Indio Sustainability Commission refines plan as it aims for City Council review

*Workers use insulating concrete forms ICF with reinforced concrete to build a house wall. (File photo: Shutterstock)*

The Indio Sustainability Commission is putting final touches on a comprehensive sustainability plan that will soon head to the City Council for review. During its regular meeting Monday, commissioners discussed several refinements to the draft document, which focuses on outreach, mitigation strategies, and sustainable construction practices.

After commissioners requested more time to provide feedback, it was decided to take additional time to review the plan before officially recommending it to the City Council.

“I think we need a little time. Maybe we need another meeting to discuss the plan a little more thoroughly before we request a staff study session,” Vice Chair Anetha Lue said.

The sustainability plan emphasizes public outreach as a primary focus for the coming year, reflecting the commission’s desire to increase community awareness of Indio’s sustainability efforts.

“This year we’re really going to put a lot of effort into outreach,” explained Environmental Programs Coordinator Sara Toyoda. “That’s been what I’ve been hearing for a long time. So that people know about us, so they know what the city is doing so that there’s good and constructive outreach.”

A recent addition to the plan includes sustainable construction practices, added at the request of Councilmember Oscar Ortiz. The topic focuses on building materials that are less toxic during disasters like fires.

“When those fires happened and some of those buildings burned down, it made the ground and the area around toxic,” Toyoda explained regarding Ortiz’s concerns. “He wanted us to look into sustainable building materials or sustainable building construction in general so that when these events happen there would be some mitigation to the pollution.”

Commissioners also discussed adding extreme heat mitigation strategies to the plan and plan to review information about heat plans developed in other regions.

The commission also explored innovative ways to increase public engagement with their work. Ideas included holding commission meetings at alternative locations like the senior center or teen center, organizing town hall-style events, and setting up information tables at community events.

Chair David Getka suggested hosting a public forum similar to recent city outreach events.

“Maybe we could consider doing something like that here in the City Council chambers,” Getka said. “We’d have to publicize it on the website and maybe some other avenues on getting an invitation out to have a general public forum on people’s viewpoints on sustainability ideas.”

In other updates, Toyoda reported that electric vehicle charging projects are moving forward at the new city hall and golf course using AB266 funds.

“There’s going to be quite a few,” Toyoda said about the planned chargers. “The numbers surprised me. There should be plenty of chargers for anyone who wants to charge an EV vehicle.”

The commission plans to continue refining the sustainability plan at its April meeting, with the goal of recommending it to the City Council soon after. Commissioners also expressed interest in inviting speakers on green building practices and air quality management to future meetings.