July 25 to July 31, 2013
www.coachellavalleyweekly.com
www.coachellavalleyweekly.com
JOIN CITY LEADERS AND THE PUBLIC ARTS AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION IN THE UNVEILING OF THE QUICK N EASY MURAL, THE NINTH EDITION TO INDIO’S COLLECTION OF PUBLIC ART MURALS
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he City of Indio will hold an unveiling ceremony to celebrate and commemorate the Quick N Easy public art mural project on Thursday, July 25th at 9:00 AM. Mayor Elaine Holmes will be the guest of honor to unveil the second mural made possible by the City of Indio Public Arts and Historic Preservation
Commission. The ceremony is free and open to the public. Come and enjoy the official unveiling and commemoration of the completed mural located at 82660 Miles Avenue (northeast corner of Miles Avenue and King Street) with some light refreshments and snacks. Meet artist Nicole L. Ponsler,
a renowned mural artist from Point Arena who has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Fine Arts, and has completed several murals around the country. Indio City Council members will be in attendance as well as artist representatives of the Indio arts community. The artist’s mural depicts natural
elements that can be seen in the landscape of the area. Indio is home to 8 other murals, which were initiated by the Indio Chamber of Commerce and supported by various Indio community members. The last mural was installed in March, 2013. For more information about the City’s public art program, contact Joe Lim at (760) 541-4255 or by email at jlim@indio.org
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July 25 to July 31, 2013
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was established in 1768. Today’s chambers protect and promote business as well as address socioeconomic concerns and social needs. A Chamber is made up of local business and community members with an elected Board of Directors. The Board then hires a President or CEO. “This is a busy time for juggling family, friends and business,” said Donaldson in an email. “But I want to be sure that the Chamber remains a top priority.” Donaldson lives and breathes Chamber business. She has been in the Chamber business for nearly seven years. Besides ribbon cuttings, mixers and committee meetings, Donaldson holds regular educational conferences designed to assist businesses. It is the Indio Chamber of Commerce that puts on the Southwest Arts Festival. It is the Chamber’s biggest fundraiser. Donaldson herself is always working to learn more about what makes a great Chamber. Last week she graduated from the U. S. Chamber Institute of Organization Management. Last year she finished The Western Association of Chamber Executives Academy. Donaldson spent 2000 hours writing and working on the detailed and rigorous application, which covers nine areas from governance to benchmarking to receive Indio’s U. S. Chamber accreditation. Palm Desert is the only other CV city with an accreditation.
This July there have already been several ribbon cuttings. On July 25 there is a Lunch & Learn Roundtable about Board Roles and Goals with Bob Harris CAE of the Nonprofit Center. On the 26th, they have a Board Work Planning Conference and on the 30th, a Social Networking live mixer at Sun City Shadow Hills with special guests City Manager Dan Martinez and Mayor Holmes. The Chamber never rests. In September, the Good Morning Coachella Valley Legislative Breakfast at Bellatrix at the Classic Club will feature congressman Raul Ruiz, MD. The Chamber’s Good Morning CV is an informationpacked program designed to brief the business community on the latest business trends, legislative updates, economic developments and relevant issues that affect the community. See their well organized, friendly and easy to use website for more details and to register. Indio is the city of festivals and is working on providing an art and entertainment focus. They value their diverse population and strive to have something interesting or entertaining for everyone of every age. They have a beautiful teen center and new senior center. They are proud of the Indio Performing Arts Center and have seen a growing interest in theater. Starting this Saturday, IPAC is holding a summer cinema series showcasing classic movies in the 127-stadium seat air-conditioned theater. The Coachella Valley Arts Center has classes in glass blowing and welding. The Mayor has been working with the Coachella Valley Symphony to bring an outdoor concert
event in October. And the city signed a 17year agreement with Goldenvoice for up to five festivals a year at the Empire Polo Club. The contract allows the concert promoters to try new music and entertainment venues that may appeal to an even wider spectrum of artists and audiences. It is important to the Mayor to be accessible to Indio citizens. She regularly hosts a casual get together she calls “Mocha with the Mayor.” On the third Thursday of every month at It’s a Grind Coffee on Jefferson Street from 8:30 to 9:30 am constituents can share their ideas or concerns. Mayor Holmes is actively seeking volunteers to serve in the community and hopes to build a volunteer program. “There are a lot of opportunities to do things,” said the Mayor. “We want to match people with staff.” Mayor Holmes believes that pulling people together city-wide will not only get things done, but generate pride. Some special concerns include Indio’s animal shelter and the lack of medical marijuana dispensaries. The Indio Animal Care Center is closing August 31. The city is discontinuing their contract with the county because of staff issues and the building’s age and the need for expensive updating. The Thousand Palms shelter is a state of the art facility. Indio hopes to have animal spay
and neuter clinics and low cost vaccines available to residents. A year ago the city council decided that medical marijuana dispensaries were not a good fit for Indio. But that was before it was decided that local municipalities had jurisdiction over the location of dispensaries. The council can, and may, eventually revisit the issue. For Mayor Holmes the hardest thing is to be patient. “The city has a process and we want to make sure everyone is engaged. It’s important to get the public behind the process,” said the Mayor. “We want what’s best for the city. We want to create a better place for families and businesses.” Both Mayor Holmes and Donaldson would agree that they work for a great city. Based on their big smiles and positive attitudes, they love what they do and enjoy making Indio their priority. For the next six months these two women will continue to be an effective duo for Indio with the help of their capable and dedicated colleagues. Incorporated in 1930, Indio is the oldest city in the CV. It is a city focused on building its future. In a city where the Woman’s Club has been an active service organization for over 100 years, it is not surprising that two of Indio’s most important positions are filled by women.
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