Badger violence
I read your article about trouble at Badger Park with a great deal of sadness. Ever since Badger Park opened, and Healdsburg provided direct access to the old Syar beaches, I have witnessed an all-too-familiar pattern of increasing bad behavior now culminating in gun violence.
For over six years I have tried to engage with, but have always been rebuffed by, the Healdsburg Police, the County Sheriff’s office and Supervisor Gore. In six years of my calling, only once has there been an actual physical response by law enforcement.
A letter doesn’t give the space to even outline the amount of atrocious behavior that occurs and continues to escalate on the Badger Park accessed beaches. Suffice it to say that shots fired seems to be the only way to get anyone’s attention. The joke in my community is that an off-leash dog generates a bigger response from law enforcement or our civic leaders.
Only this week, thanks finally to help from Harry Hubbell in Supervisor Gore’s office, is there now a lock on the gate at Badger Park that the Sheriff can open to patrol the beach that is only accessible through Healdsburg. Previously the two departments were unable to cooperate to solve this simple issue.
Very sadly, I expect all this current attention to only to be lip service to a problem that has long existed and could have easily be nipped in the bud.
I hope it doesn’t take a child being shot while trying to explore and enjoy the river before some real action is taken to make this precious resource again safe and enjoyable for people who respect the river and the surrounding community.
Ernie Selander
Healdsburg
Open Letter To the City Council:
I’m writing to encourage you to discuss postponing the water rate increase scheduled for this summer. The rate increases were supposed to only be $35/month.That was not my experience, nor was it the experience of many of my neighbors.
The current rate holders are paying for years of deferred infrastructure maintenance. It would be much better if that money came from the general fund. Your constituents are suffering from the bad planning of this and prior City Councils, and another rate increase will make Healdsburg even more unaffordable for many of us.
If indeed there is a concern for future droughts, I hope you will prioritize increased efforts to secure sufficient water and shelve all building projects/permits until we have plentiful, affordable water for the people who live here now.
Monique Verrier,
Healdsburg
