New Gas Type In Healdsburg + Church Drowning Court Plea + Events!

Hello, my people! Simone here, not a moment too soon, with your weekend edition of the Healdsburg Daily. There's a lot going on in town this weekend, so let's get to it.

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First, your weekend weather:

• Friday: Hot and sunny, with some smoke in the air. High: 90 Low: 45.
• Saturday: Cooling down. Possibility of fog in the morning, turning to sun. High: 80 Low: 42.
• Sunday: Even cooler, but still mostly sunny. High: 76 Low: 47.

Here are the top 5 stories in Healdsburg today:

1. The Healdsburg dad accused of drowning his 4-year-old daughter in the St. John the Baptist Catholic Church baptism pool back in 2016 entered his plea in Sonoma County court this week. Gerardo Mendoza Ordaz is pleading "no contest" to the voluntary manslaughter of his daughter, as well as to child abuse of his son, who was present. According to the PD, the plea "will avoid what surely would have been an extremely public, emotional trial for Ordaz and his family reliving the night he killed Maria in that Healdsburg Catholic church pool five years ago. The negotiated plea means Ordaz, 47, faces a term of 11 years in prison. He's set to be sentenced on Oct. 15 by Judge Robert LaForge." Mendoza reportedly told investigators he'd been smoking crystal meth and believed his kids were being "attacked by evil" and that "the holy water would get the devil out of their bodies." (Associated Press via Mercury News & Press Democrat; paywall)
2. The media spotlight is on Healdsburg this week for "leading the way in North Bay water conservation" and cutting its water use in half this summer. In a CBS report on the accomplishment, city leaders say it was largely due to residents changing the way they think about their own water use. The 74 gallon limit per person per day "gave us a water budget to stick to, which I think is helpful for most people,” resident Linda Barber tells CBS. The city says its free recycled water delivery program, which is set to expire soon, also helped. (CBS San Francisco)
3. Related: The Healdsburg Water Reclamation Facility was just named “Recycled Water Agency of the Year” by the WateReuse Association, whose annual awards "recognize individuals and/or projects that are making significant contributions in support of greater adoption of water reuse." According to the City of Healdsburg, recycled water from our local facility is "supplied to over 1,000 acres of vineyards and a local gravel processing facility for dust control and washing aggregate materials used for asphalt and concrete production." In addition, as mentioned above, "1,000 residents either self-haul or receive deliveries of recycled water to offset drinking water use for landscape irrigation. A whopping 133 million gallons has been used since January 2020."(Facebook)
4. Healdsburg Unified School District funds are looking healthy, with budget reserves sitting at 27.35 percent. "Our revenues can be somewhat volatile due to things like wildfires, flood etc.," Healdsburg's superintendent says. "Thus, it’s important that we have healthy reserves to allow us to weather unforeseen circumstances." Click through for a full budget breakdown. (SoCoNews Healdsburg)
5. The Healdsburg Gas Mart at the corner of Healdsburg Avenue and Dry Creek Road is now selling an "alternative and more environmentally friendly fuel" called E85, made for "flex fuel" cars. They say they're the only gas station in Northern Sonoma County to do so. Here's how to check if your vehicle can use E85. (Facebook)

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This weekend in Healdsburg:

Friday, September 24

• Healdsburg Library Storytime at Giorgi Park (10:30-11:15AM)
• Harvest Lunches at Jordan Winery (Sept. 24-27, 12-2PM)
• Food Truck Friday at Bacchus Landing (4-7PM)
• Friday Evening Wine & Song at Hudson Street Wineries: Rootstocks (5-8PM)
• Dustin Saylor Live at Hotel Healdsburg (6-8PM)
• Wilson Wines Summer Music Series: Mazzocco, Derek Irving & His Combo (6-8PM)
• Poyntlyss Sistars Rockin' Show Band at Coyote Sonoma (7-10PM)

Saturday, September 25

• Healdsburg Running Company Saturday Morning Run “Out On The Trails”: Calistoga’s Oat Hill Mine Road, Buster’s BBQ Finish (8AM)
• Healdsburg Saturday Farmers Market (8:30AM-12PM)
• Foss Creek Cleanup (8:30AM-12:30PM)
• Outdoor Yoga Above The Russian River at Wildhaven Sonoma (10-11AM)
• Sonoma County Art Trails, Feat. 6 Healdsburg Art Studios (Sept. 25-26, 10AM-5PM)
• Sonoma County Emergency Management Workshop: How To "Harden" Your Home Against Wildfires, Create Defensible Space (11AM)
• Bella Vineyards Backyard Concerts: Banjo Boombox (11AM-4PM)
• The Larkdales Live at Spicy Vines (3-6PM)
• Rodney Strong Presents Americana Festival with David Luning Band (5PM)
• Healdsburg High School Class of 2022 BBQ Fundraiser (5-9PM)
• Endeavour Wild Boar Pig Out at Dry Creak Vineyard, Feat. Live Music & Dancing (5-10PM)
• Live Music on the Russian River: Awake, a Doors Tribute Experience (6PM)
• AQUA NETT ('80s Party Rock) at Coyote Sonoma (8-11PM)

Sunday, September 26

• March From Santa Rosa to Healdsburg Plaza: Caminata 12 Millas Para 12 Millones Indocumentados / Walk 12 Miles for 12 Million Undocumented Immigrants (8:30AM-2PM)
• Yoga on the Green at Rodney Strong (9:30-11:30AM)
• Sonoma County Art Trails, Feat. 6 Healdsburg Art Studios (Sept. 25-26, 10AM-5PM)
• Dustin Saylor Live at VML Winery (11AM-4PM)
• Bella Vineyards Backyard Concerts: Sebastian Saint James (11AM-4PM)

Healdsburg Patch Notebook

• This year's Sonoma County Wine Auction, which kicked off with a party at Montage Healdsburg last weekend, raised $1.7 million for Sonoma County nonprofits. That's around three times what was raised last year for the online-only auction, but a lot less than the $6.1 million raised in 2019. (Press Democrat; paywall)
• A neighbor posted a video in the "What's Happening Healdsburg" Facebook group showing someone at the SingleThread restaurant liberally hosing down their parking lot. "I thought there was a drought?" the neighbor writes. There's some pushback in the comments, though. (Facebook )
• Tomorrow's farmers market at the plaza will have a couple changes: Tisza Bistro will be gone catering a memorial, but Black Oak Coffee will make an appearance at the Healdsburg Bagel stand. And the Cloverdale Jazz Collective will "fill the aisles with joyful music." (Facebook)
• World Gym Healdsburg is hiring front desk staff and trainers right now. (Facebook)
• The casino and resort proposed by the Koi Indian tribe just 10 miles south of Healdsburg, near the airport, is getting some pushback from another local tribe. The Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, who run a casino in Rohnert Park, are accusing the Koi of "reservation shopping" since their "ancestral roots are in the Lower Lake area of Lake County" and they've "never been associated with Sonoma County, linguistically or culturally." (SFist)
• The Healdsburg High School cross country team got their "first taste of high-level competition this season" at the annual Viking Opener meet last weekend. Here's how they did. (SoCoNews Healdsburg)
• Alexander Valley residents are noticing an inundation of trash along Highway 128. (Nextdoor)
• Is anyone missing a "large, fluffy, and very friendly cat" in the vicinity of Los Amigos Road and Merriam Vineyards? It's been hanging out at your neighbor's house. (Facebook)

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You're all caught up for today. I'll see you back in your inbox next week with another update! If you're liking these newsletters, consider inviting some of your friends and neighbors to read along. 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? I'm all ears. You can contact me at simone.wilson@patch.com.