Desert Hot Springs City Council
October 17, 2023

5/31/23, 2:14 PM Chapter 17.12 COMMERCIAL DISTRICTS
https://library.qcode.us/lib/desert_hot_springs_ca/pub/municipal_code/item/title_17-chapter_17_12?view=all 50/56 D. Scale, for purposes here, is the relationship between the size of the new structure and the size of adjoining permanent structures. It is also how the proposed building’s size relates to the size of a human being (human scale). Large scale building elements will appear imposing if they are situated in a visual environment which is predominantly smaller in scale.

1. Building scale can be reduced through the proper use of window patterns, structural bays, roof overhangs, siding, awnings, moldings, fixtures, and other details.

2. The scale of buildings should be carefully related to adjacent pedestrian areas (i.e., plazas, courtyards) and other structures.

3. Large dominating structures should be broken up by:
a. Creating horizontal emphasis through the use of trim; b. Adding awnings, eaves, windows, or other architectural ornamentation; c. Use of combinations of complementary colors;
d. Landscape materials.

E. The use of standardized “corporate” architectural styles associated with chain-type restaurants is strongly discouraged.

Item Number: 4.

5/31/23, 2:14 PM Chapter 17.12 COMMERCIAL DISTRICTS
https://library.qcode.us/lib/desert_hot_springs_ca/pub/municipal_code/item/title_17-chapter_17_12?view=all 51/56 F. Much of the existing color in the City is derived from the primary building’s finish materials such as brick, wood, stucco, and terra cotta tile. Also dominant are earth tones that match these natural materials.

1. Large areas of intense white color should be avoided. While subdued colors usually work best as a dominant overall color, a bright trim color can be appropriate.

2. The color palette chosen for new structures should be compatible with the colors of adjacent structures. An exception is where the colors of adjacent structures strongly diverge from these design guidelines.

3. Whenever possible, minimize the number of colors appearing on the structure’s exterior. Small commercial structures should use no more than 3 colors.

4. Primary colors should only be used to accent elements, such as door and window frames and architectural details.

5. Architectural detailing should be painted to complement the facade and tie in with adjacent structures.
(Prior code § 159.06.060(9))

17.12.340 Roofs.

A. The roofline at the top of the structure should not run in continuous plane for more than 50 feet without offsetting or jogging the roof plane.

B. All roof-top equipment shall be screened from public view by screening materials of the same nature as the structure’s basic materials. Mechanical equipment should be located below the highest vertical element of the building.

C. The following roof materials should not be used:

1. Corrugated metal (standing rib metal roofs are permitted);

2. Highly reflective surfaces (copper roofs may be considered); Item Number: 4.

5/31/23, 2:14 PM Chapter 17.12 COMMERCIAL DISTRICTS
https://library.qcode.us/lib/desert_hot_springs_ca/pub/municipal_code/item/title_17-chapter_17_12?view=all 52/56

3. Illuminated roofing. (Prior code § 159.06.060(10))

17.12.350 Awnings.

A. The use of awnings along a row of contiguous structures should be restricted to awnings of the same form and location. Color of the awnings should be consistent and a minimum of 8-foot vertical clearance should be maintained.

B. Signs on awnings should be printed on and be limited to the awning’s flap (valance) or to the end panels of angled, curved or box awnings.

C. Plexiglas, metal, and glossy vinyl illuminated awnings are strongly discouraged. Canvas, treated canvas, matte finish vinyl, and fabric awnings are encouraged.

D. Internally lit awnings should not be used. (Prior code § 159.06.060(11))

17.12.360 Signs.

A. Every structure and commercial complex should be designed with a precise concept for adequate signing. Provisions for sign placement, sign scale in relationship with the building, and sign readability should be considered in developing the signing concept. All signing should be highly compatible with the building and site design relative to color, material, and placement.

B. Monument-type signs are the preferred alternative for business identification whenever possible.

Where several tenants occupy the same site, individual wall mounted sign are appropriate in combination with a monuments sign identifying the development and address.

C. The use of backlit individually cut letter signs is strongly encouraged.

D. Each development site should be appropriately signed to give directions to loading and receiving areas, visitor parking and other special areas.
(Prior code § 159.06.060(12))

17.12.370 Lighting.

Item Number: 4.

5/31/23, 2:14 PM Chapter 17.12 COMMERCIAL DISTRICTS
https://library.qcode.us/lib/desert_hot_springs_ca/pub/municipal_code/item/title_17-chapter_17_12?view=all 53/56 A Lighting should be used to provide illumination for the security and safety of on-site areas such as parking, loading, shipping, and receiving, pathways, and working areas.

B. The design of light fixtures and their structural support should be architecturally compatible with the main structures on-site. Illuminators should be integrated within the architectural design of the structures.

C. As a security device, lighting should be adequate but not overly bright. All building entrances should be well lighted.

D. All lighting fixtures must be shielded to confine light spread within the site boundaries. (Prior code § 159.06.060(13))

17.12.380 Tattoo and body piercing establishments.

A. Applicability. The standards and criteria established in this section apply to any business enterprise in the City of Desert Hot Springs that engages in tattooing and/or body piercing.

B. Definitions.

1. The following words and phrases shall have the same meanings as set forth in California Health and Safety Code Section 119300 et seq., as the same may be amended from time to time, and whenever used in this section shall be construed as defined in this section:
“Body piercing” means the creation of an opening in the body of a human being for the purpose of inserting jewelry or other decoration. This includes, but is not limited to, piercing of an ear, lip, tongue, nose, or eyebrow. “Body piercing” does not include piercing an ear with a disposable, single-use stud or solid needle that is applied using a mechanical device to force the needle or stud through the ear.

Item Number: 4.

5/31/23, 2:14 PM Chapter 17.12 COMMERCIAL DISTRICTS
https://library.qcode.us/lib/desert_hot_springs_ca/pub/municipal_code/item/title_17-chapter_17_12?view=all 54/56 “Permanent cosmetics” means the application of pigments to or under the skin of a human being for the purpose of permanently changing the color or appearance of the skin. This includes, but is not limited to, permanent eyeliner, eye shadow, or lip color. “Tattooing” means to insert pigment under the surface of the skin of a human being, by pricking with a needle or otherwise, to produce an indelible mark or figure visible through the skin.

2. Other Defined Terms. The following terms and phrases, whenever used in this section shall be construed as defined in this section:
“Body piercing establishment” or “parlor” means any establishment where body piercing is conducted.
“Branding” means any method, including, but not limited to, the use of heat, cold, chemical compound, or cauterizing to apply a scar to the body for the purpose of creating a permanent mark or design on the skin.
“Extreme body modification” means the practice of modifying the physical body using the techniques of branding and scarification.
“Scarification” means any method used to alter skin texture by cutting the skin and controlling the body’s healing process in order to produce wounds which result in permanently raised welts or bumps, or any other technique that changes the contour, or level plane of the skin and/or results in a scar on the skin.
“Tattoo establishment” or “parlor” means any establishment where tattooing is conducted.

C. Extreme Body Modification Services Prohibited. Business enterprises which engage in the performance of extreme body modification services, as defined in this section, are prohibited in all zones throughout the City of Desert Hot Springs. No permit or any other applicable license or entitlement for use, including but not limited to the issuance of a business license, shall be approved or issued for the establishment, maintenance or operation of any business enterprise that engages in the performance of extreme body modification services within the City limits of the City of Desert Hot Springs. The establishment, maintenance or operation of any business enterprise which conducts extreme body modification services within the City limits is declared to be a public nuisance and may be abated by the City either pursuant to Chapter 4.16 of the Desert Hot Springs Municipal Code or any available legal remedies, including but not limited to, Title 4 (Code Enforcement) of the Desert Hot Springs Municipal Code and/or civil injunctions.

D. Permitted Use. Business enterprises which engage in tattooing and/or body piercing are permitted in the City’s C-G (General Commercial), C-C (Community Commercial), and C-N (Neighborhood Commercial) zoning districts, subject to the provisions of this section.

E. Conditional Use Permit Required. A conditional use permit, pursuant to the provisions in Chapter

17.76 of the City’s Municipal Code, shall be required prior to operating a tattoo establishment and/or body piercing establishment.

Item Number: 4.

5/31/23, 2:14 PM Chapter 17.12 COMMERCIAL DISTRICTS
https://library.qcode.us/lib/desert_hot_springs_ca/pub/municipal_code/item/title_17-chapter_17_12?view=all 55/56 F. Business License Required. A business license, pursuant to the provisions in Chapter 5.04 of the City’s Municipal Code, shall be required prior to operating a tattoo establishment and/or body piercing establishment. A business license shall not be authorized unless sufficient evidence is provided that proprietors of tattoo and/or body piercing establishments have registered with Riverside County Health Department pursuant to Section 119303 of the California Health and Safety Code.

G. Location Criteria. A proposed tattoo establishment and/or body piercing establishment shall be located in compliance with the following requirements:

1. The use shall not be located within a 1,000-foot radius of any other tattoo establishment and/or body piercing establishment.

2. A tattoo establishment and/or body piercing establishment shall not be located within a 500- foot radius of a church, temple, or other place used exclusively for religious worship, or a playground, park, child day care facility, or school that is located within or outside the city. For the purposes of this requirement, “school” shall mean any property containing a structure which is used for education or instruction, whether public or private, from preschool through grade 12.

3. The use shall not be located within a 1,000-foot radius of any adult business.

4. The use shall not be located within a 500-foot radius of any existing residence.

5. The use shall not be located within a 250-foot radius of any business selling alcoholic beverages for on-site consumption.

6. For the purposes of separation requirements, the distance measured shall be from the main entrance of the tattoo establishment and/or body piercing establishment to the main entrance of any other tattoo establishment and/or body piercing establishment; church, temple, or other place used exclusively for religious worship, or a playground, park, child day care facility, or school; any adult business; any residence; and any business selling alcoholic beverages for off-site consumption.

H. Development and Operational Standards. Tattoo establishments and body piercing establishments shall operate in conformance with the following standards.

1. Hours of operation shall be limited to: Monday—Saturday, 8:00 a.m.—9:00 p.m. and Sunday, 10:00 a.m.—9:00 p.m.

2. Adequate security and lighting shall be provided to ensure the safety of persons at all times.

3. There shall be no on-site consumption, sale and/or possession of alcoholic beverages.

4. There shall be no on-site consumption or sale of tobacco.

5. All employees shall be at least 18 years of age.

Item Number: 4.

5/31/23, 2:14 PM Chapter 17.12 COMMERCIAL DISTRICTS
https://library.qcode.us/lib/desert_hot_springs_ca/pub/municipal_code/item/title_17-chapter_17_12?view=all 56/56 I. Enforcement. The establishment, maintenance or operation of a tattoo establishment and/or body piercing establishment in violation of this section, is declared to be a public nuisance and may be abated by the City either pursuant to Chapter 4.16 of the Desert Hot Springs Municipal Code or any available legal remedies, including, but not limited to, Title 4 (Code Enforcement) of the Desert Hot Springs Municipal Code and/or civil injunctions. In addition, in the event the tattoo establishment or body piercing establishment operates or is maintained in violation of and/or in noncompliance with the City’s regulations, as set forth in this section, Health and Safety Code Section 119300 et seq., Chapter 6.1 of the California Health and Safety Code, also known as the Medical Waste Management Act (MWMA) of 1991, or the conditions of approval, the City may commence conditional use permit revocation proceedings, as provided in Chapter 17.76 of the City’s Municipal Code. (Ord. 524 § 3, 2010)

17.12.390 Mobile food vending vehicle parks.

A. For purposes of this section, “mobile food vending vehicle park” means a commercial private property, excluding existing shopping centers, allowing vendors to vend on its premises on an ongoing basis with approval of a development permit. “An ongoing basis” means longer than 3 consecutive days.

B. Mobile food vending vehicle parks may be established within the City and shall comply with the following additional requirements:

1. All mobile food vendors shall obtain a mobile food vending vehicle permit and abide by all regulations in Desert Hot Springs Municipal Code Chapter 5.52.

2. Maintain permanent restroom facilities.

3. Provide at least 3 paved parking spaces per mobile food vending vehicle.

4. Maintain sufficient trash receptacles and trash removal services.

5. Tables, chairs, carts, shade structures, or other vending-related installations may be erected.

6. Sufficient lighting shall be required if the vendor remains open for business after dusk.

7. Shall comply with all requirements of Title 17 of the Desert Hot Springs Municipal Code. (Ord. 690 9-3-19)
Contact:

City Clerk: 760-329-6411 – Ext. 107, Email: [email protected] Published by Quality Code Publishing, Seattle, WA. By using this site, you agree to the terms of use.

Item Number: 4.

SR-23-249
City of Desert Hot Springs
City Council

AGENDA ITEM REPORT
To: City Council
Date: October 17, 2023
Department: City Council
Prepared by: Sean Smith, Economic Development Director
Subject: Assignment of Development Agreement from Skyborne Ventures to Lennar Homes
RECOMMENDATION:

Approve the Assignment of the Development Agreement and Amendment from Skyborne Ventures, LLC, a California limited liability company (the “Assignor”) to Lennar Homes of California, LLC, a California limited liability company (“Assignee”).

BACKGROUND:

Background - Development Agreement
In 2004, following annexation into the City of Desert Hot Springs (“City”), the City approved the Stoneridge Specific Plan for 2,140 residential units including the following entitlements: Stoneridge Specific Plan, General Plan Amendment No. 02-04, Change of Zone No. 02-04, Development Agreement No. 01-04 and Tract Maps 32029 & 32030. An Environmental Impact Report was also prepared and was certified by the City Council on January 2nd, 1993.

On May 5, 2005, the City and First West-DHS Associates, LLC entered into Development Agreement No. 01-04 for the construction of the Stoneridge Project, this is shown in Exhibit “A”. In July 2005, Western Pacific Housing, Inc., dba for DR Horton purchased the property from First West-DHS Associates, LLC and assumed the Development Agreement with the City and renamed the project as the Skyborne project.

In 2008, Skyborne Ventures LLC subsequently purchased the property, acquired title to the property comprising the Stoneridge Project. Skyborne Ventures LLC (“Owner”) is the successor in interest to First West and Western Pacific Housing, Inc., under the Development Agreement and Project Approvals and the developer of the Skyborne Project (“Project”).

The Skyborne Project has a Vested Tentative Tract No 32030 which is made up of 10 individual tracts referred to as Villages 1 through 10. Tract No. 32030 consists of public streets along the exterior perimeter, a storm drain system, and various main interior streets. Each Village within Tract No. 32030 consists of multiple lots for single family homes, local streets, a storm drain system, and various amenities.

Item Number: 5.

SR-23-249
On August 9, 2023, the City Council approved the First Amendment to the Skyborne Development Agreement, paving the way for the project to continue.

Background - Construction
In 2006, the first phase of construction of the Skyborne Project began. However, in 2008 the local housing market experienced a sudden and rapid economic downturn. During the ensuing recession, construction stalled, and home sales stopped.

On February 13, 2020, the Planning Commission approved the construction of 29 new single-family homes within Village 1 of the Project. The development included building on 27 pre-existing slabs and 2 vacant lots which completed Village 1 and all associated public improvements.

On March 9th, 2021, the Planning Commission approved the construction of 79 new single-family homes within Village 2 of the Project. These new single-family homes are currently under construction.

On April 12, 2022, the Planning Commission approved the construction of the remaining 108 new single-family homes within Village 2 of the Project. Village 2 and all associated public improvements will be complete at the end of construction of the 108 single-family homes. These new single-family homes are currently being constructed in phases.

DISCUSSION:

The Owner is currently working with national home builder, Lennar, for the construction of 286 homes in Village 3 contingent upon the execution of the Assignment of Development Agreement (attached as Exhibit “1” to this staff report). The property is more specifically described in Exhibit “A” to the Assignment of Development Agreement.

Execution of the Assignment of Development Agreement will effectively transfer all obligations, rights, title, and interest in and to the associated Development Agreement with respect to the subject property to Lennar.

FISCAL IMPACT:

There is no immediate fiscal impact to the City. Allowing for the assignment to Lennar will result in continued construction resulting in associated Development Impact Fees and property taxes.

ATTACHMENTS:
1) Assignment of Development Agreement No. 01-04
Item Number: 5.

RECORDING REQUESTED BY AND
WHEN RECORDED MAIL TO:

City of Desert Hot Springs
Attn: City Clerk
11999 Palm Drive
Desert Hot Springs, CA 92240
(SPACE ABOVE FOR RECORDER’S USE)
[EXEMPT FROM RECORDING FEES PURSUANT TO GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 6103 AND 27383] ASSIGNMENT OF DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT NO. 01-04
THIS ASSIGNMENT OF DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT, as defined below in Recital A, (the “Assignment”) is made and entered into as of this ___ day of ______________, 2023, by and between Skyborne Ventures, LLC, a California limited liability company (the “Assignor”) and Lennar Homes of California, LLC, a California limited liability company (“Assignee”) with respect to the following facts:

RECITALS
A. Assignor is the owner of certain real property situated in the City of Desert Hot Springs (the “City”), County of Riverside, State of California, which is encumbered by that certain Development Agreement No 01-04 entered by and between the City and Western Pacific Housing, Inc. (successor in interest to First West-DHS Associates, LLC, a California limited liability company), Assignor’s predecessor in interest, recorded on or about May 5, 2005 as Document No. 2005-0355117 in the Official Records of Riverside County, State of California, as amended by that certain unrecorded letter agreement concerning the Development Agreement dated September 15, 2008 and as further amended by that certain First Amendment to Development Agreement No. 01-04 recorded on October __, 2023 as Document No. 2023- _________ (the “Development Agreement”);
B. City approved and pursuant to that approval, Western Pacific Housing, Inc. assigned the Development Agreement to Assignor, recorded as Document No. 2008-0514881 in the Official Records of Riverside County, State of California on or about September 19, 2008 (the “Assignment”);
C. Assignee and Assignor are parties to that certain Agreement of Purchase and Sale and Escrow Instructions dated September 14, 2023 (the “PSA”) pursuant to which Assignor agreed to sell to Assignee and Assignee has agreed to purchase from Assignor, the real property described in Exhibit “A” attached hereto and incorporated herein by reference (the “Sale Property”); and
D. In connection with the conveyance of the Sale Property, Assignor desires to assign to Assignee and Assignee desires to assume from Assignor, certain rights and obligations Item Number: 5.

under the Development Agreement as they relate to the Sale Property, as more particularly described below.

All capitalized terms not otherwise defined herein shall have the meaning(s) set forth in the Development Agreement. In consideration of the mutual covenants and agreements contained herein and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and legal sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, Assignor and Assignee agree as follows:

1. Assignment. As of the Effective Date (as hereinafter defined), Assignor hereby assigns, conveys and transfers to Assignee, all of Assignor’s right, title and interest in and to the Development Agreement with respect to the Sale Property only, including, without limitation, the vested rights of Assignor to develop the Sale Property and any reimbursement of any fees, costs, infrastructure development or otherwise in connection with the Sale Property (collectively, the “Reimbursements”).

2. Assumption. As of the Effective Date, Assignee hereby accepts the foregoing assignment by Assignor. Assignee hereby assumes those obligations under the Development Agreement which satisfy all of the following: (a) accrue on or after the Effective Date; and (b) are related to and are required to be paid or performed with respect to the development and/or occupancy of the Sale Property (collectively, the “Assumed Obligations”).

3. Effective Date. The “Effective Date” shall mean the date upon which Assignee acquired fee title to the Sale Property by recording of the grant deed as Document No. 2023- ______________ in the Official Records of Riverside County, State of California on or about October __, 2023.

4. Miscellaneous.
a. Runs with the Land. All matters contained in this Assignment shall create equitable servitudes in favor of Assignor, shall bind all current and successor owners of the Sale Property or any portion thereof, or any person having any interest in the Sale Property, and shall operate as covenants running with the Sale Property.
b. Remedies. In the event of a breach of this Assignment and the failure to cure such breach within thirty (30) days following written notice of the same, each party shall be entitled to pursue any and all remedies available at law or in equity including, without limitation, specific performance or suit to enjoin such breach or threatened breach. In the event a party shall institute any legal action or proceeding for the enforcement or interpretation of any right or obligation herein, the prevailing party shall be entitled to recover its reasonable costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees incurred in preparation and prosecution of such action or proceeding. c. Notices. Any notices or demand which shall be required or permitted by law or any of the provisions of this Assignment shall be in writing and shall be effective when delivered personally or by overnight carrier or three (3) days following deposit in the United States registered or certified mails, postage paid, and delivered to the applicable address first set forth below:

Item Number: 5.

If to Assignee: LENNAR HOMES OF CALIFORNIA, LLC
980 Montecito Drive, Suite 302
Corona, CA 92879
Attn: Mike Freeman
If to Assignor: Skyborne Ventures, LLC
c/o Lansing Strategic Management, LLC
505 Lomas Santa Fe Drive, Suite 230
Solana Beach, CA 92075
Attn: Gregory P. Lansing
d. Governing Law. This Assignment shall be governed by and construed under the laws of the State of California without giving effect to the principles of conflict of laws thereof.
e. Counterparts. This Assignment may be executed in counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original, but all of which taken together shall constitute one and the same agreement.
f. Required Actions. Assignee and Assignor agree to execute such instruments and documents and to diligently undertake such actions as may be required in order to effect the purpose and intent of this Assignment.
g. No Obligations to Third Parties. Except as otherwise expressly provided herein, the execution and delivery of this Assignment shall not be deemed to confer any rights upon, nor obligate any of the parties hereto, to any person or entity other than the parties hereto. [SIGNATURES ON FOLLOWING PAGE]
Item Number: 5.

Executed this ___ day of ________________, 2023.

ASSIGNOR: ASSIGNEE:

SKYBORNE VENTURES, LLC, a
California limited liability company
By: LANSING STRATEGIC
MANAGEMENT, LLC a California
limited liability company
By: JK-RIVERWOODS, LLC, a
California limited liability company
Its: General Partner
By: _________________________
James M. Kozak
Its: Sole Member

LENNAR HOMES OF CALIFORNIA,
LLC, a California limited liability
company

By: ____________________________
Its: _____________________________
Name: __________________________
CONSENT: City hereby consents to the provisions of the foregoing Assignment from and after the Effective Date.
_________________________________
Jerryl Soriano, City Clerk
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
_________________________________
Jennifer Mizrahi, City Attorney
Item Number: 5.

EXHIBIT “A”
Legal Description
Real property in the City of Desert Hot Springs, County of Riverside, State of California, described as follows:

LOTS 1 THROUGH 286, INCLUSIVE, AND LETTERED LOTS O THROUGH Z, INCLUSIVE, AND AA OF TRACT NO. 32030-3 AS SHOWN ON BY MAP ON FILE IN BOOK 419 PAGES 29 THROUGH 39 OF MAPS, RECORDS OF RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA.

APNS: 667-300-001 through -058; 667-310-001 through -088; 667-320-001 through -083; 667- 330-001 through -075
Item Number: 5.

SR-23-242
City of Desert Hot Springs
City Council

AGENDA ITEM REPORT
To: City Council
Date: October 17, 2023
Department: Economic Development
Prepared by: Sean Smith, Economic Development Director
Subject: Parking Management Plan
RECOMMENDATION:

Receive and file.

BACKGROUND:

In Spring of 2021, City Staff submitted a grant application in an amount of $400,000 to the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) Sustainable Communities Program, for the completion of Parking Management Plan. In an effort to review existing conditions and plan for the future, the Parking Management Plan scope of work was focused on the City's Downtown District and the Industrial area where Cannabis business are allowed.

In Summer of 2021, the City was notified by SCAG that the City's Parking Management Plan project was successfully selected for awarding the grant funds.

Through SCAG's Sustainable Communities Program, SCAG awards and administers the consultant contract, while the City administers, reviews, and approves the consultant work.

In fall of 2022, the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) retained Walker Consultants to complete a study of current and future parking and access needs in the Downtown District and Industrial Cannabis area in the City of Desert Hot Springs.

DISCUSSION:

The completed draft Parking Management Plan includes an assessment of current and anticipated future parking conditions within the Downtown District and Industrial Cannabis area. Data was collected through in-person field observations as well as outreach and engagement with the public and key stakeholders. Additionally, several virtual community meetings were held.

These efforts produced useful feedback. Field inspections allowed for the observation of parking and traffic flow while community engagement provided insight on issues of importance to city residents and workers. Additionally, a significant number of non-parking concerns were voiced on issues such as speeding, the desire for more sidewalks, lighting, and increased safety at crosswalks. While not directly associated with parking, these issues do play a key role in the types of transportation people choose to engage in. For instance, addressing the aforementioned concerns could result in an increase in walking, biking, and other forms of mobility throughout the city.

Item Number: 6.

SR-23-242
The data collected and associated recommendations are detailed in the draft Plan. Examples include encouraging shared parking while discouraging onsite parking for businesses, creating dedicated connection routes for other forms of mobility, and planning for future public parking lot locations.

FISCAL IMPACT:

The Parking Management Plan was funded entirely through SCAG with no cost to the City of Desert Hot Springs.

ATTACHMENTS:
1) Draft Parking Management Plan
Item Number: 6.

Draft Parking Management Plan
8/21/2023

2 Prepared for the City of Desert Hot Springs
Draft Parking Management Plan
8/21/2023
Funding: The preparation of this report was financed through a grant from the State of California – Department of Transportation.

Item Number: 6.

Draft Parking Management Plan
8/21/2023

3 This is a project for the City of Desert Hot Springs and the City of Garden Grove with funding provided by the Southern California Association of Governments’ (SCAG) Sustainability Program. SCAG’s Sustainability Program assists Southern California cities and other organizations in evaluating planning options and stimulating development consistent with the region’s goals. Sustainability Program tools support visioning efforts, infill analyses, economic and policy analyses, and marketing and communication programs.

The contents of this report reflect the views of the author who is responsible for the facts and accuracy of the data presented herein. The contents do not necessarily reflect the official views or policies of SCAG, or the State of California – Department of Transportation. This report does not constitute a standard, specification, or regulation. SCAG shall not be responsible for the City’s use or adaptation of the report.

Item Number: 6.

Draft Parking Management Plan
8/21/2023

4 Contents
Executive Summary 9
Existing Conditions 10
Planning Context 10
Parking Supply and Demand 10
Future Growth and Development 11
Stakeholder and Community Outreach Findings 11
Key Stakeholder Outreach Findings 11
Community Outreach Findings 12
Short-Term and Ongoing Recommendations 13
Longer-Term Strategy Recommendations 16
Introduction 19
SCAG Support 19
Setting 20
Purpose of the Study 20
Study Areas 21
Downtown Study Area 21
Industrial Cannabis Study Area 21
Planning Context 24
Relevant Planning Goals and Policies 24
Land Use and Community Design Element 24
Mobility and Infrastructure Element 25
Economic Development Element 26
Open Space and Natural Resources Element 26
Health and Wellness Element 26
Climate Action Plan (2013) – GHG Reduction Measures 27
Zoning, Land Use, and Development Standards 27
Downtown Study Area Zoning 27
Industrial Cannabis Study Area Zoning and Land Use 29
Off-Street Parking Requirements 31
Parking and Transportation Demand Management Regulations and Enforcement 32 Multimodal Transportation Options 33
Item Number: 6.

