🌱 Bank Branch Closing + Vineyard Status + More Healdsburg Journalism?

Hey, everybody — Simone here with your fresh copy of the Healdsburg Patch newsletter, full of everything you need to know about what's going on in town. Because community news matters! Today you'll get updates on:

• The impending closure of a Bank of Marin location in Healdsburg
• A new reporter at the Press Democrat assigned to our local beat
• The optimistic post-storm situation at Healdsburg vineyards and farms
• And more...

But first, your local weather:

• Monday: Mostly sunny with a breeze. High: 65 Low: 38.
• Tuesday: Mix of sun and clouds. Warming up a little. High: 67 Low: 35.

Shoutout to the awesome local business that keeps this newsletter running:

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Air over Healdsburg:

Here are the top 4 stories today in Healdsburg:

1. The Bank of Marin will be closing one of their two branches in Healdsburg this March, bank officials say in a new press release. After purchasing the smaller American River Bank chain a couple of years ago, the Bank of Marin converted our local River Bank outpost at 412 Center St. in downtown Healdsburg into one of their own — on top of the Bank of Marin location they'd been running since 2017 in the little shopping center across from Garrett's Hardware on Healdsburg Avenue. They will now be "consolidating both Healdsburg branches into the branch located on Center Street," a bank spokeswoman tells me over email. "The branch located at 1270 Healdsburg Avenue will close at the end of March." Meanwhile, the Bank of Marin is reporting strong earnings since the American River Bank purchase, and officials say they think this brick-and-mortar closure in Healdsburg — along with three other closures in Santa Rosa, Tiburon and Buckhorn — will only make them stronger. (Business Wire & Bank of Marin & North Bay Business Journal; paywall)
2. There's a new local journalist in town! The Press Democrat, based in Santa Rosa, just hired 31-year-old Petaluma native Jennifer Sawhney, a "bilingual and multicultural journalist," to cover the City of Healdsburg and "local Hispanic communities" across the county. According to the PD: "She knows the region’s Latino communities well and has reported on them before. In 2021, she worked as an intern for La Prensa Sonoma, the Spanish-language newspaper of Sonoma Media Investments, parent company of The Press Democrat. Her work ranged from interviews with Spanish-speaking immigrants to stories about fully assimilated, English-speaking Hispanics." Jennifer also just got her master's in "mass communication and journalism" at Arizona State University, where the PD reports that "she and some of her classmates traveled to Tapachula, to report on the migrant crisis in that southern Mexican city." Press Democrat editor Richard Green explains that “Jennifer will spearhead our coverage of the Sonoma County Latino community, examining all facets of life, work, equity, culture and commerce. She also will be responsible for coverage of Healdsburg, a city that I’ve long believed offers great stories that we’re missing." Cheers to that! (Press Democrat; paywall)
3. The Washington Post is the latest big news outlet to write about the effect of our recent rainstorms on "thirsty" local vineyards. The rains were "a dream come true," says Justin Seidenfeld, winemaker at Healdsburg's Rodney Strong Vineyards, adding: "Water has always been a concern for the last several years, and this year it’s not.” More from the story: "In some places, just the tips of vines were visible above pools of murky water. Some of the images appeared dire. But for growers, the timing was just right. While the region hasn’t seen this much rain in years, winter is usually peak wet season. And grape vines, fresh off a fall harvest, have gone dormant — a period akin to hibernation, when roots are active but the plant is storing nutrients for coming months. Because the vines have not yet reached 'bud break,' the moment leaves begin to emerge, their sturdy, woody trunks are able to withstand an extraordinary amount of standing water. And the soil, after years of drought, has been able to drink up much of the precipitation, draining the pools before disease or other ailments take hold. The rain then seeps into the groundwater system, recharging aquifers." This is reportedly a serious turning point for local farmers. For example, Front Porch Farms — located "on 110 acres off a bumpy country road east of downtown Healdsburg, beside a bend in the Russian River" — was one of the river water rights holders whose business was "decimated" when state officials cut off their supply during the last couple of summers. At the time, "the team came up with a costly solution," the Post reports. "They dug an 11-million gallon pond at the corner of their property, designed to catch rain — forfeiting some farmland to store water that could save the rest. They had just finished the pond when the rainstorms arrived. It is now full." The whole story is a great read, and offers a lot of hope. (The Washington Post; paywall)
4. Another iconic Healdsburg crop to thrive off recent rains? The mustard planted between and around all the rows of grapevines — spreading a zing of neon yellow color across our valleys. "Such a hopeful day of great things to come when the mustard plants start popping up all over the valley..." wrote one neighbor on Facebook. And the Press Democrat published a blurb last week saying that "the mustard ground cover, typically a late winter and early spring crop, was given a boost by recent weeks of precipitation." The blurb ran alongside a gorgeous pic of vineyard worker Armando Angulo pruning "55-year-old zinfandel vines at Mounts Family Winery in Dry Creek Valley." See some more great mustard pics from Healdsburg locals below. (Facebook Groups & Facebook Groups & Press Democrat; paywall)

