EMPLOYMENT • STAFFING
GEN Z IN THE WORKPLACE What do North Bay managers really think about the next generation of employees?
Inside: A salute to Rohnert Park, the planned city with big plans
Employment | Staffing Issue 2024
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CONTENTS
49 YEARS OF BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE
November 2024 • Volume 49 • Number 13
52
SPECIAL SECTION 52 A salute to Rohnert Park
FEATURE STORIES 26 Flexing their flex policies Janet Perry How North Bay companies are making hybrid work policies work for them 34 The workplace generation gap Judith M. Wilson
A look at the big plans ahead for the Friendly City Stories by Janis Mara, Jessica Zimmer, Cerrissa Kim, Jason Walsh, Rosie Padilla
WORK/LIFE 20 Money 21 Real Estate
How younger workers are bringing change to the workplace
November 2024
NorthBaybiz 5
44
42
47
15
COLUMNS 11
DEPARTMENTS 12 The 707 Jason Walsh
Editor's Note Jason Walsh Celebrating a city
The latest news from Sonoma and Napa counties
15
13
Tech Talk Michael E. Duffy Staying positive in a challenging, tech-changing world Napa Insider Christina Julian Farewell to some favorite foodie businesses in Napa Valley
The 415 Jason Walsh The latest news from Marin County The Month In Numbers Jason Walsh A look at the key figures shaping life in the North Bay Great Tastes Alexandra Russell The lovable, quirky Quixote Winery in Napa Dine Wise Jason Walsh John Ash & Company comes of age in Santa Rosa
23
17
25
42
Econ 101 Robert Eyler The Federal Reserve and jumbo cuts
44
41
Only In Marin Bill Meagher Latest developments on Northgate redevelopment In the Kitchen John Ash Lemon polenta cake with rosemary syrup and berries
47
What’s Happening Upcoming North Bay events 106 Beyond the Boardroom Rosie Padilla
46
51
Vine Wise Adam Lee It’s the ‘blending’ time of year!
Susan Hollingsworth Adams, mayor of Rohnert Park
NorthBay biz (ISSN No. 1542-3549: USPS 097-770) is owned and published monthly (plus three bonus issues annually) by North Bay Media Group, LLC. Editorial offices are at 3392 Mendocino Ave., Santa Rosa, CA 95403 USA: (707) 528-4434. Sub- scription price is $35 per year. Periodicals Postage Paid at Santa Rosa, CA 95402 and at additional mailing offices. Copyright 2022, NorthBay biz. Reproduction of this issue in whole or in part is strictly forbidden without written permission by the publisher. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to NorthBay biz, 3392 Mendocino Ave., Santa Rosa, CA 95403 USA.
Printed by Publication Printers Corp., an FSC Certified printer. Please recycle this magazine.
6 NorthBaybiz
November 2024
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NorthBay biz (ISSN No. 0191-6237: USPS 097-770) is owned by Northbay Media Group, LLC. and published monthly with three bonus issues, annually–one in March, April and October. Editorial offices are at 3392 Mendocino Avenue, Santa Rosa, CA 95403: (707) 524-9175. Subscription price is $35 per year. Periodicals postage paid at Santa Rosa, CA 95402. Copyright 2023, NorthBay biz. Reproduction of this issue in whole or in part is strictly forbidden without written permission by the publisher. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to NorthBay biz , 3392 Mendocino Avenue, Santa Rosa, CA 95403 U.S. Postal Service Statement of Ownership, Management and Circulation, filed October 21, 2024. NorthBay biz , publication no. 097- 770, is published monthly with 15 issues per year. Publisher: Laurence Amaturo. Editor: Jason Walsh. Owners: Northbay Media Group, LLC. No bondholders, mortgages or other security holders.
Publisher
Lawrence Amaturo
Editor-in-Chief
Jason Walsh
Associate Editor
Rosie Padilla
Contributing Editor
Bill Meagher
Average no. Actual no. copies each copies issue during of issue preceding published 12 months nearest filing date
Design Director
Anne Schenk
Administrative Assistant
Jodi Pasquini
Marketing Consultant
Lori Rooney
Total no. copies
5,608
5,300
Writers Cerrissa Kim Janet Perry Janis Mara Jason Walsh Jessica Zimmer Judith M. Wilson Rosie Padilla Columnists Alexandra Russell Bill Meagher Christina Julian Jason Walsh John Ash Michael E. Duffy Robert Eyler Photographers Duncan Garrett
Paid outside county mail
959
1,308
Paid in county mail
1,864
1,927
Total paid circulation
1,490
917
Free mail outside-county
297
243
Free mail in county
998
905
Free mail other classes of mail
0
0
Free distribution outside mail
0
0
Total free distribution
1,295
1,148
Total distribution
5,608
5,300
Copies not distributed
0
0
Total
5,608
5,300
Helping grow your business isn’t just something we do .... it’s all we do!
