desert Trumpet has a direct interest in this legislation: it regularly files public records requests with the City and other local agencies, and the bill’s deadline change would apply to those requests. There is some irony in the Council being asked to put the City’s name behind a public-records law when its own compliance with that law has been challenged at past meetings. At the May 26 meeting, for instance, Desert Trumpet Editor-in-Chief Cindy Bernard raised the issue with Council members during public comment:

The Desert Trumpet submits public information requests as a part of our investigative reporting. While a few of you do a great job of supplying the documents legally required by the California Public Records Act, others of you are less forthcoming. You know who you are. In fact, documents produced in response to one of our requests show that a council member directed City staff to filter our records response using only quote exact keywords, a practice inconsistent with the City’s obligation under the California Public Records Act.

The past City Manager was not a fan of CPRA compliance — is this agenda item a sign of change?

13. Sales Tax Ballot Measure — Polling Results and Ballot Language

The City is asking Council to provide direction on placing a 1% local sales tax measure on the November 2026 ballot; a formal vote on ballot language and a placement resolution would return to Council on June 23. According to the staff report, the City faces structural pressure on the General Fund, with operating expenses, led by law enforcement costs, growing faster than revenues. The Sheriff’s Department contract for FY 2026-27, approved at the May 26 meeting, rose 7.4% over the prior year — an increase of $429,052, bringing the total to $6,220,995. The campaign’s FAQ, produced by Clifford Moss LLC, says the contract rose 10% this year, with no math shown.

The outreach has proceeded in phases. Beginning in 2023, the City conducted two community surveys. At its October 14, 2025 meeting, Council approved a $122,250 package: a Probolsky Research survey plus funding for a political consulting firm to promote a possible measure, with the consultant’s role made contingent on the survey’s results. Staff originally recommended the Lew Edwards Group, but Council substituted Clifford Moss LLC at Councilmember April Ramirez’s suggestion. Probolsky completed its survey on January 17, 2026, and then a citywide mailer went out to more than 5,000 voter households, generating 682 responses and 542 written comments; digital advertising produced 184,000 impressions and 13,455 clicks. A second mailer, signed by then-City Manager Stone James, went out in May.

The draft ballot question reads:

Shall the measure funding the City of Twentynine Palms services such as maintaining 911 response times, police officers and patrols, emergency response, maintenance of streets, parks and trails, upgrade the animal shelter, and support general city services; raising the sales tax by 1%, be adopted, providing approximately $2,000,000 annually until ended by voters; requiring audits/public spending disclosure, all funds used locally, be adopted?

As a general tax, the measure’s revenue would flow to the General Fund and could be spent at the discretion of whichever Council is seated, which is also why it needs only a majority to pass rather than the two-thirds a dedicated tax requires. That structure sits awkwardly against how the measure is being presented. Several claims in the City’s outreach materials warrant scrutiny:

• A general tax presented as dedicated spending. The ballot question and both outreach documents list specific uses — 911 response, police patrols, streets, parks, animal shelter upgrades — but as a general tax, none of those uses is legally binding; the money can be spent on anything. The FAQ concedes as much.

• A claim the City has never substantiated. Both the fact sheet and the mailer assert that “visitors and tourists would pay a large percentage” of the proposed tax. No data supporting this appear in the packet. When the same talking point was used during the City’s earlier sewer-tax campaign, records obtained by the Desert Trumpet showed the then-City Manager, asked for the figure behind it, acknowledged the City did not have that analysis.

• Grocery and prescription “protection.” The FAQ frames exempting groceries and prescriptions as a safeguard built into the measure. Most groceries and prescription drugs are already exempt from California sales tax statewide, regardless of any local measure.

• Unsourced statistics. The fact sheet claims a pavement condition index “20% above the average of all Coachella Valley cities” (Twentynine Palms is in the Morongo Basin, not the Coachella Valley), and an animal-shelter “save rate nearly 3x higher than the national average.” Neither figure is sourced.

• A regional claim stated as fact. The materials assert the City is “one of the few communities in the region without a local sales tax,” which the packet does not substantiate.

One omission is its own kind of disclosure. The item is titled to present polling results, but the Probolsky report is not in the packet. When Council first accepted the survey on January 27, the full Probolsky Research report, including methodology, sample, and a margin of error of plus or minus 5.8 percent, was included in the agenda packet, available to the public before the meeting. The June 9 packet contains only the Clifford Moss fact sheet, FAQ, and mailer. The underlying poll is absent.

The City’s current sales tax rate is 7.75 percent, with no local component. Staff asks only that Council receive the report and provide direction; the final ballot language and placement resolution return for a vote on June 23.

FUTURE COUNCIL INITIATED ITEMS

The following 14 items are queued for future Council action or discussion:

1. Shade structures around Freedom Plaza and a possible art fixture announcing the location.

2. Discussion of a policy regulating the use of City Attorney resources.

3. Discussion on creating a “Recognized Neighborhood Program.”

4. Discussion on the new federal holidays to coincide with the City’s holiday schedule.

5. Discussion on the use of City funds for grants and the potential reallocation of housing and homeless funds to grants.

6. Discussion on creating guidelines for the use of City Hall meeting rooms by elected and appointed officials for official City business.

7. Discussion on the next steps of reallocating $1.3 million for housing.

8. Discussion of Code Enforcement, compliance with Proposition 36, and a pathway to meeting new guidance issued by Governor Newsom.

9. Discussion about annexing parcels APN 0634-05-124 and 0634-05-109, also known as Set Free Ranch.

10. Discussion of a possible safe passage with CalTrans around Donnell Hill.

11. Discussion on a collaboration with Liberty Military Housing to update the City’s RHNA numbers.

12. Study session regarding the FLOCK cameras.

13. Expedited item to discuss Cooling Center hours.

14. Review and revision to Municipal Code Chapter 5.08 related to cannabis uses, to bring the City into compliance with new state legislation. Requested by Councilwoman Ramirez, seconded by Councilmember Bilderain, per the May 26 minutes.

Run for City Council! Districts 3 (Mintz), 4 (Scott), and 5 (Wright) are up for election. The nomination period for candidates begins July 13, 2026 and ends on August 6, 2026. Contact City Clerk Cindy Villescas for details and check out our article on How to Run for City and Town Council for general guidelines.

Hi, new subscribers! Desert Trumpet understands you might not be interested in all of our coverage. That’s why it’s divided into separate newsletters allowing you to opt out of reporting that’s not important to you. For instance, you may want our Education news but not City Hall 29.

Here’s how to opt out: go to your Substack settings, scroll down to “subscriptions,” and select “Edit” for the Desert Trumpet. Simply uncheck the box next to the newsletters you don’t want to receive in your email inbox. You’ll still be able to access all coverage online if you change your mind.

Thanks to you, Desert Trumpet met our $10,000 paid subscription goal!!!

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This last Tuesday, June 2, the Twentynine Palms Planning Commission held a study session on General Plan updates. They analyzed two Land Use maps and discussed zoning intricacies in southwestern portions of the city. Three of five Commissioners were present with Vice Chair Krushat and Commissioner Paahana having excused absences.

The meeting was just under an hour. Commissioners sifted through a series of questions on utility owned parcels, residential properties that do not meet their current zoning criteria, and potential zoning changes of federal properties.

The agenda packet is here. Coverage of the meeting agenda is available here. The first 4:28 minutes of the meeting is available here, though the study session was not recorded. Per state requirements, the City has until July 1 to begin recording and livestreaming all workshops, study sessions, committee meetings, and board meetings.

PUBLIC COMMENT

None

STUDY SESSION: Study Maps 1 and 2 of the General Plan Update

The City General Plan is past due for an update. City Staff is conducting the beginning stages of this lengthy process in-house, without consultants, starting with the Land Use element. The Land Use element contains the zoning map for the City, and defines the various land uses and districts within that zoning map, from residential to commercial, rural to public, and everything in between.

City Staff is starting this process by analyzing sets of the City’s land use maps, with an anticipated 22 maps in total. For this study session, commissioners had two maps to analyze with a set of questions and considerations to discuss. They included the question of retaining the Open Space-Conservation (OS-C) land use type, which was created through a Conditional Use Permit to facilitate the development of the Ofland Resort project.1 Other questions included federal property zoning designations and the land use designations of property owned by utility companies such as Southern California Edison and the local water district.

Community Development Director Keith Gardner kicked off the study session:

There is no timeline to this, but the general plan does need to be updated, and this is going to be a slow process. We want to make sure we get it done in a thorough process as we can.

Map 1 displayed a series of five-acre residential lots owned by the federal government and a handful of lots owned by County Flood Control and the Twentynine Palms Water District.2 Also on the map was a purple section labeled “STUDY AREA” in which a series of undeveloped residential lots did not meet the correct lot size for their current zoning.

Gardner posed the following questions to Commissioners regarding Map 1:

1. Should those properties in the area bounded by Highway 62, Lee Road, Kern Boulevard, and Sullivan be redesignated to reflect actual lot sizes?

2. Should those properties owned by the federal government be redesignated as “P” or “OS-C”?

3. Should properties that are inconsistent with their land use designation be considered for redesignation?

4. Should all properties owned by the City be shown as “P” or should that be on a case-by-case basis?

5. Should a consideration be made to redesignate a portion of the properties at intersection of Lear Avenue into a commercial land use designation?

A southwest portion of the city, between Kern Boulevard, Lee Road, Sullivan Road, and Highway 62, highlighted in the map above, contains an area of one-acre residential lots that are zoned for 2.5 acres, a mismatch Gardner attributed to government survey lots that were likely grandfathered when the City incorporated.

The commission agreed to address these mismatched zoning areas on a case-by-case basis. Cure inquired on the history of the lots and argued that isolated parcels sandwiched among larger ones don’t necessarily warrant a blanket redesignation.

Chair Max Walker and Commissioner Alex Garcia were in agreement that the map should match what’s on the ground as much as possible.

Regarding designation of federal property as P for public or OS-C, Commissioners and City Staff emphasized that the City has very little jurisdiction over what the federal government can do with its own land though the land is not appropriately zoned for residential use as it is too difficult to develop.

Though commissioners were generally in favor of retaining the Open Space Conservation (OS-C) land use designation, Commissioners stopped at wanting to apply that designation to federal properties. Chair Max Walker asked if a lawsuit on the Ofland development was why the OS-C land use was no longer in play. Gardner confirmed:

We have a request from their attorney to rescind all Ofland [zoning], including the establishment of the open space conservation zone.

Commissioner Cure was in favor of designating federal land and City-owned land as Public (P) and that utility-owned parcels should be in their own separate category. Garcia was also in favor of utilities having their own separate category and inquired if the Public land use designation can be subdivided into more specific criteria.

Cure stated:

If it’s conservation, then it should be conserved and nothing else — zero grading. So it wouldn’t necessarily be applicable to some of the state or federal [land].

Gardner and Walker both acknowledged that any conversion of residential property to a different land use designation would have to accommodate state requirements. Government Code Section 65863 — the no-net-loss statute prohibits reduction of residential density below a required threshold unless replacement sites are identified.

Property owners would also have to be notified by the City before any zoning changes are implemented.

Will There Be A General Plan Advisory Commission?

Speaking from the public was Cindy Bernard, who called for the formation of a citizens advisory committee:

Why are we starting this conversation without a citizen advisory committee? There's always been a citizen advisory committee for any General Plan work we've done, and yet, for some reason, we don't have one now. We had a citizen advisory committee when we revised the STR ordinance. I don't know why we don't have one for the general plan, so I'm putting that to you to please discuss, because I think it's absolutely necessary. It'll be a mistake to do this process without a citizen advisory committee.

Because this was a study session, Commissioners were able to respond to concerns raised in public comment. Chair Walker drew from his experience working on the Marine Base master plan revisions and was ultimately receptive to the formation of an advisory committee:

For the citizen advisory thing, my experience with this — on the base, we didn't bring the base population into the conversation for a little while, while we worked through kind of how we wanted to approach updating the Base master plan. I don't necessarily know if we're there yet with where we're at in the process. I think we're just kind of working through some general thoughts and ideas.

Gardner said he was open to public input if Council chose to go that direction. Walker clarified whether or not the Planning Commission has the authority to create a committee:

Until the Council directs us to set up the advisory committee, I think coming to the meetings, which we greatly appreciate, and giving your input, is kind of where we're at, and that's where we're going to go from there.

