PD Editorial: An experienced trio for Sonoma

Every four years, the majority on the Sonoma City Council can flip, with the potential for three new candidates to join the dais. This year, that potential is a guarantee, as incumbents Madolyn Agrimonti, Kelso Barnett and Bob Felder have declined to seek reelection.

City Hall is balancing in a precarious place, with no true leader in the form of a permanent city manager. With the police chief set to retire soon, and rumors of more key players ready to leave local government, refilling these linchpin positions will be a critical first challenge for Sonoma’s next City Council. It’s a task that will take dedication, creativity and, most importantly, experience — specifically knowledge of City Hall.

That experience is what makes John Gurney and Ron Wellander stand out in this year’s council race. Gurney spent 12 years as the chief of Sonoma’s Police Department, a role that exposed him to all layers of local government, from city staff to the council to the community. His jovial nature will be a welcome addition, but one he backs up with solid leadership and thoughtful stewardship. Gurney’s four years running the Sonoma Community Center and work in the private sector demonstrate he has the dexterity to juggle the competing interests that often confront the council.

Wellander, meanwhile, has spent the past four years in the thick of City Hall on the Sonoma Planning Commission, where he is currently chair. His work with city staff and direct experience with many of the issues that will soon hit council agendas should provide some much-needed institutional knowledge for this very new group (Mayor Jack Ding, elected in 2020, will be the most senior member of the new council). Selected to serve in an at-large position, Wellander has been a steady voice on the Planning Commission who doesn’t seem to fall to political pressure, which has earned him the respect, and endorsements, of many of his colleagues.

As for Patricia Farrar-Rivas, what she lacks in direct government experience, she makes up in equity-based private sector work and thoughtful consideration of the issues. More than any other candidate, Farrar-Rivas demonstrated solution-based thinking on affordable housing — arguably Sonoma’s most pressing problem. When asked why she’s heading straight for council without the customary pit stop on a city commission, she was refreshingly honest: If she didn’t run, there would be no woman on this year’s ballot. That would have left Sandra Lowe to offer the lone female perspective on the Sonoma council. It’s 2022, well beyond time for a more balanced chorus of voices. And Farrar-Rivas’ work as CEO of an ethical investing firm will undoubtedly benefit the council come budget season.

The other candidates, Mike Nugent and Thomas Deegan, have many strengths, and both offer an impressive professional background, with Nugent bringing 16 years of government experience from his time on the Sonoma Valley Health Care District board.

But considering the myriad challenges brewing at City Hall, The Press Democrat recommends Patricia Farrar-Rivas, Ron Wellander and John Gurney for Sonoma City Council.

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