Greens Control Sebastopol Council - Litwin,  Spooner, and Robinson
Peter Fimrite, Pamela J. Podger, Janet Wells / SF Chronicle 8nov00

SOLANO NAPA -- Voters were electing council members in nine Sonoma County cities last night and deciding whether overnight visitors to the wine country should pay a higher tax for their lodging.

Business-backed candidates were poised to take two of the three seats in closely contested race for the Petaluma City Council, posing a threat to the current council's progressive majority.

In late returns, the highest number of votes went to incumbent Pamela Torliatt, who would continue as part of the council bloc that enacted an urban growth ordinance, rebuffed a controversial proposal for a Highway 101 interchange and challenged a $140 million proposal to expand the county's water system.

Mike O'Brien, a 46-year-old automobile lease manager and retired California Highway Patrol officer, was in second and Bryant Moynihan, owner of a property management firm and past president of the Petaluma Chamber of Commerce, was in third place.

O'Brien and Moynihan want to resurrect the $34 million interchange proposal, which could sharply affect the city's growth patterns.

Trailing were retired software entrepreneur Scott Vouri, a newcomer to the city's politics, and David Glass, a city planning commissioner who placed second in the 1998 mayoral race.

Other candidates included planning commissioner Wayne Vieler; James Mobley, a respiratory therapist; and Gabe Kearney, a Santa Rosa Junior College student.

In Sebastopol, voters gave the Green Party a majority on the city council.

In the officially nonpartisan race, Green party candidates Sam Spooner and Craig Litwin took the top two spots in the race for two council seats, while incumbent Kathy Austin came in third, final results showed.

Litwin and Spooner join incumbent Councilman Larry Robinson, creating a Green majority on the five-member panel. Sebastopol is the first California city council to go Green since Arcata's did so from 1995 to 1998.

Voters in Santa Rosa, Cotati, Rohnert Park, Healdsburg, Windsor, Cloverdale and the city of Sonoma also elected council members last night.

Meanwhile, visitors in Sonoma County's wine country won't be paying more for their hotel rooms, but those in Napa County will.

Measure H, in Sonoma County, was failing. It would have increased taxes on rooms in the unincorporated areas from 9 percent to 12 percent and needed a simple majority to pass.

In Napa County, however, Measure I was passing. It would raise taxes on rooms from 10.5 to 12 percent. Measure I needed a two-thirds vote to pass.

Both measures were designed to increase transient occupancy taxes, which means anyone staying at a hotel, motel, inn, club, campground or recreational vehicle park in an unincorporated area would have to fork out more money.

Meanwhile, Santa Rosa's Measure J, which would have increased the city's hotel tax from 9 to 12 percent, was failing. Sebastopol's Measure P, which would increase hotel taxes from 6 to 10 percent, passed by a wide margin.

Original Title: Business-Friendly Candidates Lead In Petaluma Race: Greens win Sebastopol council