Draft Parking Management Plan
8/21/2023

5 Bicycle and Pedestrian Facilities and Planning 33
Shared Mobility Services 37
Demographics and Growth Projections 41
Demographic Information 41
Growth Projections and Potential 42
Parking Supply and Demand 44
Downtown Study Area 44
Downtown Parking Supply 44
Downtown Parking Demand Counts 46
Downtown Field Observations 48
Downtown Study Area Curb Use 48
Industrial Cannabis Study Area 49
Industrial Cannabis Area Parking Supply 49
Industrial Cannabis Area Parking Demand Counts 51
Industrial Cannabis Area Field Observations 53
Industrial Cannabis Study Area Curb Use 54
Summary of Key Parking Supply and Demand Findings 54
Downtown Study Area 54
Industrial Cannabis Study Area 54
Outreach and Engagement 56
Overview of Key Stakeholder Outreach 56
Feedback Received – Interagency Coordination 57
RCTC Email – 4/17/23 57
SunLine Transit Meeting – 4/19/23 58
Desert Hot Springs Planning Department Meeting – 4/27/23 59 IE Commuter – 5/12/2023 60
Feedback Received – Civic/Business Organizations 61
Downtown Steering Committee Meeting – 10/24/22 61
Student-Led Downtown Vision Outreach – January-March 2023 64 Direct Business and Employee Outreach – April 2023 64
Business Licensees Survey – April-May 2023 66
Summary of Key Takeaways from Key Stakeholder Outreach 68 Item Number: 6.

Draft Parking Management Plan
8/21/2023

6 Overview of General Public Outreach 70
Feedback Received – General Public 71
Desert Hot Springs Holiday Parade – 12/10/23 71
Community Survey – April-May 2023 73
Industrial Cannabis Study Area Employee Direct Outreach– April 2023 79 Virtual Community Meetings – May 2023 81
Summary of Key Takeaways from General Public Outreach 84 Recommendations 88
Introduction 88
Community Input 89
Overarching Long-Term Vision 90
Summary of Parking and Access Recommendations for Downtown and the Industrial Cannabis District 91 Short-Term and Ongoing Strategies 92

1. Repeal Minimum Parking Requirements 92

2. Facilitate Shared/Public Parking 103

3. Discourage Unshared Parking 114

4. Allow for Mixed-Use and Infill Development 118

5. Support Walking, Biking, and Shared Mobility 123
Potential Longer-Term Strategies 130

1. Manage Public Parking Based on Demand 130

2. Invest in New Parking Technologies 134

3. Create a Parking Benefit District 136

4. Prepare to Manage Parking with Dedicated City or Contract Staff 140 Appendix A: Exploratory Calculations and Discussion of Future Conditions 141 Introduction 141
Future Downtown Parking Demand 142
Residential Land Use - Existing 142
Residential Land Use - Future 143
Commercial Land Use - Existing 144
Commercial Land Use – Future 144
Future Industrial Cannabis Area Parking Demand 149
Methodology 149
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7 Development Potential 150
Considerations and Interpretation 152
Conclusion 152
Appendix B: Complete Business Licensee Survey Results 153 Appendix C: Complete Community Survey Results 160
Multiple Choice Questions 160
Geospatial Questions 165
Issues Identified 170
Improvements Suggested 181
Appendix D: Financial Considerations 193
Introduction 193
Current Fee Structure and Revenues 193
Cost Considerations for Recommended Measures 194
Review of Fees and Other Funding Sources 197
Specific Funding Sources for Consideration 202
List of Figures
Figure 1: City of Desert Hot Springs Context Map 20
Figure 2: Downtown Study Area Boundaries 21
Figure 3: Industrial Cannabis Study Area Boundaries 22
Figure 4: Downtown Study Area Zoning Map 28
Figure 5: Industrial Cannabis Study Area Zoning Map 30
Figure 6: Top Barriers to Walking and Biking in Desert Hot Springs 34 Figure 7: Pierson Boulevard Project Location 35
Figure 8: Existing and Proposed Bicycle Facilities in Desert Hot Springs 36 Figure 9: CV Link’s Desert Hot Springs Regional Extension 37 Figure 10: Prior SunRide Transit Zone Flex Stops, Points of Interest, and Fixed Route Transfer Points 38 Figure 11: Expanded SunRide Zone and Fixed Route Transfer Points 39 Figure 12: IE Commuter Vanpool Marketing 40
Figure 13: SolVan Vehicles 40
Figure 14: Thursday and Saturday Parking Utilization in Downtown Desert Hot Springs 47 Figure 15: Thursday 9AM Peak Hour - Parking Utilization in Downtown Desert Hot Springs 47 Figure 16: Street parking along Pierson Blvd 48
Figure 17: Industrial Cannabis Area Streets 50
Figure 18: Combined Street Parking Utilization on Two Bunch Palms Trail and San Jacinto Lane 52 Figure 19: SunLine Transit Fixed Route and Flexible Transit (SunRide) Service Area 59 Item Number: 6.

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8 Figure 20: Photo of Feedback Gathered from Downtown Steering Committee 63 Figure 21: Business Licensee Survey Respondents’ Employee Home Locations 67 Figure 22: Business Licensee Survey Respondents’ Parking Perceptions 67 Figure 23: Photos of Project Booth at Holiday Parade Event 71 Figure 24: Input Received During Holiday Parade Outreach 72 Figure 25: Screenshot of Survey Introduction Page 74
Figure 26: Screenshot of Map-Based Survey Page 74
Figure 27: Screenshot of Instagram Post Promoting Survey 75 Figure 28: Issue Identified: Unsafe Crossings – All Areas 77 Figure 29: Screenshot of Downtown Study Area Comments 82 Figure 30: Screenshot of Industrial Cannabis Study Area Comments 83 Figure 31: Restaurant redevelopment in Fayetteville, AR on a site that had been vacant for 40 years 95 Figure 32: Vacant lot development in Fayetteville, AR 95 Figure 33: Building Addition Made Possible by Parking Code Update in Wickenburg, AZ 96 Figure 34: Underutilized Downtown Parking Lot 99
Figure 35: Representative Parcel Sizes and Associated Parking Space Yields 108 Figure 36: Example of Santa Monica’s L(1) Zoning Category Permitting Residential Units on Upper Floors 122 Figure 37: Retail sales-tax revenue in Old Pasadena before and after installing parking meters in 1993 137 List of Tables
Table 1: Current Building Square Footage by Use in the Downtown Study Area 29 Table 2: Downtown Desert Hot Springs Off-Street Parking Inventories by Facility 44 Table 3: Desert Hot Springs Industrial Cannabis Area – Street Parking Inventories 49 Table 4: Desert Hot Springs Industrial Cannabis Area – Selected Off-Street Parking Facility Inventories 51 Table 5: Desert Hot Springs Industrial Cannabis Area – Selected Off-Street Parking Facility Utilization 52 Table 6: Interagency Coordination and Civic/Business Organization Outreach Overview 57 Table 7: Civic, Business, and Interagency Outreach Key Takeaways 68 Table 8: General Public Outreach Activities Overview 70 Table 9: Desired Improvements Identified During Holiday Parade Outreach 72 Table 10: Key Takeaways from General Public Outreach 84 Table 11: Summary of Parking and Access Recommendations for Desert Hot Springs 91 Table 12: Case Studies of Cities with Changes to Minimum Parking Requirements 93 Table 13: Walking Distance from Parking - Level of Service Standards 106 Table 14: Recommended Parking Locations 107
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9 Executive Summary
The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) and the City of Desert Hot Springs engaged Walker Consultants (“Walker”) to conduct a Parking Management Study to analyze current parking and access needs and opportunities in the City’s downtown and in the Industrial Cannabis Area in part to plan for future growth. The study includes an overview of the existing planning context, parking supply and demand observations and quantifications, key stakeholder and community outreach, and planning and policy recommendations that align with existing goals and policies outlined in the General Plan and SCAG’s goals for this engagement. Key findings of the report include:
• The City of Desert Hot Springs’ General Plan includes goals related to parking management, including:
efficient land use patterns, innovative parking solutions, infill revitalization, prioritizing industrial development, streamlining the permit process, reducing vehicle miles traveled, and developing a multimodal approach to transportation.
• The Downtown Study Area has ample parking availability, and much of the downtown is currently covered in surface parking lots. Most spaces sit empty all of the time, and during typical peak conditions, drivers rarely have to walk far to reach their destinations.
• In the Industrial Cannabis Study Area, most developments provide more than enough off-street parking to meet the typical parking demand of their employees. Public on-street parking also has low utilization.

One large work site experiences some parking and access difficulties, primarily during shift change. • Outreach revealed that both key stakeholders and community members are interested in economic development, street safety improvements, and better multi-modal optionsthroughout the City. Employees in the Industrial Cannabis Study Area were generally unaware of shared mobility services and regional commuter incentive programs, which could improve parking availability and provide more sustainable and equitable transportation options for employees.
• In light of existing and future conditions, and the community priorities revealed through outreach, this report’s recommendations for (1) short-term and ongoing strategies and (2) a framework for considering potential long-term strategies include:
o Short-term and ongoing strategy recommendations

1. Repeal minimum parking requirements.

2. Facilitate shared/public parking.

3. Discourage unshared parking.

4. Allow for mixed-use and infill developments.

5. Support walking, biking, and shared mobility solutions. o Potential longer-term strategy recommendations

1. Manage public parking based on demand.

2. Invest in new parking technologies.

3. Create a parking benefit district.

4. Prepare to manage public parking with dedicated City or contract staff.

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10 Existing Conditions
Planning Context
• The City’s General Plan already contains many goals and policies related to parking and access in several of its plan elements, including Land Use and Community Design, Mobility and Infrastructure, Economic Development, Open Space and Natural Resources, and Health and Wellness. These goals include:
o Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled
o Infill Revitalization
o Streamline Permit Process
o Community Health through Land
Use Planning
o Develop a Multimodal Approach
o Prioritize Industrial Development
o Efficient Land Use Patterns
o Innovative Parking Solutions
o Greenhouse Gas Reduction
• The current zoning regulations prohibit mixed-use development in key areas, limiting the City’s potential to reduce vehicle miles traveled and facilitate sustainable modes of travel, including walking and biking. • The municipal code establishes off-street parking mandates for different land uses, making vehicle travel more attractive and convenient than it would be if parking provision were based on market demand.

Developers are not required to provide similar benefits to serve those who travel by other modes. • The City has a Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan and is in the process of making street improvements that will improve conditions for bicyclists and pedestrians. Despite the City’s weather conditions—including high temperatures and frequent winds—many residents have expressed a desire for safe active transportation infrastructure, such as bike paths and pedestrian crosswalks. • Shared mobility services include on-demand rideshare service, vanpool incentives, and a Guaranteed Ride Home program. Few residents or employees are aware of these opportunities.

Parking Supply and Demand
Downtown Study Area
• The downtown study area contains approximately 1,800 parking spaces, including:
o Approximately 800 public on-street spaces
o Approximately 1,000 private off-street spaces1
• There are currently no designated public parking lots. • Overall parking occupancy for all on- and off-street spaces in the downtown study area ranged from 12 percent to 18 percent—always well below the 85 percent occupancy target. • Parking demand was slightly higher on Thursday than on Saturday, and fairly stable throughout each day, without extreme peaks. The highest demand observed was at 9:00 am on Thursday. 1 This does not include single family home driveways and garages or parking lots with fewer than five spaces.

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11 Industrial Cannabis Study Area
• There were approximately 1,873 existing and “potential” (with no formal curb and/or currently unpaved) street parking spaces along the seven streets in the study area. o The majority are potential future spaces where there is a paved roadway but no formal curb. o Some are potential future spaces where the roadway is still unpaved. o Even along developed curbs, street parking utilization was consistently low. • Walker sampled off-street parking facility utilization on Thursday between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm. o A total of 523 vehicles were counted in a total of 878 private off-street parking spaces, for a utilization of 60 percent across the sampled facilities. o Most developments provide more than enough off-street parking to meet the typical parking demand of their employees. One large facility experienced some parking and access difficulties, primarily during shift change.

Future Growth and Development
• Southern California Association of Governments’ (SCAG) demographic forecasts estimated that the Desert Hot Springs population could nearly double from 29,390 persons in 2019 to 58,900 persons by 2040. • Desert Hot Springs’ Regional Housing Needs Assessment for the 2021-2029 planning period was determined by SCAG to be 3,873 housing units. The General Plan states that, as part of a comprehensive development code update, the City will evaluate, and modify if necessary, parking standards to ensure that they do not constrain the development of housing, specifically senior housing and multi-family housing. • Desert Hot Springs expects economic growth to occur throughout the City, as it strengthens its existing tourism and cannabis industries and looks to attract and retain new businesses, including warehousing/fulfillment centers, health care, professional office uses, and regional-serving retail. • If new development proceeds without proactive parking strategies in place, the City risks losing an unnecessary portion of its most valuable real estate to surface parking spaces that sit empty much of the time.

Stakeholder and Community Outreach Findings
The study included conversations with key stakeholders and outreach to the general public, including an online community-wide survey, virtual and in-person events, and direct outreach conducted in the study areas.

Key Stakeholder Outreach Findings
• City of Desert Hot Springs staff are actively engaging in efforts to support economic development, including by analyzing relevant lessons learned from other cities. • SunLine Transit and IE Commuter offer various shared mobility services, and continued efforts to increase awareness of and participation in shared mobility options could reduce parking demand in the city. • Stakeholders supported parking and zoning strategies that facilitate downtown development and more flexible land use.

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12 • Approximately 70 percent of business licensee survey respondents reported that most of their employees live within Desert Hot Springs.
• Policy solutions focused on bicycle infrastructure and sustainable travel incentives were the most likely to be seen by business licensee survey respondents as “very helpful.” • Business licensee survey respondents also generally supported the following policy solutions:
o More flexible parking standards
o Rideshare matching initiatives or incentives
o Upgraded transit service
o Adjustments to SunRide micro transit
o Shuttles between businesses and other areas of the City Community Outreach Findings
• The most popular items that Holiday Parade event attendees wanted to see more of were on-street programming, multi-modal streets, and safety improvements. Open-ended comments also focused on safety and active transportation, suggesting more sidewalks in residential areas, safety treatments at intersections for pedestrians, and protected bike lanes. • Most survey respondents drive themselves as their primary form of transportation, but several use alternative modes for at least some trips, and 25 percent indicated they would be at least “somewhat likely” to switch to an e-bike or scooter for some trips if there were safe infrastructure and secure parking. • Employees contacted in the Industrial Cannabis Study Area were generally not aware of SunRide micro transit or regional commuter incentive programs.
• For both the Downtown and Industrial Cannabis areas, community members are especially interested in improving street safety.
• Community members seem generally aware that Desert Hot Springs is growing and will need to plan for that growth with adjustments to traffic and parking strategies.

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13 Short-Term and Ongoing Recommendations
Implementation Rationale General Plan Support
Strategy 1: Repeal Minimum Parking Requirements
• Develop ordinance updating
development code Section

17.48.040.

Repealing minimum parking
requirements streamlines the
adaptive reuse of existing
buildings and facilitates
redevelopment over existing
excess surface parking lots. This
supports goals for economic
development, density, and
commercial intensification while
also improving the visual
character of the downtown. It
could also result in more
efficient use of the area’s
existing parking resources.

Land Use Element
LU-1.5: Reduce Vehicular Trips and Miles Traveled
LU-1.6: Infill Revitalization
LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning
LU-2.7: Higher Residential Density Corridor
LU-3.6: Commercial Intensification
LU-3.10: City-owned Land and Resources
LU-4.2: Pedestrian-friendly Environments
LU-8.3: Protect Industrial Uses
LU-8.5: Prioritize Industrial Development
LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns
LU-12.10: Visual Character
Mobility and Infrastructure Element
MI-5.1: Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled
MI-5.2: Sustainable Transportation and Land Use Strategies MI-10.2: Expand Funding
Economic Development Element
ED-2.2: Economic Development
ED-2.3: Streamline Permit Process
Strategy 2: Facilitate Shared/Public Parking
• Identify downtown offstreet private parking
facilities for investment to
increase the supply of
parking that is publicly
managed and available.
• Develop a plan for cannabis
area street parking safety
improvements.
• Conduct outreach, develop
model agreement, and
promote shared use
agreements among private
entities.

Different land uses often
experience peak parking
demands at different times of
day and days of the week.

Shared parking can reduce the
amount of parking that needs to
be constructed, freeing up land
for more businesses, amenities,
or public space. Shared parking
encourages pedestrian activity
by allowing many small parking
facilities to be consolidated into
larger shared lots, reducing the
visual impact of surface parking
and making walking more
practical and pleasant.

Land Use Element
LU-1.5: Reduce Vehicular Trips and Miles Traveled
LU-1.6: Infill Revitalization
LU-1.7: Infrastructure
LU-1.8 Lot Consolidation
LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning
LU-2.7: Higher Residential Density Corridor
LU-3.6: Commercial Intensification
LU-4.2: Pedestrian-friendly Environments
LU-7.6: Innovative Parking Solutions
LU-8.3: Protect Industrial Uses
LU-8.5: Prioritize Industrial Development
LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns
LU-11.2: Cluster Development
LU-12.10: Visual Character
Mobility and Infrastructure Element
MI-1.3: Multi-Modal
MI-2.6: Rights-of-Way
MI-3.1: Safety Prioritization
MI-3.3: Adaptive Street Strategies
MI-5.1: Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled
MI-5.2: Sustainable Transportation and Land Use Strategies MI-10.2: Expand Funding
MI-11.7: Rights-of-Way
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14 Implementation Rationale General Plan Support
Open Space and Natural Resources Element
OS-2.4: Air Quality Goals
Economic Development Element
ED-2.2: Economic Development
Health and Wellness Element
HW-1.10 Amenities that Promote Healthy Living
Strategy 3: Discourage Unshared Parking
• Update the development
code to establish soft
maximum parking
allowances (whereby excess
parking may be provided
only if additional TDM
measures are also
provided), equal to or based
on previous minimum
parking requirements in
code Section 17.48.040.
• Create and adopt a Parking
and TDM Plan with
requirements for the
inclusion of TDM measures
for new projects that
include more unshared
parking than allowed under
the soft maximums.

When each business or parcel
provides its own parking, the
result is often acres of
underutilized parking spaces that
sit empty much of the time.

Right-sizing parking allows more
public and private land to be
used for economic activity,
community amenities, and open
space. When developers who
wish to provide additional
parking must provide similar
benefits that will serve those
who travel by other modes, this
can support goals for community
health, social equity, and
environmental sustainability.

Land Use Element
LU-1.5: Reduce Vehicular Trips and Miles Traveled
LU-1.6: Infill Revitalization
LU-1.7: Infrastructure
LU-1.8 Lot Consolidation
LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning
LU-2.7: Higher Residential Density Corridor
LU-3.6: Commercial Intensification
LU-4.2: Pedestrian-friendly Environments
LU-7.6: Innovative Parking Solutions
LU-8.3: Protect Industrial Uses
LU-8.5: Prioritize Industrial Development
LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns
LU-11.2: Cluster Development
LU-12.10: Visual Character
Mobility and Infrastructure Element
MI-1.3: Multi-Modal
MI-2.6: Rights-of-Way
MI-3.1: Safety Prioritization
MI-3.3: Adaptive Street Strategies
MI-5.1: Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled
MI-5.2: Sustainable Transportation and Land Use Strategies MI-10.2: Expand Funding
MI-11.7: Rights-of-Way
Open Space and Natural Resources Element
OS-2.4: Air Quality Goals
Economic Development Element
ED-2.2: Economic Development
Health and Wellness Element
HW-1.10 Amenities that Promote Healthy Living
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15 Implementation Rationale General Plan Support
Strategy 4: Allow for Mixed-Use and Infill Development
• Rezone Residential-Low and
Residential-Medium areas
of downtown to Mixed-Use
Neighborhood.
• Update the development
code to establish a new
category, permitting
residential uses (limited to
upper floors) where such
uses were previously not
allowed.

Allowing a mix of uses in an area
can improve proximity and
access to different places,
reducing the distance and
segregation between different
types of places, making it
possible for more trips to be
taken without a car. Mixed-use
projects that include residential
units are often more
economically viable to develop,
and limiting newly allowed
residential uses to upper floors
can help ensure that any of the
efficiency benefits of
concentrating commercial or
industrial uses within a
designated area will be
preserved.

Land Use Element
LU-1.5: Reduce Vehicular Trips and Miles Traveled
LU-1.6: Infill Revitalization
LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning
LU-2.7: Higher Residential Density Corridor
LU-3.6: Commercial Intensification
LU-3.10: City-owned Land and Resources
LU-8.5: Prioritize Industrial Development
LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns
LU-11.2: Cluster Development
LU-12.10: Visual Character
Mobility and Infrastructure Element
MI-1.3: Multi-Modal
MI-5.1: Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled
MI-5.2: Sustainable Transportation and Land Use Strategies MI-10.2: Expand Funding
MI-10.3: Impact Fees
Economic Development Element
ED-1.9: Cannabis Cultivation
ED-2.2 Economic Development
ED-2.3 Streamline Permit Process
Open Space and Natural Resources Element
OS-2.4: Air Quality Goals
Health and Wellness Element
HW-1.10 Amenities that Promote Healthy Living
Strategy 5: Support Walking, Biking, and Shared Mobility • Develop an Active
Transportation Safety and
Connectivity Plan.
• Adopt mode share goals and
align budget expenditures.
• Establish a sustainable
mobility impact fee.
• Create and adopt a Parking
and TDM Plan.
• Promote regional commuter
programs.
• Establish development
standards and a plan for
bicycle and scooter parking.
• Explore potential connector
routes between downtown
and key areas.
• Explore opportunities to
create a mobility hub.

Desert Hot Springs will get what
it builds for, and a transportation
strategy that takes “alternative”
modes of travel—including
walking, biking, e-bikes, electric
scooters, neighborhood electric
vehicles, transit services,
carpooling, and car sharing—
seriously today will eventually
result in many long-term
benefits, including:
reduced automobile accidents
and fatalities, health and
wellness benefits of fresh air and
exercise, greater sense of
community, improved air
quality, reduced greenhouse gas
emissions, and less traffic
congestion, economic vitality
and support for local businesses,
fiscal sustainability and savings
on infrastructure spending,
Land Use Element
LU-1.5: Reduce Vehicular Trips and Miles Traveled
LU-1.7: Infrastructure
LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning
LU-4.2: Pedestrian-friendly Environments
LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns
LU-12.10: Visual Character
Mobility and Infrastructure Element
MI-1.3: Multi-Modal
MI-2.6: Rights-of-Way
MI-3.1: Safety Prioritization
MI-3.3: Adaptive Street Strategies
MI-3.4: Test Street Improvement
MI-5.1: Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled
MI-5.2: Sustainable Transportation and Land Use Strategies MI-10.2: Expand Funding
MI-10.3: Impact Fees
MI-11.7: Rights-of-Way
Economic Development Element
ED-2.2: Economic Development
ED-2.3: Streamline Permit Process
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16 Implementation Rationale General Plan Support
access and mobility for those too
young, too elderly, too
financially constrained, or
otherwise unable to drive,
financial freedom from the
expenses of vehicle ownership,
more efficient land use and
reduced sprawl, resulting in
more affordable housing,
opportunities for community
amenities, and the preservation
of open space.

Open Space and Natural Resources Element
OS-2.4: Air Quality Goals
Health and Wellness Element
HW-1.10 Amenities that Promote Healthy Living
Longer-Term Strategy Recommendations
Implementation Rationale General Plan Support
Strategy 1: Manage Public Parking Based on Demand
• Informally monitor street
parking occupancy to see
whether utilization rates
ever seem to regularly
exceed 85 percent.
• If warranted by congested
parking, conduct an initial
parking occupancy study.
• Develop a management
plan that may include time
limits, demand-based
pricing, and/or permits.
• Continually monitor
occupancy and adjust time
limits or pricing as necessary
to achieve parking
availability.

Many successful business districts
and densely developed areas
eventually find that parking
occupancies naturally come to
exceed an 85 percent threshold in
prime locations, and strategies must
be developed to maintain parking
availability. Keeping a few spaces
available on each block keeps visitors
from having to circle to find a
space—saving time, preventing
superfluous emissions, allowing
people to arrive on-time for
appointments and work, and
ensuring potential visitors do not
decide to go elsewhere due to a lack
of convenient parking.

Land Use Element
LU-1.5: Reduce Vehicular Trips and Miles Traveled
LU-1.6: Infill Revitalization
LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning
LU-2.7: Higher Residential Density Corridor
LU-3.6: Commercial Intensification
LU-3.10: City-owned Land and Resources
LU-4.2: Pedestrian-friendly Environments
LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns
LU-12.10: Visual Character
Mobility and Infrastructure Element
MI-1.3: Multi-Modal
MI-3.1: Safety Prioritization
MI-5.1: Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled
MI-5.2: Sustainable Transportation and Land Use
Strategies
MI-10.2: Expand Funding
MI-11.7: Rights-of-Way
Economic Development Element
ED-1.9: Cannabis Cultivation
ED-2.2: Economic Development
Strategy 2: Invest in New Parking Technologies
• If additional parking
management becomes
necessary in the future,
explore options and conduct
outreach with local business
owners, community
members, and City staff
If the City’s parking management
becomes more complex in the
future, it is well-worth exploring the
technology solutions available to
create a user-friendly experience and
save staff time on administration and
enforcement.

Land Use Element
LU-1.8 Lot Consolidation
LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning
LU-2.7: Higher Residential Density Corridor
LU-3.6: Commercial Intensification
LU-3.10: City-owned Land and Resources
LU-7.6: Innovative Parking Solutions
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17 Implementation Rationale General Plan Support
members to determine
which technologies best
meet their needs.
• Consider options such as
pay-by-plate technologies,
Automated License Plate
Recognition (ALPR)
enforcement equipment,
smart sensors, and mobile
apps.

LU-8.5: Prioritize Industrial Development
LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns
LU-11.2: Cluster Development
Mobility and Infrastructure Element
MI-3.1: Safety Prioritization
MI-10.2: Expand Funding
MI-11.7: Rights-of-Way
Economic Development Element
ED-2.2: Economic Development
Strategy 3: Create a Parking Benefit District
• Conduct stakeholder
outreach with the business
community.
• Establish preliminary district
boundaries.
• Establish district
membership.
• Determine the type of
governing body (e.g.,
commission, advisory board,
etc.)
• Establish roles and
responsibilities.
• Determine authority and
options for parking revenue
allocation.
• Schedule regular meetings.

When the business community and
resident stakeholders have an active
role in identifying parking issues,
needs, and opportunities, making
decisions, and allocating parking
revenue for local programs or
projects, this helps ensure that public
spaces are managed in a way that
most benefits the community, and it
helps generate buy-in and support
for parking management.

Land Use Element
LU-1.5: Reduce Vehicular Trips and Miles Traveled
LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning
LU-3.10: City-owned Land and Resources
LU-4.2: Pedestrian-friendly Environments
LU-7.6: Innovative Parking Solutions
LU-8.5: Prioritize Industrial Development
LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns
LU-12.10: Visual Character
Mobility and Infrastructure Element
MI-1.3: Multi-Modal
MI-2.6: Rights-of-Ways
MI-3.1: Safety Prioritization
MI-3.3: Adaptive Street Strategies
MI-3.4: Test Street Improvement
MI-5.1: Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled
MI-5.2: Sustainable Transportation and Land Use
Strategies
MI-9.4: Special Assessments
MI-10.2: Expand Funding
MI-11.7: Rights-of-Way
Economic Development Element
ED-2.2: Economic Development
Open Space and Natural Resources Element
OS-2.4: Air Quality Goals
Health and Wellness Element
HW-1.10 Amenities that Promote Healthy Living
Strategy 4: Prepare to Manage Parking with Dedicated Staff As Desert Hot Springs grows, and both the Downtown and Industrial Cannabis District are further developed, parking planning and enforcement capabilities for on- and potentially off-street parking will be needed. Ultimately, Walker recommends that additional staff who are dedicated to ensuring parking functionality and regulation compliance monitor parking conditions in the City, enforce parking restrictions, and interface with private parking owners to work on a collaborative approach to providing parking.

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18 01 Introduction
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19 Introduction
The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) and the City of Desert Hot Springs engaged Walker Consultants (“Walker”) to conduct a Parking Management Study to analyze current parking and access needs and opportunities in the City and plan for future growth. The report includes an overview of the existing parking and access conditions, a summary of the outreach and engagement conducted, and final recommendations for parking management that align with the City’s goals as stated in the General Plan.

