The Indio City Council faces one of its most significant development decisions in years at its meeting Wednesday, Sept. 16. After years of planning and debate, the 183-acre Oasis at Indio may receive a final vote.
The project could bring 3,240 new homes, a hotel and 1,244 permanent jobs to the city, its developer says, but some residents and city planning commissioners have balked at irreparable increases to greenhouse gases and traffic that could change Indio for the worse.
Planned for vacant land just north of Interstate 10, south of Avenue 42 and west of Monroe Street, the Oasis at Indio could bring new industries and housing to an city that is already undergoing significant growth. Proposed by the Los Angeles-based commercial real estate firm
BH Properties, the project would open up roughly 1.8 million square feet of land to industrial use, such as warehousing. Under one version of the plan, around 20,000 square feet would also be devoted to commercial use, which could include a hotel, shops and restaurants.
The developer has called the mixture of housing, industry and commercial space a sizeable investment in Indio's future, but planning commissioners and residents have pushed back on some of what they call undesirable side effects of the development.
The Indio Planning Commission voted 3-2 in May 2026 to reject the project and laterrecommended the city council issue a final denial. In their decision, commissioners cited concerns over air quality and the presence of a large industrial area at one of the "gateways" to the city.
“Once it's there, it permanently changes how people see us, how investors see us, and how future development patterns evolve around it,” Commissioner Michael Slater said during the May meeting.
Some nearby residents have spoken out against the project, especially those of the nearby Sun Shadow Hills community. Residents have urged city leaders not to sacrifice the health and safety of Indio community members for the sake of incresaed revenue.
But the city stands to gain a not insignificant new income stream if the project is approved.
Indio planners estimated the Oasis project would lead to an increase in up to $1.2 million a year for the city's general fund revenues, which would be about a 1% increase of the city's $129.8 million fund.
The jobs to be brought to the city would likely be associated with e-commerce and logistics.
“Markets, including those in Los Angeles County, Orange, and San Bernardino Counties are running out of space to support more industrial facilities," the Indio office of Community Development wrote in a memorandum to the council, included in the agenda. "The limited availability of industrial facilities can result in negative effects such as stock-outs, trade bottlenecks, and delays in the time it takes for goods to reach consumers.”
That makes the Oasis at Indio potentially an attractive destination to developers.
BH Properties has altered the project since the planning commission vote to address some of the concerns. The developer reduced the maximum height of the buildings from 100 feet to 65 feet and increased the amount of space between buildings and the highway. Still, the air quality concerns, which would largely be caused by vehicles driving to and from the development, remain.
The Indio City Council meeting takes place at 5 p.m., Wednesday, in the Council Chamber at 100 Civic Center Drive. The meetings are also livestreamed on YouTube.
Sam Morgen covers local government for The Desert Sun. Reach him at smorgen@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Fate of 3,200-home north Indio development Oasis to be decided
