Sonoma County supervisors said Tuesday they hope to strike a ‘balanced approach’ between power line safety and environmental protection under PG&E’s major transmission line through the county.

As many as 900 trees will be cut down to accommodate the Highway 101 widening project through Petaluma. The city’s tree committee wants the City Council to urge Caltrans to replace every tree or fund a tree bank to replenish the lost trees.

A long-running land battle between winemaker Paul Hobbs and his neighbor, political gadfly John Jenkel, has escalated into Sebastopol-area ire over the clear-cutting of 8 acres along Gravenstein Highway. Hobbs says he is transforming land littered with abandoned cars and ramshackle buildings into a community asset. But even people who disagree with Jenkel’s in-your-face style have found themselves sympathizing with the eccentric man.

Last week, the Santa Rosa City Council sent a proposed 31-home development above Fountaingrove back to the Planning Commission. The decision reflects the council majority’s commitment to minimizing impacts from development. Builders, however, say the council is again siding with a pro-environment agenda at the expense of jobs and tax dollars.