ON THE AGENDA: Twentynine Palms City Council, June 24, 2025
Zoning for solar farms, fees for solid waste disposal, TBID oversight and more on a full agenda for the City Council this week
This upcoming Tuesday, June 24, 2025, the Twentynine Palms City Council will hold a workshop at 5:15 pm on the E-Group solar project. The regularly scheduled meeting begins at 6 pm and includes consideration of a Transportation Improvement Plan for Fiscal Years 2025-2026 through 2029-2030, charges for solid waste, and discussion regarding the development of a Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) City Council Subcommittee and the potential reorganization of the Housing and Homeless Committee.
Details regarding the workshop and individual agenda items can be found in the agenda packet, linked here. A recap of the June 10 City Council meeting can be found here.
1. E-Group Solar Project Update and Workshop on Community Benefit Package
In 2012, the City passed a moratorium on utility-scale solar projects in response to the development of the Highlander 1 solar farm on Lear Road. But California Assembly Bill 205, passed in 2022, makes it possible for E-Group PS, the project’s developer, to bypass the City because of the urgency of climate-friendly energy solutions. Desert Trumpet covered the community’s response to the E-Group solar proposal here and here.
The full text of AB 205 can be found here. The bill lowers some consumer costs per kilowatt used and caps flat fees, which reduces consumer costs, especially in summer months when electricity needs are high. However, for regions that have tried to independently manage the impact of large-scale projects like solar farms, as Twentynine Palms has, the bill changed permitting requirements and effectively superseded local regulations on such projects.
The permitting process defined by AB 205 does not ensure that benefits from approved projects serve the local community in which the facility is located. The Staff Report that accompanies next week’s meeting agenda notes that on May 23, 2023, the City Council directed Staff to see if “an acceptable project and public benefit package could be negotiated.” The Staff Report also noted that investment fund E-Group has stated that “its preference is to work with the City to provide economic benefits in exchange for the City’s cooperation in approving its proposed project.” The proposed location of the project is north of Two Mile Road, south of the City Limits, east of the extension of Noel's Knoll Road, and east of the northern extension of Canyon Road.
This proposal would involve rezoning the area to accommodate the project, re-designating the southern 236 acres of the proposed location from its current designation as Rural Living (RL-5) and Single-Family Residential – Estate (RS-E) to Single-Family Residential, 1 acre minimum RS-1. This change ensures no loss to residential unit availability and would add 117 potential residential units, though it would be residential units of a different nature with higher density.
Financially, the benefit to Twentynine Palms would begin at construction, negotiated to be $105,000 annually for the planned five years of construction and rising to $150,000 on the five-year anniversary of commencement of operations.
City staff is seeking guidance from the City Council regarding the Community Benefit Package and plans for how funds from the project would be allocated by the City. Discussion of the Environmental Impact of this project is pending the completion of an Environmental Impact Report, which is still under review.
Following the workshop, the Council will proceed with the regular agenda.
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 bench toward 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.
AWARDS, PRESENTATIONS, APPOINTMENTS AND PROCLAMATIONS
Robin Schlosser will present details on the scope of the work provided by Reach Out Morongo Basin, which provides extensive volunteer services to senior and disabled residents of the area.
Jesse Ibarra with Neighborhood Partnership Housing Services, Inc will present information on the services NPHS provides. The stated mission of NPHS is to “build resilient, thriving communities through innovative housing and financial solutions that elevate the well-being of underserved individuals and families”.
CONSENT CALENDAR
The Consent Calendar consists of routine 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 on the Consent Calendar include approval of last meeting’s minutes, the recommendation to approve payment for the Cholla Avenue Widening Project, re-approval of lease agreement with Family Service Association which currently manages the The Nutrition for Seniors Program, the approval of a five-year plan for improvements on transportation services funded by Measure I revenue, and the recommended approval of the inclusion of costs charged for solid waste handling services.
