Press Democrat
In a deal they say will financially benefit the cash-strapped city and their industry, Santa Rosa’s hoteliers are offering to tack a 3 percent fee onto their daily room rates. The move is expected to generate $1 million a year for the city. There is one major string attached, however. That $1 million would be redirected to the Santa Rosa Convention & Visitors Bureau, where it would be used to promote the city’s lodging industry, attract conventions and fund events like the Tour of California.
The future of an 80-acre parcel eyed for Mendocino County’s largest commercial development was in limbo Wednesday after voters overwhelmingly defeated a ballot measure that would have allowed developers to bypass the local planning process.
A group seeking to roll back Petaluma’s sewer rates has gathered enough signatures for the issue to be placed on a future election ballot. The county elections office certified that Petalumans for Fair Utility Rates, which sponsored a similar initiative last year, gathered 1,169 sufficient signatures from Petaluma voters. The group, led by retired pilot Jim Fitzgerald and former councilman Bryant Moynihan, needed 1,093 signatures and submitted a total of 1,579.