Measure H
The March 3 presidential primary election is right around the corner and if you’ve already voted, thank you for exercising your right to vote on political contests at many levels as well as statewide and local ballot measures, including Measure H here in Healdsburg.
If you haven’t voted yet and if you’re wondering what Measure H is about, the measure seeks to expand the amount of middle-income housing in Healdsburg.
If approved, the measure would amend the city’s Growth Management Ordinance (GMO) by allowing the city to utilize the 50 multi-family rental units that were approved as part of Measure P for rental and for-sale multi-family, income-restricted units. Currently, these 50 building permits are for rental units only.
In this case, “income-restricted” means that these units are for households earning no more than 160% of the Sonoma County Area Median Income (AMI). For more information about the Sonoma County AMI, go to: http://sonomacounty.ca.gov/CDC/Housing-and-Neighborhood-Investment/Income-and-Rent-Limits/.
Voters adopted the city’s GMO in 2000; the ordinance limits the number of building permits the city may issue to an average of 30 per year and no more than 90 in a three-year period. If Measure H passes, it would be the second amendment to the GMO; in 2018, voters passed Measure P, which amended the GMO to allow the city to issue an additional 50 building permits for income-restricted multi-family rental units.
As stated above, Measure H would allow those 50 building permits to be used for both income restrict multifamily for sale and rental units.
For more information about the GMO, go to this link: ci.healdsburg.ca.us/364/Residential-Growth-Management
Community Benefit Grants
Every year, the Healdsburg City Council allocates funds from the Community Benefit Grant program to help local non-profit organizations. Since its inception in 1998, the Community Benefit Grant program has funded projects that help a large cross-section of residents, offer a sustainable benefit to Healdsburg and support community participation.
On Jan. 27, the city council reviewed 20 applications totaling $161,700 in funding requests. On Feb. 18, the council approved $50,000 in grant funding for 13 local non-profit organizations. The organizations and funding allocations are as follows:
• Active 20-30 Club #205 – $3,211
• Alliance Medical Center – $4,000
• Farm to Pantry – $1,148
• Friends of the Healdsburg Farmers’ Market – $3,800
• Girl Scout Troop #10278 – $2,900
• Healdsburg Center for the Arts – $6,000
• Healdsburg Community Nursery School – $1,500
• Healdsburg Education Foundation – $2,000
• Healdsburg Jazz Festival – $6,000
• Healdsburg Performing Arts Inc. – $2,441
• Healdsburg Shared Ministries – $12,500
• Heartizens – $3,000
• Tiny Kids University Preschool – $1,500
Thank you to everyone who applied for funding for this program; we really appreciate your time and participation. For more information on the Community Benefit Grant program, go to this link: ci.healdsburg.ca.us/642/Community-Benefit-Grant
David Mickaelian is the Healdsburg City Manager. To submit ideas or questions for this column, email ci*******@ci.us.
