City’s Neighborhood Organization
Contact: Cindy Uken
Communications Director
City of Palm Springs
760.323.8250
February 13, 2008
Three years ago, the Palm Springs City Council took an unprecedented step in
the Coachella Valley to create the Office of Neighborhood Involvement (ONI).
Today, at 15 neighborhood organizations strong, the City Council’s decision is
reaping significant rewards.
"Our neighborhood organizations have not only grown in number, but in their
accomplishments,” said Lee Husfeldt, Director of Neighborhood and
Community Relations. “They are a hard-working group of people, whether they
are cleaning up the Tahquitz Creek Wash or participating in a meeting. What
they have done this past year, not only for their neighborhoods, but for the
community as a whole, is impressive. They have proven time and again to be a
valuable resource for us at City Hall as we continually seek out their
perspective and listen to those in our neighborhoods."
The ONI is creating bonds between neighbors, who otherwise might have been
strangers, and is serving as the impetus for addressing common interests and
concerns in the community. At the ONI’s third annual retreat on Saturday, the
Palm Springs Neighborhood Involvement Committee (PSNIC), ticked off a list
of more than a dozen of its accomplishments.
“I think there is a broader benefit to neighborhoods in that these organizations
bring people together. I have witnessed this in Warm Sands, where for years
we hardly knew our neighbors,” said John Williams, Chair of the PSNIC.
“Through the Warm Sands Neighborhood Organization, we have learned that
we share common goals.”
Williams said he has witnessed a similar response in the Old Las Palmas
Neighborhood Organization (OLPNO). “In Old Las Palmas, most homes are hidden by hedges and walls,” Williams said. “But OLPNO brings people out from behind the hedges and helps them
know each other. We were united by a common bond of reducing crime. But
we have gone beyond that. We have improved the median strip on Chino Drive
and have managed to get to know each other on a first name basis.”
Broader Citywide benefits include the communication between neighborhoods
that in the past have had little in common and very little communication,
according to Williams.
“When we began in 2005, all we had was a list of ideas, problems and
concerns,” said Bob Mahlowitz, vice chair of the PSNIC, who represents the
Sunmor Neighborhood Organization. “On Saturday, we began the retreat by
listing our accomplishments. I was pleasantly surprised by the long list we
created.
Here’s just a snapshot of what the PSNIC has been able to accomplish in the
past three years:
- The Warm Sands Neighborhood Organization worked in concert with the Public Arts Commission and the City Council to implement a new public art sculpture at Ramon Road and Warm Sands Drive.
- The ONI’s official Web site, www.palmspringsneighborhoods.com, received an average of 16,000 hits per month, totaling more than 100,000 hits during the year.
- The Tahquitz Creek clean-up project has involved four neighborhood organizations – Tahquitz River Estates Neighborhood Organization, Deepwell Estates Neighborhood Organization, Warm Sands Neighborhood Organization and the Historic Tennis Club Neighborhood Organization. It has grown from a clean-up project to a parks project that has been funded with $25,000 in seed money, as requested by PSNIC and approved by City Council, and another $25,000 was pledged by a private donor.
- PSNIC sponsored a Candidate Forum for City Council and Mayoral Candidates in the Fall of 2007.
- The Sunmor Neighborhood Organization was successful in winning City Council approval to close one end of Livmore Avenue at North Civic Drive. This process took two years and involved a vote by all of the property owners in the neighborhood. Sunmor expects to see a drastic reduction in traffic speeds throughout its neighborhood due to this one change.
- The Tahqutiz River Estates Neighborhood Organization worked with developers in its neighborhood prior to City Council approval of the Mesquite Village project.
neighbors get to know each other – it’s a simple thing, but has a huge impact,”
Mahlowitz said. “Getting together a few times a year for a barbeque or other
social activity binds neighbors together. It makes us feel proud of our
neighborhoods, connected to each other. Discussions flow. Ideas are
generated. Compromise and consensus develop. It’s what a community should
be about and it’s great the PSNIC has flourished. As a result, Palm Springs will be
an even better place for everyone to live.”
Representatives from all 15 of the City’s neighborhood organizations met February 9 to discuss
their past year’s accomplishments and laid the groundwork for this year.
Established by City Ordinance in April 2005, the ONI is a vehicle for
encouraging citizen involvement in service delivery and improving
communication among citizens, City staff and elected officials.
The Neighborhood Involvement Committee (PSNIC) works with the City Manager
and staff to address matters of concern to citizens and other neighborhood
interests. The PSNIC is comprised of elected representatives of Neighborhood
Organizations that have become officially recognized by the City through an
application process.
The benefits of a Neighborhood Organization include:
• A community of people who know and look out for one another
• A place for bringing people together to socialize and address common
concerns
• A collective voice to advocate for neighborhood interests and concerns
• A recognized entity that works with City government to access resources
and resolve issues affecting neighborhood character and quality of life
• A communication conduit that exchanges information and knowledge
Palm Springs residents who are interested in organizing their neighborhoods
should call Husfeldt at 323-8255. You may also find additional information
about the Office of Neighborhood Involvement online at
www.palmspringsneighborhoods.com.
