By Crissy Pascual, Tobias Young, Jennifer Sawhney

NO PAPAS, BUT SOMETHING NEW – Despite occasional social media rumors to the contrary, the beloved Papas Taverna is not making a comeback. The colorful Greek restaurant, founded by brothers Ted and Leo Papageorgacopoulos and open from 1991 to 2013, was located along the Petaluma River and famous for its weekend party atmosphere featuring dancing, live Greek music, and belly dancers. Patrons near and far arrived by Lakeville Highway, or by boats that could be tied to the Gilardi docks … The 4.5-acre property on which it sat, which is reverting to the historic name of Lakeville Landing, has been in the Gilardi family for generations. John Gilardi, 42, who went to Casa Grande High School and worked as a contractor, took over the property years ago following the death of his father. He has been doing much of the work himself to refurbish the compound. Other occupants include a spa business called Sundrop Sauna, a fishing bait business called Viking Bait, a handful of rental homes, a marina with docks and boat slip rentals, and Gilardi’s own residence. He’s finally nearing completion on a new restaurant, the foundation of which was poured a week before COVID lockdown. The project went on hold due to price hikes during the pandemic … Gilardi is in final negotiations for a partnership to bring a restaurant into the 5,600-square-foot building. He’s aiming for the business to open in the spring of 2027. His future partner has experience in the restaurant business, owning another location already. It may take the form of a beer garden, although Gilardi is waiting to finalize the deal before unveiling more details to the Petaluma Voice. – Tobias Young

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TRESTLE VISION QUEST – Petalumans are all too aware that the abandoned railroad trestle along the downtown bank of the Petaluma River Turning Basin is rotting away, collapsing in on the unfortunate rats who call it home. It got so bad this year the city had to close the walkway to pedestrians, forcing a detour around the Great Petaluma Mill building … Members of Petaluma Trestle Promenade Now, a committee of high-profile advocates, told Petaluma Voice this week that the organization has successfully raised more than $50,000 in pledges, triggering a matching amount of money set aside in city coffers … That means $100,000-plus is available to hire MIG Inc., a Berkeley-based planning and design firm expected to be contracted this month by the city to facilitate four upcoming community meetings. The meetings are intended to create a vision for the trestle, and by default that part of the Turning Basin, which will be turned into drawings for use by designers and engineers … “That’s what this is, it is nailing down a vision and getting broad agreement,” said Mayor Kevin McDonnell, a member of the trestle committee. “The problem is, you don’t understand how many visions are out there. That’s what has to get sorted. We need to have a common vision” … McDonnell said the group is grateful to all 117 donors who pitched in a total of $55,660 as of Tuesday, Sept. 15. The extra money will cover any unanticipated expenses for hosting the meetings and creating the design, said Greg Sabourin, another committee member ... “There’s a nice amount of groundswell support for a project that’s been in and out of the headlines far too long,” Sabourin said … There are no dates scheduled for the meetings yet, but Sabourin said the committee anticipates the first will happen this year, before the holidays … The committee is hoping a clear plan and community support will attract state, federal, and private dollars to bring the vision to life, Sabourin said. “That’s the nature of our project, to get something done now. No standing on the sidelines.” – TY

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GIVEN THE GOLDEN BOOT – In the interest of keeping readers informed, Petaluma Voice photographer Crissy Pascual attended Petaluma mayoral candidate Shelina Moreda's "community gathering" on Tuesday, Sept. 15, at a vacant commercial building downtown. Petaluma Voice considered the meet-and-greet a newsworthy event, plus a chance to get fresh photos and learn more about the candidate ... One thing we've learned about Moreda is she tends to shun the media, having declined to return most of our calls, emails, and texts. We thought it would be good to go to her instead ... Moreda arrived 15 minutes after the published time, looking snappy in a paisley shirt, jeans, and spectacular golden cowboy boots ... Pascual snapped nine photos as Moreda greeted an attendee, and then Moreda approached and kicked our photographer out of the event. Moreda said Petaluma Voice had slandered her and treated her badly by breaking a story two weeks ago about a temporary restraining order filed against her in late 2025 ... Pascual pointed out she was invited by an organizer, and noted the gathering was billed as a "public event" on Facebook, as well as a "community gathering and conversation." Moreda held firm. Pascual said, “But you talk about transparency,” pointing out that booting the media from her event seemed counter to her platform. Moreda got irritated after escorting Pascual outside and accused her of "trying to get clicks" ... Tomorrow is another day. In all honesty, Moreda, we would like to interview you. Yes, some questions might be tough, but we have an obligation to our readers to listen to your side of the story, and to help explain how you envision your leadership helping P-town. Give us a ring. – TY

