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HomeMy WebLinkAbout3/25/2009 - STAFF REPORTS - 2.O. v I',E,CEI"!ED TONI M. RINGLEIN 20HEir'�R 12 PH I. 53 March 12, 2009 ' CL , CI"fY CLEI;w. Palm Springs City Council Mayor Steve Pougnet Mayor Pro Tern Chris Mills Councilmember Lee Weigel Councilmember Rick Hutcheson Councilmember Ginny Foat Dear Council, Due to the current economic climate, our family has taken this opportunity to reevaluate our goals and desires and decided to move to a home we own outside the city limits which makes me ineligible to serve the City of Palm Springs. Thus, please accept my resignation from the Planning Commission effective March 31, 2009. Though economic conditions are a factor in this decision, the fact is that my husband and I have been considering moving out of the city for some time now due to the progressively imbalanced diversity. Some of you may be aware of our letter to the Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism expressing our concern for Palm Springs being marketed as Americas Gay Oasis (see below). We feel strongly that this has become a detriment to the city's economic welfare. The gay community has successfully dominated our city and has caused an imbalanced and segregated environment. As we mentioned in our letter, many Palm Springs residents have already moved away or are planning to move, many east valley residents avoid our city and many visitors have indicated to us they will not return due to this issue. We do hope you will seriously consider addressing the question, "Has Palm Springs become too gay for its own economic benefit?" After 9 years of living here, I feel it is no longer a tolerant and diverse city for all people but just for this one minority group. It has been my honor and pleasure to serve the community of Palm Springs for the last 6 years as Commissioner and co-author of the current General Plan. I love this city and hope it identifies its niche for success. Thank you and I wish the city leaders the strength and perseverance to fulfill the goals for Palm Springs. Sincerely, Toni M. Ringlein CC: Larry Hochanadel, Planning Commission Chairman Craig Ewing, Planning Director Jay Thompson, City Clerk From: Toni [mailto:tringlein@earthlink.net] Sent: Monday, January 12, 2009 7:26 PM To: 'Mary Jo Ginther' Cc: angela.cortez@thedesertsun.com; ron@rongreenip.com; rick.green@thedesertsun.com; Lee.Weigel@palmsprings- ca.gov; Stefanie.frith@thedesertsun.com; joy@crystalfantasy.com Subject: RE: Marketing Palm Springs as a Gay Oasis Greetings Mary Jo, Thank you for your reply to our letter. While I appreciate you explaining the position of the Bureau, it is unfortunate that political correctness rules your reply. I suppose that is to be expected. In review of your explanation, I would like to open it up for discussion. In doing so, I will address each of your paragraphs individually. • Paragraph one you discuss the 5 links on the website. Please note that all of them except one, the America's Gay Oasis link, are generic in nature where ANY person fits into the category including gay and lesbians. They are not exclusive to one segment of a society as is the America's Gay Oasis link. So, to our point that this reference in the center of the home page of the website gives special treatment to a minority segment of our community. Again, I ask "why isn't there a link for Christians, Whites, Blacks, Jews, Hispanics, etc?" This is the issue, not the fact that Gay Ft Lesbians are part of the fabric of our diverse community. That, in fact, is one of the beauties of our community. However, it is not balanced any longer. A minority segment of a population has managed to get special treatment that is not being given to any others. Based on what valley residents and tourists are telling us, it is negatively affecting the success of our number one money making industry: Tourism! The one question you failed to address is, How was the decision made to label and market PS as "Americas Gay Oasis"? • Paragraph two you referenced a visitor research report indicating target markets that the city should focus on and the GLBT market is one of them. No one is debating this fact. We are debating that a special group gets special privileges on a city site paid for by tax dollars. The gay Et lesbian community, just like any other minority group in our community, has the right to market themselves. The city, however, should be marketing from a neutral stand point. See response to paragraph one. • Paragraph three you reference funding, which is always an issue; however, I disagree with your analysis to focus on a minority market vs. the masses when marketing out community. Money is better spent attracting the masses vs. a single minority market. And again, this minority market and all others can market to their segment