CITY COUNCIL
AGENDA
Study Session
Wednesday, December 13, 2023
3:00 PM
City Council Chambers
68-700 Avenida Lalo Guerrero
Cathedral City, CA 92234
MAYOR
Rita Lamb
CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS
Mayor Pro Tem
Mark Carnevale
Councilmember
Nancy Ross
Councilmember
Raymond Gregory
Councilmember
Ernesto Gutierrez
• CALL TO ORDER
• ROLL CALL
• AGENDA FINALIZATION
At this time the City Council may announce any items being pulled from the agenda or continued to another date.
1. PUBLIC COMMENT
This is the opportunity for members of the public to comment on any items not appearing on the regular agenda. Because of restrictions contained in California Law, the City Council may not discuss or act on any item not on the agenda but may briefly respond to statements made or ask a question for clarification. The Mayor may also request a brief response from staff to questions raised during public comment or may request a matter be agendized for a future meeting. Public Comment will be limited to three (3) minutes.
2. STUDY SESSION
Normally no action is taken on Study Session items, however, the City Council reserves the right to give specific policy direction and take specific action as Cathedral City P a g e 2
necessary. Presentation will be limited to 10 minutes unless other provisions are made in advance.
A. Special Use Permit Procedure Discussion
Recommendation: This is a presentation only. There is no formal action required.
ADJOURN
NOTES TO THE PUBLIC:
The City of Cathedral City complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. If you require special assistance to participate in this meeting, please call the City Clerk’s Office at (760) 770-0322 at least 48 hours prior to the meeting.
If you desire to address the City Council during the meeting, please complete a Request to Speak Form available at the entrance and present it to the City Clerk. Speakers will be called upon at the appropriate time.
Any documents provided to a majority of the City Council regarding any item on this agenda will be made available for public inspection in the City Clerk’s office at City Hall located at 68 -700 Avenida Lalo Guerrero during normal business hours. In addition, such documents will be posted on the City’s website at www.cathedralcity.gov.
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Staff Report
City Council
Item No. 2.A
Meeting Date: December 13, 2023
From: Ryan Hunt, Communications and Events Manager
Title: Special Use Permit Procedure Discussion
City Council
RECOMMENDATION:
This is a presentation only. There is no formal action required.
BACKGROUND:
Communications & Events is seeking guidance from the City Council related to the Special Use Permit (SUP) process. As it stands currently, all events (no matter the scale or location) require City Council approval. Staff are hopeful that some of the smaller scale events or annual events we routinely approve of can be authorized administratively with a checklist approved by the City Council.
Staff are also hopeful the City Council can work with Communications & Events to develop rental fees for venues currently free of charge to book for events. The City doesn’t want to be cost-prohibitive to applicants hosting events in Cathedral City, but we need to ensure the City recovers costs.
DISCUSSION:
Currently, Communications & Events is finding it hard to process SUPs in a timely manner for event applicants due to every event requiring City Council approval. It can take weeks to find placement on a City Council agenda, which limits the event organizer’s ability to promote their event until they receive formal approval.
Communications/Events s taff is also concerned about losing opportunities to other venues and believes a more streamlined process would be helpful for both efficiency and necessary staff time currently utilized for developing staff reports for each event submitting an SUP.
With a checklist endorsed by the City Council, e vents like CCHS Homecoming Parade, one-day events like DAP Volunteer Appreciation and the Autism Acceptance Walk in our community amphitheater, are just a few examples of smaller scale events that could be approved administratively.
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Communications & Events would also like to explore additional fees for venues outside the Community Amphitheater. Right now, we don’t have any rental fees associated with Downtown venues like Town Square Park, the Festival Lawn, Avenida Lalo Guerrero, and other City venues. To protect the City from liability in the future, t he City also needs to ensure proper cleaning fees are in place.
FIVE-YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN:
Action F-6: Promote additional community events and celebrations.