SCAG Support
This project is supported by the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG), which is the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for six counties in Southern California, including Riverside County. The funding comes from SCAG’s Sustainable Communities Program (SCP), which is a vehicle for promoting local jurisdictional efforts to test local planning tools. The SCP also serves as the primary funding mechanism where SCAG partners with local agencies to implement goals, objectives and strategies for Connect SoCal, the agency’s regional plan. These strategies aim to achieve an integrated regional development pattern that reduces Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and that supports SCAG’s equity-focused initiatives.

Within the SCP, SCAG’s Smart Cities & Mobility Innovations (SCMI) projects support the implementation of the agency’s long-range planning efforts: Smart Cities & Job Centers, Go Zones, and Shared Mobility/Mobility as a Service. These “Key Connections” focus on advancing expanded mobility ecosystems and management strategies using innovative policy and/or technology to realize regional planning goals. Goals of the SCMI include:
• To create dynamic, connected, built environments that support multimodal mobility, reduce reliance on single-occupant vehicles, and reduce VMT.
• To reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality by reducing driving alone, idling, or searching for parking.
• To support healthy and equitable communities by allocating public resources like curb space more equitably.
• To encourage shared modes, manage parking effectively, and support commerce and the growth of housing and employment in job centers.
• To mitigate impacts from transportation.

By pursuing grant funding through the SCP, the City of Desert Hot Springs sought to analyze parking and access conditions and develop management strategies that support both local and regional planning goals.

Report Outline

1. Introduction

2. Planning Context

3. On-Street Parking
Supply and Demand

4. Outreach and
Engagement

5. Recommendations
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20 Setting
Desert Hot Springs is in Riverside County, California, within the Coachella Valley geographic region, southeast of State Route 62 and northeast of Interstate 10. The City is located between the San Bernardino and San Jacinto Mountain ranges in the Colorado Desert region of the Sonoran Desert, near Joshua Tree National Park (see Figure 1). The climate of the area generally includes high winds, low precipitation, hot summers, and mild winters.

Figure 1: City of Desert Hot Springs Context Map
Source: Aerial Image - Google Earth, 2023.

The City has experienced rapid growth, having approximately doubled in population since the 2000 Census, to its current population estimate of approximately 33,091 (United States Census Bureau, 2022). The City’s economy relies heavily on industrial cannabis activity and tourism, in part due to the area’s natural hot springs.

Purpose of the Study
As noted in the scope of services for this engagement, the City of Desert Hot Springs sought to develop a parking management plan encompassing the commercial and light industrial hubs of the City to facilitate new development and provide mobility options accommodating to all users. The project study areas are currently characterized by inconsistent parking strategies and limited by parking standards which hinder efficient use of developable space for commercial, residential, and/or light industrial use. The plan is intended to provide consistent parking standards and the framework to deploy innovative practices to meet future development and mobility demand through data collection, parking management, curb innovation, and Compete Streets strategies.

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21 Study Areas
This project focused on two study areas where the City would like to facilitate new development: (1) the downtown area and (2) the industrial cannabis area. In addition to studying publicly available street parking, Walker also made observations at many of the larger private off-street parking facilities, to understand how private parking supplies were being utilized within the study areas.

Downtown Study Area
The Downtown Study Area (see Figure 2) centers around Pierson Boulevard, bounded by Cholla Drive to the west and Mesquite Avenue to the east. It extends one block north to 1st Street, between West Drive and Mesquite Avenue, and one block south to Acoma Avenue, between Cholla Drive and Mesquite Avenue. This study area includes ten blocks total. Pierson Boulevard is lined with businesses and institutions, with properties that occasionally extend to First Street and Acoma Avenue. Most of the other properties along First Street and Acoma Avenue are single family homes.

Figure 2: Downtown Study Area Boundaries
Source: Walker Consultants and Google Maps, 2023.

Industrial Cannabis Study Area
The Industrial Cannabis Study Area (see Figure 3) is within the City’s Industrial Cannabis Overlay. The primary study area streets are Little Morongo Road between 13th Avenue and Dillon Road, Two Bunch Palms Trail between Little Morongo Road and Cholla Drive, all of San Jacinto Lane, and all of Cabot Road. The study area also includes three streets that have yet to be paved or see much development—San Gorgonio Lane, Palomar Lane, and 15th Avenue.

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22 Source: City of Desert Hot Springs and Google Maps, 2023.

Figure 3: Industrial Cannabis Study Area Boundaries
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23 02 Planning Context
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24 Planning Context
This Planning Context chapter provides an overview of the existing planning goals and policies, zoning and land use information, development standards, and regulations. It also provides an overview of the City’s current and planned multimodal transportation options that relate to access and parking demand. Finally, it concludes with relevant demographics and a discussion of how current citywide growth forecasts may affect the study areas in the future.

The Planning Context findings will inform recommended options for parking management in the project study areas The recommendations will also consider how parking planning and management can help support the goals of economic resilience, health and equity in transportation and land use, and the reduction of vehicle miles traveled and greenhouse gas emissions. The background information in this chapter will help ensure that the strategies presented account for the local context and planning vision in Desert Hot Springs.

Relevant Planning Goals and Policies
Desert Hot Springs’s General Plan, adopted in 2020, already contains many goals and policies related to parking and access in several of its plan elements, including Land Use and Community Design, Mobility and Infrastructure, Economic Development, Open Space and Natural Resources, and Health and Wellness. Additionally, Desert Hot Springs adopted a Climate Action Plan in 2013 that contains goals for sustainable transportation and actions to be implemented. Reviewing existing goals and policies will help ensure the recommendations in this report are made to align with the City’s goals.

Land Use and Community Design Element
• LU-1.5: Reduce Vehicular Trips and Miles Traveled. Coordinate land use patterns with the Mobility and Infrastructure Element to improve and protect air quality, reduce vehicular trips, and promote active transportation modes and transit use.
• LU-1.6: Infill Revitalization. Encourage revitalization of underutilized and vacant infill properties within the City closest to available infrastructure and community services. • LU-1.7: Infrastructure. Ensure that infrastructure is integrated into the community concurrently with new development projects.
• LU-1.8: Lot Consolidation. Encourage lot consolidation and utilize land assembly strategies and incentives to promote compatible infill developments.
• LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning. Maintain and promote the pattern and linkage of land uses citywide to promote mobility choices and healthy lifestyles. • Policy LU-2.7: Higher Residential Density Corridor. Allow higher-density and mixed uses along Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard to encourage shopping, services, and entertainment amenities in closer proximity to established infrastructure and transit services.

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25 • Policy LU-3.1: Commercial Services. Ensure that zoning regulations allow for a full range of commercial services, retail activity, and entertainment and restaurant uses. • Policy LU-3.6: Commercial Intensification. Encourage the intensification of commercial uses on underutilized and vacant commercial properties within Downtown and along the Pierson Boulevard and Palm Drive corridors.
• Policy LU-3.10: City-owned Land and Resources. Maximize revenue from the utilization of City-owned land and resources.
• Policy LU-4.2: Pedestrian-friendly Environments. Accommodate outdoor cafes and neighborhood-serving uses as a means of promoting pedestrian activity and commercial center vitality. • Policy LU-7.6: Innovative Parking Solutions. Allow mixed-use developments to utilize shared parking plans, park once and walk districts, and other innovative and flexible parking strategies. • Policy LU-8.3: Protect Industrial Uses. Limit non-industrial uses within industrially designated areas to protect the viability of those areas for industrial businesses. • Policy LU-8.5: Prioritize Industrial Development. Prioritize business attraction and retention of employment and revenue-generating uses on industrial land.
• Policy LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns. Encourage a land use pattern that preserves the City’s desert environment, limits impact to natural habitat areas, and minimizes sprawl. • Policy LU-11.2: Cluster Development. Encourage proposed projects within designated conservation areas to cluster development to provide for the greatest amount of conservation while respecting surrounding established and planned uses.
• Policy LU-12.10: Visual Character. Encourage residential development that enhances the visual character, quality, and uniqueness of neighborhoods and districts.

Mobility and Infrastructure Element
• Policy MI-1.3: Multi-Modal. Aim to develop a multimodal and/or multipurpose approach when implementing infrastructure outlined in the Mobility Plan. • Policy MI-2.6: Rights-of-Ways. Use available public rights-of-ways to provide wider sidewalks, bicycle lanes, trail facilities, and transit amenities.
• Policy MI-3.1: Safety Prioritization. Design, plan, and operate streets to prioritize the safety of the most vulnerable roadway user.
• Policy MI-3.3: Adaptive Street Strategies. Repurpose underused roadway space for safety, mobility, and public space improvements using low-cost, temporary solutions. • Policy MI-3.4: Test Street Improvement. Install temporary, low-cost materials to test street improvement ideas prior to incorporating permanent designs for successful projects.

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26 • Policy MI-5.1: Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled. Implement development and transportation improvements that help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by reducing per capita Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT), reducing impacts on the City’s transportation network, and maintaining the desired service levels for all modes of transportation.
• Policy MI-5.2: Sustainable Transportation and Land Use Strategies. Implement sustainable transportation and land use strategies that can effectively reduce vehicle miles traveled. Consider using vehicle daily trips as the benchmark demand for determining potential levels of parking and vehicular congestion. • Policy MI-9.4: Special Assessments. Support special assessment districts for street and traffic improvements.
• Policy MI-10.2: Expand Funding. Prioritize funding to improve the built environment for people who walk, bike, take transit, and for other vulnerable roadway users, where fiscally prudent. • Policy MI-10.3: Impact Fees. Ensure that impact fees provide adequate funding for necessary transportation improvements that will benefit all travel modes, while also incentivizing development that is less dependent on expensive, new transportation.
• Policy MI-11.7: Rights-of-Way. Seek opportunities to integrate mobility and infrastructure planning, particularly to efficiently use rights-of-way.

Economic Development Element
• Policy ED-1.9 Cannabis Cultivation. Develop a comprehensive strategy to position the City as the premier center for cannabis cultivation and production businesses and enterprises that support/complement the developing cannabis industry in the Coachella Valley.
• Policy ED-2.2: Economic Development. Promote economic development through focused land use planning, flexible development standards, and targeted circulation and infrastructure improvements. • Policy ED-2.3: Streamline Permit Process. Maintain a development permitting process that provides clarity, consistency, and assistance opportunities for new businesses and existing businesses looking to expand.

Open Space and Natural Resources Element
• Policy OS-2.4: Air Quality Goals. Ensure that land use and transportation plans support regional air quality goals, with new development projects reducing vehicle miles traveled and vehicle trips.

Health and Wellness Element
• Policy HW-1.10: Amenities that Promote Healthy Living. Encourage developments to provide access, facilities, and amenities that connect to trails, encourage walking, and/or provide for other facilities that promote healthy living.

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27 Climate Action Plan (2013) – GHG Reduction Measures
• Car-Pooling and Mass Transit: Promote “Shared Vehicle at Work” programs to increase carpooling and mass transit by 20% with a “guaranteed ride home.”
• Buses: Promote the benefits of buses to increase ridership by 130%, provide promotions and incentives for new riders.
• Bike, Walking, NEV Parkway: Support Parkway 1e11 as a Valley amenity and means to alternative forms of transportation and to promote health in Desert Hot Springs. • Reduce Retail Leakage: Encourage reduction in VMT and “retail leakage” through the Economic Development Strategic Plan to attract more businesses such as Wal-Mart to the City. • Bus Route Maximization: Collaborate with SunLine officials to reform routes to promote smaller buses with more routes and frequencies to increase ridership by 50%. • Van Pools: Partner and recognize all DHS major employers with over 50 employees for van pools. • Car Sharing: Promote ZIP and/or other car share programs through preferential parking and promotion with signage to serve 5% of existing drivers who each reduce their driving by 25%. • Transit Oriented Development: Promote transit oriented development to foster development in line with mass transit corridors.
• Visitor Shuttles: Collaborate with local hotels and resorts to establish effective point-to-point transportation for visitors, e.g. shuttles to airport, hotels, business district. • Neighborhood Electric Vehicles: Design and promote Neighborhood Electric Vehicle program to achieve minimum of 400 NEVs for Desert Hot Springs residents and visitors.

Zoning, Land Use, and Development Standards
Downtown Study Area Zoning
Zoning districts in the downtown study area (see map in Figure 4) include:
• Commercial – General, along Pierson Boulevard between West Drive and Cactus Drive • Commercial – Downtown, along Pierson Boulevard between Cactus Drive and Mesquite Avenue • Mixed Use – Neighborhood, on the south side of 1st Street and north side of Acoma Avenue • Residential – Low, on a portion of the north side of 1st Street and a portion of the south side of Acoma Avenue
• Residential – Medium, on a portion of the north side of 1st Street and a portion of the south side of Acoma Avenue
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28 Both the Commercial – General and Commercial – Downtown zoning districts have a maximum floor area ratio of

0.30 and a maximum building height of 35 feet. Section 17.12.070 offers a bonus height incentive for developments with certain features, such as providing pedestrian amenities or additional parking, but residential uses are not currently permitted use in these zoning districts.

Section 17.12.290 contains parking and circulation guidelines for the commercial zoning districts. The guidelines consider pedestrian safety, landscaping, and visual impact of off-street parking facilities. They recommend providing angled parking and shared parking whenever possible.

The Mixed Use-Neighborhood zoning district has a maximum residential density of 15 residential dwelling units per acre and a maximum floor area ratio of 1.00 for nonresidential uses. Building heights are allowed to be up to three stories. Section 17.14.060 states that it should be convenient for people to walk between various uses parking only once and that commercial parking lots in the mixed use zone should be located to the rear of buildings.

The Residential – Medium zoning district has a maximum density of twenty residential dwelling units per acre.

The Residential – Low zoning district has a maximum density of six residential dwelling units per acre.

Figure 4: Downtown Study Area Zoning Map
Source: City of Desert Hot Springs, 2023.

Replica Data – Downtown Building Use Area Estimates
To gather relevant information for the downtown study area land use, Walker consulted Replica data, a proprietary data set that provides data related to mobility, land use, people, and economic activity from location-based mobile apps, connected vehicles, and demographic data from public and private sources.

According to Replica data, approximately 197,000 square feet, or 36 percent of the land in the downtown study area is currently used for single-family residences. Approximately 95,000 square feet, or 18 percent, is used for multi-family residences. There are currently 250,600 square feet, or slightly less than half of the downtown building area, occupied by non-residential buildings, including restaurants, retail, professional services, funeral parlors, offices, religious institutions, and City Hall. Some of these buildings are currently vacant. 1 2 3 4
5 6 7 8 9 10
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29 Table 1 below displays Replica summary data with estimates of existing building uses and square footage within the downtown study area. Appendix A includes exploratory calculations and discussion of the potential for additional downtown commercial build-out in the future.

Table 1: Current Building Square Footage by Use in the Downtown Study Area Building Use Area (square feet) % of Total
Single-Family Residential 197,000 36%
Retail 103,000 19%
Multi-Family Residential 95,000 18%
Office 84,000 15%
Non-Retail Attraction 42,700 8%
Other Categories 20,900 4%
Total 542,600 100%
Source: Data – Replica, 2023. Table and calculations - Walker Consultants, 2023.

Industrial Cannabis Study Area Zoning and Land Use
As shown in Figure 5 on page 30, zoning in the industrial cannabis study area is primarily Light-Industrial, with an Industrial Cannabis Overlay. At the east end of the study area, just west of Cholla Drive, there is also some Open Space-Conservation zoning north of Two Bunch Palms and Residential-Rural Desert zoning south of Two Bunch Palms. There are currently approximately 575,000 square feet of industrial cannabis developments throughout the Industrial Cannabis Overlay area (including outside of this project’s study area). Appendix A includes exploratory calculations and discussion of the potential for additional industrial cannabis development in the future.

Section 17.16.180 establishes parking and circulation guidelines for the industrial district. The guidelines consider pedestrian safety, efficiency, landscaping, and the visual impact of off-street parking facilities. They state that industrial sites should be self-contained developments capable of accommodating their own parking needs; the use of the public street for parking and staging of trucks is not allowed. The zoning ordinance does not include any specific standards or guidelines for the Industrial Cannabis Overlay.

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30 Figure 5: Industrial Cannabis Study Area Zoning Map
Source: City of Desert Hot Springs, 2023.

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31 Off-Street Parking Requirements
Section 17.48.040 of the municipal code establishes off-street parking requirements for different land uses.

Parking requirements for multifamily residential buildings are as follows:

Studio and 1 bedroom 1.5 covered and 1 uncovered guest space for every 5 units 2 bedrooms 2.0 covered and 1 uncovered guest space for every 5 units 3 or more bedrooms 2.5 covered and 1 uncovered guest space for every 5 units The code also includes specific parking requirements for 34 unique commercial land uses. The following provides a sample of the off-street parking requirements for commercial uses:

Banks, savings and loans, financial 1 space for each 200 sf of gfa, plus 1 lane for each drive-up window and/or automatic teller machine with 6 vehicles per lane Barber shop/beauty parlor 2 spaces for each barber chair; 3 spaces for each beautician station Offices, general
gfa up to 2,000 sf
2,001 to 7,500 sf
7,501 to 40,000 sf
40,001 sf and greater
1 space for each 200 sf
1 space for each 250 sf
1 space for each 300 sf
1 space for each 350 sf
Restaurants, cafes, bars and other
eating and drinking establishments (gfa
includes outdoor seating/eating area)
1 space per 75 sf of gfa including indoor and outdoor seating areas Delicatessen/donut shop 1 space per 150 sf of gfa
Retail commercial 1 space for each 250 sf of gfa
All other commercial uses 1 space for each 200 sf of gfa and not listed above Parking requirements established for industrial uses are as follows:

Auto dismantling, junk yards, recycling
centers
1 space for each 300 sf of gross building area, plus 1 space for every 10,000 sf of gross yard area
Mini-storage 7 spaces
Industrial warehousing 1 space per 750 sf of gfa
Although not clearly established by code, in practice, the parking requirement for industrial cannabis developments has been a blended requirement based on:
• 1 space per 2,500 sf of cultivation area
• 1 space per 750 sf of cannabis manufacturing, testing, extraction, distribution, and packaging space • 1 space per 250 sf of office space
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32 Chapter 17.48 also contains handicapped parking requirements, parking design standards, and regulations governing off-site parking, shared parking, and tandem parking:
• Handicapped parking: The code requires handicapped spaces be provided according to the State of California’s requirements, based on the total number of parking spaces. • Design standards: The code establishes design standards for landscaping, shading, lighting, and slope of off-street parking facilities, as well as minimum aisle widths and stall widths and depths for various parking angles.
• Off-site parking: Unless otherwise approved by the review authority, required parking spaces must be located on the same parcel as the structure or use, and spaces for multifamily residential developments must be located within 150 feet from the dwelling unit (front or rear door) for which the parking space is provided.
• Shared parking: Shared parking may be approved if multiple uses cooperatively establish and operate the facilities and if the uses generate parking demands primarily during hours when the remaining uses are not in operation. The number of spaces must meet the greater parking demand of the participating uses, and additional documents may be required to ensure that the conditions enabling the parking to be shared will continue to apply for the life of the commercial/industrial development. • Tandem parking: Tandem parking (for a maximum of 10 percent of the required parking spaces) may be approved only for commercial or industrial developments required to provide 150 or more parking spaces, and only if an attendant is on duty during the hours the development is open for business.

Parking and Transportation Demand Management
Regulations and Enforcement
Desert Hot Springs has several typical regulations in Chapter 10.16 (Stopping, Standing, and Parking) of the municipal code governing parking. Examples of these regulations include allowing the establishment of no parking areas, prohibiting street parking for more than 72 hours, prohibiting parking in designated fire lanes, and prohibiting parking for the purpose of displaying a vehicle for sale or rent. The Police Department may respond to parking complaint calls for service but generally does not do proactive parking enforcement.

The code also gives the City Traffic Engineer authority to establish:
• Green curb markings to designate areas with parking time limits of 3, 10, 20, or 40 minutes, with the length of the limit stenciled into the curb.
• Authorized signs, parking meters or curb markings prohibiting parking longer than one hour. • Authorized signs, parking meters or curb markings prohibiting parking longer than two hours.

Parking time limits, one hour parking, and two hour parking may be enforced between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. on any day except Sundays and holidays. The City does not currently have any parking time limits in effect, Item Number: 6.

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33 nor does it employ any of the following parking management strategies: paid parking, unbundled parking, maximum parking allowances, permit parking, parking in-lieu fees, or parking cash-out.

Transportation demand management is addressed only to the extent required by state law, for large non-residential developments. Chapter 10.56 establishes transportation demand management (TDM) plan requirements.

Developments that will employ 100 or more people must submit a TDM plan with the goal of achieving a vehicle occupancy rate of 1.5. The plan must include strategies and guidelines to reduce the number of trips and increase the amount of nonvehicular transportation. Plans may include the provision of transit facilities, bicycle facilities, rideshare facilities, alternate work schedules, an information center for transportation alternatives, contributions to fund providing regional transportation facilities, incentives for mass transit usage, contributions for affordable housing closer to the employer, shuttle programs, golf cart circulation programs, bicycle lane provision, and parking fee implementation. Enforcement is the purview of the South Coast Air Quality Management District.

Multimodal Transportation Options
Parking demand can be influenced by the availability of alternatives to single occupancy vehicle (SOV) travel, such as walking, biking, carpooling, using neighborhood electric vehicles, and riding public transit. As cities grow, they often seek to reduce vehicle miles travelled (VMT) and increase the share of trips taken by these other modes.

Prioritizing and promoting multimodal transportation can improve public health and safety, promote social equity, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, reduce the land area dedicated for vehicle storage, and improve economic vitality and resilience. In Desert Hot Springs, several regional transportation services exist that give residents and visitors the option to travel by modes that are more sustainable than driving alone, and the City’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan includes improvements that will create new options and help shape travel behavior in the future. Current and planned multimodal transportation options are summarized below.

Bicycle and Pedestrian Facilities and Planning
Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan
The Desert Hot Springs Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan was developed in 2016 with the goal of creating a connected bicycle and pedestrian network. The plan provides injury and fatality statistics, identifies existing active transportation infrastructure in the City, and recommends improvements based on travel demand, safety, and equity. Recommendations were informed by community input through workshops in both English and Spanish.

Workshop participants identified the streets they walked or biked on the most as Dillon Road, Hacienda Avenue, Mesquite Avenue, Mountain View Road, Pierson Boulevard and Two Bunch Palms Trail. A participant survey also revealed the biggest barriers to walking or biking to be the lack of sidewalks and bike lanes, poor lighting, and high vehicle speeds (see Figure 6 on page 34).

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34 Figure 6: Top Barriers to Walking and Biking in Desert Hot Springs Source: Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan, 2016.

The Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan identifies priorities for new bicycle facilities that will increase connectivity between existing facilities and throughout the City (see Figure 8 on page 36). The plan also highlights future connections to CV Link, a 50-mile bicycle, pedestrian, and low-speed electric vehicle pathway with construction already underway, along the Whitewater River between Palm Springs and Coachella. The future Desert Hot Springs Regional Extension route will connect people from the Gene Autry Trail and I-10, via Class II bicycle lanes connecting to Palm Drive and Dillon Road (see Figure 9 on page 37).

The City of Desert Hot Springs has also applied for grant funding to develop an Active Transportation Safety and Connectivity Plan, which would incorporate and update the 2016 Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan.

Street Improvement Projects Underway
Desert Hot Springs is currently in the process of making street improvements that will improve conditions for bicyclists and pedestrians along two of the City’s main streets, Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard.

Palm Drive - from Two Bunch Palms Trail to Pierson Boulevard Palm Drive is an important connector between the Downtown study area and the industrial cannabis study area.

Desert Hot Springs plans to improve conditions along this route by installing new streetlights, new crosswalks (including at Two Bunch Palms), and white stripe bike lanes from Acoma Avenue to Two Bunch Palms with a “bike sharrow” or shared lane marking, between Acoma Avenue and Pierson Boulevard.

Pierson Boulevard – from Golden Eagle Way to Verbena Drive Pierson Boulevard is the main street of the City’s downtown area. Plans for Pierson Boulevard include new bike ways, raised pedestrian crosswalks to allow for easier crossing of long blocks, and angled parking in the center of the street, offset from crosswalks by landscaping. The planned improvement covers the segment from Golden Eagle Way on the west to Verbena Drive on the east (see Figure 7 on page 35). The project plan includes:
• Bicycle facilities
o Golden Eagle Way to West Drive – white stripe bike lanes o West Drive to Mequite Drive – bike sharrows
o Mesquite Drive to Verbena Drive – no bicycle facilities Item Number: 6.

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35 • Raised crosswalks
o 3 between West Drive and Cactus Drive
o 3 between Cactus Drive and Palm Drive
o 1 between Palm Drive and Ocotillo Drive
o 1 between Ocotillo Drive and Mesquite Drive
• Angled parking in the center (offset from crosswalk by landscaping) o 22 spaces between West Drive and Cactus Drive
o 18 spaces between Cactus Drive and Palm Drive
o 0 spaces between Palm Drive and Ocotillo Drive
o 14 spaces between Ocotillo Drive and Mesquite Drive
• Installation of City logos at Palm Drive/Pierson Boulevard intersection Figure 7: Pierson Boulevard Project Location

Source: City of Desert Hot Springs, 2022.

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36 Figure 8: Existing and Proposed Bicycle Facilities in Desert Hot Springs Source: Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan, 2016.

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37 Figure 9: CV Link’s Desert Hot Springs Regional Extension Source: Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan, 2016.

Shared Mobility Services
SunLine Transit Services
Desert Hot Springs is served by the SunLine Transit Agency, which offers fixed route bus service, dial-a-ride service, and commuter programs that connect Riverside County. Additional programs exist for seniors, persons with disabilities, and high school, CSUSB-PD, and College of the Desert students.

SunBus
The fixed route service, SunBus, currently has nine fixed routes, three of which go through Desert Hot Springs. All three routes travel along Pierson Boulevard and also pass by the intersection of Palm Drive and Two Bunch Palms Trail. Route 2 runs approximately every hour and connects Desert Hot Springs with Palm Springs and Cathedral City to the south, via Palm Drive (see Figure 11 on page 39). Route 3 also runs approximately every hour and connects Item Number: 6.

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38 Desert Hot Springs with Desert Edge to the east, via Hacienda Avenue (see Figure 11 on page 39). Route 5 connects Desert Hot Springs with Palm Desert to the southeast, via I-10 (see Figure 11 on page 39). It operates only on weekdays, running three times in the morning and three times in the evening. All buses offer free WiFi and are equipped with bike racks. Riders can purchase passes virtually via the Token Transit app, or in person at Desert Market on Palm Drive.

SunRide
SunLine Transit Agency began offering on-demand rideshare through the SunRide program in September 2022.

SunRide connects passengers to local fixed routes or other stops in a specified zone. Passengers may schedule rides and pay with the SunRide app, up to seven days in advance. The service operates Monday through Friday between 5:30 am and 6:30 pm. The average wait time is 15 minutes. The fare is three dollars and includes a transfer to fixed routes. In Desert Hot Springs, the SunRide zone was initially only to the east of Palm Drive (see Figure 10), but the coverage area was recently expanded (see Figure 11 on page 39) west to Little Morongo Road and north of Pierson beyond Mission Lakes Boulevard, so the majority of the developed portion of the City is within the zone, including large employers in the industrial cannabis study area.

Figure 10: Prior SunRide Transit Zone Flex Stops, Points of Interest, and Fixed Route Transfer Points Source: SunLine Transit Agency, 2022.

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39 Figure 11: Expanded SunRide Zone and Fixed Route Transfer Points Source: SunLine Transit Agency, 2023.