Sitting in the audience was newly appointed City Manager Kevin Cole. Walker added:

I think, by me saying this right now with the new City Manager in the audience, I am asking for at least the conversation to be brought up to the City Council.

Map 2 - County Flood Zone Properties

Map 2’s discussion involved County flood zone properties east of Stater Bros and west of John’s Place. A handful of businesses are in this residentially zoned area— Commissioners agreed that they should be converted to reflect their commercial business and that flood zone property should have its own Land Use designation.

Lear Avenue & the Circulation Element

Within the staff report was an inquiry on anticipated development for Lear Avenue and Highway 62. Zoned for 2.5 acre lots, Gardner said there are two parcels on the southern side of the Lear/Highway 62 intersection (in Indian Cove) that are zoned neighborhood commercial. The item asks whether the four parcels at the intersection of Lear and 62 should all be commercial instead of residential.3

Bernard raised objections to Gardner's suggestion that parcels at the Lear Avenue and Highway 62 intersection could be reconsidered for a commercial designation:

We just fought very hard to make this parcel residential and not commercial. I think you’re going to find a lot of residents very upset if you take that back to commercial.

Bernard also identified what she called an inconsistency with Lear Avenue’s extension being triggered by development of the southeastern parcel on Highway 62 and Lear instead of the southernmost parcel between Sullivan and Baseline. Highlighting the Circulation Element, Bernard pointed out:

Why is the extension of Lear triggered by development on this [northern] parcel, when the whole point is — it’s supposed to go all the way up into this [the southern] parcel, per the circulation element.

Gardner said he would consult the city engineer when the commission reaches the Circulation Element portion of the review — including whether all general plan roadways are still needed as currently drawn.

Community Development Director Update

Director Gardner informed the Commission of a request from Wing-N-It to move from its current location at 72317 29 Palms Highway, to a location just west of that between Hatch Road and Highway 62, at 72115 29 Palms Highway. The moving plans showed blueprints with a cactus garden in the front and outdoor seating. The comment period ends June 12 with the staff expected to decide on the relocation application June 16. Because the move requires only an Administrative Use Permit (AUP), the approval decision is delegated to the Community Development Director. To comment on the Wing-N-It application, write to kgardner@29palms.org.

Gardner said the commission would have at least one more general plan workshop in two weeks, may have development applications coming up in July, and is potentially looking at a development code update for accessory dwelling units to better reflect changes in state law. The July 21st meeting was cancelled after all three commissioners present indicated conflicts that day.

The next Planning Commission meeting will take place June 16 at 5 pm.

NOTE: Desert Trumpet staff members Cindy Bernard, Kat Talley-Jones, and Heidi Heard live in the Indian Cove neighborhood, adjacent to the Ofland development project, and are on the organizing committees of Indian Cove Neighbors and Say No to Ofland. Read our policy for covering Ofland here.

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This upcoming Tuesday, June 2 at 5 pm, the Twentynine Palms Planning Commission will hold its second of many study sessions on the City’s General Plan update. The last General Plan update was finalized in 2012. Due to budget constraints, City staff is conducting the heavy lifting for this arduous process in-house, without outside consultants. At past Council meetings, Mayor Daniel Mintz has admitted that formulating the 2012 General Plan cost the City upward of $1 million.

Relevant Background Information:

• The Desert Trumpet has an overview of the City’s General Plan update process here.

• Coverage of the last Planning Commission meeting is available here.

• A link to the entire 20-page agenda packet is available here.

The General Plan contains eight elements— land use, circulation, housing, safety, conservation and open space, recreation, equity and social justice, and noise. Staff is opting to tackle the Land Use element first, because all other elements are contingent upon it. A ninth element on Art is currently in the works through the Public Arts Advisory Committee.

The Land Use Element & City Zoning Map

In the aftermath of the City’s strategic planning sessions where residents, elected and appointed officials, and community stakeholders had opportunities to outline their long-term goals for the City for the next 5, 10, and 20 years, the City is now taking on its General Plan revisions.

For this study session, Commissioners will review two out of an anticipated 22 Land Use maps. Whether this is the most efficient approach to updating the General Plan is yet to be determined.

The current Land Use Element is 117 pages and contains the City’s zoning map with all of its land use categories and definitions. Listed within that adopted element are ten guiding principles:

• Goal LU-1 Encourage orderly growth and development as

  envisioned by community residents.

• Goal LU-2 Protect existing neighborhoods and the area’s natural

  surroundings by encouraging development that is

  compatible with the City’s small-town character.

• Goal LU-3 Promote a high quality of life by encouraging attractive

  high quality development that is compatible with

  existing uses and the City’s desert environment.

• Goal LU-4 Adequately address the potential impacts of new

  development on the existing community and the City’s

  infrastructure system.

• Goal LU-5 Preserve Twentynine Palms natural resources and

  protect the public health, safety and general welfare of

  City residents in areas adjacent to potentially hazardous

  natural and man-made features and facilities

• Goal LU-6 Promote development of a well-balanced community that can adequately meet the needs of future residents and promotes economic development.

• Goal LU-7 Protect and preserve Twentynine Palms natural

  resources, promote the existing quality of life and prepare for future residents and businesses by promoting superior sustainable development.

• Goal LU-8 Maintain Twentynine Palms as a clean and healthy place

  to live, while protecting the City’s groundwater supply.

• Goal LU-9 Protect the health and safety of residents living in the

  vicinity of airports

• Goal LU-10 Promote a high quality of life for Twentynine Palms

  residents by developing and sustaining a strong and

  diverse local economy.

Staff has also laid out “goals” for “reviewing the land use element.” What’s notable here is the framing in the staff report: these are described as “goals that Staff has developed” — it doesn’t say “proposed goals for commission consideration and revision” or “draft goals for community input.” It presents them as already established, with the commission’s role being to work within them rather than shape them. While 1 and 2 read as goals, 3-5 are written as procedures, methods or reminders.

• Goal 1: The Land Use Element should be reflective as much as possible of actual real-world conditions; i.e. land use designations should accurately reflect the established lot sizes and actual developments

• Goal 2: Where feasible, suggestions for changes to the Land Use designations would reflect achievable long-term development

• Goal 3: Where appropriate, new land use districts may be developed – or existing land use districts may be consolidated and simplified.

• Goal 4: Historical and environmental considerations also play an important role in developing a Land Use Element;

• Goal 5: Each Specific Plan will Be studied for modern relevancy

The General Plan update is the City’s first systematic attempt since 2012 to reconcile what the map says with what actually exists on the ground, with the staff report citing commercial businesses located in residentially zoned areas as one category of interest. Residential lot sizes that do not match their listed zoning type are also being looked at.

Questions for the Planning Commissioners—and the City

For this week’s study session, staff is posing the following questions to Commissioners:

1. Should an “Open Space - Conservation Land Use District” be created?1

2. Should a “Utility Land Use District” be created to reflect ownership of the various utilities? Or should their properties be shown changed to the “Public (P) Land Use District”?

3. Should we have a “One Map” system, where the General Plan Land Use Map and the Zoning Map are the same? Or should we have a “Two Map” system, where the General Plan shows broad categories, and the Zoning Map gives more detail?

4. Should the “Public” (P) land use designation be more specific? In other words, should there be a difference between those properties used for parks and those used for utilities?

5. Should the minimum Land Use District size be maintained, or revisited?

A Potential Open-Space Conservation Category

Staff is floating the creation of an Open Space Conservation2 land use district and asking if it is applicable to federally owned properties within City limits:

B) Approximately 126 acres in the far southwest corner of the City boundaries are owned by the Federal Government and are very hilly and topographically difficult in which to build. Should those properties be shown as Open Space - Conservation (OS-C) or Public (P)?

Labeling federally owned land as OS-C signals that conservation matters more than ownership type. Choosing Public (P) acknowledges that the federal government controls what happens there. How the City handles this parcel will likely shape how it treats other environmentally sensitive or government-owned land going forward.

Per the Land Use Element:

The P (public) land use serves as a means of identifying public lands and facilities, such as City and County facilities and offices, schools, libraries, museums, parks, open space lands and other publicly owned lands. Public uses that contribute to and support the needs of the community are allowed in P designated properties.

Lear Avenue & Highway 62 Intersection Improvements Expected

Addressing expected improvements to the intersection of Lear Avenue and Highway 62, the staff report states:

It is anticipated that Lear Avenue may need to be improved in the near future, along with further engineering improvements. It may be prudent to consider a change to the land use designations at that intersection from residential to commercial.

Currently, all parcels on either side of Lear Avenue are zoned as residential. Territory north of Amboy Road is unincorporated San Bernardino County, which is also zoned for Rural Living with 2.5 acre minimums.

The Circulation Element contains the proposed road network of the City General Plan, where road improvement intentions are laid out, addressing how people, goods and resources move throughout the community:

This element primarily addresses the City’s street network which establishes the existing conditions of streets and a Circulation Plan for expanding the street network to service the land uses planned for in the Land Use Element.3

Projected improvements to Lear Avenue are included in the Circulation plan, approved April 27, 2012, which entail that as development along Lear Avenue continues, plans for up to a four-lane improvement are in place, while six lanes are planned for 62. Lear between 62 and 2 mile is marked as a special study area for potential increase to six lanes.

As stated in the Circulation Element, Lear Avenue is one of the City’s main north-south arterial roads, along with Adobe Road, Utah Trail, and Mesquite Springs Road. It also serves as a critical byway for travel to and from the 29 Palms Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center. Portions north of Amboy Road are unincorporated.

The Community Development Director is asking Commissioners if the land use designations at the intersection of Lear and Highway 62 should be changed from residential to commercial. The justification for this conversion is nebulous, however, with the staff report arguing that converting the land from residential to commercial would “a) minimize potential conflicts with residences in the future; and (sic) 2) encourage the improvements to Lear Avenue in a planned manner.” 4

It should be noted that the Ofland project discussed in Footnote 2 was triggering the paving of Lear between Highway 62 and Sullivan, a point of contention with residential property owners along the proposed improvement. Since the residential properties already exist on the southwest side of the proposed Lear extension, it’s unclear how upgrading the southeast parcel to commercial would ease conflicts.

Questions for Residentially Zoned County Flood Control Properties

A series of residentially zoned areas fall within San Bernardino County Flood Control jurisdiction:

Flood Control owns several properties that are designated for residential development, and are realistically part of the maintenance area for the major flood control channel. Additionally, there are several commercial businesses in areas zoned for residential. Should these zoning on these properties be modified to reflect the real-world situation?5

Rezoning flood control land and Lear Avenue away from residential could trigger a state compliance problem due to SB330 state housing law requirements. The City would need to identify replacement residential capacity somewhere else if SB 330 is triggered.

Is A General Plan Citizens Advisory Committee Needed?

Whether Gardner's map-by-map approach ultimately produces a genuine vision for Twentynine Palms' future or will simply be a consuming exercise in cartography and staff time may depend on City leadership.

The General Plan approved in 2012 encompasses over 950 pages, including an environmental impact report, and broad categories with impactful implications in terms of future development and guidelines for City leaders to follow with longterm vision in mind.

Advisory committees are common for such processes— the City of Big Bear Lake established a GPAC for its 2025 General Plan update, with members appointed directly by the City Council. Along with hired consultants, the City of San Bernardino also had a citizens advisory committee for its General Plan update in 2020.

In 2022, the City created a General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC) to advise on its Equity and Social Justice Element the members were Jonas Childs, Korina Cole, Jamie A. Garcia, Gary Horn, Lashara Maea and Mariana Wright-Mills. At a past Planning Commission meeting, resident Kim Ortamond spoke of her participation on a past GPAC where she advised on minimum acreage for horse stables and animal keeping standards.

Acknowledging what this process actually requires before staff gets too far down the road to change course will be up to Council and newly appointed City Manager Kevin Cole to determine. See how it plays out this Tuesday at 5 pm, 6136 Adobe Road.

NOTE: Desert Trumpet staff members Cindy Bernard, Kat Talley-Jones, and Heidi Heard live in the Indian Cove neighborhood, adjacent to this proposed development project, and are on the organizing committees of Indian Cove Neighbors and Say No to Ofland. Read our policy for covering Ofland here.

Hi, new subscribers! Desert Trumpet understands you might not be interested in all of our coverage. That’s why it’s divided into separate newsletters allowing you to opt out of reporting that’s not important to you. For instance, you may want our Education news but not City Hall 29.

