Shuttered businesses facing unmet challenges
The coronavirus pandemic is taking a devastating economic toll on Sonoma County’s economy: tourism, once a mainstay, is non-existent; 16,000 local workers have filed for unemployment; more than a thousand small businesses have applied for the federal Small Business Administration (SBA) Payroll Protection Plan (PPP). Meanwhile local governments continue to provide essential public health and welfare services, while their normal revenue sources trickle to near-zero.
More local headlines: AmeriCorps cuts, immigrant fears, airline protests
One of Corazón Healdsburg’s AmeriCorps staffers, 18-year-old Agustin Hernandez — who was reportedly doing work to help local immigrant families “understand their rights and navigate intimidating legal systems” — saw his position terminated a few weeks ago when the Trump administration made $400 million in AmeriCorps cuts, according to...
In Memoriam: Doc Cummings, Beloved Busker
Healdsburg’s most familiar busker, the inimitable Doc Cummings, has passed away in his early 70s, according to friends and family on Facebook. His name was Donald O. Cummings, but he reportedly went by his initials — “Doc” — for short. I’m not sure how Doc died,...
SingleThread’s Plans for the Raven, Revealed
Ever since the team behind Healdsburg’s fanciest restaurant, the three-Michelin-starred SingleThread at North and Center streets, “signed a 25-year-lease to redevelop” the old Raven Film Center building around the corner in Summer 2023, the community has been wondering what they plan to do with it.
In...
Could Trump’s Funding Cut Threats Affect Healdsburg?
In case you haven’t heard, the Trump administration issued a sweeping order Tuesday that “froze trillions of dollars in federal grants and loans and sparked mass confusion across the country,” in the words of the New York Times. This order was then blocked by a federal...
The Ruse approved for abuse rehab
After two hours of discussion on Sep. 23, the commission voted 5-1 to approve the conditional use permit for the property as a “luxurious 13 bed Substance Use Disorder Facility,” to be renamed The Ruse Treatment...
