News

 Fire and arrest occurred on Oct. 29

Business owners and locals of the Russian River area made it work this Halloween by finding alternatives to traditional trick-or-treating during the pandemic, like trunk-or-treating and spacing out along Main Street in Guerneville and attending a distanced outdoor movie night at the River Bend Resort in Forestville.

Wednesday’s town hall of the West Sonoma County Union High School District revealed a board pressured by the Sonoma County Office of Education (SCOE) to come up with a plan and a community barely catching up on the likelihood of consolidation. 

In-person voting opened in Sonoma County on Saturday. As folks head in to fill out their ballots, or put them in the mail, we’ve gathered some last-minute questions and answers regarding how to vote, as well as what happens to ballots cast in the days leading up to the election.

On Halloween the town of Windsor put on a Trick or Treat Trail at Keiser Park. Families made reservations ahead of time for socially-distance time slots throughout the day and local businesses and entities offered pandemic conscious treat delivery as the families strolled through the park.

On Oct. 30 Windsor Middle School became the spooky backdrop for a Trunk or Treat put on by WMS and Chicano Truckin’.The line of cars snaked all the way down Brooks and Foothill Roads, backing up traffic as families excited for the opportunity to have some festive fun lined up for their trip through the parking lot. Families stayed in their cars, as members of Chicano Truckin’ and the staff of WMS delivered socially-distanced treats through the windows. The event was free, but donations were accepted and the event raised over $1,000 for future programs at WMS.

A drive-thru trunk or treat was hosted at the Cloverdale Citrus Fair on Halloween, Oct. 31. Decorated cars set up in a semi-circle at the fairgrounds and masked families drove through so kids could trick or treat in a more COVID-safe manner. 

An extended parade meandered throughout Cloverdale on Friday night, Oct. 30. Dubbed the Spooky Cloverdale Crawl, the parade was organized with the goal of being more COVID-19-conscious, so folks could head from their house to the nearest parade route street and watch the floats go by as kids collect candy. 

Michael Silva, 37, of Cazadero pled guilty to three felony counts related to environmental violations on a property where he was growing 1,450 cannabis plants, the Sonoma County District Attorney’s Office announced Thursday night, Oct. 29.

Despite the restrictions on Halloween activities, plenty of houses in Windsor got in the spooky spirit, dressing their homes in their haunted best.