The State of Napa is ‘truly strong’
Monday’s State of the City meeting drew a full house to the mostly positive presentation by Napa’s city officials, offering a peek into financials and each department’s work in 2025. The two-hour affair left a sense that all is going well in the city of Napa, despite wine industry woes.
The takeaway? For Napa to sidestep hard times, optimism and adaptability are the name of the game.
“The state of the city is truly strong,” said City Manager Steve Potter, who delivered the State of the City update with comments from Mayor Scott Sedgley, Vice Mayor Chris DeNatale, Councilmember Mary Luros, Councilmember Bernie Narvaez and Councilmember Beth Painter.
“We listen to the community, we establish focus areas, and we stay on track to accomplish those things,” Sedgley said, praising the work of city officials. “The council works so well together. I’m proud.”
As in every city, there’s a disconnect between the everyday work of city officials and the lives of residents — a gap the annual State of the City meeting aims to bridge.
Jets over Alta Heights
As with regular City Council meetings, the night opened with public comments, these from a less optimistic crowd. Alongside one resident’s concerns over poor conditions at Kennedy Golf Course, multiple Napa residents stood up to criticize the flight path for airplanes heading to Napa County Airport.
Last year, the original flight path rerouted arriving flights over eastern Napa to make a safer journey for pilots during bad weather. Residents in those areas are taking issue with “more destructive noise” and “more pollution” in the skies over their homes.
“We don’t have anybody representing the community at the airport,” said Napa resident Lee Nordlund. “It’s all people who have a vested interest in the airport.” He also noted that the path goes over Napa’s nature preserve. The flight path did not come up for the rest of the evening.
Measure G and withstanding a lagging economy
Last year saw the beginnings of massive roadway upgrades funded through Measure G. Steve detailed the work of Measure G, a 2024 ballot initiative that brought the city’s sales tax from 7.75% to 8.75%. According to the report, massive roadway upgrades have wrapped up, with more on the way, plus millions in improvements for pedestrian and bike infrastructure.
Economic talk in the report is centered on “diversification. Locally, the wine industry drives sales taxes and property taxes, but with acres of vines set to be pulled this year, the city is looking at creating an economy less reliant on the wine industry. In January, Napa made moves toward a rebrand, contracting with new agencies to refocus on arts, culture and outdoors in its marketing, and away from tasting rooms and vineyards.
“In 2025, we were better able to withstand slowdowns in our economy,” Potter said, showing slide decks from the State of the City report.
“We’re in a place where we can really thrive rather than survive,” agreed Chris DeNatale, the city council’s newest member, appointed in 2025.
According to the report, small businesses have been given extra attention, and arts events have brought millions in revenue to the city. In 2025, the Lighted Art Festival took in $4.4 million, while La Onda and BottleRock music festivals brought a combined $61.7 million and 185,000 attendees — many out-of-towners.
February’s last-minute cancellation of La Onda’s 2026 festival was not discussed at Monday’s meeting. The cancellation was not only a disappointment for city revenue, but for Latine communities near and far.
While event coordinators did not elaborate when they announced the festival’s cancellation, Alonso Corona told the Napa County Times, “Just look around — you can come up with your own conclusion why Latinos might not want to gather.”
A softball Q&A
Following the update was a “lightning round” of questions for various city officials, moderated by Hispanic Chamber of Commerce CEO Alonso Corona and Napa Chamber of Commerce President Jeri Hansen.
“We don’t often get to know these people better,” Hansen said, but, she assured respondents, “It’s not heavy duty.”
For the lightning round, numerous city officials spoke, including Assistant City Managers Liz Hapkirk and Julie Lucido, Interim City Attorney Chris Diaz; City Clerk Tiffany Carranzo; Chief of Police Fabio Rodriguez; Finance Director Donna Lee; Community Resources and Development Director Molly Rattigan; Park and Recreation Director Breyana Brandt; Public Works Director Jessica Lowe; Human Resources Director Heather Ruiz and Fire Chief Zach Curren.
A highlight in the report was the acquisition of Harvest Middle School, which closed in 2022 following a drop in enrollment. This year, city staffers and residents will discuss options for the site, which could become space for a pool or sports facilities.
The rest of the night focused on what gets city leaders out of bed every day. For most? Napa is where they grew up, and it’s where they now raise families.
What’s missing
“It was fun,” said Barbara Nemko, former superintendent of schools for Napa County, at a reception after the meeting. “In most places you live, you never actually get to see the people who do these jobs.”
Education was not discussed at the meeting, Nemko noted. In schools, she said, “We have not made up what happened over the pandemic.
“What I didn’t hear was that we know wine consumption is down — everywhere,” Nemko said. “We’re going to have less revenue than expenditures. That’s a concern … property taxes fund schools.”
Cara Mae Wooledge, executive director of the Napa Farmer’s Market, said she’s concerned about the future of the market. In 2020, they found a temporary home in the former Cinedome parking lot, which Wooledge describes as a “puzzle piece.”
Lately, the Napa Farmers Market has seen an uptick in clients enrolled in CalFresh programs, Wooledge said. “There are vineyard workers and farmers that are getting laid off or not getting rehired. Stability would be a big help for all customers.”
Councilmember Bernie Naravaez told the Napa County Times that the State of the City report is to see who does what. It’s intentionally “really high level,” he said. “The council meetings are where we get more into detail.
“What I took away is that this reinforces where we are. A lot of us are on the same page, working toward the same goal of progress.”
