The Record
Agendas, minutes, election dates and public safety logs, drawn from Tribune reporting. This page is updated as new items are reported.
Film society names Ron Howard and Brian Grazer for its first Harold Matzner award
The Palm Springs International Film Society will honor Howard and Grazer with the inaugural Harold Matzner Distinguished Achievement Award on October 19, and give emerging filmmaker Karina Lomelin Ripper a $25,000 Impact Award grant.
Hurricane Rachel's remnants could bring heavy rain and flash-flood risk to the valley this weekend
Forecasters warn of rapid flooding in washes, low-water crossings and dry creek beds, echoing Tropical Storm Hilary in 2023. The rain should end the desert's latest heat stretch.
Firebirds' Jani Nyman named AHL Player of the Week after five-goal opening weekend
The 22-year-old Finn scored twice in the season opener, then recorded his first AHL hat trick the next night. The league says he may be the most efficient scorer in Firebirds history.
Bicyclist killed by eastbound driver on East Palm Canyon Drive
A bicyclist died Monday night after being struck in the 3700 block of East Palm Canyon Drive. The driver stayed at the scene and cooperated; police have not identified impairment as a factor.
Car plows through two La Plaza storefronts on Indian Canyon Drive
A driver leaving a parking stall accelerated over the curb Saturday afternoon and crashed through two shops. Police say the driver was the only person hurt and alcohol and drugs were not factors.
The Dinah wraps its 35th, the first under new ownership
The five-day queer women's festival closed its 35th edition Sunday, October 4, with Bella Barkow and Rose Garcia at the helm after founder Mariah Hanson's sale.
The Tramway is back: rotating cars tentatively return to the mountain tomorrow after a month of maintenance
The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway is tentatively scheduled to reopen Monday, October 5, after its annual maintenance closure, kicking off the winter season in the San Jacinto Mountains.
Aubrey O'Day and The Cowgays to headline Palm Springs Pride's 40th
Greater Palm Springs Pride names its first headliners for the November 6-8 celebration, themed "Be Included."
Agua Caliente museum opens rare exhibition of 20th-century Native painting
"A Beauty That Endures," curated by Tony Abeyta, brings more than 50 paintings from the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art to Palm Springs through May 2027.
For the first time, the public can step inside Walt Disney's restored airplane
The Palm Springs Air Museum opens five evening tours of the newly restored interior of Walt Disney's Grumman Gulfstream I, 'The Mouse,' with the first on October 17.
Council extends data center moratorium to 2028, giving zoning rewrite two more years
The unanimous September 30 vote turns the 45-day pause into a nearly two-year freeze, joining Coachella, Indio and Desert Hot Springs in holding the line on data centers while Palm Springs writes the rules.
Demolition begins at the Town & Country Center, clearing the way for Palm Springs' new downtown fire station
Excavators are tearing down part of the historic complex where the city plans its replacement Fire Station No. 1, three months after the council approved a $4 million acquisition and the preservation board signed off on removing two buildings.
Man accused of hurling bottles at Splash House after-party pleads not guilty
Milad Thamer Youssef, 35, of El Cajon faces six felony assault counts over the Aug. 9 melee at the Palm Springs Air Museum. His next court date is Nov. 13 in Indio.
Newsom signs bills easing Joshua tree permits and fees
One bill takes effect immediately, cutting the cost for homeowners to remove or trim up to 10 western Joshua trees. A second streamlines dead-tree permits and expands tribal access, starting Jan. 1, 2027.
October 1 arrives with the Dream Hotel restart in doubt
The amended city agreement set today as the date construction would resume on the long-stalled downtown project. Two prior milestones are already missed, and a financing deadline has arrived unresolved.
Rebuild Palm Springs money will buy a police mobile command vehicle
About $33,934 left from the $159,876 raised after the May 2025 downtown bombing will go to the Palm Springs Police Foundation for a mobile command unit, closing out the fundraiser.
Palm Springs police warn of permit-fee phishing scam targeting property owners
Scammers are impersonating city and county planning and zoning officials, using real addresses and permit numbers to solicit fake fees by wire transfer, payment apps or cryptocurrency.
