Change is rarely abstract in the North Bay. It shows up not only in balance sheets and budgets, but in the everyday decisions people make about work, community and quality of life — and it often lands first on the institutions and industries residents rely on most.
That reality frames this issue of NorthBay biz, which arrives amid a period of transition for the publication. Following recent staffing changes, I have assumed the role of managing editor. I’d like to take a moment to recognize and thank former Editor-in-Chief Jason Walsh for his contributions to the magazine and for helping shape its editorial voice. Our mission moving forward remains unchanged: to provide clear, locally grounded coverage of business and lifestyle across Sonoma, Marin and Napa counties, and to report with context, accuracy and depth on the forces shaping the regional economy as well as the way people live within it.
Several of this issue’s features examine what happens when systems under strain are forced to adapt. In her reporting on H.R. 1 — formally known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act — Susan Wood speaks with nonprofit leaders on the front lines of food assistance, housing support and health care, including United Way of the Wine Country, Redwood Empire Food Bank, Santa Rosa Community Health, UpValley Family Centers and more. As federal cuts to needs-based programs begin to take effect, these organizations are bracing for consequences that will continue to ripple outward into the broader community.
Vulnerability within nonprofit systems is also the focus of Jean Saylor Doopenberg’s examination of embezzlement and fraud. With limited IT budgets, small teams and aging infrastructure, nonprofits are often uniquely exposed to internal theft. Drawing on recent cases involving organizations such as the Sonoma County Farm Bureau, Social Advocates for Youth (SAY) and the Finnish American Home Association — along with expert insight from the Center for Volunteer & Nonprofit Leadership and Santa Rosa attorney Daryl Reese — the story underscores why robust internal controls are no longer optional for organizations entrusted with public support.
Elsewhere, the issue turns its attention to the state of local journalism itself — a topic that sits at the intersection of business, civic life and community identity. Following the sale of the Santa Rosa Press Democrat to hedge fund Alden Global Capital — once described by Vanity Fair as “the grim reaper of American newspapers” — former Sonoma Media Investments COO Troy Niday is betting on a different model. His forthcoming nonprofit newsroom, Press Onward, aims to rebuild community-based journalism and civic engagement at a time when consolidation and cost-cutting have hollowed out newsrooms nationwide.
Finally, we look to the water. As the California Department of Fish and Wildlife scales back salmon fishing seasons in an effort to rebuild depleted stocks, fishing-related businesses across the region, from charter operators to tackle shops, are navigating both economic uncertainty and cultural loss. With just four legal recreational fishing days allowed in 2025 and commercial ocean salmon fishing shuttered since 2023, many businesses say additional federal emergency funding may be the difference between staying afloat and closing their doors.
This issue also marks an evolution in how we bring that coverage to readers. Beginning this year, NorthBay biz will publish six issues annually, a shift from our previous monthly schedule. The change reflects a deliberate move toward depth over frequency — allowing us to more thoughtfully curate each issue around the conversations, industries and people shaping the region at key moments throughout the year. Rather than covering everything all the time, this approach gives us the space to go deeper and deliver a magazine that is more intentional, more immersive and more reflective of how business and lifestyle intersect in the North Bay.
Taken together, these stories reflect a common thread: adaptation under pressure. Whether the subject is nonprofits, media, fisheries or other pillars of the North Bay, economic shifts are inseparable from the way people work, live and engage with their communities. Our role is to document those changes, ask hard questions and provide readers with the insight they need to understand what’s changing and why.—Rosie Padilla
