City to explore name change

An online poll and town-hall meeting will soon be gauging the public’s sentiment over whether or not Sonoma should change its official designation from “city” to “town.”
“I look forward to a fun discussion on this one tonight,” said Sonoma City Councilmember August Sebastiani, in floating his renaming idea October 15.
Sebastiani cited more sentiment than substance, saying he’d put the item on the agenda since California’s Brown Act prohibited him from discussing the idea with his council colleagues outside of a regular session. He said that Sonoma, incorporated in 1883, was one of five municipalities designated “city” when California became a state in 1850 – which he said may have reflected a “different vision … of a bustling metropolis that’s going to compete for one of the largest cities of the time.”
He added that dense infill development and underground parking have lead to unintended consequences – such as firefighters training for urban rescues – and that new residents may find themselves expecting more of the same rather than a rural retreat.
“I think we should look at where we are, what the community’s about,” Sebastiani said.
In her staff report, City Manager Linda Kelly said there’s no legal difference between calling a municipality a “city” or “town” – although most of those in the Bay Area have populations of 15,000 or less – and that the process of change would likely involve a filing with the California Secretary of State and passing a local ordinance. But she noted that anything bearing the name “City of Sonoma” – seals, stationery, signs, maps, etc. – would also need to be changed.
Asked by Councilmember Steve Barbose what that would cost, Kelly said that hadn’t been calculated. She offered a rough, “unscientific” estimate that the street signs alone could cost $5,000, but said the costs could be phased in over time.
Of the four people speaking up during the public comment section, only one said it was a “neat idea,” with three others saying they preferred the title as it is.
“People say ‘City of Sonoma?’ Yes. We are rebels,” West Spain Street resident Victoria Frank said, addressing the disparity between Sonoma’s rural character and its urban title. “We don’t like big this or big that … We’re independent cusses.”
City Historian George McKale said the title “city” appears on Sonoma’s 1870 and 1890 surveys – but also said he loved the discussion, adding that the idea behind going from “pueblo to city” reflected a particular sophistication.
Councilmember Stanley Cohen echoed that, saying that Sonoma’s art museum and jazz festival are part of what makes a city.
“Town is a cute term, it makes it more rural, but … there’s a certain sophistication in terms of where we are,” Cohen said.
Mayor Pro Tem Ken Brown agreed – “For me, Sonoma is a city” – but added that he was willing to extend the dialogue to a meeting at the Sonoma Veterans Memorial Building.
“Changing something as intrinsically historical as this … I would ask for a referendum to see if that’s what people wanted to do,” Brown said.
Barbose agreed, saying he was “intrigued” by Sebastiani’s idea and that “town … speaks to people taking care of each other and community spirit.”
After some discussion, in which Mayor Joanne Sanders also expressed her support for a town meeting, the council agreed to schedule that – as well as count the street signs and set up an online poll at the city Web site, sonomacity.org.