Yucca Valley Town Council recap: roundabout study, Town budget, new Town Clerk, development updates

It was a brisk meeting last night at the Yucca Valley Town Council, and lightly attended despite some earlier social media attention on a consent agenda item.

New Town Clerk

First up: Brooke Dudra was sworn in as the new Town Clerk by Mayor Abel. Brooke Dudra began working for the Town in 2018 as an Administrative Assistant. In 2021 she moved into the Assistant Adminstrator 3 role and is now designated the new Town Clerk after Lesley Copeland’s retirement. Brooke recently gained some extra visibility and gratitude for her work on media campaigns for the Yucca Valley Animal Shelter, putting in extra work during the transition period between shelter managers.

Mayor Merl Abel swore her in as the new Town Clerk, saying “Brooke’s work will ensure an open and accountable government where every resident has clear and equitable access to town information.  Brooke, we are so very excited to have you here representing the town and serving our community, which you’ve already done so well in the past. So congratulations once again, Madam Clerk.”

Possible Roundabout Study

Item #5 on the consent agenda was pulled for some extra context by Town Manager Curtis Yakimow. The item addressed a traffic study for the intersection of Yucca Trail and La Contenta Road. The intersection sits on the border between unincorporated San Bernardino County land and the Yucca Valley Town limits.

The Town and the County will split the cost on a traffic study to evaluate the most efficient traffic movement along Yucca Trail, with each party ponying up $125,000 for the study for a total of $250,000. The study is part of a larger set of roadway improvements on the busy two lane road, which also acts as a Highway 62 bypass.

Town Manager Curtis Yakimow says the study is open to any results, telling the Town Council that “County staff has discussed (this) with the town and identified the possibility of a circular intersection as one alternative that the Town and County may wish to consider. Other alternatives may include a simple installation of stop signs, a traffic signal, or quite frankly, no changes at all. (There are) various factors (that) we’re evaluating that have to be considered for any alternative, including the necessary rights of way for whatever alternative is selected, utility relocation, alignment of La Quintana south of Yucca Trail, as well as other technical factors.”

The agenda got a little buzz on social media where there were dozens of commenters with strong opinions about the intersection. That didn’t translate to people showing up to the meeting, however, as only one resident gave public comment about the intersection study. Cheryl Contopulas says she’s aware of the intersection and while she likes roundabouts, she think a four-way stop could be more cost efficient and easier for people to understand.

During Council comments, Councilmember Drozd mentioned a study he read involving roundabouts, saying “they don’t fit every circumstance, so we’ll leave that to the professionals. But where they are used, they reduce deaths by 90%. So I don’t know if that’s the right place or not, but either way, at least we’re just doing a study and figuring it out.”

There was no timeline shared by Town Staff for the study to be completed, and the traffic study cost was unanimously approved by the council.

San Bernardino County Traffic Authority updates

The San Bernardino County Traffic Authority (SBCTA) Executive Director Otis Greer joined the Town Council remotely for a brief overview of Measure I which was originally passed by voters in 1989. The Measure continues to fund state and federal funds for transportation infrastructure in the region. The current version of the measure expires in 2040.

Greer went over how that funding is used in the County and more specifically in our desert region with projects such as the Yucca Trail widening and improvements on Palomar, Sage Avenue, Onaga Trail and Sunny Slope Drive. 70% of the funds collected through the measure are spent on local infrastructure projects, while the other 30% is used on regional projects and operation costs.

Councilmember Rick Denison is the President of the SBCTA was credited by Greer in the creation of an “Interregional Mobility Expenditure Plan” which will provide more resources to communities that are impacted by increased tourism, such as Big Bear and Yucca Valley. A half-cent sales tax extension will help fund additional projects such as sidewalks and bike lanes.

Councilmember and SBCTA President Rick Denison spoke to some of the improvements already made in the area to reduce highway congestion and improve safety for pedestrians, and he spoke specifically to the five-year cycle of maintaining the asphalt and roads in Yucca Valley through the slurry and cape seal projects. “You may have noticed the aggressiveness of the town to start on a cycle of every five-years or less, depends on how much the wear and tear is, to slurry or cape seal these roads. Because we want to be good stewards and take care of it, and we can do that with the Measure I funding that we have.”

The council passed the continued expenditure plan.

Town expected to earn more than it spends in 2026-2028

Other things approved last night were a look at the Town’s 2026-2028 Budget by Finance Manager Jordan Gumbush. In short, the Town isn’t spending more than its making with revenues projected around $22.6 million and $23.2 million for the next two years.

Property tax income is expected to continue to increase while Transit Occupancy Tax (TOT) income is expected to stay relatively flat compared to the boom years when short term rentals flooded the market.

The Yucca Valley Aquatic Recreation Center is also expected to increase revenue for the Town after opening.

Other Town Updates

The parking lot next to the pickle ball courts at the Yucca Valley Community Center Athletic facilities has been repaired as much as it can and is slated to be replaced, with an additional $400,000 dollars approved by the Council.

In public comments, animal advocate Cheryl Contopulus spoke about the Yucca Valley Animal Shelter and gave praise to Shelter Manager Shianne May. She said the shelter could always use expansion.

Morongo Basin Sheriff Station OHV Enforcement

Morongo Basin Sheriff Station Captain Steve Scovel gave an update recent Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) enforcement operations. On Sunday (4/5), Captain Scovel says that twelve officers from the Morongo Basin Sheriff’s Station, Barstow and Victorville used OHV and regular police cruisers to look for off-roading violations. He says there were a total of 41 citations, half of those being warnings and the other half for unregistered vehicles, OHV use on city streets, unlicensed drivers and open alcohol containers.

He also says there were six arrests: one felony warrant, one DUI, one possession of a controlled substance and three misdemeanors. Nine vehicles were towed and six stolen vehicles were recovered.

Yucca Valley Fire Station Updates

San Bernardino County Fire Battalion Chief Travis Aguirre says that the Yucca Valley Station is receiving a new fire engine and a new “brush engine” for Station 41. He also said they’ve added a couple ambulances as well as a 4th person to their Twentynine Palms fire station.

“We only have so many firefighters within the basin, so when we (add personnel) in this area, it adds to our service coming out this way or when we need to use them for coverage,” Aguirre said to the Town Council.

The new Yucca Valley Fire Station is also in the final stages of the land donation process, and the Chief says after that hopefully it can “go out to bid.”

Tri-Valley Little League gets safer shade

The Tri-Valley Little League dugouts got a $200,00 glow up.

The previous dugout shades were in serious disrepair, being called “structurally unsafe” according to Public Works Director Alex Qishta. New shade sails were installed with funds from capital project reserves that were previously approved by the Town Council.

Town Development Projects

Deputy Town Manager Shane Stueckle updated the Council on some development projects around town, and teased a longer Planning Commission meeting next week that will address some long-in development projects such as the “Super Walmart” Fueling Station, Dutch Bros. and the Sun Mesa Mini Storage project.

The Dominoes / Jersey Mikes currently under construction in the Stater Bros. parking lot is “moving at their own pace” according to Stueckle, and he says that there may be some changes coming to the project regarding parking.

The Starbucks west location has a new contractor on the job and is also moving forward.

Nice Dream Ices held a soft opening for their location on Twentynine Palms Highway and construction and landscaping is complete on the business.

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