The City of Sonoma recently announced that it projects a General Fund budget surplus for the 2025-26 fiscal year of $200,000. This is good news, given that previous projections indicated a serious deficit. The passage of Measure T last election raised the local sales tax... Continue
Editorials
On May 6 the Sonoma County Planning Department (aka Permit Sonoma) declared that a new draft EIR and Specific Plan to guide the commercial development of the Sonoma Developmental Center will be completed and ready for preliminary public review by April of 2026. Some of... Continue
The City of Sonoma recently released a draft of its General Plan Economic Element for public review and comment. We’d like to add a few of our own. A General Plan update is periodically required by the State of California, and the General Plan being... Continue
We can’t help thinking about the plight of our friends and neighbors, the Latino immigrants who live here in Sonoma Valley. The fevered actions of the Trump administration - aggressive workplace raids, courthouse seizures, arrests at immigration office appointments, and the like - are designed... Continue
This June 5 edition marks the first anniversary of the new Sonoma Valley Sun newspaper. This is a moment of celebration and a cause for reflection on what we’ve accomplished since the untimely passing of Val Robichaud in February 2024. When the new team of... Continue
It’s not difficult to figure out who our elected leaders listen to; it’s not the public, obviously. The professional class of administrative bureaucrats and “expert” consultants have the greatest influence on decisions affecting the public This reality is easy to observe in the conduct of... Continue
Too many unanswered questions On April 22 the Sonoma Valley Unified School Board of Trustees approved a directive to proceed toward the closure of the Flowery Elementary School in June 2026. Trustees are attempting to rectify the near $2 million budget deficit with that proposed... Continue
On April 5, 2025, thousands of people gathered in Sonoma Plaza. What brought them together were concerns about the policies and programs of the Trump administration. Under the banner of “Hands Off," the crowd listened and cheered the remarks of various speakers, including Congressman Mike... Continue
At the top of its goals for 2025, the Sonoma City Council has placed the creation of affordable housing, particularly housing for lower-wage earners. A review of Affordable Housing (deed restricted and income qualified) created during this past year is bleak; only two low and... Continue
Sonoma’s City Council recently confirmed its goals for 2025, and among them they endorsed implementing Greenlinks Infrastructure planning, an approach that places the creation of healthy and public-serving spaces at the center of development. With all that’s going on right now - the uncertainty emanating... Continue