College of the Desert moving ahead: City transfers land for new 'green' 119-acre campus near Palermo

Good news this morning about the College of the Desert new campus planned for a couple of blocks from Palermo Palm Springs on Indian Canyon Drive. The 119-acre campus is "envisioned as a cutting-edge enclave of energy self-sufficient buildings, a green business incubator offering training and jobs for students and a small solar farm generating extra income as well as electricity." And the city sees "the campus as a boon for retail, with students coming from Desert Hot Springs and Cathedral City, as well as Beaumont and Banning further down Interstate 10. COD first committed to developing the satellite campuses as part of a $346.5 million bond measure voters passed in 2004. The campus programs would focus on hospitality and tourism, media and the arts, health and green tech," according to reports. The college also is in negotiations with a private university to provide upper-division courses. Now the land is being transferred from the city to the college. Today's paper reports that:

"The City Council Wednesday approved transferring of 119 acres of city-owned land to become the College of the Desert's new West Valley Campus, said city spokeswoman Amy Blaisdell. Construction on the campus, at the northwest corner of Tramview Road and Indian Canyon Drive, is expected to begin in early 2011, Blaisdell said. Mayor Steve Pougnet said city officials are excited about the project. “The West Valley Campus will be one of the most green and clean in the country and will set the gold standard when it comes to educating thousands of students for the next generation of green jobs,” Pougnet said. The campus will feature a 70-acre 'green park,' that will include solar panels for renewable energy production. The city purchased the land in July 2010 for about $2 million from the Bureau of Land Management.”

Miss Penny Lane says: Palermo Palm Springs will be at the center of it all.