Sonoma County Gazette Janaury 2019

JANUARY 2019
Homeless NEW CA County Seeks My Journey Rail Tankers
Housing Solutions ~ 8
State Laws ~ 11
ADU Housing Sites ~ 13
to a Refugee Camp ~ 25
in Wildlife Preserve ~ 26
Middle-
OPTIMISM is Contagious
After 5
Wage Jobs
Years Andy Lopez Settlement a Step Towards Healing?
The State of Working Sonoma
By Will Carruthers
Without legislative action, Sonoma
Contributing writers: Dan Kerbein, André Marc, and Evelina Molina
County will become increasingly unaffordable, as middle class jobs disappear and new wealth continues to move upwards, according to a new report from a local labor organization.
By the time acting Sonoma County Sheriff Robert Giordano sat before the mike on December 18 to announce a legal settlement, the Andy Lopez case had gone through a long and tangled process of interpretation, during which the Sheriff’s Department itself went through the turmoil of a recall threat and election of a new Sheriff.
The report published by North Bay Jobs with Justice, “The State of Working Sonoma,” tells a worrying tale: In the coming years, the number of low and high-wage jobs will continue to grow, while middle-class positions continue to disappear in a process likely to be exacerbated by the 2017 fires.
During his brief press conference, Giordano recounted the story then- Deputy Erick Gelhaus, fearing for his life, opened fire on 13-year old Lopez because the boy was carrying a toy gun that looked like a real AK-47 to the deputy. He fired all 9 bullets from his clip, 7 of them entering Lopez’ body within seconds.
While the changes shown in the report reflect economic changes across the nation, the Bay Area’s high cost of living paired with persistently low wage growth for the lowest income families are a devastating combination.
When you look back in 2018 Think of it as a year of growth You made it through each day You should be proud of yourself Take a deep breath and enter 2019 with hope and confidence.
The take-away recommended by Giordano is that the shooting was instigated by a “replica gun,” a toy gun that looks so much like the real world version of the weapon that young people get killed by police officers when seen carrying them. The kid should not have been given a replica gun- a sad case, but very simple.
Sonoma County’s economic problems have been exacerbated by the rise of the tech industry and the disappearance of manufacturing jobs, according to the report.
“Manufacturing as a sector directly and indirectly produced a significant
JOBS cont’d on page 10
ANDY LOPEZ cont’d on page 8
Your HOME TOWN NEWS: pgs 30-48 EVERYTHING to DO Calendar: pgs 53 - 71
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