Nov. 14 (UPI) — The Palm Springs, Calif., City Council is expected to vote Thursday on a reparations settlement for former residents of a mostly Black and Latino neighborhood destroyed for commercial development in the 1960s.
The former residents, such as 86-year-old Margarita General, have accepted the city’s final cash offer of $5.9 million.
“We have been fighting for a long time to tell our story,” she said.
The city of Palm Springs said in statement announcing the reparations agreement Wednesday, “The Palm Springs City Council is announcing today that the former residents of Section 14 have accepted the City’s final offer of $5.9 million — and will discuss the settlement offer, which also includes moving forward with substantial housing and economic development initiatives to benefit Palm Springs residents.”
The city said the settlement is aimed at “addressing historical injustices for the former residents of Section 14 and their descendants.”
“We are making history in Palm Springs,” said Areva Martin, lead counsel for the Palm Springs group that represents impacted families. “This agreement demonstrates that it’s never too late to acknowledge past wrongs and take meaningful steps toward justice.”
In addition to the cash settlement, Palm Springs is considering $20 million in housing programs with priority access for the former residents of Section 14.
Palm Springs Mayor Jeffrey Bernstein said in a statement, “The City Council is deeply gratified that that the former residents of Section 14 have agreed to accept what we believe is a fair and just settlement offer.
“The City Council has always respected the historical significance of Section 14 and with this resolution of the claim which includes $20 million in housing programs and $1 million in business support we are taking bold and important action that will create lasting benefits for our entire community while providing programs that prioritize support for the former residents of Section 14.”
The former residents lost their homes when the city decided to tear down the homes to build commercial development in a 1-square-mile area of Palm Springs in the 1960s.
The city issued an official apology in 2021 for how it was done.
During the 1960s, Section 14 was one of the few areas where Black and Latino people could live due to housing discrimination. The land was owned by the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians.
People who lost their homes sued in 2022, asserting that the forced evictions amounted to racially motivated attacks.
“This was a community that was told that you are not deserving. They were told they were a menace, an eyesore, a public nuisance,” Areva Martin, a civil rights attorney who represents the group, said in a statement. “This was about acknowledging the harm that was done.”