Fresh point of view
EDITOR: I’ve had the pleasure of getting to personally know Erica Whisney very well over the past few years. I have observed her educate herself on Healdsburg’s history as she actively sought out and built relationships with past council members, planning commissioners and long time community members to prepare for her campaign. She was a Healdsburg Housing Committee member and recruited young people to share their views at community forums.
I am a retired Healdsburg Fire Captain and former city councilmember and I believe Erica is a fresh point of view, dedicated to serving Healdsburg and has no economic interests in town. Her motivation is in ensuring we have a strong community for years to come. Join me and vote for Erica Whisney for City Council on June 6.
Steve Babb
Healdsburg
Go for Gold
EDITOR: Sonoma County has been my home for the past 46 years. We settled down here in Healdsburg in 1992 to raise our family. The changes in our small town over this quarter of a century have been monumental. Remember when stores were closing down one by one and you couldn’t get a good cup of coffee?
No one wants to go back to that sad era. Moving forward we need to continue to thrive while protecting the small town character and rural heritage that has been our legacy. This town was built before the automobile — it’s a walkable city. Our well kept, modest homes and tended gardens are on a human scale that satisfies residents and visitors alike. The balance between a healthy economy and the preservation of the qualities that define our city has never been more at odds.
I was one of a group of concerned citizens who urged Leah Gold to run for city council last December. Her all volunteer corps is 50 strong. It’s been invigorating and inspiring to see citizens and neighbors rush to join her campaign. We trust her keen intelligence and common sense. She can simultaneously see the big picture and get down in the weeds to understand complex details. Leah has a proven track record of bringing people together to get things done. Community participation and representation will increase under her leadership.
We are clearly at a crossroads in Healdsburg’s evolution. We need pragmatic solutions to difficult problems. Meeting the challenges ahead is going to require flexible leadership and innovative thinking. Leah is the one candidate who can deliver both. I urge you to Go for the Gold on June 6.
Rhonda Bellmer
Healdsburg
Thankful gardeners
EDITOR: On behalf of the members of the Healdsburg Garden Club, our thanks go out to Tony Fisher director of the Healdsburg Senior Living Center for hosting our annual plant sale April 29 at the center and lending assistance wherever needed to ensure the success of our sale. We also thank Mike Weinstock of Bevill Vineyard Management who volunteered to sharpen over 90 hand clippers and pruners; Tom Pickford of the Sonoma Orchid Society who donated his orchid repotting skills; The Russian River Rose Company for donating their beautiful climbing rose and the Cloverdale Nursery for their gift certificate. For all those visitors to the sale, thank you for supporting our sale which funds our scholarships to local deserving students. Happy gardening.
Melinda Wolcott
Healdsburg Garden Club, Plant Sale Chairman
Worth your support
EDITOR: At 6 p.m. on Monday, June 5 at city hall, the city council will consider the appeal of the planning commission’s unanimous decision to allow Paul Mahder to amend his conditional use permit.
The purpose of the amendment is to allow Paul Mahder, owner of the art gallery at 222 Healdsburg Ave., to stay in business by converting his wine bar to wine tasting and to bring in Grapeseed, a collective of small artisanal winemakers, to run it. Non-alcoholic beverages will also be served.
The purpose of the appeal is to get the city council to reject the planning commission’s decision. The result is that Paul could easily be forced to close his art gallery, the largest north of Los Angeles.
Why am I so strongly in favor of the planning commission’s decision and opposed to the appeal? Because Paul Mahder has provided his gallery for numerous community events, at no expense. The events include an annual art show on homelessness with the art work of Healdsburg schoolchildren as well as the homeless. This event helps increase awareness of the needs of our homeless community and offers solutions and a path towards eradicating homelessness.
Please take time to visit the gallery, talk to Paul and decide for yourself if this locally owned business is worth your support.
Gail Jonas
Healdsburg
Change is in our grasp
EDITOR: Leah Gold’s optimism is phenomenal. With so many steep challenges facing our town, it’s rare to hear from a person who has the inner strength to declare that the change we all crave can really happen. Experience is important in this election, especially considering the brief term which allows little time for a learning curve.
Gary Plass has experience, but during his long tenure, he has not always led us in the direction we want to go. Leah Gold’s confidence is rooted in experience — she brings a strong and admirable record of measured leadership. But, it is buoyed by something more essential. She has listened to and heard the frustrated voices of our community and knows that through the strength of our collective will, the change we want is indeed within our grasp. Please join us on June 6 and vote for Leah Gold for Healdsburg City Council.