% paid/requested circulation
76.91%
78.34%
8 NorthBaybiz
November 2024
Books Are Portable Magic Remember being read to as a child? M y mother read aloud to me, and one of my favorite books was Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White. But what I remember most was the sound of her voice, the rhythm of the words and what it felt like leaning into her, while she read aloud to me. The pages of those books she read transported us to faraway places—real and imaginary—and taught me about life and oPened my mind to all the possibilities. So when I became a mother, I began reading to my kids. And now I’m reading to my grandchildren every chance I get. As for my mom, now a great-grandmother, she still takes great joy in reading to the kids whenever she visits. Remember to take time every chance you get—eat, play, read. Reading helps build language and thinking skills, develops a child’s imagination and empathy for others, achieve better in school, and it’s a great way to spend time together. And best of all, reading aloud to your child makes memories that will stay with you for a lifetime. That’s what my mother was doing years ago when she took the time to read aloud to me.
“For more than 40 years, we’ve protected people from the elements. Now it’s time to help our kids in the community.” —Barbie Simpson, Owner and President Read on Sonoma!
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Editor's Note
This must be the place
By Jason Walsh
I t was a day like any Saturday—or seemingly half the Saturdays I’ve spent since having kids. I was sitting at a small table in the parents’ foyer of a trampoline arena; most everyone else was flinging themselves several feet into the air, or against a padded wall, or into a deep foam pit. I was picking up my 13-year-old daughter from a birthday party at Rebounderz in Rohnert Park. The cupcakes hadn’t made the rounds yet, so I had some time to kill. For good or bad, my thoughts drifted toward work. Next year is NorthBay biz’s 50th year in publication—the mag launched as Sonoma Business in 1976—and among the special sections our editorial team has been planning is an in-depth look at one of the cool towns of the North Bay—its business community, plans for growth, history, what makes it a local destination. As the birthday cohort
held at Sally Tomatoes. Graduations at Sonoma State, concerts at the Green Music Center, performances at Spreckels and Graton Resort. Rohnert Park composes about 3% of the entire North Bay population— my guess is 99% visit the city at some point every year. Probably more than once. The city was built up in the 1950s and ‘60s around the then- still-new Highway 101 transportation corridor; neighborhood-centric, it never established a centralized downtown. Now even that’s going to change, as Rohnert Park is in a negotiation
Another Saturday at Rebounderz!
of eight middle school girls spent out the remnants of their loot in the arcade, my thoughts drifted toward the question of the moment: What community should NBb highlight in the section? I live in Novato, work in Santa Rosa—have worked at publications in Sonoma and San Rafael, vacationed in Napa, Stinson, Bolinas. My family pays regular weekend visits to Petaluma, Sebastopol, Fairfax, Mill Valley, Sausalito—there’s no shortage of cool communities around here. But my thoughts were abruptly interrupted by a familiar routine—party over, remove bright blue Rebounderz trampoline socks, pile into car, left on Labath, right on Rohnert Park Expressway, merge onto Highway 101 for home. I could probably do it blindfolded. I’ve spent as much time the past 10 years in Rohnert Park as any city not sharing a zip code with my work office or my bedroom. The tally includes day trips to Rebounderz, Cal Skate, Nitro car racing, Scandia, the gone-but-not- forgotten Toob Town. It’s not all family stuff. I need two hands to count the work events my companies have
agreement with El Segundo-based developer CenterCal Properties to transform a 28-acre site the city owns at 6400 State Farm Drive. Homes, shops, restaurants, pedestrian space and a hotel are the vision for the $400 million project. In a few years, Rohnert Park—the place that has everything but a downtown—might just have one of the best downtowns in the North Bay. The answer to our question about which city to highlight was clearer than the disco lights at Cal Skate. In this issue sponsored by the City of Rohnert Park, our second-half special section takes an in-depth look at “The Friendly City” and its vision for the years ahead, development strategies, places to visit, history and more. The city’s Chamber of Commerce CEO Lisa Orloff refers to Rohnert Park as “the planned community with plans for the future.” It’s a great way to describe a city dedicated to moving forward toward bigger and better things—just like our magazine as we move into our 50th year. In the meantime, see you one Saturday very soon, at Rebounderz. g
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NorthBaybiz 11
The 707
Napa Valley Register sold to Florida media group Napa Valley Publishing Company, which publishes the Napa Valley Register among other Napa Valley publications, has been sold to Florida-based Hoffmann Media Group. Terms of the sale between Hoffmann and Iowa-based Lee Enterprises, which owned NVPC, were not disclosed. In addition to the Register , Hoffman also acquired the American Canyon Eagle , the Weekly Calistogan , the St. Helena Star , Napa Valley magazine and Distinctive Properties magazine. The Register, Star and Calistogan are legacy print media in the North Bay; all three were established between 1860 and 1880. The Napa Valley Register had been a
daily newspaper until 2023, when the company cut back its print edition to three days a week. Hoffmann announced the sale Sept. 30 in a press release at hoffmannmediagroup.com .
