City staff brief Coachella Youth Advisory Commission on building safety, cannabis rules and rail‑station plans

Lisandro Diaz, the City of Coachella’s building official, told the Youth Advisory Commission that the building division focuses on structural safety, accessibility and disaster resilience as projects move through plan review and inspections. Diaz highlighted local engineering constraints — “very highly corrosive soils” with low bearing capacity and the need for stronger concrete mixes and special foundation reinforcement — and said the city enforces state codes for seismic, electrical and accessibility standards.

Diaz said the latest California energy code took effect on 2026‑01‑01 and that state modeling anticipates substantial long‑term energy and emissions savings from the update; he described other routine safety tasks, from plan checks to post‑disaster placarding enforced with fines and police support. “If it’s just completely unsafe … we tag it as unsafe, which means that there’s no access to it at all,” Diaz said, describing the yellow/green/red placard system used after earthquakes and fires.

Pedro Hernandez, senior code enforcement officer, summarized the department’s complaint‑to‑compliance workflow: staff inspect reported violations, attempt contact with property owners, issue citations if needed, and pursue abatement through the city attorney when compliance fails. Hernandez described common violations in Coachella — wrecked vehicles, RVs parked in front yards and trash in public view — and noted an increase in cases compared with the prior year.

Annie Fernandez, who helps oversee the city’s cannabis program, said Coachella currently licenses 19 cannabis businesses across cultivation, distribution, manufacturing and retail categories and requires both a local conditional‑use permit and a cannabis regulatory permit for operations. Fernandez described zoning restrictions (setbacks from schools, parks and youth centers), odor‑control and security plan requirements, and a locally run social‑equity program that supports residents disproportionately affected by past cannabis enforcement. She said cannabis tax receipts totaled about $733,000 in the last fiscal year.

Community Development Director Kendra Reif gave an update on planning work, including multiple proposed housing projects and a city‑led rail‑station feasibility study. Reif said the City Council has advanced “site number 2” in the Pueblo Viejo (historic downtown) area as the preferred location and that the rail‑station study with Riverside County is due to wrap up at the end of the month; staff will present more to Council on March 25. “We did a lot of engagement with residents and community,” Reif said of the station design, which includes pedestrian connections, shaded walkways and public art elements.

Why it matters: the presentations outlined how local permitting, code enforcement and planning shape what gets built, who pays development fees, and how the city prepares for natural hazards. Commissioners and staff discussed practical impacts — how a higher local seismic standard and special soils drive construction cost and technique, how cannabis licensing contributes to local revenue, and how a future rail stop could change downtown connectivity.

What’s next: staff invited commissioners and the public to review project materials on the Development Services web page, and Reif said the rail‑station feasibility study and specific project approvals will return to Council and the commissions for further review.