From our sponsor:

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Today and tomorrow in Healdsburg:

Monday, January 23

• Sonoma Water Specialist Gives Talk on "Modern Irrigation & Best Practices" at the Healdsburg Garden Club Meeting at the Villa Chanticleer (12-3PM)
• Citizens Organized to Prepare for Emergencies (COPE) Chapter of Northern Sonoma County Hosts Private Leadership Meeting (3:30PM)
• "Colectivo de Artes" at Corazón Healdsburg (5:30PM)
• Healdsburg City Council Meeting at City Hall (6PM)

Tuesday, January 24

• "Pot Pie & Pinot" Pop-Up at The Harris Gallery, Featuring To-Go Orders of Lamb Bourginon, Goat Molé & Chicken Pot Pie With Costeaux Crust From Local Chef Mateo Granados (3-6PM)
• "Seeds & Reads" for Kids in Grades K-6 at the Healdsburg Library: All About Owls, Feat. Owl Poop Dissection (4-5PM)
• Healdsburg Running Company "Trail Sisters" Host Run & Vision Board Making Party (6PM)
• Healdsburg High School Girls Soccer Home Game Vs. Piner (7PM)
• Healdsburg High School Girls Basketball Home Game Vs. Windsor (7:30PM)

Healdsburg pic of the day:

Wanna see one of your local pics in the Healdsburg Patch newsletter? You can submit it here for consideration. Please just confirm in your email that you took any photos you're sending, and that Patch has permission to republish them. Thanks! 📸

From my notebook:

• Quick correction! In Saturday's newsletter, I totally botched the event listing for the private leadership meeting being held at 3:30 p.m. today by the Northern Sonoma County chapter of Citizens Organized to Prepare for Emergencies (COPE). I originally got the words in the acronym wrong, plus the time. I also didn't mention it's private. Thanks to the reader who pointed out the mistakes, and apologies for any chaos I might have caused... (COPE Northern Sonoma County via Facebook)
• Gareth Owens, one half of the couple who owns The Parish Cafe along the roundabout, sent me a couple of updates to pass along to you guys. For one, he says, "We will be hosting our Mardi Gras celebration again on Tues Feb 21. Partnering with The Elephant in the Room we will have some tasty treats (crawfish boil, beignets, gumbo and jambalaya and more), 4 amazing bands, and great beer and wine options. Tickets will be on sale shortly via Eventbrite." Secondly, he says the cafe now offers online ordering for pickup. And last but not least — Healdsburg locals can get 10 percent off all their Parish meals, both dine-in and takeout, by using the promo "Local." Gareth says: "We cannot say how much we appreciate the support from our local community and want to express our gratitude by passing this along to everyone." (Inbox & TheParishCafe.com)
• It looks like the winter shelter at St. Paul's Church, run by the Reach for Home nonprofit, will be open again tonight and tomorrow night. A church rep told me recently that they served nearly 2,000 lunches and provided nearly 1,500 showers to those in need last year! (Inbox & Reach for Home via SignUpGenius)

That's it for today. I'll see you soon...

— Simone Wilson

About me: I was born and raised in Healdsburg, CA, where I was the editor of the Healdsburg High School Hound's Bark. I have since worked as a local journalist for publications in San Diego, Los Angeles, New York City and the Middle East. I'm currently a senior product manager for Patch.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Healdsburg Daily? Contact me at simone.wilson@patch.com