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EASTSIDE FIRE – I was driving north on North McDowell Boulevard on Sunday, Sept. 13, just after 4:30 p.m. when the blare of sirens gave way to a Petaluma firetruck and a red battalion truck that zoomed ahead … After normal traffic resumed, I happened to turn right onto Professional Drive, where I saw an unfortunate plume of black smoke emanating from a home. It was a structural fire on the first floor of a Park Place Drive duplex, according to a press release from the Petaluma Fire Department. Firefighters arrived within five minutes from the Petaluma Fire Department, Sonoma County Fire District, and Gold Ridge Fire Protection District, and controlled the blaze within 20 minutes … Four residents, one cat, and two geckos from both units were evacuated and displaced by the fire. One firefighter reported a back sprain. Firefighters declared the entire duplex uninhabitable, despite only one unit burning down … The fire department pointed to inactive smoke alarms that failed to alert the residents. They reminded locals to maintain smoke alarms, have them tested, and practice a fire escape plan. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. – Jennifer Sawhney

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GATHER UP – This Saturday is the soft launch for Gather Petaluma, an independent and nonsectarian nonprofit operating on the campus of the former United Church of Christ. A safe and welcoming community hub that celebrates through connection, music, creativity, wellness, and civic life, Gather Petaluma hopes to bring the community together and gain feedback on what types of events people would like to see there by taking an interactive tour of the five-acre campus. The free, family-friendly event called “Gather Up!” happens on Saturday, Sept. 19, from noon to 3 p.m., at 825 Middlefield Drive. It features live music, food, games, kids' activities, and art by local artists Ben Kellgren and Tim Kellgren. Founding Executive Director Meg Hamill says this is the first of many gatherings they hope to bring to the space. “Your ideas will help shape the programs, classes, and gatherings we build next," she said. "Come see it. Come dream with us.” – Crissy Pascual

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INSIDE THE BUBL – We all know that kids want – and deserve – their own space. Building Up Bold has a new co-working place for students where they can find support, do homework, study, and work on executive functioning skills: you know, life skills, like time management and organization. The Building up Bold Lounge, or BUBL, located at 701 Sonoma Mountain Parkway, will be open to check out this Saturday, Sept. 19, from 3 to 5 p.m. Kinyatta Reynolds, a life coach and the founder of Building Up Bold, created a space “designed for students who need structure, accountability, and a little help getting things done.” – CP

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NEW ERA FOR ANIMAL SERVICES AND SHELTER – The Petaluma City Council unanimously approved its newest animal shelter and animal services providers early Tuesday morning as part of a “coordinated service model,” according to the staff report. This was the final item for the Monday night meeting, which lasted more than seven hours including a hearing on the city’s latest General Plan … The city approved agreements with two providers: Sonoma County Animal Services, to oversee animal control, and the Humane Society of Sonoma County, to oversee the city’s animal shelter. The humane society also subcontracts with Forgotten Felines to neuter unaltered stray cats in city limits … The total cost to work with both providers will be approximately $1.2 million for the 2026-27 fiscal year, which is beyond the $878,000 previously budgeted. Looking forward, costs are forecasted at about $1.2 million for 2027-28 and could be as high as $1.5 million annually, depending on costs and revenue offsets … At the start of the meeting’s regular session, Mayor Kevin McDonnell acknowledged the lessons city leaders have learned since the previous contractor, North Bay Animal Services, was ousted earlier this year. “One of the clearest lessons from the experience is the need for greater transparency and immediate options for enforcement,” he said. “When services required under a city contract are not being delivered, assurances that things will get better is not enough. We need clear reporting, measurable expectations, regular oversight, and actionability when those expectations aren't met” … As of Sept. 1, Sonoma County Animal Services began providing animal control services for the city. The Humane Society of Sonoma County plans to re-open the Petaluma animal shelter to the public on Sept. 23. – JS

