HomeMy WebLinkAboutR Stuart - Oswit Land Trust on AgendaFrom:Robert Stuart
To:Planning
Subject:Oswit Land Trust on Agenda
Date:Wednesday, July 24, 2024 10:42:33 AM
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I have been an owner at Mesquite Country Club for over 20 years. There are numerous serious
code violations at the former golf course now called Prescott Preserve.
The new owner, Oswit, plans to convert the site to a preserve which I am not against.
However, I am against the way Oswit proposes it. By their actions they have not preserved
anything; they have already failed.
The site has been neglected for over two years. Trees are dying along with bushes and cacti.
Water in pond is putrid, have smelled it at the phase 1 pool when the wind was right. Palm
fronds are laying around everywhere and at times blowing onto our property. No waterfowl is
left due to these issues, and the property is not being irrigated. The golf course used recycled
water from Desert Water Agency. The result is the coyote food supply is gone so now they
have taken to attacking people and dogs on the walking path and spreading out further into the
nearby neighborhoods.
There have been coyotes here for all the years we have been here and they have never been a
problem. I believe the actions taken by Oswit go against supporting wildlife & nature. This is
abuse, cruelty, & neglect for the coyotes with their food source and drinkable water gone and
the danger to them of crossing Farrell because they are more active on the property now that
there isn’t activity with golf shut down. The city should be reporting those issues to CA Fish
and Wildlife to be resolved. But the City’s actions show it doesn’t care.
I know the city of Palm Springs has issued letters not to modify the property. Oswit has
ignored them all and made changes, but to my knowledge the city has not taken any action. No
fines or penalties. Why is Oswit getting preferential treatment that the average citizen would
not get if they defied the city. It appears money really does talk, that Jane Garrison’s wealth
and socializing with City govt. people at events too expensive for most middle class working
people whether still working or retired.
By its actions, Oswit has shown no concern for the health & safety of the Mesquite Country
Club homeowners, or Mesquite Canyons, or New Mesquite or Sunshine Villas. It’s like David
and Goliath. We are 600 homes in Mesquite who pay property taxes. Doesn’t the city have an
obligation to address our concerns? While the Preserve is also open space like the golf course
was, the two uses have nothing else in common. The change in the conditions of the property
are negatively impacting existing trees and plants, the type of wildlife it is attracting, and all
HOAs on its boundaries.
But Garrison still fills her pool with drinking water, and irrigates her thick green lawn, and
posted on FB terrified when a coyote jumped over her tall fence and her dog had to be
rescued. But we are supposed to take one for the climate change team by letting everything in
front of us dry up.
The City’s preferential treatment of Oswit has caused literally millions of dollars damage to
our property values. For every $10,000 hit on 600 Mesquite condos is a $6 million loss in
value. The City’s preferential treatment of Jane Garrison has been to the detriment of 1800
neighboring homes. Preferential treatment, but, yet Oswit has shown zero respect for the City
by ignoring 4 letters over a year to stop modifications, by not submitting for over a year
anything the City requested last July.
Its common knowledge that Kathy Weremiuk, Chair of the Planning Commission, is a close
personal friend of Jane Garrison. I assume she will recuse herself from any vote involving
Oswit.
This situation has made living in our neighborhood depressing and has caused many to put
their places up for sale to get out at a loss.
How many projects get approved with this many conditions attached? They get two years to
get it done. And we have the live with our property values going down, down, down while the
land deteriorates, deteriorates, deteriorates.
Something that hundreds of people would like to speak at a hearing about, but physically can't
but 90% of MCC owners are cooling off somewhere in July. That makes the July timing
suspicious. Either Oswit is pushing it or the City thinks approval will somehow stop all the
complaints. Not Gonna Happen. Timing further makes us suspicious of being deliberately
done in July.
And how did terms of Planning Commission members that expired June 30, get reappointed
without being done at a public meeting as required by City Admin Code/By Laws.
The whole thing stinks like that putrid pond. Speaking of which, that is the daily Preserve
bragging rights, the gem of the land, the pond and surrounding trees filled with beautiful birds.
Guess what, that is the area that has the most non-native trees/plants and those birds have
always been there.
Mesquite Country Club Owner
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