New Livermore Valley Wine Heritage District Approved By Council

LIVERMORE, CA — Livermore Valley may not have the name recognition of Napa Valley, but officials hope a new assessment on local wineries will raise money to help spread the gospel while improving the product.

The Livermore City Council unanimously passed a resolution last month to establish the Livermore Valley Wine Heritage District, which will pave the way for businesses to reinvest a portion of their sales back into improvements in the valley.

"This is going to be very important for generations to come," said Councilmember Brittni Kiick at the Nov. 22 council meeting. She acknowledged there could be some difficulty quantifying the result of marketing efforts.

A wine heritage district is a type of business improvement district, akin to a homeowners association for businesses. Businesses pay a tax to the district each year, and in turn, proceeds benefit the businesses.

Wineries must contribute 2 percent of their sales revenue, according to the report. Estimates suggested the wineries could raise about $693,000 in the first year of the wine heritage district.

The Livermore Valley Wine Heritage District seeks to increase sales by putting money toward marketing, advocacy, quality enhancement, education and professional development.

The first assessments would go into effect Jan. 1 and be collected by the nonprofit Livermore Valley Winegrowers Association, which will spearhead efforts for the wine heritage district through June 30, 2026.

The boundaries of the district are the same as those of the Livermore Valley American Viticultural Area, an officially designated wine-growing region.

The boundaries include the existing 56 wineries — and any new ones — in the cities of Danville, Dublin and Livermore and in areas outside San Ramon and Pleasanton. San Ramon and Pleasanton were excluded from the heritage district.

Danville and Dublin, along with Alameda and Contra Costa counties, all adopted resolutions granting the city of Livermore permission to start the wine heritage district.