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Santa Rosa Council scheduled to consider an El Niño local emergency and a county hazard plan on November 10

By The Downspout · Posted Oct 30, 2026 · 3 min read Share

On Tuesday, November 10, 2026, the Santa Rosa City Council is scheduled to consider two storm-related items. Staff propose that the Council declare a local emergency over the threat of storms and flooding tied to this winter's El Niño. The Council will also hold a public hearing on the 2026 Sonoma County hazard mitigation plan. Neither is decided. The city says the emergency step is preparation and does not mean a major storm is coming.

What these two items are

On November 10 the Santa Rosa City Council will take up two storm-related items. One is a local emergency declaration. The other is a hearing on a county hazard plan. Santa Rosa is in Sonoma County.

A local emergency is a formal proclamation by a city. The city says this one is preparation, so it can respond effectively if conditions call for it. It does not mean a major storm is coming.

A hazard mitigation plan lists natural hazards, who and what they could hurt, and steps to lower the long-term risk to people and property. Mitigation means lowering the risk. Sonoma County and 21 other local agencies wrote the 2026 plan together. Santa Rosa and Sonoma Water are two of them.

The city's agenda ties the emergency to what it calls the 2026-2027 El Niño event. For background, read El Niño and Sonoma County water.

What happened

The city posted a preliminary agenda for the meeting. Preliminary means a final agenda will be posted later.

The Council meets at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, November 10, in the Council Chamber at City Hall, 100 Santa Rosa Avenue, Santa Rosa, CA 95404. See it on a map: Santa Rosa City Hall, 100 Santa Rosa Avenue. Public hearings start no earlier than 5 p.m.

Item 15.1 is a formal written Council action, called a resolution, to proclaim a local emergency. The agenda describes it as a response to the threat of severe winter storms, flooding and other hazardous conditions. It calls the step a proactive preparedness measure. The City Manager's Office recommends it.

Item 16.1 is a public hearing on the 2026 hazard mitigation plan and the City of Santa Rosa annex, which is the city's own part of the plan. The Fire Department and the Planning and Economic Development Department recommend adopting it.

The agenda says the city must adopt the plan to stay eligible for some hazard mitigation money from FEMA, the federal emergency agency. Staff will also bring a separate change to the city's General Plan, its long-term planning document, to add the updated plan.

The county page says the Board of Supervisors, the county's governing board, adopted the plan on September 1, 2026. Each participating agency adopts its own part separately.

What it means for you

• If you want to comment, you can speak at the meeting in person, by Zoom or by phone. You can also email cc-comment@srcity.org by 5 p.m. on Monday, November 9. Put the item number, 15.1 or 16.1, in the subject line. The agenda says comment opens only after the final agenda is posted, so check the city's agenda page first.
• If you want to read the plan first, the county posts all of it on its hazard mitigation plan page, linked below. The Santa Rosa annex is in Volume II.
• If you live outside Santa Rosa, this vote is not about your city. Your own city, district or the county adopts its own part.
• To get ready for storms yourself, read the City of Sonoma sandbag and Winter Ready item. If you live elsewhere, ask your own city where it keeps sand and bags. We lean toward getting ready early. That is our view, not the city's.

What happens next

The Council votes on November 10, 2026. Both items are proposals until then.

Where this came from

The City of Santa Rosa City Council preliminary agenda and summary report for November 10, 2026, items 15.1 and 16.1. The Sonoma County Department of Emergency Management page on the 2026 hazard mitigation plan.

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