Category: kesq-local-news

Gavin Nguyen

LA QUINTA, Calif. (KESQ) – The fight for one La Quinta couple’s yard decoration is not yet over.

Last December, News Channel 3 reported on Lynne and Harry Langdon, a couple who constructed a garden trellis in their backyard. A trellis is a decorative lattice structure that typically has plants or vines growing on it.

The City of La Quinta had red-tagged their home with a “Notice of Substandard Building” after the city cited them for a code enforcement violation, despite receiving the go-ahead from the city to construct the trellis without a permit. In December, after a three-year legal battle, they won their case against the city.

But according to Lynne Langdon, the city pursued the couple again just a couple of weeks later and deemed their home a “public nuisance.”

By April, Langdon said the city red-tagged their home again – this time, because of the setback for the trellis, rather than the height. The Langdons, however, maintain the city is abusing its power and wrongfully pursuing them over a violation that does not jeopardize health and safety.

“They have every ability to just dismiss it and move forward,” Langdon said.

According to Langdon, 24 “Notice of Substandard Building” notices have been filed against other homeowners in the city. She said most homeowners only found out when she informed them, which she also said represents internal failures within the city’s code enforcement division.

Eric and Keri Crumbaker, who own property in La Quinta, were presented with a Notice of Substandard Building from the city for a short-term rental permit violation. They were shocked to learn the notice had been applied to their property.

“We help people sell – we’re in real estate – so we get sellers all the time,” Keri Crumbaker said. “I’d say one out of 100 times, there’s something funky on there that they just didn’t know about, but it’s usually nothing to do with them. It was like improperly put on there, but to have something like this slapped on a property… that is not common.”

“In all reality, I’m not sure what I’m hoping comes of this, other than we get this lien released. I just hope the city starts acting as a professional entity,” said Eric Crumbaker.

Both the Crumbakers and Langdons tell KESQ they plan to file an injunction if the city does not change its processes for red-tagging La Quinta properties.

News Channel 3 reached out to the City of La Quinta for comment. A spokesperson for the city declined to comment, citing ongoing litigation.

Stay with KESQ for the latest.

Click here to follow the original article.

Luis Avila

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – No relief from the heat for one local bookstore in Palm Springs that remains without air conditioning.

It’s been over a week since the Best Bookstore in Palm Springs’ A/C unit had been vandalized over the Fourth of July weekend. This comes amid hot, triple-digit temperatures.

“We got somebody to come out and take a look at it and they said ‘somebody has been on your roof and disconnected it.’ That was itself a surprise and shock. We reached out to the landlord and we said ‘as it says in the lease, we need this to be fixed and they said no, we’re not going to do that.’”

Paul Carr, The Best Bookstore in Palm Springs co-owner

Adding to the frustration, the bookstore’s owners say the landlord is not assisting with repairs or replacement of the unit.

This is impacting sales and forcing the owners to reduce hours to work around the heat. But the community has rallied behind them and are doing what they can to support.

While it’s uncertain how and when the A/C will be fixed, what is certain, the bookstore is here to stay.

“We’re looking at options. Obviously, we’d love the landlord to do what they’re supposed to do. That’s the number one priority. We’ve had offers for other location we could move to temporarily or permanently. The bookstore is not going anywhere.”

Paul Carr, The Best Bookstore in Palm Springs co-owner

News Channel 3 has tried to talk to the landlord at Lyle Commercial Properties in Rancho Mirage but was told he was unavailable.

Stay with News Channel 3 for more.

Click here to follow the original article.

KESQ News Team

Update – 6:00 p.m. – 7/14/25

On Monday, News Channel 3 obtained a redacted version of the 911 call.

“John. Elway. John, tell me exactly what happened. They were on a golf cart, and he fell off the golf cart. And it’s got a head.

