Sebastopol’s latest city council meeting began quietly enough, with two routine planning commission appointments, but quickly turned into a room full of anxious voices — tenants facing eviction, residents worried about flooding, and parents trying to keep fentanyl from killing more kids.
The council first picked Joan Harper and Alex Kanzler from a field of five applicants to fill two open planning seats. Harper’s term runs through the end of 2026, Kanzler’s through 2027, though staff said the dates could be adjusted.
Then the calm gave way.
Tenants from the Woodmark apartments took the microphone, some close to tears, after receiving verbal eviction notices earlier this month. They said they had nowhere else to go — seniors, single parents, and people with disabilities who depend on the complex’s affordable rents.
One resident described neighbors panicking at the thought of being pushed onto the street. Another speaker, appearing on Zoom, suggested tenants talk to attorneys about a possible class-action suit.
Mayor Stephen Zollman, bound by council rules that block discussion of items not on the agenda, kept his remarks brief but personal: “I’m on your side,” he said, adding that he hoped a solution could be found.
From there, the council pivoted back to business. Members unanimously signed off on seven consent-calendar items, all already budgeted. That included a $152,130 contract with Wood Rodgers to develop a flood resiliency master plan, $14,738 for an updated water system plan, and acknowledgment of a storm-drain fix on Ragle Road.
The most hopeful moment came at the end, when Michelle and Micah Sawyer told their family’s story. Their nonprofit, Micah’s Hugs, grew out of the loss of their son Micah Jr., who died of a fentanyl overdose. Now they’re repurposing old newspaper boxes into Narcan vending machines, giving communities access to life-saving medicine. Councilmembers welcomed the idea of installing one in Sebastopol.
In the span of one evening, the meeting captured Sebastopol’s current crossroads: families fighting to keep a roof overhead, a city planning for rising waters, and a community determined not to lose more young people to fentanyl.
