Healdsburg Inn Quarantine + Local Road Cleanup + New COVID Tech

Good morning, fair Healdsburg. Here's everything you need to know to get this Thursday started off right.

First, today's weather:

Another day of fog, clouds and some wind in the morning, clearing up by noon. High: 86 Low: 45.

Here are the top 5 stories in Healdsburg today:

1. Healdsburg's Best Western Dry Creek Inn is being used as the official quarantine quarters for the nearly five dozen people who tested positive for COVID-19 last week at Sonoma County's largest homeless shelter in Santa Rosa. Almost half of those who tested positive were vaccinated. (MSN)
2. If you noticed some smoke to the north last night, you likely spotted Cal Fire's most recent controlled burn out in the hills near Lake Sonoma, at Stewarts Point and Skaggs Springs Road. The plan was to "burn approximately 140 acres of grass oak woodland... as part of a vegetation management project." (Healdsburg Patch)
3. These are all the local roads that have been "adopted" as part of a six-month-old county initiative to clean up scenic Sonoma County roadsides. The only one that's been accounted for in Healdsburg so far is Westside Road, thanks to the Westside Road Association. Still up for grabs: Kinley Drive, West Grant Street, Dry Creek Road, Magnolia Drive, Bailhache Avenue, North & South Fitch Mountain Roads, and more. Here's how to adopt your favorite street. (Sonoma County Government & Press Democrat; paywall)
4. Check out this amazing-looking "two-story, Quonset-style barn" selling for just under $1 million in the hills out West Dry Creek Road. It basically looks like a big hangar, with lots of sweet sitting and sleeping nooks and even a footbridge inside. “The seller is a true character,” the home's agent says. It was in the burn zone for last year's Walbridge Fire, but apparently survived — likely thanks to its literal steel exterior. In fire country, that's everything. (Realtor.com News)
5. Sonoma County just got a rad new tool to detect new COVID-19 variants. The "state-of-the-art, $275,000 diagnostic machine" can reportedly complete genetic sequencing of specimens in less than 24 hours — giving local health officials a critical "opportunity to curtail the size of [an] outbreak." (Press Democrat; paywall)

From our sponsor:

Today's Healdsburg Daily is brought to you by our friends at FTD, the most trusted name in flowers. FTD's network includes over 8,800 local florists in communities around the country. Send flowers to someone you care about today and get a 15% discount on your order. Click here to make someone feel awesome.

Healdsburg pic of the day:

Want to see your local photo here? Submit it for consideration. Please confirm in the email that you own the rights to the photo, and that Patch has permission to republish it.

Today in Healdsburg:

• Annual Ice Cream Social at Healdsburg Senior Center (2-3:30PM)
• Virtual Teen Social Justice Club at Sonoma County Library (4-5PM)
• Sonoma County Library Virtual Book Club: Tao Te Ching (4-5PM)
• Live at Saini Vineyards: Ellie James Music (4:30PM)
• Corazon Healdsburg's "Golazo 2021" Youth Soccer Registration Event at Healdsburg Community Center, with Live Music & Cleat Swap (5-8PM)
• Healdsburg Prune Packers Baseball Game at Rec Park (6-8PM)

Healdsburg Patch Notebook

• What do Healdsburg and Los Angeles have in common? L.A. politicians are fawning over a new bill proposed by Healdsburg politician Mike McGuire. It would give "local tax collectors the authority to cancel property tax penalties in the case of lockdown-related hardships." (City News Service)
• Here's a breakdown of how far your 500 gallons/week of free recycled water from the City of Healdsburg will go, courtesy of the "Healdsburg Water Wise Volunteer Page." In short, the group says, "Save the water for the plants you love, kiss the rest goodbye and when the time is right replace the thirsty plants with low water use options." (Facebook)
• There was a "very concerning" influx recently of juvenile barn owls to Sonoma County Wildlife Rescue — "likely the result of siblings competing for food and pushing the others out of the box." Make sure this doesn't happen on your property by checking out their Barn Owl Maintenance Program. (Facebook)
• Do you make under $75,000 per year? Then you'll likely be receiving a stimulus check from the State of California soon for $600, with an extra $500 if you have kids. (KTLA)
• It's tick season in Healdsburg! Here's some info from Healdsburg Hospital on protecting yourself — and your pets — from "these nasty buggers." (Facebook)
• There's a pair of best-friend Guinea pigs waiting to be adopted at the Healdsburg animal shelter. "Ross and Chandler are a comedy duo looking to find a home together," the shelter says. (Healdsburg Patch)
• The PD has an amazing story this week on Pancho, a Sonoma County vineyard worker who just spoke for the first time since 2003, after being "paralyzed at age 20 by a severe stroke after a terrible car crash." (Press Democrat; paywall)
• Uh-oh. The new Montage Healdsburg behemoth at the north end of town has been named one of "11 chicest new hotels in the U.S." by Elle Decor. (Elle Decor)
• Left behind at Healdsburg Youth Wrestling Club practice: An iPhone with "pic of a black dog on the lock screen" and some flip flops. (Facebook)
• The Sonoma County Sheriff is hiring correctional officers. (Facebook)
• Or if animals are more your thing, Sonoma County Animal Services is hiring control officers. (Facebook)
• Peep the Cal Fire aircrafts hanging out at the Santa Rosa airport, including an OV-10A "Bronco" and two airtankers. (Facebook)

From our sponsors — thanks for supporting local news!

• Job listing: Caregiver (Details)

Thanks for following along and staying informed! I'll see you tomorrow morning for your next update. If you're feeling these newsletters, consider bringing some more friends and neighbors along for the ride. You can send them this link to subscribe.

— 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.