Six Indio council candidates address downtown, jobs, festivals and regional issues at chamber forum

Six candidates running in Indio City Council Districts 2, 3 and 4 faced questions Tuesday at a Greater Coachella Valley Chamber of Commerce forum at Spotlight 29 Casino.

In District 2, Gloria Hernandez, a retired city employee, is running against Waymond Fermon, the Mayor Pro Tem who was first elected in 2018. In District 3, Mayor Elaine Holmes, first elected in 2010, faces attorney Andrea “A.J.” Dolan Bouchard. In District 4, Planning Commission Vice Chair Felipe Ortiz is running against Jonathan Becerra, who sits on the Desert Recreation District board.

Downtown Indio’s success and future development

Moderator Bob Marra of GPS Business Insider first asked about downtown Indio’s success and next steps, Ortiz said the city has done a good job buying up downtown properties, “We can set the hours, we can set what kind of businesses they offer,” he said.

Holmes, herself a small business owner in Downtown Indio, said, “Everybody was leaving Indio to have a place to hang out,” she said. Now she says the city’s Center Stage entertainment, food, and drink welcomes families and residents and those from across the valley.

Becerra, who formerly worked at the Indio Chamber of Commerce, saw opportunities for bringing more foot traffic downtown, “Whether it’s adapting to climate change, more shade, more places to sit, also investing in our world-class events.”

Becerra highlighted his role in bringing the first Pride celebration to Indio as well as developing the Indio BBQ Festival.

Dolan Bouchard, attorney and instructor at California Desert Trial Academy College of Law, advocated for investing in downtown anchor businesses like Yellow Mart and new businesses like Everbloom Coffee.

Hernandez answered similarly, “I would recommend places like Yellow Mart and newer places to get together, collaborate together so that they can prosper and succeed.

Fermon highlighted his relationship building skills, “I worked with Skip [Page] to bring the Indio Taphouse, I worked with Marcel [Ramirez] to bring Gabino’s, I’m working with Gil Ruttenberg to bring Painted Dough,” he said. He added that while on City Council he helped keep downtown filled with local businesses rather than corporate franchises.

Diversifying the workforce

The second question asked the candidates how to diversify the workforce beyond retail and service sector jobs.

Holmes said large companies like Buzzbox, CES Power, and now Quinn Company are all operating out of Indio, “They provide all levels of jobs, and they provide training, everything from business development to accounting to warehousing,” she said.

Becerra pointed out the city has more land than other valley cities ready to be developed, but that it needs to be developed right. “Turning away from hyperscale data center developments…is the way forward for the city of Indio because it helps us bring in the jobs that college students are actually vying for.”

Dolan Bouchard made the link to housing, “We can bring in our union workers that can afford to live here because they’re working in their own community and they have an investment in giving good, solid work.”

Hernandez brought the conversation to the retirement community, “Why not build a hospital or medical facilities?” she said. “Something that’s medical out in the north side of town and we can put [nurses] to work.”

Fermon said the city has made great strides to become more business friendly, streamlining paperwork and putting forms and documents online.

Ortiz advocated for a four-year university to come to the city of Indio, one that would provide a steady stream of new graduates, while also being a workplace with job opportunities for teachers and administration professionals.

Benefits of major music festivals

The third question related to the spinoff benefits of major festivals in the city like Coachella and Stagecoach.

Becerra said he was skeptical of the greater benefits of the festivals beyond taxes, but said local businesses have had opportunities thanks to the festivals, and as an event producer himself he has gained experience due to his proximity to the festival.

Dolan Bouchard wanted more local businesses to be featured at the festival to attract visitors to the city outside of festival season, “We want [festival attendees] to come back and enjoy that next time they come to the community.”

Hernandez said the key to the future of the festivals is the planned transportation center, “We need to complete that project. We can go from San Diego to the Valley, that would be one of the biggest benefits.”

Fermon said the tax benefits from the festival should not be overlooked, “Our revenue that we bring in has allowed us to have the best roads in the land. It has allowed us to do community grants. It has allowed our local entrepreneurs to go into the entertainment business.”

Ortiz said the benefits are obvious when looking around town during festival season, “My local coffee shop is super full, my local restaurant is super full, there was a line out the door.” He wanted the festival to tap into more local talent from vendors to security guards.

Holmes said sometimes the opposite is true, because festival attendees stay and eat on the polo grounds. “We need to find a way to activate those small businesses so that everybody can have a piece of that pie.”

Balancing new resort hotels with short-term vacation rentals

Marra asked each of the candidates how to spur development of larger resort hotels while balancing existing short-term vacation rentals.

Each of the candidates agreed that more should be done to encourage development of hotels, but the two incumbents, Holmes and Fermon, both highlighted the city’s past challenges with getting energy to large new developments.

Last year Fermon was elected Chair of the Coachella Valley Power Agencey, a joint powers authority between Indio, La Quinta and the county of Riverside and Imperial Irrigation District. “What that did was allow us to expand our power infrastructure, now that’s attracting folks,” he said.

“There was a time we wanted to build and we couldn’t because we didn’t have the power to build, but now we do.”

Holmes said the recently completed Avenue 42 substation is already attracting potential developers, “There are hotels we have spoken with that will be coming out of the ground very shortly,” she said.

Becerra pointed out that he is the only candidate running on capping short-term vacation rentals to addressing housing needs. “I also want to make sure these hotels are not just providing jobs…but they’re providing year-round experiences for our residents.”

Regional cooperation

The final question asked each candidate what are the most important regional partnerships Indio needs to focus on.

Dolan Bouchard wants more consistency from the county health department across businesses.

Holmes agreed, and added that transportation and energy remain regional priorities for her.

Hernandez wanted all valley cities to stand together as one entity when it came to energy, “If we got together as one voice, possibly going to the Governor’s office then we can reach out to IID and they’re going to meet our needs and continue helping us all together as one.”

Fermon, who sits on the Riverside County Transportation Commission, said he has spent years advocating for commuter rail. Another regional priority for Fermon is homelessness, which he said he has helped address on the Coachella Valley Association of Government’s Homeless Committee.

Ortiz wanted more communication across all agencies, “To make sure that things happen, to ensure that we actually serve the community.”

Becerra said regional priorities should be affordable housing, healthcare, and childcare. In addition, “We need to regionalize and coordinate our response to [Immigration and Customs Enforcement],” he said. “That hurts businesses, that hurts our mental and physical health, that hurts our ability to partcipate in the economy, education and resources.”

Voters in Indio will make their voices heard at the upcoming municipal election. For voting resources, sample ballots, polling place and ballot drop-off locations, and registration status, residents can visit the Riverside County Registrar of Voters portal.

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