Events

Here's an opportunity to participate in converting a park (lawn) in Cotati to  a water saving edible landscape. Come for part of the day or the whole day. Register at www.dailyacts.org  or 707-789-9664.

Transform Your Thirsty Lawn
Daily Acts/City of Cotati Water Conservation Program

Free to Cotati residents, $25 non-residents
 
We’ll turn a water-thirsty city landscape into a beautiful water-saving
 wonderland, providing food, habitat, inspiration and education.  See how
 nature designs the best gardens that attract beneficial insects, build healthy
 soil, and provide pollination and pest management. They become havens for
 wildlife, absorb water, reduce erosion, beautify the land, and provide the
 perfect environment for engaging neighbors!

 In this hands-on workshop, learn water conserving site design, hands-on sheet
 mulching and earthworks. Instructors include:

• Award-winning Equinox Landscape Designer, Patrick Picard,
• Trathen Heckman, Executive Director of Daily Acts,
• Damien O’Bid, City of Cotati, Director of Public Works and City Engineer and
• Wade Belew, Stewardship Coordinator, Cotati Creek Critters.

Join Sebastopol Mayor Sarah Gurney and special guest Kelley Rajala, Executive Director of the Sonoma County GoLocal Cooperative for dinner at Peter Lowell's Cafe, Restaurant & Wine Bar. Don't miss this chance to "Dine Out Sebastopol" and get to know Sarah and share your thoughts and ideas with her. She looks forward to seeing you there!

Peter Lowell's is a restaurant that supports local farmers who use sustainable agricultural practices, including biodynamics. Both owner Lowell and Chef Reamus have a passion for Italian recipes and endeavor to have a sustainable impact on Sonoma County, and they do this in part by sourcing their produce completely locally. Come experience their delicious creations at this dinner with Mayor Sarah Gurney.

Kelley Rajala is Executive Director of GoLocal, a network of businesses, organizations, and individuals working together to increase economic localization and reclaim our economic power. She will be providing information about GoLocal and all the events and activities they undertake. This growing community movement is playing a role in ensuring Sonoma County stays strong during this current economic crisis. 

Don't miss it!

Peter Lowell's Restaurant
7385 Healdsburg Avenue
Sebastopol

Details at: http://sonomacounty.golocal.coop/events/dinner_with_the_mayor/46/

Come join us at our next Transition Sebastopol Movie Night at the French Garden Restaurant!

About the Movie:
Since World War II North Americans have invested much of their newfound wealth in suburbia. It has promised a sense of space, affordability, family life and upward mobility. As the population of suburban sprawl has exploded in the past 50 years, so too has the suburban way of life become embedded in the American consciousness.

Suburbia, and all it promises, has become the American Dream.

But as we enter the 21st century, serious questions are beginning to emerge about the sustainability of this way of life. With brutal honesty and a touch of irony, The End of Suburbia explores the American Way of Life and its prospects as the planet approaches a critical era, as global demand for fossil fuels begins to outstrip supply. World Oil Peak and the inevitable decline of fossil fuels are upon us now, some scientists and policy makers argue in this documentary.

The consequences of inaction in the face of this global crisis are enormous. What does Oil Peak mean for North America? As energy prices skyrocket in the coming years, how will the populations of suburbia react to the collapse of their dream? Are today's suburbs destined to become the slums of tomorrow? And what can be done NOW, individually and co

Watch the trailer here.

GoLocal is offering a 4th movie night during Eat Local Month! Join us as Peter Lowell's Cafe, Restaurant & Wine Bar in Sebastopol for a locally-sourced, organic dinner and a movie. Don't miss it!

Peter Lowell's is a restaurant that supports local farmers who use sustainable agricultural practices, including biodynamics. Both owner Lowell and Chef Seamus have a passion for Italian recipes and endeavor to have a sustainable impact on Sonoma County, and they do this in part by sourcing their produce completely locally. Come experience their delicious creations at this movie night.

The movie being shown is Two Angry Moms, a documentary that asks the question: what happens when two fed-up moms try to change the school lunch program? Don't miss this timely topic!

The evening will begin with a short welcome, followed by dinner being served concurrently with the movie showing. Please note that drinks are not included in the price.