5. The Cholla Avenue Widening Project
The Cholla Avenue Widening Project “enhanced roadway and pedestrian safety and accessibility by constructing new curb & gutter, sidewalk, pedestrian curb access (ramps), asphaltic paving and striping on Cholla Avenue from Route 62 to Cactus Avenue.” Approved in November 2024, the project is now complete and the recommendation to the Council is to approve the release of funds to pay for the construction.
6. The Family Service Association
The FSA manages the Nutrition for Seniors Program, utilizing the kitchen and dining areas of the Twentynine Palms Senior Center. Beginning in 2004, they have been operating on a month-to-month lease to provide this service. The recommendation from staff is to move to an annual lease, with an updated cost agreement to reflect the increased cost of utilities and a 3% annual increase moving forward.
7. Maintained Roads vs. Non-Maintained Roads
Measure I, approved by San Bernardino County voters in 2004, imposed a ½ cent sales tax with funds marked for transportation improvement. The measure requires that each local jurisdiction develop a 5 year plan for the use of these funds. This renewal includes improving safety measures at high crash rate intersections, pavement care and maintenance and the development of biking access.
8. Adoption of Resolutions (1) Approving Inclusion of Costs Associated with Compliance with Procurement Obligations In Maximum Rates That May Be Charged For Solid Waste Handling Services, and (2) Authorizing the Placement Of Solid Waste Handling Service Charges On The County Property Tax Roll and approving a related agreement with the County.
State Senate Bill 1383 including regulations regarding the collection and management of organic waste. Burrtec has been the city’s partner in complying with the Bill’s requirements. The Council will consider an update in the costs and the collection of costs through “direct billing customers for their solid waste charges via property tax rolls at no additional cost to the City.”
DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS
9. Tourism Business Improvement District City Council Subcommittee
The Council will consider forming a City Council subcommittee “to help lead and support the City's Tourism Business Improvement District Board and Staff.” The city’s TBID, also called Visit29, has grown the exposure of Twentynine Palms as a tourism destination, but is also evolving without extensive oversight from the City Council. To align goals and offer guidance, the recommendation to form a two-member subcommittee to work with the TBID will be considered. This will expand TBID oversight beyond their annual reauthorization and provide a year-long link between the Council and the TBID.
Added on 6/21/2025 after the first agenda was released:
10. Housing and Homeless Committee Reorganization
How the Housing and Homeless Committee is currently structured and what changes should be made will be considered. Numbers regarding the population of unsheltered people in Twentynine Palms were provided along with an extensive compendium of figures regarding the unsheltered population of San Bernardino County in the last decade. The most current information is from a 2025 Point in Time Survey, which is still under review. The preliminary information from that survey puts the number of unsheltered people in Twentynine Palms at 14, down significantly from 100 from 2024, though the count from 2024 has been under scrutiny.
How the Committee, should manage care and resources for unsheltered people in Twentynine Palms and its current structure, will be the subject of review. The Committee is currently comprised of the Planning Commission and at-large community members Andrea Keller and Veno Nathraj. The Committee last met in November 2024 for an emotional discussion regarding a proposal from the Molding Hearts Program, the stated mission of which is to end homelessness in San Bernardino County. Concerns that the program would relocate people away from their community in Twentynine Palms as opposed to providing services locally marked a shift that concerned citizens and advocates.
FUTURE COUNCIL INITIATED ITEMS
1. Discussion on the General Plan Update.
2. Shade structures around Freedom Plaza and a possible art fixture with "Freedom Plaza" announcing the location.
3. Discussion on reorganizing the Homeless and Housing Committee.
4. Discussion on partnering with the Boys and Girls Club.
5. Discussion of a policy regulating the use of City Attorney resources.
6. Discussion on exploring a partnership with Jamboree for affordable housing.
7. Maintained Roads vs. Non-Maintained Roads.
8. Discussion on exploring a partnership with Neighborhood Partnership Housing Services (NPHS) for an owner-occupied rehab program.
CITY MANAGER UPDATE
Dr. Stone James will update the Council on his work since the last Council meeting and progress on on-going projects.
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