Following an update from Assistant Fire Chief Bill Villarino, the Yucca Valley Town Council received the annual Code Compliance Report. The town did see an uptick in short-term rental violations this year; staff advised this is likely due to rentals being bought and sold, with new owners unaware of the Town’s permit process. Notably, there were only two recorded violations for street and sidewalk vending this year.
The issue of unpermitted sidewalk vending has been addressed at several recent Planning Commission meetings; Deputy Town Manager Shane Stueckle explained that addressing sidewalk vending is a time-consuming, but coordinated effort between Code Compliance, Law Enforcement, and Health Services.
Public Works Director Alex Qishta then presented the Town Council with plans for four different improvement projects, starting with the bid proposal for the Berm Repair and Replacement Project. There are currently 25,000 linear feet of missing or damaged berms within the Town limits; the project will address roughly half, prioritizing citizen requests and staff-reported crucial areas. The issue is important to many residents, as noted by Council Member Dennison.
“We do get a lot of requests throughout the year, especially post floods, about the concerns of berms and water flow throughout the streets, into our yards and homes. This is something we’ve been working on for a while, and I’m excited to see it move forward.”
Next, Qishta presented the bid for design services to improve the intersection at Yucca Mesa Rd. and Buena Vista Dr., which bears heavy truck and residential traffic. Town Staff has recommended widening the intersection and upgrading the pavement to concrete.
The Council then considered two resolutions to authorize bidding advertisements for replacing the basketball court and playground equipment at Machris Park and the roof of the California Welcome Center. The park’s playground equipment has been in place for at least 25 years. Both of these projects will be funded in part by Measure Y funds.
The Council voted to move forward with all four projects; Town Staff will open the bidding tomorrow, with awards to be determined in October.
Mayor Robert Lombardo expressed interest in the potential allowance of additional housing units on Yucca Valley properties, for the purpose of creating affordable or workforce housing. Council Members Abel and Dennison affirmed that they had also been approached on the issue. The Council moved to have Town Staff conduct research on arguments and methods, to be presented as an informational item at a future meeting.
