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PLATFORM

As a sitting City Councilmember and small business owner, I understand first-hand the importance of balancing economic development, while maintaining the unique essence of Palm Springs. As a full-time resident, I believe in ensuring the quality of our neighborhoods and the safety of our residents. As someone who loves Palm Springs and has been embraced by our community, I recognize the role I can play in giving back.  We can come together to make Palm Springs all that we know it can be.
JEFFREY'S PLATFORM ON MAJOR ISSUES
Shade and Heat Mitigation Plan

  • Shade is perhaps one of the most important needs to maintain our quality of life, and ensure our stable economy.

  • Develop a City-wide Shade and Heat Mitigation Action Plan to address our commercial areas as well as neighborhood streets and parks

  • Coordinate the ongoing activities in various departments (zoning, planning, parks, sustainability, arts, etc.) to have a unified approach

  • Address Shade and Heat Mitigation as both a quality-of-life issue and an economic development issue

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Palm Springs Tech Plan

  • Developing a city government tech plan using the latest technologies to streamline city operations

  • Use AI and tech capabilities to provide timely, easy to find information for our residents

  • Save valuable staff time and create efficiencies in constituent services through tech

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Public Safety

Achievements

  • On Council I have pushed to staff our police force to handle not just a city with a population of 45,000 full time residents, but a City that regularly sees that grow two or three times with visitors and events

  • We have also taken the final step in ensuring our Fire Engines are staffed at the top level, Exemplary fire protection — which would rank us in the top 1% of departments nationwide 

  • We have also begun work on renovating Fire Station #3 in District 2 and bulding a new Fire Station #1 to serve our downtown

Platform

  • Strengthen the relationship between the police and our residents and businesses to address the issues of drug related and violent crimes

  • Adopt a plan to make our streets safe for cyclists and pedestrians

  • Ensure our public safety officers remain supported with appropriate resources to meet the demands of new threats, as well as our City’s expansion and modernization plans

  • Equip our public safety with the most advanced technology to help fight crime and keep our residents safe while ensuring that our policies protect the privacy of our residents and visitors

  • Support our public safety officers in working with outside agencies where legal and appropriate but not beyond their jurisdiction
     

Housing

Achievements

  • On Council we have seen the opening of the new navigation center and passed an anti-encampment ordinance dependent on the city having enough beds.  As a result, we have seen a 63% decreased in homeless in the County’s Point-in-Time-Count

  • We have opened three affording housing developments  (Monarch, Vista Sunrise II and Aloe Palm Canyon); the first three in fourteen years.

  • On my first day of council, I proposed an allocation of Vacation Rental tax be allocated to affordable housing.  That resolution become enacted by Council

  • We have allocated a million dollars a year for ten years to assist first time home buyers

  • We have allocated a million dollars a year for ten years to create community land trusts, enabling affordable home ownership

  • We allocated three million dollars to provide micro-grants of up to $15,000 to help current residents go from homelessness to renters, and to stop current renters from being evicted.  We have assisted over 450 individuals and families


Platform

  • Develop new affordable housing options including the two in the works on Gene Autry and by the United Methodist Church

  • Establish an ordinance for inclusionary housing in new developments to ensure affordable and moderate housing options

  • Review how vacation rentals affect housing stock and update the ordinance accordingly

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Economic Development
Achievements

  • We have created the new Office of Economic Development reporting directly the City Manager, with an approved budget and staffing

  • We established a local business opportunity at the Palm Springs Airport
     

Platform

  • Improve our broadband efforts to attract new industries and remote work

  • Attract new businesses, while ensuring that locally owned businesses remain integral to our economy

  • Complete the modernization of our Convention Center, including a connectivity urban plan to join the Convention Center with the downtown serving business visitors, local businesses and residents

  • Continue to move forward with the modernization of the Palm Sprigns International Airport while preserving its unique charm and minimal negative affect on the surrounding neighborhoods

  • Work on obtaining FIS / Customs services to allow for international flights to Mexico, Europe, Asia and additional locations in Canada

  • We have developed an Economic Development Strategic Plan focused on supporting tourism while developing new revenue sources for the city 

  • We removed the sunset on the Measure J tax, one that is primarily funded by visitors, ensuring a $20 million annual revenue boost to the City

 
Preservation

Achievements

  • We established Boulders and Crescendo Properties in Little Tuscany as permanent open space.

  • While there is more to be done, we have worked with Prescott Preserve to ensure this natural resource serves our residents.

  • We required that the Serena Park developers contribute $3.2 million to open space


Platform

  • Continue Protect our priority open spaces

  • Continue to prioritize our city’s commitment to our historically significant architecture

  • Provide incentives for businesses to go into historically significant buildings to avoid demolition by neglect

  • Hold owners of historically Signifcant buildings responsible for maintening those properties
     

Diversity

Achievements

  • We have established diversity as a key tenet of all City of Palm Springs governance but there is always much work to be done.  

  • We established a million-dollar fund to help minority entrepreneurs open businesses and contribute back to the economy

  • Palm Springs become a certified neurodiverse workplace

  • Once again Palm Springs achieved a 100% score from the Human Rights Campaign s


Platform

  • Ensure that marginalized communities have a voice in our city

  • Require diversity training for all City employees
    Identify and Develop a Support Mechanism a minority-owned business support system within our Economic Development Department

  • Develop a long-term plan that ensures diversity in City staff, boards & commissions, and our population in age and income, as well as race, religion, sexual orientation and identity
     

Quality of Life

Achievements

Broke ground on a renovation of our Palm Springs Library
Installed three new playgrounds in our parks with two more on the way

  • Broke ground on a new pickleball complex

  • Approved six million in renovations for our swim center

  • Invested in lighting and other upgrades to our stadium

  • Ensured that our repaving funds have continued at record pace going from a once three million dollar annual budget to now an average of nine million dollars annually

  • Negotiated a settlement with College of the Desert and have seen the development move forward


Platform

  • Continue to review our vacation rental ordinance to determine impact on local neighborhoods

  • Continue the Increased the rate of street repaving

  • Move forward with implementation of our Parks Master Plan, using the yearlong 50th Anniversary Celebration of parks to Improve our neighborhood parks: facilities, dog parks, athletic facilities, playgrounds, safety, sustainability

  • Ensure a balance of efforts aimed to attract visitors and those aimed at residents

  • Ensure College of the Desert continues with building towards a 2027 opening with a robust curriculum

  • Employ resources of our city and community to support our students and schools

  • Support our local non-profits with additional resources.
     

Sustainability

  • Expand our use of available renewable energy sources

  • Ensure new developments are carbon neutral
    Incentivize and require existing commercial properties to be more energy efficient

  • Ensure that sustainability requirements are equally shared by small businesses, residents, property owners and the City

  • Shade, Shade, Shade
     

Together, we can do this!

JOIN THE CONVERSATION: 

© 2026 by  Jeffrey Bernstein for City Council, District 2, 2026.

FPPC No: 1483778

PO Box 50, Palm Springs, CA 92262

Jeffrey@JeffreyforPS.com  •  760-278-1866

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