The economic divide comes to Sonoma County

[Sara S]

Golis: The economic divide comes to Sonoma County

Here in the kingdom of Hollywood, Silicon Valley and world-class wines, we like to believe that everyone can prosper.

But now comes a Sacramento think tank with a different conclusion. Even in California, says the California Budget and Policy Center, the rich are getting richer, and the poor … well, you know the rest.

The study found that over the past 25 years, the average annual income of the top 1 percent of Sonoma County households increased by 40 percent, while the average annual income of the other 99 percent declined by 10 percent.

For local leaders, this could be a wake-up call, a signal to redouble efforts to create housing for working people, revive neglected neighborhoods and promote jobs that pay a livable wage.

But then, it isn’t the first wake-up call. In 2014, a blue-ribbon report — Portrait of Sonoma County — chronicled disparities in economic and social conditions from one neighborhood to another. The median household income in one Bennett Valley neighborhood, for example, was almost twice as high as the median income of a neighborhood five miles away in Roseland.

...

In Sonoma County, advocacy groups talk about raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, but that still translates into far less money — $31,200 a year — than people need to keep pace with the cost of housing here.

In broad terms, we understand that we need to build more housing, we need to spur economic opportunity by raising school performance, we need to make sure kids grow-up in healthy neighborhoods, and we need to promote jobs that pay higher wages. In the short term, self-interest will oblige employers to find ways to help their employees deal with the high cost and the scarcity of housing.

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[Jim Wilson]

Thanks for posting this. My personal observation leaned towards this analysis; I've posted on this topic here at Wacco several times, particularly the housing aspect. I didn't actually think that the earning capacity for most people had declined, but it doesn't surprise me. I hope that this helps bring the high price of housing (buying or renting) forward. I would like to see more focus on how zoning laws could be reformed to facilitate cheaper housing as this is an aspect which, I think, is often overlooked. It's not the only factor, but in some cities it is a strongly contributing one.

Thanks again.

[Shepherd]

The petition circulating to raise the minimum wage to $15, mentioned at the end of this post, was at a table at the Sebastopol Farm Market this past Sun., staffed by Alice Chan of a progressive group. It may be there in the future and is worth signing. We are experiencing an exodus from Sonoma County of those with less income and an immigration (yes, Trump, a truly threatening "immigration") into here with those from Silicon Valley, even Wall Street, and drawn by Big Wine. These two trends are dangerous to a county that already lacks enough diversity. Let's pay the remaining hard working people at least $15 an hour.

OCCUPY WAS RIGHT!

Golis: The economic divide comes to Sonoma County

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