of the population with their own money. Tax dollars should not be used to highlight, feature or give special attention to a minority segment of the population. It is important to note that when I ask Palm Springs residents about this issue, they agree that PS is now out of balance and is too gay. But they are extremely surprised to learn that the bureau markets PS as America's Gay Oasis. And why should they know about the website or its message? They already live here and have no reason to visit the website so this has gone under the radar, • Paragraph four you note that it is not the bureaus intention to emphasize one target market over another yet that is exactly what you are doing. By including a special minority group with general/neutral categories it does in fact emphasize them. This cannot be ignored any longer. 3 years ago last February, Jeff Beckleman, still fresh with the PSDRCVA, presented the new marketing campaign at the annual luncheon. It went something like this: Give into the desert, you are surrounded by... ...Mountains ...weather ...recreation ...sports ...gay and lesbians ...art ...entertainment ...culture, etc. How do gay & lesbians fit in with amenities that we market to tourists? Replace gay 8 lesbians with Blacks, Christians, Jews, Hispanics, Whites, Heterosexuals, etc. How does that sound and feel? I was dumbfounded and knew then that something needed to be said. This is when I wrote my first Desert Sun editorial about this issue and referenced both the CVA and the Bureau marketing efforts. I continue to speak out about this issue and, in these last three years, I have learned that many, many, many residents of our valley feel the same way. They either don't visit PS any longer, have moved away or, if they are residents of PS, they go down valley for their socializing. The primary reason given is that PS is too gay. Unfortunately, they do not talk about it for fear of intimidation, retaliation, business boycotts or being labeled a gay hater, homophobic, anti-gay, etc. Perhaps with Ron and I opening up this topic for discussion will give residents the courage to stand up and speak up without this fear any more. In closing, while I disagree with your reply, I do appreciate it and I look forward to continued dialogue about this issue. Best regards, Toni M. Ringlein TMR Consulting Land/Fax: 760.318.8952 Cell: 760.808-1083 tringlen earthhnk.net From: Mary Jo Ginther [mailto:mginther@palm-springs.org] Sent: Tuesday, January 06, 2009 2:52 PM To: tringlein@earthlink.net Cc: angela.cortez@thedesertsun.com; ron@rongreenip.com; rick.green@thedesertsun.com; Lee.Weigel@palmsprings- ca.gov; stefanie.frith@thedesertsun.com; joy@crystalfantasy.com Subject: RE: Marketing Palm Springs as a Gay Oasis Hi Toni, Thanks for your e-mail, I have been out of town for the holidays, so I am just getting caught up today. I could certainly appreciate your concern if the Bureau was marketing Palm Springs solely as"America's Gay Oasis", but what I believe you are referring to is one of the five links on our website that take potential visitors to electronic brochures and videos that are targeted to different potential travelers. The others are targeted to outdoor enthusiasts (Adventure), Families (Family Fun), young urban professionals (Village Vibe), and the general "sunseeker" (Sunkissed). The labels are designed to speak to each of the markets/types of potential visitor they are addressing. In the visitor research that was commissioned in 2007, it outlined the"target' markets that we should concentrate on getting in front of. Each of these electronic brochures/videos described above is designed with the Interests of the specific type of potential visitor to Palm Springs in mind. So, for example, if we are trying to talk to the Urban Professional, we will point them directly to the area of the website that will be of most interest to them...in that case"Village Vibe", if we are trying to reach the family market, we direct them toward "Family Fun", when we target potential visitors looking for outdoor activities, we send them directly to the section of the website pertaining to"Adventure", and so on. The LGBT market is one of these markets. As you know, our budget is not as big as those of the larger cities, so destinations like Las Vegas, with a $300 million dollar budget, are able to take a more general approach and do "mass "advertising. Because our funds are limited, we use our available dollars to target the groups that are already inclined to visit Palm Springs. This does not preclude other groups, we constantly look for potential types of travelers—one example is an ad we recently ran in "Reunions", a publication directed toward groups planning class reunions, family reunions, etc. We completely agree with you that Palm Springs is Indeed a wonderful city, and a