For details and to make a reservation for the event visit: http://sonomacounty.golocal.coop/events/eat_local_movie_night___peter_lowell_s/45/

5 miles
Follow the proposed route of the Laguna trail (not yet open to public access) from the Plaza to the Laguna and south to Laguna Farm on Cooper Road. Wear hiking shoes, bring water, a lunch, and a
hat. Return to the Plaza.

Leaders: Laguna Docents.

Download the full 2009 Sebastopol Walks schedule here.

Like to excercise & create community at the same time? The Sebastopol Walks series is a great way of doing both!

You can also visit the iWALK site which lists other scheduled Sonoma County walks and allows you to add to the calendar, too.

Inviting all interested gardeners to join in cultivating a grassroots community seed bank that supports Sonoma County gardeners with free, locally grown, open pollinated, pesticide and GMO-free seed.
Seed and Plant exchange all morning with local food potluck at 12.
Class from "Fermentation - Sauerkraut" from 10:30 - 11:30 am (bring a quart jar).
West County Community Seed Bank meets monthly on the last Saturday of the month to share seeds, plants, resources and local gardening and food information.
All are welcome, including children.

Other upcoming events:

September 26 : Wet Seed Processing. Tomato tasting and seed processing
October 31: Garlic exchange and tasting

For more information contact Sara at 829-5234 or saramc@emeraldearth.org

What you could bring:
… Plants or seeds to share
… Coin envelopes
… Books or resources for sharing with others
… Local food potluck item!

Location:
Salmon Creek School Garden
1935 Bohemian HWY
Occidental

View Larger Map

West County Community Seed Bank

Vision:
To create a grassroots community seed bank that supports Sonoma County gardeners with locally grown, open pollinated, pesticide and GMO free seeds. Anyone can become a member of the West County Seed Library, we ask for a donation of $5.00-$20.00 and a commitment to grow out and donate back seed following the library's protocol for growing clean seeds.  No on is turned away for lack of funds.   The West County Seed Library will be housed at the Salmon Creek School Garden and will be open to the public monthly for classes, resource sharing and a seed and plant exchange. The West County Seed Library will have resources available to members on growing and processing seeds.
 
Why save seed and why a local seed bank?
Our rapidly changing world gives us all the more reason to strengthen our local resources and our ability to be self-sufficient.  Local seed saving allows us to cultivate plants that do well in our region, with each generation adapting more to the local environment.   It also lets us preserve heirloom seeds that are being lost as the seed industry is being concentrated into fewer and fewer large corporations.  Seed banks are a great investment; with some plants one seed can return up to 40.000.  The abundance seed savers experience should be shared with the community and helps to model a different economic system.    We hope to cultivate a network of seed savers in the region to support each other and the seed library, which will be a resource for the expanding community of gardeners and help strengthen our local food system.

For more information contact Sara McCamant 829-5234 or saramc@emeraldearth.org

AGENDA

CITY OF SEBASTOPOL CITY COUNCIL AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING OF
September 1, 2009

5:00 pm – City Council Meeting Time - Meeting Location: Sebastopol Youth Annex, 425 Morris Street, Sebastopol, CA

6:00 pm – Community Development Agency Meeting Time – Meeting Location: Sebastopol Youth Annex, 425 Morris Street, Sebastopol, CA

Please be advised that any City Council item that follows the Community Development Agency agenda may be presented at an earlier time in the meeting, including being presented prior to the Community Development Agency Meeting.

As a courtesy, please refrain from using cell phones during the meetings and please turn off all audible pagers and rings.

5:00 pm Sebastopol Youth Annex, 425 Morris Street, Sebastopol, Ca

ADJOURN CITY COUNCIL MEETING

6:00 pm - CONVENE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING
CALL TO ORDER
ROLL CALL
APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF: July 21, 2009
INFORMATIONAL REPORT(s): None
CONSENT CALENDAR ITEM(s):

7. Approval of Funding Request from Rebuilding Together (Executive Director)

PUBLIC HEARING(s): None
DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEM(s):

8. Amendment to Community Development Agency Adopted Budget 2009-2010 (Executive Director/Administrative Services Director)

9. Consideration of Request from Linda Galletta, Sebastopol Center for the Arts for Sponsorship of the Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival, March 5-7, 2010 (Executive Director)

