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Healdsburg
November 6, 2025

Local Family Feels Burned in Renaming of Gym

The Frost Hall sign on what is now the Drew Esquivel Gym
Anthony Frost, now of Cloverdale, posted, “I’m lost for words. H.C Frost was one of the founding board members of Healdsburg unified and donated much funds to build the first gym in Healdsburg. The Frost family has been in this town since the early 1800s,” he claimed.

Details Take Shape in Library Remodel

Healdsburg Library being remodeled
As the months roll by, the Healdsburg Library Modernization Project continues along its steady path. Week by week, the contractors complete one task after another, bringing us closer to the reopening of the 139 Piper St. library we all know and love.

City Faces Suit Over Brown Act, Election Violations

Healdsburg City Hall
Retired attorney Jon Eisenberg filed civil suit against the City of Healdsburg, charging multiple Brown Act violations in two recent cases that demonstrate what he calls “a pattern of misbehavior that is deeply embedded in the culture of Healdsburg’s city government…” His action focused on what he called the “tainted decision making” in the effort to get Measure O on the ballot and the campaign to get it passed; and the transition to district elections now underway.

Riverkeeper Recruits to Meet Challenges

Offices of Russian Riverkeeper, Healdsburg
Sharp-eyed motorists have noticed a name change on a long white office building on Healdsburg Avenue, just a quick stroll away from the Quail and Condor bakery. The colors are still blue and white but the Bright Event Rentals sign is gone, and in its place the bold letters proclaim Russian Riverkeeper, now in its umpteenth home in Healdsburg, and still ready to Save the River.

Meet Mella, Stella’s Identical Pup

Mama dog Stella and clone Mella
Now when most winemakers talk about “clones,” they’re talking about varietals selected for specific qualities, such as flavor, color or intensity. The Dijon clones of pinot noir or chardonnay are well known; but the canine clone of a winery dog is a new thing entirely.

The City in Colors: Building Coalitions, Drawing Districts

Liz Stitt of Redistricting Partners speaks
As of Jan. 13, the DistrictR tool was live and functional, and anyone can draw up a city map of four, five or six districts, with the five-district model the only option for a rotating mayor, as Healdsburg has at present. Various tools are located in the upper right corner, as is common in such applications—a hand tool to move the map, a pen tool to select a district and color it, an eraser tool to fall back on. Residents have another three weeks to work with the mapping tool....

Federal BIA Greenlights Windsor Casino

Aerial Shiloh resort and casino rener
Koi leaders asked that around 70 acres of vineyard land they own along the southeastern edge of Windsor be placed in “federal trust”—and the Bureau obliged. This means the Koi are allowed to move forward with their plan to build a giant new Wine Country casino on the plot...

Housing Market Shows Sharp Divide

What makes Healdsburg’s market particularly unique is the continued dominance of non-primary residence purchases. In 2024, 61% of all purchases were for second homes or investment properties, with rural properties showing an even higher rate at 76%. This tracks with 2023 when 64% of properties were purchased as non-primary residences, writes a local realtor.

Open Mic: Surprise Raid in Kern County Foreshadows What’s to Come

Farmworkers in a Kern County field
The Border Patrol conducted unannounced raids throughout Bakersfield on Tuesday, Jan. 7, descending on businesses where day laborers and field workers gather. Agents in unmarked SUVs rounded up people in vans outside a Home Depot and gas station that serves a breakfast popular with field workers. "It was profiling; it was purely field workers,” said the manager of a local gas station.

Council Sticks with 5-District, Rotating Mayor Decision

Raina Allan and Andrew Sturmfels
It was Assistant City Manager Andrew Sturmfels' last meeting in Healdsburg before he begins work for Sonoma County, but the same old City Council was on the dais to double-down on their controversial decision to set a 5-district limit for Healdsburg's new government....
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