key part of its allure is its diversity and acceptance of many different cultures. It Is not our intention to emphasize one target market over another. Hopefully this helps to clarify our strategy—to maximize our marketing efforts to attract potential visitors that are pre-disposed to visiting here, wherever they may be,whether is be L.A., International, etc. I appreciate the insights you have shared. As we continue the redesign of our website we will keep your input In mind to ensure that we represent Palm Springs as Inclusive, inviting and attractive to all types of visitors. Toni, please feel free to give me a call if you have ideas or specific questions I can answer. Talk to you soon, Mary Jo Mary Jo Ginther Director of Tourism Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism 777 North Palm Canyon Drive Palm Springs CA 92252 760-778-8415 ext. 11 www.Palm-springs org 1 From: Toni [mailto:tringleinCaearthlink.net] Sent: Friday, December 19, 2008 1:50 PM To: Mary Jo Ginther; Joy Meredith Cc: angela.cortez@thedesertsun.com; ron@rongreenip.com; rick.green@thedesertsun.com; Lee.Weigeftalmsprings- ca.gov; stefanie.frith@thedesertsun.com Subject: marketing PS as a gay oasis Mary Jo Ginther, Director Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism Dear Mary Jo, When we moved to Palm Springs, it was best known as an international tourist destination, playground of the Hollywood Stars past. Like many of you, we fell in love with the city instantly. Now, however, PS is better known as America's gayest city. The PS Bureau of Tourism, which is funded with tax dollars, markets PS worldwide as "America's Gay Oasis". We're active members of our community and are in the tourism industry via entertainment and hospitality. As such, we converse with many visitors and residents. The conversations regularly turn to this issue either out of frustration from the locals or the surprise and discomfort of the visitors. Too often locals tell us they either have moved or plan to move and visitors tell us they won't come back because it's "too gay". It's a comfort-level thing. Many homosexuals come here to escape towns that feel "too straight", likewise many heterosexuals leave or don't visit PS as the extremes become the norm. As heterosexuals living in PS, we feel silenced by intimidation, immediately labeled anti-gay, a gay hater, homophobic, etc., if we speak out with a contrary opinion or don't contribute to gay political agendas. A few recent examples; • Elderly lady assaulted for supporting prop 8 and it's viewed worldwide on TV. • A new nightclub forced to change its dress code to allow "Drag" costumes. • Local businesses threatened with boycotts for not contributing to "No on V. • Lesbian city council member calls a citizen a liar at public comments to cover up her own lies about supporting the boycott. Palm Springs is NOT a gay city nor is it "Americas Gay Oasis"! It is "a Wonderful city", in "a Beautiful state", in "a GREAT country" that has ALL types, shapes and sizes of people residing and visiting here. Let's try to remember our "diversity". So, how was the decision made to market PS as "Americas Gay Oasis"? Most likely, when this agenda was put forward no heterosexuals dared object or even question it for fear of being labeled anti-gay, gay-hater and then suffer intimidation. We believe it is wrong to label PS "America's Gay Oasis". When you amplify one group, you automatically diminish the others. Not sure, try "America's Heterosexual Oasis", "America's Mexican Oasis", or "America's Christian Oasis". These groups and others could argue for the same "special treatment." Shouldn't we focus our marketing efforts towards what best attracts the worldwide mosses instead of one "special" target market? Any segment of our community should be able to implement their own marketing program to benefit and prosper, BUT organizations funded by tax dollars should NOT be able to market a specific demographic as representative of our city without its citizens' approval to do so. We consider ourselves tolerant and practice this belief in our daily lives. Sadly, our tolerance is slowly being eroded watching these fascist intimidation methods and the incestuous gay agenda in Palm Springs. Like all moderates, we believe in "live and let live", but object to having the gay agenda shoved down our throats. We believe it's time for the Bureau to remove this label from their promotional campaigns and marketing materials. Once again, anytime you amplify one group, you automatically diminish the others. No group should be diminished, intimidated or singled out as representative of a community. Ron Greenip Et Toni Ringlein Palm Springs Residents 1455 East Luna Way Palm Springs, Ca 92262 760-318-8952 CC: The Desert Sun Bill O'Rielly, Fox Network Lee Wiegel, Palm Springs City Council Member Joy Meredith, President, Mainstreet Merchants Association. Ronald S. Greenip March 12, 2009 2flfl9ri;,? 