Air museum is getting a $2.5 million makeover
The entrance to the Palm Springs Air Museum will soon undergo a $2.5 million makeover that will give it a new modernist look, improve the flow of guests entering and exiting the building, and add a 400-seat classroom/presentation space.
In the 25 years since it opened, the museum has grown from 40,000 square feet to just under 100,000 square feet, he said. About 150,000 people visit the museum annually, Vice Chairman Fred Bell said.
“We’ve grown 100% in size and the support facilities on the front end of the building just no longer make sense,” he said.
There will be new entrance and exit areas for museum visitors, as well as larger restrooms. “The hangars won’t really change, but the front of the facility will have a modernism look,” he said.
The museum is visited by students from numerous schools throughout the year, and the addition of the classroom is something “we desperately need,” Bell said.
He is hoping the renovation will be done within 24 months, barring any unexpected interruptions.
— Sherry Barkas
Reservations open at Sensei, Larry Ellison’s posh Rancho Mirage resort
Sensei, the health and wellness company founded by billionaire Larry Ellison, has revealed details about the posh new high-tech wellness resort in Rancho Mirage that is slated to open in November.
The resort, built on Ellison’s private Porcupine Creek estate, will feature what executives call science and data-based programs to help guests achieve their wellness goals, ranging from improved physical fitness and better sleep to simply maximizing their relaxation time. Amenities will include an 18-hole golf course, tennis courts, a “wellness diagnostic center,” indoor-outdoor fitness and yoga pavilions, a spa, gardens, a lagoon-style pool, and private Nobu restaurant, among others.
Construction on the facility, which began in June, is set to complete within the next two months, according to Sensei representatives. The resort, dubbed Sensei Porcupine Creek, is scheduled to open on Nov. 1. Bookings are now available online.
The resort’s offerings must be purchased as part of packages that include stays in one of its 22 accommodations — a mix of rooms in Ellison’s former estate house, an adjacent “Santa Rosa” complex and eight standalone villas. Activities include data-driven health assessments, nutritional consultations, private meditation and yoga instruction, golf and tennis training and nutritionally tailored meals at a private restaurant.
Package prices start at $2,400 for a two-night introductory experience and go up to a roughly $9,300 minimum for a five-night golf wellness experience. There are also minimum 30-day “Sabbatical Experience” packages that don’t have any set prices attached.
— James Cutchin
Climber dies at Joshua Tree
The second climber to die in Joshua Tree National Park this year was identified as Tina Fiori, 51, an experienced rock climber from Riverside County. Fiori died March 26 following an 80-foot-fall while rock climbing near the Sheep Pass Campground.
Matt Himmelstein, a 55-year-old engineer from Orange, said Fiori was a victim of failed equipment. Himmelstein was part of Fiori’s three-person climbing team and witnessed her death.
Himmelstein said he and Fiori were part of a group camping at Sheep Pass in celebration of a friend’s birthday. They spent most of the day climbing in the area, Himmelstein said, and were on a climbing route called “Turkey Terror” when the deadly incident took place.
Himmelstein said the group was “top roping,” a method of climbing that involves stringing a rope through a permanent anchor system at the top of the climb. The rope acts as a safety mechanism that supports a climber’s weight if they fall. A second person assists in gathering slack at the bottom of the climb and serving as a counterweight.
Himmelstein said Fiori ran her safety rope through nylon webbing that had been left by someone who had previously climbed the route. The webbing had apparently been degraded by sun and other elements. “Whether it was six months old (or) two years old I can’t tell you, but it was old enough that it was compromised,” he said. “And that’s what failed.”
When Fiori leaned back to rappel down the rocks, the weathered webbing gave way and she fell to her death.
Himmelstein said he hopes people will learn from the tragic incident not to use “tat,” a climbing slang term for old webbing left over at sites.
— James Cutchin
Inflation prompts cancellation of Evening Under the Stars gala
Rising food costs, a labor shortage and other supply-chain issues have prompted the cancelation of one of Palm Springs’ most-anticipated charity fundraising events, the annual Evening Under the Stars gala.
The event is usually the biggest fundraiser of the year for AAP–Food Samaritans, a local nonprofit organization that provides nutritional support for low-income people living with HIV/AIDS and other chronic illnesses.
The gala was slated to take place at the O’Donnell Golf Club in Palm Springs on April 30.
The social scene in the Coachella Valley was ravaged by the COVID pandemic in 2020 and 2021. Previously scheduled fundraisers and events were canceled due to public health concerns despite the tremendous financial implications. Now, philanthropic organizations may be facing a new challenge: inflation that can turn money-making events into net losses.
“I’ve made the difficult decision to cancel our 2022 gala, Evening Under the Stars. Everyone had hoped that this would be the year to bring it back after the cancelations due to COVID for the last two years,” Executive Director Mark Anton said in a press release Thursday.
Anton cited prevailing economic conditions as the reason. “The cumulative effects of supply chain issues, labor shortages, food cost increases and other factors have driven the expenses for the event into the stratosphere,” he said. “The catering alone for our traditional formal seated dinner has risen a staggering 43%, and all of our other costs have risen similarly.”
— Winston Gieseke
Film Fest dates announced
Following two years of cancellations due to COVID-19, the Palm Springs International Film Festival will return as an in-person event in 2023 with programming from Jan. 5-16.
The Film Awards Gala takes place on Jan. 5 at the Palm Springs Convention Center and film screenings begin on Jan. 6, including the Opening Night presentation. The festival will conclude with Best of the Fest on Jan. 16.
Festival passes and seats for the Film Awards Gala go on sale Aug. 1.
— Brian Blueskye
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