“This acquisition not only strengthens our investment in the Napa region but also aligns perfectly with our strategy to enhance local news media,” said Geoff Hoffmann, co-CEO of Hoffmann Family of Companies. “By integrating Napa Valley Publishing into our portfolio, we are committed to covering stories that matter to local communities and fostering a sense of unity and connection among residents. We aim to bring people together through quality journalism and community-focused content.” “We’re pleased to bring Napa Valley Publishing back under family ownership,” Pason Gaddis, CEO of Hoffmann Media Group, said in its announcement. “For nearly 162 years, this institution has been an integral part of Napa Valley’s identity— NBb staff
Last round up for iconic Cattlemens restaurant in Petaluma The days of the “bean girl,” salad-dressing boat and massive plates of meat are over in Petaluma. Cattlemens steakhouse is closing after more than five decades of belt-loosening meals in River Town. The location at 5012 Petaluma Blvd. North, which launched in 1970, plans to close by the end of the year, company spokesperson Miranda Smith said in a statement. The owner of the 3-acre site where Cattlemens has held its lease received city approval last year to demolish the 9,000-square-foot restaurant building and replace it with a Chick-fil-A. Staff at the Petaluma location will have an opportunity to transfer to other locations; the nearest being 4619 Redwood Drive in Rohnert Park. Founded in 1968, Cattelmens currently has eight locations throughout Northern California.— JW
Sonoma County touts progress on pension liability Sonoma County’s “pension tension” is finally easing up a bit—as the county’s unfunded pension liability has been reduced by 37% since 2020, according to a report. The county’s unfunded pension liability—the gap between the assets in the pension plan for County of Sonoma employees and the amount owed to retirees—dropped to $392 million in June 2024, down from $625 million at the same point in 2020. The progress is the result of “strong investment returns” and the county’s decision to make early payments on the pension debt, thus saving interest costs, according to the sixth annual State of the Retirement System report released Oct. 22. The county’s pension system supports 4,242 active employees, 5,760 retirees and beneficiaries, and 1,765 former employees who have not yet started collecting benefits. The pension plan for county employees contained $3.5 billion in assets at the end of 2023, up from $3.31 billion at the end of 2022. It was 93.9% funded as of Dec. 31, 2023, up from 92.4% a year earlier. “In comparison, CalPERS, the retirement system for state workers, was 75% funded at the end of the 2023-24 fiscal year last June,” county officials pointed out in an announcement of the report. Check out the full report at sonoma-county.legistar.com .— JW
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The 415
County of Marin looks to an electric future
The County of Marin had some electrifying news last month—its board of supervisors just adopted an “electrification roadmap.” The document is meant as a guide to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and fossil fuel use. The Marin County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Oct. 15 to approve the Marin County Electrification Roadmap, developed by the county Community Development Agency’s Sustainability Team. “If completed over time, key actions mentioned in the roadmap will equitably transition Marin’s buildings to be less reliant on fossil fuels and help the county adapt to science-backed climate change,” the county said in a press release about the plan.
Actions in the plan include development of new building codes to encourage electrifying new construction and existing structures, creation of a central hub to assist residents in such projects and promotion of stakeholder engagement. Sustainability Planning Manager Dana Armanino said, “Transitioning to an all-electric future is a long-term endeavor that requires planning and thoughtful implementation over the next six to seven years.” Next, the county will encourage towns and cities in the county to adopt the roadmap to ensure policies are countywide, said Armanino. The Board’s action is directly tied to adjusting local practices in the heating, ventilation, air-conditioning and water-heating industries, according to the county’s announcement. For more information on the roadmap, visit the Electrify Marin webpage at marincounty.gov. — JW Marin’s Electrification Roadmap Steering Committee discusses recommendations at a recent meeting.
