Council directs Planning Commission to consider waiving conditional-use fees for Historic Plaza events

Twentynine Palms — City staff and community members urged the City Council to enable more frequent events at the Historic Plaza by easing conditional-use permit requirements and exploring fee waivers. The council agreed to send the matter to the Planning Commission for a formal review.

City staff described Historic Plaza’s recent resurgence and noted current development-code limits that restrict special events to four per year unless a conditional-use permit is obtained. Staff and the city manager asked whether council would be amenable to waiving conditional-use permit fees and setting performance conditions similar to the farmers market at Freedom Plaza.

Representatives of the nonprofit Friends of the Historic Plaza, identified themselves and urged the council to allow a higher frequency of free community events so the venue can thrive. One director said the four-event cap “does not allow this venue to breathe and grow” and asked the council to approve forward momentum to help local businesses and preserve the site.

Other public commenters asked that fee waivers be limited to nonprofit sponsors, that city staff continue to review applications to protect public access and that event terms not give exclusive vendor rights or impede movement.

Councilmembers favored returning the item to the Planning Commission to work out operational details — frequency, hours of operation, liability and any conditions for fee waivers — rather than approving a permanent change at this meeting.