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COCKTAIL, ANYONE? – If you're looking for an award-winning drink, you might want to stop at Petaluma's own Griffo Distillery, where Fred Abercrombie, the director of marketing, just announced that Sunset Magazine recently awarded them three American Spirits Council of Tasters awards, or ASCOTs. Griffo Scott Street Gin won "Best of the Best," Griffo Vodka won "Best Vodka," and Griffo Espresso Martini (made with Marin-based Equator Coffees) won "Best Ready-to-Drink Cocktail." According to Hugh Garvey, editor-in-chief of Sunset Magazine, "Griffo Distillery's Scott Street Gin shows the creativity and craftsmanship driving the best of American spirits." Time to enjoy a tasty cocktail – it's happy hour somewhere. – CP

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THAT'S A LOT OF FOOD – Three Petaluma nonprofits – COTS, Una Vida, and Sonoma Family Meals – will receive a truckload of donated food this week from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. These organizations are a few of the 11 nonprofits across Sonoma and Marin counties selected to share the delivery, coming straight from Salt Lake City, Utah, as part of the church’s Just Serve initiative in conjunction with the country’s 250th birthday. (The church will distribute 40,000 pounds of food to each of 250 cities across all 50 states.) Several elected officials will be in attendance to celebrate before the truck returns to Utah to make another delivery. The event happens at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Sept. 17, at 220 N. Pedro Rd. in San Rafael. – JS

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LOCAL TO PERFORM AT ATLANTA MUSIC FESTIVAL – Harry Van der Meer, a Petaluman and Berklee College of Music graduate (class of 2026) whose parents still live in town, will perform with his Boston-based “bubble-grunge” band Sophie’s Body at the Shaky Knees Festival in Atlanta on Sept. 19 … The Petaluma High School graduate (class of 2022), who plays bass and sings background vocals, performed with Sophie’s Body at the Phoenix Theater in 2023 … The band’s festival appearance is part of the Berklee Popular Music Institute program, which guides students from classroom to festival stage. Students work on various aspects of festival operations including as performers and in artist development and marketing … The festival’s headliners include the Strokes, Twenty One Pilots, Gorrilaz, and other notable acts like Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Wu-Tang Clan, and Jimmy Eat World … If you happen to be in Atlanta and want to see it, well, it’s sold out. Resale tickets are available, however. After this, the members of Sophie’s Body plan to release their debut album, “ZERO,” on Oct. 30 and to continue touring, per a publicist at Berklee College of Music. Congratulations, Sophie’s Body. – JS

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“SECURE HOLD” AT CASA GRANDE – On Wednesday, Sept. 16, Petaluma City Schools Superintendent Davina Goldwasser shared the following message to the Casa Grande High School, Sonoma Mountain High School, and Petaluma Transition Program families ... “Today at approximately 11:15 a.m., our campuses were placed on a secure hold after students reported a possible firearm on the Casa Grande High School campus. District staff immediately followed our safety protocols and partnered with local law enforcement. Law enforcement recovered a firearm and removed the student involved. The secure hold was lifted at approximately 11:35 a.m. Law enforcement has determined there are no additional threats to campus safety, and all students are safe. School operations have returned to normal. We understand that situations like this can be stressful for students and families. Students who need support are encouraged to speak with a trusted adult on campus, and our counseling and mental health staff are available. Due to student privacy, we cannot share additional details at this time. We appreciate the students who reported the concern and the quick response of our staff and law enforcement partners. Student safety remains our highest priority. Thank you for your continued trust and partnership" ... Reached by phone on Wednesday around 1 p.m., Goldwasser said the entire situation was resolved in about 20 minutes. Because students reported the concern involving one student, adults on campus were able to act quickly to keep students safe and continue the school day as normal. “I’m so proud of our students,” she said.

Jennifer Sawhney is a reporter and co-founder of Petaluma Voice. She can be reached at jsawhney@petalumavoice.org.

Crissy Pascual is a photojournalist and co-founder of Petaluma Voice. She can be reached at photos@petalumavoice.org.

Tobias Young is an editor and reporter at Petaluma Voice. He can be reached at tyoung@petalumavoice.org.