Dear Editor:
A great way to contribute to Earth Day: with your plastic bags. Kind of an oxymoron!
Here’s the info: On Sunday, April 21, the City of Healdsburg, along with Climate Action Healdsburg, is holding the CLIMATE FEST event in the Plaza. This huge event—noon to 6pm—will feature dozens of booths, food, activities and educational booths to help attendees learn about the climate crisis.
Healdsburg High School students are making a giant something under the direction of Linus Lancaster, art teacher. Linus promises it will be spectacular. Linus just told multiple community members they are woefully behind and need hundreds more plastic bags. It doesn’t matter if the bags are clear or printed on, light or heavy. You can bring the bags directly to the high school’s main entrance for Linus.
Spring clean this week and drop off your bags by Friday, April 12.
Carol Beattie
Healdsburg
More Timeshares in Town?
Last week, the Tribune published our letter revealing that real estate firm Pacaso had listed four homes for sale in the City of Healdsburg as “Do It Yourself” (DIY) timeshares. Pacaso provides legal advice to facilitate the DIY timeshares. This week, there are three more listings: on Burgundy Road, Trentadue Way and Winding Creek Way.
This growing incursion is alarming. The Pacaso business model turns homes into vacation party houses or lucrative vacation rentals and removes residential housing from the community. Wisely, Healdsburg does not allow timeshares anywhere in the city and restricts short-term rentals to certain areas.
Healdsburg’s ordinances should be enforced. If needed, the city should modernize its timeshare ordinance as other jurisdictions have done. Many California jurisdictions have begun cracking down on Pacaso, including Sonoma County, the City of Sonoma, the City of St. Helena, Newport Beach, Carmel City, Palm Springs, Truckee, South Lake Tahoe and Monterey County.
Pacaso is skirting Healdsburg’s rules, and it’s time to deal with it.
Warren and Janis Watkins
Healdsburg
