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Palm Desert staff proposes city seal redesign process with public input; council split between nostalgia and overhaul
Summary
Staff recommended forming a steering committee and broad public engagement to overhaul the 50-year-old Palm Desert city seal; council members supported including schools and artists but raised cost and reproduction concerns and some urged retaining traditional elements.
City staff outlined a structured process to redesign Palm Desert’s official city seal at the March 27 study session, proposing a steering committee, design-development criteria, public engagement and a final council decision.
Erica Powell presented the framework: form an ad hoc working group that would include an artist, an "art influencer" and a marketing professional to shape the call for submissions and evaluate entries; engage residents, schools and cultural organizations; and present finalist designs and public feedback to council for selection.
Several council members supported school and community participation. "I love that part of the plan is to include schools because these are the people that are going to see the seal for the years to come," one council member said. Other members expressed nostalgic attachment to the current seal and suggested modest updates rather than a full overhaul. "I've never seen anybody swing a golf club, hit a tennis ball with a bighorn sheep overlooking a fir tree all in the same space," one member said, describing the current seal's mixed elements.
Council also raised practical concerns about reproduction costs and the ability to render intricate detail consistently across uniforms and printed materials. Staff acknowledged the practical limitation and said the official seal should be suitable for multiple uses and that a redesign could improve legibility and reproducibility.
Staff asked the council to appoint an ad hoc council subcommittee to guide the process; a companion report at the regular meeting will formalize the appointment. Powell said staff will incorporate council feedback and proceed to develop the steering-committee structure, the call for submissions and a public-engagement plan.
No final seal choice was made; the council gave direction on engagement and composition of the steering committee and asked staff to return with the formal structure and proposed timeline.
