Palm Springs shows off downtown park plans

People in Palm Springs got a detailed look at the plans for the new park that will be built as part of the downtown development project at Thursday’s public meeting.

The $5 million park will be built across the street across from the Palm Springs Art Museum, where the historic Desert Inn once stood.

Public input has been paramount for the design of the park.

“What has been really heartening is that the feedback that we are getting reinforces our design intuition and those stories from the past,” said Nate Cormier, principle landscape architect for Rios Clementi Hale Studios.

One of those blasts from the past is the front gates of the historic Desert Inn which could be added to the park after they are inspected and are in good shape.

“I really see this park as an antidote to all of the steel, glass and concrete that is going up right now,” said J.R. Robert, Palm Springs Council member.

“We are so jazzed it has gone way beyond our expectations,” said Elizabeth Armstrong, executive director of the Palm Springs Art Museum, which is across the street from the downtown park.

Many residents asked the architectural team where the Forever Marilyn statue would be located. Currently it is positioned in the east end of the park. But some local artists said the park doesn’t need this statue.

“I think it would be exciting for the public art to elevate to the quality the landscape architects have brought and create something that would be cite specific for Palm Springs, for that site, as opposed to some sculpture that somebody made in New Jersey that is now ending up in Palm Springs,” said Phillip Smith, an artist who recently did the Circle of Land and Sky art exhibit for Desert X.

The final design of the park will go in front of City Council next month. If it is approved the park could be completed by late 2018 or early 2019.

JOE GALLI IS ON FACEBOOK AND ON TWITTER @JOEGALLINEWS