COD Trustee Bea Gonzalez Target of Recall

Bea Gonzalez, who represents Trustee Area 2, is target of recall

An effort to recall Bea Gonzalez, who represents area 2 on the College of the Desert Board of Trustees, quickly gathered steam Thursday, Feb. 23, as news of the effort broke.

Gonzalez was elected to a four-year term on the board in 2020. Her term runs through 2024. She currently serves as clerk of the board.

The effort to recall is multi-pronged.

First, Gonzalez opposed moving forward with the original March 2021 schematic design for the Palm Springs West Valley Campus. The vote was 3-2 in favor of adopting the original plan for the campus with several changes agreed upon by the majority of the Trustees and other interested parties including representatives of the hospitality industry. One important change agreed upon by all involved was the removal of the original plan to include a learning/teaching hotel on the property.

By opposing the West Valley campus, she voted against her own constituents.

Second, according to Lynne O’Neill, a retired attorney who lives in Thousand Palms, she “arrogantly” dismissed the data surrounding the board’s blackout of information to other cities while focusing only on Coachella properties, including those owned by Fourth District Supervisor V. Manuel Perez, his Chief of Staff/Mayor of Coachella Steven Hernandez; and the former Mayor of Coachella Jesus Gonzalez.

O’Neill has spoken out at the last two meetings about secret moves to get a campus in Coachella and more.

Third, Gonzalez “was equally abrupt” in dismissing the news that the Public Corruption Unit was investigating Coachella land deals as long as two years ago, which is before the recent “deals in the dark” with politicians residing in Coachella of which she was a part.

After hearing all of that data at the last board meeting, when it was Gonzalez’s turn to speak, she arrogantly said “now back to reality.”

In November 2020, Gonzalez received 17,586 votes, according to the Riverside County Registrar of Voters. To get a recall question on the ballot requires 20% of the vote. Signatures must come from her district, which includes Desert Hot Springs, Thousand Palms, Sun City in Palm Desert, Northern Indio, Indio Hill, Sky Valley and a small portion of Palm Desert.