ADJOURNMENT

CONVENE JOINT CITY COUNCIL AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING
CALL TO ORDER
ROLL CALL
APPROVAL OF JOINT MINUTES OF: July 7, 2009
INFORMATIONAL REPORT(s): None
CONSENT CALENDAR ITEM(s): None
PUBLIC HEARING(s): None
DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEM(s):

10. Resolution Establishing Guidelines for Street Extensions, Street Trees, and Street Furniture in the Area Bounded by Petaluma Avenue, Laguna Park Way, Morris Street, and Sebastopol Avenue (Planning Director)

ADJOURNMENT

RECONVENE CITY COUNCIL MEETING

PUBLIC HEARING(s):
11. Public Hearing - Notice is hereby given that the City Council of the City of Sebastopol has scheduled a Public Hearing to consider the extension of an interim urgency ordinance prohibiting the establishment of medical cannabis nurseries in Sebastopol (Planning Director)

INFORMATIONAL REPORTS (No Action Required by the City Council):
12. Status of City Council Goals and Priorities (City Manager)

DISCUSSION AND/OR ACTION ITEM(s):
13. Water System Update and Consideration to Authorize the City Manager to enter into an amended contract agreement with PES Environmental of Novato to develop performance based specifications for a treatment system for City Well 05 (Superintendent of Public Works)

14. Consideration of City Budget Amendments to the Adopted Fiscal Year 2009/2010 City Budget (Administrative Services Director)

15. Consideration of Request to Authorize Mayor to Sign Letter to California Congressional Delegation and President Obama Supporting Health Insurance Reform which will provide for all Americans (Councilmember Shaffer)

CITY COUNCIL REPORTS
16. City Manager Reports
17. City Council Committees
18. City Council Reports
19. City Council Correspondence

CLOSED SESSION:
20. Public Employee Performance Evaluation – City Manager
(Government Code Section 54957)
 

The Catalyzing Communities Group will visit the intentional neighborhood at Ecotopia Valley, aka Ecotopia Farms and the Darby Dome. This location in rural Sebastopol is another favorite where long time resident and rabble rouser, Michael Heumann, has been connecting with neighbors and creating community for many years.

The future is full of opportunity for others to join this neighborhood. Two homes are for sale on this street now, and hopefully more to come! There will be a tour of the properties currently on the market and discussion of the other areas for possible expansion.

Join the tour to experience the beauty of the place, learn from the history, and explore the future! If you're interested, you're invited to bring a towel for the solar hot tub, and natural swimming pool. Please bring a dish to share and some food for the grill.

R.S.V.P. to cassandra@regenerativerealestate.com or call Devin at 235-6854.

To learn more about Catalyzing Communities, visit their website!

There will be a screening of the documentary, "Unnatural Causes" about the inequity of health care in the US at Two-Acre Wood Co-Housing.

No admission charge.

UNNATURAL CAUSES is the acclaimed documentary series broadcast by PBS and now used by thousands of organizations around the country to tackle the root causes of our alarming socio-economic and racial inequities in health.

Go to http://www.unnaturalcauses.org/ for more information.

The series crisscrosses the nation uncovering startling new findings that suggest there is much more to our health than bad habits, health care, or unlucky genes. The social circumstances in which we are born, live, and work can actually get under our skin and disrupt our physiology as much as germs and viruses. This viewing will include two episodes:

1) In Sickness and In Wealth (56 min.) How does the distribution of power, wealth and resources shape opportunities for health? and...

2) When the Bough Breaks (29 min.) Can racism become embedded in the body and affect birth outcomes?

Location:
Two Acre Wood Common House
680 Robinson Rd.
Sebastopol, CA
Note: Please park on the street or in the lot at St. Stephen's church at 500 Robinson Rd. and walk to the community.

RSVP:
Please email Diana Laczkowski at dianala50@hotmail. com to RSVP and for directions if needed.

Pedestrian Issues Meeting

Location: Library Forum Room

The Sebastopol City Traffic Committee and Bike/Walk Sebastopol will co-host this meeting to answer questions and take comments from the community about pedestrian issues in our city.

Hope you will attend.