Here’s how to opt out: go to your Substack settings, scroll down to “subscriptions,” and select “Edit” for the Desert Trumpet. Simply uncheck the box next to the newsletters you don’t want to receive in your email inbox. You’ll still be able to access all coverage online if you change your mind.

Thanks to you, Desert Trumpet met our $10,000 paid subscription goal!!!

Not a paid subscriber yet? Did you know that paid subscribers receive discounts on our DT Social events and invites to DT Front Porch, intimate discussions featuring local officials and notable residents?

• Upgrade to a $50+ paid subscription for a 10% discount.

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• Sustaining subscribers at the $250+ level and above receive complementary tickets

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It's not often that Awards, Presentations, Appointments and Proclamations and Council Comments and Reports of Meetings Attended provide the most compelling moments from a city meeting, but that was the case on Tuesday, May 26, at Twentynine Palms City Council. From two Marines speaking glowingly of picking up trash to benefit Feathers 'n Fur, to the accomplishments of the Youth Council, an ambitious housing proposal for justice involved veterans and the recent calendar of an equally ambitious Council member, the first half of the meeting was packed.

Relevant links:

• Meeting agenda

• Our agenda preview

• Video of the meeting

Active duty Marines helping out

Presentations for Twentynine Palms’ paid community beautification program Cash for Trash kicked the meeting off with the warmth that (mostly) permeated Council chambers Tuesday night. The Cash for Trash and Recycling Program is a partnership between the City of Twentynine Palms and Burrtec in which community groups and organizations volunteer to pick up trash in return for cash payments. The programs benefitting this evening were the Feathers ‘n Fur Wildlife Rehab, the Kiwanis and the Twentynine Palms High School Interact Club.

As Bradley and Jeremiah were speaking to their work on behalf of Feathers ‘n Fur, someone in the audience shouted out, “these are active Marines right here!” Jeremiah spoke to job at hand:

Just picking out the trash, it really felt rewarding at the end of the day, even though there's some hard work fighting that vegetation and whatnot... it goes by really quick when you got some people to laugh with.

A VERY productive year for the Youth Council

Initiated in May 2024, the Twentynine Palms Youth Council has just completed its second year. The council is composed of 14 student members and meets twice monthly, collaborating with city leaders, organizing community projects, and gaining hands-on experience in leadership and civic engagement. 2025-2026 accomplishments include:

• Food drive at Grocery Outlet — a repeat of last year’s effort, with strong community outreach and turnout

• Twentynine Palms Youth Olympics — a youth-focused community event designed to address the lack of activities for young people featured a dunk tank with City Council members (including Councilmember Wright in goggles)

• Astronomy night — Youth Council Chair Viviana Hermosillo noted that Sky’s the Limit, the local observatory, is an underutilized asset

• Senior Center volunteering — monthly visits, held on the fourth Wednesday of each month

• Youth as Solutions anti-vaping project — Youth Council designed and posted anti-vaping signs across schools, distributed materials at the Olympics, and organized a pledge-not-to-vape campaign

• Youth survey — surveyed residents ages 7-18; key findings: 40% of youth say there is nowhere to hang out; top requests were sports programs, arts and creative programs, community events, indoor recreational spaces, and a dedicated teen center

Chair Hermosillo and her colleagues presented an impressive five-minute documentary video produced as a part of their anti-vaping initiative. Unfortunately, staff could not get the audio working during the meeting, but the video can be watched in full here. Per Amy Tessier, Recreation Program Supervisor and Youth Council staff liaison, the documentary was chosen to participate in an international film competition, called Docathon, through MAD (Make a Difference) Courses.

Applications for the next Youth Council are still being accepted. Youth entering grades 6 through 12 in the fall are eligible.

A Housing Proposal for Justice-Involved Veterans — With Questions

As discussed in our preview, the Re-Enlist to Life Housing and Veteran Services (REL) presentation was postponed from May 12. REL is seeking a letter of support for its $12.6 million permanent supportive housing development for 32 justice-involved veterans housed in 16 units, to be funded through the State’s Homekey+ program under Prop 1 at no cost to the City.

Presenting the project were Founder Robert M. Embry and Chief Operating Officer Daniel Bevan — both are Marine Corps veterans. About the project Bevan said:

Our residents are your neighbors, they are individuals you will see at grocery stores, at community events, and in local places of worship. They are skilled, disciplined, and eager to prove their worth to the community that sits right next to the Marine Corps installation many of them once called home.

While a valiant proposal — it was met with applause from the public — several questions remained unanswered at the conclusion of the presentation.

• While REL's executive summary states the project site is in escrow, the property address is inconsistent across documents and no APN was provided.

• Embry described REL as a Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise — a specific California state certification administered by the Department of General Services. Desert Trumpet was unable to verify that REL holds that certification in either the California DGS database or the federal SAM.gov database.

• Homekey+ requires a local public entity as Lead Applicant, meaning a city, county, or public housing authority. No Lead Applicant is identified in any of the materials presented to Council.

The project was brought to Council under former City Manager H. Stone James, whose tenure ended May 16. City Manager Kevin Cole, now six days into the job at the time of the meeting, inherited the item. Given the unresolved questions around the project, it is reasonable to expect that Cole will conduct his own review before any letter of support is issued — if one is issued at all.

It should also be noted that as a Presentations item, the staff recommendation that Council direct the City Manager to write a letter of support was not actionable. No vote was taken.

Councilmember Ramirez's Ten-Topic “Meetings Attended” Report

Council Comments and Reports of Meetings Attended has a specific transparency purpose: it allows the public to see which meetings and conferences are attended on the City's dime. When the segment expands to include high school sporting events, community barbecues, and personal commitments alongside City-funded travel and policy claims, that transparency purpose gets lost. Which of these activities did the City pay for? The format as used doesn't answer that question.

As we've previously noted, Council Comments and Reports of Meetings Attended has increasingly become a platform for Councilmember April Ramirez. At the May 26 meeting, instead of aiming at a colleague as she did on August 26 of last year , Ramirez delivered an approximately 900-word account of her activities and achievements. Alongside routine community activities expected around the Memorial Day holiday, such as the Reach Out Morongo Basin barbecue, a cemetery service and a military spouse appreciation luncheon, Ramirez traveled to Lake Arrowhead for a City-County conference and Alpine for a Tribal Leaders Emergency Preparedness and Energy Summit earlier in the month.

She also listed activities in which her own role appeared to be exaggerated or was difficult to discern.

I also helped coordinate a Proposition 36 enforcement and outreach operation alongside the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department and multiple community partners. I would like to thank Morongo Basin Arch under the new direction of Alfreda Wright, Molding Hearts under the direction of Lakita Johnson and Becky Reese from Family Jewish Services, the H.O.P.E. Team, San Bernardino Inroads, and all of the mental health professionals who participated on site.

As we noted in our April 14 recap, Prop 36 is a state criminal sentencing statute implemented at the county level through prosecutors, sheriffs, and courts — cities have no direct enforcement role. Notably, City Manager Cole described the same operation in his City Manager update as a joint traffic, OHV, and encampment enforcement event — without reference to Proposition 36. Mayor Pro Tem Octavious Scott was also present at the action.

Lastly, I want to briefly discuss Proposition 13. For those unfamiliar, Proposition 13 limits property tax increases and requires voter approval for certain tax changes in California. When I learned that there were discussions that could potentially weaken those protections, I became deeply concerned, because when property taxes goes up, rent goes up too, and many working families in our city simply cannot absorb that cost. I joined the coalition, and we needed 500,000 verified signatures statewide to place the issue before voters this November. I'm proud to say that our grassroots coalition got 1.35 million verified signatures, and the state will no longer be able to raise your property taxes without your permission, as 13 was intended to protect us. So, I want to thank Mayor Daniel Mintz, Council Member Steven Bilderain, Kat Reichmuth and David Cole from King of the Hammers for supporting my grassroots efforts.

This was not a grassroots campaign led by Ramirez. The campaign was in fact led and funded by the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, the California Business Roundtable, the California Taxpayers Association, and the California Business Properties Association — some of California’s most powerful conservative political organizations.

She closed her nearly seven-minute statement with the famous Steve Jobs quote — “the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do” — without attribution.

CONSENT CALENDAR

Passed 5-0 with two public comments. See our agenda preview for details on the items.

In public comment, Heather Drake spoke about Item 11 (septic systems), urging Council to extend enforcement to long-term rental management companies, citing personal experience with Triad Realty failing to maintain septic systems in properties she rented and later purchased.

Elliot Balsley raised a pointed question about Item 9 (the Sheriff’s $6.2 million contract): the contract includes a $195,000 line item for the Supplemental Local Law Enforcement Fund (SLEF), which Balsley noted is a state grant — not a General Fund expense. He expressed concern that approving the contract as written could pre-authorize spending those funds on Flock camera renewal without a separate Council vote. Finance Director Abigail Hernandez-Conde clarified that approving the Sheriff's contract does not pre-authorize the Flock renewal. Council will still get a vote on that at the October renewal.

Public Hearing and Discussion and Action Items sail through

Four items passed 5-0 with little Council discussion and no public comment.

• General Fund Budget Revisions FY 2026-27
  Finance Director Abigail Hernandez-Conde presented the revised budget. Key figures: $15,762,371 in revenues, $15,753,821 in expenditures, projected surplus of approximately $8,550. The City expects to end FY 2026-27 with approximately $12 million in unassigned reserves.
  

  One exchange worth noting: Ramirez raised AB 1383, pending legislation that could change the CalPERS retirement formula, asking what a jump from 3.1% to 6.1% in pension costs would look like. Hernandez-Conde estimated $100,000-$150,000 more. City Manager Cole clarified the legislation relates to the pension formula and would only affect the City if they chose to change their current formula — tempering the concern somewhat. Ramirez said she’d share the legislative call to action with the full Council.

• Master Citywide User Fee Schedule FY 2026-27
  See our agenda preview for detail on the vehicle tow fee doubling to $100, VHR appeal fee reinstatement, and other changes.

• Nonprofit Grant Recommendations

  Community Events Coordinator Scott Clinkscales presented the subcommittee recommendations. Of 12 applicants requesting a combined $196,890, three organizations will receive funding from a pool reduced from $75,000 to $50,000 due to budget constraints:

  • 29 Palms Community Food Pantry & Outreach Ministries: $25,000

  • Reach Out Morongo Basin: $15,000

  • Animal Action League: $10,000

  Mayor Mintz offered a brief explanation: “We addressed food, obviously the seniors, and did the Animal [Action League] so we could get neutering done for our animals in the city.” Mayor Pro Tem Scott noted that some unfunded organizations may find alternative funding through the Public Arts Advisory Committee or TBID — however only two of the nine would potentially qualify: Project Sheba and the 29 Palms Artist Guild. See our May 12 agenda preview for the full applicant list.

• Council Compensation Increase to $700/month
  City Manager Cole introduced the item, noting the increase hadn’t happened in 24 years and that the law had changed to allow it. If approved after the second reading, the ordinance takes effect after the November 2026 election — meaning Councilmembers Mintz, Scott, and Wright, all up for re-election, would not benefit unless re-elected. See our March 10 recap for the full backstory.

FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS

A brief update on two items:

• The Donnell Hill safe passage item — Mayor Mintz noted Caltrans has cleared the east lane shoulder, creating a less obstructed path. City Manager Cole mentioned improvements at the base of the hill as well. Lighting remains a question requiring Caltrans approval.

• Cooling Center hours — Scott asked Cole to bring this forward. Cole indicated he’s already looking at adjusting hours at Freedom Plaza without incurring additional costs and will report back.

Two new items added by Ramirez:

• Review and authorize repairs needed at the EV charging station at Freedom Plaza

• Review and revise Municipal Code Chapter 5.08 on cannabis-related uses to align with new state legislation — seconded by Bilderain for the education of Council

Ramirez requested that the Council review and authorize any repairs needed at the EV charging station at Freedom Plaza. City Manager Cole, six days into the job, gently redirected: repairs of that nature fall within City Manager authority and don’t require Council action. He will assess the cost and bring it back to Council only if it exceeds his authority. It may never appear on a formal agenda.

It’s a small moment but a notable one — a new City Manager quietly establishing the boundary between administrative and legislative authority on his first night at the dais.

Flock cameras dominate public comment, again

Three speakers addressed Flock cameras, one welcomed the new City Manager.