12 Eli 1= 53 JF,PiES T H%, it `:,i J Palm Springs City Council CITY CLEF'G, Mayor Steve Pougnet Mayor Pro Tern Chris Mills Councilmember Lee Weigel Councilmember Rick Hutcheson Councilmember Ginny Foat Dear Council, Due to the current economic climate, our family has taken this opportunity to reevaluate our goals and desires and decided to move to a home we own outside the city limits which makes me ineligible to serve the City of Palm Springs. Thus, please accept my resignation from the Parks and Recreation Commission effective March 31, 2009. Though economic conditions are a factor in this decision, the fact is that my wife and I have been considering moving out of the city for some time now due to the progressively imbalanced diversity. Some of you may be aware of our letter to the Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism expressing our concern for Palm Springs being marketed as Americas Gay Oasis (see attached copy). We feel strongly that this has become a detriment to the city's economic welfare. The gay community has successfully dominated our city and has caused an imbalanced and segregated environment. As we mentioned in our letter, many Palm Springs residents have already moved away or are planning to move, many east valley residents avoid our city and many visitors have indicated to us they will not return due to this issue. We do hope you will seriously consider addressing the question, "Has Palm Springs become too gay for its own economic benefit?" After 7 years of living here, I feel it is no longer a tolerant and diverse city for all people but just for this one minority group. It has been my honor and pleasure to serve the community of Palm Springs for the last year as Commissioner. I love this city and hope it identifies its niche for success. Thank you and I wish the city leaders the strength and perseverance to fulfill the goals for Palm Springs, Sincerely, Ronald Greenip CC: Keith McCormick, Parks It Recreation Chair Sharon Heider, Parks Et Recreation Director Jay Thompson, City Clerk From: Tani [mailto:tringlein@earthlink.net] Sent: Monday, January 12, 2009 7:26 PM To: 'Mary Jo Ginther' Cc: angela.cortez@thedesertsun.com; ran@rongreenip.com; rick.green@thedesertsun.com; Lee.Weigel@palmsprings- ca.gov; Stefanie.frith@thedesertsun.com; joy@crystalfantasy.com Subject: RE: Marketing Palm Springs as a Gay Oasis Greetings Mary Jo, Thank you for your reply to our letter. While I appreciate you explaining the position of the Bureau, it is unfortunate that political correctness rules your reply. I suppose that is to be expected. In review of your explanation, I would like to open it up for discussion. In doing so, I will address each of your paragraphs individually. • Paragraph one you discuss the 5 links on the website. Please note that all of them except one, the America's Gay Oasis link, are generic in nature where ANY person fits into the category including gay and lesbians. They are not exclusive to one segment of a society as is the America's Gay Oasis link. So, to our point that this reference in the center of the home page of the website gives special treatment to a minority segment of our community. Again, I ask "why isn't there a link for Christians, Whites, Blacks, Jews, Hispanics, etc?" This is the issue, not the fact that Gay & Lesbians are part of the fabric of our diverse community. That, in fact, is one of the beauties of our community. However, it is not balanced any longer. A minority segment of a population has managed to get special treatment that is not being given to any others. Based on what valley residents and tourists are telling us, it is negatively affecting the success of our number one money making industry: Tourism! The one question you failed to address is, How was the decision made to Label and market PS as "Americas Gay Oasis"? • Paragraph two you referenced a visitor research report indicating target markets that the city should focus on and the GLBT market is one of them. No one is debating this fact. We are debating that a special group gets special privileges on a city site paid for by tax dollars. The gay & lesbian community, just like any other minority group in our community, has the right to market themselves. The city, however, should be marketing from a neutral stand point. See response to paragraph one. • Paragraph three you reference funding, which is always an issue; however, I disagree with your analysis to focus on a minority market vs. the masses when marketing out community. Money is better spent attracting the masses vs. a single minority market. And again, this minority market and all others can market to their segment of the population with their own money. Tax dollars should not be