New Fire Helicopter + Water Tank Frenzy + $5M Soda Rock Estate

Morning, Healdsburg! It's me again, Simone, your host of the Healdsburg Daily. I've been loving all the feedback you've been sending me on this new format for the morning newsletter — keep it comin' please. Now let's start this Wednesday off an informed note, shall we? Here's everything you need to know today about what's happening locally.

First, today's weather:

A little cooler than yesterday, but still pretty hot. No clouds, more winds. High: 91 Low: 48.

Here are the top 5 stories in Healdsburg today:

1. Jill Ziedrich Gaylor, female president of Healdsburg Lumber and the third generation of her family to run the company, has been bestowed the North Bay Business Journal’s "Women in Business Award" for 2021. Read about her rise in the "very male-dominated" construction industry. (North Bay Business Journal)
2. The Healdsburg City Council is still deciding how to spend the $2.8 million they'll be receiving soon from the feds as post-COVID stimulus. They're leaning toward using at least some of it to forgive loans handed out to local businesses during the pandemic. See the full list of potential uses for the money — including drought stuff, fire stuff, Badger Park stuff and a bunch of other nice-to-haves — in the Trib. (SoCoNews Healdsburg)
3. You can sleep a little easier tonight, with the arrival of a new "state of the art" Sikorsky S70i firefighting helicopter to Cal Fire's Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit base to the east. Compared to the Super Huey helicopter it's replacing, which could hold 324 gallons of water at once, the Sikorsky reportedly holds 1,000 gallons. Boo-rah. (Facebook)
4. Everyone who works for the Healdsburg Unified School District will be getting a healthy 7.5 percent raise tomorrow. Local teachers are reportedly "very happy about it." (SoCoNews Healdsburg)
5. Dare you not to check out the pics of this insane "Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired estate" for sale on Soda Rock Lane on the way out to Alexander Valley. For just shy of $5 million, you get 10 acres, a courtyard, a pool, a gazebo, a water fountain, St. Helena views and — kid you not — private freaking access to the Russian River. (Press Democrat)

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Today in Healdsburg

• Trivia Night at Coyote Sonoma (7-9PM)
• Summer Take & Make Craft Kits at Healdsburg Library (All Day)
• Youth and Family Summer Camp at Bishop's Ranch (All Day)
• Sonoma County Joint Meeting Committee for Healthcare Improvement (8-9:30AM)
• Sonoma County Community Development Commission - Oversight Board Special Meeting (3PM)

Healdsburg Patch Notebook

• Quick correction: I spelled Russian River Adventures owner Larry Laba's name wrong in yesterday's newsletter! A helpful reader pointed out the mistake. His name was written "Larry Lava." Which would be kind of a cool name, but yeah, it's not his. Apologies to a local icon.
• If you can't seem to get your hands on a backup water tank to help you ride out this drought, and not the tertiary kind, you're in good company. Neighbors on Nextdoor and the "What's Happening Healdsburg" Facebook group have been trying to help each other source tanks, but pickings are slim. (Facebook)
• Lowlights from last week's Healdsburg police log include a report of someone apparently camping out in an ambulance parked on Grant Avenue — "no sign of theft, just empty packs on cigarettes and trash," police say — and someone wanting to press charges for "$10-$15 worth of alcohol taken" from them on Center Street. (SoCoNews Healdsburg)
• The Prune Packers, Healdsburg's own amateur collegiate baseball team, just got a new pitcher! Welcome Will Geerdes, a "hard throwing San Antonio native," to Rec Park. Oh, also — they won their game last night against the Walnut Creek Crawdads. Three more games left in the series. (Facebook)
• Another casualty of our increasingly brutal fire seasons, plus COVID of course: Fourth of July fireworks. Here are some things you can do instead to celebrate this year. (Press Democrat)
• Maybe we're behind on this, but we just noticed that you can now fly straight from the Santa Rosa Airport to the Burbank Airport in northern L.A. County, instead of having to fly into LAX. Cool! (Orbitz)

You're officially in the loop for today. See you tomorrow for your next update.

— 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? I'm all ears. You can reach me at simone.wilson@patch.com.