Few people feel their paycheck stretches as far as they’d like it to, but there seems to be a bit more elasticity in the North Bay, according to a recent study. Both Marin and Sonoma counties rank among the 58 counties in California with the highest “paycheck friendliness,” according to a survey from financial website SmartAsset . Marin ranked No. 4 overall, with Sonoma County checking in at 6. San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties were the top three, respectively, despite their high costs of housing. Napa County finished at 14. The company’s annual study looked at four factors: semi-monthly paycheck, purchasing power, unemployment rate and income growth. To best compare paycheck-friendliness across counties, the methodology used the median household income in the U.S. ($74,580) as a base annual salary—and then indexed the paycheck amount for each county to reflect the counties with the lowest withholding burden, or greatest take-home pay. Researchers then created a purchasing power index for each county. “This reflects the counties with the highest ratio of household income to cost of living,” according to a review of the results at smartasset.com . The final rankings folded in unemployment rates and income growth, which calculated the annual growth in median income throughout a five year period for each county.— JW Marin third-most ‘paycheck friendly’ in state, study says
Local Safeways settle suit over ‘tipping the scales’ at checkout
Albertsons Companies, Inc, which operates nine markets in Marin, agreed last month to pay $3.96 million to settle a civil suit regarding false advertising and unfair competition, the Marin County District Attorney’s Office announced. The litigation against Albertsons—whose subsidiaries include Safeway—was filed in Marin in partnership with district attorneys offices of Alameda, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Sonoma and Ventura counties. The seven counties will split the settlement. The district attorneys’ complaint alleges Albertsons (ACI) made false and misleading representations regarding some commodities sold based on weight. According to the complaint, ACI was responsible for determining the net weight of the products—which means the weight of a product not including the weight of any packaging. According to the County of Marin, “the ACI products at issue were sold either by weight, such as the net weight of the product multiplied by an advertised unit price (such as $1 per pound) or by a fixed price for a fixed net weight (such as $2.99 for a 16-ounce bag of tortilla chips).” Commodities included produce, meat and baked goods. But ACI failed to maintain adequate procedures and conduct employee training to ensure net weights determined and advertised by ACI were accurate, according to the complaint. As a result, consumers were overcharged based on inaccurate weights and also received less product by weight than represented by ACI. As part of the agreement, ACI is enjoined from making any false or misleading statements regarding the price of any item offered for sale; charging an amount greater than the lowest advertised price; unlawfully selling products by gross weight; and selling commodities in less quantity than represented.— JW
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Tech Talk
New beginnings By Michael E. Duffy L ast month I reported that I was laid off Sept. 9. I’m pleased to announce that I will once more be gainfully employed in November.
and pharmaceuticals) declined to endorse a presidential candidate because their owners feared the consequences if the opposing candidate won. Technology gave us social media, where we wonder if the good of being connected and sharing laughter outweighs the bad of disinformation and rage. Technology gave us the smart phones which suck up our attention. I think we all feel the frustration inherent in the question: “What can one person do?” For example, the best thing you can do for climate change is to have one fewer child (followed by living car-free). For me, at
Given the generous six-week severance from my former employer, life continues almost without a hiccup. My new position is pretty much like my last one: I will be working with the same technology “stack”—TypeScript and node.js—that I used in my last position. And I will be still working in the mobile game
arena. This time for a much larger company (about 14,000 employees and $7 billion-with-a-B in revenues). Learning and re- invention are indeed the fountain of youth. So, here I am with a brand-new job, at almost 70 years of age (February), working in the fast-moving world of technology. I am privileged and fortunate, of which I am keenly aware. And I am grateful. Despite the uncertainty surrounding national politics, it remains a great time to be alive (at least if you’re a cis white male). As the science-fiction writer John Scalzi once phrased it, I am playing the game on the very easiest level (see tinyurl.com/5n6ux3mm ). I hope that as a nation, we continue to move toward a place where the potential of every citizen is maximized. Of course, students of optimization theory understand that optimizing a system often results in sub-optimal results for intermediate steps. If you’ve never read The Goal , by Eliyahu Goldratt, I highly recommend his readable presentation of the theory of constraints. But government should be seeking to provide the best possible outcome for every citizen. There are so many reasons to see the future as bleak. Global warming is a continuing threat to our future, and the United Nations recently reported essentially zero progress on goals to reduce that threat during the past year. Conflicts in both Gaza and Ukraine continue without the likelihood of peace. Production of fossil fuels continues to expand. Iran has a nuclear weapons program. Hunger and disease remain worldwide concerns, despite vast improvements. And billions of dollars are being invested in artificial intelligence without a clear way to avoid its potential downsides. Add in the rise of authoritarian governments, and it’s easy to be discouraged. As John Connor put it Terminator 2 , “We aren’t going to make it, are we? People, I mean.” Arguably, technology is to blame, at least in part. Companies owned by Elon Musk deliver amazing technology: reusable rockets and electric vehicles. Yet he was actively involved in driving election results toward a candidate he perceives as favorable to his interests. The L.A. Times and Washington Post (both owned by billionaires in tech
least, it’s too late to make that choice. At the same time, economies which have low birth rates, face other challenges. The fact is that we live in a complicated, interrelated web. Can we all prosper? I wish I knew the answer. But it is clear that governments which favor the few are antithetical to the goal of a world in which everyone enjoys a reasonable standard of living. Researchers say it is possible for everyone on the planet to enjoy a “reasonable” standard of living without destroying the planet, even for as many as 10 billion people. But that doesn’t account for the practical matter of making it actually happen. Why the hell is it so hard? I really believe that our hope for the future lies in our children. We need a world in which all children have the best possible opportunities: a safe and loving environment, free from stress and fear, adequate healthy food, access to healthcare, and—most of all—excellent education. I was blessed with a terrific public-school education, delivered by smart, committed teachers. I wouldn’t be where I am today without them. My great regret is that I didn’t thank many of them. I’m gonna be OK. My kids are gonna be OK. But what about everyone else? I think it comes down to a fundamental question: Do you think that they deserve to be OK as well? How do we bend reality in their favor? Sometimes I understand the hubris that makes some tech people believe they have the answer to all the problems. Witness the efforts by tech visionaries to build new cities in Solano County and (gasp!) Cloverdale. But the sad truth is, it’s never as easy as it appears. g
Michael E. Duffy is a senior software engineer and lives in Sonoma County. He has been writing about technology and business for NorthBay biz since 2001.
