🌱 Local Wine Pioneer Dies + Arts Fest Itinerary + Beer At Mombos

Hello, Healdsburg! Simone here with your Tuesday edition of the Daily, filled with all the community news you need to know right now. Today's issue includes updates on...

• The man shot by sheriff's deputies out Chalk Hill
• The passing of a local wine legend
• The arts festival in the plaza this weekend

But first, your daily weather:

• Tuesday: Sunny, hot and windy. High: 95 Low: 56.
• Wednesday: A little bit cooler. Mix of sun and clouds, with some more wind. High: 89 Low: 55.

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Air over Healdsburg:

Here are the top 3 stories today in Healdsburg:

1. The Press Democrat continues their dogged coverage of the Sonoma County Sheriff's deputy who shot and killed Lake County farmworker David Pelaez-Chavez last month in the rural Chalk Hill area of Healdsburg. His family, friends and supporters are rallying for an independent investigation into why he was killed. The California Department of Justice, which is "required to investigate deadly force by law enforcement officers against unarmed civilians," has reportedly declined to look into this particular shooting because Peleaz-Chavez was "holding a hammer, a gardening tool and a rock when he was killed." But the victim's supporters say the body-cam video snippets released by the sheriff last week don't show "what really happened the day he was fatally shot," according to the PD — and what it does show, they say, indicates that Palaez-Chavez may not have been able to understand what deputies were asking him to do in broken Spanish. In the video, deputies try to tell him to drop to the ground. His reply, in Spanish: “You’re going to kill me." He then apparently reaches for another rock, which the deputies interpret as a threat — and one of them shoots him dead. Sheriff's officials say they plans to release the full, unedited video footage in two weeks or so. (Press Democrat & Press Democrat & Press Democrat & Press Democrat; paywall)
2. Healdsburg wine "pioneer" Joe Rochioli Jr. has passed away at the age of 88, reports say. The Sonoma County Winegrowers org describes him as a "hardworking farmer and visionary in Sonoma County" who leaves behind "an incredible family and grape growing legacy" in the Russian River Valley. Here's more from the Wine Spectator story on his incredible life's work: "Raised on his family's farm on Westside Road in Healdsburg, Rochioli never left, save for college and the Army. He was the patriarch of the region, an integral citizen of the city of Healdsburg, and a proud, hardworking farmer who helped earn the Russian River Valley a reputation as a world-class site for Pinot Noir. Rochioli died late yesterday at age 88. According to his son Tom, Rochioli suffered a stroke in September 2020 and had been in and out of the hospital since. "He fought hard," said Tom. "He was a tough guy." When the Rochioli family started making wine under their namesake label in 1987, they carved out their own style and proved quickly to be one of the top Pinot Noir producers in California. Part of their success lies in the designated blocks within their namesake vineyard: East Block, West Block, Three Corners, River Block, Little Hill and Sweetwater. They were believed to be one of the first in the valley to divide their vineyard into parcels for specific bottlings." You can read the full story here. (Wine Spectator & Sonoma County Winegrowers via Facebook & Facebook Groups)
3. The 11th annual Healdsburg Arts Festival is coming up this weekend, after two years off for COVID — and it sounds like it's gonna be quite a production. The festival will raise funds for the Healdsburg Center for the Arts by celebrating "three artistic disciplines: visual, performing and culinary arts," according to a press release. It will take place this Friday from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. "The festival footprint will encompass the downtown historic Plaza and one block of Plaza St., between Healdsburg Ave. and Center St.," the release says, "with two performance stages, 45+ artist booths... a culinary arts pavilion, wine, beer, music, dance, theatrical vignettes, spoken word, a sculpture display, children’s art activities and much more." Also on the itinerary: 10 artists doing live demonstrations of how they make their art, including ukuleles, poems, masks and more; awards for "Best in Show," "Best Booth" and "People’s Choice"; stations where you can learn to write haikus and make piñatas, "creature masks," musical instruments, prints, etc.; a live community mural painting on the Matheson Street side of the Plaza; a "Graffiti Artist/Impala Car Club Classic Cars Display" in which "Damon Fox of Else One will graffiti a wood wall on Plaza St. and Impalas Car Club North Bay will display classic cars" alongside a "theatrical performance by local poet and playwright Gabriel Fraire, belly dancing with Jewels of Beladi and jazz, Latin and blues music by Loz Blu"; and a ton more activities. Pretty sweet, right? (Inbox & Healdsburg Center for the Arts & Healdsburg Tribune)