SunCommute
SunLine Transit Agency also offers educational resources and commuter incentives. SunLine provides materials, meetings, and workshops to employee transportation coordinators and provides staff for presentations to commuters. The agency also offers free trial bus passes and has an employer bus pass program with monthly bus passes available to employers for $24, compared to the regular price of $34. Employers may then subsidize any portion of the pass for their employees. This can be a tax-free benefit for employers, a pre-tax benefit for employees, or both, if an employer provides a partial subsidy.

IE Commuter Programs
IE Commuter is a program of the Riverside County Transportation Commission and the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority. The program helps employers of all sizes set up customized rideshare programs at no cost to the employer. The program also provides commuters with incentives, information, and services that encourage commuters to consider alternatives to driving alone.

Rideshare Incentives and Guaranteed Ride Home Program
IE Commuter offers monthly drawings, as well as a $5 gift card per day rideshare incentive for employees who carpool or vanpool at least five days a month for three or more consecutive months. IE Commuter also offers a Guaranteed Ride Home program, which provides Lyft/Uber or other travel reimbursement for commuters who use rideshare to get to work but may have to leave early due to an emergency or stay late to work unexpected overtime.

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40 SolVan Vanpool
Other services include carpool or vanpool matching and personalized bus or train routing assistance. IE Commuter partners with SunLine Transit to offer the SolVan program, a vanpool incentive program for groups of 5 to 15 people, which provides a 50 percent subsidy of up to $400-500 per month to offset the cost of a van lease through a qualified leasing vendor. Vanpool is marketed as a way to save money by splitting the cost of gas, tolls, and parking, enjoy more free time and legroom, reduce wear and mileage on personal vehicles, travel in a more environmentally friendly way, and save time in traffic by accessing HOV lanes (see Figure 12). Figure 13 displays two examples of the SolVan vehicles.

Figure 12: IE Commuter Vanpool Marketing
Source: IE Commuter, 2022.

Figure 13: SolVan Vehicles
Source: SolVan, 2023.

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41 Demographics and Growth Projections
Understanding current demographics and projected and potential growth is helpful in developing appropriate parking management recommendations. The following subsections provide an overview of relevant information from the City’s General Plan, Replica data, the Southern California Association of Governments’ (SCAG) demographic forecasts for the City, and growth estimates provided by City staff.

Appendix A incorporates these estimates to develop exploratory calculations for future parking demand for both base growth and aggressive growth scenarios. Ultimately, the exploratory calculations provide a glimpse into what could happen if growth patterns continue according to the status quo, and the City takes no action to improve parking and land use efficiency and reduce the growing footprint of surface parking lots.

Demographic Information
Citywide Demographics
The following information from the General Plan provides local context for the entire City of Desert Hot Springs:
• 30% of residents are under age 18, 16% are 18-29, 40% are 30-61, and 14% are 62 and over. • The median annual household income is $34,000, which is lower than the County’s median of $58,000. o The average annual household income of those in owner-occupied housing is $46,000. o The average annual household income of those in renter-occupied housing is $25,000. • 64% of residents are in lower-income categories.
• The average household size is 3.11 (more than half are 1-2 people, so other households are much larger). • 65% of the housing stock is single-family housing units, 28% is multi-family, and 8% is mobile homes. • 13% of units are “overcrowded” as defined by the California Department of Housing and Community Development, occupied by more than one person per room (excluding bathrooms and kitchens).

The Economic Policy Institute estimated average annual transportation spending for an adult in Desert Hot Springs at $10,624—nearly half of the City’s median individual income, and over a quarter of the median household income of $34,000. The average transportation spending figure is an underestimate, as it does not account for how the cost of providing mandated parking spaces increases rents, ownership costs, or other prices.

Vehicle Ownership Estimates
According to Replica data, within the downtown study area, approximately 5 percent of households have no vehicles available, 33 percent have one vehicle, 30 percent have two vehicles, and 32 percent have three or more vehicles. Despite the significant expense of vehicle ownership, this data shows that in many households find vehicle ownership necessary to have transportation to access basic needs and opportunities.

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42 Growth Projections and Potential
Housing Needs and Population Growth Forecasts
Desert Hot Springs’ Regional Housing Needs Assessment for the 2021-2029 planning period was determined by SCAG to be 3,873 housing units, including 569 units for extremely/very low-income households, 535 units for lowincome households, 688 units for moderate-income households, and 2,081 units for above moderate-income households. The General Plan states that, as part of a comprehensive development code update, the City will evaluate, and modify if necessary, parking standards to ensure that they do not constrain the development of housing, specifically senior housing and multi-family housing.

Between 2000 and 2010, the City’s population grew 56 percent, much faster than average for Riverside County.

Southern California Association of Governments’ (SCAG) demographic forecasts estimated that the Desert Hot Springs population could nearly double from 29,390 persons in 2019 to 58,900 persons by 2040.

New housing and population growth will affect travel and parking needs, as will the number of visitors and employees coming from other cities and regions.

Economic Growth Potential
Desert Hot Springs expects economic growth to occur throughout the City, as it strengthens its existing tourism and cannabis industries and looks to attract and retain new businesses, including warehousing/fulfillment centers, health care, professional office uses, and regional-serving retail.

Downtown Study Area
The City’s vision for the downtown study area prioritizes food and beverage establishments, retail, offices, and health and wellness businesses. Some growth may involve construction that increases the total commercial development footprint, while other growth may simply entail the occupancy of vacant buildings or adaptive reuse that supports the City’s vision for downtown.

Industrial Cannabis Study Area
The industrial cannabis study area includes a large amount of undeveloped land and offers significant potential for cannabis-related growth and development. There are currently approximately 575,000 square feet of industrial cannabis developments throughout the entire Industrial Cannabis Overlay area, and the City anticipates this will grow by approximately 1,425,000 square feet, to a total of approximately 2,000,000 square feet, as the area is built out over the next 10 years. There is enough land within the study area boundaries to accommodate this amount of new development, but it is more likely new industrial cannabis developments will be more evenly spread out throughout the entire overlay area.

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43 03 Parking Supply and Demand
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44 Parking Supply and Demand
This section provides a summary of the existing parking supply and demand data for the project’s two study areas, the downtown and the industrial cannabis area in Desert Hot Springs. Walker conducted Thursday and Saturday parking counts in December of 2022, on the 1st and 3rd, to represent typical weekday and weekend demand on days without special circumstances or events. The data includes approximate inventories of on-street parking spaces in both areas provided by Walker’s partner, Arcadis IBI Group. For occupancy data, Walker conducted counts for the morning, lunch hour, afternoon, and evening period each day for all parking in the downtown and for street parking in the industrial cannabis area, as well as a large sample of peak weekday parking occupancies for many of the private and gated off-street facilities in the industrial cannabis area. Counts were conducted every three hours between 9:00 am and 6:00 pm.

Downtown Study Area
The downtown study area (as shown in Figure 2 on page 21 and Figure 15 on page 50) centers around Pierson Boulevard, between Cholla Drive to the west and Mesquite Avenue to the east. It extends one block north to 1st Street, between West Drive and Mesquite Avenue, and one block south to Acoma Avenue, between Cholla Drive and Mesquite Avenue. This study area includes ten blocks total. Pierson Boulevard is lined with businesses and institutions, with properties that occasionally extend to First Street and Acoma Avenue. Most of the other properties along First Street and Acoma Avenue are single family homes.

Downtown Parking Supply
The downtown study area contains approximately 1,800 parking spaces, including approximately 800 on-street spaces and approximately 1,000 off-street spaces. This does not include single family home driveways and garages or parking lots with fewer than five spaces. There are currently no designated public parking lots.

Walker’s partner, Arcadis IBI Group, provided the number of parking spaces available for streets in the downtown study area. Walker conducted an inventory count of spaces for 36 parking lots. Table 2 displays the quantity of parking spaces counted at each off-street parking lot by study area block, and a corresponding map number for each facility. Figure 15 on page 47 shows the location of each facility on the map.

Table 2: Downtown Desert Hot Springs Off-Street Parking Inventories by Facility Item Number: 6.

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45 Number
on Map
Facility Address Associated/Adjacent Business or Institution Parking
Inventory
1 66038 Pierson Blvd Más More Better Skate Shop 9
2 66070 Pierson Blvd JC Realtors, Cutting Edge Hair Salon 5 3 66088 Pierson Blvd Grown&Sexy Playhouse 5
4 66230 Pierson Blvd The Cottage Too 35
5 66272 Pierson Blvd Casillas Funeral Home 22
6 66292 Pierson Blvd DHS Collective 6
7 66370 Pierson Blvd Casa Blanca 26
8 66369 Pierson Blvd Carnicería Mi Ranchito 14
9 66424 Pierson Blvd Rose Mortuary 12
10 66434 Pierson Blvd City Hall Overflow Lot 5
11 66450 Pierson Blvd DHS Dental 10
12 65950 Pierson Blvd City Hall 29
13 11876 Palm Drive N/A (NW Corner of block) 23
14 11930 Palm Drive Dynasty Driving School 10
15 11940 Pierson Blvd N/A (SW corner of block) 21
16 66550 Pierson Blvd Builders Supply 61
17 66669 First Street St. Elizabeth Annex 9
18 66700 Pierson Blvd St. Elizabeth of Hungary Parish 168 19 65861 Pierson Blvd FJH Tax Services 12
20 65909 Pierson Blvd Covenant Church 9
21 65935, 65947,
65957, 65961
Pierson Blvd
A Classic Act Hair & Nail Studio, Just Gina’s Hair & Nail Salon, DHS Coin Laundry, Tan’s Pizza, 7-Eleven 43
22 66041 Pierson Blvd Four Winds Realty 5
23 66121 and 66135
Pierson Blvd Delicias Mexican Cuisine, Café Bella 32
24 66169 and 66171
Pierson Blvd
The Spread, IVTHC Inland Valley Therapeutic Healing
Center 11
25 66309 Pierson Blvd N/A 103
26 66321 Pierson Blvd The Micro Buddery Dispensary (Angled parking with entrance off Pierson Blvd) 12
27 66321 Pierson Blvd The Micro Buddery Dispensary (Gated lot with entrance off Acoma Avenue) 24
28 66425 Pierson Blvd Farmer In the Dale Produce 25
29 66463 Pierson Blvd,
etc.

Pierson Blvd and Palm Drive – S/E Corner Development 74 30 12070, 12076,
12078, 12084, 12106
Palm Drive
Thai Palms Restaurant, CK Authentic Thai Massage,
Haalos Bodywork Emporium, Meina Hair Salon, Tax
Accounting Services, Desert's Finest Dispensary
36 31 12040 Palm Dr N/A (gravel lot) 24
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46 Number
on Map
Facility Address Associated/Adjacent Business or Institution Parking
Inventory
32 66523 Pierson Blvd N/A (between fence and BBVA brick wall) 22 33 66565 Pierson Blvd BBVA Compass Bank (PNC Bank) 18
34 66675 Pierson Blvd Borrego Health 43
35 66695 Pierson Blvd Iglesia de Dios Monte Sinai 16
36 66735 Pierson Blvd United Methodist Church – paved lot off Acoma Avenue 20
Total 999
Source: Walker Consultants, 2022.

Downtown Parking Demand Counts
This section shows how parking demand downtown varies according to time of day and day of the week. It includes spatial analysis of demand throughout the downtown study area, including both private off-street facilities and public street parking.

A widely recognized best practice in parking management involves the comparison of actual parking utilization rates with an 85 percent occupancy target. When parking is 85 percent occupied, spaces are well-used, but it is also still possible for drivers to find a space without cruising around waiting for another driver to leave, which would result in increased emissions and traffic congestion. Utilization rates can be compared with this 85 percent threshold at various levels of analysis—for individual block segments, streets, parking lots, or an entire area.
• Overall parking occupancy for all on and off-street spaces in the downtown study area ranged from 12 percent to 18 percent—always well below the 85 percent occupancy target.
• Peak demand was observed at 9:00 am on Thursday, December 1st. Even during this peak demand hour, the overall utilization was only 18 percent. No block segments had a parking occupancy over 85 percent, and only two off-street facilities (City Hall Overflow lot and Borrego Health) exceeded this threshold.
• Parking demand was slightly higher on Thursday than on Saturday, and fairly stable throughout each day, without extreme peak periods. Thursday parking utilization ranged from 17 to 18 percent, and Saturday utilization ranged from 12 to 15 percent (see Figure 14 on page 47).

Even when total parking occupancy is observed to be at or below the 85 percent threshold, efficient parking management requires understanding how evenly occupancy is spread across the study area. When occupancy rates are above the 85 percent threshold in some areas but not in others, a city might respond by implementing or increasing prices in the high demand areas, or by improving signage and wayfinding so drivers know where parking is available. Maintaining availability of on-street parking is especially important to support local businesses, ensuring Target Parking
Utilization
85% occupancy is the
optimal goal for downtown
parking utilization. At 85%,
most spaces are utilized
while those seeking a
space can find one with
minimal searching.

When occupancy is over
85%, people begin
perceiving parking as “full”
and often must search
longer to find a space.

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47 that potential customers interested in a quick trip are not discouraged from visiting due to a lack of convenient street parking. Based on the demand counts conducted for this study, uneven parking occupancy is not currently a problem in downtown Desert Hot Springs. Even during the peak demand hour at 9:00 am on Thursday, no block segments had parking occupancy over 85 percent, and only two off-street facilities (City Hall Overflow lot and Borrego Health) exceeded this threshold, and there were still many available spaces in the surrounding area. Figure 15 displays the peak hour utilization by downtown street segment and off-street lot.

Figure 14: Thursday and Saturday Parking Utilization in Downtown Desert Hot Springs Source: Walker Consultants, 2022.

Figure 15: Thursday 9AM Peak Hour - Parking Utilization in Downtown Desert Hot Springs Source: Walker Consultants, 2022.
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
9:00 AM 12:00 PM 3:00 PM 6:00 PM
Parking Occupancies in Downtown Desert Hot Springs
Thursday, December 1st, 2022 Saturday, December 3rd, 2022 85% Occupancy Target 85% Occupancy Target
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48 Downtown Field Observations
Driving through the downtown study area in Desert Hot Springs, the team observed plentiful on-street and off-street parking and a number of vacant parcels. Some of the on-street parking along Pierson Boulevard was broken into segments by curb extensions protecting palm trees (see Figure 16). The downtown study area included retail, dining, and residential uses, including many single family homes. There were many curb cuts and driveways.

Some businesses were right next to the sidewalk, creating a more welcoming environment for pedestrians, but others were set back by their parking lot. The blocks along Pierson Boulevard were relatively long, without pedestrian crossings.

Downtown Study Area Curb Use
The curb is a valuable public asset. Public space along the curb has many potential uses, including:
• Parking lot or driveway access
• Fire hydrant access
• Public parking for privately-owned vehicles
• Public parking for privately-owned bicycles
and scooters
• Car share parking
• Bike/scooter share docking station
• Protected bike lanes
• Transit boarding stops
• Passenger pick-up and drop-off areas
• Loading and delivery zones
• Outdoor dining and gathering areas
• Pocket parks or community gardens
• Green space and landscaping
In some cases, the use of curb space is restricted to ensure visibility and improve traffic safety. In other cases, use of the curb space may be limited where the space is necessary to access a driveway or parking lot. In the downtown study area, these “curb cuts” accounted for approximately 310 vehicle spaces worth of curb space, according to data provided by Arcadis IBI Group, using the curb mapping software Curb IQ.

The downtown did not have any curb spaces dedicated to bike or scooter parking, car share parking, protected bike lanes, transit boarding stops, loading areas, outdoor dining and gathering, or pocket parks. Some curb space was used as landscaping for the palm trees lining Pierson Boulevard, but most curb space was dedicated to private vehicle parking.

Source: Walker Consultants, 2022.

Figure 16: Street parking along Pierson
Blvd
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49 Industrial Cannabis Study Area
The industrial cannabis study area is within the City’s Industrial Cannabis Overlay. Figure 17 on page 50 displays the study area boundaries. There are many businesses in the area, but a large share of the land also remains undeveloped. The study area includes the following streets:
• Little Morongo Road from 13th Avenue to Dillon Road
• Cabot Drive from Two Bunch Palms Trail to 15th Avenue • Two Bunch Palms Trail from Little Morongo Road to Cholla Drive • San Jacinto Lane from Little Morongo Road to Cabot Drive • San Gorgonio Lane from Little Morongo Road to Cabot Drive • Palomar Lane from Little Morongo Road to Cabot Drive
• 15th Avenue from Little Morongo Road to Cabot Drive
Industrial Cannabis Area Parking Supply
On-Street Parking
The street parking supplies in the industrial cannabis study area were provided by Walker’s partner, Arcadis IBI group, a firm with expertise in digital curb mapping. There were approximately 1,873 potential street parking spaces in total along the seven streets in the study area (see Table 3). Of these:
• Approximately 215 spaces, or 11 percent, are already developed as curb parking with a curb/sidewalk and paved roadway. These are labeled “Parking – Free” in Figure 17 below. • Approximately 1,057 spaces, or 56 percent, are spaces where there is a paved roadway but no formal curb.

These are labeled “Undesignated” in Figure 17.
• The remaining 601 spaces, or 32 percent, are potential future spaces on unpaved areas (e.g., San Gorgonio Lane, Palomar Lane, 15th Avenue, and a portion of Cabot Rd). These are labeled “Unpaved” in Figure 17.

Table 3: Desert Hot Springs Industrial Cannabis Area – Street Parking Inventories Street Parking Inventory Type(s)
Little Morongo Road 780 Parking – Free; Undesignated
Cabot Road 214 Parking – Free; Undesignated; Unpaved
15th Avenue 162 Unpaved
Palomar Lane 147 Unpaved
San Gorgonio Lane 156 Unpaved
San Jacinto Lane 130 Parking – Free; Undesignated
Two Bunch Palms Trail 284 Parking – Free; Undesignated
Total 1,873
Source: Data – IBI Group, Table - Walker Consultants, 2022.

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50 Figure 17: Industrial Cannabis Area Streets
Source: IBI Group and CurbIQ, 2023.

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51 Selected Off-Street Facilities
Most off-street parking facilities in the area were gated, and some were monitored by a parking attendant or security staff member. For many of the cannabis facilities, Walker was able to speak with the staff on site to obtain access to the facility and conduct parking inventory and occupancy counts. Table 4 displays the list of off-street facilities within the study area where parking counts were conducted.

Table 4: Desert Hot Springs Industrial Cannabis Area – Selected Off-Street Parking Facility Inventories Facility Address Associated Business
Parking
Inventory
13300 Little Morongo Road Desert Hot Springs Green Horizons, Inc. (Med Men) 81 13310 Little Morongo Road NUMACO, LLC 203
15850 Little Morongo Road Industrial Park 217
65000 Two Bunch Palms Trail Med for America, Inc. 225
65283 Two Bunch Palms Trail TBP Indoor Facilities - T2 18 65321 Two Bunch Palms Trail Canndescent, MBC 35
65441 Two Bunch Palms Trail Med for America, Inc. 60
65242 San Jacinto Lane San Jac Facilities LLC 12
65282 San Jacinto Lane A CUT ABOVE, LLC 27
Source: Walker Consultants, 2022.

Industrial Cannabis Area Parking Demand Counts
Walker conducted street parking counts every three hours between 9:00 am and 6:00 pm on both Thursday and Saturday. Vehicles were observed parking on the street only on Two Bunch Palms Trail and San Jacinto Lane. There were approximately 414 spaces available on these two streets, and together, their combined utilization ranged from 0 percent on Saturday evening to 16 percent on Thursday morning.

Demand varied according to time of day and day of the week. Street parking utilization was higher on Thursday than Saturday during all observation periods, and on both days, utilization was highest in the morning and decreased throughout the day (see Figure 18 on page 52).

Most off-street parking facilities in the area were gated, and some were monitored by a parking attendant or security staff member. In some cases, Walker was able to speak with the staff on site to obtain access to the facility and conduct parking inventory and occupancy counts. The off-street facility occupancy counts were all collected sometime on Thursday, December 1st, during the peak demand period between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm. Utilization data for these sample facilities is displayed in Table 5 on page 52. A total of 523 vehicles were counted in a total of 878 private off-street parking spaces, for an average utilization of 60 percent across the sampled facilities. The highest utilization at any individual facility was 80 percent, observed at 65000 Two Bunch Palms Trail.

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52 Figure 18: Combined Street Parking Utilization on Two Bunch Palms Trail and San Jacinto Lane Source: Inventory Data – IBI Group, Occupancy Data and Graph - Walker Consultants, 2022.

Table 5: Desert Hot Springs Industrial Cannabis Area – Selected Off-Street Parking Facility Utilization Facility Address Associated Business
Parking
Inventory
Peak Hours
Occupancy
Peak Hours
Utilization
13300 Little Morongo Road
Desert Hot Springs
Green Horizons, Inc.
(Med Men)
81 10 12%
13310 Little Morongo Road NUMACO, LLC 203 116 57%
15850 Little Morongo Road Industrial Park 217 144 66%
65000 Two Bunch Palms Trail Med for America, Inc. 225 180 80% 65283 Two Bunch Palms Trail TBP Indoor Facilities - T2 18 8 44% 65321 Two Bunch Palms Trail Canndescent, MBC 35 18 51%
65441 Two Bunch Palms Trail Med for America, Inc. 60 25 42% 65242 San Jacinto Lane San Jac Facilities LLC 12 6 50%
65282 San Jacinto Lane A CUT ABOVE, LLC 27 16 59%
Source: Walker Consultants, 2022.
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
9:00 AM 12:00 PM 3:00 PM 6:00 PM
Combined Street Parking Utilization on Two Bunch Palms
Trail and San Jacinto Lane
Thursday, December 1st, 2022 Saturday, December 3rd, 2022 85% Occupancy Target 85% Occupancy Target
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53 Industrial Cannabis Area Field Observations
The team drove through the industrial cannabis study area and observed conditions along Two Bunch Palms Trail.

The area on the north side of the street was mostly undeveloped land. Most vehicles parked along the street were parked in the gravel on the north side of the street. There were empty places open for parking, but pedestrian travel along Two Bunch Palms Trail seemed dangerous, as many portions of the street did not have sidewalks. The street was wide and conducive to driving at high speeds. The speed limit was 45 miles per hour, and there were no traffic calming measures and very few light fixtures in place. Despite these conditions, several pedestrians were seen walking or riding a scooter from the cannabis facilities toward Palm Drive (see Figure 13). The cannabis district was near the west end of Two Bunch Palms, and there did not seem to be much through traffic on the street.

The other streets in the industrial cannabis study area did not have full sidewalks either, although there were sidewalks in front of some individual developments. Three streets (San Gorgonio Lane, Palomar Lane, and 15th Avenue) were still unpaved and did not yet have any buildings constructed along them. Most of the land along Little Morongo Road also remained undeveloped.

Cabot Drive was closed for road construction during the December counts, but enough other street parking was available in the nearby vicinity that this was not thought to impact the results.

When the team first visited the area in October 2022, vehicles were parked in the gravel on the north side of the Two Bunch Palms, including parallel parking, angled parking, and sometimes informally parking two layers deep and leaving space for vehicles to enter and exit. When Walker returned in December 2022 for the parking counts, there were fewer vehicles parked on the street, and all were parked parallel. A parking attendant explained that this was because the DreamFields facility had changed locations from the south to north side of the street, at 65000 Two Bunch Palms Trail, and now offered more parking for employees.

Much of this parking was on an unpermitted gravel lot, which the business was planning to pave in the future. Walker observed a shift change at this facility at around 2:30 pm on Thursday, which seemed to go smoothly and did not result in any queuing along Two Bunch Palms Trail.

There were also two religious institutions within the study area— Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses along Two Bunch Palms and First Pentecostal Church of the Coachella Valley on San Jacinto— with large parking lots empty most of the time. Source: IBI Group, 2022.

Figure 13: Person riding a scooter along Two
Bunch Palms Trail
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54 Industrial Cannabis Study Area Curb Use
In the industrial cannabis study area, “curb cuts” accounted for approximately 59 vehicle spaces worth of curb space. The industrial cannabis study area did not have any curb space dedicated to bike or scooter parking, car share parking, protected bike lanes, transit boarding stops, loading areas, outdoor dining and gathering, or pocket parks. Most curb space was either still undeveloped or dedicated to private vehicle parking.

Summary of Key Parking Supply and Demand
Findings
Downtown Study Area
• The downtown study area contains approximately 1,800 parking spaces, including approximately 800 spaces on-street and approximately 1,000 spaces off-street. • Downtown parking demand was slightly higher on Thursday than on Saturday, and fairly stable throughout each day, without extreme peak periods.
• Overall, Thursday parking utilization ranged from 17 to 18 percent, and Saturday parking utilization ranged from 12 to 15 percent.
• For the study area as a whole, parking utilization was always well below the recommended target of 85 percent. For several individual parking lots, parking did exceed the 85 percent threshold during peak periods, but there was always ample street parking available nearby.

Industrial Cannabis Study Area
• A total of 1,873 existing and “potential” (with no formal curb and/or currently unpaved) street parking spaces were available in the area.
• Street parking occurred only on Two Bunch Palms Trail and San Jacinto Lane. On these streets:
o Thursday utilization ranged from a high of 16 percent at 9:00 am to 3 percent at 6:00 pm. o Saturday utilization ranged from a high of 10 percent at 9:00 am to 0 percent at 6:00 pm. • Peak demand occurs during weekday mornings and early afternoon. During this time, the average parking utilization was 60 percent across the sampled off-street facilities. The highest utilization at any individual facility was 80 percent.
• Most developments provide more than enough off-street parking to meet the typical parking demand of their employees.

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55 04 Outreach and Engagement
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56 Outreach and Engagement
As part of the plan development process, the project team developed and implemented an outreach and engagement strategy that included outreach to the general public as well as to some key stakeholders in particular.

This chapter documents the engagement and outreach efforts, which included coordination with relevant local and regional government agencies, outreach to civic/business organizations, interaction through community events and in-person engagement, virtual community meetings, and a parking survey.

Overview of Key Stakeholder Outreach
The outreach completed with key stakeholders included a mixture of pre-planned interviews over the remote meeting software Microsoft Teams, impromptu in-person engagement, and planned in-person engagement.

Agencies contacted include:
• Riverside County Transportation Commission (RCTC) – the managing agency that oversees distribution of transportation funding for Riverside County, principally from Measure A sales tax dollars. RCTC also administers state and federal funds to communities throughout Riverside County, owns the Perris Valley Line rail corridor, owns and operates commuter rail stations, and funds other transit services in the county. • SunLine Transit – the primary transit provider in the Coachella Valley. SunLine Transit operates fixed route local bus service, longer-distance commuter-oriented regional service along Interstate 10 between Indio and San Bernardino, a flexible microtransit service (known as SunRide), paratransit service (known as SunDial), and also regulates taxi service in the area.
• City of Desert Hot Springs Planning – the City’s planning department, which oversees land use in the City and that will be involved in implementation of recommendations from this study. • IECommuter – a program in the Inland Empire that supports carpooling/vanpooling service in Riverside County, supports employers in meeting clean-air mandates, and assists with commute survey reporting.

Civic and Business Organizations contacted include:
• Downtown Steering Committee – an ad-hoc committee of business owners and interested residents that served in a volunteer capacity to make recommendations for improvements in the Downtown area. • Industrial District/Cannabis Corridor Businesses – businesses located along Two Bunch Palms Trail, Cabot Road, San Jacinto Lane, and Little Morongo Road, where the majority of development is occurring in the Industrial District/Cannabis Corridor.
• General Business Licensees – registered businesses in Desert Hot Springs, screened to cover a representative sample of the greater Desert Hot Springs business community.

Table 6 on page 57 provides a summary of touchpoints, dates, and methods of data collection from engagement efforts to key stakeholders. Subsequent sections document the feedback received from these engagement efforts.

