Proposed Chick-fil-A Riles Feathers in PS

Opponents of Proposed Chick-fil-A Plan Organized Appearance at Architectural Review Committee

PALM SPRINGS — Despite the Palm Springs Planning Commission voting 5-2 to allow Chick-fil-A to open in the city, some opponents are willing to fight City Hall.

They plan to plead their case before the Architectural Review Committee meeting on April 7, as this Committee still has the power to influence key design elements—including traffic flow, access points, pedestrian safety, and infrastructure impact.

Planning commissioners allowed the project in The Springs shopping plaza on Ramon Road to move forward but required the number of drive-thru lanes to be reduced from three to two.

The fast-food eatery, which calls its Chick-fil-A the home of the “original chicken sandwich,” does not require city council approval.

“I don’t oppose development—I oppose irresponsible development,” Georgia Tournai, a Palm Springs business owner told Uken Report. She is organizing the effort to approach ARC. “The area around San Luis Rey and Ramon is already overwhelmed with traffic, limited access, and inadequate infrastructure. Adding a high-volume drive-thru without addressing those issues first isn’t just bad planning—it’s harmful to the communities that live next to it, especially Dream Homes, a historically underserved neighborhood. This isn’t about chicken. It’s about safety, equity, and making sure we’re not continuing the cycle of pushing the burden onto working-class families and calling it progress.”

She included a video of the area.

Video_1 Video

This is about more than traffic, she said. It’s about emergency response access, livability, and long-standing inequities.

The Dream Homes area is a historically underserved neighborhood that continues to bear the brunt of planning decisions, she said. We’re not trying to stop development—we’re simply asking for thoughtful, community-conscious design before it’s finalized.

The only Chick-fil-A in the Coachella Valley opened in 2022 in Palm Desert. Others are in the works in Indio and La Quinta.