Kathleen Shaffer
Council Member

Location:
Thai Issan
7503 Healdsburg Ave.
Sebastopol, CA

8:30-4:30
Location:
City Corporation Yard
714 Johnson St.
Sebastopol
What we accept:

 
• Computer equipment (computers & monitors, laptops, keyboards, printers, mice, hard drives, tape & zip drives etc.)
• Consumer electronics (DVD players, VCRs, gaming devices, stereo components, radios, PDAs, cell phones, cables, etc.)
• Televisions (CRTs/LCDs)
• Office equipment (telephones, fax machines, copiers, etc.)
• Kitchen appliances (blenders, toaster ovens, coffee makers, microwaves, etc.)
• Household appliances (hair dryers, irons, curling irons, vacuum cleaners, etc.)

 
We will not accept:

• Large appliances (refrigerators, freezers, ovens, stoves, dishwashers, air conditioners, water heaters, etc.)

 
What happens to the e-waste?
ASL Recycling mechanically dismantles devices into commodity streams (dark & light plastic, ferrous & non-ferrous metals, etc.). To learn more about ASL’s recycling process, please visit www.aslrecycling.com
Questions ASL Recycling 408.468.0230

8:30-4:30
Location:
City Corporation Yard
714 Johnson St.
Sebastopol
What we accept:

 
• Computer equipment (computers & monitors, laptops, keyboards, printers, mice, hard drives, tape & zip drives etc.)
• Consumer electronics (DVD players, VCRs, gaming devices, stereo components, radios, PDAs, cell phones, cables, etc.)
• Televisions (CRTs/LCDs)
• Office equipment (telephones, fax machines, copiers, etc.)
• Kitchen appliances (blenders, toaster ovens, coffee makers, microwaves, etc.)
• Household appliances (hair dryers, irons, curling irons, vacuum cleaners, etc.)

 
We will not accept:

• Large appliances (refrigerators, freezers, ovens, stoves, dishwashers, air conditioners, water heaters, etc.)

 
What happens to the e-waste?
ASL Recycling mechanically dismantles devices into commodity streams (dark & light plastic, ferrous & non-ferrous metals, etc.). To learn more about ASL’s recycling process, please visit www.aslrecycling.com
Questions ASL Recycling 408.468.0230

This outstanding day starts full-on with Brock Dolman at the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center, an amazing 80-acre nonprofit organizing and education center, organic farm and home to the intentional community, Sowing Circle.

Into its second decade, this organization has consistently addressed environmental, social and economic crises with innovative, practical solutions, style and beauty. Witty and reverent, Brock Dolman, Director of OAEC’s Permaculture, Basins of Relations, and Wildlands Biodiversity Programs, will satiate you with his wealth of knowledge and pepperings of natural history, wildlife biology, native California botany, watershed ecology, habitat restoration and regenerative human settlement design. We’ll meander through gardens containing over 3,000 varieties of heirloom annuals and 1,000 varieties of edible, medicinal and ornamental perennials.

Having become more literate with the landscape, we’ll head to Sunrise Ridge Gardens where Erik Ohlsen will guide us through this 7-acre garden sanctuary. Erik designed it to emphasize diversity with energy efficiency and showcase heirloom fruit, berries, and lavender. Beauty, functionally and good stewardship underlie the carefully arranged swales and channels that minimize erosion and maximize percolation of runoff into the ground. Erik Ohlsen, owner of Permaculture Earth Artisans, is a Permaculture designer, teacher and community organizer.

At the end of the day, you’ll be full up with the delightful possibilities for life in flow with nature.
 

Location:

Occidental Arts and Ecology Center (OAEC)
15290 Coleman Valley Road
Occidental, CA

For more information and to register please visit:
http://www.dailyacts.org/index.php?option=com_jevents&task=icalrepeat.detail&evid=132&Itemid=141

Location:
Pine Cone Cafe
162 N. Main Street
Sebastopol, CA

Learn all about how to save money with energy efficiency and solar and how to fund it through the county's Energy Independence Program.

Speakers include:
Introduction by Michael Kyes who lives in a zero energy home
Paul Rosen on energy audits
Martha Baeli on PG&E energy efficiency programs
Marty Roberts on solar and Solar Sonoma County as resource
John Haig and Liz Yager on Sonoma County Energy Independence Program

Location:
Sebastopol Community Center on Morris Street.