used to highlight, feature or give special attention to a minority segment of the population. It is important to note that when I ask Palm Springs residents about this issue, they agree that PS is now out of balance and is too gay. But they are extremely surprised to learn that the bureau markets PS as America's Gay Oasis. And why should they know about the website or its message? They already live here and have no reason to visit the website so this has gone under the radar. • Paragraph four you note that it is not the bureaus intention to emphasize one target market over another yet that is exactly what you are doing. By including a special minority group with general/neutral categories it does in fact emphasize them. This cannot be ignored any longer. 3 years ago last February, Jeff Beckleman, still fresh with the P5DRCVA, presented the new marketing campaign at the annual luncheon. It went something like this: Give into the desert, you are surrounded by... ...Mountains ...Weather ...recreation ...sports ...gay and lesbians ...art ...entertainment ...culture, etc. How do gay & lesbians fit in with amenities that we market to tourists? Replace gay Ft lesbians With Blacks, Christians, Jews, Hispanics, Whites, Heterosexuals, etc. How does that sound and feel? I was dumbfounded and knew then that something needed to be said. This is when I wrote my first Desert Sun editorial about this issue and referenced both the CVA and the Bureau marketing efforts. I continue to speak out about this issue and, in these last three years, I have learned that many, many, many residents of our valley feel the same way. They either don't visit PS any longer, have moved away or, if they are residents of PS, they go down valley for their socializing. The primary reason given is that PS is too gay. Unfortunately, they do not talk about it for fear of intimidation, retaliation, business boycotts or being labeled a gay hater, homophobic, anti-gay, etc. Perhaps with Ron and I opening up this topic for discussion will give residents the courage to stand up and speak up without this fear any more. In closing, while I disagree with your reply, I do appreciate it and I look forward to continued dialogue about this issue. Best regards, Toni M. Ringlein TMRuuConsulting Land/Fax: 760-318-8952 Cell: 760-808-1083 tring[L-in@earthlink.net From: Mary Jo Ginther [mailtc:mginther@palm-springs.org] Sent: Tuesday, January 06, 2009 2:52 PM To: tringlein@earthlink.net Cc: angela.cortez@thedesertsun.com; ron@rongreenip.com; rick.green@thedesertsun.com; Lee.Weigel@palmsprings- ca.gov; Stefanie.frith@thedesertsun.com;joy@crystalfantasy.com Subject: RE: Marketing Palm Springs as a Gay Oasis Hi Toni, Thanks for your e-mail, I have been out of town for the holidays, so I am just getting caught up today. I could certainly appreciate your concern if the Bureau was marketing Palm Springs solely as "America's Gay Oasis", but what I believe you are referring to is one of the five links on our website that take potential visitors to electronic brochures and videos that are targeted to different potential travelers. The others are targeted to outdoor enthusiasts (Adventure), Families (Family Fun), young urban professionals (Village Vibe), and the general "sunseeker" (Sunkissed). The labels are designed to speak to each of the markets/types of potential visitor they are addressing. In the visitor research that was commissioned in 2007, it outlined the"target" markets that we should concentrate on getting in front of. Each of these electronic brochures/videos described above is designed with the interests of the specific type of potential visitor to Palm Springs in mind. So, for example, If we are trying to talk to the Urban Professional, we will point them directly to the area of the website that will be of most interest to them...in that case"Village Vibe", if we are trying to reach the family market, we direct them toward "Family Fun", when we target potential visitors looking for outdoor activities, we send them directly to the section of the website pertaining to "Adventure", and so on.The LGBT market is one of these markets. As you know, our budget is not as big as those of the larger cities, so destinations like Las Vegas, with a $300 million dollar budget, are able to take a more general approach and do"mass"advertising. Because our funds are limited, we use our available dollars to target the groups that are already inclined to visit Palm Springs. This does not preclude other groups, we constantly look for potential types of travelers—one example is an ad we recently ran in "Reunions", a publication directed toward groups planning class reunions, family reunions, etc. We completely agree with you that Palm Springs is indeed a wonderful city, and a key part of its allure is its diversity and acceptance of many