Healdsburg pics of the day:

Note from Simone: I love to feature pics from community members in the Healdsburg Daily. You can send yours to me here. Please just confirm in your email that you took the photo, and that Patch has permission to republish it! 📸

Today and tomorrow in Healdsburg:

Tuesday, August 23

• Farm to Pantry Pear Glean at Burdett Farm (9AM-12PM)
• Healdsburg Tuesday Farmers Market (9AM-12:30PM)
• Sonoma County Community Forum in Sebastopol on "Pesticides on Public Land" (2:30PM)
• Valyrie Selections Pours Wines From Valravn & Atance at Little Saint (4-6PM)
• Westside School District Board of Trustees Meeting (5:30PM)
• Healdsburg Fire Department & Wildfire Services Group Host Community Meeting on Wildfire Protection Plan at the Healdsburg Community Center (5:30PM)
• Tuesdays in the Plaza, Featuring Live Music by Bluegrass/Folk Band Boot Juice (6PM)
• Healdsburg Running Company Trail Sisters Magnolia Loop Run at Orsi Winery (6PM)
• Dan Imhoff Record Release Party at the Elephant in the Room (7-10PM)

Wednesday, August 24

• After Hours at SIMI Winery, Feat. Live Music & Light Supper (5:30-7:30PM)
• Healdsburg Chamber of Commerce 2022 Annual Barbecue at Rodney Strong Vineyards (5:30-8:30PM)
• Clase de Computadora / Computer Class at the Healdsburg Community Center (Weekly, 6-9PM)
• Trivia Night at Coyote Sonoma (7-9PM)

From my notebook:

• Mombos Pizza in the Safeway shopping center is serving beer on tap now. And they're open til midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. (Facebook Groups)
• And Coyote Sonoma has a new "bar bites" menu on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. — including stuff like nachos, taquitos, chicken wings, and a bunch of creative-looking sliders. (Facebook Groups)
• Center Street will be closed off until 4 p.m. today between Lincoln and Sherman, city officials say, while "Healdsburg Electric crews... work on system upgrades in the area." (Healdsburg Patch)
• Corazón Healdsburg's teen center is open for the new school year at the Healdsburg Community Center. Hours are Mondays and Wednesdays from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. and Fridays from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. (Corazón Healdsburg via Facebook)
• The Healdsburg Arts Festival organizers are in dire need of more volunteers to help set up, clean up, man booths, host activities, etc. this weekend. You can sign up here. (SignUp.com)
• A new UC Berkeley study finds a spate of old-school "racist deeds" at properties across Sonoma County — including one "dated 1930 for property in the Del Rio Woods neighborhood east of Healdsburg" that "prevented any 'person except those of the Caucasian race' from living there." A new proposed state law would require county officials to wipe deeds like this from the books. (Press Democrat; paywall)
• Thousands of oak barrels badly needed by local wineries are "missing" right in the heat of harvest season, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, thanks to "a massive bottleneck at the Port of Oakland." From the story: "Jennifer Higgins, winemaker at Healdsburg’s Lambert Bridge [Winery], hasn’t received her Chardonnay barrels either. In the meantime, she said she’ll have to put the Chardonnay in one- or two-year-old barrels and transfer it over to the new wood once it arrives. It’s not an ideal solution." (SF Chronicle; paywall)
• The Healdsburg animal shelter is running dangerously short on dog and cat food again. Here's how to donate. (Nextdoor)
• The new season of free "Second Sunday" concerts at St. Paul's Episcopal Church starts on Sept. 11. Some cool details on the first show, which starts at 5 p.m.: "David Hatt, assistant organist for San Francisco's Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption, will play the works of his father-in-law, prolific composer Dr. David N. Johnson, to mark the centennial year of Johnson's birth. A wind ensemble will join Hatt during the pipe-organ performance." (Inbox & Nextdoor)

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Now you're in the loop for today! More 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