Chris Herrod
Healdsburg
Victory for neighborhoods
EDITOR: I jumped for joy when I heard that the Healdsburg Planning Commissioners unanimously rejected the proposed bed and breakfast on Chanticleer Way. And, at almost 96 years old, that is not as easy as it used to be. I have always considered that lovely neighborhood as my own as my husband, Art McCaffrey, and I built our home on Sunset Drive in 1955 and raised our four children there. I was stunned when I was told a “party house” was being considered in the neighborhood, and am so pleased that the commission understands the value of a neighborhood which is deep in family and friendships. This decision not only preserves the peace of our own little corner of this great town, but hopefully will set a precedent that entertaining and accommodating tourists will not be a priority over the tranquility of our lives and neighborhoods. A victory for all the neighborhoods of Healdsburg.
Beulah McCaffrey
Healdsburg
Let it thrive
EDITOR: Since opening his gallery a couple of years ago, Paul Mahder has become a key player in Healdsburg’s arts scene. His magnificent gallery is not only a place to feast your eyes on contemporary art, but it has also become the setting for a wide range of arts-related events. By making this space available for film screenings, musical events and more, Paul has become a major contributor to the cultural life of Healdsburg. But, in order to keep the gallery a going concern, the costs of maintaining it must be met.
To this end, Paul has received the necessary permits from the city, and the unanimous support of the planning commission, to use a small portion of the gallery for a tasting room. However, opening of the tasting room is threatened by one Healdsburg resident who is appealing its approval based on highly questionable grounds. I urge other residents who recognize the value of the Paul Mahder gallery, and the purposes it serves in our community, to lend their support at the June 5 meeting when the city council will review and hopefully reject the appeal of its earlier decisions. Let the Paul Mahder gallery thrive.
Katherine Lacy
Healdsburg
Proven dedication
EDITOR: Do tourists flock to Healdsburg just for our shops and restaurants and tasting rooms, our irreplaceable vintage houses, our grapevine-filled valleys? I think many of them come too for something that can’t be seen but only felt: Healdsburg’s sense of community. We are a city of heart and character, honoring our past (the museum, the Memorial Bridge, our historic Plaza), adapting to the present (the LEED-certified H2hotel), promoting culture (the art center, the Healdsburg Chorus, the Raven Performing Arts Theater), and fostering care for one another (our animal shelter, helped by donations from citizens like John and Kim Lloyd, and the Neighbors Network of Healdsburg, founded by Gail Jonas).
Leah Gold has proved her dedication to community by serving on our city council and as mayor. In 1996, she helped to preserve our boundaries by leading a successful urban growth boundary campaign. To enhance our environment, she helped to acquire the Healdsburg Ridge Open Space Preserve, create the Foss Creek Bicycle Path, build Barbieri Park and expand pedestrian access to Badger Park. If elected to our city council, she will help to preserve our community by pursuing cost-effective renewable energy, finding affordable housing solutions, and balancing tourism with residents’ needs. Please join me in voting for Leah Gold on June 6.
Nancy Roberts
Healdsburg
More of this needed
EDITOR: It seems there is someone protesting the Paul Mahder Gallery offering coffee or a glass of wine to its patrons. The gallery has been a important asset to the community. Not only in the exhibition of world class painting, sculpture, photography, but in extending a venue for creative activities and musical (jazz and classical) performances, including a splendid evening of stilt walkers, acrobats and dance, as well as an invaluable exhibit, “A Place to Call Home,” a look at homelessness through stories and art, in our county. Paul has been presenting stimulating and visionary events to Healdsburg. We need more of this. I urge the city council to approve the Mahder Gallery request.
Barbara Médaille
Healdsburg
Thanks to Rudy
EDITOR: I want to thank one more person who contributed to the success of our Alumni 7-on-7 passing game fundraiser that was held on May 18 at Rec Park. Rudy Campos, Healdsburg Custom Embroidery, donated screen printed Healdsburg Football t-shirts. Rudy has been a staunch supporter of Healdsburg High School football. Thank you Rudy.
Dave Stine
Healdsburg
Doubtful, but grateful
EDITOR: Over the years I have been critical of the Healdsburg government management team, and by extension, their employees. I consider their salaries to be too high, health benefits excessive and the staff to be padded.
However, when there was a power failure in our area on Memorial Day, the Healdsburg electrical department was there to make the fix in a very timely manner. Congratulations to the Healdsburg Electric team for their dedication and timely performance of a difficult job.
I continue to have my doubts about things, but overall I am glad they are here. Well done.
Vernon Simmons
Healdsburg
