Sonoma Valley blight spots

For an area that takes its historic aesthetic seriously, sites of degradation and blight – somewhere on the scale between Detroit and Chernobyl — are particularly embarrassing. We asked readers for some of the more egregious examples.

Broadway at MacArthur

The hands-down winner, proving nothing quite says ‘historic charm’ like a cyclone fence. As one of the more prominent properties in town – even the Planning Commissioners describe it as ‘the gateway to Sonoma’ – this abandoned eyesore looks like the site of a superstore for meth lab supplies. Dilapidated buildings, busted windows, a block of cracked asphalt overgrown with weeds… of how many empty parcels can you say it actually looked better as a used car lot? Judy Hallmam agrees: “I have been watching this deteriorate for the last year and am totally ashamed that this is one of the first sites as people enter our town. I do not understand why/how our City Leaders can let this happen. How can we get them moving along?”

Roadway garden near Staples

Audrey Chapman remembers when everyone was worried about the city’s other gateway being fronted by a big box store. It turns out that Staples has decent landscaping with trees and green plants, she says, but the xeriscape project in the intersection that fronts the store “is a disaster… the city and landscaper should be ashamed.”

18600 block of Highway 12

With its ample parking and prominent location (across from Mary’s), this former restaurant looks like a prime target for a gentrification project. In the meantime, the unsightly wreck gets Carol Dickason’s vote as a prime example of blight

Highway 12 near Thompson Avenue

Next to the parking lot at Thompson Avenue sits this ugly duck, nominated by Mike Acker. The area’s highway and sidewalk improvements look great, but, like a trophy wife at the high school reunion, make many of the derelict old structures along the strip suddenly look a lot older by comparison.

Did your blight get slighted? Send your pick to [email protected]