Newsom signs Tristin's Bill, forcing Caltrans to explain itself on Highway 74 safety
AB 1145, named for a 27-year-old La Quinta man killed by a big rig on Highway 74 in 2024, requires Caltrans to weigh costs and alternatives before rejecting local safety ordinances, and to put rejections in writing.
Agua Caliente purchase of half the Bel Air Greens site stalls the city's housing review
The tribe bought about half of the closed 35-acre golf course in April, The Desert Sun reported, placing it in tribal trust and outside city review. The Planning Commission dropped the 74-home proposal from its September 22 agenda.
Editorial: The Dream Hotel has run out of excuses, and the city should act like it
Nineteen years, two missed milestones this year, and a developer now in default. The council's next move should be its last act of patience.
Three council seats on the November 3 ballot as Palm Springs votes by district
Voters in Districts 1, 2 and 3 will choose their council representatives November 3. Districts 4 and 5 return to the ballot in 2028.
Plaza Theatre's second act: a $34 million restoration, a gala reopening, and a $10 million debt
The historic theater reopened in December with Cynthia Erivo headlining. Nine months later, the foundation is still working to repay the city $10 million.
City Manager Scott Stiles to retire November 1 after three and a half years leading Palm Springs
Stiles, who joined the city in March 2023 after seven years running Garden Grove, announced his retirement this month. The council must now find his successor.
Long-delayed Dream Hotel misses another deadline, and the city is done waiting quietly
The hotel project near the Convention Center has burned through years of extensions. This month the city placed the developer in default of its agreement.
Palm Springs airport nears record pace as seasonal flights return
2.21 million passengers through August, a baggage system overhaul on the books, and up to $10.5 million more in federal support: PSP is building for bigger winters.
Aerial Tramway closed through October 4 for annual maintenance
The cars are getting new interiors, the controls are being serviced, and state inspectors must sign off. Tentative reopening: October 5 at 10 a.m.
Council approves $3 million commitment for affordable senior housing
Wakeland Housing's Calle Rolph Village would bring 72 income-restricted homes for older residents to church-owned land near East Alejo Road.
Council pauses data centers for 45 days to study water and power demands
The urgency ordinance halts new data center applications while staff study the facilities' thirst for electricity and water in a desert city.
Modernism Week drew 111,000 attendees and a $62 million impact in February
Nearly 500 events, 52 partner organizations and an 11-day run: the 2026 festival's organizers report the desert's biggest cultural week yet.
Council keeps unopposed District 2 contest on the November ballot despite $22,000 price tag
Councilmember Jeffrey Bernstein was the only candidate to file, but the council voted 3-1 to let voters decide rather than appoint him to another term.
City puts $1 million behind small businesses, with priority for Section 14 survivors
The five-year BizUp agreement with Caravanserai reserves 75 percent of the money for $3,750 microgrants. Outreach prioritizes survivors and descendants of Section 14.
Was the $22,000 election worth it? Ask again in November.
The council spent $22,000 to hold an election with one candidate. The write-in window is the reason the money was well spent.
Decision on tribal-land warehouse complex near Highway 111 pushed to fall
The Desert Mountain View business park would put nearly 3 million square feet of warehouses on tribal land. A planned June joint meeting was postponed; the tribe has the final say.
SunLine's hydrogen bet: the transit agency that went all-in on fuel cells
The Thousand Palms-based agency has run hydrogen buses since the early 2000s and plans a zero-emission fleet by 2035. The math behind the bet is contested.
Forever Marilyn settles into Downtown Park after years of controversy
The 26-foot sculpture moved about 75 feet into its permanent home in February 2025 under a 25-year placement agreement. The fight over it defined an era.
The week the valley baked: July's extreme heat, by the numbers
Forecasts hit 117, warnings stretched for days, and the overnight lows never gave the desert a break. A look back at the summer's defining week.
Desert Water Agency adopts fourth rate increase in five-year plan
The board approved higher rates for water, recycled water and wastewater in June. New potable rates take effect January 1.
Nine months after the State of the City, Palm Springs has a new mayor, a retiring manager and three seats on the ballot
Ron deHarte's December address promised a city moving forward. Since then, the leadership has turned over and the open files have piled up.