Top weekend news stories from Sonoma County

Hello Press Democrat readers. We have a compelling lineup of local stories for you if you’re just catching up on this weekend’s headlines.

This weekend’s top stories include an examination of the opioid epidemic’s impact on Sonoma County as well as a farewell to the people who’ve made the presses hum at the Press Democrat’s printing plant as operations move from Rohnert Park to the East Bay.

Have a read, watch our videos and thank you for supporting local journalism.

5 deaths in 3 hours: What Sonoma County's deadliest day in 5 years tells us about the opioid epidemic:

April 2, 2020, was the deadliest single day of the opioid epidemic in Sonoma County in at least five years, according to a Press Democrat analysis of data from the County Coroner’s Office.

That’s when five people died of drug overdoses within three hours of each other. All of them were related to opioids.

As one Santa Rosa police narcotics detective puts it, Sonoma County is now an “opioid county.”

Press Democrat enters new era as Sonoma County printing press closes, production moves to new site:

The Press Democrat shutters its Rohnert Park printing and production facility after Sunday’s press run, ending a four-decade operation that churned out an estimated 845 million copies since its opening.

Beginning Monday night, The Press Democrat will be printed at the San Francisco Chronicle’s production site in Fremont.

Surging expenses to maintain aging equipment; technological advancements that shifted readers habits away from print newspapers to smartphones and digital sites were only part of the decision.

Santa Rosa council approves water fees for new housing if drought conditions worsen:

The Santa Rosa City Council has moved to address the concerns of environmental impact on continued growth by unanimously agreeing to charge developers an extra fee to offset the water demands of new housing if current drought conditions become worse.

The move came about four months after the council balked last year at advancing such a fee policy over concerns about hampering housing production.

Council said adopting the policy would balance the need to confront the climate-driven likelihood of longer and more intense periods of drought with alleviating the city’s entrenched affordable housing crisis.

Why is the nation’s largest public pension demanding millions from a handful of retirees?:

Tarlochan Sandhu, a retired local government employee, is facing the revocation of his retirement and health benefits and a past due bill from CalPERS, the nation’s largest public pension fund, for $454,000.

CalPERS says Sandhu, along with four other former public sector employees, violated the pension system’s rules for post-retirement work and therefore were not eligible to simultaneously collect benefits.

Weird and wonderful Fool’s Parade in Occidental marches on after 2-year pandemic hiatus:

The iconic Fool’s Parade marched back Saturday into Occidental amid the West County redwood trees after a two-year haitus forced by the pandemic.

The parade, organized by the Occidental Center for the Arts, had one of the largest turnouts many veteran organizers could remember.

Though billed on a poster as the 17th annual Fool’s Parade, a precise history of the event and its origins isn’t available.

“It's been different things different years but the core is always a parade through town,” said Patrick Fanning, president of the center’s board, “a parade of fools.”