News

The Koi Nation of Northern California—a tribe not usually associated with Sonoma County, and with fewer than 100 members—is moving ahead with its proposal for a large resort and casino on the southeastern edge of Windsor, on Shiloh Road at Old Redwood Highway. An open public meeting July 30 may be the last chance for the public to weigh in...

In 1926, Foppiano Wines was forced by Prohibition revenue agents to discard 140,000 gallons of red wine into a ditch next to the highway, where the current winery is located. From there, it flowed into a nearby creek and then into the Russian River—but not before locals scooped up buckets full of the illegal beverage...

Montage Healdsburg’s plan to remove 107 blue oak trees to build a new parking lot has been withdrawn by the developer. The plan, approved by the Planning Commission at its May 28 meeting, drew immediate protest from a group of local environmentalists, who took the formal measure of filing an appeal of the approval....

As thick smoke poured across Sonoma and Napa counties, more than 300 residents of the northern Dry Creek Valley and its foothills rushed to evacuate, along with hundreds more lake and tasting-room visitors...

Environmental pioneer and Westside Road winemaker Dr. Martin Griffin died this week at his home in Belvedere, Marin County. He was 103 years old. One of his proteges, Don McEnhill of Russian Riverkeeper, tells of the impact Griffin had on his life.

On top of last-minute permitting issues, it has been a wildly hectic week at Pepper’s, according to Haidar—full of scheduling staff shifts, ordering food and supplies, and getting everything ready for opening day - which could come as early as May 31.

A special five-hour meeting time was blocked out for the Healdsburg City Council on Monday night this week to allow plenty of time for council review, and public comment, on a proposed two-year budget for the city. It even started an hour early, at 5pm, in the usual meeting room at City Hall. But barely an hour and a half passed before Mayor David Hagele gaveled the meeting over, at 6:35pm...

“General Dynamics, you can’t hide—stop arming genocide!” chanted the pro-Palestine protestors, among other slogans calling attention to the Healdsburg offices and factory of General Dynamics, a defense industry business that has long quietly operated in town. “Healdsburg Says No to Bomb Factories!” read a large red banner; “Block the Bombs! Free Palestine!” another.

Heads up: Healdsburg will likely look and feel a lot different for the whole month of June. More than usual, we may hear crypto words like “blockchain” and “Ethereum” being thrown around in the aisles of Big John’s. We may see large clumps of out-of-towners...

“The Notice of Violation was prompted by multiple factors including anonymous complaints and social media posts by The Ruse promoting selling memberships for a club component for non-registered guests," said Police Chief Matt Jenkins.