Flock cameras dominated. Five letters were read into the record — four against, one in favor. Two speakers addressed the issue in person:

Heather Drake delivered a detailed statement alleging the Sheriff’s Department is operating the Flock system in violation of California law — specifically SB 34 transparency requirements — and has stonewalled her California Public Records Act (CPRA) requests for four months:

They claim that showing me the records of my own car would violate the privacy rights of the people involved. It's my car. They're claiming that they need to protect my privacy from myself. That is absurd.

She demanded the cameras be covered, the contract agendized, and the program ended.

Jeff Drake followed, providing legal context: he argued the Sheriff’s Department’s reliance on Haynie v. Superior Court to classify all Flock data as a permanent investigatory file is directly contradicted by the California Supreme Court’s ruling in ACLU v. Superior Court, which held that mass bulk ALPR data collection is a dragnet, not a targeted investigation, and therefore not exempt. He also argued that using privacy exemptions to block a person from seeing records of their own vehicle “is a complete subversion of the law.”

Andrew Wilson welcomed Kevin Cole, saying Cole was his basketball coach growing up and “whenever I needed somebody, Kevin Cole was always there.”

The Desert Trumpet speaks to California Public Records Act (CPRA) compliance

Desert Trumpet Editor (and writer of this preview) Cindy Bernard attended the May 26 meeting in her capacity as a journalist and addressed Council on CPRA compliance:

The Desert Trumpet submits public information requests as a part of our investigative reporting. While a few of you do a great job of supplying the documents legally required by the California Public Records Act, others of you are less forthcoming. You know who you are. In fact, documents produced in response to one of our requests show that a council member directed City staff to filter our records response using only quote exact keywords, a practice inconsistent with the City’s obligation under the California Public Records Act.

She also noted that when council members and staff fail to provide requested documents, it increases staff time and city attorney time and motioning to the room indicated that those costs are ultimately borne by taxpayers. She added that those costs would increase significantly if the Desert Trumpet is compelled to enforce its requests legally.

Shortly after the Desert Trumpet’s public comment on CPRA compliance, we received an email from the City requesting that we narrow a 10-week-old records request by providing specific keywords — or face closure of the request within five days.

New City Manager Kevin Cole keeps it brief

Is it possible the days of lengthy City Manager discourses are past? Kevin Cole’s first City Manager update at City Council clocked in at just 2-1/2 minutes. In addition to participating in the previously mentioned joint enforcement action, Cole noted he’s getting up to speed on the sales tax initiative. He closed with a warm note about the public cemetery’s Memorial Day flag display, calling it “a beautiful place” that has improved significantly in recent years, while noting it’s a special district, not under City jurisdiction. In summary:

Well, it’s day six and it actually has been great. I want to thank the public, I want to thank the staff, I want to thank the council for welcoming me here. It feels like I’m home.

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On Thursday, May 21 the Twentynine Palms Tourism Improvement District (TBID) Board held their regular monthly meeting. The agenda focused on funding for the Area 29 Galactic Gathering, which was approved for $10,000, and a discussion about updating grant and sponsorship requirements. Kevin Cole, the new Twentynine Palms City Manager, introduced himself and pledged to attend TBID meetings on a regular basis. Maria Madird announced her departure from the TBID due to moving out of state next month.

Present were Vice Chair Ashton Ramsey and Board Members Maria Madrid, Ben Uyeda, and Liz Schickler. Chair Rakesh Mehta joined by teleconference.

Director of Marketing update

Marketing Manager Breanne Dusastre opened the meeting with her regular monthly update. In conjunction with celebrating California Tourism month, Dusastre shared highlights from the 2025 Economic Impact of Travel report, including:

• $158.9 billion in travel-related spending statewide, which was up 1.7% from 2024.

• 1.2 million travel-related jobs across California, a 0.4% increase from last year.

• $13.6 billion in state and local tax revenue generated by travel, which was up 3.6% from last year.

On the local level, Dusastre shared preliminary results of the second quarter of TBID revenue collection, which covers January through March, 2026:

• Revenue collection for this quarter is about $130,000, which is up 19% from the same period in 2025.

• The hotel and RV segment accounted for $74,000 of the revenue, which was a 33% increase from last year.

• Collection for vacation rentals is up 4% from the same quarter last year.

• The total collected so far year-to-date is $232,000, which reflects a 13% increase over last year.

Dusastre also reported that a three-month billboard campaign on the I-10 near Palm Springs has been launched in a location that generates about 418,000 weekly impressions based on its location, which she hopes will have an impact on destination visibility for Twentynine Palms.

Praising Twentynine Palms as a place loved by visitors and locals

The only general public comment was offered by Suzanne Lyons, a part-time resident who also lives in Humboldt County. She discovered the Best of California magazine in a hotel on her drive to Twentynine Palms and commented on a feature about Twentynine Palms,

I was interested to see that the things that they praise for tourists are many of the same things that we just love about living here. So [this] strikes me that there’s kind of a win-win going on with quality of life and our town making us all happy as residents, but also being a great experience for people when they come here and discover the town.

The Best of California is published by Visit California, the statewide tourism organization, and features sponsored destination content.

Funding for Area 29 Galactic Gathering approved

The board awarded $10,000 in funding for the Area 29 Galactic Gathering, which will be held August 13 to 16 during the Perseid Meteor Shower. Now in its third year, the event is organized by Rediscover 29, an association of local businesses. It aims to bring together alien, space, and desert-enthusiasts, including 200 out-of-town guests, for four days of events like film screenings, art shows, performances, a glow-in-the-dark dance party, citywide scavenger hunt, and an alien themed pool party.

The funding discussion and decision for Area 29 had been tabled at April’s meeting because of a lack of a quorum due required recusals for board member Shickler and Vice Chair Ramsey. Both operate businesses that are paid members of Rediscover 29 and were not able to vote on funding.

There were three public comments in support of the event. Sarah Lyons, President of Rediscover 29 and co-owner of Scorpion Lollipop, submitted a written comment. She highlighted that a space themed festival was recently announced at Pappy and Harriet’s for the same weekend, which showed that the event concept has value, but that planning must begin soon. She wrote,

We have an opportunity to build something truly special and unique in our city with this event, and it’s unfortunate that Twentynine Palms could yet again be overshadowed by another high desert community.

Jimmy Brower, Vice President of Rediscover 29 and owner of Sun of the Desert, stressed the importance of symbiotic relationships between groups like Rediscover 29, the TBID, and other local nonprofits to support tourism and economic development in Twentynine Palms. He suggested that event marketing and tracking an event’s impact must be a connected, group effort that needs ownership and buy-in from TBID stakeholders and local businesses. Practically, he suggested a QR code to track bookings from events like Area 29.

He also echoed Lyons comment, remarking it was unfortunate that Pappy and Harriet’s and the Pioneertown Motel announced a space-themed festival, which was ticketed at a price higher than what Twentynine Palms can command right now. However, he noted Twentynine Palms has an advantage,

We have something that I see distinguishes us from many of those other upper echelons of visitor caliber and deep pocket books, which is really local flavor. We bring something that is unique and something that can’t be matched because of the people doing it, the organizations funding it, and understanding where those dollars go, which is right back into our community versus out into a different thing.

Anna Stump expressed her support for Area 29 and Rediscover 29 as an organization, stating, “I totally believe in this group of people. They are amazing. They are the future of this town.” She also emphasized that Area 29 was distinct from the Pioneertown event, suggesting that the city could piggyback off of it and encourage people to stay in Twentynine Palms, where more lodging is available, and experience funky, free events.

Uyeda proposed funding for $10,000 of their $14,487 request. He praised the event’s goal to activate venues around the city, but reiterated the importance of tracking impact of overnight stays and how essential that was to the application. The funding passed 3-0-2, with recusal by Shickler and Ramsey.

The juxtaposition between the Space Craft event at Pappy and Harriet’s, which is relying on outside event producers Night Howl, while Area 29 leverages the connections, creativity, local knowledge and expertise of local businesses and creatives, raises an interesting question about the direction the TBID could choose to go in terms of event funding. Do they want to bring in outside producers that can pull in high ticket prices or better invest in and nurture local talent with the potential of creating memorable signature events that also reflect the community of Twentynine Palms?

Board discussion of grant and sponsorship guidelines

The majority of the meeting was spent on one agenda item: Discussing how grants and sponsorship guidelines could be revised to be clearer and better support the TBID’s mission and goals. Grants and sponsorships are funded by the 1.5% passthrough tax (also known as the Transit Occupancy Tax or TOT) on lodging properties within Twentynine Palms. For this fiscal year, TBID allocated $150,000 to the program. $120,000 designated for event grants, which are designed to support signature events and range from $3,000 to $20,000 in funding per event. $30,000 was designated to sponsorships, with a maximum of $3,000 of funding available per event.

Issues that have been repeatedly raised with the grants and sponsorship program by the board, applicants, and community members include:

• Lack of clarity and consistency in scoring

• The varying quality and completeness of applications

• The lack of connection between funding and results, including the number of overnight stays booked.

• The staff time it takes to prepare, follow up on, and administer grant applications.

• Whether events fuel the TBID’s mission to promote Twentynine Palms as a tourism destination and if they are an effective use of TBID funds.

These issues were reiterated by board member Uyeda to help frame the discussion. The board is looking to rethink the grant process and guidelines before the application cycle for 2027 events begins.

Public comments offer suggested improvements

Vicky Waite and Jimmy Brower offered public comment about the grants and sponsorship guidelines. Waite, the past recipient of a TBID sponsorship noted the jump between $3,000 and $20,000 was large, especially for smaller events. She asked if funding could be more balanced between grants and sponsorships and if the sponsorship funding potential could be raised slightly to $5,000, which would be impactful for regular, smaller-scale events with a proven track record.

Jimmy Brower reiterated the value of engagement of local businesses and nonprofits in organizing events and adding value to Twentynine Palms outside of the National Park. He stated,

[Local business owners and nonprofits] are your movers and shakers, aka event producers ... There’s there’s value in seeding and investing in homegrown events created by Twentynine Palms residents, business owners, and nonprofit leaders. The reciprocally [between these groups] supports and fosters comfort, trust, and familiarity, something that, in my opinion, TBID really needs to work on, as it’s unfortunately eroding in the community.

Brower suggested this trust could be repaired through workshops, seeding and investing in local events, keeping event support local, and helping organizers scale sustainably towards self-sufficiency.

Board members offer their ideas for an improved grant program

In order to get clear, actionable feedback on the grant program, Uyeda took the lead on facilitating a discussion about event grant and sponsorship criteria. A member of the events subcommittee, he asked each board member to articulate their suggestion for how funding applications should be evaluated and how the program could be improved. Their responses generally echoed each other and emphasized both clarifying criteria and the types of events the TBID is looking to fund.

The discussion touched on:

• The need to track impact overnight stays and marketing exposure and demonstrate return on investment.

• Simplify scoring and clarify evaluating and funding criteria.

• Emphasize and encourage events that activate multiple nights that are smaller and regularly scheduled, such as music series, trivia nights, or a monthly new moon festival.

• Invest in public art or monuments that create a lasting impact through shared social media content.

• Ensure the dollar amounts that organizations are requesting are in line with the impact they have and enable applicants to apply for a greater range of funding, potentially eliminating the split between grants and sponsorship amounts.

• Simplify and streamline the application process, potentially with support from the city’s IT department, to make applications easier to submit and evaluate and to save the Director of Marketing’s time, as she currently spends more than half her time administering the program.

In closing Uyeda brought up a fundamental question about the goal of the event and grants sponsorship program, asking “What is this for? Is this to see new things? Is it to support the things that are working and keep investing in them?”

Uyeda also discussed how expectations and funding criteria could be clarified and that dollar amounts could be tied to the potential number of overnight stays. This guidance would offer event organizers,

Predictability on their planning, because otherwise we’re incentivizing people to write really fabulous proposals, see how much they get, and then just rework it with what they got. That’s not efficient project planning, so we should have some sort of financial expectation relative to the judging criteria if they make it through to that final round.

Uyeda briefly brought up the question of the TBID’s annual re-authorization and whether that presented a challenge in investing in the grants process, if the very existence of the TBID was unsure from year to year. Despite Uyeda’s comment, a future agenda item to discuss reauthorization was not proposed. Shickler and Uyeda, the current events subcommittee, will meet and put suggestions into writing for the next meeting for discussion.