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The Month In Numbers
A look at the key figures shaping life in the North Bay
Sonoma County
23,742 Number of county parcels with onsite septic systems that either predate modern permitting records, or were never permitted at all
Waste not, want not
12,504 Number of parcels with permitted onsite wastewater-treatment (aka septic) systems in Sonoma County
(Source: County of Sonoma)
Napa County
423 Number of residents
Alleviating homelessness in wine country
experiencing homelessness in Napa in 2024
33 Number of units dedicated to chronically homeless completed last month as part of Heritage House affordable housing complex in Napa
Source: 2024 Point In Time homeless count
Marin County
$1.76 million Median price of a house in Marin, October 2024 7%
Prime real estate
Increase in median home price in Marin, year over year
On with the show? 2024 Original estimated reopening of 2,000-seat Marin Veterans Memorial Auditorium, the county’s largest indoor performance space, when it closed for repairs in 2023.
2027 Latest estimated reopening date of Marin Veterans Memorial Auditorium
On with the show! 2,334 Estimated number of live concerts former Ross resident and bassist Phil Lesh played as part of the Grateful Dead throughout the band’s 30-year career; Lesh died Oct. 25 at age 84. $60 Source: celebritynetworth.com
Source: Marin Independent Journal
million Estimated net worth of Phil Lesh at the time of his death.
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18 NorthBaybiz
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WORK LIFE
Money Real Estate
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Work/Life MONEY Meet the HENRYs ‘High earners, not yet rich’ need to get their priorities straight, say financial experts
By Jason Walsh
Do you take home a decent paycheck, but still struggle to make ends meet? You might be a HENRY. While the average household’s net worth rose a whopping 37% between 2019 and 2022, according to the Federal Reserve, the rising cost of living coupled with a lessening ability to save has left many earners feeling like so-called HENRYs, or “high earners, not rich yet.” More than half of Americans earning more than $100,000 a year say they live paycheck to paycheck, according to CNBC. “To bridge the gap, more people rely on credit cards to cover day-to-day expenses. [Since 2022], credit card debt spiked to an all-time high,
expenses, 30% for discretionary spending and 20% toward long- term savings. Yet the top 2% to 10% of earners save roughly 12%, according to a study by economists Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman. While money certainly doesn’t stretch as far as it used to, some financial watchdogs aren’t chalking the HENRYs situation up to unavoidable student loans or high mortgage rates. Rather, high- income earners can often succumb to the financial pitfalls of a “high-consumption” lifestyle. Aaron Cirksena, founder and CEO of MDRN Capital, calls it a case of “misplaced priorities.” “Their spending typically follows the pattern of addressing immediate needs followed by immediate wants followed by future wants, with anything left over going to future needs,” Cirksena says, writing for insurancenews.net . “To increase net worth, future needs must be given a higher priority.” Adds Cirksena: ”When a pay increase is used to finance a more expensive vehicle or a bonus is used to fund a spontaneous getaway, increasing net worth is clearly not a priority.” Luxury brands target HENRYs The acronym HENRY—high earner, not yet rich—was first used in 2003 by writer Shawn Tully in Fortune magazine and over the years has been folded into marketing strategies for several luxury brands. The typical HENRY’s eye is toward consumer status and brand identity—making them particularly ripe for attaching themselves to higher-end labels, such as watchmaker Tag Heuer and retailer Louis Vuitton, both of which developed campaigns specific to HENRYs. “Marketers believe that HENRYs are more likely to be aspirational buyers, meaning that they are starting to purchase the trappings of the lifestyle they one day hope to be able to fully afford,” is how Investopedia explains it. One abstract from a study by Bournemouth University Business School as to the marketing prospects for the demographic is quite blunt in its assessment: “Most HENRYs are narcissists.” —JW
while the personal savings rate fell,” CNBC reported last year. Meanwhile, lofty earners often climbed to those fat paychecks on the higher education ladder—and are now paying the student- loan-debt piper. Additionally, the rising costs of housing and high- interest mortgage rates are tightening purse strings further, if not keeping people out of the housing market altogether. Financial advisors often recommend the 50/30/20 rule of household money management—with 50% going toward living
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November 2024
Work/Life/ Real Estate
By Jason Walsh Sonoma County ranks Top 10 in building permits
S onoma County is among the regions taking action to mitigate the housing crisis, according to a new survey which ranks the county 10th in the state in most new building permits issued. Sonoma County issues an average of 10.8 residential building permits per 1,000 homes, according to financial website SmartAsset , which conducted the survey. Sonoma was the only North Bay county to appear in the list’s Top 10 for California, which has 58 counties. Napa County ranked 25, with 5.79 permits issued per 1,000. Marin, with its reputation for slow growth, ranked 47, with 2.63 permits per 1,000. The study tracked building permits over a three-year period as a reflection of investment and development in the local residential real estate market. The counties that rounded out the Top 10 in residential building activity tended to be Central/Northern California areas with room to grow. Madera County topped the list (22.99 permits per 1,000); Placer County finished second (21.67); the state capital also fared well with Sacramento checking in at No. 8 (11.73). The study drew information from the US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, U.S. Bureau Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey.
