Rancho Mirage council approves Ritz‑Carlton expansion with construction and safety conditions

The Rancho Mirage City Council on Dec. 18 voted 5‑0 to approve modifications to the long‑planned Ritz‑Carlton Rancho Mirage expansion, adopting the environmental finding and related zoning and parcel actions and introducing a development‑agreement amendment while adding conditions to address neighbor and safety concerns.

Planning Manager Ben Torres told the council the project site sits adjacent to the existing Ritz‑Carlton along Frank Sinatra Drive and is a modification of prior entitlements. "The current project is proposing a total of 106 units," Torres said, and would add about 23,800 square feet of event space and a subterranean parking structure. He also described the Sky Mesa Recreational Area as 3.88 acres of mountain reserve with development limited to about 6,966 square feet so that "the majority of the area, 96% will be dedicated to recreational use."

The plan reduces unit count from earlier approvals, updates architecture, and includes new landscaping and screening adjacent to Murata Estates. Torres also summarized environmental review steps, saying a mitigated negative declaration was circulated in 2024 and…