Palm Springs COD Campus Groundbreaking

Palm Springs Campus Groundbreaking — 20 Years in the Making

PALM SPRINGS — It took 20 years of planning and development, but on Thursday College of the Desert broke ground paving the way for a local campus on Baristo Road.

The 2004 Measure B Bond provided $346.5 million in funding to improve and expand the District’s educational centers, including new classrooms, computer labs, and science labs. In 2016, the Measure CC bond was passed, granting $577.9 million to COD to expand its Indio campus, build its new Roadrunner Motors automotive facility in Cathedral City, and develop the all-new Palm Springs campus.

The new campus, which is slated to open in 2027, will feature cutting-edge facilities to provide students with hands-on experiences in the Hospitality and Tourism industries, including culinary training and a student-supported restaurant on site. Future programs will prepare students for careers in Architecture, Digital Arts, and Healthcare that will directly support the economic impact in the Coachella Valley.

The campus groundbreaking came about two weeks after The Desert Community College District (College) and the City of Palm Springs (City) have reached an agreement that reaffirms the College’s commitment to building the Palm Springs Development Project and settles both a dispute related to a College-owned parcel of land and a California Public Records Act lawsuit, originally filed in 2022, according to a COD-issued news release. The resolution, which involves no admission of wrongdoing by either party, underscores a renewed level of collaboration and community engagement between the College and the City.

Learn more about upcoming events by visiting www.CollegeOfTheDesert.edu