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The May 26 City Council meeting is the first regular session since the departure of City Manager H. Stone James, whose two-year tenure ended May 12. The meeting, held at City Hall, begins at 6 pm.

Incoming City Manager Kevin Cole has already made a brief first appearance at the May 21 Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) meeting, where he stopped in to introduce himself on day four of the job: "As I get my feet under me, I'll attend these meetings on a regular basis," he told the TBID board, adding that he had nothing yet for a City Manager update but looked forward to working with the group. May 26 will be his first appearance before the full City Council.

The agenda is substantive for a post-holiday lift: two public hearings, several consent calendar items, and two action items that deserve more than a quick vote. The agenda packet is available here.

PUBLIC COMMENT

You can comment on agenda items and issues important to you at every City Council meeting. Comments on agenda items take place during discussion of that item, while comments on non-agenda items take place near the end of the meeting. The Brown Act prevents Council from commenting on non-agenda items. To comment, pick up a form at the entry desk, fill it out, and hand it to the Clerk, who usually sits just in front of the Council dais on the right.

Here’s the list of Council email addresses to write if you can’t get to the meeting — be sure to email them prior to 2 pm on the date of the meeting so they have time to read your email prior to discussion. You can also copy the clerk at cvillescas@29palms.org and ask that your letter be made part of the public record.

Keep in mind that the City has been falling short on documenting public comment — see our analysis here.

AWARDS, PRESENTATIONS, APPOINTMENTS AND PROCLAMATIONS

The meeting opens with three presentations before getting to business. The
Feathers ‘N Fur Wildlife Rehab Team, the Kiwanis Club of Twentynine Palms, and the Twentynine Palms High School Interact Club will be recognized for their participation in the Cash for Trash and Recycling Program. The Youth Council will present its annual Year in Review.

The third presentation may sound familiar: Re-Enlist to Life Housing and Veteran Services (REL) will finally get its turn before Council, having been postponed at the May 12 meeting when Mayor Mintz announced it would be held to the next meeting. As we covered in our May 12 preview, REL is seeking a letter of support for its $12.6 million Permanent Supportive Housing development for 32 justice-involved veterans, to be funded through the State’s Homekey+ program under Prop 1 at no cost to the City.

The question about the address raised in that preview remains unresolved. The project is described as located at 605 Utah Trail on 40 acres, but that address does not appear to exist — the numbering doesn’t align with current Utah Trail addresses — and the staff report provides no APN for the proposed parcel. It’s a reasonable question to ask whether a letter of support can be written for a project whose location hasn’t been established in the public record.

CONSENT CALENDAR

The Consent Calendar consists of items usually approved with a single vote. The public is given a chance to make public comment on these items prior to the Council motion. Fill out a comment form specifying the item you wish to address and submit it in person, or send an email in advance regarding any of the items on this meeting’s Consent Calendar.

Consent items include approval of the May 12 meeting minutes and several items of varying consequence: the routine annual levy of assessments for the Lighting and Landscaping Assessment District (covering parkways in Tract 16729 and the Historic Plaza, with no increase from last year); a nine-year extension of the City’s waste disposal agreement with San Bernardino County, locking the rate at 83% of the County’s gate rate through June 2035; Amendment #5 to the Split Rock Avenue Bridge design contract, adding $104,000 for a third channel redesign forced by changing direction from the County Flood Control District; and the standing reminder from the City and Twentynine Palms Water District: please maintain your septic system.

8. Appropriation Limit FY 2026-27

California’s Proposition 4 (the Gann Initiative) requires the City to set an annual cap on General Fund spending each year. The General Fund covers the City’s core operating expenses — law enforcement, parks, code enforcement, administration, and other day-to-day services — as distinct from restricted funds like gas tax revenue or grant money, which can only be spent on specific purposes. Based on state population and income change calculations, the City’s Proposition 4 appropriation limit for FY 2026-27 is set at $87,524,044 — well above the City’s projected appropriations.

9. Annual Contract with San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department for FY 2026-27

The Sheriff’s contract for law enforcement services comes in at $6,220,995 for FY 2026-27, a 7.4% increase over last year, or $429,052 more. Speaking of the General Fund, at $6,740,026 when incidental costs are included, law enforcement represents approximately 43% of the City’s total General Fund expenditures, by far the largest single line item in the budget. The main driver of the increase is a sharp jump in insurance and personnel liability premiums. The County’s preliminary premium allocation to the City was $624,411, a $246,226 increase over the prior year; the County approved a one-time subsidy reducing the City’s share to $498,375.

The contract provides two patrol deputies on-duty at all times, one traffic officer (40 hours/week), a School Resource Officer (shared 50/50 with Morongo Unified School District), two citizen patrol units, two detectives, and support services. The budget for FY 2026-27 had under-budgeted this contract by $293,511; the budget revision on this agenda (Item 12) corrects that.

PUBLIC HEARINGS

12. Proposed Revisions to the General Fund Budget for Fiscal Year 2026-27

This is the second year of the City’s two-year budget cycle, and staff is presenting proposed revisions before the July 1 start of the new fiscal year. The bottom line: the revised budget projects $15,762,371 in revenues and $15,753,821 in total expenditures and transfers out a surplus of approximately $8,550. The City expects to end FY 2026-27 with approximately $12.8 million in reserves, with about $12 million unassigned, well above the City’s 50-55% reserve policy target.

Key changes from the original adopted budget include:

• The Sheriff’s contract came in $429,000 higher than budgeted — see Item 9 for detail.

• Employee cost-of-living adjustments are set at 3.1% across the board.

• The Councilmember compensation increase — which was budgeted to take effect in January 2026 — did not happen on schedule. It is now expected to take effect January 2027 at the earliest (see Item 15), so the Council budget was reduced by $28,000.

• Contributions to nonprofits were reduced from $75,000 to $50,000. (See Item 14.)

• The events budget for Juneteenth ($2,500) and the JT 55 Ride ($17,500) were eliminated, for a combined savings of $20,000.

The budget proposes $282,000 in transfers from the General Fund to the Capital Projects Fund for playground equipment, Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) project management, a dump truck for Parks maintenance, and seed money for a future street sweeper. It also proposes drawing $355,000 from reserves, including $200,000 for additional pension liability prefunding, $25,000 for a cost allocation and fee study, and $25,000 for a sewer fee study.

San Bernardino Regional Housing Trust JPA membership dues, approved by Council at the April 14 meeting, are budgeted at $30,000 for the first year, with ongoing dues expected to run $25,000 to $40,000 annually by year three.

13. Amendments to the Master Citywide User Fee Schedule for FY 2026-27

The City’s fee schedule, last comprehensively overhauled in 2020 with assistance from consultant Willdan, is updated annually. For FY 2026-27, a 3.1% Consumer Prince Index (CPI) increase was applied to most fees. Development Impact Fees were adjusted by 2.67% based on the Engineering News Record Construction Cost Index.

Beyond the standard CPI increase, several fees are worth noting:

• Vehicle tow fee doubles from $48 to $100 — the first increase in over six years. The City’s prior rate was among the lowest in the region; Yucca Valley charges $100, the County Sheriff $155, and San Bernardino $349.

• Ancillary business and entertainment license fees are formally added to the fee schedule, following Council's adoption of Ordinance 327 at the January 13, 2026 meeting. These licenses, which cover covering secondary commercial activities or live entertainment operating within an existing business, are added on to an existing business license rather than issued as a separate permit. The fee mirrors the standard business license: $123.26 for a first-year application and $44.36 for renewal.

• Vacation Home Rental (VHR) appeal fee ($375.91) is reinstated after being inadvertently dropped from the schedule in FY 2024-25.

• Public road improvement inspection fees are corrected from 1% to 2% of project valuation — reflecting actual longstanding practice that was never updated in the fee schedule.

DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS

14. Subcommittee Recommendations for Contributions to Non-Profit Organizations

Twelve nonprofits applied for Community Development Block Grants during the open application period this spring, requesting a combined $196,890. At the May 12 workshop, eleven organizations presented before Council. The pool was originally advertised at $75,000, but following the workshop, staff determined that budget constraints reduced the available amount to $50,000. The subcommittee, which was made up of Mayor Daniel Mintz and Councilmember Steven Bilderain, recommends the following distributions:

• 29 Palms Community Food Pantry & Outreach Ministries: $25,000

• Reach Out Morongo Basin: $15,000

• Animal Action League: $10,000

Nine of the twelve applicants are recommended to receive nothing — including arts, youth, veterans, and military family services organizations covered in our May 12 preview. The funded three all provide direct basic-needs services: food distribution, transportation for vulnerable residents, and affordable veterinary access. Of the two spay/neuter organizations, the Animal Action League has an existing paid relationship with the City, conducting shelter clinics at $3,600 per clinic for several years. The unfunded organization, PALS of Palms N Paws, is a newer nonprofit (founded October 2025) dedicated to supporting the municipal shelter through a resident spay/neuter voucher program.

A notable exception to the apparent basic-needs pattern is the Armed Services YMCA, which operates a food pantry on the Marine Corps base for lower-enlisted military families and expects to distribute 200,000 pounds of food to roughly 10,000 military family members in 2026, a direct service that was passed over. The staff report provides no criteria, scoring, or rationale explaining the selections, so any pattern readers detect is inferred rather than documented. Council may approve the recommendations, modify them, or table the item.

It is worth noting that the budget revision in Item 12 reduces the nonprofit contributions line from $75,000 to $50,000 for FY 2026-27. Organizations that applied based on the $75,000 advertised amount were not informed of the reduction until after they presented. The outlook for next year is bleaker still; the budget projects the nonprofit contributions pool dropping further to $25,000 in FY 2027-28.

15. First Reading: Ordinance to Increase City Council Monthly Compensation to $700

This is the first reading of an ordinance that would raise Council members’ monthly pay from $465 to $700, the first increase since December 2002. Council gave direction to bring this ordinance forward at the March 10, 2026 meeting, after a discussion that was more revealing than the outcome.

The increase is authorized under Senate Bill 329, enacted January 1, 2024, which updated Government Code Section 36516. Under the population-based method Council selected, cities with populations up to 35,000 may set compensation at up to $950 per month.

At the March 10 meeting, City Manager Stone James framed the discussion with a regional comparison showing Twentynine Palms Councilmembers earning $465 against a regional average of $975, and noted that adjusted for CPI, $465 in 2002 is worth roughly $832 to $850 today, meaning Councilmembers have effectively taken a pay cut every year for 24 years. He also put the time commitment in perspective, noting that the two or three hours at the dais twice a month are “actually the smallest amount of time” Councilmembers spend on the job.

Public comment was unanimously in favor of an increase, including from former Mayor Joel Klink, who had originally raised the issue in October 2024 and suggested the full $950.

The Council discussion that followed revealed a generational split. Mayor Mintz and Councilmembers Bilderain and Wright focused almost entirely on their own discomfort. Bilderain said he felt bad seeking a pay raise “when we’re trying to raise taxes at the same time,” Wright said he hadn’t known the position was paid when he first ran, and Mintz was brief: “I’m going to tell you now I won’t vote for $950.” None of the three addressed the harder question: who can afford to serve on a council paying $465 a month?

The two younger first-term members did. Mayor Pro Tem Scott noted that staff members receive cost-of-living raises — why not Council? Councilmember Ramirez moved $825, calculating based on gas, mileage, and childcare costs she personally absorbs. That motion failed 3-2, with Ramirez and Scott voting yes. Wright then moved $700, which passed 4-1, with Mintz the lone no vote.

A few things to understand about timing: this is only the first reading. A second reading at a future regular meeting is required before the ordinance takes effect. And critically, the increase cannot take effect until Councilmembers begin a new term — at the earliest December 2026, when the November election results are certified. Councilmembers Mintz, Scott, and Wright are all up for election in November 2026. The total annual salary cost at $700/month would be $42,000, an increase of $14,100 from the current rate.

FUTURE COUNCIL INITIATED ITEMS

The growing list of future agenda items now stands at 13 items carried over from prior meetings, including three new additions from May 12: a collaboration with Liberty Military Housing on RENA numbers1 (requested by Ramirez), a study session on Flock surveillance cameras (requested by Ramirez, seconded by Scott), and an expedited discussion on Cooling Center operating hours (requested by Scott, seconded by Wright).