ATTACHMENTS:
DRAFT RECOMMENDATIONS SUP PROCEDURE DISCUSSION
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DRAFT RECOMMENDATIONS
SPECIAL EVENTS FEE SCHEDULE AND SPECIAL USE PERMIT PROCEDURE/POLICY:
CLEAN-UP/DAMAGE DEPOSIT
• Currently, a clean-up/damage deposit of $600 is required. Communica�ons & Events believes this should be increased to at least $2,500-$5,000. This deposit would be returned to the event organizer/applicant if they successfully remove all trash and debris but would protect the City of Cathedral City if damages are sustained before, during or a�er the event.
AREA OF DOWNTOWN CATHEDRAL CITY RENTAL FEES
• Right now, there are no fees atached to ren�ng the following venues, which are frequently requested:
o Civic Center Plaza (includes breezeway and steps in front of City Hall) o Town Square Park
o Avenida Lalo Guerrero
• Communica�ons & Events believes there should be rental fees associated with these venues to protect the City from liability and to beter vet the users and event organizers u�lizing our facili�es. The proposed fees (looking for City Council guidance) would be:
o Civic Center Plaza (includes paseo and steps in
front of City Hall) – $250
Currently, there’s a separate Paseo
lis�ng on the Special Use Permit (SUP)
applica�on for Downtown.
Communica�ons & Events believes
this should all be combined as one
rental space and listed as Civic Center
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Attachment: DRAFT RECOMMENDATIONS SUP PROCEDURE DISCUSSION (4016 : Special Use Permit Procedure Discussion) Plaza. This would include the paseo and steps in front of City Hall. o Town Square Park – $500
o Avenida Lalo Guerrero – $500
o Fes�val Lawn – $1,000
If just u�lizing the Fes�val Lawn Annex next to Luchador Brewing, this should only be $250 and require a cleanup/damage deposit. • There also should be stronger enforcement that all rental fees, insurance requirements, cleanup deposit, etc. should be received no later than 30 days before the event.
STAFF RESOURCES
• Communica�ons & Events believes an updated SUP
applica�on should beter specify and include any staff
needed for setup, day-of event responsibili�es, etc.
For example:
o If event organizers plan to use Cathedral City Police Department, they need to list the number of officers needed. An event serving alcohol should require a minimum of two officers onsite. the billable rate for police officers is $135 per hour per officer. Par�al or all an�cipated payments may be due prior to the event. The availability of CCPD police officers is not guaranteed without prior no�fica�on of at least 30 days.
o As an addi�onal requirement to the SUP applica�on, Communica�ons & Events believes any needs from Public Works and/or Facili�es should be specified by the event organizer and accounted for financially when it comes to hours worked. In addi�on to CCPD, the City of Cathedral City will invoice the applicant for tasks and services conducted by Public Works/Facili�es. The current applica�on is vague when it comes to recovery of staff �me.
UPDATED CHECKLIST FOR SMALL SCALE EVENTS
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Attachment: DRAFT RECOMMENDATIONS SUP PROCEDURE DISCUSSION (4016 : Special Use Permit Procedure Discussion) • If an event doesn’t require staff assistance
beyond Communica�ons & Events, staff
would like feedback from the City Council on
a checklist that can be approved
administra�vely to expedite the process for
the event applicants.
Examples of this would be small scale events scheduled for four hours or less (Au�sm Walk, DAP Health Volunteer Apprecia�on, Home Depot Founda�on Beau�fica�on at Salva�on Army are some examples). There would be an excep�on made if the event applicant is serving alcohol and/or reques�ng city sponsorship or funding to support the event, which would con�nue to be authorized and approved by the City Council.
This would include the following, but we’re seeking further guidance from the City Council on any addi�ons/feedback:
o Special Use Permit Applica�on Fee
o Clean-up / Damage Deposit
o Proof of Insurance with a minimum of $1,000,000 in liability coverage naming City of Cathedral City, 68-700 Avenida Lalo Guerrero, Cathedral City 92234 as an addi�onal insured
o Copy of site plan using map
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Attachment: DRAFT RECOMMENDATIONS SUP PROCEDURE DISCUSSION (4016 : Special Use Permit Procedure Discussion)