The Yucca Valley Town Council approved a Resolution that allocates $3,250,000 for Phase 1 of the Old Town Beautification and Sustainability Project, and awarded a construction contract to begin the build. Phase 1 of the Project includes building a 97-car parking lot, several electrical vehicle charging stations, restrooms, shade structure, and lighting, all of which will be located along Elk Trail between Yucca Trail and Twentynine Palms Highway. The project has been nearly four years in the making and was made possible in part by Measure Y Funds, as noted in remarks by Council Member Merl Abel.
“This is a fantastic project. This is exactly what Measure Y should be doing: reinvesting in our community. I get excited about these kinds of projects because we’re going to get a return on our investment, because we support small businesses. We support our downtown area, and we are going to see that come back to our community, back to our taxpayers with people spending here locally.”
Town staff expects construction on the project to begin in June and to be completed in November.
The Town Council also received an update on the Interagency Council on Homelessness and local homeless service in the Morongo Basin, as presented by Town Manager Curtis Yakimow. The update included information on the annual Point in Time Count of unhoused and unsheltered individuals in San Bernardino County, which was conducted in January. A preliminary review revealed that Yucca Valley’s 2024 houseless population was in a similar range to that of 2023. The count’s final numbers will be released in May.
