A lot of people that are young or new to the area don't understand why a lot of us old timers are resentful of the current local politics. You folks never experienced the Santa Rosa that we knew and loved.

There was a sense of community here, a bond and pride. The city government stuck to basics, were conservative in their planning and were also fiscal conservatives that spent no more than they had too.

We had one mall, Coddingtown that was viable but we also had a very active downtown that had more commerce than the mall. Downtown was the hub. It was the hang out for the kids, had all of the best stores and was the best place to go for a good meal.

On Oct. 1st 1969 we had an earthquake that damaged much of downtown. The Sears store, the theaters, Montgomery Wards and the White House were pretty much destroyed. This opened the door for the Simon Mall. The Simon Mall changed downtown forever and the earthquake changed politics in Santa Rosa as well.

The battle cry of local government became growth. With growth comes management problems. The city council lost control of the city and the city manager became the king. The city workers began to run the city and they didn't have to answer to anyone, especially not the voters. Money and taxes became the new battle cry and more benefits and higher wages and more employees. More, more, more of everything.

It has been sad watching this great community unwind. The reason I am writing this is not to seek change because we are beyond change. I am writing this so the young people and transplants will understand our anger and disappointment in what this community has become.

Parents moved here in 51. Didn't know it at the time, but I sat at a bootleggers personal bar. I would have several cokes with him time to time. He sold a section of land by the foot, it was the most expensive land deal here in Santa Rosa to a bank. Now I wonder if my parents ever knew that?

WIRE

If we don't learn about history,we are bound to repeat it.

Due to the birth statistics, growth was going to happen. How it happened and continues to happen is nothing more than mafia crime tatics.

Today the backroom deals revolve around the politics of climate warming and sustainibility. Eco-Green is the new power and control.

I wish I was raising my family decades ago. Not that there were not problems, but there seems to have been folks who had morals,belived in God, were productive members of the comunity, did for others as well as oppertunities for hard working honest people.

I can not imagine letting my kids out of my eyesight for a moment,yet as a kid I explored miles of land and only needed to show up for supper.Good times.

I have faith that this will turn around, it is hard now, becouse the pendulum has swung so far one way.

I was 3 in '69. Thank you both for sharing, I enjoy your posts.

I hate the great wall of santa rosa.
Plenty of free parking, right?

The end of Santa Rosa was when City leaders wouldn't let Codding rebuild Santa Rosa,instead of building Codding Town', we knew for year's those old building's in Santa Rosa needeed to be tore down,long before the quake,the only building that didn't need to be tore down was the Court House,and that was just politics,the man who tore it down went broke, It was so well built,It was the hate for Codding then, and the same kind of people now who have destroyed Santa Rosa's future,If you want a town again, the trash will have to be cleaned out.

I was 7 years old when the quakes hit. It wasn't just one quake...it was 2. When the first quake hit, I was home in bed. The quake threw me from one side of the bed to the other.

My dad had been at a ground school class out at the County airport. He called home and my mom and I met him at our store in Downtown.

The windows were all broken out and there was damage to all of the stores in Downtown. Then the second quake hit.

My dad had been in the backroom- He came running out towards to the front door. The floor was moving like ocean waves as he ran. I turned around and watched the facade fall off the Dwight Smith building (now the drive up section of Exchange Bank).

I also saw what I thought was blue lightning come up from the ground from the Railroad Square area. Now I know that I was seeing the electric transformers explode.

Santa Rosa is different now. And it has not changed in a good way.

quote:

Originally posted by leejam1944:
The end of Santa Rosa was when City leaders wouldn't let Codding rebuild Santa Rosa,instead of building Codding Town', we knew for year's those old building's in Santa Rosa needeed to be tore down,long before the quake,the only building that didn't need to be tore down was the Court House,and that was just politics,the man who tore it down went broke, It was so well built,It was the hate for Codding then, and the same kind of people now who have destroyed Santa Rosa's future,If you want a town again, the trash will have to be cleaned out.

You are right. The entire city council are all in someone's pocket. We need to elect unknown people to take over leadership or we'll just get more of the same.

I say we elect conservative businessmen who have run profitable businesses and will commit to doing what it takes to fix Santa Rosa.

Weren't SR/ Sonoma County conservative even into the 80's and the 90's??

I was not in this area back then but suspect that was true. Folks living locally have lamented how much this area has changed in recent years due to what they call the San Francisco liberals taking over.

quote:

Originally posted by Nathan Hale Jr.:

quote:

Originally posted by leejam1944:
The end of Santa Rosa was when City leaders wouldn't let Codding rebuild Santa Rosa,instead of building Codding Town', we knew for year's those old building's in Santa Rosa needeed to be tore down,long before the quake,the only building that didn't need to be tore down was the Court House,and that was just politics,the man who tore it down went broke, It was so well built,It was the hate for Codding then, and the same kind of people now who have destroyed Santa Rosa's future,If you want a town again, the trash will have to be cleaned out.

You are right. The entire city council are all in someone's pocket. We need to elect unknown people to take over leadership or we'll just get more of the same.

The only way you will get something close to a city council that is not in someone's pocket to have fully publicly financed campaigns. Otherwise there is always going to be someone lining the pockets of the pols that are asking for you vote.