🌱 Protesters Swarm Healdsburg City Hall + New Mayor + Plaza Jobs

Hello again, Healdsburg! It's me, Simone — here to tell you everything you need to know about what's happening in town. The Patch servers were down all day yesterday, so I wasn't able to send out a newsletter. Because of that, much of today's news is really yesterday's news — but better late than never, right? Let's get to it.

First, today's weather:

Fog in the morning and clouds in the afternoon. Chance of rain! High: 54 Low: 42.

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Here are the top 5 stories in Healdsburg today:

1. There was a big, rowdy protest outside Healdsburg City Hall during the city council meeting Monday night. "Somewhere between 60 to 80 people" who showed up from all around the county "to protest vaccination mandates," the Press Democrat reports, were "knocking on the glass windows of the public chambers... as they demanded to be let inside a space that is currently governed by a vaccination requirement." They were calling it a Freedom Rally, and held signs with slogans like "End Segregation Now." They said they were there to support Councilmember Skylaer Palacios, who has to attend meetings on Zoom since she isn't vaccinated. One protester reportedly compared the situation to the Holocaust. We recommend you read the full PD story, if you can; it's pretty surreal. (Facebook & Press Democrat; paywall)
2. Local nonprofit Corazón Healdsburg is also being dragged into the big vaccination debate this winter. The org's CEO says that "as the Healdsburg City Council continues to be questioned regarding the council’s policy to only allow vaccinated individuals to attend council meetings in-person, more people have questioned the nonprofit’s mission and stance on vaccination." Corazón, for the record, is expressly pro-vaccine. They've helped run local vaccination clinics and education campaigns for Healdsburg's Hispanic population. "Despite this attempt to discredit our commitment to the community," Corazón now says in a statement, "we remain firm in our belief that our support of the vaccine is fully aligned with our work to empower and dignify individuals and families." (SoCoNews Healdsburg)
3. Also at Monday's Healdsburg City Council meeting, perhaps somewhat overshadowed by the commotion, a new mayor and vice mayor were selected for 2022. Ozzy Jimenez, previously vice mayor, is now mayor mayor; and Ariel Kelley, previously a councilmember, is now vice mayor. The way it works in Healdsburg is that the community elects five councilmembers for four-year terms, and then they all vote on who will be mayor and vice mayor each year. A video of the meeting is available on Facebook; the vote happens at around the 4 hour 10 minute mark. It got pretty emotional as the council recalled the tumult of the past couple years, including the pandemic, the social-justice uprising a couple summers ago and the resulting resignation of then-Mayor Leah Gold. Ozzy was the one who stepped into the empty seat left by Gold — becoming only the second Latino and openly gay member in the council's history. (Facebook)
4. A plan that would impose strict septic system regulations on anyone living within 600 feet of the Russian River — or within 200 feet of a stream flowing into it — just got a lot closer to the finish line. It was approved unanimously last week by the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, the PD reports. Now it goes to state and federal regulators for approval. The new rules could reportedly put a big burden on many Healdsburg residents; one woman on Fitch Mountain is even threatening to sue. From the PD: "Once in effect, required inspections are expected to identify a substantial number of deficits among the old and aging septic systems and leach fields located in rural areas of Sonoma County. Many of the systems were installed decades ago on small lots and steep terrain where conditions are insufficient to allow for safe treatment and effluent dispersal, officials say." (Press Democrat; paywall)
5. Elsa Casavos, the new SoCoNews and Healdsburg Tribune reporter hired a month or two ago to "do stories focusing on underrepresented communities," has a great new piece up on the "daily career fair happening in the Plaza’s four corners." Aka, the groups of laborers who congregate at the plaza early each morning to wait for work — a decades-long tradition. “My friends told me about coming here 20 years ago," says Manuel Castillo Osorio, 56, from Sinaloa. "I know a lot of people come here to look for jobs. I have found gigs for construction, painting, field jobs too." Sometimes it takes an hour to get picked up; sometimes hours, or a day, or multiple. "The most I have waited for a job is three days," Manuel says. "I would like another way to find a job but I also like coming to the Plaza." (SoCoNews Healdsburg & Facebook)

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Today in Healdsburg:

• Zoom Family Storytime at Sonoma County Library (10:30-11AM)
• Sonoma County Virtual Workshop on Funding Your Home Resiliency Projects, Feat. Info on Rebates and Financing (10:30-11:30AM)
• "What Moves You?" Spiritual Reflection & Communal Meal at THE 222 Moss Gallery (5:30PM)
• Healdsburg City Parks & Rec Commission Meeting (6PM)
• Conversación Comunitaria: "La Ley de Inmigración y el Rol de la Policia" at Healdsburg Community Center (6-7:30PM)
• Trivia Night at Coyote Sonoma (7-9PM)

From my notebook:

• Sonoma County health officials say they've hit the COVID-19 vaccination goal for kids ages 5 to 11 in their first month of eligibility: Around 25 percent of them are now at least partially vaccinated. And the county is "urgently seeking volunteers" with experience in Spanish interpretation and healthcare to help vaccinate the rest. (Patch Press Release Desk & Facebook)
• Former Healdsburg residents Chrissy Dreisback and Jeanette "Tito" Shriver passed away last month. R.I.P. (SoCoNews Healdsburg & SoCoNews Healdsburg)
• Did you see the sparkly dancers on stilts, aka "winter fairies," at the big plaza holiday party last Friday? They were seriously majestic. (Facebook & Facebook)
• The Healdsburg Center for the Arts will be hosting a "Santa's workshop" the weekend after next where kids can make holiday gifts and decorations at a handful of "creation stations." They'll go home with stuff like "paper mosaic Christmas trees, tiny wooden villages, collage Santas, printed wrapping paper, eco ornaments and more." (Healdsburg Center for the Arts)
• Down in Windsor, another festive scene reportedly "worth seeing" this season is the dazzling "Charlie Brown Christmas Tree Grove" at the town green. It's open 24/7, but you can stop by nightly at 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. to see the snow machine do its thing. (Facebook & Healdsburg Is Heavenly)
• Cal Fire's Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit, which protects the Healdsburg area, has transitioned to wintertime rules. In short, you no longer need a burn permit for your burn piles — but you should still call (707) 433-5911 before lighting the match to check if it's a "burn day." (ConstantContact & Facebook)
• Did you know that Hotel Healdsburg now offers a "mushroom foraging adventure" for guests? Two people can pay $688 to visit "the beautiful Notre Vue Estate & Winery with an expert mushroom forager for a two-hour hands-on hunt for wild mushrooms," from now through February. Guests will even learn some "foraging etiquette" along the way. (Luxury Travel Magazine & Hotel Healdsburg)
• Healdsburg's own amateur collegiate baseball team, the Prune Packers, just made their "first merch drop of the year" — and it includes some pretty cool "The Burg" apparel that anyone who reps Healdsburg in general might be into. (Facebook)
• The Healdsburg Rotary Club's annual crab feast, which will be virtual this year, is coming up on Saturday, Dec. 11. And the online silent auction component of it opened Monday. The money from auction items like Italian villa vacations and big fancy wine bundles will go toward "college scholarships for local students, school grants, assistance to our first responders, services for seniors, community improvements projects, etc." (Patch Neighbor Posts & Facebook)

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That's it for today. I'll see you back in your inbox tomorrow morning with another update! If you're loving 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? Contact me at simone.wilson@patch.com.