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April 22, 2022

Celebrating Resiliency

This past year all of us have experienced many challenges that have compelled us to think creatively and seek inspiration. Many of our City staff have worked hard during the pandemic bringing us into the present with new solutions. We have created new partnerships to offer more diverse opportunities and spent time engaging with community residents.

I am delighted that one of our new partnerships is with the YMCA.
We recognize how challenging it is to find high quality childcare for working parents and therefore have partnered with the YMCA to provide a new option. We have also recently held a virtual Water Town Hall where we discussed projects the City is working on to diversify our water supply and resources. We will have another Water Town Hall for Spanish speaking residents coming up on April 27 at 6pm. This past week I also had the opportunity to meet and chat with parents who participate in the Healdsburg Elementary School English Learners Advisory Committee ELAC group to share some of the projects we are working on this year.
Going forward into the future, City staff and I intend to continue to have more community conversations and continue to build partnerships with the goal of arriving at solutions that continue to build our resiliency.

New Childcare Partnership

New CIty of Healdsburg Childcare Partnership

The City has selected YMCA of Sonoma County to partner on the development of a new, full-day, year-round licensed childcare center. The YWCA will develop and run the program at the Healdsburg Community Center. This new program will feature infant/toddler and preschool-aged opportunities. There will be half-day and full-day options, and the City’s current non-licensed Building Blocks program for preschool-aged children will continue to be available as well.

Our Community Services team is working with the YWCA on finalizing the program arrangements, registration process, and facility improvements needed for licensing. Our goal is to launch the new program in August, and we expect to have more details and sign-up information available by the end of April. If you would like to be put on a list to receive more information, please email communityservices@healdsburg.gov or call 707-431-3301.

Water Town Hall

City staff conducted a Water Town Hall virtual meeting on Zoom on April 20 to answer some of the most pressing questions regarding water resources for our community. Staff had the opportunity to share some of the long-term and short-term projects we are working on to build our long-term resiliency. The key projects we are working on currently include:
Aquifer Storage and Recovery Wells - Estimated Cost $8.5 million

Construction of new aquifer wells would enable us to tap into a new source of water that could be replenished during rainy years. This process is projected to increase our water supply by 60 million gallons per year, or 9% of our current demand. We recently completed a feasibility study that yielded favorable results. Since this is an expensive undertaking, the City has applied for funding from FEMA and the State.

Municipal Recycled Water Pipeline - Estimated Cost of $10 million

The City recently received a grant award of $7.1 million from the State of California to fund a pipeline that would bring recycled water to parks, schools, and the golf course. We are currently waiting for results of second grant from FEMA in order to begin construction.

Please visit us on FB at: https://www.facebook.com/cityofhealdsburg to view the recording of the Water Town Hall meeting.

Farewell To Dave Jahns

This week we bid farewell to Dave Jahns who will leave the City of Healdsburg to become the next Parks and Recreation Director for the City of St. Helena. Dave was an esteemed and respected colleague amongst our staff, and he will be greatly missed. Congratulations Dave on your new position!

Community Services Director, Mark Themig had this to say, “Dave has been an integral part of our team since joining the City as a Recreation Supervisor in 2016. During his first two years with Healdsburg, he developed and refined our year-round recreation program lineup. He was promoted to Recreation Manager in 2018, and since that time provided leadership for sports and recreation, senior services, after school programs, the community center and swim center operations, and special events. He also championed special projects like the Arts and Culture Master Planning process and was an integral part of our team’s response to emergencies. While Dave came to Healdsburg from the “Big City” of Cupertino, he quickly adapted to Healdsburg and his commitment to the Healdsburg community is evident in everything that he did."

Healdsburg Planning Commission

On Tuesday April 26^th at 6 pm the Healdsburg Planning Commission will be considering two items.

An amendment to the Master Conditional Use Permit for the Mill District project to: a) allow a two-phase design process for development on Lot 1 (hotel site); (b) eliminate the prohibition on restaurant use in conjunction with the hotel on Lot 1; and (c) add a provision requiring that adequate parking shall be provided for any future restaurant use on Lot 1.
The Planning Commission will also receive a presentation on the Healdsburg Housing Element Update; including a discussion of the draft policies and programs aimed at meeting Healdsburg’s future housing needs for all income levels.

For the meeting agenda please visit: https://www.ci.healdsburg.ca.us/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04262022-1318?html=true

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