100 years ago – January 16, 1919
High School Notes
Assembly was called at 11:45 a.m, Friday. Prof. E.R. Morehead among other announcements said, “It will be fine for you if you don’t wear ‘flu’ masks.” We got all fussed up, thinking we didn’t have to wear masks any more, but then he said, “Yes sir, it will be $5 fine, if you don’t wear masks properly.” That made us sad and we didn’t care what happened then — much. “According to the ordinance made by the Board of Trustees of the City of Healdsburg, ‘Flu’ masks are to be worn in school and at all times as prescribed by the Board of Health. Any pupil reported not wearing a mask properly is liable to a suspension from school.”
75 years ago – January 21, 1944
River at record low causes water table to recede
City Engineer Stuart reported that the unprecedented low water in Russian River has caused a disconcerting lowering of water table in the city wells. The new booster pumps are not yet in place, arrangements calling for installation in February. Reason for the low water in the river, according to Stuart, is that the Snow Mountain Power Co. plant in Potter Valley has been shut down for a month to permit relining a flume in the Eel River watershed and water from Eel River is not now going into the Russian River through the power penstocks in Potter Valley. This water has been shut off for a week and will not be turned on for two or three weeks from now. Meanwhile the only water in Russian River is natural watershed runoff, and because the rainy season has been so dry so far, the river is at a lower stage than it ever has been in mid-January.
25 years ago – January 19, 1993
City negotiating another hotel deal
City officials entered into an exclusive 90-day negotiation period Monday night with a development team that wants to take a run at building a 50-65 room hotel on the long-vacant West Plaza site. Three previous attempts to attract financing a hotel on this site failed. Developer Walter Haake called the west side of the Plaza “the finest piece of land we’ve ever seen. The Plaza is wonderful…the town is wonderful. A hotel on that site would be wonderful for the town.” The project will probably be in the $6-6.5 million range.
