Cathedral City begins development code update; consultants outline schedule, outreach

Cathedral City held a study session Feb. 26 to begin a comprehensive update of its development code, the regulatory document that implements the city's 2021 general plan and shapes land use, design and development review.

The update's consultant team, Minteer Harnish, told the City Council the project is in an evaluation phase and that a zoning diagnosis report will be released in the next month. Brent Givens, principal planner with Minteer Harnish, said the update will cover zoning districts, use regulations, design and development standards, administrative procedures and required environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act. "This evaluation phase usually takes 2 to 3 months," Givens said, describing the study and outreach schedule.

The update matters because the zoning and development code are the implementation tools for the general plan adopted in February 2021; they determine what can be built, where and how. The consultants said the code will both implement City policy and aim to be more user-friendly for applicants and staff while remaining consistent with state law.

Givens said the process is intended to be community driven. He outlined an outreach schedule that includes a community workshop on March 13 and a series of design-oriented walking tours the following weekend. The consultants also described internal review steps: a steering committee of community representatives, a technical advisory group made up of department heads, review by the planning commission, and study sessions with the City Council. Givens said the project is scoped through the end of 2026, contingent on the level of public engagement and the schedule for environmental review.

Martha Miller of Miller Planning Associates, who joined the presentation, summarized the scope and explained that the city is updating a "development code," which combines the zoning code and the city's subdivision ordinance (the State Subdivision Map Act governs subdivisions). "The development code update actually just combines the zoning code and your subdivision ordinance," Miller said.

Council members raised several local questions during the session. Councilmember Gutierrez and others asked whether the consultants had reviewed vacant land north of Interstate 10 and whether the update would consider recreational uses, such as outdoor parks or ballfields. Givens said the team had not included that area in the initial city tour but that they would review applicable general plan designations, underlying zoning and market conditions. He added that other city departments, including economic development and public works, will be involved to provide a "reality check" on standards and feasibility.

Consultants acknowledged limits to municipal authority: tribal lands in the Coachella Valley are outside city jurisdiction, so the team said staff-led consultation with tribes is the appropriate step to involve tribal stakeholders. Givens said, "We cannot control an entity like that in the land that they develop. But we can at least bring them in as a collaborator to the table for part of the discussion." The consultants also noted state law trends toward objective standards and streamlining certain local reviews.

The consultants discussed common problems the update can address: inconsistent language that produces different answers at the planning counter, obsolete or missing use categories (for example, pet day care), and a mismatch between zoning and the general plan that can force many developments to seek discretionary approvals. They said the project includes drafting regulations in digestible sections for testing against sample projects, public review, formal hearings and environmental review under CEQA.

On outreach and inclusion, the team said all deliverables and workshop materials would be bilingual (English and Spanish), that live translation would be provided at workshops, and that translated worksheets and surveys would be posted on the city's project landing page. Givens added that deliverables would be posted publicly and that staff would return themes from community input to the commission and council for consideration. The consultants said a steering committee of community members and a technical advisory group of department heads will review deliverables before public release.

Council members asked about flexibility for projects that might arise during the update. The consultants said existing zoning and the adopted general plan remain in effect until the new code is adopted, and that exceptional projects would still be evaluated under current rules and potential discretionary processes.

The presentation concluded with the consultants asking for council feedback and confirming next steps: release of the zoning diagnosis report, the March 13 community workshop, subsequent walking tours and continued coordination with staff and advisory groups. The consultants and staff said they will return with draft code sections, environmental review scoping and formal hearing dates later in the process.

The session included public comment and council discussion but no formal action; staff and consultants will return to the council with future study sessions and adoption materials as the update advances.