Applying for a permit in Sonoma County Sonoma County’s planning and building division is called Permit Sonoma. At its online hub— prmd.sonomacounty.ca.gov —county planning officials try and make the oftentimes confusing permit process as simple as possible. At the site one can: n Use the Permit Wizard feature as a guide to choose the correct permit for your project. n Experienced permit applicants can select their permit application directly from a comprehensive list. n The Digital Plan Room is the county’s online process which allows for electronic plan and document review for various permit applications. n Under the “I Want To…” menu, applicants can look up property information, start an application, search existing permits, check permit status, pay fees, schedule inspections and more.
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Napa Insider
Teardowns and treasures
By Christina Julian
F our years into my brush with days of being able to drink red wine without a headache being gone, baby, gone—acceptance has been harder than planned. Especially when it comes to embracing the swinging-door syndrome of Napa County businesses, which has become as commonplace as the proliferation of pumpkin- spice-everything come fall. And, as much as I love the heavenly scents and tastes of the season, when it comes to business closures, the taste is not nearly as sweet. All of this could explain my overly emotional response to the closing of the St. Helena location of Napa Valley Coffee Roasting Company, which midlife, I’m still working at the art of acceptance. Be it my head of once stick-straight hair now full of unwanted waves, or those youthful
The closing bells rang After more than four decades of serving the North Bay, Elaine Bell Catering closed in October displacing as many as 164 employees. The Napa- based business, owned by Elaine Bell and John Merritt, became known for carefully curated menus flaunting locally sourced goods—long before it was an “it thing” to do—and catered high-profile events across the valley and wider Bay Area, averaging more than 500 events. Post pandemic, events hovered at 350, due in part to hiring challenges. The business operated out of a 17,000-square-foot facility that Bell and Merritt built themselves and, while the catering company is no more, the building will stay in the family, with their son taking over the space for his vineyard management company.
The coffee is still brewing in downtown Napa.
Stolen treasures and takedowns Wine conglomerates aren’t likely what tourists think of when booking their lush wine country getaways. But for those of us who live here, smaller family run operations getting squeezed out by the Big Guy/ Gal feels as commonplace as wine outweighing water at a party. And as much as I crave a good David and Goliath takedown tale, the bankruptcy filing of Vintage Wine Estates offered no such victory. Instead, its demise became one more example of mega-money types for the win. Copart Executive Chairman Jay Adair’s Dallas-based Adair Winery Inc. snatched up Clos Pegase and Girard wineries in Napa and BR Cohn, Kunde and Viansa in Sonoma Valley for $85 million, while Foley Family Wines Inc. won its bid of $15 million for Swanson, Sonoma Coast Vineyards, Cosentino, Bar Dog and Cherry Pie, with bulk wine deals still up for grabs at the time of penning this column. In other Goliath-grabbing news, I received my first (and likely one of many) unsolicited Amazon Health emails. Yes indeed folks, and especially female readers, you too can turn to Amazon for all of your womanly needs. From UTI meds, birth control, anti-aging skincare and more, the big A has you covered. Proving once again, that the war of small biz over big—and middle age over youth—is an underdog rivalry that won’t easily be won. u
served its last cup of joe in August, after 33 years in business. It was there I had an unexpected meet-cute with the man who would become my husband, finished writing my novel, and wrote some of my earliest articles and columns for this very publication. The fact that the coffee company was one of only a handful of spots that offered an affordable gathering spot for locals young and old made the closure more bitter than sweet for me. While java junkies will find a new spot to raise a mug at the same location later this month—with the opening of Sam’s General Store (the flagship opened in 2019 in Calistoga)—one has to wonder if this will be yet another place where community connections slide to the side for preening tourists flaunting their wares and wallets. Thankfully, the nostalgia and daily grind will live on for Napa Valley Coffee Roasting Company at its Napa location and via a new roasting facility, which are sure to keep things percolating in the downtown. Monday, Monday In other moves and shakes, Monday Bakery, with locations in Napa and Sonoma, closed both stores along with its production facility on Jefferson Street. The closures came on the heels of rising operating and rent costs, a decline in foot traffic at the Napa location, and a fire at the production plant in Napa. While those doors closed, a new one swung open for Ohm Coffee Roasters and owner Derek Bromley, who was able to parlay his coffee truck into the company’s first brick-and-mortar store in the former Monday space. Bromley rolled his truck into town in 2016, with the goal of elevating the coffee experience in Napa Valley to the caliber of its wines. Since then, Bromley built a robust wholesale business as a coffee supplier for key accounts throughout the valley including Whole Foods, the Archer and Andaz hotels, along with Monday Bakery, where Ohm coffee had been served since the beloved bakery’s opening.