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57 Table 6: Interagency Coordination and Civic/Business Organization Outreach Overview Audience Date(s) Meeting /Data Collection Format
RCTC Staff 4/17/23 Email
SunLine Transit Staff 4/19/23 Microsoft Teams virtual meeting / meeting notes
Desert Hot Springs Planning Staff 4/27/23 Phone Call
IECommuter 5/12/23 Microsoft Teams virtual meeting /
meeting notes
Downtown Steering Committee 10/24/22 In-person presentation / meeting notes
Industrial District/Cannabis Corridor
Businesses
4/26/23 In-person outreach
Business Licensees (Including Downtown and
Industrial Corridor Businesses)
April-May 2023 Email contact and digital survey
Source: IBI Group, 2023.

Feedback Received – Interagency Coordination
The section below covers information and feedback received from each agency contacted.

RCTC Email – 4/17/23
The technical team contacted RCTC staff to provide an overview of the project and identify any potential ways in which the agency’s current work or planning efforts might need to be considered by the study’s technical team.

The Transit Manager of the Multimodal Department provided an overview of the agency’s role in leading regional transportation efforts, managing sources of transportation funding (including local, state, and federal sources), and supporting local transit operations. Due to the way that service in Desert Hot Springs is provided by SunLine Transit, more detailed discussions with that agency were recommended.

The Transit Manager noted that the only longer-range transit project that the agency is involved with in the Coachella Valley is the Coachella Valley Rail Corridor project which would provide new passenger transit service between the area and Los Angeles. This project has completed a Tier 1 environmental impact statement/environmental impact report and is pursuing funding for Tier II environmental analysis. It is not directly relevant to this study.

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58 SunLine Transit Meeting – 4/19/23
The technical team held a virtual meeting over Microsoft Teams with three members of SunLine Transit’s staff: a Planning Technician, the Transportation Services Coordinator, and the Planning Manager. The discussion was focused on three primary items: existing fixed-route transit service, current and future flexible microtransit service, and carpool/vanpool programs.

SunLine Transit currently operates three fixed-route transit lines in Desert Hot Springs, covering the major roads where there is adequate infrastructure with a curb that can be serviced. All three routes connect with the Downtown Study Area. Route 3 travels along Two Bunch Palms Trail but turns north on West Drive, and the agency noted that they historically had not serviced the area west of Cholla Drive due to the lack of pedestrian infrastructure such as sidewalks. The agency is dependent on the City and private property owners to provide and maintain the infrastructure that is needed for a bus stop. SunLine Transit staff also noted that the extreme conditions in the desert (such as high heat, high wind, and flooding on rainy days) can disrupt transit service and act as a barrier to transit use.

In order to provide a more flexible transit service option, SunLine began offering SunRide, a service that utilizes a fleet of minivans (ADA accessible Chrysler Pacificas) that operate within a zone rather than along major streets only.

The service operates Monday-Friday from 5:30 am to 6:30 pm, with riders requesting and paying for service using a smartphone app, and pick-ups/drop-offs occurring at virtual stops located throughout the service area. The service has experienced significant growth in ridership (including by students at Desert Hot Springs High School), and the service area was expanded in early May 2023 to include a larger portion of the City, including the portions of the Industrial Cannabis Study Area with the highest concentration of employment. A map of SunLine Transit’s fixed route transit service and SunRide service area (gray shaded area) is illustrated in Figure 19 on page 59.

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59 Figure 19: SunLine Transit Fixed Route and Flexible Transit (SunRide) Service Area Source: IBI Group, 2023.

Finally, SunLine Transit oversees SolVan, a vanpooling program that supports shared transportation. Vanpools are typically organized by a group of people traveling to the same work site and are particularly well suited for locations where people work shifts with regular start/stop times and where employees are traveling long distances from home. Vanpools usually have a lead point of contact who helps to manage the vanpool and rider list, track mileage, and organize the vanpool, often with help from a designated Employee Transportation Coordinator (ETC) or other staff member at their organization. Vans are leased from a private firm, and SolVan provides a monthly subsidy of 50 percent of the lease, up to $400 for standard vehicles and $500 for electric vehicles to reduce the cost burden for the vanpool participants. SolVan currently supports approximately ten vanpools in the greater Coachella Valley area. Depending on the home locations of employees in the Industrial Cannabis Study Area, this program may help encourage shared travel and reduce parking demand.

Desert Hot Springs Planning Department Meeting – 4/27/23 The technical team spoke with the City’s Community Development Director to review the analysis completed for the project. The discussion focused on potential strategies that the City of Desert Hot Springs could use to encourage a more vibrant and economically productive city. The three most significant discussion topics included:

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60 • Industrial Cannabis Study Area parking requirements. The City’s current zoning does not adequately address parking needs for cannabis facilities, primarily due to it being based on calculations that were projected when the industry was still in its infancy. As cannabis producers have shifted from growing cannabis to a greater amount of manufacturing that refines the raw material into other products, the workforce/labor requirements related to those activities have also shifted parking demand at the job sites.

More recent and accurate data relating to parking demand and the number of employees working in each segment of the industry will better inform future parking requirements or approvals. • Economic development. The City is developing strategies to encourage economic development, in particular in the Downtown Study Area along Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard. Strategies discussed included the City purchasing key parcels/properties to dedicate them toward public uses, beautification of streetscapes, and identification of locations that could serve as anchors or draws to development. • Lessons learned from other jurisdictions. City of Desert Hot Springs staff are working to apply lessons learned from strategies and projects that have been deployed in other cities with similar contexts, such as 29 Palms, to support economic development goals.

Additional input from planning staff was captured during the review process for other technical memos during the study.

IE Commuter – 5/12/2023
The technical team held a meeting with IE Commuter, a regional organization supported by RCTC and the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority (SBCTA) that operates in the Inland Empire (IE). IE Commuter helps employers set up and maintain rideshare programs at their businesses and supports individual commuters who are interested in shared mobility (such as carpooling, vanpooling, and transit). The team spoke with two staff members who oversee and support the program’s operations in Desert Hot Springs and the greater IE Commuter service area.

Staff considered the program as a “concierge service” that helps connect employers and employees to shared mobility options. IE Commuter maintains a ride matching database to help connect members of the public that may wish to commute between similar areas and subsidizes carpools at a rate of $5/day to help offset costs.

One of the program’s primary functions is to support regulations administered by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD), the agency responsible for improving air quality for large areas of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, including the Coachella Valley. The AQMD’s Rule 2202 requires employers with greater than 250 employees to develop plans to reduce single-occupancy vehicle commutes to their job sites, monitor progress, and support shared mobility options. Businesses typically designate an individual responsible for monitoring the organization’s compliance with regulations, promoting shared mobility (such as carpooling and vanpooling), and supporting employees in trip reduction efforts. Businesses that do not choose to engage in a trip reduction program can pay into the AQMD Air Quality Investment Program, which funds programs that help to offset the environmental impacts of commuters.

IE Commuter staff noted that they are in regular communication with DreamFields in the Desert Hot Springs Industrial Cannabis Study Area to promote carpooling/vanpooling initiatives, and there is a designated person who does direct outreach to businesses located in the City to encourage shared mobility.

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61 Feedback Received – Civic/Business Organizations
The section below covers information and feedback received from civic organizations and businesses contacted.

Downtown Steering Committee Meeting – 10/24/22
In 2022, the City of Desert Hot Springs convened an ad-hoc, volunteer-based Downtown Steering Committee to provide a forum for community members to brainstorm a vision and potential strategies for improving the Downtown district. Participants worked in three subgroups focused on particular aspects of the built environment and activity in the area, and generated presentations and reports with recommendations for further study. The committee was divided into three subgroups, each of which proposed ideas for implementation listed below. • Resident Subgroup Ideas
o Buying land and using it to incentivize economic development. o Incentivize existing restaurants to move so they’re more centrally located. o Beautification efforts such as removal of security bars on windows and public art/murals. o Youth activities such as playgrounds, water fountains, outdoor movies. o Urban design guidelines to bring a consistent look to development. • Arts and Tourism Subgroup Ideas
o Public space/multi-purpose structures.
o Live music (in the street with street closures).
o More holiday events and street closures to help create a downtown feel. • Business Subgroup Ideas
o People want different kinds of restaurants, including a higher-end restaurant for special occasions. People also want more amenities for the kids such as arcades, bowling alleys, roller or ice-skating rinks.
o Consideration of tax or parking incentives for new development. o Rideshare for cannabis employees or a shuttle between downtown and the district. o Vacancy tax downtown to encourage occupancy.
o New businesses could potentially start in the container park and move to a parcel once they successfully grow.
o Active transportation infrastructure to support travel from hotels to downtown.

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62 Shortly after initiation of the Parking Management Study, the technical team delivered a presentation to the Downtown Steering Committee to introduce the project and gather some initial feedback that could inform the parking analysis. Feedback was gathered in four primary categories:
• Assets identified included the natural hot springs, the existing tourist industry, hiking trails, hotels, the cannabis industry, available land for development, and an open-minded government that is willing to experiment. • Opportunities identified included redevelopment of vacant parcels, potential deployment of shuttles or bike paths to better connect activity centers, the potential for e-bikes to help overcome hills and long travel distances and connect the Spa Zone with the downtown, opportunities to provide bike and e-bike parking serving the downtown, and technology that could be deployed as the redevelopment occurs to support wayfinding, payment for parking, or information for visitors. • Barriers identified included the long travel distances between activity centers and lack of connections between them, as well as restrictive parking requirements on parcels in the Downtown Business District. • Needs identified included redevelopment of vacant parcels and empty lots, security at parking facilities, and consideration of how Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard act as the primary access routes to the Downtown area.

Participants also noted that the city is expecting development of logistics facilities that will bring new employment, as well as corresponding impacts on traffic and housing needs. The photo in Figure 20 on page 63 illustrates notes captured during the meeting.

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63 Figure 20: Photo of Feedback Gathered from Downtown Steering Committee Source: IBI Group, 2023.

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64 Student-Led Downtown Vision Outreach – January-March 2023 Separate from but running concurrently with this project, graduate students from Cal Poly Pomona’s City and Regional Planning program created a Downtown Vision Plan for the City of Desert Hot Springs.

The vision statement created for the downtown area was:
“In the future, downtown Desert Hot Springs will be a thriving and innovative place where residents are proud of their community culture. Our small businesses draw locals and tourists to downtown. Residents enjoy spending their time shopping, dining, and socializing. The vibe downtown is vibrant, inclusive, and safe.” The plan included a range of ideas and recommendations for economic development, urban design and beautification
strategies, transportation improvements, and other aspects of the built environment. The student team led a community engagement event in January 2023 to gather feedback on the ideas. The project’s summary of community feedback—including from a community workshop, five high school tabling events, and a virtual community forum—noted support for reduced parking requirements to encourage economic development, and varying feedback on the need for or reuse of existing off-street parking areas.

Recommendations from the Downtown Vision Plan that are relevant to this project included:
• Updating the zoning code to provide more flexibility and greater diversity in allowed land uses, enabling more mixed-use development.
• Improving the pedestrian environment by limiting commercial driveways, minimizing building setbacks, and providing public spaces.
• Facilitating infill development on undeveloped land.
• Establishing a Downtown Business Association.
• Improving infrastructure and connectivity for pedestrians and bicyclists. • Providing bike parking throughout downtown.
• Improving comfort and safety at downtown transit stops.

Direct Business and Employee Outreach – April 2023
The project’s technical staff conducted direct outreach to businesses in both study areas in April 2023 with the goal of promoting responses to the project survey and gathering additional feedback on current parking and transportation needs for businesses and their employees. The team spoke with and left flyers at eight businesses in the downtown study area and gathered more specific feedback from businesses and employees as listed below.

Ocean Springs Tech, Inc.

Ocean Springs Tech, Inc. is a pool supply and service business located on Two Bunch Palms Trail in the Cannabis Corridor. Employees of the business noted that traffic lines up on Two Bunch Palms Trail to Little Morongo and Item Number: 6.

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65 equally in the other direction around the time of the shift change of another business on weekdays between 1 pm and 2 pm, which blocks access to Ocean Springs and obstructs visibility for anyone crossing the street. They have observed vehicles making U-turns in the middle of the street and other drivers moving at high speeds, and suggested installation of a median in the center of the road to prevent illegal U-turns and preserve business access.

They were concerned about the quality of pavement on nearby streets. They also thought sidewalks are important, but they were not interested in new street lighting (unless designed to preserve the view of the night sky). They and have observed employees biking to other businesses despite weather-related challenges, and they assumed these employees got a ride from someone or used a rideshare service when unable to bike.

Ocean Springs Tech. does not experience any parking challenges and would still provide the same amount of offstreet parking even if it were not required. They would like the curb space to be paved so parking could be allowed on the street in front of their business. All of their employees live within the Coachella Valley, and most live in DHS and Palm Springs. Service employees work between 5am-1pm, and administrative employees work between 7 am - 4:30 pm.

Employees were not aware of regional rideshare incentive or vanpool programs and did not think that they would use them due to obligations before or after work, but they would be open to learning more about them if a coordinator reached out to them. One employee had previously worked for an employer that increased hourly pay by one dollar for employees who did not drive alone to work and noted that this was a significant incentive promoting sustainable commuting.

Cabot Road Contacts
The team spoke with two individuals who were working on Cabot Road in the Cannabis Corridor area. The first, a food vendor, had observed people carpooling to Cabot Road or taking a Lyft or Uber, as well as people biking DreamFields. She was unfamiliar with SunRide microtransit, rideshare incentives, or vanpool programs. She had observed crashes on the street and recommended new stop signs and pedestrian crossing areas to improve safety.

She had seen employees having to exit their business facilities to smoke and noted that safe pedestrian infrastructure would also help protect these employees.

The second individual was a contractor with approximately 15 employees working for him, all of whom commuted from Victorville. He organized their commutes and ride sharing, and although he had not heard of official vanpooling programs, he was thinking of purchasing his own van for his employees and business. Active transportation was not feasible for his employees due to the commute distances.

DreamFields
DreamFields is a large cannabis grower/manufacturer located on Two Bunch Palms Trail. Four employees were interviewed as they waited to enter the facility’s parking area. Some key takeaways from the conversations included:
• Employees arrive up to an hour ahead of their shifts to wait in their cars in line to enter the DreamFields parking area.
• Employees were generally unaware of SunRide micro transit or regional commuter incentive programs. • Employees were generally not interested in bicycling due to the area’s weather and long commute distances, but they were either interested in or currently carpooled with other employees.

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66 • One employee suggested creation of a separate entrance to enter/exit the facility. • Employees who arrived closer to the beginning of their shifts would typically park on Two Bunch Palms Trail to avoid waiting in line.
• Employees were generally open to visiting the Downtown District but did not feel like they had a reason to do so. They noted the lack of green space and parks.

Business Owner Email Comments
Finally, the technical team received two email comments from business owners:
• The first emphasized wanting to have a downtown area that is safe and family-friendly. • The second email suggested installing diagonal parking on Two Bunch Palms Trail and implementing traffic calming measures. The respondent also suggested that a controlled pedestrian crossing would be needed, and that the cannabis facilities with shifts should copy what’s done to manage traffic at factories that also have large shift changes.

Business Licensees Survey – April-May 2023
The technical team developed a digital survey that was available to the public from April 19 to May 12, 2023.

Although most of the survey was aimed at the general public, it also included a set of questions addressing the parking needs of business owners/managers. The survey received 14 responses from individuals who self-identified as business owners. The complete results from the business-focused survey questions are provided in Appendix B; key findings are summarized below.

Survey respondents work for or own a variety of business types, including food and beverage, professional services, commercial retail, logistics/shopping, and cannabis cultivation and manufacturing. Most respondents’ businesses have 50 or fewer employees, two have between 100 and 150, and one has between 450 and 500.

As shown in Figure 21, approximately 70 percent of respondents reported that most of their employees live within Desert Hot Springs, about 15 percent reported that most employees commute from outside the City, and about 15 percent reported an approximately 50/50 split. If the City wishes to reduce parking demand and promote sustainable options, some employees who live outside the City may be potential candidates for shared mobility programs,such as SolVan Vanpool, while some employees who live within the City may be interested in using active transportation options, such as e-bikes, for some of their trips.

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67 Figure 21: Business Licensee Survey Respondents’ Employee Home Locations Source: Walker Consultants, 2023.

As shown in Figure 22, most respondents (58 percent) reported adequate or excess parking, but a sizeable share (42 percent) also reported not having enough parking on-site. These results suggest that some City businesses may benefit from more parking options and flexibility, such as opportunities to enter shared parking agreements that allow private parking lots to be shared with other users outside of peak demand hours.

Figure 22: Business Licensee Survey Respondents’ Parking Perceptions Source: Walker Consultants, 2023.

When asked about situations that impact parking demand at their businesses, four respondents noted that employees operate on shift schedules, two people noted parking demand from food pickup/delivery, one person noted high numbers of employees coming and going throughout the day, and one person noted other cannabisrelated activity. These results provide insight into potential parking management needs; for example, staggered shifts can help increase the efficiency with which existing parking resources are used.

Most employees
Most commute from live in DHS.
outside the City.

About half live in DHS.
"Where do most of your employees live?"
Adequate
More than enough
Not enough
"How would you describe the parking demand at your
business or property?"
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68 Desired Policy Adjustments
In addition to the general questions about existing conditions at businesses, the survey also contained several questions about potential policy or infrastructure changes that could help address parking and transportation needs for employees. Business-owning respondents were asked to rank each of seven initiatives listed below from “not helpful” to “very helpful.”

1. More flexible parking standards that allow businesses to share parking or provide less parking.

2. Rideshare matching initiatives or incentives that encourage employee carpooling or vanpooling.

3. Upgraded transit service (more frequent service, expanded service hours or days).

4. Adjustments to SunRide, SunTransit’s on-demand microtransit service, such as expanding its service area.

5. Shuttles between my business and other areas of the City.

6. Improved bike lanes that help local residents commute to work on bicycles/scooters.

7. Incentives to promote sustainable transportation choices (such as rebates for e-bike purchases).

Survey respondents expressed support for the options presented; all seven options were seen by the majority of survey respondents as at least “somewhat helpful.” However, Option 6 and Option 7—which focused on bicycle infrastructure and sustainable travel incentives—were the most likely to be selected as “very helpful.” This makes sense in light of the other results, showing that most businesses reported most of their employees live within the City boundaries (within biking distance) and showing that most businesses are of a relatively modest size (decreasing the likelihood of effective rideshare matching). However, even if Options 6 and 7 are seen as likely to be “very helpful” for the greatest number of business owners, other options such as rideshare matching may be equally important to pursue, if they would benefit businesses with large numbers of employees who currently drive to work alone.

Summary of Key Takeaways from Key Stakeholder Outreach
Table 7 below summarizes key takeaways from the civic, business, and interagency outreach completed for the project.

Table 7: Civic, Business, and Interagency Outreach Key Takeaways Audience Key Takeaways
RCTC Staff • As a regional agency, RCTC is not closely involved in initiatives to reduce parking demand in Desert Hot Springs, but they support the work of agencies that do.
• SunLine Transit and IE Commuter are most relevant to reducing parking demand in Desert Hot Springs.

SunLine Transit Staff • The agency is actively working to improve transit service to Desert Hot Springs and expand the SolVan program.

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69 • Fixed route transit is challenging to provide in Desert Hot Springs, but the agency is interested in collaborating with the City as new development occurs.
• SunRide Transit has already implemented an expansion of its micro transit service, which is one of the options that businesses broadly supported.

Desert Hot Springs
Planning Staff
• City of Desert Hot Springs staff are actively engaging in efforts to support economic development, better define parking needs at businesses located in the city, and analyzing lessons learned from other cities to apply them.

IE Commuter • IE Commuter is actively engaged in reducing single occupancy trips throughout the Coachella Valley and in Desert Hot Springs. • Most employers in the city are too small to be subject to regulations imposed by the AQMD, but continued efforts to increase awareness of and participation in shared mobility options could reduce parking demand in the city.

Downtown Steering
Committee
• Desert Hot Springs’ business community is active and engaged in efforts to promote a more vibrant and economically productive city. • Business owners and representatives seemed supportive of the relaxation of parking requirements in the downtown area, as well as infrastructure that would support active transportation use such as bicycle lanes.

Student-Led
Downtown Vision
Outreach
• There is support for parking and zoning strategies that facilitate downtown development and more flexible land use.
• Community members would like to see infrastructure that improves connectivity, comfort, and safety for bicyclists, pedestrians, and transit users.

Direct Business
Outreach
• Most people are not aware of SunRide micro transit or regional commuter incentive programs.
• Community members—both DreamFields employees and others in the area—would appreciate solutions that save employees from waiting an hour to enter the parking lot.
• Some people rely on active transportation, but most people are not interested in commuting this way due to weather, safety, and distance. • Community members are concerned about street safety, especially for pedestrians on Two Bunch Palms Trail.

Business Licensees
Survey Respondents
• Approximately 70 percent of respondents reported that most of their employees live within Desert Hot Springs.

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70 • Most respondents reported adequate or excess parking, but a sizeable share also reported not having enough parking on-site.
• Policy solutions focused on bicycle infrastructure and sustainable travel incentives were the most likely to be seen as “very helpful.” • Respondents also generally supported the following policy solutions:
o More flexible parking standards
o Rideshare matching initiatives or incentives
o Upgraded transit service
o Adjustments to SunRide micro transit
o Shuttles between businesses and other areas of the City Source: IBI Group and Walker Consultants, 2023.

Overview of General Public Outreach
The outreach completed with the general public included a mixture of community meetings using Microsoft Teams, impromptu in-person engagement, and planned in-person engagement. Table 8 summarizes the outreach efforts that engaged the wider community of Desert Hot Springs.

Table 8: General Public Outreach Activities Overview
Meeting/Outreach Type Date(s) Audience
Desert Hot Springs Holiday Parade December 10,
2022
Parade attendees/general public
Parking Survey April-May 2023 Desert Hot Springs residents and visitors Direct Employee Outreach April 26, 2023 Employees of businesses located in Desert Hot Springs
Community Meeting 1 May 4, 2023 Desert Hot Springs residents Community Meeting 2 May 6, 2023 Desert Hot Springs residents Source: IBI Group, 2023.

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71 Feedback Received – General Public
Desert Hot Springs Holiday Parade – 12/10/23
The City of Desert Hot Springs hosted a holiday parade and street festival on December 10, 2022. The technical team organized and staffed a booth to introduce members of the general public to the project and gather some initial input. The booth was situated in the heart of the festival area and was passed by several hundred attendees.

The technical team held more than 30 conversations with attendees in both English and Spanish to ask them about parking and transportation in the Desert Hot Springs and to understand what they would like to see more of on streets in the city.

Figure 23: Photos of Project Booth at Holiday Parade Event Source: IBI Group, 2023.

Parade attendees who stopped by the booth were given three stickers to vote on the types of things they would like to see more of in their city. They were also invited to write an open-ended comment and leave a note on the board. A photo of the board is shown in Figure 24 on page 72. Table 9 on page 72 displays the number of sticker votes placed on each improvement. The top three priorities were on-street programming, multi-modal streets, and safety improvements.

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72 Figure 24: Input Received During Holiday Parade Outreach Source: IBI Group, 2023.

Table 9: Desired Improvements Identified During Holiday Parade Outreach Improvement Number of Votes
On-Street Programming (Festivals, Fairs) 25
Multi-modal Streets 16
Safety Improvements 14
Staffed Parking Lot 8
Flexible Streetscapes 8
Securing Parking 7
Parking Structure 6
Accessibility Improvements 6
Loading Zones 2
Designated Employee Parking 2
Angled Parking 1
Signage / Wayfinding 1
Source: IBI Group, 2023.

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73 Open-ended comments and suggestions left on the board included:
• “More sidewalks in residential areas, i.e. Ironwood/Mesquite.” • “Painted intersections with flashing lights for crosswalks.” • “Please bring back the snow pile.”
• “Love protected bike lanes.”
• “Accessible walking ways.”
Community Survey – April-May 2023
The primary method by which the team sought to gain feedback from the general public was through a virtual survey on the Maptionnaire platform. Maptionnaire allows survey respondents to answer question formats that are commonly found on most survey platforms (such as multiple choice questions or ratings/rankings), as well as to provide more specific geospatial (map-based) feedback. Figure 25 on page 74 shows the survey introduction page, and Figure 26 on page 74 shows one of the map-based survey pages.

The survey was available to the public from April 19-May 17, 2023, and was promoted through the City’s website, Instagram and Facebook accounts, physical flyers posted in the community, and both in-person and email outreach to businesses in the project study areas. Figure 27 shows the Instagram post promoting the survey.

The survey received the following responses:
• 63 individual respondents began the survey.
• 45 respondents answered at least some of the survey questions. • 18 respondents navigated the entire survey.

The survey was available in both English and Spanish, but all survey respondents chose to take the English version of the survey. The survey also included a separate section with questions designed for business owners or managers. The responses to those questions are included in the Business Licensees Survey subsection above.

The survey asked respondents where they live, how they travel, about their perceptions of parking availability and safety, and about their interest in potential parking demand management strategies. The survey also contained several questions designed to gather feedback that has a geospatial element. Respondents were asked to “pin” locations on the map where they identified issues and where they would like to see specific improvements to address those issues. The full results from the community survey questions are provided in Appendix C; several key findings are summarized below.

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74 Figure 25: Screenshot of Survey Introduction Page
Source: IBI Group, 2023.

Figure 26: Screenshot of Map-Based Survey Page
Source: IBI Group, 2023.

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75 Figure 27: Screenshot of Instagram Post Promoting Survey Source: IBI Group, 2023.

General Survey Question Results and Analysis
The first few questions asked respondents about their relationship to Desert Hot Springs and about their use of or interest in various modes of travel. Most survey respondents lived and/or worked in Desert Hot Springs. The majority use a car for their primary form of transportation; several respondents also walk, take transit, and use ride share services for some trips. Most survey respondents had heard of e-bikes/scooters, and were interested in learning more about them, but few respondents owned or had ridden one. When asked how likely they would be to switch to an e-bike or scooter for some of their trips if the City provided safe bike infrastructure and secure parking, 25 percent of respondents indicated they would be at least “somewhat likely” to do so. Although only 32 people answered this question, the results are consistent with feedback obtained at the Holiday Parade showing people’s desire for multi-modal streets and safety improvements. This input suggests that investments in bicycle infrastructure and parking may be a cost effective way to shift mode share to more sustainable modes of travel and reduce parking demand, freeing up additional spaces for those who prefer to drive.

The next few questions focused more specifically on parking—perceptions of parking availability and safety, perspectives on shared parking strategies, and connections between parking, land use, and environmental goals.

The results revealed the following:
• Respondents were divided on whether it was generally easy to find parking in Desert Hot Springs. • Most respondents indicated they generally feel safe walking to their parked car, but 25 percent at least “somewhat disagreed” that they generally feel safe.

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76 • Survey respondents were divided on how willing they would be to park in a central location that could be used to access multiple destinations.
• Survey respondents generally did not believe that reallocating excess parking to other uses or sharing parking facilities among multiple uses were good ideas. • Most survey respondents did not see a connection between parking management and meeting environmental goals.

These results suggest that finding convenient parking is important to people, and not always possible in Desert Hot Springs. The City may wish to consider parking strategies that prioritize maintaining availability of at least a few spaces in high-demand areas. Because the parking demand observations completed for this project did not reveal parking scarcity in either study area, additional community outreach may help City staff better understand the specific locations in the City and times of day where more effective parking management may be desired.

The finding that a sizeable share of respondents do not generally feel safe walking to their parked car aligns with the high share of Holiday Parade outreach participants who indicated an interest in “safety improvements” and, to a lesser extent, “securing parking.” These findings suggest that some community members would appreciate safe pedestrian walkways that provide access to parking areas, traffic calming measures, and/or increased security at parking facilities, which may be accomplished in part by increased levels of pedestrian activity.

