Palm Springs City Council Voids Arts Commission Vote, Frank Bogert Statue to Remain in Storage

The statue of former Palm Springs Mayor Frank Bogert will remain in storage following a decision by the Palm Springs City Council to void a recent vote by the Public Arts Commission.

At last night’s city council meeting, members agreed to invalidate the commission’s January 7 decision that would have relocated the statue to the Village Green in downtown Palm Springs. City leaders said the earlier vote may not have followed proper public notice requirements.

Palm Springs City Attorney Jeffrey Ballinger told council members that allowing the Arts Commission to make the decision without formally agendizing it at a November 12 city council meeting may have violated the Brown Act, which guarantees the public’s right to attend and participate in government meetings.

Based on the city attorney’s advice, the council determined that a potential inadvertent Brown Act violation occurred. As a result, council members voted to treat the Arts Commission’s January action as void in the interest of transparency and compliance with state law.

This decision means the Bogert statue will not be relocated at this time and will continue to be stored by the city.

The statue had previously stood in front of Palm Springs City Hall until it was removed in 2022 amid renewed scrutiny of Bogert’s role during the Section 14 evictions, a period in city history when predominantly Black and Latino families were displaced from their homes.

City officials say the matter could return for public discussion in the future, but for now, the statue will remain in storage.

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