After years in the technology and advertising trenches, Christina Julian traded city life for country and unearthed a new philosophy— life is complicated, wine and food shouldn’t be. Her debut novel, a romantic comedy called The Dating Bender , is now available. Learn more at christinajulian.com . You can reach her at cjulian@ northbaybiz.com.
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ECON 101
The Federal Reserve and jumbo cuts By Robert Eyler
W hen the Federal Reserve announced it was lowering its policy rate (what is known as the Federal Funds Rate) on Sept. 18, it surprised markets a little bit (not a lot) by doing what is known as a "jumbo" cut of 1/2 of 1% or 50 basis points. The standard change is 0.25% or 25 basis points in either direction. When the Federal Reserve changes its policy rate by more than the standard change, it sends a signal through financial markets of a need to help (cuts) or slow inflation (increase) quickly. The data at right show that since 1990, when the Federal Reserve was more aggressive with cuts, recession is already here or is seen as coming soon. The black arrow is what happened in September 2024, the recent “jumbo” cut. Financial markets generally predicted the more significant cut.
should help lenders' costs of funds (it also, unfortunately, reduces the interest rate on simple savings accounts you may have been enjoying since the Federal Reserve increased interest rates in 2022 and early 2023). All those forces conspired to allow a big cut. Personally, I thought a succession of classic rate cuts (say, six of the next 10 meetings, which would take us to the end of 2025) would achieve a similar monetary stance without big swings. However, it is really about where we go from here, as the figure below shows. Once cuts begin, it signals more change and generally choppier water ahead. Financial markets believe more rate cuts are coming as the Federal Reserve looks to guide American credit markets back toward a medium-term stability point after all the
volatility during and after the pandemic. There were three rate cuts in 2019, as a slower economy was predicted in 2020 (see graph). The Federal Reserve is trying to shape expectations—what the jumbo cut does is signal to the world that American inflation is no longer as significant a threat to incomes and wealth as it was two years ago. The intent now may be more about helping stabilize labor
Percentage Point Difference, Monthly, Effective Federal Funds Rate, Jan 1990 to Sept 2024
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) has a tool to track how the market for buying and selling short-term bank debt between banks (Federal Funds) is pricing the potential of a future change in the rate of interest on such loans based on predictions of Federal Reserve
Source: FRED Database
Policy. This tool charts the way investors see a small cut (the right column) or a larger cut (the left column) and the probability of each scenario based on market activity. Generally, we should expect the Federal Reserve to cut its rate again at least one more time in 2024 and perhaps four times in 2025. The CME tool is publicly available at cmegroup.com/markets/interest-rates/cme-fedwatch-tool. html. Why was a jumbo cut used? Labor markets in the United States (where California is a microcosm of this concern) have been showing signs of slowing down but not necessarily shedding jobs rapidly. The slower pace of change suggests, alongside receding inflation rates, that the Federal Reserve had a license to reduce its policy rate and make the cost of short-term loans less. This action also helps continue to re-shape the basic profitability in lending; mortgage rates have been slowly falling since their peak in 2023, and reducing the Federal Funds Rate
and credit markets as the priority. It is unlikely we will see another jumbo cut in this cycle short of an emergency need (some economic calamity unforeseen by economists that necessitates quick financial change), but we are now searching for where policy rates will find their next resting space. Will we or will we not soft land? That is now the big economic question. g
Dr. Robert Eyler is professor of economics at Sonoma State University and president of Economic Forensics and Analytics in Sonoma County.
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Remote control How North Bay companies are making hybrid work policies work for them
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A s more and more remote shelter in place order was lifted, many are hoping to retain the work-life balance that they had come to appreciate, post-pandemic. We spoke with three North Bay companies that are finding the sweet spot for attracting talent and keeping their employees happy. Emily Hodges Wallace is vice president and employee benefits advisor at Arrow Benefits Group, an insurance services company in Petaluma. We spoke with her about the work culture she sees client companies trying to create as well as the culture that Arrow maintains for its own employees. workers have returned to the office in the years after the In her work selling benefits packages Wallace says that every company has a different culture or goals for their By Janet Perry
employees. She says most of the companies she works with want their employees to have some work-life balance and to have joy in their job, whether that's at home or an office. Wallace says companies also want their employees to have peace of mind. “There's a lot of mental health stress on employees that I'm seeing across the board and they want them to come to work as a whole being that's not distracted,” she says. “A company may focus on helping employees get more steps in, more exercise,” Wallace says. “Some have exercise competitions, pay for gyms or have massage therapists come in. Some will do raffle prizes for Fitbits.” She says other companies want to help focus employees on eating healthily. “Like, if there's a large diabetes element in their company, they might want to talk about healthy foods and bring in only healthy foods instead of donuts or something,” she says. One company she works with has a really busy fourth quarter. If somebody has a baby prior to the fourth quarter the company gives them a year of diapers free to motivate them during that busy time. Some companies want to help their employees with financial wellness. “We have financial wellness as a component right now because if employees are worrying about paying the rent they're not going to come to work as a full employee,” Wallace says. Wallace says such benefits help ensure employees are happy to come to work, or to work from home. “I’m a big proponent of working from home.” Wallace understands the importance of work-life balance personally, as she took on the caregiving for her elderly parents and found that working from home allowed her to do it all. “I was able to balance a very aggressive career with living with my parents and caring for them to their end of life,” she says. “For me it was a blessing that I got that time and that my company was willing to allow me the flexibility to do my job in the hours and the time that I had available,” she says. Prior to the pandemic, Arrow employees all came into the office. “Everybody was on deck every single day,” Wallace says. “The pandemic shook everybody up a lot. We had to pivot very quickly
Arrow Benefits Group employees at their company Summer Celebration. The company allows employees to work remotely and events like this help build connection and positive work culture.
