Downtown Development, Automotive Technology Center Coming to Cathedral City

Cathedral City may soon see new educational opportunities and the long vacant downtown strip may soon see new life, thanks to new developments officially announced by Mayor Stan Henry.

Towards the end of a broad state of the city speech on Tuesday, the mayor announced a new 5-acre mixed-use development slated for construction just south of Highway 111 in downtown Cathedral City. . Henry said the project, developed by Newport Beach-based Green Springs Capital, would include around 100 condo units along with available commercial space.

Henry said he had hoped to officially announce a second development in the same area, this one more than twice the size of the Green Springs Capital project, but legal requirements prevented him from doing so. He said the city plans to announce the project soon.

The mayor also announced a new partnership between the city, the College of the Desert and the City Automotive Hub, the city’s largest income producer, to bring a new automotive technology training center to Cathedral City.

“This will not only help support our local car dealerships, but will bring skilled and well-paying jobs to Cathedral City,” he said.

Henry highlighted the progress the city has made in the past three years since he was first elected mayor and three new members have taken up the council. A new city manager and new police and fire chiefs were also hired that year and the city began to call the current set of city officials and staff “Team 2014”, a year that has been a turning point for the city, said Henry.

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Infrastructures and development

About 200 people attended the speech, hosted by the City Chamber of Commerce at the DoubleTree Golf Resort, which focused on improvements made to the city over the past three years, in particular improving infrastructure, revitalization of the city’s art scene and the proliferation of new businesses. .

Henry’s speech was interspersed with videos of his four fellow council members, elaborating in more detail on developments in different parts of the city. These are some of the improvements they each highlighted.

Councilor Mark Carnevale spoke about the future of the area north of Interstate 10 which was annexed by the city:

• A new $ 13 million Best Western is expected to be built in the area.
• “Highway-oriented” food and retail stores, including a Taco Bell, Starbucks and AMPM gas station convenience store, will also be built.
• Date Palm Drive has been recently repaved, making it easier to access this area.

“As you’ve heard, a new hotel, new restaurants and a new road to get them through the door. It’s real progress, ”Henry said after the video.

City Councilor John Aguilar developed the improvements in the city’s northwest quadrant:

• Recent renovations to the Desert Princess Hotel – now the DoubleTree where the speech took place – and the construction of the Staybridge Suites Hotel have resulted in an increase in the amount of transitional occupancy tax collected by the city.
• The city was in the early stages of construction of the Whitewater Bike Path, the Cathedral City part of the CVLink project.
• Newly repaved streets and sidewalks in the Dream Homes neighborhood.

City Councilor Shelley Kaplan detailed two major upcoming infrastructure projects and improvements to a community park:

• Ocotillo Park, formerly known as Whitewater Park, was opened in 2015 and now features athletic fields and a skate park and hosts community events.
• The Date Palm Bridge widening project is currently up for tender.
• The Cathedral Canyon Bridge Project, valued at $ 22 million. Kaplan said recent storms have underscored the need for the project. Flooding has forced the road to close at least six times since the start of the year.

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City Councilor Greg Pettis explained the expansion of the city’s arts district and the medical cannabis industry:

• Cannabis dispensaries have opened in the city’s light industrial areas, mainly along Perez Road. The income from these companies enabled the city to hire new public safety officials, including police and firefighters.
• New art galleries have opened and some existing galleries have grown.

Henry also presented a short video, focusing on downtown development:

• Improvements to the Mary Pickford Theater have made it a venue for the Palm Springs International Film Festival.
• The struggling Desert Cinema will soon be home to the Coachella Valley Repertory.
• Since the creation of the Festivals Lawn outside the Civic Center, the city has been able to host many public events and festivals.

Concluding the speech with a phrase used by each of the council members in their video, Henry told the audience, “If we work together anything can happen.

Corinne Kennedy covers the West Valley for The Desert Sun. She can be reached at Corinne.Kennedy@DesertSun.com, on Twitter @CorinneSKennedy or at 760-778-4625.