Although more on-street programming was the most desired improvement indicated by community members who participated in the Holiday Parade outreach event, survey respondents were less supportive of repurposing excess parking. This discrepancy could mean that each outreach method reached a different audience; people attending a community event that repurposes street space for other uses may be more likely than average to support related initiatives, whereas people who chose to take a parking survey may be more likely to prioritize parking. Additional outreach could help provide context into respondents’ concerns about sharing parking facilities among multiple uses.

Map-based Survey Question Results and Analysis
Home, Work, and Other Important Locations: The home location question showed that survey respondents live in many different parts of the City, and three respondents live outside of Desert Hot Springs—in Morongo Valley, Palm Desert, and Redlands. The work location question showed that three respondents worked in the industrial cannabis study area, and at least six respondents worked in or near the downtown study area. Other locations that were important to survey respondents included the commercial districts of Palm Springs and locations along State Route 62, west of Desert Hot Springs.

Issues Identified – Downtown Desert Hot Springs: Respondents were able to identify locations on the map where they had experienced a lack of available parking, a lack of clarity about where to park, unsafe driving, vacant or underused properties, unsafe crossings, a lack of sidewalks, or other issues. Figure 28 on page 77 displays an example of the map-based feedback received; full survey results are included in Appendix C. Findings for the downtown study area are summarized below.
• Lack of parking: Respondents found that there was a lack of available parking primarily near some downtown commercial businesses, with several pins placed near the intersection of Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard.

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77 • Unclear where to park: Respondents found that it was unclear where to park at business located near Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard (where businesses have small parking lots that may be accessible from behind the business) and on the western end of the downtown study area. • Unsafe driving (speeding/swerving): Mostresponses about unsafe driving were clustered north-south along Palm Drive. Some instances of unsafe driving were also observed in neighborhood streets along 5th Street and Hacienda Avenue.
• Vacant or underused properties: Survey respondents noted vacant or underused properties throughout the Downtown study area and areas farther north.
• Unsafe crossings: Survey respondents noted many areas that felt unsafe to cross the street, especially along Palm Drive. Other intersections where unsafe crossings were identified included: Indian Canyon Drive and Mission Lakes Boulevard, Indian Canyon Drive and Pierson Boulevard, Little Morongo Road and Pierson Boulevard, and Hacienda Avenue and Mesquite Avenue.
• Lack of sidewalks: Survey respondents noted a lack of sidewalks in residential neighborhoods along Acoma Avenue in the Downtown Business District, as well as in some residential neighborhoods elsewhere in the City.

Addressing these issues will both improve the quality of life for residents and make the downtown area more attractive to visitors and tourists. Addressing these issues can also help with parking management, by increasing utilization of existing parking resources that currently lack signage and wayfinding, improving parking availability by increasing the share of people who feel it is safe to walk or bike to, from, and around downtown, and improving safety and security by increasing the overall level of pedestrian activity in the downtown area.

Figure 28: Issue Identified: Unsafe Crossings – All Areas

Source: IBI Group, 2023.

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78 Improvements Suggested – Downtown Desert Hot Springs: Respondents also had the opportunity to identify specific locations where they believed certain improvements would be helpful, including reducing traffic speeds, adding crosswalks, adding protected bike lanes, adding bike parking, adding sidewalks, adding lighting, and adding signage and wayfinding. Maps of each response are included in Appendix C and summarized below. • Reducing traffic speeds: Survey respondents suggested reducing traffic speeds through the Downtown area, along Palm Drive.
• Adding crosswalks: Survey respondents suggested adding a crosswalk where 1st Street and Acoma Avenue intersect Palm Drive.
• Adding protected bike lanes: Survey respondents suggested adding protected bike lanes in proximity to the major downtown intersection at Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard. • Adding bike parking: Survey respondents suggested adding bicycle parking locations adjacent to the major downtown intersection at Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard. • Adding sidewalks: Survey respondents suggested adding sidewalks in the residential area along Acoma Avenue downtown, as well as in a few other residential areas to the southeast. • Adding lighting: Survey respondents suggested adding lighting in the residential neighborhoods of the Downtown Business District, at Mission Springs Park, and in some residential areas in the southeastern portion of the city.
• Adding signage and wayfinding: Survey respondents suggested adding signage or wayfinding on either side of the main intersection downtown at Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard.

Issues Identified – Industrial Cannabis Study Area: Issues identified in the Industrial Cannabis Study Area are summarized below; maps for each question are included in Appendix C. • Lack of parking: Respondents identified three locations in the Industrial Cannabis Study Area where there is a lack of parking, located at or in front of the DreamFields and Canndescent facilities. • Unclear where to park: Respondents did not identify any locations in the industrial Cannabis Study Area where it was unclear where to park.
• Unsafe driving (speeding/swerving): Survey respondents noted unsafe driving consistently along Two Bunch Palms Trail in the Industrial Cannabis Study Area, with 14 pins place on this street. • Vacant or underused properties: Survey respondents noted several vacant or underused properties along Two Bunch Palms Trail.
• Unsafe crossings: Survey respondents noted many areas that felt unsafe to cross the street, including many in the Industrial Cannabis Study Area along Two Bunch Palms Trail. • Lack of sidewalks: Survey respondents noted a lack of sidewalks throughout the Industrial Cannabis Study Area, primarily in front of undeveloped properties.

Addressing these issues will improve the quality of life for employees, reduce the likelihood of traffic injuries and fatalities, and make the area more attractive to potential business owners. Addressing these issues can also help with parking management, potentially increasing the effective parking supply by increasing the share of people who feel it is safe to park on-street or even switch to active transportation modes (including e-bikes or scooters) for some commute trips, rather than driving alone.

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79 Improvements Suggested – Industrial Cannabis Study Area: Improvements were also suggested for locations within the Industrial Cannabis Study Area. Maps for each response are included in Appendix C; the feedback issummarized below.
• Reducing traffic speeds: A survey respondent suggested reducing traffic speeds in the Industrial Cannabis Study area around the intersection of Little Morongo Road and Two Bunch Palms Trail. • Adding crosswalks: Survey respondents suggested adding crosswalks on Two Bunch Palms Trail, adjacent to the major employers in the Cannabis Industrial Study Area. • Adding protected bike lanes: Survey respondents suggested adding protected bike lanes throughout the Industrial Cannabis Study area along Two Bunch Palms Drive and on Little Morongo Road. • Adding bike parking: Survey respondents did not identify any locations where they felt bicycle parking was needed in the Industrial Cannabis Study Area.
• Adding sidewalks: Survey respondents suggested adding sidewalks throughout the Industrial Cannabis Study area along Two Bunch Palms Trail and Little Morongo Road. • Adding lighting: Survey respondents suggested adding lighting near major employers and intersections in the Industrial Cannabis Study Area.
• Adding signage and wayfinding: Survey respondents did not identify any locations in the Industrial Cannabis Study Area that needed better signage and wayfinding.

Most improvements suggested were related to traffic and pedestrian safety, specifically along Two Bunch Palms Trail, where major employers are located. Respondents identified a need for reduced traffic speeds, pedestrian crosswalks, protected bike lanes, sidewalks, and lighting on this street. Many of the streets in this study area were still undeveloped, but it could be inferred that the same features desired for Two Bunch Palms could also improve the other streets when they are developed in the future.

Industrial Cannabis Study Area Employee Direct Outreach– April 2023 The project’s technical staff conducted direct outreach to businesses in both study areas in April 2023 with the goal of promoting responses to the project survey and gathering additional feedback on current parking and transportation needs for businesses and their employees. This outreach is covered in greater detail under the Direct Business and Employee Outreach subsection above, but an excerpt of feedback that came from general employees (rather than business owners/managers) is presented below.

DreamFields is a large cannabis grower/manufacturer located on Two Bunch Palms Trail. Four employees were interviewed as they waited to enter the facility’s parking area. Some key takeaways from the conversations included:
• Employees arrive up to an hour ahead of their shifts to wait in their cars in line to enter the DreamFields parking area.
• Employees were generally unaware of SunRide micro transit or regional commuter incentive programs. • Employees were generally not interested in bicycling due to the area’s weather and long commute distances, but they were either interested in or currently carpooled with other employees. • One employee suggested creation of a separate entrance to enter/exit the facility.

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80 • Employees who arrived closer to the beginning of their shifts would typically park on Two Bunch Palms Trail to avoid waiting in line.
• Employees were generally open to visiting the Downtown District but did not feel like they had a reason to do so. They noted the lack of green space and parks.

These findings suggest that the Industrial Cannabis Study Area could benefit from promoting shared mobility opportunities and commuter incentive programs at large employers. Various transportation solutions are already available to employees, but people are not always aware of them. Opportunities and programs such as rideshare matching, cash incentives, vanpool subsidies, and micro transit have the potential to save employees time and money, while also reducing traffic congestion and parking demand.

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81 Virtual Community Meetings – May 2023
The technical team hosted two virtual community meetings in May 2023 to provide an update on the project, report out on the technical work completed, and gather input from the public on potential recommendations. The meetings were held using the Microsoft Teams platform and advertised using the City’s social media platforms and website.

The meetings were held at the following times:
• Thursday, May 4th at 6:00 pm
• Saturday, May 6th at 10:00 am
A weekday evening and weekend morning were selected to provide varying windows of time and opportunity for attendees to join. The Thursday meeting on May 4 received three attendees. The Saturday meeting on May 6th was not attended by any members of the public.

In addition to the formal presentation given, the team held an open-ended discussion to gather input from the community on the two study areas.

For the Downtown Study Area, the team asked: “As the Downtown Business Corridor develops into a more vibrant commercial and community space, what does a successful vision for parking look like to you?” The technical team recorded several individual responses and placed them on a map of the study area, as shown in Figure 29 on page 82. Responses included:
• “Are two through lanes in downtown needed?”
• “Could pocket parking help connect Pierson with other areas? Use empty lots to create new connectivity options?”
• “Small pocket parking areas could also be more convenient to different events going on throughout the area.”
• “Greenscape and lighting to make environment safe and welcoming.” • “Enjoy parking at St Elizabeth’s lot for city events. It makes it easy and convenient to go from neighborhood to neighborhood and don’t have to cross as many streets.” • “Enjoy visiting main drag in Palm Springs. Agreed that pocket parking areas like in Palm Springs are helpful and tie things together.”
Participants were generally supportive of changes to parking in the downtown area and wanted parking to be one component of a more vibrant, active, and family-friendly place to visit.

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82 Figure 29: Screenshot of Downtown Study Area Comments Source: IBI Group, 2023.

For the Industrial Cannabis Study Area, the team asked: “As development continues in the Industrial District/Cannabis Corridor, what are your highest priorities for how people get to their jobs?” The technical team recorded several individual responses and placed them on a map of the study area, as shown in Figure 30 on page 83. Responses included:
• “Not completely on topic but the hazards I see on Two Bunch Palms are related to how traffic is separated between driving through and turning into off-site parking. I know it's a two-lane road, but if these can be better partitioned, I would feel safer. Thank you.” • “Need to identify major arteries and plan for traffic along them.” • “West side of Little Morongo: turnouts could be developed with better signage - wayfinding and to slow drivers down.”
• “Need to better understand how people are getting to/from the area and other cities - which routes are they taking?”
• “New development south in particular will increase traffic.” • “Welcome signage / city identity could be improved.”
• “Safe pull-out areas along major roads.”
Participants were broadly supportive of changes that could help reduce conflict between parking activity and passthrough travel in the Industrial Cannabis Study Area.

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83 Figure 30: Screenshot of Industrial Cannabis Study Area Comments Source: IBI Group, 2023.

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84 Although attendance at the virtual community meetings was low, the community members who did attend provided valuable insights and ideas. Their comments were also consistent with previous feedback from the other community outreach and engagement efforts, highlighting the community’s desire for traffic safety improvements, better walking and biking infrastructure, attractive public spaces, and improved signage and wayfinding.

Summary of Key Takeaways from General Public Outreach
Table 10 below summarizes key takeaways from the general public outreach completed for the project.

Table 10: Key Takeaways from General Public Outreach
Outreach Touchpoint Key Takeaways
Holiday Parade • The most popular items that voting activity participants wanted to see more of were on-street programming, multi-modal streets, and safety improvements. • Open-ended comments also focused on safety and active transportation, suggesting more sidewalks in residential areas, safety treatments at intersections for pedestrians, and protected bike lanes. • Parents who visited the booth were highly supportive of efforts to make walking a safe option for their children by adding sidewalks and safety treatments at intersections.

Parking Survey • Most survey respondents drive themselves as their primary form of transportation, but several use alternative modes for at least some trips. • When asked how likely they would be to switch to an e-bike or scooter for some of their trips if the City provided safe bike infrastructure and secure parking, 25 percent of respondents indicated they would be at least “somewhat likely” to do so.
• Survey respondents were divided on whether parking in the city is easy and whether they would be willing to park in a central location and then walk to multiple destinations.
• Some respondents had safety concerns; 25 percent at least “somewhat disagreed” that they generally feel safe walking to and from their parked car. • Survey respondents were less supportive of the more innovative parking approaches presented such as reuse of excess parking for other uses, shared parking between uses, and the supporting environmental/sustainability goals.

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85 • Survey respondents highlighted areas on the map where they desired to see improvements, including:
o Reducing traffic speeds
▪ Downtown—along Palm Drive
▪ Industrial Cannabis Area—Two Bunch Palms Trail and Little Morongo Road
o Adding crosswalks
▪ Downtown—at the intersections of 1st Street/Palm Drive and Acoma Avenue/Palm Drive
▪ Industrial Cannabis Area—on Two Bunch Palms Trail, adjacent to the major employers in the Cannabis Industrial Study Area o Adding protected bike lanes
▪ Downtown—near Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard
▪ Industrial Cannabis Area—along Two Bunch Palms Drive and on Little Morongo Road
o Adding bike parking
▪ Downtown—near Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard
▪ Industrial Cannabis Area—N/A
o Adding sidewalks
▪ Downtown—in the residential area along Acoma Avenue
▪ Industrial Cannabis Area—throughout the area along Two Bunch Palms Trail and Little Morongo Road
o Adding lighting
▪ Downtown—in residential neighborhoods
▪ Industrial Cannabis Area—near major employers and
intersections
o Adding signage and wayfinding
▪ Downtown—on Palm Drive, north and south of the main
intersection at Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard
▪ Industrial Cannabis Area—N/A
Direct Employee
Outreach
• Most people are not aware of SunRide micro transit or regional commuter incentive programs.
• Community members—both DreamFields employees and others in the area— would appreciate solutions that save employees from waiting an hour to enter the parking lot.
• Some people rely on active transportation, but many people are not interested in commuting this way due to weather, safety, and distance. • Community members are concerned about street safety, especially for pedestrians on Two Bunch Palms Trail.

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86 Virtual Community
Meetings
• Attendees were interested in using parking to create more walkable connections in the Downtown area, and to increase safety in the Industrial Cannabis Study Area.
• Attendees seemed generally aware that Desert Hot Springs is growing and will need to plan for that growth with adjustments to traffic and parking strategies.

Source: IBI Group and Walker Consultants, 2023.

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87 •
05 Recommendations
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88 Recommendations
Introduction
This chapter introduces parking management options for Desert Hot Springs that incorporate existing conditions findings, community feedback, future growth expectations, and the goals of the Southern California Association of Government’s (SCAG’s) policy goals for equity, environment, and efficient use of the curb. As a young city with significant growth forecast for the coming years and a demonstrated enthusiasm for policy innovation, Desert Hot Springs has a unique opportunity to step outside of the status quo and take a more strategic approach to parking and access planning.

Every transportation system that requires a vehicle consists of three crucial components—the vehicles, the right of way, and the terminal capacity. For cars, terminal capacity means parking spaces. Many small cities in the early stages of their growth have simply replicated the policies of peer cities and standard engineering formulas that require an increasing number of parking spaces on every parcel. However, these policies and requirements have not considered the larger impacts and unintended consequences that such policies have. Traditional policies have resulted in a significant amount of public and private space in communities devoted to vehicle storage.

Driving alone is the primary means of transportation in every community in the Coachella Valley. However, this does not mean more auto-infrastructure is always better; on the contrary, it requires that we carefully size the infrastructure we plan, because it is highly space-intensive, capital intensive, and has implications for how all people have access to goods, services, public space, their jobs, and their homes.

Further, we know that how parking is provided has an enormous impact on how we choose to travel, because it increases distances between destinations (such as in the downtown commercial district with goals for walkability) and by making modes other driving more challenging to use, particularly for the young, seniors, and differently abled people. Research has demonstrated that these past policies have numerous detrimental effects, including:
• Increased driving and need for parking as a result of land use patterns and design that encourages or requires driving for most or all trips.
• Increased challenges for those who do not or cannot drive, including youth, seniors who cannot drive, economically and physically disadvantaged people.
• Significant added costs and regulations on the development of all property types, commercial and residential, creating a hindrance to economic development. • Overall higher personal transportation costs for residents and employees in the City in the form of the costs to purchase, insure and maintain vehicles as a result of more and longer automobile trips. • Increased heat island and other negative environmental effects. • An inordinate amount of public and private space dedicated to the automobile including impacts on the design and the aesthetic of the community.

From an equity perspective, a transportation system that relies only on driving alone entrenches residents and workers in a cycle of automobile dependency, which has been extremely costly on both an individual and societal level. Often, households see no alternative but for every adult to purchase, insure, and maintain their own private Item Number: 6.

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89 vehicle, a significant personal expense for those already experiencing financial hardship. At the city level, a transportation and land use system that relies almost exclusively on private vehicles also increases fatalities, air pollution, and housing costs. Parking can be an enormous expense for the city to maintain. In addition, excess parking contributes to environmental harms including stormwater runoff, habitat destruction, and urban heat island effects, and undermines social equity, community, and public health.

Parking is a crucial component of the transportation system; however, when we identify acres of spaces that never or rarely park cars, we identify an asset that is not serving the community, businesses, or residents.

Desert Hot Springs can continue to accommodate private vehicles while also developing innovative strategies to balance the extent to which they are prioritized and thoughtfully right-size the amount of parking that is provided for new development. Considering the strong relationship between parking policy, development patterns, and private automobile dependency, the City can proactively shape new growth and gradually bring about a future in which walking, biking, and shared mobility solutions are at least equally available, affordable, and appealing.

Community Input
Community outreach at the Parade of Lights and Holiday Festival revealed that many community members have a strong desire to be able to safely walk and bike throughout their City. Members of the Downtown Steering Committee shared this desire, highlighting a vision in which both residents and tourists would be able to use electric bicycles and scooters to access downtown. Community members and committee members also shared the desire to promote land uses that contribute to economic vitality. Several community assets were identified, including:
• The hot springs and hotels
• Cannabis businesses
• Vacant properties with development potential
• “Hidden gem” hiking trails
• Joshua Tree visitors passing through or staying in the City Transportation and land use planning can recognize the value of these community assets and help maximize their potential for the City. The Downtown Steering Committee also uplifted the City’s youth as a community asset, as children under 18 comprise over a quarter of the Desert Hot Springs population. Planning efforts can make it possible for children to safely travel to and from school, participate in activities, and visit friends without relying on an adult to drive them, and can also increase the likelihood that today’s children have both the desire and ability to stay and contribute to the community once they enter the workforce.

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90 Overarching Long-Term Vision
To achieve multiple policy objectives, long-term strategic planning efforts would right-size parking to serve the City efficiently and effectively, while at a minimum providing residents and employees with real transportation choices, balancing different modes of transportation so that more travel within the City could be shared, or accomplished by walking, biking, or neighborhood electric vehicles.2 Throughout the state, cities are eager to become more walkable and bike-able to attract new residents, to provide current residents with the health and wellness benefits of purposeful and recreational exercise and fresh air, and to reduce automobile-related fatalities. The goal of improving multimodal transportation is particularly relevant for Desert Hot Springs, as cities that are safe for walking and biking especially benefit children, who are too young to drive, and lower-income residents, for whom private vehicle ownership depletes a substantial share of their financial resources.

A significant body of research has shown how large swaths of parking can encourage or force people to drive more and, in some cases, own additional vehicles. Surface parking lots create sprawl and consume vast amounts of valuable land, which cities would often like to use for housing, businesses, community amenities, and open space conservation. Developing strategies to limit and consolidate the parking footprint clearly aligns with City, regional, and state goals for economic development, civic space, transportation, and the environment. As the City pursues the goal of expanding transportation options, plans will still consider the perspectives of businesses whose customers and employees may expect or prefer to drive and park. Strategies should continue to ensure parking availability and accommodate private vehicle travel, while also helping the City gradually transition to support a balance of transportation options and more sustainable land use patterns in the future. The key is to provide flexibility and freedom of choice for people moving about, and to and from, Desert Hot Springs. 2 As the price of cars become more expensive, and small electric vehicles, batteries and clean electricity become cheaper, transportation planners are seeing a future where NEVs become a real option and part of people’s daily lives.

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91 Summary of Parking and Access Recommendations
for Downtown and the Industrial Cannabis District
The following recommendations are organized around six short-term strategies and three potential longer-term strategies supported by existing conditions findings, established General Plan policies, and community and stakeholder feedback. The strategies may be relevant citywide, but this analysis gives specific attention to parking and access opportunities in the Downtown and Industrial Cannabis study areas (as shown in Figure 2 and Figure 3 in the Introduction beginning on page 21).

Recommended short-term parking strategies include repealing minimum parking mandates, facilitating shared and public parking, discouraging private and reserved parking, incentivizing mixed-use and infill developments, and supporting walking, biking, and shared mobility solutions to reduce the demand for parking. Each of these strategies complements and builds on the others.

Longer-term strategies that may become relevant farther into the future include applying parking management techniques and then managing public parking based on demand as warranted, investing in new parking technologies, and establishing parking benefit districts. Table 1 outlines these recommendations. The strategies are not entirely new for Desert Hot Springs. We note their consistency with the General Plan and appropriateness for each study area. The following sections present an analysis of each strategy, including an explanation of how each could be implemented, the purpose of the recommendation, supportive General Plan policies, potential impacts for each study area, and high level financial implications and staffing requirements for the City. A more thorough review of financial considerations and possible funding sources is included in Appendix D.

Table 11: Summary of Parking and Access Recommendations for Desert Hot Springs Summary of Parking and Access Recommendations
Strategy
Consistency with
General Plan
Appropriate for
Downtown
Study Area
Appropriate for
Industrial Cannabis
Study Area
Short-term and Ongoing Strategies
Repeal minimum parking requirements X X X
Facilitate shared/public parking X X X
Discourage unshared parking X X X
Allow for mixed-use and infill developments X X X
Support walking, biking, and shared mobility
solutions
X X X
Potential Longer-term Strategies
Manage public parking based on demand X X X
Invest in new parking technologies X X X
Create a parking benefit district X X X
Prepare to manage public parking with
dedicated City or contract staff
X X X
Source: Walker Consultants, 2023.

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92 Short-Term and Ongoing Strategies

1. Repeal Minimum Parking Requirements
Explanation and Rationale
Parking in Downtown Desert Hot Springs is ample, with nearly two thousand spaces in the study area sitting vacant during the observed peak demand period. These spaces are valuable real estate and represent a capital asset as well as a potential economic development tool. It does not make sense for businesses to be required to build more than they think necessary when there is so much abundance.

The City’s development code establishes specific requirements for how many parking spaces must be included with various land use projects based on metrics such as per 1,000 square feet of various uses. These mandates do not account for the cost to provide parking, the opportunity cost of the land and related economic impacts, and in some cases are not aligned with actual parking demand, which varies significantly, particularly in a downtown district. If too low, businesses can typically build more spaces than are required. But if the parking requirement is higher than what developers think is needed, the requirement can constrain new development and prevent entrepreneurs from opening or expanding businesses when a parcel is unable to accommodate the number of required parking spaces for their proposed land use. The requirements work against the City’s economic development goals and the community’s desire for a vibrant downtown by, in some cases, requiring as much square footage of parking as productive square footage. Repealing parking requirements does not require that less parking be provided. Instead, it creates flexibility in the development process, allowing property owners to evaluate for themselves how much parking they need. This strategy has been proven to spur economic development, in part by helping to facilitate the adaptive reuse of buildings or lots that are currently vacant and reduce the number of empty parking spaces in the City, a drag on the economy, tax base, and vibrancy of a city.

Minimum parking mandates also run contrary to sustainability goals, forcing property owners to subsidize car ownership and storage, which is inconsistent with the overarching General Plan vision of gradually reducing vehicular trips and miles traveled and the environmental, equity, and innovation goals of the SCAG Parking Bundle scope. Repealing parking minimums supports efficient land use and economic revitalization, as is demonstrated in some of the cities and their staff that we surveyed for this study. Relaxing demands on property owners and businesses to dedicate a significant portion of their property to reserved parking spaces, which often sit empty most or all of the time, provides all parties with flexibility in offering parking and access solutions, not just adding more parking to areas such as the downtown core where empty parking is already abundant. Flexibility in how parking spaces are provided and allocated creates financial incentives and savings opportunities for the City, businesses, and builders to provide only the parking needed, and for residents, households, and employees, to have options other than driving and parking for all their trips.

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93 Examples of Cities that have Repealed Minimum Parking Mandates As the benefits of reducing or eliminating required parking have become more understood, dozens of cities in just the past two to three years have repealed their minimum parking requirements. Cities have recently updated their development codes to allow for more flexibility than allowed by traditional zoning regulations, flexibility that promotes business. Some cities have eliminated minimum parking mandates for nonresidential uses citywide, others have eliminated minimum requirements for all land uses downtown, and still others have created an exemption for downtown commercial and public land uses. Walker researched and contacted staff members at several cities with flexible parking standards or that have recently changed the parking requirements in the development codes to better understand the rationale behind these particular cities’ policies, the results, and any complementary strategies recommended. The cities range in population size from 7,695 to 95,230 people. Their experiences with repealing minimum parking requirements range from somewhat underwhelming to very positive; no city reported any negative outcomes resulting from their policy change. These case studies show how the policy can work for small cities, including cities that do not yet have an abundance of transit or multimodal infrastructure, cities with extreme weather, including high wind speeds, and cities with significant levels of tourism. Table 12 below lists five cities, their populations, their changes to minimum parking requirements, and the year the changes were implemented. The subsequent sections provide additional information that was shared regarding the rationale, results, and complementary strategies used in these cities.

Table 12: Case Studies of Cities with Changes to Minimum Parking Requirements City Population Year Implemented Changes to Minimum Parking Requirements Fayetteville,
Arkansas
95,230 2015 • No minimums for non-residential uses
citywide
• Maximums for all uses
• Parking reductions available for
residential uses
Laramie,
Wyoming
31,659 2010; 2018 • 2010: Eliminated commercial parking requirements downtown
• 2018: Eliminated residential parking
requirements downtown for 10 units or
less
• 2018: Reduced parking requirements
citywide
Wickenburg,
Arizona
7,695 2021 • Eliminated parking minimums
downtown
• Decreased requirements in other
commercial zoning districts
Boulder City,
Nevada
14,879 2014 • Eliminated parking minimums
downtown
29 Palms,
California
27,435 2022 • Eliminated parking minimums for
commercial and public uses in the
downtown commercial core
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94 • Other parking requirements may be
reduced 25% if parking is shared and
posted as public parking
Source: Walker Consultants, 2023.

Case Study Cities’ Rationales
Fayetteville, AR:
• Nonresidential parking requirements were a barrier to redevelopment, especially in the city’s downtown.

People seldom applied for a variance. Fayetteville planners initially wanted to abolish parking mandates in just downtown. But no-one could identify a boundary for the reform that made sense, and citywide repeal seemed fairer.
• The City wanted people to have more choice and flexibility to provide the amount of parking that works best for their commercial projects and businesses.

Laramie, WY:
• Parking requirements were a barrier to development in the city’s downtown. Even when a property might have received a variance, the uncertainty and unpredictability of the approval could be enough to dissuade someone from trying to open a business, especially small business owners.

