History
RANCHO MIRAGE FACED CROSSROADS IN 1968
By Stuart Ackley(Ed. Note: The following article is part of a series of historical essays on Rancho Mirage in celebration of the Chamber's 50th Anniversary in 2005)
The events of the year 1968 affected the course of history for America for decades: North Korea captured the US Pueblo and held the ship's crew as prisoners; the Tet offensive launched by the Viet Cong was the turning point in the Vietnam War; the Cold War escalated when the Soviets rolled their tanks into Czechoslovakia to quash rebellion; President Johnson announced he would not seek re-election; the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. sparked riots in our cities; the assassination of Robert Kennedy two months later killed the dream of a return to "Camelot" forever; young people protested the Vietnam War in far greater numbers facing harsher containment by law enforcement.
America was at the crossroads of the last half of the 20th century.
Turmoil abounded across the nation, but there were some high points in 1968: the Apollo 8 astronauts were the first to orbit the moon in preparation for the first moon landing 7 months later. Apollo 8 sent a poignant Christmas card back to the troubled people of earth that year, a picture of itself as seen from the moon, tranquil, blue and calm. America had its 1st Superbowl in 1968 when the Green Bay Packers defeated the Oakland Raiders, 33-14, in Los Angeles.
Rancho Mirage also found itself at a crossroads in 1968.
The Riverside County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFC) rejected a proposal by Louis and Allen Rogers to incorporate an area just 5 miles square as Cathedral City. The Commission ordered up an incorporation feasibility study for the fast-growing communities of Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage and Palm Desert. County Administrators said that no more than two cities could exist between Indian Wells and Palm Springs. Leaders of the Chamber in Rancho Mirage found themselves in the uneasy position of being in the middle, likely to be split and clumped into Palm Desert or Cathedral City.
Chamber Board Chair Milton Gard proposed at the September Board meeting that members of the Chamber be surveyed for their opinion on the matter. Gard felt that if there an overwhelming outcome against a merger with either community, it might be compelling enough to change the feelings of LAFC.
The Chamber's survey results were reviewed at the November 12, 1968 board meeting. Of nearly 200 surveys sent to members, 107 opposed any incorporation; 20 felt the three communities should meld as one; 19 felt that Rancho Mirage was better paired with Palm Desert while only two felt Cathedral City was the better mate; and 9 voted that Rancho Mirage incorporate on its own.
Rancho Mirage Chamber Director & business owner Allen Kent motioned that the Chamber take a strong stance for independence when they appeared before LAFC. The Board unanimously adopted the Policy Statement "that Rancho Mirage and that which is considered Rancho Mirage by its residents and by its description should not be split either by incorporation or by any other means."
The report ordered by Riverside County LAFC hit local newspapers in the weeks before Christmas 1968. It recommended the three communities incorporate as one city. The proposed city would have encompassed 38 square miles and would have had a population of nearly 23,000. Palm Springs at the time was smaller in 1968 with a population of just over 21,000.
When hearings commenced the following month, LAFC heard opposition from residents of all three communities. Most didn't want to lose their community identity. Rancho Mirage was represented well by the fierce opposition of the Chamber to the "3 cities in one" concept. The Riverside County LAFC soon abandoned the idea.
The winds of change blowing in 1968 pushed business leaders and residents to fiercely protect Rancho Mirage's identity and interests. The race for individual incorporation would take several more years, with Rancho Mirage beating Palm Desert to cityhood by more than 3 months in 1973. Cathedral City would finally earn its incorporation in 1981.