1. Shade Structures around Freedom Plaza and a possible art fixture with “Freedom Plaza” announcing the location

2. Discussion of a policy regulating the use of City Attorney resources.

3. Discussion on creating a “Recognized Neighborhood Program.”

4. Discussion on the new Federal holidays to coincide with the City’s holiday schedule.

5. Discussion on the use of City funds for grants and the potential reallocation of housing and homeless funds to grants.

6. Discussion on creating guidelines for the use of City Hall meeting rooms by elected and appointed officials for official city business.

7. Discussion on the next steps of reallocating $1.3 million for housing.

8. Discussion of Code Enforcement and compliance with Proposition 36 and find a pathway to meeting the new guidance issued by Governor Gavin Newson.

9. Discussion about annexing parcels: APN 0634-05-124 and 0634-05-109, also known as Set Free Ranch.

10. Discussion of a possible safe passage with CalTrans around Donnell Hill.

11. Discussion on a collaboration with Liberty Military Housing to update our RENA numbers.

12. Study Session regarding the FLOCK cameras.

13. Expedited item to discuss the Cooling Center hours.

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The May 19 Planning Commission meeting clocked in at just over 26 minutes, setting in motion an initiative that will shape Twentynine Palms for decades to come: the first steps toward updating the City’s general plan. In attendance were Commissioners Alex Garcia, Vice Chair Jim Krushat, and Chair Max Walker, with Leslie Paahana arriving a few minutes after the meeting started. Commissioner Jessica Cure was not present.

Relevant links:

• Meeting agenda packet

• Desert Trumpet Agenda Preview

• Video of the first four minutes of the meeting. The study session on the general plan was not livestreamed.

Public Comment: Is the City in Violation of the Brown Act?

No members of the public came forward during the opening public comment period.

Posters on social media have reported that they have sent letters and emails to the Planning Commission (and City Council) that have not been read aloud or acknowledged on the dias during the meeting nor have they been mentioned in meeting minutes.1

City Council and Planning Commission meeting minutes have recently become less detailed about public comment: current minutes (2025–2026) list speakers’ names but omit the substance of their remarks, and written letters—while sometimes listed by name—are neither summarized nor acknowledged during meetings.

This is a change from past practice: 2023 minutes show that letters were read aloud at meetings and both spoken and written comments were summarized in the minutes for City Council and Planning Commission alike.2

The Brown Act does not require that letters and emails be read aloud or noted, but they do need to be made available for public inspection “upon request and without delay.”

• The City of Berkeley, for example, includes letters sent by the public in its agenda packets.

• In Manhattan Beach, the City Clerk briefly announces at the meeting that written correspondence has been received on an item and sometimes lists the names of senders.

• San Luis Obispo posts letters and emails about agenda items on its website. Richmond posts correspondence alongside meeting minutes: all written public comments received are published on the city's website for the record with the meeting minutes.

The lapse in Twentynine Palms appears to be that letters are not available for public inspection online, in the agenda packet, or in City offices. Now that Kevin Cole, the new City Manager, has taken office, those who wish for more transparency could bring this issue up in public comment at a future Planning Commission meeting or at the upcoming City Council meeting on May 26. It would be to the benefit of the City and the community to know more about the issues that affect everyone who lives in Twentynine Palms. It would also avoid a Brown Act violation.

The Consent Calendar, which consisted of approval of the May 5 meeting minutes, passed 4-0-1 (absence).

Study Session: Planning the General Plan

Community Development Director Keith Gardner described how the City’s General Plan, the master document that guides how land is used and developed in Twentynine Palms, was last fully overhauled in 2012. The state of California requires that each city have a general plan that includes these elements: land use, circulation, housing, conservation, open space, noise, safety, and environmental justice.

Twentynine Palms’ General Plan currently combines conservation and open space into one element and also includes a recreation element because of the importance of Joshua Tree National Park to the City’s economy.

Gardner proposed something new for the update: adding an arts element to the General Plan. He said he is already working with the City’s Public Arts Advisory Committee (PAAC) on the new element, which would identify good locations for permanent public art, temporary installations, and performing arts spaces around town.3

The City’s staff will conduct the work to lead to the new General Plan without hiring outside consultants. Gardner said the City will be doing as much work in-house as possible, which means the update will likely take longer than it would in a city that has budgeted to hire planning consultants. He told the Planning Commissioners:

We’re just making sure we’re going down the right pathway, make sure we’re all in agreement. This is where we want to go, and realistically, it’s going to be a while. There is going to be workshop after workshop, discussing different areas in detail, different policies in detail, and you’ll probably be sick of this topic, but this really needs to be updated, because it’s reaching [the end of] its useful life.

In the spirit of starting with the hard things first, Gardner said staff recommends tackling the Land Use element first, since almost everything else — traffic planning, population projections, where future homes and businesses go — depends on it. He laid out five goals for the update:

1. Land use designations should reflect real-world conditions as accurately as possible.

2. Proposed changes should reflect realistic long-term development.

3. Land use districts may be consolidated or simplified where it makes sense.

4. Environmental and historical factors must be considered.

5. Each existing Specific Plan will be reviewed for whether it is still relevant today.

Gardner walked the Commission through a study map of the southwestern part of the City from Shoshone Valley Road west to the City boundary, and south from Highway 62 to Joshua Tree National Park. The map was included for illustrative purposes only; no zoning changes are being proposed yet.

The map highlights parcels owned by flood control districts, utility companies, and the federal government that are currently zoned for residential development even though development on those properties is essentially impossible. “The reason why that's important,” Gardner said, “is that you have traffic counts and population projections, etc., based upon what the general plan has for its land use.”

Commissioner Garcia said the process seemed headed in the right direction and he was looking forward to seeing it unfold. Commissioner Paahana emphasized the importance of accurate data for traffic and housing numbers. Vice Chair Krushat asked Gardner to clarify how gray areas on the allowable land use chart should be read. He confirmed that if a use isn’t listed, it isn’t permitted. Krushat also raised a question about the difference between the terms “single family dwelling” and “single family residence” in the development code. Gardner said cleaning up that kind of language is exactly what this process is for.

Chair Walker compared the City’s approach to the way the Marine Corps recently updated its own base master plan and said it felt like the right direction. He asked Gardner to include a direct link to the General Plan in future staff reports, noting that the City’s website can be hard to navigate. (It’s here.)

In comment on the General Plan, Carlos Blandon suggested a roundabout to slow traffic on Lear Avenue.

City Development Director Update

Keith Gardner said that a smog check station proposed for the southeast corner of Adobe Road and Hwy 62 is moving through the administrative use permit process. (The Desert Trumpet took an in-depth look at this proposed business here.) Notices went out the same day, and unless someone objects, it is set to be approved by the end of the following week.

Gardner and the Commissioners discussed their summer schedule, but no firm plans were made for meeting cancellations. And with that, the meeting adjourned.

The Planning Commission meets Tuesday, May 19 at 5 pm at City Hall, 6136 Adobe Road. There is just one substantive item on the agenda, and it is an important one that has the potential to shape Twentynine Palms moving into the future: it’s the first in what will be a series of study sessions on updating the City’s General Plan. The agenda packet includes—for illustration purposes—possible rezoning for southwestern Twentynine Palms, including Indian Cove and points west. Residents of this area will want to pay attention to these proposed changes.

The agenda is available here.

PUBLIC COMMENTS

After Commission announcements, the public may comment on topics not on the agenda. Comments on agenda items will be taken when that item comes up. Fill out a comment card and hand it to staff, or email your comments to Planning Commission members and Community Development Director Keith Gardner in advance and request that they be read into the record. Each speaker has three minutes.

CONSENT CALENDAR

The only Consent Calendar item is approval of the minutes from the May 5, 2026 meeting. That meeting featured a public hearing on a Conditional Use Permit for the Friends of the Historic Plaza that allows regular Sunday events at the Plaza parking lot, which the Commission approved unanimously.

STUDY SESSION: Introduction to the General Plan Update

This is the main event. The City’s General Plan, essentially the master document that guides how land in Twentynine Palms is used and developed, was last overhauled in 2012. An Equity/Environmental Justice element was added after considerable community input in 2023.1 The Housing element is due for another update in 2029.

State law requires cities to have a General Plan, and California prescribes that it cover specific topics, called “elements”: Land Use, Circulation, Housing, Conservation, Open Space, Noise, Safety, and Environmental Justice. The City’s current plan also includes Recreation.

City residents often invoked the General Plan in recent, sometimes contentious conversations about land use around the E-Group PS solar facility and the Ofland Resort and a lack of a coherent City plan guiding these developments. These projects both included Conditional Use Permits that changed zoning from residential to commercial and other usage types without considering—as some speakers claimed in comment at public meetings—land use regulations in the 2012 General Plan. In particular, commenters claimed, “preserving the desert environment” and “preserving the City’s desert small-town feel” were concepts that were ignored. Changes to the General Plan have also come up in discussions of commercial campsites, when the scant amount of commercial tourist zoning has been noted by City staff and Planning Commissioners.

No consultant has been hired to assist in developing a new general plan, and there’s no budget for it in the upcoming fiscal year. Instead, City staff have been doing their own research to determine what needs to change before a consultant is brought on. In this meeting, City staff will check in with the Commission and getting feedback on the direction.

Staff are recommending that the Land Use element be tackled first, since so many other elements depend on it. The road network, for instance, needs to match where people actually live and where future residential and commercial development is likely, which means the Land Use Plan has to come first. Staff have proposed five goals for updating the Land Use element:

• Goal 1: The Land Use Element should be reflective as much as possible of actual real-world conditions; that is, land use designations should accurately reflect the established lot sizes and actual developments.

• Goal 2: Where feasible, suggestions for changes to the Land Use designations would reflect achievable long-term development.

• Goal 3: Where appropriate, new land use districts may be developed – or existing land-use districts may be consolidated and simplified.

• Goal 4: Historical and environmental considerations also play an important role in developing a Land Use Element;

• Goal 5: Each Specific Plan will be studied for modern relevancy

The staff report is clear that this session is just an introduction. Staff want to know whether the Commission agrees these are the right goals and not to take positions on any particular property or policy yet. An Environmental Impact Report will likely be required before the General Plan Update is finalized.

Two attachments come with the staff report: a land use map of the southwestern portion of the City west of Shoshone Valley Road to the City boundary, and south of Sunnyslope to the boundary of Joshua Tree National Park. The report notes that the map is included for “illustrative purposes,” and there is no suggestion that any zoning changes will be discussed.

The area labeled “STUDY TO RL-1” west of Kern to the City’s western border stands out on the map as a large block currently under review for a potential rezoning to higher-density residential, although much of this land is already zoned RL-1.2

A detailed eight-page chart of all the allowed uses and development standards in each of the City’s zoning districts.

Why this matters

A General Plan Update is one of the most consequential things a city can do. It shapes what gets built where for years to come. Residents who care about the future of Twentynine Palms have an interest in staying engaged as this process unfolds. This first study session is an important entry point: no votes, no specific proposals, just a conversation about goals. That makes it a good time to show up and be heard as the planning process begins.

The meeting can be live-streamed through the City’s website at www.29palms.org. Recordings are available on YouTube after the meeting. Planning Commission study sessions have not been live-streamed in the past, but as the Desert Trumpet recently reported, California SB 707 updates the Ralph M. Brown Act, requiring local legislative bodies to provide the public with the ability to attend all open meetings via two-way audio/video by July 1, 2026.

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On Tuesday, Twentynine Palms City Council met for a nearly two-hour meeting where they hosted a workshop on nonprofit grants, received recognitions from Yucca Valley Mayor Merl Abel, heard from concerned residents on the Flock surveillance system, and recognized outgoing City Manager H. Stone James for his two years at the City.

Our agenda preview for the meeting is linked here; video footage of the meeting is available here.

CDBG Non-Profit Grant Applicant Presentations

Before the official meeting, Council hosted a grant workshop where they heard three-minute presentations from 11 of 12 nonprofits applying for a pool of $75,000 in available City funds.

Presenters and requested amounts were:

• 29 Palms Artists’ Guild - $11,300

• 29 Palms Community Food Pantry & Outreach Ministries - $30,000

• Animal Action League - $10,800

• Armed Services YMCA 29 Palms - $10,000

• Basin Wide Foundation - $10,000

• First Assembly of God Church - $55,790

• Girls on the Run Inland Empire - $15,500

• Joshua Tree National Park Council for the Arts - $5,000

• PALS of Palms N Paws - $10,000

• Project Sheba - $10,000

• Reach Out Morongo Basin - $25,000

Joshua Tree National Park Council for the Arts Director Vickie Waite and board member John Cole presented on the upcoming 14th annual Joshua Tree National Park Art Expo, a free event that draws more than 400 attendees and features a month-long juried exhibition of art inspired by the national park. The City has co-sponsored the event every year since its inaugural 2013 expo, and the organization is requesting $5,000 to continue that partnership. “We will be grateful for whatever the City can give us,” said Waite.

