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January 31, 2020

City Manager's Office

Healdsburg and the 2020 Census

Mandated every 10 years by the Constitution, the 2020 Census counts every person -- no matter one’s citizenship or U.S. residency status -- living in the 50 states, District of Columbia, and five U.S. territories. Community members can take the census questionnaire by mail, phone, or in-person. To learn more, the City has created a 2020 Census webpage specifically for Healdsburg and in the coming weeks, through this spring, will be encouraging community members to take the census.

Community Services

Senior Citizens Advisory Commission Seeks Community Feedback

The Senior Citizens Advisory Commission Endowment Fund ad-hoc committee is working with City staff to collect data and better understand the wants and needs of current and future senior center users. Data is being collected through Interactive display boards and paper surveys that prompt the community to write down what they love about the Senior Center, what they feel can be improved, and their vision for the future. The committee will use feedback from the community to consider how the Endowment Fund can be utilized to make improvements at the Senior Center. The paper survey and display boards are open for community response from January 27 - February 14. For more information on the Senior Center En-dowment fund please visit https://www.ci.healdsburg.ca.us/964/Endowment-Fund

Swim Center Scheduled to Open in February

After being closed during the winter months, the Swim Center will reopen for public use on February 10.  The pool will initially be open for public lap swim on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.  The schedule will expand with increased lap swim days, pre-team, and rec swim as we move into the spring months.  In addition to public use, the Swim Center is utilized by the Healdsburg and Windsor High School swim teams.  For more information and the full schedule, please visit https://www.ci.healdsburg.ca.us/254/Aquatics-Programs

Tee Ball gearing up for the 2020 Season

Registration is currently open for Tee Ball Tune-Up and League. Tee Ball Tune-Up runs from 2/20-3/12 and is great introduction to the sport for first -time participants and a way to practice fundamentals such as throwing, catching, and hitting prior to the start of the official season. Tee Ball League play runs 3/30-5/20 with practices on Mondays and games on Wednesdays at the Community Center ball field. The league is an all-inclusive league that will introduce boys and girls to baseball in a fun and positive environment. Both programs are designed to introduce young players to the benefits of sports such as fitness, , teamwork, and comradery. All participants will play every game and will receive team shirts and hats for participating in the league. For more information please visit http://bit.ly/hbgteeball

Public Safety

Fire Department's Bucket Brigade Blood Drive

More than 80 donors signed up to participate in the Fire Department's Bucket Brigade Blood Drive Challenge on Saturday, Jan. 25. Thank you to everyone who participated -- your donations will help save lives.

Public Works

Crosswalk Enhancement in Downtown Healdsburg

A City contractor completed the installation of rectangular rapid-flashing beacons so vehicle drivers are more aware of people using the crosswalk on Healdsburg Avenue  at Mitchell Lane (across from Ramos Shoe Repair, by Mitchell Shopping Center). The crosswalk was previously enhanced with in-roadway lighting, but it was prone to failure and required ongoing maintenance. The new system is a great improvement for pedestrians in the downtown area. The City installed a similar system on Healdsburg Avenue at Plaza Street about a year ago and has been widely used. 

Montage Healdsburg: New Gas Line Regulator Station

PG&E will begin construction on a new gas line regulator station for the Saggio Hills project starting early February, weather permitting. The work will occur adjacent to Healdsburg Avenue, and is expected to last 6-8 weeks. Traffic control, including lane shifts will be in place on Healdsburg Avenue in front of the Saggio Hills development site during this time. Please contact Public Works Department at (707) 431-3346 for additional information.

Video Work for Upcoming PG&E Gas-Line Project

• Sherman Street between Healdsburg Avenue and College Street
• Center Street between Sherman Street and Piper Street
• Lincoln Street between Healdsburg Avenue and Fitch Street
• Johnson Street between Sherman Street and Lincoln Street
• Fitch Street between Sherman and Lincoln Street
• College Street between Sherman Street and Lincoln Street

PG&E will take videos of more street segments in the future. PG&E is required to notify residents prior to performing any video work on private property. This map from PG&E shows all of the street segments proposed for upcoming gas line replacement projects. The City will send more information on this project prior to the start of construction. Please contact Public Works Department at (707) 431-3346 for additional information. 

Utility

Induction Cooking Class with Mateo Granados

The Electric Department hosted an induction cooking class on Jan. 21 with Chef Mateo Granados of Mateo’s Cocina and Relish Culinary Adventures. Twenty-five participants watched Mateo prepare a Yucatan-styled crispy chicken and seared seasonal vegetables via induction cooking, then tried the technology themselves. Students learned how fast induction works, why it’s an improvement over electric resistance, experimented with settings on sophisticated cooktops, and saw that a side-by-side demo of gas and induction yielded the same results but with far less emissions from the induction cooktops. The Electric Department has an induction-cooktop loaner program, so community members interested in trying induction can contact the department at conservation@ci.healdsburg.ca.us to set up a time to borrow a cooktop.

Complete: Pond Rehab and Lining Project

The City has finished expanding the recycled-water storage at the City’s Water Reclamation Facility. The work rehabilitates three de-activated ponds by removing debris and grading and lining the ponds to increase recycled water storage by roughly 15 million gallons. This work provides additional storage for partially treated wastewater and allows additional space for the pending floating-solar project.

Semi-Annual Solar Reporting

Twice a year, City Staff report the amount of solar generation via the City’s electric distribution system to the California Energy Commission (CEC). For the reporting period ending December 31, 2019, Staff reported 233 installations totaling just over 2,102 kilowatts of solar in Healdsburg’s electric-service territory. This equates to roughly 173 watts of solar per capita -- enough energy to power more than 500 average-sized households.