Page 32 - Sonoma County Gazette June 2017

Rio Nido Lodge (Under New Management):
Making Dollars and “Sense”
Good news for our Community. The Rio Nido Lodge is going through some great and positive changes under new interim management. The interior of the building has been freshly painted inside and the guest rooms nicely furnished (bright and light) with at screen TV’s and other charming accoutrements. A few of the rooms are still under renovation with new bathrooms. The outdoor areas are also being spruced up. I was pleasantly surprised. I met with the interim Manager Lowell Johnson twice, a very nice man and good things are underway for this historic jewel. The prior manager has left the building.
Rio Nido Dog Park:
Our popular Dog Park is looking good. Russian River Rec and Park built
a new fence around the Canyon 7 portion of the park. Why you may ask? To keep the noise level down from our furry friends in the park and also for safety concerns. A big thanks to all involved. As I have said many times before, “It takes a Village!
FRN members met on Sunday, May 14th. A very productive meeting was held and the turnout was good. John McCarthy from Public Works came to discuss new piping that will be replaced around our roads. This will cut down on water leaks and a substantial loss of water. The rst phase will begin in the middle of June.
Tourism is what supports this community we all love and call home. It’s what allows all of us to live here in this beautiful place. We bear the di culties of winter together, and try and help each other make it through them, so we can enjoy the summer alongside our welcome guests who support our resort town lifestyle on the river. Most of us feel a great sense of gratitude for being able to live here, but rarely thank a dish washer or the owner of the restaurant they work at for keeping the doors open so we can.
Please stay tuned for more news and be sure to check out the new website at: rionidolodge.com. 4444 Wood Road, Rio Nido. .
A few of our downtown merchants approached the Guerneville Community Alliance and said they were interested in organizing a private meeting. They expressed that fear has kept them from being able to speak publically at recent town meetings. Fear of alienating fellow community members who may have opposing views, fear of making the town look bad and driving away the tourists that they and their employees depend on for their livelihood, and fear of retaliation from people who cause trouble daily and roam our streets at night. So, we helped facilitate a private meeting for them and invited Supervisor Hopkins, Capt. Essick, who supervises the Sheri ’s dept. patrol operations and is a candidate for Sheri , Lt. Molinari, who oversees the Guerneville Sheri ’s sub-station, and reps. from Fire and CHP.
Upcoming RN Homeowners’ Events:
Brad and Reyna from the Rio Nido Roadhouse generously o ered us their back room. Let’s be clear, there was no lack of compassion or lack of interest in helping homeless people who are not trouble makers. This meeting was about what the merchants needed for a change though, as they have mostly been forced to just suck it up and deal with it quietly no matter what. It was their turn to talk about their needs to be able to stay open, keep employing people, keep generating revenue for the county to be able to pay for the programs
and services, and keep our town alive. We sat and listened to one merchant after another tell horrible stories about how negatively the homeless problem has a ected their business, many of whom have been here working hard and contributing to our community for decades. There were too many stories
about having to clean up human feces and of incidents of disrespectful and disruptive behavior to count. Many spoke of signi cant declines in revenue as they have watched the problem get worse and worse over the last few years. Many expressed not knowing how much longer they would be able stay open if something didn’t change soon. One merchant cried as she talked about the daily harassment she has had to silently endure, and the lack of anyone being interested in helping her with the problem. We were read a blistering one star travel review just written earlier the same day about an expensive resort where the guest said, “what is going on in your town?”, and made it very clear they would never return to Guerneville. We heard about squatters, threats, and even arson. Many said it’s the worst they’ve ever seen it. All expressed a desperate need for more law enforcement. We were there until 11:30pm, but everyone got a chance to say what they’ve been afraid to say publically, and they were heard by the county o cials who also stayed that late to listen. The whole community should have been able to hear their anonymous cries for some support.
New Rio Nido Sign: Alas, alas we are moving forward. The new RN sign that we have been waiting for is nally on schedule to be installed. Its quite lovely and even has the Winky Moon on it. Currently plans are under way with Von Renner for installation.
The next FRN meeting is scheduled for 11:00am on Sunday, June 18th in the Bruno Farnocchia (RN) Park Picnic Area.
Rio Nido Homeowners Association:
Have you noticed the HOA grounds? They have been spruced up and ready for this Summer’s fun lled family picnics. Looking good! Upcoming events: May 28th- Chicken BBQ and June 18th-Pancake Breakfast. Looking for volunteers – contact Douglas Misner via email at: dmc@rionido.org.
Rio Nido Clothes Swap/Exchange/Fashion Show:
This year’s event brought many to the RNR. The participants came away with many, many treasures. The fashion show was a ton of fun too...Looking forward to next years exchange with eager anticipation!
Rio Nido Pet of the Month
There are some wild looking cats
in Rio Nido. Half domestic cat, half
Asian Leopard cat. These beautiful
spotted kitties are bred for their sweet
temperament and make great house
cats despite their feral appearance.
Local to Rio Nido, breeder Russian
River Bengals produces these kittens
for eager parents all over the United
States. Pictured is Alphia, mother
of the most recent litters. Note her
rosettes that give her a leopard like
appearance. Bengal cats range in
colors from brown, silver and mink
and their spots can vary from the
circles you see on Alphia to a marbling
of colors. Unlike many of their common cat cousins, many enjoy splashing around in the water. They are very playful cats and are known to leap great distances. If you are interested in adding one of these unique kitties to your home, you can nd information on Russian River Bengal’s online.
32 - www.sonomacountygazette.com - 6/17
The very next morning there were more deputies assigned to do community policing in our area. Though there were certainly many other factors involved in the decision, about a week later it was announced that the year round homeless service center plans were being halted for now. Supervisor Hopkins was quoted in an earlier Sonoma County Gazette article by Vesta Copestakes as stating “The current impacts of homelessness and lawlessness are unacceptable. While our next steps will address current impacts and help people, we must craft long-term solutions to make a di erence. The community feedback will continue to guide development of the County’s approach.”
The Community Alliances hear you merchants, service and hospitality workers, and welcomed guests who allow any of us to have a town to live
in at all. The backbone of this community deserves our respect and support, and their needs have to matter too. Thank you for all you contribute to our community. We’ll keep trying to help until a healthy and safe balance has been found for everyone.
If you would like to learn more about the Lower River Area Community Alliances, become involved as a volunteer, or if you have some community concerns or solutions you would like to share, you can “like” our Guerneville Community Alliance and/or Russian River Alliance (Monte Rio) FB pages. You can also contact Mark Emmett at 707-529-0534 (Guerneville) or Chuck Ramsey at 707-239-1639 (Monte Rio).