Planning Commission unanimously recommends City Council approve mid-cycle housing element update

The Planning Commission of the City of Desert Hot Springs unanimously voted Sept. 9 to recommend that City Council approve a mid-cycle amendment to the housing element (GPA 25-2) and to find the update categorically exempt from CEQA under section 15061(b)(3).

Travis Clark, the community development staff member who presented the item, called the housing element “the city's roadmap for providing housing for all residents in the city” and told commissioners the state assigned Desert Hot Springs a Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) of 3,873 units for the sixth cycle. “You'll notice that the majority of those units, close to 2,700, more than 2,700 are moderate or above moderate,” Clark said, adding that the RHNA also includes “a total of 1,104 affordable housing units, from the low income, very low income, and extremely low incomes.”

Clark told the commission the city has nearly 700 permitted units in the current cycle — about 18% of the RHNA — and reported 186 permits so far in 2025, a pace he said is faster than prior years. He listed major market projects in the pipeline (Skybourne, Rancho Descanso, Mighty Homes, Aventura Palms, Eagle Pointe) and…