Letters to the Editor, Feb. 16: How Sonoma got its name

Is there a city councilmember with guts?

EDITOR: I recently read about the plans for the development on the corner of Broadway and MacArthur Street has been scrapped (“City Council Officially Kills Gateway Project,” Feb. 5). Why in the world did this happen? I saw the plans that were printed in the Index Tribune more than a year ago. It looked great. Mixed commercial and residential use for a large gateway corner into Sonoma that was attractive and totally appropriate for that corner.

To repeatedly send the developers back to the drawing board to satisfy some cranky neighbors was completely dumb. Just what does the city and those neighbors want that would be any different than what was presented and, I believe, approved by the city planning commission at one point. I'm certain that the developers spent a fortune trying to satisfy the city council and the neighbors, and all for not.

What we have now is an eyesore and because the city has forced these folks out, we will get to look at trashy buildings, cracked concrete with grass growing between the cracks and chain link fences that are falling down to continue for another two or three years while we wait for someone else to submit a plan that will be thrown back in their faces time and time again.

Isn't there any city council members with guts enough to say stop this nonsense. Apparently not.

Susan Norton

Sonoma

Origin story, Sonoma-style

EDITOR: Lately, much has been made of re-naming schools and other public places (“Renaming Altimira Middle School Can Wait, Officials Say,” Feb. 12). One wonders if you are aware of the legend by which our town earned its name?

There is no question that the gold rush shaped the cornerstone of California history. A great many farmers and shopkeepers walked away from their families and posts to seek their fortunes in the golden hills. Many never returned. Meanwhile, in desperation, local wives would leave home to try to find their men.

This resulted in a great many lost orphan boys roaming our dusty streets. They became the actual founders of our town.

Barefoot and ragged, they would pass each other around the town square, then pause to make meaningful eye contact and knowingly say to one another these fateful words:

“So, no ma?”

Douglas Chambers

Sonoma

The Republican Greene party

EDITOR: I am told that the Green Party politics include environmentalism, nonviolence, social justice, and grassroots democracy among their advocacies. These beliefs do not currently appear to be the aims or goals of the newly forming Republican Greene party.

Now that Georgia Republican Marjorie Greene has graduated from her House committee assignments responsibilities, magna cum expulsion, she is well tailored to become a sin(e) q(u)a non drama queen for perpetuating a pro-Trump personality cult in the GOP. She said, “Republican voters support him (Trump) still. The Party is his; it doesn’t belong to anybody else… (Democrats) are a bunch of morons.”

Any Republican who envies and supports her new power position should heed Iago’s warning to Othello: “O beware, (my peer), of jealousy: It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock the meat it feeds on.”

Michael F. Heiman

Sonoma

An apology and a thank you

EDITOR: The reason I am writing this letter is that I had lost all confidence in our county government to administer the vaccines. I berated our elected officials to my friends and anyone that would listen regarding the chaos and lack of preparations.

Then the notice that our hospital was going to administer vaccines at the high school came and I signed up. I couldn’t believe that I received an appointment for Sunday and was still skeptical.

On Sunday our Sonoma Valley heroes were on the front lines again, this time vaccinations at Sonoma Valley High School.

I showed up at my appointment time and was greeted by our brave, in charge, and very personable firefighters. They directed me to a lane and there I was greeted by “clinical worker” Wendi who verified my identity and then directed me to another lane. There “RN” Mark administered by shot, handed me my vaccination card and directed me to the next station. There “clinician” Saeng directed me on how to set my next appointment, all on my smart phone. She directed me to Amie who checked on my condition and asked me to wait 15 minutes to make sure I was OK. She then reappeared and said I was “good to go.”

Everyone was so helpful, friendly and, most of all, professional. I apologize for my lack of confidence and thank you again, our heroes,

David Parr

Sonoma

Jack London Middle School?

EDITOR: Thanks to Ty Krauss for his letter about renaming Altimira Middle School (“Altimira Not Worthy of Middle School Name,” Feb. 5), and George Webber for his historical background on Jose Altimira (“The Need for Historical Revisionism,” Feb. 5). I grew up in Sonoma (SVHS '66) and remember when the school was first built. There were quite a few people who were in favor of naming it for Jack London, a fairly obvious choice, including my father, Paul Harrison MD, who was on the school board then and for some years. Altimira's history was known, but this being the Cold War, there were others who said they did not want to name it for a “communist” or “socialist,” and they won out. This seems like a really good time for a re-do.

Jean Kollantai

Snohomish, Washington