La Quinta to ramp up police enforcement after Coachella Weekend 1
More officers will be patrolling the streets of La Quinta during weekend 2 of Coachella after neighbors complained about a party that was allowed to go on until 5 a.m. without a permit.
The city said they had about 20 complaints to their hotline over the weekend.One in particular, got our attention and then theirs. The city said they are taking immediate action, revamping their permit verification process and ramping up police and code enforcement resources.
“I ended up calling the Sheriff’s department three times, up until 4:20 a.m.,” said Kim Hyde, a La Quinta resident.
This went on for two straight nights this past weekend despite repeated calls to law enforcement.
“Then at 4:20 they told me those people had a permit,” Hyde continued.
The city said that wasn’t true.
“The property did not have a special event permit. So, there was no permit to have any type of event,” said Chris Escobedo, Community Resources Director for the City of La Quinta.
Escobedo said the incident is under review.
“I think part of it is back to shift changes and officers changing throughout the course of the evening. Part of it is the human element, making sure we verify accordingly,” Escobedo added.
Escobedo says the city is adding additional police resources, code enforcement resources and adjusting shift schedules for weekend two. He also said property management will be cited for violating the short-term rental vacation permit and could face other fines.
“We’re still investigating the full matter, so there may be multiple violations but that’s still pending,” Escobedo said.
The city says the more quickly they get a complaint, the better they can respond to it and they want to urge people to use the hotline, (760) 777-7157 .
If you don’t live in La Quinta, here are the hotlines for the cities across the valley.
Palm Springs Short Term Rental Hotline: (760) 322-8383 Indio Resident Hotline: (760) 391-4112. Palm Desert Short-Term Rental Hotline: (760) 862-6900. Rancho Mirage Short-Term Rental Hotline: (760) 833-7999. Cathedral City Hotline: (760) 553-1031 Indian Wells Hotline: (760) 834-7788
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