A live, in-person city council candidates’ forum will take place Wednesday, Sept. 14, that will place all seven candidates on the same stage at Coyote Sonoma.
Candidates for the two open four-year city council seats are: Linda Cade, Susan Graf, Chris Herrod and Evelyn Mitchell (incumbent). Candidates for the single two-year seat on the ballot are Ronald Edwards, Matias Lopez and Brigette Mansell. All candidates have agreed to participate.
The event is sponsored by the Healdsburg Chamber of Commerce and Healdsburg 2040, a work group inspired by the Sustainable Design Assessment Team’s (SDAT) visit to Healdsburg in 2018. Representatives from both groups will serve as moderators, said chamber CEO Tallia Hart.
Live streaming is being discussed, but it has not yet been confirmed. “Once everything is finalized, the chamber and 2040 will be updating event info on the calendar and sending out information through our digital newsletter and email lists,” said Hart. The chamber’s calendar can be found at cm.healdsburg.com/events.
This forum is open to the public and free with registration, at https://tinyurl.com/4ayfnz3u. Due to the venue’s limited capacity, this event will be first come, first served to those who register in advance. At-the-door registrations will only take place if space allows.
Check in begins at 5pm, and the forum will promptly start at 5:30pm. The questions will be prepared in advance, though the organizers said there will be an open Q&A period if time permits. The event will not go past 7:30pm.
At present, there are no plans for live online participation or coverage. Updates and registration links can be found on the event’s Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/events/coyote-sonoma/city-council-candidates-forum/424074683036485/
Coyote Sonoma is located behind Mill Street Antiques, at 44 Mill St. Although it is a restaurant/bar, it affords one of the largest public meeting places in town, with a stage viewing area and a larger indoor and outdoor dining area.
A PA system should make the forum audible to everyone present. Food and drinks will be available for purchase. Coyote Sonoma’s regular Wednesday Trivia Night will not be held this week.
No Candidates’ Forum this Year
The League of Women Voters of Sonoma County has confirmed to the Tribune that they will not be holding a candidates’ forum for the Healdsburg City Council races this year. Said a representative, “We are an all-volunteer organization, and with several city and town councils going to district elections, there are more races than we can cover. We had to make some very hard decisions on which races to cover.”
