Napa Valley College Trustee Tallies, Early Flu Spike & Canopy Plan

Higher-education board elections in Napa County, an unusually early climb in Bay Area influenza activity, and a municipal urban canopy restoration plan anchored regional coverage on November 7, 2026.

Dodd, Pastula, and Iverson Lead in Napa Valley College Board of Trustees Elections

Early election returns in Napa County outlined a reshaped lineup across three contested trustee areas on the seven-member Napa Valley College Board of Trustees:

• Trustee Area 2: Incumbent trustee Jeff Dodd holds a commanding lead with 63.19% of the tally (1,504 votes) over challenger Heriverto "Eddy" Ruiz, who trails at 36.81%.
• Trustee Area 3: In a three-way contest, challenger Emily Pastula leads with 37.33% (825 votes), edging incumbent trustee Elizabeth Goff at 34.16% and challenger Karina Servente at 28.51%.
• Trustee Area 4: Challenger William (Kyle) Iverson leads with 51.85% (1,657 votes) against incumbent trustee Cindy Johnson at 48.15%.

The November election follows the board's July 2026 appointment of trustee Lotte Cosca to fill a vacancy in Trustee Area 5, positioning the governing board to oversee campus fiscal stability, academic workforce programs, and student housing initiatives through the remainder of the decade.

Bay Area Flu Season Arrives Early as Test Positivity Reaches 21.3%

Public health officials across Northern California are urging residents not to wait until late autumn to receive their annual influenza immunization. According to surveillance figures from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) reported by The Mercury News, statewide clinical laboratory test positivity for influenza climbed to 21.3% in late October 2026, accompanied by rising influenza A concentrations in municipal wastewater monitoring across Santa Clara, San Francisco, and Marin counties.

Dr. Rakesh Chaudhary, an infectious disease specialist at Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara, and Dr. Matt Willis, Marin County's public health officer, noted that the early surge is driven primarily by an H3N2 variant designated subclade K. The updated 2026–2027 three-strain seasonal influenza vaccine is specifically formulated to match circulating H3N2 subclade K, H1N1, and influenza B lineages. Federal and state public health studies show that seasonal flu immunization lowers the risk of flu-related medical visits by 40% to 60% and prevented an estimated 180,000 hospitalizations nationwide during the 2024–2025 respiratory season, leading physicians to recommend immunization for everyone aged 6 months and older at least two weeks before Thanksgiving travel.

Mountain View Commission Backs 33-Tree Canopy Restoration and Pollinator Gardens

In local environmental stewardship, the Mountain View Parks and Recreation Commission voted unanimously Wednesday evening to endorse a comprehensive tree replacement and soil remediation plan detailed by the Mountain View Voice. Earlier this year, municipal maintenance contractors applied an herbicide containing the active ingredient imazapyr—which persists in soil and absorbs through interconnected root systems—resulting in the removal of nearly 36 mature urban trees and visible canopy decline across roughly 150 additional trees, of which city arborists estimate about 30 will recover.

Under the restoration plan, crews will excavate affected planting pits, install structural soil cells, and plant 21 replacement shade trees along Franklin Street, 6 trees around Pioneer Park, and 6 additional trees adjacent to the Mountain View Public Library and Center for the Performing Arts, accompanied by 2 new native pollinator gardens.