Wickenburg, AZ:
• Existing public parking was not at capacity.
• Planning Commission and Council were presented with research and acted accordingly.

Boulder City, NV:
• Their downtown was already built out, and flexible parking standards were necessary to allow redevelopment and use changes.
29 Palms, CA:
• Eliminating minimum parking requirements was part of a “park once and walk” strategy established in the Downtown Specific Plan to facilitate development, in part by concentrating public parking in specific locations, part of the city’s overall Project Phoenix to focus development incentives and create a critical mass of destinations in the downtown.

Case Study Cities’ Results
Fayetteville, AR:
• Most developments and redevelopments still provide parking, but the flexibility makes more projects viable. A project that was viable when allowed to choose to provide 12 spaces would not have been possible if it had been mandated to build 16 spaces, according to the old requirements.

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95 • A restaurant was built on a site that had sat vacant for 40 years, which had only five parking spaces on-site.

Previously, the redevelopment would have required 41 spaces. Customers still show up; people are willing to park and walk to the restaurant (see Figure 31).
• Another vacant lot was converted into nine apartments, two offices, a smoothie shop, and a taproom (see Figure 32).

Figure 31: Restaurant redevelopment in Fayetteville, AR on a site that had been vacant for 40 years Source: Sightline Institute, 2022.

Figure 32: Vacant lot development in Fayetteville, AR
Source: Sightline Institute, 2022.

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96 Laramie, WY:
• Prior to the parking reforms in 2010, the city had about 25% vacancies in the downtown, and the existing commercial spaces had significant turnover, demonstrating that they were not necessarily the right fit for downtown. Now, the downtown is said to have no vacancies and more stability in the businesses. They have a mix of restaurants, breweries, general retail – outdoor equipment, clothing, etc., personal services. • Even during the downtown’s typical busy times, there is usually a parking space available within two blocks.

During events, people may walk six to eight blocks.
• Not only have more businesses located downtown since the elimination of parking requirements, but a few new buildings have also been built; property owners are able to maximize the revenue potential of their property.
• One grocery co-op relocated to a larger space with residential apartments constructed above. • The past few years have been the “best ever” for the city’s downtown in terms of sales tax revenue. While these results cannot be attributed entirely to the parking code change, at a minimum, city staff said that the code change certainly has not hurt business.

Wickenburg, AZ:
• Some excess commercial parking is already being redeveloped into a building addition (see Figure 33). • “We do have a large museum project proposed downtown and while it has not been constructed, they are going to be able to maximize their space and self-determine how much parking they will need rather than the government telling them how many spaces they need for their use. The whole theory of eliminating the parking minimums has been well received by the community. Park once, walk around.”

Figure 33: Building Addition Made Possible by Parking Code Update in Wickenburg, AZ Source: Wickenburg, Arizona - Community Development Staff.

Boulder City, NV:
• Their downtown was already built out, but city staff credits flexible parking standards with helping keep retail and office vacancies low, even despite the pandemic and the development of a new interstate that bypassed their downtown.

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97 29 Palms, CA:
• The new downtown plan, consisting of eliminating parking requirements and sharing parking, is bearing fruit. While its success in attracting new businesses and destinations can be attributed to more than the elimination of parking requirements, the plan could not have been implemented without the change.

Benefits of the overall plan include the approval and imminent construction of a new hotel with approximately ninety-five rooms, the City of Twentynine Palms Visitor Center, and a culinary arts school associated with the local Cooper Mountain College. As a critical mass of destinations develop, the city expects more businesses to be attracted to the area.

Case Study Cities’ Complementary Strategies
Laramie, WY:
• The City owns one public lot and has a lease agreement for another large lot on the outskirts of the downtown area.
• The City is monitoring the effect on parking, and if it ever seems like it was a mistake, they would consider re-implementing parking requirements, but so far the changes are going well.

Boulder City, NV:
• The City has public street parking and public parking lots. • The City highlighted the importance of signage and wayfinding showing where parking is available. 29 Palms, CA:
• The Downtown Specific Plan integrates shared public parking lots and pedestrian paseos to increase the acceptable walking distances between parking and downtown destinations. Shared public lots allow parking to be used more efficiently.
• The Downtown Specific Plan also recommends using off-site lots and shuttles for events.

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98 Supportive General Plan Policies
The foundation for eliminating minimum parking requirements has been well established in the City’s planning documents, as identified below. The policies the City puts in place regarding minimum parking mandates be the single most effective policy tool the City can use to facilitate many of these policy goals.

Land Use and Community Design Element Policies
• Policy LU-1.5: Reduce Vehicular Trips and Miles Traveled. Coordinate land use patterns with the Mobility and Infrastructure Element to improve and protect air quality, reduce vehicular trips, and promote active transportation modes and transit use.
• Policy LU-1.6: Infill Revitalization. Encourage revitalization of underutilized and vacant infill properties within the City closest to available infrastructure and community services. • Policy LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning. Maintain and promote the pattern and linkage of land uses citywide to promote mobility choices and healthy lifestyles. • Policy LU-2.7: Higher Residential Density Corridor. Allow higher-density and mixed uses along Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard to encourage shopping, services, and entertainment amenities in closer proximity to established infrastructure and transit services.
• Policy LU-3.6: Commercial Intensification. Encourage the intensification of commercial uses on underutilized and vacant commercial properties within Downtown and along the Pierson Boulevard and Palm Drive corridors.
• Policy LU-3.10: City-owned Land and Resources. Maximize revenue from the utilization of City-owned land and resources.
• Policy LU-4.2: Pedestrian-friendly Environments. Accommodate outdoor cafes and neighborhood-serving uses as a means of promoting pedestrian activity and commercial center vitality. • Policy LU-8.3: Protect Industrial Uses. Limit non-industrial uses within industrially designated areas to protect the viability of those areas for industrial businesses. • Policy LU-8.5: Prioritize Industrial Development. Prioritize business attraction and retention of employment and revenue-generating uses on industrial land.
• Policy LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns. Encourage a land use pattern that preserves the City’s desert environment, limits impact to natural habitat areas, and minimizes sprawl. • Policy LU-12.10: Visual Character. Encourage residential development that enhances the visual character, quality, and uniqueness of neighborhoods and districts.

Mobility and Infrastructure Element Policies
• Policy MI-5.1: Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled. Implement development and transportation improvements that help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by reducing per capita Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT), reducing impacts on the City’s transportation network, and maintaining the desired service levels for all modes of transportation.
• Policy MI-5.2: Sustainable Transportation and Land Use Strategies. Implement sustainable transportation and land use strategies that can effectively reduce vehicle miles traveled. Consider using vehicle daily trips as the benchmark demand for determining potential levels of parking and vehicular congestion. • Policy MI-10.2: Expand Funding. Prioritize funding to improve the built environment for people who walk, bike, take transit, and for other vulnerable roadway users, where fiscally prudent.

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99 Economic Development Element Policies
• Policy ED-2.2: Economic Development. Promote economic development through focused land use planning, flexible development standards, and targeted circulation and infrastructure improvements. • Policy ED-2.3: Streamline Permit Process. Maintain a development permitting process that provides clarity, consistency, and assistance opportunities for new businesses and existing businesses looking to expand.

Impact on the Downtown Study Area
The downtown study area contains
approximately 1,800 parking spaces,
including approximately 800 on-street
spaces at the curb and approximately 1,000
off-street spaces, not including include
single family home driveways and garages
or parking lots with fewer than five spaces.

Observations revealed that overall parking
occupancy for all on and off-street spaces in
the downtown study area was relatively
evenly distributed and ranged from 12
percent to 18 percent—always well below the 85 percent occupancy target. Many parcels are currently vacant, and a vast amount of parking is available downtown, even during the busiest times. Figure 34 displays an image of an underutilized downtown private parking lot.

Interpreted another way, we estimate that this parking occupancy rate demonstrates that typically there are about

8.5 acres of unutilized parking spaces in the commercial core. This unutilized land represents a wasted asset but also a great opportunity for the City and businesses.

Short-term impact: If repealing minimum parking requirements streamlines the adaptive reuse of existing buildings and facilitates redevelopment over existing surface parking lots, this would support the General Plan goals for economic development, density, and commercial intensification while also improving the visual character of the downtown. In the short-term, it could also result in more efficient use of the area’s existing parking resources.

Long-term impact: In the much longer term, if parking were ever to become scarce, this would increase demand for a variety of sustainable transportation options, and potentially even create a source of revenue for the City. The need for greater transportation choice for residents, customers, and employees would become even more apparent. Curb space is a valuable public asset, and in the process of managing parking demand, many successful downtowns end up collecting revenue as a beneficial byproduct, which creates new jobs in the area and supports community amenities—such as active transportation infrastructure, aesthetic improvements such as street trees and landscaping, public Wi-Fi, and clean-and-safe programs—which further increase the attractiveness of the downtown area for new businesses and also encourage residents and visitors to use sustainable transportation whenever possible, creating a virtuous cycle. The result is an attractive civic and commercial space. Opportunities for the use of potential revenue are analyzed in greater depth in the longer-term strategies section.

Source: Google Maps Street View, 2023.

Figure 34: Underutilized Downtown Parking Lot
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Impact on the Industrial Cannabis Study Area
Industrial cannabis is a relatively new land use, and cities with minimum parking requirements are often unsure what the precise requirement should be, as each individual development has its own unique mix of uses and needs.

Indeed, this is the challenge and problem of setting minimum parking mandates, as they are a rigid requirement for capital infrastructure, the demand for which may vary greatly on a parcel-by-parcel basis and over time.

If parking requirements are high, cities force businesses to dedicate land to an unproductive use rather than to revenue generating uses, assuming they have the ability to accommodate the required parking or are able to apply for variances, exemptions, or similar. As mentioned, particularly in employment centers, dedicating large amounts of land to parking also creates a large capital subsidy in favor of driving compared to other modes of transportation, many of which could be more cost effective than driving. If parking requirements are seen as higher than what their business needs, some developers may hesitate to undertake a lengthy and unpredictable process to provide what they believe is the more accurate number of spaces. If parking requirements are too low, property owners may simply trust what they perceive to be the City’s expertise and provide only the minimum required. Without parking requirements, each new development proactively considers how much parking is needed to accommodate parking demand based on the specific activities of their business and anticipated employee schedules. Some business owners develop cost effective and creative solutions to reduce their on-site parking footprint (and traffic generation) while still meeting the transportation needs of employees.

Repealing minimum parking requirements provides the opportunity to free up unproductive land to increase the share of revenue-generating square footage on industrial land in Desert Hot Springs. Observations at existing industrial cannabis facilities revealed that even during peak demand hours, at some facilities, many parking spaces sit empty. Repealing minimum parking requirements may also create new local markets; if property owners take advantage of opportunities to financially benefit from sharing their parking facilities with other establishments when not in use, the overall parking supply in the area will be used more efficiently, effectively increasing capacity.

Detailed Considerations for the Industrial Cannabis Area The City requested that Walker explore an appropriate minimum parking requirement for the cannabis production land use designation in the city as part of the curb management study.

Based on the empirical data collected, our understanding of the City’s needs, and the goals of the study as directed by SCAG, determining a parking requirement for cannabis production was challenging. Nearly all the parking demand in the Industrial Cannabis District is generated by employees. Our goals for this effort are to establish a policy that facilitates the economic development of the area and provides equitable and sustainable access for employees to their place of employment. Consistent with these goals are policies that provide flexibility and choices for both businesses and employees.

Empirical Parking Data from the Industrial Cannabis Area As shown in Table 5 on page 52 in the Parking Supply and Demand chapter, Walker collected data from eight properties in the Industrial Cannabis District, demonstrating that parking demand varied across the sites considerably. The highest ratio (1.88 cars/ksf) was more than seven times the lowest ratio (0.26 cars/ksf), after excluding the high and low outliers (4.96 cars/ksf and 0.22 cars/ksf respectively). The average for all eight properties Item Number: 6.

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(outliers included) was 0.59 cars/ksf. This average ratio is still higher than the current one space per 2,500 sf (0.4 spaces per ksf) required for cultivation, the cannabis land use with the lowest parking requirement.

Different Land Uses within the Cannabis Category
The significant variations in parking demand ratios observed may in part be due to variations within the cannabis land use category. The definition of cannabis uses incorporates at least three different land uses, which have parking demands that appear to vary significantly per square foot of building space:
• Cultivation (with parking currently required at 1 space per 2,500 sf) • Manufacturing, testing, extraction, distribution, and packaging (currently required at 1 space per 750 sf, which is 1.33 per ksf)
• Office – currently required at 4.0 spaces per 1,000 sf • Warehouse – the warehouse land use has been identified as a possible “catch all” requirement for large cannabis facilities. The parking requirement for warehouse space in the city is currently 2.0 spaces per 1,000 sf.
• Dispensary uses were not included in this analysis as they tend to fall into a retail or similar category, which represents a very small percentage of the cannabis related square footage in the district.

Based on these requirements, the amount of parking needed for manufacturing cannabis is more than three times higher than the requirement for cultivation. The parking requirement for general warehouse is higher still.

A precise breakdown of the cannabis use square footage within these parcels could not be determined. To respond to the needs of their business operations, cannabis businesses may sometimes need to shift their built square footage between uses. This not only makes determination of the accurate parking ratios generated by cannabis land uses challenging, but it also demonstrates the problematic nature of establishing a parking requirement for cannabis facilities. Flexibility is necessary, but difficult when establishing a required parking ratio.

Establishing a parking requirement will, in many instances, result in more parking than needed being required, limiting the productive square footage of the sites (and therefore the ability of each site to generate the per-squarefoot cannabis tax). As noted, the requirement also reduces flexibility.

We note that there has been mounting, and unrefuted evidence in planning and development circles that minimum parking requirements constrain businesses and development. Further, requirements incentivize employees to drive at the expense of other modes of transportation, from carpooling (which we observed occurring during our data collection and in conversations with staff at cannabis facilities) to transit, bicycling and walking, and other modes.

In sum, we see establishing one-size-fits-all parking requirements as not just problematic for businesses but as having negative consequences on traffic, emissions, and equity.

Additional Considerations
Concern over parking requirements in the cannabis industrial district stems from parking spillover along unimproved curb areas along Two Bunch Palms Trail. Our understanding and most recent observations is that this issue stems largely from one employer and has largely dissipated due to shifting employees on one parcel to another location that has adequate parking. However, a related issue to the same problem, significant queuing along Two Bunch Palms prior to shift changes has remained until recently. We note that new parking requirements Item Number: 6.

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typically cannot be applied retroactively. Therefore, the issue in question is related to only one property of several in the district and will not be solved by a change in parking requirements.

Based on these findings, we make the below recommendations.

Strategic Goals for Parking and Access Policy in the Cannabis Industrial Area We recommend a parking and access policy for the cannabis district that:
• Facilitates business and economic development.
• Encourages flexibility to address changes to business needs. • Encourages equitable and green transportation through the facilitation of non-drive-alone modes of access including shuttles and transit, micromobility, and active transportation, and not just parking, which is land and capital intensive, and the requiring of which tends to be inflexible.

Recommended Approach for the Cannabis Industrial Area
We recommend the following parking and access strategies in the cannabis district:
• Refrain from maintaining a specific minimum parking requirement for cannabis uses in the district, as doing so imposes inflexibility, and potentially unnecessary costs, and an inaccurate requirement that may constrain business development.
o To the extent the City is concerned that the lack of a requirement could result in parking issues, the City could require that a parking and access study be performed for approvals, in lieu of a specific or inflexible requirement. Such a requirement is typical for large or varied land uses, such as medical centers. Parking studies could also be required for developments over a specific number of square feet, such as 10,000 sf.
o Based on the findings from our empirical data, we advise not to require more than 0.85 spaces per 1,000 sf if a parking requirement is desired, but again highlight that businesses could provide additional spaces as they see fit.3 Again, a parking study could be allowed to justify a variance. • Reduce the demand for on-site private parking lots by pursuing the other, complementary strategies included in the next sections of this report.

Financial Implications and Staffing Requirements
Eliminating minimum parking requirements can facilitate new development and adaptive reuse, increasing the economic vibrancy and generating new revenue for the City. An additional benefit may be that when new developments are no longer required to subsidize vehicle storage for residents or employees, the true value of public curb space will become more apparent, and the City may have opportunities to leverage this value to support priorities identified by community members and local business owners.

Repealing minimum parking requirements is a strategy that requires only a simple ordinance and involves relatively minimal staff time to implement. It can also reduce demands on Planning staff by streamlining the permitting 3 Six of the eight properties surveyed had parking demand ratios of 0.85 spaces or less. We note that five of the properties had parking demand ratios of 0.64 spaces or less. The two properties that had higher parking demand ratios likely had significant office components.

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process for new developments. Should the strategy eventually result in higher demand for on-street parking, additional staff time will be necessary to develop a management plan and enforce any new regulations.

2. Facilitate Shared/Public Parking
Explanation and Rationale
The traditional approach to municipal parking regulations has been to require dedicated on-site parking for each land use. However, this nearly always results in an inefficient use of land that also degrades the visual character and environment of an area, as most parking spaces sit empty most of the time. Different land uses often experience peak parking demands at different times of day and days of the week, creating opportunities for shared parking in areas with a mix of uses. For example:
• Offices and banks experience peak demand during weekday business hours. • Movie theatres experience peak parking demand at night and on weekends, as well as the second half of December.
• Peak parking demand at religious institutions occurs on weekends and weekday evenings. • Health clubs experience peak parking demand in January, while most retailers experience peak parking demand in the week in December leading up to Christmas. • Residential buildings and hotels have their highest parking demand overnight.

When each land use has its own private and reserved parking supply, parking usage data demonstrates that there is a wasteful increase in the total parking footprint in suburban areas, reducing the amount of land available for business activity, housing, community amenities, and open space. Some researchers have estimated that there are approximately seven empty parking spaces for every vehicle. If Desert Hot Springs can increase the share of parking that is publicly available or shared among various users, excess parking can be transformed, and valuable land can be preserved as nature or used more efficiently. Providing shared parking instead of dedicated parking can reduce the amount of parking that needs to be constructed by ten to more than thirty percent, freeing up land for more businesses, amenities, or public space.

Furthermore, when parking is private and reserved for a particular property, visitors are more likely to drive even when multiple destinations are within a short walking distance, such as in a downtown. All the additional private parking increases distances between businesses incentivizes or forces people to drive between destinations.

Shared parking gives visitors the option to “park once” and walk. The strategy encourages pedestrian activity by allowing many small parking facilities to be consolidated into larger shared lots, reducing the visual impact of surface parking lots and making walking more practical and pleasant. Some small lots, especially in the downtown area, may be revitalized as outdoor dining, pocket parks, and civic spaces. Alternatively, more efficient use of offstreet parking resources could allow for the repurposing of street parking—facilitating beautification projects or improving safety for walking and biking.

To summarize, the two main benefits of shared parking are:

1. To allow for more economically efficient and community-serving land uses.

2. To enhance the visual character of an area and promote walkability.

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Both benefits can apply anywhere in the City, but as later sections explain, allowing more economically efficient land uses may be especially relevant for the industrial cannabis study area, while promoting walkability and enhancing the visual character is especially relevant for the downtown. The recommended strategies for implementing shared parking in each study area also differ.

Why Shared Parking in Downtown Desert Hot Springs?
Based on our observations, it would be beneficial to consolidate the supply of parking in the Downtown area, through public action, efforts by the private sector, or a combination of the two, for the following reasons:

1. Efficiency: When different land uses share parking, fewer parking spaces are needed to accommodate demand. Shared parking is efficient. Based on Walker research, the reduced need for parking resulting from sharing spaces can range from 10% to more than 35%. This is a key reason to minimize private parking lots in Downtown Desert Hot Springs. Private parking lots necessitate that a district have more parking spaces than it would if parking were shared, and then those spaces sit empty most of the time. The result is less land devoted to businesses, other destinations, job- and sales-tax generating land, and housing.

2. So as not to create even more parking spaces where parking is already oversupplied: There is an overabundance of parking in the Downtown Desert Hot Springs commercial corridor. To the extent the excess supply of parking can be made available to nearby businesses or parcels, this should be allowed to take place.

3. Enhance the visual character of Downtown and promote walkability: Both visual character and walkability key ingredients of a successful central commercial and civic area.

4. Facilitates the removal of parking requirements: Shared parking facilitates the removal of minimum parking requirements, and vice versa. When parking is available to share, it provides options for business to have parking provided in locations other than on site, allowing businesses and developers to maximize the developable square footage of their property.

The need for fewer parking spaces also results in the need for lower costs to provide parking for businesses, and potentially residents.

Where to Provide Shared Parking Downtown
There are several ways – and locations where - shared parking can be provided in the Downtown District. Shared parking is already occurring using the on-street parking supply.

On-street parking:

1. At the curb: Approximately half the parking spaces in Downtown Desert Hot Springs are already shared, the approximately 800 spaces quantified at the curb. Many commercial districts rely heavily on curb parking turnover to accommodate customers making quick trips. A key advantage of curb parking is that it is spread uniformly throughout the area. Curb spaces are typically in the highest demand. These days, they may compete for space with bike lanes, although a wide right-of-way allows for both.

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2. In the median: Public and shared parking can also be provided in the median. The width of Pierson Boulevard allows for the possible conversion of the median into public parking, a strategy identified by Cal Poly San Luis Obispo urban planning students in their Desert Hot Springs Downtown Concept Plan. Parking spaces in the median add to the parking supply, provide a flexible civic space for events, calm traffic, and provide parking along the length of the commercial district. Several other cities have used the median to expand their supply of shared, public parking:
• The most relevant successful example noted in the Desert Hot Springs Downtown Concept Plan was in another Southern California desert city, Lancaster. • The much smaller city, Pismo Beach, also successfully created public parking in the median along Price Street in its inland restaurant district.
• The City of Hawthorne replaced its median, a former streetcar right-of-way, with abundant public parking along Hawthorne Boulevard.

Like curb parking, angled parking allows for spaces to be distributed uniformly along the Pierson Boulevard corridor. However, these spaces provide less convenient access to businesses and destinations along the curb. Mid-block crosswalks must be provided to make median parking spaces conveniently and more safely accessible.

Off-street parking:

3. In publicly owned parking lots: Many cities provide parking in publicly owned surface lots. The land, capital, and maintenance costs are significant, and in California, historically were mostly covered by the now defunct Redevelopment Agency through tax increment financing. In addition to funding, the challenge of providing public parking in surface parking lots in linear commercial districts is determining locations that will minimize walking distances without devoting prime locations to surface parking.

4. In privately owned surface parking lots: Privately owned parking is typically the most abundant and evenly distributed source of parking in a commercial district. This is certainly true in Downtown Desert Hot Springs, where the private parking supply represents the majority of parking spaces. Through shared parking agreements, privately owned parking spaces shared and available to the public, or even to just a portion of the public (such as employees, who park in the district regularly and would understand how to find and utilize such spaces).

Based on a request by City staff, Walker created a methodology specific to Desert Hot Springs to develop a list of the recommended locations for the City to consider providing off-street public parking, if the consolidation of parking is desired.

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Walking Distances
Based on decades of research, Walker developed the following standards, displayed in Table 13, for rating the walking distance from parking. These distances were developed with inclement weather in mind, such as the severe heat (and wind) experienced in some seasons in Desert Hot Springs.

Table 13: Walking Distance from Parking - Level of Service Standards Level of Service Conditions A B C D
Climate Controlled Walkway 1,000 Ft 2,400 ft 3,800 ft 5,200 ft Outdoor/Covered Walkway 500 1,000 1,500 2,000
Outdoor/Uncovered Walkway 400 800 1,200 1,600
Through a Surface Lot 350 700 1,050 1,400
Inside a Parking Facility 300 600 900 1,200

User Experience
Visitor/Customer X X
Special Event X X X X
Employee X X X
Source: Walker Consultants, 2023.

Our Study Area in Downtown Desert Hot Springs runs along Pierson Boulevard, approximately 7,000 linear feet from Cholla Drive to Mesquite Avenue, and one block to the north and south. By locating off street parking facilities approximately every 1,000 to 1,400 feet along the Pierson Boulevard commercial corridor within the study area, we ensure that no off-street public parking is no more than approximately 500 to 700 feet from any parcel along Pierson. We also note the availability of street parking spaces fronting most parcels, either along the curb or potentially in the median spaces under consideration.

Based on this methodology, Table 14 below displays a list of locations in which to consider the consolidation of private parking into public parking facilities.

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Table 14: Recommended Parking Locations
Proposed Location for
Consolidation of Private Lots into
Public Parking
Rationale Method
Builder Supply site or Along with nearby Saint Elizabeth Church parking, the lot could serve
development east of Palm Drive.

Lease or purchase of spaces.

Saint Elizabeth’s Church Along with nearby Builder Supply parking, the lot could serve
development east of Palm Drive.

Partial lease of spaces.
66200 block of Pierson Near Cactus Drive, south side of street, to serve that portion of the
block. Density of existing
businesses on this block.

Lease or purchase and new
construction of spaces.
66000 block of Pierson Mid to western portion of north
side of this block coverage.

Purchase and construction for land
banking or lease.
65800 – 65900 block of Pierson South side of the street to serve both sides of Via Real.

Likely purchase and construction.

Source: Walker Consultants, 2023.

Sizing of Parking Facilities Based on Downtown Parcels
Even with abundant and underutilized private parking throughout the study area, the City may wish to invest in the purchase, construction, and maintenance of its own parking facilities for any number of goals, including possible land banking, to maintain control for long-term future economic development efforts, or to leave open the possibility of constructing vertical parking facilities, if property values ever warrant such an effort.

Walker determined that typical parcels along Pierson Boulevard are 0.15 acres with dimensions of 136-foot depth by 48-foot width (frontage). This lot size is not efficient for providing parking, and infeasible for vertical parking.

Three combined parcels could potentially allow for self-park vertical parking but would result in a highly inefficient design. We note that for the foreseeable future we view standalone structured parking in the area as economically infeasible and inadvisable for myriad reasons. Even as part of future development, including podium parking, the costs should be carefully considered compared to the economic benefits and policy considerations. Based on City of Desert Hot Springs code requirements, our layouts demonstrated a yield of 13 spaces for one typical parcel, 34 spaces by combining two contiguous parcels, and 52 spaces by combining three parcels (see Figure 35). It should be noted that these drawings and numbers of spaces are conceptual; the number of stalls may be lower due to requirements such as landscaping and factors such as utility access or other variable conditions that may differ by parcel.

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Figure 35: Representative Parcel Sizes and Associated Parking Space Yields Source: Walker Consultants, 2023.

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How to Provide Shared Off-Street Parking
Shared parking agreements may be:

1. City-sponsored;

2. City-facilitated; or

3. Between private parties.

A strategy to increase the off-street supply of public parking while promoting efficiency in the parking system is to develop shared parking agreements with the owners of private parking lots. Leasing of existing parking facilities, long-term or short-term, avoids the large upfront investment (and commitment) of purchasing property.

Municipalities often consider constructing new surface or structured parking facilities to increase parking availability. However, to the extent that some existing private spaces can be made available either to the public or even just to employees who work in the district, a shared parking strategy can increase parking availability and convenience as much or more than developing new spaces.

Parking lot owners may receive a fixed fee from the City (where there is paid parking, they may receive a share of parking revenues) in exchange for allowing public parking, management, and enforcement. Even more beneficial for property owners (but more costly to the City), the City may also provide owners with parking lot maintenance, insurance, signage, enforcement, and other security. Based on the data and findings from this report, the City of Desert Hot Springs can identify private parking lots that are underutilized during periods of high demand and consider arranging shared parking agreements with property owners. These could be parking lots in busier or peripheral areas or on the periphery, for public, employee or other long-term parking.

The City can consider releasing a request for information (RFI) or request for proposals (RFP) to all businesses or property owners in desired locations to gauge interest in a parking lease.

