Consultants unveil station-area plan and economic strategy for downtown Coachella tied to proposed Valley rail station

Consultants hired by the City of Coachella presented a final station-area plan and economic-development strategy intended to prepare downtown Coachella for a proposed Coachella Valley passenger rail station and to stimulate local revitalization.

Marie Lewis Adams of HDR Inc., the lead presenter, said the study’s purpose was “to select the optimal proposed preferred station location and develop engineering plans and designs for that station itself as well as for the surrounding area.” Adams outlined a station concept in the Pueblo Viejo/downtown expansion area, with platforms centered near 4th Street, a pedestrian overcrossing to connect both sides of the city to a future community resilience center, on-street and station parking access on 6th Street, bus and drop-off areas, and bicycle integration.

Adams said design updates reflected community input, including a stronger visual identity and public art: “One of the things that we’ve added in response to community feedback was more public art,” she said, noting murals and shaded structures over ramps for climate protection. The proposed station includes ramps, elevators and open shelter areas with photovoltaic panels to provide shade and energy capture.

Russ Cunningham and Andrew, land-use planners on the project team, described the station-area plan’s structure and policy toolkit. The plan’s four chapters cover purpose and vision, illustrative diagrams and renderings, a land-use and urban-design toolkit, and a phasing-and-implementation framework. The planners emphasized multimodal connections to the CV Link and local streets, tactical activations along 6th Street, and design guidelines intended to make the downtown walkable and connected.

“Chapter 3 presents a toolkit of land use and urban design strategies that provide a complimentary mix of land uses and an activated public realm,” one planner said, and the plan tailors subdesignations to implement the city’s housing element and RHNA obligations by setting higher minimum densities where low-income housing is planned.

David Bergman of Lisa Wise Consulting presented the economic analysis. He described the city’s demography and downtown market dynamics, saying Coachella’s population is younger than the valley average and that the city’s residents are predominantly Hispanic or Latino. Bergman said the study estimated that downtown Coachella “is not able to effectively capture about $13,000 per resident compared to the valley as a whole,” identifying gaps in restaurants, general merchandise and daily-use retail that the plan’s programs and incentives aim to address. He also cited an estimated median household income of about $68,000 for the city.

On implementation, the consultants said they had developed a phasing plan that categorizes near-term actions (1–3 years), intermediate actions (3–6 years) and long-term actions (6–10 years), and that the next deliverables will include station capital and operating cost estimates and a phasing and implementation plan. They said the study—initiated in late 2024—is intended to feed into the regional station-location, environmental (CEQA/NEPA) and preliminary design processes being led by regional agencies.

Committee members thanked the consulting team for extensive community engagement and asked clarifying questions about the grant that funded the study and about next steps. A committee member noted that the study was initiated through a state Regional Early Action Planning (REAP) grant; consultants confirmed grant funding and said they plan to present the full study to the City Council on March 11.

The subcommittee took no formal final action on the plan at the meeting; the agenda was approved at the start of the session, and the consultants will return to the council for a fuller presentation and further consideration. The subcommittee adjourned at 5:52 p.m.