🌱 Unvaccinated City Rep + Healdsburg School Moves + Wicked Slush

Good morning, fair townspeople! Simone here with your Wednesday edition of the Healdsburg Daily. Here's everything you need to know to get this day started.

First, today's weather:

Morning fog, afternoon clouds and rain at night. High: 69 Low: 55.

Air over Healdsburg:

Here are the top 5 stories in Healdsburg today:

1. Skylaer Palacios, the youngest member of the Healdsburg City Council, has admitted she's unvaccinated. She dropped the news near the end of the council's regular Monday night meeting, during a discussion on whether those meetings should be held in person again — and whether vaccination should be required. "I'm not in agreeance about the vaccine pass to get in," Palacios said right before the vote, adding: "I will just say publicly that I am not vaccinated. And I have not been wanting to say this for a while because it's my own health situation, and I don't feel like anyone should have to publicly say that." According to the Press Democrat, her vaccination status "had been an open secret in Healdsburg city government for three months." You can skip to the 2 hour, 59 minute mark of the meeting video on the city's website to watch the whole thing play out. (City of Healdsburg & Press Democrat; paywall)
2. That said! Healdsburg City Council meetings will now be held in person, but with a virtual Zoom component so that everyone — including Palacios — can still tune in remotely. Their next meeting is Monday, Nov. 15. "Proof of vaccination will be required for entry, a negative COVID-19 test will not be allowed as a substitute and face masks will be required at all times," the Tribune reports. "Council chamber capacity will also be reduced to 50% and chairs will be spaced to allow for social distancing." (City of Healdsburg & SoCoNews Healdsburg)
3. Healdsburg business owner Amy Joy Covin, 59, who runs popular local slushie spot Amy's Wicked Slush by Memorial Beach, is off the hook for the felony grand theft charges levied against her over summer. The charges — alleging she stole almost $12,000 from Pacific Tile, a contractor who helped rebuild her home after a 2014 fire — have officially been dropped. Amy explains to the PD that she transferred the money to herself from a Pacific Tile bank account she had access to, after the company failed to pay her the $10,000-plus she won in Small Claims Court for "flawed work" on the job. So now, after this ruling, both sides basically still owe each other a similar amount of money. But Amy says "the hardest part of being charged with a crime... was having people doubt her integrity." (Press Democrat; paywall)
4. The Healdsburg School, a private elementary and middle school serving around 212 students, will be relocating soon from their current location along Healdsburg Avenue at the south end of town, across from Healdsburger, to an 11-acre site a few miles south at 11940 Old Redwood Highway. They'll be surrounded by various wineries. "I am thrilled that the school can now take programs to the next level with classrooms specifically designed for indoor/outdoor experiences," the school says. The new campus will also reportedly "allow for an expanded garden program, outdoor learning labs and the construction of a multipurpose building including a gym and a performance space." (SoCoNews Healdsburg)
5. State regulators have hit PG&E with a $125 million penalty for sparking the Kincade Fire a couple summers ago. Investigators found that "the fire was caused when a worn jumper cable, which was installed in 1973, failed and snapped off a transmission tower near Geyserville on Oct. 23, 2019." PG&E has agreed to pay the penalty, which includes a "$40 million fine that will go to California’s general fund" and a block on the utility company redeeming "$85 million in cost recovery for permanent removal of abandoned transmission equipment within its service territory." According to Courthouse News, "about 200,000 residents from Healdsburg, Windsor, Santa Rosa and Geyserville fled their homes after the Kincade Fire erupted, making it the largest evacuation in county history." (Courthouse News Service)

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Healdsburg pic of the day:

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Today in Healdsburg:

• Healdsburg School Open House for Prospective Families (8:30-10AM)
• Virtual Sonoma County Workshop on Wildfire Safety: Solar Power and Battery Back-Up Basics (10:30-11:30AM)
• Graphic Novel and Comic Book Creation Class at Healdsburg Center for the Arts (Nov. 3-Dec. 8, 3:30-5:30PM)
• Virtual Teen Anime Club at Sonoma County Library (4-5PM)
• Trivia Night at Coyote Sonoma (7-9PM)

Healdsburg Patch Notebook

• A reader emailed me asking where exactly Healdsburg gets its water, so I thought it'd be a good opportunity to share this info with everyone! In short: Lake Mendocino and Lake Sonoma. This is because we pull the vast majority of our water from the Russian River, which is fed by those two reservoirs. (And they get their water via diversions from the Eel River up north, plus rain!) The remainder of Healdsburg's water supply comes from Dry Creek, which is also fed by Lake Sonoma. Hope that's helpful... (City of Healdsburg & SoCoNews Healdsburg)
• Sunstone Hotel Investors, the same company that owns Healdsburg's Montage resort, just bought up another big hotel property to the east, the Four Seasons Napa, for around $175 million. That's approximately $2.1 million per hotel room key — reportedly making it the "second highest valued U.S. hotel deal on record." (Seeking Alpha & Wall Street Journal; paywall)
• The Healdsburg animal shelter is taking signups for a "winter youth camp" next month. Kids ages 7 to 11 are invited to "come hang out with our cats in Kitty City, bond with our special therapy dogs and enjoy crafts and games while learning about the different careers in animal care." The camp's Santa Rosa counterpart just hit capacity, so hop on this one soon if you're interested. (Humane Society of Sonoma County)
• The mountains just west of Healdsburg set the record in Sonoma County for rainfall during the "atmospheric river" a couple weekends ago, at 14.3 inches. And across the greater Bay Area, we came in second only to Mount Tamalpais in Marin County. As weather officials said at the time — "the redwoods are rejoicing"! (San Francisco Chronicle; paywall)
• Have you spotted the Sonoma County Library system's new, blue BiblioBus putzing around recently? It reportedly "made its first public appearance at the Day of the Dead celebration at the Healdsburg Plaza this past Sunday." The bus has wifi, library card signup, a small collection of books, laptops and more. Here's how you can request it come to you. (Facebook)
• A couple different Healdsburg winegrowers are being recognized by the Sonoma County Winegrowers association for their outstanding leadership in 2020 and 2021: Ramiro Leon with Bevill Vineyard Management and Gustavo Rico Alvarez with Seghesio Family Vineyards. (Facebook)
• The deadline is tomorrow for local artists and craftspeople to apply for a spot in the Healdsburg Center for the Arts' annual holiday gift market. (Facebook)
• Here's an impressive video recap of the sweeping, multi-agency Russian River cleanup back in March, featuring aerial footage of Healdsburg's cleanup crew. (Facebook)

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Thanks for following along and staying informed! See you tomorrow morning. If you're liking these newsletters, consider bringing some of your friends and neighbors on board. 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 reach me at simone.wilson@patch.com.