Greg Sanders Seeks Second Four-Year Term
INDIAN WELLS — All candidates in the Nov. 5 City Council election were given the opportunity to participate in a candidate questionnaire Uken Report distributed. Following are the responses from Greg Sanders.
UR: Age and Occupation?
Greg Sanders: 77 years old. Attorney-at-law specializing in real estate, planning, zoning, and land use law.
UR: Who or What Motivated You to Run for the City Council?
Greg Sanders: I am running for reelection on a solid record of achievement. I was motivated to run for the City Council in 2020 because I perceived a lack of coherent direction in city affairs. For example, the Indian Wells Golf Resort, which is owned by the City, should have been a significant source of city General Fund revenues. Instead, it was hemorrhaging red ink, consistently losing hundreds of thousands of dollars per year for more than a decade. After I was elected, I focused on the financial performance of the Golf Resort. Last fiscal year (ending June 30, 2024), the Golf Resort turned a $1.6 million profit, enabling the city to afford greater police protection. I also wanted a greater focus to crime prevention. To that end, I led the effort to create the Sheriff’s Department home inspection program to educate homeowners on burglary prevention at no charge to residents. I also initiated the plan to add an additional patrol deputy at night. I am running for reelection to ensure that these measures and others remain in place and continue.
UR: How Long Have You Lived in Indian Wells Full Time?
Greg Sanders: 8 years.
Greg Sanders: What is Your Number 1 Priority for the City?
Greg Sanders: Public Safety. Police and fire protection, including paramedic service, are the primary responsibilities of every city. I chair the City Council’s Public Safety Committee where police, fire and paramedic initiatives begin.
UR: What Makes You a Better Candidate Than Your Opponents?
Greg Sanders: Experience. I am an attorney specializing in real estate, planning, zoning, and land use matters. I have 47 years of experience dealing with the same planning and zoning matters that face the City of Indian Wells daily. Being a member of the City Council requires leadership skills. I learned leadership skills as an Army combat Infantry Officer and later as a JAG Officer with the California Guard. I am also an innovator, unafraid to try new approaches to governance. For example, I initiated unprecedented cooperation with the homeowners’ associations within the gated portions of Indian Wells by sponsoring an HOA Seminar in January, bringing the homeowners’ associations and the city together for the first time. The seminar will be repeated in early 2025.
UR: Do You See Yourself as a Team Player or an Individual Who Will Fight for Your Opinions?
Greg Sanders: Both. For example, I successfully built a consensus on important city issues including forging a new direction for the Indian Wells Golf Resort, adding a patrol deputy at night, and instituting the anti-burglary home inspection program. On the other hand, I had to use all my powers of persuasion to augment the city’s infrastructure budget to include physical improvements for pedestrian safety, etc. Having said that, I have not and will not sacrifice my principles, including fiscal conservatism, civil conduct with my colleagues and members of the public and transparency at every level of the city’s affairs.
UR: How Do You Deal with Conflict? Give Us an Example.
Greg Sanders: Conflict is unavoidable in a democracy. In conflict situations, the key to successful governance is to disagree without being disagreeable. When I became Mayor in December, 2023, I told my City Council colleagues that I would not abide anything less than civil discourse. The City Council has fared well with that overriding principle. Council members must leave their peeves and animosities, if any, outside the City Council chambers. Voters expect nothing less. Recently, when one member of the City Council wanted to agendize a complaint against another member for written statements made outside the purview of City business, I refused to make the City Council a forum for airing non-city grievances. As Mayor, during hearings on contentious matters, I lead by example and keep a tight rein on the meeting, ensuring everyone an opportunity to be heard with respect.
UR: What is the Biggest Issue Facing Indian Wells?
Greg Sanders: Coping with the affordable housing mandates of the State of California. In my view, affordable housing looms as the biggest threat to the city’s economy (and the economy of the entire Coachella Valley). 70% of the city’s revenues are derived from tourists (transient occupancy, sales, and admissions taxes). The hospitality industry is the key to a vibrant tourist environment which depends on employees who can afford to live within a reasonable distance of their jobs. Without significant subsidies, creating affordable housing in the present economy can be as expensive as developing market rate housing. The City of Indian Wells is currently working with the developer of the proposed new five-star hotel at the northwest corner of Miles and Highway 111 to create workforce housing for the hotel’s employees. The city is also actively pursuing legislation that will allow cities to work together to create affordable housing. Unfortunately, regional approaches to development of affordable housing are not permitted under existing state legislation.
