Forest Lawn Cathedral City Specific Plan Project

The Forest Lawn Cathedral City Specific Plan (PLAN-SP-25-0001) is a comprehensive development project by the Forest Lawn Memorial-Park Association to establish a long-term plan for a 10-acre property in Cathedral City, California. The project involves the redevelopment of a former self-storage facility and existing cemetery parcels to expand cemetery uses. This includes the construction of up to 12,000 square feet of new occupiable floor area and 275,000 square feet of new non-occupied floor area for wall crypts, columbaria, and burial gardens. The plan will add approximately 70,000 interment spaces, bringing the total site capacity to roughly 84,000 spaces, 30,000 square feet of occupied floor area, and 315,000 square feet of non-occupied floor area. To facilitate this, a General Plan Amendment (PLAN-GPA-25-0001) will change the land use from General Commercial to Neighborhood Commercial, and a Change of Zone (PLAN-PLCZ-25-0001) will transition the zoning from Planned Community Commercial to Neighborhood Business Park. The project has undergone extensive environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), resulting in a Mitigated Negative Declaration. Technical assessments have addressed vehicle miles traveled, greenhouse gas emissions, air quality, and noise and vibration impacts, with most findings indicating less than significant impacts provided specific mitigation measures are implemented. A jurisdictional assessment was also conducted to evaluate water and wetland status on the site. The City of Cathedral City officially approved the project via a Notice of Determination on May 27, 2026. Construction is scheduled to begin on April 1, 2026, with the project becoming fully operational in 2028.