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Council hears hour-long debate on replacing golf-course overlay with 'golf and recreation' base zone; action tabled pending language tweaks
Summary
A staff ordinance to replace the golf-course overlay with a golf-and-recreation base zone prompted sustained public concern over telecom siting, noncontiguous rezoning and pickleball approvals; council formed an ad hoc committee and tabled the item for revised language on telecoms and zoning boundaries.
The Indian Wells City Council on April 16 held a prolonged public hearing on an ordinance to repeal the city’s floating golf-course overlay and establish a golf‑and‑recreation base zoning category intended to clarify permitted ancillary uses (tennis, pickleball, practice areas) and administrative review procedures.
Community Development Director John Berg said the change is meant to create clarity and bring zoning language into conformance with the general plan; staff emphasized the ordinance would not, by itself, approve new development or expand the zone but would define permitted uses and review processes. The ordinance also restated development standards and expressly prohibited commercial 'gamified' golf entertainment (e.g., Topgolf) within private country clubs.
The discussion turned contentious when residents and council members raised the possibility that the new base zone could be used to rezone non‑golf parcels — potentially enabling cell towers or other uses inconsistent with neighborhood expectations. Rob Bernheimer and others urged that any rezoning to golf and recreation be demonstrably for golf/recreation purposes rather than for secondary uses such as telecommunications. Staff and the city attorney said current discretionary processes (CUP, variance, zone change) provide findings and protections, but council members asked for clearer express language.
Councilmembers struck an ad hoc committee to refine telecom and noncontiguous‑rezoning language and then voted to table the ordinance so staff can update it and return with specific edits to address those concerns.