to even do our job—to being all remote, and putting into place technology and systems so that everybody could work from different areas.” Wallace says there was an immediate ramping up of technology. “It wasn’t just with Zoom for everybody, it was more like a client-management database that everybody could access from afar and enabling teams to communicate,” she says. They created a virtual culture committee so that people would feel connected, even in their homes. “Employees were suddenly at home and no longer getting that water cooler talk or even seeing anybody,” Wallace says. They hosted online marshmallow roasts and had virtual drinks together. They sent lunches out to people. They sent virtual birthday presents. They even did an online escape room together. Wallace says these things helped employees feel connected. “People still hunger for a relationship,” she says. “When people feel disconnected from something is when they're no longer an effective employee or prone to a lot of mental-health issues. All of these things helped create the feeling that even though we're far apart, we're not far apart.” Arrow is now committed to the option of working from home and is not considering a back-to-office mandate. They still have in-person days for trainings, face-to-face collaboration or to work on projects together and hear people’s ideas. But Wallace notes that these are special and fun. “Our employees are really happy,” she says. “We have a young dad and being at home meant that he could experience more of his child.” Wallace believes the biggest work-life balance improvement has been for women. “For me, it was a huge deal that I could balance caring for my parents and still work because I'm doing it right here in my living room and actually probably working more hours than I was before. But I also will get up and put laundry in the dryer—which
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is really helpful. “For balance for women, it's like, OK, ‘I've got to take my child to the dentist, I'll be back in a half hour, but I'm going to work a half hour extra today,’” Wallace says. The advantages extend from being able to attend kids’ school or sporting events, to simply not being stuck in commute traffic. “I talked to somebody the other day and she said, ‘My car was getting killed on the freeways all the time—I'm not doing that now and I'm more present when I'm home with my family,’” Wallace says. Wallace says that the option to work from home took a little bit of that stress off. This is because the majority of the women are also the homemakers and bearing a lot of the responsibility for that family life. “It just gave them a little more space,” she says. This benefit has allowed Arrow to attract top talent from companies that don’t offer their employees that flexibility. “And so mom suddenly has three kids that she's driving everywhere and dropping off in the morning and maybe her mother lives with her because she's taking care of her, and she's like, ‘I'm not coming back.’” Wallace says she sees these moms happily working eight hours and often sees them still working at night. She gently encourages them to stop working because that’s not helping to have a good work-life balance. “Speaking as one who has four children and five grandchildren, don't do this,” she tells them. “Turn it off. It's only insurance.” She points out it also allows Arrow to retain quality staff and attract new talent. “A lot of companies are losing out on that benefit of feeding back into a healthier workforce in our industry,” Wallace says.
“[Instead, they’re] saying, ‘No, I really need people back.’ Well, some of those women don't want to come back. So we're picking them up. “We've gotten some really good talent that we would not have normally gotten because people are like, ‘Yeah, I'm not going to go back to that every day,’” Wallace says.
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Another Bay Area company that strives to create a healthy work culture and work-life balance for their employees is Kiosk, a marketing agency in Novato. Kiosk offers services like crafting brand identity and designing engaging and optimizable digital experiences that empower business growth. They maintain a team of top-notch specialists in marketing, web, design, strategy and analytics. Kiosk has been offering a hybrid work model long before the pandemic with its ‘‘work from home Fridays” and employees appreciated the opportunity. It’s just one of the many things the company does to create a supportive, inclusive work culture. They’ve found it benefits the employees, the company and its clients. We spoke with Susi Lynam, vice president of People Operations at Kiosk. “Our owners were sensitive to the fact that a lot of our folks just would like an opportunity to work from home periodically,” Lynam says. “And Fridays in the Bay Area can be challenging from a commute standpoint.” That meant when the pandemic forced a shut down, Kiosk was ready. “That kind of was the springboard for us when the pandemic hit,” Lynam says. “We were really well set up for our employees to just seamlessly go fully remote for a while.”
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