That I just want to confirm. Did he did that golf cart run into anything or they just fall out of it and. No, it fell out of. They’re all back and it fell off the golf cart. Yeah. Okay. Are there any chemicals? Are there hazards involved there?

Yes. Okay. Is anyone trapped or pinned? What?”

Original Report – 10:05 a.m. – 7/14/25

LA QUINTA, Calif. (KESQ) – Former NFL quarterback John Elway will not be charged in the April death of his friend and business partner Jeffrey Sperbeck, who fell from a golf cart Elway was driving at an after party event for the Stagecoach County Musical Festival, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said this weekend.  

“It’s over,” Bianco told Denver’s 9News on Friday. “We’ve talked to everyone involved and we found nothing new. There was nothing criminal, it was what we’ve been saying all along that this was — a tragic accident.”  

Sperbeck, 62, of San Clemente suffered a traumatic head injury on the night of April 28 at the Madison Club in La Quinta when he hit his head on the pavement after falling from the golf cart. The sports agent and longtime friend of Elway was taken to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs and placed on life support.  

The Riverside County Coroner’s Office said that he succumbed to the “blunt head trauma” injury just after 1 a.m. on April 30.   

“The manner of death is `accident,’ and the mode of death — how the injury occurred — is `passenger fell from golf cart,”’ the agency said in a statement.

Elway was questioned by sheriff’s deputies but not arrested.   

Sperbeck and Elway teamed up in 1990, when the victim became the athlete’s NFL agent, while Elway was quarterback for the Denver Broncos. The two-time Super Bowl champion hung up his jersey in 1998, ultimately serving as the team’s general manager, then later as a consultant. He retired altogether in 2023.  

The two men partnered in a winery venture in 2013, according to reports.

Click here to follow the original article.

Julia Castro

DESERT HOT SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) — All lanes and the I-10 westbound offramp at North Indian Canyon Drive have reopened after a trash truck fire caused delays early Monday morning.

The fire was reported at 5:29 a.m. at the I-10 westbound offramp at North Indian Canyon Drive, in the city of Desert Hot Springs.

Firefighters arrived to find the trailer of a Burrtec Waste transport truck fully engulfed in flames. To control the fire, the truck’s contents were dumped onto the roadway. Heavy equipment was later brought in to assist with the cleanup.

The #4 lane and Indian Canyon offramp were closed for approximately three hours while crews responded.

Flames and heavy smoke initially shut down the #3 and #4 lanes westbound.

No injuries have been reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Stay with News Channel 3 on air and online for the latest updates.

Click here to follow the original article.

Julia Castro

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ)— Authorities are investigating a commercial fire that erupted Sunday evening at a towing yard in Indio.

The fire was reported just before 7:30 p.m. at a business on Commerce Street near Van Buren Street — across the railroad tracks from Indio Boulevard.

Flames tore through a portion of the yard, engulfing a trailer, a box truck and at least seven vehicles, according to an employee on scene. The blaze sent plumes of dark smoke visible for miles across the Coachella Valley.

The flames were largely extinguished within about an hour of the initial report.

No injuries have been reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

This is a developing story. Check back for any updates.

Click here to follow the original article.

Timothy Foster

PALM DESERT, Calif. — Mirabelle Lee, a recent graduate of Palm Valley School, has received a prestigious scholarship in recognition of her outstanding work in promoting diversity and literacy in education.

Lee, who has worked in the entertainment industry since her childhood, founded the Beatrice Martin Foundation during her sophomore year of high school. The nonprofit is named after her great-great-grandmother and is dedicated to increasing access to culturally diverse books in schools, particularly in under-resourced communities.

The foundation provides free books to elementary and middle schools across the country. Since its launch, it has expanded to four chapters nationwide. The organization also offers literacy support and affordable college essay editing services to help close opportunity gaps for high school students preparing for higher education.

Her advocacy stems from a lifelong passion for storytelling and a personal understanding of the lack of representation in traditional school curricula. Through her foundation, Lee addresses both the content gap in classroom libraries and the financial challenges schools face in acquiring diverse books, which are often more expensive to purchase in bulk.

