A Letter to Palm Desert Residents

For nine years it has been a pleasure and honor to serve as your Mayor and Councilman of the City of Palm Desert. During that time, we created a Public Safety Commission overseeing a $20.5 million budget which represents 44% of our general fund budget. This program provides for the police, fire and emergency medical safety of our residents. This includes a motorcycle enforcement team to target traffic violators and enhancement patrol of El Paseo.

Our City is following through on its commitment to boost regional economic development and I am proud to help lead in this effort. Our City can also be proud of having paved the way for the Palm Desert Campus' of both the California State University San Bernardino and the University of California Riverside. We drafted a comprehensive General Plan update which charts the course of Palm Desert's growth and success for the future. Additionally, we established a program which undergrounds residential utility lines, increasing property values and improving our neighborhoods.

Looking forward, it is my desire to reduce electricity costs by launching a comprehensive energy efficiency and conservation program. This can be accomplished utilizing state funds set aside for this purpose. It is also critical that we monitor and assure the quality build-out of the northern portion of our City as set forth in our general plan. Finally, I will vigilantly fight to preserve the natural beauty of our hillsides and open space.

Palm Desert is a special place because of its residents. Citizen-based committees operate remarkably well with staff and the Council to lead our City. This assures we operate in unity toward a common purpose: assuring a better quality of life for everyone. We are fiscally sound and have never had an unbalanced budget while providing quality civic services and enhanced public safety.

I thank you for allowing me to represent you and would appreciate your support in continuing Palm Desert's success.