3 incumbents, 2 challengers in races for La Quinta mayor, council

Several familiar candidates, including three incumbents, are vying for seats on the La Quinta City Council in this year’s election.

The race for the city’s mayoral position, which is for a two-year term, features a familiar matchup. Mayor Linda Evans, who’s held the position since 2014, is running against Robert Sylk, an Army veteran, businessman and the founder of Concerned Citizens of La Quinta, a community group that meets to discuss local issues.

Evans, the chief strategy officer for community advocacy at Desert Care Network, has won re-election by wide margins in recent years. In 2022, she won roughly 72% of the vote in a race against Sylk and another challenger.

Her candidate statement filed at city hall notes the city has paid down its pension obligations, completed major infrastructure projects and bought land along Highway 111 for eventual affordable housing during her tenure as mayor. It also mentions future projects, such as a cultural campus near Old Town La Quinta and the development of luxury-brand hotels at Talus, formerly known as SilverRock.

Sylk has been a major critic of the city’s overall direction, particularly regarding the Talus development. The city recently sued the project's long-time developer, Robert Green, as it seeks to replace him amid bankruptcy proceedings. In a column last year, Sylk called the project a disaster, saying the money spent on it has been “astronomical.”

City Council

Two other spots are open on the council that offer four-year terms. Incumbents Kathleen Fitzpatrick and Steve Sanchez are both seeking their third terms, after winning elections in 2016 and 2020. They are being challenged by Joe Johnson, a former consumer affairs investigator in Los Angeles County who has made multiple runs for council.

Fitzpatrick, a retired landscape architect with the city of Los Angeles and former planning commissioner, and Sanchez, a real estate agent and veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps, both described the city’s financial position as strong and emphasized their support for public safety in their candidate statements.

If elected, Johnson said he would “bring new ideas on many issues” and not just “go along to get along,” according to his candidate statement. He has also criticized the city’s approach to the Talus development, saying on his website there were warning signs for years with the stalled development.

The election is set for Nov. 5, with vote-by-mail ballots heading to voters in the weeks before Election Day.

Tom Coulter covers the cities of Palm Desert, La Quinta, Rancho Mirage and Indian Wells. Reach him at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Who's running for La Quinta mayor, city council?