Lori Cosgriff presented on behalf of the 29 Palms Community Food Pantry and Outreach Ministries, requesting $30,000. Her presentation focused heavily on celebrating the volunteer base that runs the pantry. Cosgriff emphasized the pantry is run exclusively by people who give their own time.

The pantry hosts three food distribution programs. Three days a week, the pantry serves 150 to 200 families across 29 Palms, Wonder Valley, Desert Heights, and the Marine Corps Base. Volunteers also coordinate a monthly USDA food distribution to approximately 144 families, and collaborate with Reach Out Morongo Basin to provide 300 boxes of food to seniors.

Last year, our pantry spent $57,000 on food and we received 21,000 pounds of food in donations and our board of directors kept our costs at less than 8% of our total operating budget

The organization relies on food donations, monetary donations, and grant programs.

Grace Lebda spoke on behalf of the Youth Activity Center at First Assembly of God Church. Requesting approximately $56,000, the location is seeking funds for the building to have an HVAC system, allowing for expanded programs and operating hours. The building currently has no cooling system, leaving the center inoperable during hot days.

In a city like ours where summer temperatures regularly reach extreme levels, having a safe, reliable indoor environment is not a luxury—it’s a necessity. Our youth center serves as a critical hub where our youth can go after school, during weekends, and throughout the summer months. It provides structure, supervision, and positive engagement in a setting that keeps them safe and off the streets.

Two organizations presented requests for City-based spay/neuter clinics: Animal Action League, a mobile low-cost clinic that has operated in the Morongo Basin since 2005, and PALS of Palms N Paws, a nonprofit founded in October 2025. Both organizations noted that residents in 29 currently have no access to a spay-neuter voucher program, unlike residents of Yucca Valley and unincorporated San Bernardino County.

Presenting for PALS was Michelle Benedum, who said the nonprofit has partnered with Animal Action League on two community clinics. Showing a strong community demand for affordable spay/neuter services, Benedum said each clinic filled within 48 hours and had zero no-shows.

Summing up presentations was Director of Reach Out Morongo Basin, Robin Schlosser, reporting that the nonprofit served over 1,200 residents in 2025, logged 15,000 trips, and 104,000 miles last year, serving Wonder Valley, Desert Heights, Indian Cove, and 29 Palms.

Reach Out MB assists with transportation to and from appointments, grocery shopping, meal delivery, and assistance to those who are home bound and without transportation, and operates out of the 29 Palms Senior Center.

60 to 80 seniors gather there for daily lunch programs, health clinics, chair yoga, art groups, Medicare and financial information sessions — and is where the Twentynine Palms Youth Council regularly volunteers. They also deliver food boxes to homebound seniors who cannot otherwise access services:

We hand delivered over 1,400 of those boxes to shut-in seniors that would not be able to access these programs because they can’t get out of the house. So we hand deliver these boxes and the food to them.

Desert Media Foundation, which had applied for $3,500, was unable to attend.

No formal action was taken on funding requests as this was just a workshop. Council members will vote on nonprofit fund distributions at a future date.

REGULAR SESSION

The official Council meeting kicked off shortly after 6 pm with a Pagan-inspired invocation from Stephanie Ballard. Her invocation focused on five elements with themes that related to the City and encouraged audience participation.

Mayor Daniel Mintz announced that an anticipated presentation from Re-Enlist to Life Housing and Veteran Services will be postponed until the next council meeting.

Agenda Item 10, under the Consent Calendar, entailed council approval of a $9,000 payment to Culper Consulting for services to provide a City code enforcement manual. The item was removed from the agenda by outgoing City Manager James without explanation.

As the Desert Trumpet reported here, James signed the Culper Consulting contract to the tune of $17,000 on April 16, just seven days after announcing his resignation. Signature lines for City Attorney Patrick Muñoz and City Clerk Cindy Villescas for the contract in the agenda packet were blank. The City Attorney issued a work stoppage on the contract four days later.

City attorneys were not present at Tuesday’s meeting. The staff report pertaining to the agenda item stated that Council would be pulling funds from its code enforcement cleanup budget to cover the costs of Culper Consulting’s invoice, though Council never formally approved the consultant contract in the first place nor did the City post a formal RFP (request for proposal) for code enforcement consulting services.

As of now, it is unclear if approval of funds to cover the $9,000 consulting bill will be a formal agenda item at a future meeting. Culper Consulting is operated by Deputy Mayor of Yucaipa, Justin Beaver.

The item also entailed approval of a code enforcement report provided by Gemini Consulting, whose principal is a former colleague of James through his previous employer—Cathedral City.

A copy of the item’s 130-page staff report is available here.

AWARDS, PRESENTATIONS, APPOINTMENTS AND PROCLAMATIONS

Council heard two presentations– one from Yucca Valley Mayor Merl Abel, presenting for the 35th birthday of Yucca Valley, and the other from San Bernardino County Fire Department’s Division 4 Assistant Chief Bill Villarino, who provided an operational update on Twentynine Palms Station 44.

Abel acknowledged Yucca Valley and Twentynine as partners in a shared region with a shared identity, noting that Twentynine Palms inspired Yucca to incorporate in 1991:

Our residents don’t really look at city limits. They experience the high desert and the beauty in one connection, one connected region. They work across our communities. They support local businesses throughout the Basin.

Chief Villarino said that thanks to a three-year federal grant, the fire department has been able to add a fourth full-time firefighter to ME44 at the Twentynine Palms station and spoke on the department’s Explorer Program.

Council marks end of Stone James era at City Hall

One behalf of the City of Twentynine Palms, Mayor Daniel Mintz presented a plaque to outgoing City Manager H. Stone James for his two years of service. Steve Reyes, Field Representative for County Supervisor Dawn Rowe, also presented James with a certificate of recognition from the District 3 Supervisor’s office.

DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS

None

FUTURE COUNCIL-INITIATED ITEMS

Councilmember April Ramirez requested to add a future agenda item for a study session or discussion regarding constituent concerns on the Flock surveillance program, which was seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Octavious Scott.

Scott requested an expedited item—that the City look into its cooling center operating hours.

PUBLIC COMMENT

Council heard from seven audience members: Lashara Maea, LeeAnn Clarke, Diana Rozendaal, Elizabeth Rodriguez, Heather Drake, Scott Curry, and Robin Schlosser.

Rodriguez, Dean of students at Palm Vista Elementary School, thanked Councilmember Bilderain and Mayor Pro Tem Scott for their attendance at a recent Morongo Unified School District board meeting in which possible school closures were the topic.

Maea, Clarke, and Schlosser recognized Stone James for his work. Maea spoke on behalf of the 29 Palms COAD (Community Organizations Active in Disaster), thanking James for recognizing the need for disaster response organizations in Twentynine Palms:

I would hope after your departure that the City Council and the individual who will sit in your seat but not replace you will continue to pick up where you left off.

Schlosser commended James on coordinating assistance for seniors during a critical flash flood, and noted his work in homelessness services as Co-Chair of the East Desert Regional Steering Committee.

I’ve had the honor of working with him from the very beginning when he first started and the city flooded and he was out there in his boots and hauling sandbags and mud.

Heather Drake and Diana Rozendaal raised concerns about Flock surveillance cameras, with Rozendaal highlighting a recent press release from the Morongo Basin Sheriff’s Department that she says read more like an advertisement for Flock than an informative, factual police report.

The Sheriff’s press release pertained to an instance of repeat domestic violence that occurred May 1st, which states:

The use of FLOCK was critical in locating the suspect’s vehicle, which ultimately led to locating the suspect and protecting the victim from further harm.

Per Rozendaal:

The report editorializes, calling Flock camera technology critical and stating that it may have inevitably saved the victim’s life. May have inevitably is not the language of a factual police report. It is the language of marketing. But let’s be clear about what actually happened. The fact the victim was attacked twice. The Flock system did nothing to prevent the first assault and it did nothing to prevent the second.

Rozendaal highlighted that Deputies Maldonado and Arenas played an undeniably critical role in saving the victim’s life in this instance—not the Flock technology:

It overstates the technology’s value in a way that obscures what community safety actually requires: Timely, well-trained human response.

Scott Curry raised concerns regarding a personal banner he had paid for and displayed on a parcel off Lear Avenue and Highway 62. The banner thanked the outgoing City Manager:

At the top it said ‘Stone James’ and it says, “Thank you for your leadership.” I posted that about 10 o’clock in the morning. And my client who owns the property received a letter dated the same day. “Take it down….The sign’s too big…..You’re in a residential area….The post shouldn’t be there.” It’s the fastest you’ve ever moved for code enforcement within five hours, six hours. Very interesting and very suspicious to me. I’m disappointed with what I think happened.

City Manager Update

Stone James delivered his final City Manager update, thanking a number of individuals and local organizations, including the 29 Palms Ministerial Association and the Rotary Club. James concluded with a pointed quote from Theodore Roosevelt’s “Man in the Arena” speech, delivered in Paris on April 23, 1910:

If he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.

The next City Council meeting will take place May 26, 2026.

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Commencing at 5:15 pm with Community Development Block Grant presentations, the Twentynine Palms City Council will meet this upcoming Tuesday for a regularly scheduled meeting. Attendees can expect a marathon of presentations, with no action items and no public hearing. This will be a good opportunity for public comment.

The 622-page agenda packet is available here; coverage of the last City Council meeting is linked here.

PUBLIC COMMENT

You can comment on agenda items and issues important to you at every City Council meeting. Comments on agenda items take place during discussion of that item, while comments on non-agenda items take place near the end of the meeting. The Brown Act prevents Council from commenting on non-agenda items. To comment, pick up a form at the entry desk, fill it out, and hand it to the Clerk, who usually sits just in front of the Council dais on the right.

Here’s the list of Council email addresses to write if you can’t get to the meeting — be sure to email them prior to 2 pm on the date of the meeting so they have time to read your email prior to discussion. You can also copy the clerk at cvillescas@29palms.org and ask that your letter be made part of the public record.

WORKSHOP (5:15 pm) - CDBG Non-Profit Grant Applicant Presentations

The City opened applications for Community Development Block Grants to nonprofits on March 2 and closed April 3. A total of twelve applications were received during the open period, representing an aggregate funding request of $196,890.

City staff verified each applicant’s operating status and non-profit registry standing to confirm eligibility and adherence to the City’s funding guidelines.

Faced with a $75,000 budget, some applicants may be walking away empty handed or with significantly less money than requested. Those applicants and requested grant funds were:

• 29 Palms Artists’ Guild - $11,300

• 29 Palms Community Food Pantry & Outreach Ministries - $30,000

• Animal Action League - $10,800

• Armed Services YMCA 29 Palms - $10,000

• Basin Wide Foundation - $60,000

• Desert Media Foundation - $3,500

• First Assembly of God Church - $55,790

• Girls on the Run Inland Empire - $15,500

• Joshua Tree National Park Council for the Arts - $5,000

• PALS of Palms N Paws - $10,000

• Project Sheba - $10,000

• Reach Out Morongo Basin - $25,000

Though the 442-page staff report did not specify which organizations, if any, did not meet the City’s verification criteria, only one organization—Project Sheba—showed a revoked California AG charitable registration status. For Fiscal Year 26-27, the pool of available funds will be even smaller than last year, as the City’s nonprofit budget gets reduced to just $25,000.

The Desert Trumpet runs out of operating funds on July 1, help us provide the coverage you depend on and also experience a unique concert at Spirit Wind. Purchase tickets for our May 14 fundraiser today.

AWARDS, PRESENTATIONS, APPOINTMENTS AND PROCLAMATIONS

1. Re-Enlist to Life Housing and Veteran Services Overview and Letter of Support Request

Re-Enlist to Life, or REL, is a business1 based in Yucca Valley that provides housing services to veterans and critical support services, such as vocational job training, to veterans who have been released from incarceration.2

The business is seeking a letter of support from the City of Twentynine Palms as part of the State of California’s Housing and Community Development (HCD) Homekey grant application process. The letter will show support for REL’s proposed Veteran Campus Project, to be located at 605 Utah Trail on 40 acres of property.3

According to the staff report:

The Twentynine Palms Veteran Campus is a $12.6 million Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) development designed to serve 32 justice-involved4 veterans annually. Managed by Re-Enlist to Life, the project utilizes a vocation-to-wellness ecosystem to provide a stable, trauma-informed environment that prevents homelessness and recidivism. The mission is rooted in the lived experience of Marine Corps veterans who served at MCAGCC Twentynine Palms.

