Experience. Leadership. Energy.

CONTINUED FISCAL MANAGEMENT & RESPONSIBILITY 

Our Council continues to approve balanced budgets - without utilizing reserves.  Essential services, such as fire and police, remain fully funded and supported by Council.  We continue to exceed our projections for sales tax and TOT (hotel/short-term rental) tax. Our reserves remain strong and are fully funded, including our pension obligations. Our financial stability is a direct result of fiscally responsible practices, pursuing sensible economic growth, developing new revenue opportunities, and managing our expenses prudently. Our budget remains conservative for the coming year, which has proven successful for La Quinta over the years.     

ENHANCED PUBLIC SAFETY

My number one priority is to ensure strong law enforcement and fire service protection, while managing contract service costs and annual increases effectively. Public Safety comes at a price, and our service and protection will not be compromised. Exploring support services to complement our law enforcement team may assist in ensuring additional outreach and safety, in a fair and equitable manner for all residents. We live in a safe city because of the decisions, commitment, and investment made by our City Council to protect our residents, businesses and visitors. 

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ECONOMIC GROWTH & INFRASTRUCTURE 

Vision Highway 111 Corridor – The City receives nearly 76% of its sales tax from our 2-mile commercial corridor stretch on Hwy 111. Moving from multiple specific plans to a form based code will assistance us with restructuring with businesses and transportation options that will attract new experiences for consumers to our economy. And, with the completion of the Complete Streets Project (roundabouts), the aesthetics in the Village and Old Town area have resulted in safer, slower, more pedestrian-friendly travel, with an artistic component for residents and visitors to enjoy. Roundabouts have improved traffic flow, reduced car emissions, reduced maintenance demands on the roads, eliminated traffic signals, and provided the ability to display public art.  

SilverRock/Talus is also a key factor to ensuring our cities financial future – although this project has been a challenge.  The city is currently in litigation with the developer, who failed to meet completion dates and funding obligations and has now filed for bankruptcy. The overall project involves several parties, all of whom are committed to the completion of the project without the original developer. Once completed, this destination will produce hotel, retail and property tax revenue for years to come. The Montage & Pendry Hotels are exceptional additions to an already diverse travel and resort destination in the Coachella Valley. Hospitality trends are indicating that resorts with open space and less density will recover faster than big city travel. La Quinta is well-positioned for this projected recovery – although it may take longer due to the legal challenges underway.  I remain optimistic.  

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QUALITY OF LIFE & OPEN SPACES 

Preservation of parks, trails, dark skies and open space will enable La Quinta to preserve its charm while promoting a healthy community. As a hiker, I appreciate all that La Quinta offers and I’m proud to support La Quinta as a Healthy Eating Active Living (HEAL) city. We added an outdoor National Fitness Court in North La Quinta near La Quinta High School, providing the ability for free exercise to everyone. The North La Quinta X-Park opened in March 2022, and provides a state-of-the-art experience for all ages – a perfect training ground for future Olympic athletes. La Quinta’s segment of CV Link began construction in late March 2022, and will be completed in 2025. This multi-modal path will provide alternative, safe transportation and additional access to our commercial corridor along Highway 111, the cities primary source for sales tax. 

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SHORT TERM VACATION RENTALS (STVRs)

With additional enforcements and a ban (since Aug 2020) on new permits in certain areas, our STVR program has yielded an improved quality of life while ensuring a strong revenue source for the city. This allows us to fund police and fire services, as well as infrastructure, capital projects, and youth and senior services. Our complaints and number of permits have decreased significantly, which indicates our effort to balance the program is effective. It is essential to find a balance between maintaining our neighborhoods in a peaceful manner while retaining a vital revenue source for our city’s tourism and hospitality segment. Our small businesses rely on our visitors to ensure viability and jobs for our local residents.  A ballot measure to ban the program was defeated in 2022, and the city has since added back home share permits upon approval as we continue to enforce the rules and restrictions for permit operators. 

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