The door stays pink

The Sonoma City Council turned down an appeal Monday that the door and accent colors of Grandma Linda’s Ice Cream shop – a shade of dark pink, if not bubblegum – violates the historic character and dignity of its Plaza neighborhood.

A very large serving of public opinion was offered, with the local flavor (a few nuts included) melting down to: it’s a disrespectful eyesore; or, it’s a splash of fun, just go with it.

“This is an accent color, not the whole building,” said Leslie Tippel, a member of the city’s Design Review Commission, which gave the pink door the green light. The appeal cited procedural errors in the approval process, but Tippel assured the council that the color question had a full and fair hearing. “Nothing was taken lightly,” she said.

The vote was 4-1, with Steve Barbose in the minority. He called for more specific guidelines, maybe even an official color palette, to help guide city staff and new businesses.

Shotsie Gorman, for one, was cold to that idea. “I don’t know why Benjamin Moore has the right to dictate” Plaza color schemes.