At the last Council meeting, Mayor Pro Tem Octavious Scott and Councilmember McArthur Wright expressed enthusiasm and willingness to show support toward REL.

2. Presentation by the Town of Yucca Valley on their 35th Anniversary

The Town of Yucca Valley will be presenting on the 35th anniversary of their incorporation. To commemorate the occasion, 35 facts about Yucca Valley are posted on the city website to highlight the town’s vibrant history, from Frank Sinatra’s summer getaways in Yucca with the Rat Pack, to acknowledging the earliest stewards of the area—the Chemehuevi and Serrano.

3. Presentation by the San Bernardino County Fire Department

The agenda packet provides no information for this presentation. San Bernardino County Fire provides fire service coverage for Twentynine Palms following the annexation of the Twentynine Palms Fire Department back in 2016, which was previously operated by the Twentynine Palms Water District.

4. Presentation to Dr. Stone James for his Service to the City of Twentynine Palms

At their last meeting, Council approved an employment contract for Kevin Cole to assume the role of City Manager to the tune of $186,000 a year. This follows the resignation of Dr. H. Stone James, whose departure was announced in April. After more than six years as the Economic Development Director for Cathedral City, James assumed the Twentynine Palms City Manager’s position in April 2024 with a 5-0 Council appointment approval.

Since then, James has served as Co-Chair for San Bernardino County Homeless Partnership’s East Desert Regional Steering Committee and was inducted to the 29 Palms Rotary Club.

In the City’s announcement on his resignation, James was acknowledged for his ability to navigate the town through severe flash flooding incidents and emergency preparedness efforts.

Of note from his stint as City Manager is James’s proactiveness during a federal government employment crackdown from the Trump Administration, in which James facilitated the transfer of the Joshua Tree National Park Visitor Center lease from the National Park Service (NPS) to the Joshua Tree National Park Association to mitigate impacts from NPS staff layoffs.

CONSENT CALENDAR

The Consent Calendar consists of items usually approved with a single vote. The public is given a chance to comment on these items prior to the Council motion. Fill out a comment form specifying the item you wish to address and submit it in person, or send an email in advance regarding any of the items on this meeting’s Consent Calendar.

Code Enforcement Contract Raises Questions

Though the consent calendar typically consists of routine items, such as updating the authorized signers on the City bank accounts, Agenda Item 10 pertains to a seemingly unexpected approval of $9,000 to Culper Consulting, executed by outgoing City Manager H. Stone James.

On April 16, 2026—after he had announced his resignation on April 9—James had signed a $17,000 contract with Culper Consulting to produce a Code Enforcement Policies and Procedures Manual. The manual would be based on results from a 2025 Code Enforcement Evaluation Report.

Four days later, on April 20, the City Attorney issued a work stop order on the Culper Consulting contract. The staff report doesn’t explain why the City Attorney intervened or on whose authority.

Culper Consulting, operated by elected official and current Deputy Mayor for the City of Yucaipa, Justin Beaver, is now charging the City $9,000 for services rendered. A draft manual of the Code Enforcement guidebook is included in the agenda packet, though it must be vetted by the City’s legal team before Council can consider its adoption. According to the staff report:

The one-time payment of $9,000 will come from the code enforcement clean up budget. This $9,000 will decrease the Code Enforcement’s short-term ability to fully clean up 7535 Sherman Hoyt Avenue, however, implementation of an industry-standard policy manual will give Code Enforcement the structure and tools to prevent future homes from becoming public nuisance like 7535 Sherman Hoyt Avenue has become over the last several years.

Though the contract was for up to $17,000 — within a city manager’s typical signing authority — the proximity to the contract execution and the City Manager’s resignation is worth noting.

The draft code compliance manual that Culper Consulting delivered prior to work stoppage uses Cathedral City — where Stone James previously worked — as its example city throughout its report. Per the staff report, the manual contains internal contradictions that staff say require review by HR and the City Attorney before any adoption can take place.

Also included in Item 10 is the 2025 code enforcement evaluation report, composed by Gemini Training — a firm whose principal, Justin Gardiner, is Cathedral City's Code Compliance Manager — a contractor hired by the City Manager with direct ties to his former employer. Gardiner’s name is included throughout the report.

Whether Council and City Attorneys were aware of the Cathedral City connection between Gardiner and James prior to the Gemini contract being awarded is not addressed in the staff report.

PUBLIC HEARING — NONE

DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS — NONE

FUTURE COUNCIL INITIATED ITEMS

1. Shade Structures around Freedom Plaza and a possible art fixture with “Freedom Plaza” announcing the location.

2. Discussion of a policy regulating the use of City Attorney resources.

3. Discussion on creating a “Recognized Neighborhood Program.”

4. Discussion on the new Federal holidays to coincide with the City’s holiday schedule.

5. Discussion on the use of City funds for grants and the potential reallocation of housing and homeless funds to grants.

6. Discussion on creating guidelines for the use of City Hall meeting rooms by elected and appointed officials for official city business.

7. Discussion on the next steps of reallocating $1.3 million for housing.

8. Discussion of Code Enforcement and compliance with Proposition 36 and find a pathway to meeting the new guidance issued by Governor Gavin Newson.

9. Discussion about annexing parcels: APN 0634-05-124 and 0634-05-109, also known as Set Free Ranch.

10. Discussion of a possible safe passage with CalTrans around Donnell Hill.

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With only one substantive item, the May 5 Planning Commission meeting promised to be brief, and clocking in at just 28 minutes in length, it was. In attendance were Commissioners Leslie Paahana, Alex Garcia and Jessica Cure and presiding was new Chair Max Walker. Vice Chair Jim Krushat had an excused absence.

Relavent links:

• Meeting agenda

• Desert Trumpet Agenda Preview

• Video of the meeting

The Consent Calendar consisting of three sets of meeting minutes were approved 4-0-1 (absence).

Bounce Houses, Mechanical Bulls, and Later Nights—Historic Plaza Events Get Official Blessing

The Historic Plaza is unique in the City as local businesses surround the parking, which has a walkway and square between two rows of spaces and is dotted with trees. However, various entities own and run the businesses while the parking area is owned by the City. Friends of the Historic Plaza, a 501c3 nonprofit formed in 2024, has been producing events in the Plaza for the last two years and pulling Temporary Use Permits (TUP) for each event.

The proposed Conditional Use Permit (CUP) grants the nonprofit permission to produce Sunday events running from noon to 5 pm, with set-up allowed from 7 am with teardown through 7 pm. Alcohol sales are permitted under the CUP, provided an active ABC license is obtained and visible. Live and recorded music and street performers would be allowed, subject to the City’s noise regulations. A mix of vendors is also acceptable as long as each holds a valid City business license. Highlights of the 24 Conditions of Approval listed included:

• a prohibition on “kiddie rides”

• any sale or display of live animals must be coordinated with Animal Control

• all merchandise must consist of new items, handmade crafts, antiques (defined as 50+ years old), or collectibles

• a $1 million insurance requirement with the City listed as an additional insured

The Friends submitted a request to the Commission to amend the conditions presented in the agenda as follows:

• Extend the operating hours to 10 pm from May to September

• Allow kid friendly attractions such as inflatable bounce houses and mechanical bull rides

Near-by business owner Ted Pritchett also contacted the Commission with additional suggestions including two portable toilets, extra trash cans, restricting parking on Homestead Drive and at neighboring businesses and not impeding access to those businesses.

Discussion focused on the restricted parking, with Commissioners indicating that it was not within their authority to restrict parking on a public street. However, it was requested that the Friends place signage directing attendees to appropriate parking to ensure that business access isn’t affected.

Representative for the applicants, Friends of the Historic Plaza board member Jimmy Brower, spoke to the benefits of the events:

We’re able to increase and better the quality of life for our residents here in 29 but also add to the City’s Strategic Plan whenever it comes to boosting tourism and creating a unique identity for the City of 29 Palms amongst all of the other cities in the Morongo Basin.…It is also increasing more opportunities for entrepreneurial activities for all of our stay-at-home makers and crafters, our artists, our designers and those that are just following their dreams and passions and not able to afford a brick and mortar [business].

In public comment on the item, Mojaveland founder Anna Stump praised the Historic Plaza as “a magical place for kids” and endorsed the Friends application. Commissioner Cure echoed Stump’s comments, speaking to her appreciation of the Plaza and of the events produced there. Commissioner Garcia added, “It’s awesome seeing it being relooked at again, and revived a bit.”

A permit running five years, expiring May 5, 2031 was approved with 4-0-1 (absence) vote.

The Desert Trumpet runs out of operating funds on July 1, help us provide the coverage you depend on and also experience a unique concert at Spirit Wind. Purchase tickets for our May 14 fundraiser today.

Solar Returns in Public Comment

The E-Group Solar Project dominated general public comment.

Peter Lang focused on the March 3 Planning Commission meeting and assertions made by E-Group attorney Robert Smith that the project qualified under AB 205, which holds that renewable energy projects meeting specific requirements can bypass local mandates and receive approval from the California Energy Commission (CEC). As originally configured, the E-Group project fell below the 50 megawatt requirement for AC power generation, yet whether the project qualified for state review under AB 205 was never independently verified by the City.

A resident, Suzanne Lyons, contacted CEC and received verification that the project didn’t qualify. After being denied by City Council, E-Group reconfigured the project to meet the requirement and appears to have started the state process.

Lang expressed his frustration with E-Group:

E-Group spent nearly three years threatening this community with a state approval pathway they either did not understand or knew that they did not qualify for. There are only two explanations, and neither is acceptable. Either E-Group and its legal team failed to understand a basic eligibility requirement for this very process they were using to pressure the City, or they knowingly allowed the City, the Planning Commission and the public to operate under a false assumption that is either gross incompetence or dishonesty. In my view, either one should be disqualifying in the event that E-Group comes back to the City for a vote in any way, shape or form.

Lang concluded, “AB 205 still requires consideration of local laws and conditions, a finding of net positive economic benefit to the local government, plus legally binding community benefits, Benefit Agreements. E-Group presented AB 205, as a threat, but the actual process is more complex than they make it sound.”

Suzanne Lyons was next to speak, and promising “positive feedback,” thanked each Commissioner for their participation in the deliberative process, which resulted in a split 2-2 vote with one member remaining neutral.

I just want to say thank you to everybody and give you some positive feedback, because it was rough, it was hard. Everybody played a part, and you were all really important, and I think the whole process worked the way it’s supposed to work. So thank you.

Community Development Director Updates

Director Keith Gardner had three topics to discuss: Ofland, General Plan Updates and the Planning Commission calendar.

In the first City acknowledgement of Ofland’s abandoning of the planned resort in Indian Cove, Gardner said:

I did get a letter from an attorney representing the Ofland applicants asking for the City to initiate a rescission of their approvals. I’m working with our legal team to help [determine the] best approach to do that. So to be continued, I just want to let the Commission know that I did receive it, and we’re working on how, how best to approach that.

Regarding the General Plan, Gardner advised the Commissioners that Planning had examining land use on a parcel by parcel basis and would be working with the new City Manager Kevin Cole. He also pointed out that there was no budget allocation for 2026-2027 to hire consultants so the City is working internally to “get our thought process together before we hire anyone else.”

The Commission agreed to meet in two weeks, perhaps for a workshop on General Plan updates or other “broad topics.”

The next Planning Commission meeting is Tuesday, May 19 at 6 pm.

NOTE: Desert Trumpet staff members Cindy Bernard, Kat Talley-Jones, and Heidi Heard live in the Indian Cove neighborhood, adjacent to the proposed Ofland development project, and are on the organizing committees of Indian Cove Neighbors and Say No to Ofland. Read our policy for covering Ofland here.

Hi, new subscribers! Desert Trumpet understands you might not be interested in all of our coverage. That’s why it’s divided into separate newsletters allowing you to opt out of reporting that’s not important to you. For instance, you may want our Education news but not City Hall 29.

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