A new development in Palm Springs celebrates the area’s indigenous cultural traditions and unique natural features.
Downtown Palm Springs will soon have a new cultural attraction with the Agua Caliente Cultural Plaza set to open in Spring 2023. Comprising a museum, gathering plaza, lush gardens, and an immersive walking trail, the development will also include The Spa at Séc-he, restoring underground access to sacred mineral waters.
The project will share the customs, history, and cultural traditions of the Native American Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians and the unique natural features of their ancestral lands. A new museum will showcase cultural artefacts, artworks, ancient stories, and history, as well as an education centre, across 48,000 square feet.
At the spa, which will span 40,000 square feet, water from the Agua Caliente Hot Mineral Spring is estimated to be more than 12,000 years old, with mineral makeup that has not been found anywhere else in the world. Visitors can access treatment rooms, men’s and women’s bathhouses, a tranquillity garden, a salon, a fitness centre, and outdoor mineral pools.
The hot spring was the first tourist attraction in Palm Springs and the Tribe has been sharing the healing waters with visitors for over 120 years.
Phoenix-based JCJ Architecture is leading the project’s design with a concept that reflects the Tribe’s values and traditions, including basket weaving and pottery. Elements of the surrounding natural landscape are also incorporated, like the stream and rock formations from the nearby Andreas Canyon, and Washingtonia filifera palm trees—the only native palm to the California desert.