The elimination of minimum parking requirements facilitates the sharing of parking, but the City does not need to control the process. With the elimination of minimum parking requirements, property and business owners have an incentive to create sharing arrangements to benefit one another mutually. Parking is real estate, and one should always or nearly always expect some sort of compensation for the arrangement. Otherwise, shared parking becomes infeasible.

City of San Clemente – A Case Study in City-sponsored Shared Parking Downtown San Clemente is a popular destination frequented by both residents and visitors. The core of San Clemente’s downtown experiences parking shortages at peak times. When the City studied the parking supply, it was found that although the public parking lots were at or near capacity, there was a surplus of 400 spaces in the private parking lots. Rather than constructing new parking resources, which is expensive, San Clemente has developed the Parking Lot Lease Program (“program”). The cost is equivalent to maintaining a parking structure without the capital costs for the purchase of land and improvements. Put simply, the program opens the surplus parking in private lots by converting underutilized private parking lots to public lots, thereby increasing their usage and available parking downtown.

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was conducted during the mid-summer, the peak parking demand period for this beachside community. The analysis concluded that the public parking spaces were heavily utilized while the private parking spaces, although in convenient locations, were not heavily utilized. The private parking lots were averaging 50% capacity utilization during peak demand periods. At the same time, the public parking resources (public lots and public street parking) were nearly 100% utilized. Walker and the City quickly realized that the perceived deficiency of parking in downtown was actually a lack of available and convenient public parking, rather than a critical shortage of parking overall. Walker recommended that the City increase its effective supply of parking by making the underutilized private parking lots open to the public. It was understood that 100% conversion of private lots was not necessary.

Rather, the conversion of several key private lots to public close to the downtown core was the goal.

The challenge in leasing the private lots was to persuade property owners of the benefits of leasing their private parking lots. The City was able to identify several strong incentives that property owners wanted. Executed leases often included the following terms (refer to attachment 5 for sample lease):
• Rental rates began at approximately $350.00/month/10 spaces (but have increased to keep up with inflation and other costs); and
• City funded parking lot improvements including slurry seal and restriping; and • City maintenance of parking lots; and
• City parking enforcement (which owners are reluctant to do because they do not want to offend their customers); and
• City hold harmless and indemnify private property owners from liability resulting from public use; and • Wayfinding signage identifying the private lots as public lots; and • Lease term of 1-year with automatic 30 day renewal thereafter (short term leases are more appealing to property owners who are considering future development of their property).

The terms of the lease proved to be enticing to private parking lot owners. Since the adoption of the program in 2003, nine property owners have participated for an increase of 120 public spaces to the previously pool of 803 public parking spaces in the downtown, resulting in a 15% increase in the effective supply of public parking. Walker studies in 2006, 2008 and 2010 confirmed that the privately-owned lots that have been converted to public lots are now more effectively utilized (averaging 80% utilization).

This program demonstrates how downtowns can increase their effective supply of public parking without a large commitment of public dollars. This program is unique because rather than increasing the overall parking supply by way of physical construction, better management of parking resources is employed by making better use of private parking supply by converting private lots to public use. The program can be successfully implemented in other communities that have an underutilized private parking supply. All it takes is some City initiative in opening private parking lots for public use and then trusting in the ability of smart entrepreneurial property owners to see the benefits of the program.

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City of Twentynine Palms – A Case Study in Providing Shared Public Parking as Incentive for New Development As noted in our discussion of the elimination of minimum parking requirements, in the redevelopment effort of the Twentynine Palms commercial core, new public parking lots and a system of pedestrian paseos that connect these lots to businesses and other destinations in the downtown, have worked in tandem to allow businesses, the new museum, and a new educational institution to make full use of their parcels. Individual land uses consolidated much of their parking in these centralized lots, allowing for the benefits of shared parking.

Supportive General Plan Policies
Land Use and Community Design Element Policies
• Policy LU-1.5: Reduce Vehicular Trips and Miles Traveled. Coordinate land use patterns with the Mobility and Infrastructure Element to improve and protect air quality, reduce vehicular trips, and promote active transportation modes and transit use.
• Policy LU-1.6: Infill Revitalization. Encourage revitalization of underutilized and vacant infill properties within the City closest to available infrastructure and community services. • Policy LU-1.7: Infrastructure. Ensure that infrastructure is integrated into the community concurrently with new development projects.
• Policy LU-1.8: Lot Consolidation. Encourage lot consolidation and utilize land assembly strategies and incentives to promote compatible infill developments.
• Policy LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning. Maintain and promote the pattern and linkage of land uses citywide to promote mobility choices and healthy lifestyles. • Policy LU-2.7: Higher Residential Density Corridor. Allow higher-density and mixed uses along Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard to encourage shopping, services, and entertainment amenities in closer proximity to established infrastructure and transit services.
• Policy LU-3.6: Commercial Intensification. Encourage the intensification of commercial uses on underutilized and vacant commercial properties within Downtown and along the Pierson Boulevard and Palm Drive corridors.
• Policy LU-4.2: Pedestrian-friendly Environments. Accommodate outdoor cafes and neighborhood-serving uses as a means of promoting pedestrian activity and commercial center vitality. • Policy LU-7.6: Innovative Parking Solutions. Allow mixed-use developments to utilize shared parking plans, park once and walk districts, and other innovative and flexible parking strategies. • Policy LU-8.3: Protect Industrial Uses. Limit non-industrial uses within industrially designated areas to protect the viability of those areas for industrial businesses. • Policy LU-8.5: Prioritize Industrial Development. Prioritize business attraction and retention of employment and revenue-generating uses on industrial land.
• Policy LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns. Encourage a land use pattern that preserves the City’s desert environment, limits impact to natural habitat areas, and minimizes sprawl. • Policy LU-11.2: Cluster Development. Encourage proposed projects within designated conservation areas to cluster development to provide for the greatest amount of conservation while respecting surrounding established and planned uses.
• Policy LU-12.10: Visual Character. Encourage residential development that enhances the visual character, quality, and uniqueness of neighborhoods and districts.

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Mobility and Infrastructure Element Policies
• Policy MI-1.3: Multi-Modal. Aim to develop a multimodal and/or multipurpose approach when implementing infrastructure outlined in the Mobility Plan. • Policy MI-2.6: Rights-of-Ways. Use available public rights-of-ways to provide wider sidewalks, bicycle lanes, trail facilities, and transit amenities.
• Policy MI-3.1: Safety Prioritization. Design, plan, and operate streets to prioritize the safety of the most vulnerable roadway user.
• Policy MI-3.3: Adaptive Street Strategies. Repurpose underused roadway space for safety, mobility, and public space improvements using low-cost, temporary solutions. • Policy MI-5.1: Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled. Implement development and transportation improvements that help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by reducing per capita Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT), reducing impacts on the City’s transportation network, and maintaining the desired service levels for all modes of transportation.
• Policy MI-5.2: Sustainable Transportation and Land Use Strategies. Implement sustainable transportation and land use strategies that can effectively reduce vehicle miles traveled. Consider using vehicle daily trips as the benchmark demand for determining potential levels of parking and vehicular congestion. • Policy MI-10.2: Expand Funding. Prioritize funding to improve the built environment for people who walk, bike, take transit, and for other vulnerable roadway users, where fiscally prudent. • Policy MI-11.7: Rights-of-Way. Seek opportunities to integrate mobility and infrastructure planning, particularly to efficiently use rights-of-way.

Open Space and Natural Resources Element Policy
• Policy OS-2.4: Air Quality Goals. Ensure that land use and transportation plans support regional air quality goals, with new development projects reducing vehicle miles traveled and vehicle trips.

Economic Development Element Policy
• Policy ED-2.2: Economic Development. Promote economic development through focused land use planning, flexible development standards, and targeted circulation and infrastructure improvements.

Health and Wellness Element Policy
• Policy HW-1.10: Amenities that Promote Healthy Living. Encourage developments to provide access, facilities, and amenities that connect to trails, encourage walking, and/or provide for other facilities that promote healthy living.

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Impact on the Downtown Study Area
A shared parking strategy for downtown allows visitors to park once and walk from one of multiple central offstreet parking areas. This approach can ensure ample parking is available while also allowing any excess parking to be repurposed for other uses, which has the potential to improve the visual character of the area and making it more appealing to new businesses. The following paragraphs discusses implementation strategy for downtown.

Public ownership and management: One common approach to shared downtown parking is for the City to purchase and manage off-street parking facilities to ensure spaces are available to the public and used efficiently. This could facilitate the redevelopment of small surface lots and result in a more appealing pedestrian environment for the downtown area. Investing in public ownership of several key parking lots may be the most appropriate strategy for achieving the benefits of shared parking in the downtown.

Public off-street parking lots could initially complement the City’s 800 on-street spaces, and if the City successfully transitioned to a more multi-modal future, the lots could later be redeveloped into better community-serving uses. In the short-term, if the City purchases parking facilities for public use, while repealing parking mandates, development may become more attractive, and some potential small businesses may become more feasible and affordable.

Other shared parking strategies may become relevant and feasible much further into the future if there is ever sufficient demand for parking in the downtown study area such that people begin to see parking spaces as scarce and valuable. In that case, downtown business owners may partner with the City to attempt to increase the number of parking spaces available to the public by leasing additional spaces for public management and use, either all the time or outside of an establishment’s typical business hours.

Impact on the Industrial Cannabis Study Area
The primary benefits of promoting shared parking in the industrial cannabis study area are to allow more economically efficient land use, conserve open space, create flexibility for changes of use that might need additional parking, and, in some instances, to accommodate parking needs during shift changes (with on-street shared parking). Additionally, establishments with parking facilities that are vacant much of the time would have the opportunity to monetize their parking. Promoting shared or public parking can help ensure any developments that need more parking or are interested in reducing their parking footprint have opportunities and incentives to pursue an appropriate solution. The opportunity to share parking is more curtailed in this study area given the limited mix of land uses, but even among similar land uses, shared parking is still possible and beneficial.

In the Industrial Cannabis Study Area, the City should (1) allow and promote shared use agreements between private property owners, and (2) make the existing and potential public on-street street parking supply safe and accessible to employees.

Private Shared Use Agreements: The City could help facilitate shared use agreements by conducting outreach to property owners and providing model agreements and administrative assistance for owners who wish to rent parking spaces to one another or to share facilities that are needed at different times (such as religious institutions with peak demand on evenings and weekends, and industrial uses with peak demand on weekdays). New developments will also have a natural economic incentive to explore shared parking opportunities that would allow their business to be feasible on a smaller lot or allow them to use more of their parcel for business activity, rather Item Number: 6.

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than parking. The opportunity to use valuable land within the Industrial Cannabis Overlay more efficiently could make the area more desirable for development activity.

Making Existing Public Parking Supply Accessible: Before considering public investment in ownership of public offstreet parking facilities, Desert Hot Springs should consider the approximately 1,873 potential or existing street parking spaces along the seven streets in the industrial cannabis study area. This represents a significant amount of land already owned by the City, and it has the potential to be an enormous public parking resource.

If these on-street spaces were provided in surface parking lots, they would take up over fourteen acres of land in the district, representing millions of dollars in land. If provided in structured parking facilities, they would represent over fifty million dollars in capital costs alone, not considering land and facility maintenance costs.

The City should first concentrate on making sure that on-street spaces are safely accessible, an effort for which the City should consult its traffic engineer, among others. The effort could involve measures such as creating sidewalks, developing dedicated bike/scooter lanes, narrowing vehicle travel lane widths, reducing speed limits, or installing speed bumps. The City could also install low level dark sky compliant lighting, or encourage the use of flashlights, bike or scooter lights, or head lamps to increase nighttime safety without significantly impacting light pollution.

Infrastructure improvements that improve safety for walking and biking can also be included with new developments, a strategy further explored in a later section.

Financial Implications and Staffing Requirements
There are several vacant properties that include parking for sale in the downtown. The City may invest in purchasing one or more of these facilities to increase the supply of publicly available and managed parking. In the industrial cannabis study area, financial investments would be focused on improving the safety and accessibility of existing and potential on-street parking supply. Increasing the supply of public parking in each of these ways would involve significant capital outlays, but the investments may be worthwhile to improve the economic vitality and overall environment of each area.

City staff time would be necessary to identify downtown off-street facilities for investment, develop a plan for cannabis area street parking safety improvements, and promote shared use agreements among private entities.

3. Discourage Unshared Parking
Explanation and Rationale
When each business or parcel provides its own parking, the result is often acres of underutilized parking spaces that sit empty much of the time. Right-sizing parking allows more public and private land to be used for economic activity, community amenities, and open space. It facilitates more walking, biking and other active transportation opportunities, and more affordable housing. Managing the parking footprint is a key part of the planning effort to accomplish these goals. To transition into a future with more efficient land use patterns, the City may begin simply by seeking to minimize the footprint of unshared parking spaces. The same General Plan policies that support a shared parking strategy also support a strategy of discouraging unshared parking so that parking can be used as needed. The implementation actions for encouraging shared parking and discouraging unshared parking are different but complementary.

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Some cities have enacted commercial restrictions on how much parking can be constructed (parking maximum requirements) in their downtowns, with an exception for parking made available to the public, at least outside of the establishment’s business hours, to discourage large amounts of asphalt that sit open most of the time. Some of these maximum parking allowances exempt any parking that is made available to the public outside of an establishment’s usual hours of operation.

There is also precedent for establishing parking maximums, including those governing marijuana facilities and establishments, in industrial areas of the city. Some cities have converted what were previously minimum parking requirements into standards limiting how much parking may be provided. For example, the City of River Rouge, Michigan, allows the following:
• Commercial marijuana facilities and establishments: A maximum of 3 spaces/1000 square feet • Industrial marijuana facilities and establishments: A maximum of 4 spaces/1000 square feet Beyond the extent to which cost savings opportunities will already do so, parking maximum allowances could encourage developers to consider shared parking opportunities, parking opportunities off-site that could be accessed by shuttles or scooters, and available street parking, rather than paving over greenfield sites.

This study does not recommend strict parking maximums for Desert Hot Springs, but rather the more flexible strategy of soft maximums, which developers may exceed if they also provide similar benefits that will serve those who travel by other modes.

This more flexible strategy for discouraging private and reserved parking involves requiring that transportation demand management (TDM) measures (such as shuttle bus services, vanpool programs,4transportation information displays, multimodal wayfinding signage, secure bicycle parking, showers and lockers, a fleet of bicycles, car-share parking and membership, tailored transportation marketing services, or parking cash-out) be selected from a menu of options and included with new developments, according to the number of parking spaces proposed. This type of Parking and TDM Plan would help offset the negative impacts of providing parking beyond current requirements by also ensuring the inclusion of infrastructure or services that support active transportation and shared mobility.

Often, cities that have implemented parking maximums simply turned their previous parking minimums into maximums, to better align with goals for sustainability, public health, and economic vitality. The City of Desert Hot Springs is advised to follow a similar approach, but using “soft maximums” that may be exceeded through TDM provisions, effectively to help “even the transportation playing field.” This strategy will require the creation of a Parking and TDM Plan that establishes a clear menu of possible TDM options and the number of excess parking spaces each option could potentially mitigate.

Supportive General Plan Policies
Land Use and Community Design Element Policies
• Policy LU-1.5: Reduce Vehicular Trips and Miles Traveled. Coordinate land use patterns with the Mobility and Infrastructure Element to improve and protect air quality, reduce vehicular trips, and promote active transportation modes and transit use.
4 Such as those offered by SunLine Transit and the Riverside Transportation Commission Item Number: 6.

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• Policy LU-1.6: Infill Revitalization. Encourage revitalization of underutilized and vacant infill properties within the City closest to available infrastructure and community services. • Policy LU-1.7: Infrastructure. Ensure that infrastructure is integrated into the community concurrently with new development projects.
• Policy LU-1.8: Lot Consolidation. Encourage lot consolidation and utilize land assembly strategies and incentives to promote compatible infill developments.
• Policy LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning. Maintain and promote the pattern and linkage of land uses citywide to promote mobility choices and healthy lifestyles. • Policy LU-2.7: Higher Residential Density Corridor. Allow higher-density and mixed uses along Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard to encourage shopping, services, and entertainment amenities in closer proximity to established infrastructure and transit services.
• Policy LU-3.6: Commercial Intensification. Encourage the intensification of commercial uses on underutilized and vacant commercial properties within Downtown and along the Pierson Boulevard and Palm Drive corridors.
• Policy LU-4.2: Pedestrian-friendly Environments. Accommodate outdoor cafes and neighborhood-serving uses as a means of promoting pedestrian activity and commercial center vitality. • Policy LU-7.6: Innovative Parking Solutions. Allow mixed-use developments to utilize shared parking plans, park once and walk districts, and other innovative and flexible parking strategies. • Policy LU-8.3: Protect Industrial Uses. Limit non-industrial uses within industrially designated areas to protect the viability of those areas for industrial businesses. • Policy LU-8.5: Prioritize Industrial Development. Prioritize business attraction and retention of employment and revenue-generating uses on industrial land. • Policy LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns. Encourage a land use pattern that preserves the City’s desert environment, limits impact to natural habitat areas, and minimizes sprawl. • Policy LU-11.2: Cluster Development. Encourage proposed projects within designated conservation areas to cluster development to provide for the greatest amount of conservation while respecting surrounding established and planned uses.
• Policy LU-12.10: Visual Character. Encourage residential development that enhances the visual character, quality, and uniqueness of neighborhoods and districts.

Mobility and Infrastructure Element Policies
• Policy MI-1.3: Multi-Modal. Aim to develop a multimodal and/or multipurpose approach when implementing infrastructure outlined in the Mobility Plan. • Policy MI-2.6: Rights-of-Ways. Use available public rights-of-ways to provide wider sidewalks, bicycle lanes, trail facilities, and transit amenities.
• Policy MI-3.1: Safety Prioritization. Design, plan, and operate streets to prioritize the safety of the most vulnerable roadway user.
• Policy MI-3.3: Adaptive Street Strategies. Repurpose underused roadway space for safety, mobility, and public space improvements using low-cost, temporary solutions. • Policy MI-5.1: Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled. Implement development and transportation improvements that help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by reducing per capita Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT), reducing Item Number: 6.

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impacts on the City’s transportation network, and maintaining the desired service levels for all modes of transportation.
• Policy MI-5.2: Sustainable Transportation and Land Use Strategies. Implement sustainable transportation and land use strategies that can effectively reduce vehicle miles traveled. Consider using vehicle daily trips as the benchmark demand for determining potential levels of parking and vehicular congestion. • Policy MI-10.2: Expand Funding. Prioritize funding to improve the built environment for people who walk, bike, take transit, and for other vulnerable roadway users, where fiscally prudent. • Policy MI-10.3: Impact Fees. Ensure that impact fees provide adequate funding for necessary transportation improvements that will benefit all travel modes, while also incentivizing development that is less dependent on expensive, new transportation.
• Policy MI-11.7: Rights-of-Way. Seek opportunities to integrate mobility and infrastructure planning, particularly to efficiently use rights-of-way.

Open Space and Natural Resources Element Policy
• Policy OS-2.4: Air Quality Goals. Ensure that land use and transportation plans support regional air quality goals, with new development projects reducing vehicle miles traveled and vehicle trips.

Economic Development Element Policy
• Policy ED-2.2: Economic Development. Promote economic development through focused land use planning, flexible development standards, and targeted circulation and infrastructure improvements.

Health and Wellness Element Policy
• Policy HW-1.10: Amenities that Promote Healthy Living. Encourage developments to provide access, facilities, and amenities that connect to trails, encourage walking, and/or provide for other facilities that promote healthy living.

Impact on the Downtown Study Area
The downtown study area already has ample parking availability both on- and off-street, and the purchase of a public parking lot or lots—as recommended in the previous strategy—would further ensure that parking is available. In light of these existing and future conditions, implementing soft maximum parking allowances downtown can help ensure future land uses help make the downtown a walkable destination that attracts visitors and new businesses.

Requiring any new commercial or mixed-use developments to include transportation demand management (TDM) strategies, just as has traditionally been done for parking spaces, according to the number of private off-street parking spaces planned in excess of the maximums can help ensure that parking is not oversupplied and that negative impacts associated with off-street parking are offset by equally impactful investments in infrastructure and services supporting active transportation and shared mobility.

Development standards that recognize parking’s impact on travel and land use and attempt to curb the growth of the unshared parking footprint in the Desert Hot Springs are key to gradually developing a sustainable transportation culture. Policy decisions made today can also help bring about a long-term future in which people are less dependent on private vehicles, and in which active and shared modes become more common place.

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Impact on the Industrial Cannabis Study Area
The industrial cannabis study area is within the Industrial Cannabis Overlay, an area where land is particularly valuable for its economic development potential. As in the downtown, “soft” maximum parking allowances could help the City guide the industrial cannabis area’s economic growth and ensure land is used productively. This could further encourage developers to independently pursue shared parking opportunities, parking opportunities off-site that could be accessed by shuttles or scooters, and available street parking opportunities, rather than paving over greenfield sites or otherwise potentially productive land in prime areas.

Transportation access in the Industrial Cannabis Overlay area is first and foremost an exercise in facilitating employees’ access to their jobs. A citywide Parking and TDM Plan could benefit this area. Requiring any new industrial developments to include transportation demand management strategies according to the number of private off-street parking spaces planned in excess of the maximums can help prevent the oversupply of parking and ensure that any negative impacts are offset by equally impactful investments that support active transportation and shared mobility.

Financial Implications and Staffing Requirements
Policies designed to regulate parking and increase the efficiency of land use, especially in key areas such as Downtown Study Area and the Industrial Cannabis Study Area, can bring economic benefits to the City. Regulations should not impede new developments but should create an incentive for developers to think creatively and consider alternative parking and transportation solutions that may work for their development. The only cost to the City for this strategy is staff time developing new ordinances updating development standards.

Initially, staff time will be needed to develop ordinances (1) establishing soft maximum parking allowances citywide, based on previous minimum parking requirements and (2) adopting a Parking and TDM Plan with requirements for the inclusion of TDM measures for new projects that include unshared parking in excess of the soft maximums. If the City provides developers with a clear menu of TDM strategies upfront, including the number of points each strategy is worth and the number of “points-worth” of strategies that must be included based on proposed parking supply, this should streamline the development review process and limit the amount of staff time required for implementation.

4. Allow for Mixed-Use and Infill Development
Explanation and Rationale
Another planning strategy that reduces parking demand and the demands placed on transportation infrastructure, and which also facilitates multimodal access and an improved aesthetic, is developing zoning standards that better support a mix of uses. This can improve proximity and access to different places, reducing the distance and segregation between different types of places, making it possible for more trips to be taken without a car. Mixeduse projects are often more economically viable to develop and can potentially generate additional tax revenue for cities. In many cases, it can make sense to allow commercial or light industrial development on a ground floor with residential units above.

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According to SCAG’s Connect SoCal Demographics and Growth Forecast, the population of Desert Hot Springs is projected to increase from 29,000 in 2016 to 61,000 in 2045, or by approximately 1,100 residents per year. The number of households is projected to increase from 9,300 to 24,700, or by approximately 530 per year. The City already has a plan to allow new housing, but expanding the areas where housing is allowed to be built could help facilitate commercial developments downtown and light-industrial developments within the cannabis overlay.

In addition to supporting project viability, allowing housing to be built over commercial buildings can support businesses by increasing the base of nearby customers. Currently, mixed-use development with residential uses is restricted or prohibited on most land in the project’s study areas. Zoning code update recommendations for consideration include:
• Rezoning all Residential-Low and Residential-Medium areas of the downtown study area to Mixed-Use Neighborhood, which would also allow for higher residential densities. • Legalizing multi-family or single room occupancy housing by-right as an accessory use in all CommercialDowntown and Commercial-General zones, limited to upper floors. • Legalizing upper-level housing units by-right as an accessory use in Light-Industrial zones.

Rationale for these recommendations is further explained in the Impact on the Downtown Study Area section beginning on page 121 and the Impact on the Industrial Cannabis Study Area section beginning on page 122.

Supportive General Plan Policies
Land Use and Community Design Element Policies
• Policy LU-1.5: Reduce Vehicular Trips and Miles Traveled. Coordinate land use patterns with the Mobility and Infrastructure Element to improve and protect air quality, reduce vehicular trips, and promote active transportation modes and transit use.
• Policy LU-1.6: Infill Revitalization. Encourage revitalization of underutilized and vacant infill properties within the City closest to available infrastructure and community services. • Policy LU-1.9: Community Health through Land Use Planning. Maintain and promote the pattern and linkage of land uses citywide to promote mobility choices and healthy lifestyles. • Policy LU-2.7: Higher Residential Density Corridor. Allow higher-density and mixed uses along Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard to encourage shopping, services, and entertainment amenities in closer proximity to established infrastructure and transit services.
• Policy LU-3.10: City-owned Land and Resources. Maximize revenue from the utilization of City-owned land and resources.
• Policy LU-8.5: Prioritize Industrial Development. Prioritize business attraction and retention of employment and revenue-generating uses on industrial land.
• Policy LU-11.1: Efficient Land Use Patterns. Encourage a land use pattern that preserves the City’s desert environment, limits impact to natural habitat areas, and minimizes sprawl. • Policy LU-11.2: Cluster Development. Encourage proposed projects within designated conservation areas to cluster development to provide for the greatest amount of conservation while respecting surrounding established and planned uses.
• Policy LU-12.10: Visual Character. Encourage residential development that enhances the visual character, quality, and uniqueness of neighborhoods and districts.

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Mobility and Infrastructure Element Policies
• Policy MI-1.3: Multi-Modal. Aim to develop a multimodal and/or multipurpose approach when implementing infrastructure outlined in the Mobility Plan. • Policy MI-5.1: Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled. Implement development and transportation improvements that help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by reducing per capita Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT), reducing impacts on the City’s transportation network, and maintaining the desired service levels for all modes of transportation.
• Policy MI-5.2: Sustainable Transportation and Land Use Strategies. Implement sustainable transportation and land use strategies that can effectively reduce vehicle miles traveled. Consider using vehicle daily trips as the benchmark demand for determining potential levels of parking and vehicular congestion. • Policy MI-10.2: Expand Funding. Prioritize funding to improve the built environment for people who walk, bike, take transit, and for other vulnerable roadway users, where fiscally prudent. • Policy MI-10.3: Impact Fees. Ensure that impact fees provide adequate funding for necessary transportation improvements that will benefit all travel modes, while also incentivizing development that is less dependent on expensive, new transportation.

Economic Development Element Policy
• Policy ED-1.9: Cannabis Cultivation. Develop a comprehensive strategy to position the City as the premier center for cannabis cultivation and production businesses and enterprises that support/complement the developing cannabis industry in the Coachella Valley.
• Policy ED-2.2: Economic Development. Promote economic development through focused land use planning, flexible development standards, and targeted circulation and infrastructure improvements. • Policy ED-2.3: Streamline Permit Process. Maintain a development permitting process that provides clarity, consistency, and assistance opportunities for new businesses and existing businesses looking to expand.

Open Space and Natural Resources Element Policy
• Policy OS-2.4: Air Quality Goals. Ensure that land use and transportation plans support regional air quality goals, with new development projects reducing vehicle miles traveled and vehicle trips.

Health and Wellness Element Policy
• Policy HW-1.10: Amenities that Promote Healthy Living. Encourage developments to provide access, facilities, and amenities that connect to trails, encourage walking, and/or provide for other facilities that promote healthy living.

Impact on the Downtown Study Area
Allowing housing to be built over commercial buildings can support businesses by increasing the base of nearby customers or potential employees. Residents who have convenient access to downtown destinations will be more likely to visit, and do so without the need to drive. Expanding the areas where housing is allowed will increase the number of people who can take advantage of planned improvements to the walkability and bike-ability of the downtown. Furthermore, allowing housing as an accessory use allows commercial land to be used more efficiently and can increase property values without compromising the City’s goals for commercial development.

Item Number: 6.