In recognition of her leadership and impact, Lee was awarded a national scholarship honoring young women making a difference in their communities. She will attend Stanford University this fall, where she plans to study communications and continue her work in education and media advocacy.

Lee’s efforts reflect a broader movement to improve representation in educational content and foster a love for reading among children who have historically been overlooked by mainstream literature.

To support or learn more about the Beatrice Martin Foundation, visit www.thebeatricemartinfoundation.org.

Click here to follow the original article.

Shay Lawson

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ)  – Martha’s Village and Kitchen is taking a big step toward breaking the cycle of homelessness by investing in early education.

News Channel 3 first told you about the Child Development Center expansion back in March.

Now — that expansion is nearing completion, and News Channel 3 is getting a look inside.

Rosa Verduzco, Chief Operating Officer, Martha’s Village and Kitchen said the new classrooms will give more Coachella Valley families access to critical childcare and early learning.

“Our capacity right now is four classrooms — one for infants, one for toddlers and two for preschoolers,” Verduzco said. “With the addition of three more classrooms, we’ll have two for infants, two for toddlers, and three for preschoolers.”

This expansion is boosting capacity from 55 to 102 children.

Now, Verduzco is calling on the community.

She said a $680,000 fundraising push is underway — to support teacher training and a full year of scholarships for local children.

To see how you can help, head to the organization’s fundraising page.

Click here to follow the original article.

Tori King

THERMAL, Calif. (KESQ)– Car fans rolled out to Thermal on Sunday for the BMW Performance Center West’s “Cars, Coffee, & Hot Laps’ event.

The event, which is part of a series hosted several times throughout the year, was unique this time because it featured free rides for adult attendees with a professional driver at the specially designed course.

Riders got to experience speeds up to 75 miles per hour throughout the morning.

Aside from the hot lap experience, the BMW Performance Center also offered attendees the chance to check out an array of colorful BMWs at the facility, free coffee, donuts, and pastries.

The center plans to host future Cars & Coffee event in the future, for more information on events, or to buy an experience during their summer sale, click here.

Click here to follow the original article.

Garrett Hottle

PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) The Palm Desert Aquatic Center’s lap pool may shut down earlier than planned after ongoing issues with its aging filtration system caused persistent cloudiness in the water.

The facility, which opened in 2011 and holds nearly a million gallons of water, was already scheduled for a full restoration of its filtration system and pump house this fall. But city officials now say an earlier closure could be necessary.

City officials say the issue is specifically in the lap pool.

The recreation pool, however, remains open and fully operational.

“Our Public Works team is actively evaluating the situation and doing everything possible to keep this important amenity open for residents and visitors from across the Coachella Valley,” said Community Relations Supervisor Rylan Penta for the City of Palm Desert in an email.

No official closure date has been announced.

For more information on the City of Palm Desert including the Palm Desert Aquatic Center visit this link.

Click here to follow the original article.

Kendall Flynn

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – The American Institute of Floral Designers will be setting up shop in the Palm Springs Convention Center from July 12-15 to bring “joy, color and kindness” to the community, according to the AIFD press release.

In AIFD’s Symposium, thousands of floral arrangements will be repurposed and delivered to local senior centers and shared with the public. Over the course if the weekend, volunteers and designers will gather in educations seminars to create hundreds of fresh bouquets.

The celebration is open for the public Monday, July 14 at 6:00 p.m. at the Marilyn Monroe statue in Downtown Palm Springs.

Volunteers will hand out the bouquets they helped create, along with a special public floral installation. These volunteers will have gone through educational seminars with top floral designers, putting in heartfelt time to give back to the community.

Stay with News Channel 3 to hear about the educational process, and what it means to volunteers and organizers to fulfill AIFD’s mission of giving back to the community.

Click here to follow the original article.