It’s been my honor to serve on the city council since 2018. When I was first elected, my primary goal was to keep the city moving forward and to improve the lives of all our residents. I’ve worked tirelessly towards that, and I believe we’ve made great strides towards realizing the potential that this city has — to become a strong, vibrant community that attracts residents and visitors to our wonderful outdoor recreation possibilities, our world-famous hot mineral water spas, and our sense of community.
We are now the fastest-growing city in the Coachella Valley. That growth will be challenging, but we are well prepared for it.
- Since 2019 we’ve seen our city – for the first time in history – be in a secure financial position, with more than twelve million dollars in reserves for a rainy day.
- Since 2019 we’ve moved into a brand new one-stop-shopping City Hall that was built without affecting our budget by refinancing old bonds and taking those savings to build the new City Hall.
- Since 2019 we’ve developed a culture of “Can-Do” with our city staff, empowering them to find ways to get things done with the full support of the City Council.
- Since 2019 we’ve seen a renaissance in our Hotel and Spa industry, with several new properties – including the stunning Azure Palms Hot Springs opening. We’ll continue to see more of that with an innovative “Spa Revitalization” program that Councilmember Pye and I developed that will encourage further investments in dilapidated and unused spas in our city.
- Since 2019 we’ve improved our parks and our outdoor recreation, opening new trails, including the spectacular Long Canyon Trail into Joshua Tree National Park. All this year you’ll continue to see improvements in our parks across the city.
- Since 2019 we’ve doubled down on our efforts to keep the city clean, with programs of volunteers cleaning vacant lots, and increasing our fines for illegal dumping.
- Since 2019 we’ve expanded our police department, and our crime rate has dropped significantly – Desert Hot Springs' crime rate is now lower than Palm Springs, Cathedral City, and Indio.
- Since 2019 we’ve nearly doubled our cannabis businesses in the city, employing hundreds of Desert Hot Springs residents and generating millions in tax revenue to keep our city healthy.