The owner of The Shops at Palm Desert is moving ahead with plans to reshape the 72-acre mall property into a mixed-use destination that could eventually include housing alongside its existing retail, though any redevelopment will still need to clear city review before shovels hit the ground.
Pacific Retail Capital Partners has said it intends to develop an innovative master plan for the 72-acre property, positioning it as both a commercial hub and a civic gathering place for the Coachella Valley. As of October 2025, the ownership team was preparing a site plan for the City of Palm Desert to review, according to the city’s own project page at engagepalmdesert.com. As The Desert Sun reported Tuesday, the mall owner plans to redevelop the site with a mix of residential and commercial uses, and the city will have its say before any of it proceeds.
Housing Demand Drives Part of the Plan
Behind the push for housing is a city-commissioned Streetsense study that projected market demand for 194 apartments at the mall site by 2031, a figure cited in Pacific Retail’s own announcement of its plans. The city noted in October 2025 that occupancy within the mall had continued to rise even as redevelopment talk heats up.
Mayor Kathleen Kelly has signaled that any transformation won’t mean abandoning the mall’s retail identity altogether. She said the city remains committed to a substantial retail component continuing to be part of the mall, even as housing and other uses get folded into the broader vision.
The Former Sears Site Is a Separate Piece
Layered onto the larger mall redevelopment is a distinct process involving the roughly seven-acre, city-owned parcel formerly home to Sears at 72880 Highway 111. The city solicited proposals for the acquisition and redevelopment of that site, setting a submission deadline of 5 p.m. PST on May 7, 2026, according to the engagepalmdesert.com listing. The site has already completed the Surplus Land Act process, the city’s page notes, clearing one procedural hurdle for a future sale.
Importantly, the city has been explicit that soliciting proposals doesn’t bind it to anything. Per the same city listing, the solicitation does not obligate Palm Desert to select a respondent, enter negotiations, or approve a sale unless that action is authorized through any required public process and formal city approval. That caveat applies only to the Sears solicitation; major mall construction plans separately need city council approval. The mall owner may be drawing up concepts, but Palm Desert city government retains the final word before any redevelopment moves from paper to construction.