different cultures. It is not our intention to emphasize one target market over another. Hopefully this helps to clarify our strategy—to maximize our marketing efforts to attract potential visitors that are pre-disposed to visiting here, wherever they may be, whether is be L.A., international, etc. I appreciate the insights you have shared. As we continue the redesign of our website we will keep your input in mind to ensure that we represent Palm Springs as inclusive, inviting and attractive to all types of visitors. Toni, please feel free to give me a call if you have ideas or specific questions I can answer. Talk to you soon, Mary Jo Mary Jo Ginther Director of Tourism Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism 777 North Palm Canyon Drive Palm Springs CA 92262 760-778-8415 ext. 11 www.oalm-sorinas ora xK" From: Toni [mailto:tringlein@earthlink.net] Sent: Friday, December 19, 2008 1:50 PM To: Mary Jo Ginther; Joy Meredith Cc: angela.cortezCthedesertsun.com; ron@rongreenip.com; rick.green@thedesertsun.com; Lee.WeigelCpalmsprings- ca.gov; stefanie.frith0thedesertsun.com Subject: marketing PS as a gay oasis Mary Jo Ginther, Director Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism Dear Mary Jo, When we moved to Palm Springs, it was best known as an international tourist destination, playground of the Hollywood Stars past. Like many of you, we fell in love with the city instantly. Now, however, PS is better known as America's gayest city. The PS Bureau of Tourism, which is funded with tax dollars, markets P5 worldwide as "America's Gay Oasis". We're active members of our community and are in the tourism industry via entertainment and hospitality. As such, we converse with many visitors and residents. The conversations regularly turn to this issue either out of frustration from the locals or the surprise and discomfort of the visitors. Too often locals tell us they either have moved or plan to move and visitors tell us they won't come back because it's "too gay". It's a comfort-level thing. Many homosexuals come here to escape towns that feel "too straight", likewise many heterosexuals leave or don't visit PS as the extremes become the norm. As heterosexuals living in PS, we feel silenced by intimidation, immediately labeled anti-gay, a gay hater, homophobic, etc., if we speak out with a contrary opinion or don't contribute to gay political agendas. A few recent examples; • Elderly lady assaulted for supporting prop 8 and it's viewed worldwide on TV. • A new nightclub forced to change its dress code to allow "Drag" costumes. • Local businesses threatened with boycotts for not contributing to "No on 8". • Lesbian city council member calls a citizen a liar at public comments to cover up her own lies about supporting the boycott. Palm Springs is NOT a gay city nor is it "Americas Gay Oasis"! It is "a Wonderful city", in "a Beautiful state", in "a GREAT country" that has ALL types, shapes and sizes of people residing and visiting here. Let's try to remember our "diversity". So, how was the decision made to market PS as "Americas Gay Oasis"? Most likely, when this agenda was put forward no heterosexuals dared object or even question it for fear of being labeled anti-gay, gay-hater and then suffer intimidation. We believe it is wrong to label PS "America's Gay Oasis". When you amplify one group, you automatically diminish the others. Not sure, try "America's Heterosexual Oasis", "America's Mexican Oasis", or "America's Christian Oasis". These groups and others could argue for the same "special treatment." Shouldn't we focus our marketing efforts towards what best attracts the worldwide masses instead of one "special" target market? Any segment of our community should be able to implement their own marketing program to benefit and prosper, BUT organizations funded by tax dollars should NOT be able to market a specific demographic as representative of our city without its citizens' approval to do so. We consider ourselves tolerant and practice this belief in our daily lives. Sadly, our tolerance is slowly being eroded watching these fascist intimidation methods and the incestuous gay agenda in Palm Springs, Like all moderates, we believe in "live and let live", but object to having the gay agenda shoved down our throats. We believe it's time for the Bureau to remove this Label from their promotional campaigns and marketing materials. Once again, anytime you amplify one group, you automatically diminish the others. No group should be diminished, intimidated or singled out as representative of a community. Ron Greenip fe Toni Ringlein Palm Springs Residents 1455 East Luna Way Palm Springs, Ca 92262 760-318-8952 CC: The Desert Sun Bill O'Rielly, Fox Network Lee Wiegel, Palm Springs City Council Member Joy Meredith, President, Mainstreet Merchants Association.