The Coachella Canal is uphill from here. [
wikivisually.com]
The canal started operating in 1949. This "geyser" - really, a large mudpot/warm spring - appeared in 1953. Is that a coincidence? Is the canal leaking and this is where the water comes out after filtering through a hot spring/mudpot area? Quick search of the internet doesn't bring up much info about the spring.
There are lots of faults, hot springs, mudpots, and mud volcanoes (and a couple of relatively recent - geologically speaking - obsidian domes in the Imperial Valley. They're all related. It is, after all, part of the Gulf of California (dry because of the Colorado River delta), and at least one spreading center exists under the Valley. Instability and high heat flow (from the ground, as well as the atmosphere) are to be expected.