County approves interim STR moratorium for desert communities
At its March 11 meeting, the Riverside Board of Supervisors approved a 45-day temporary moratorium on new STRs within the unincorporated areas of Thousand Palms, and B Bar H Ranch.
Planning Director John Hildebrand provided the Board with a report on the situation in these two desert communities and concluded with a request for the moratorium as an urgent interim ordinance. The moratorium will be in effect from its adoption on Tuesday, March 11 to Friday, April 25.
This STR moratorium did not affect either the Hill communities or the Wine Country.
Before the discussion, Board Chair V. Manuel Perez (4th District) mentioned a Thousand Palms community meeting which he attended that led to this proposal.
“People being misinformed is not the reason why this is here. We’re trying to understand the facts. They suggested the moratorium to help us think this through, like we did in Idyllwild and Temecula,” he stated.
Scott Bruckner, Planning Division manager, provided a history of short-term rentals in the County. The first ordinance was approved in 2016 and there were 300 STRs. By 2024, when it was last amended, the County had 1,300 STRs.
Bruckner was followed by Code Enforcement Director Brian Contino, who discussed the situation in both Thousand Palms and B Bar H Ranch. Currently there are 68 approved STRs, with certificates, in both locations and, at least, 35 operating without a County certificate. In 2023, the County received 20 applications for new certificates.
Enforcement has intensified in the past three months, Contino said. For example, his staff has issued 68 notices of violation and 17 cease and desist orders during just this period.
Supervisor Chuck Washington (3rd District) spoke in support of the interim ordinance and then the Board voted unanimously to approve it.
Before the Board discussion, desert resident Janice Charney spoke in support of its passage. “It’s necessary for all of us in Thousand Palms and B Bar. We need the peace and quiet.”
Neighbors have been experiencing frequent (typical) adverse effects. Examples that Hildebrand mentioned in his report are familiar to Hill residents. Unpermitted large-scale events, excessive noise, disorderly conduct, traffic congestion, illegal vehicle parking, and accumulation of refuse are examples discussed in the Planning Report submitted with the draft ordinance.
The unincorporated county area of Thousand Palms is located along Interstate 10 at the intersection of Ramon Road, and is characterized by mobile home subdivisions, single-family residential neighborhoods and rural residential development, with some commercial and industrial developments, according the request.
The B Bar H Ranch is an unincorporated community comprised of predominantly low-density residential, located between Palm Springs and Desert Hot Springs in the Seven Palms Valley.
