Healthcare Foundation, Corazón, and City of Healdsburg Launch Next Phase of Community-Led Multicultural Center Project

Healthcare Foundation Northern Sonoma County, Corazón Healdsburg, and City of Healdsburg Launch Next Phase of Community-Led Multicultural Center Project

Healdsburg, CA, April 9, 2026 – Healthcare Foundation Northern Sonoma County, in partnership with Corazón Healdsburg and the City of Healdsburg, announced this month the launch of Phase 1 of the Healdsburg Multicultural Center project, marking a significant milestone in a years-long effort to transform the Abel de Luna Community Center into a vibrant, community-designed space where residents can gather, celebrate, and access the resources they need in northern Sonoma County.

The vision for the center has been years in the making. Since 2024, more than 129 residents have participated in surveys, listening sessions, and design workshops to help articulate what this space should be. That process, facilitated with community partners including On the Margins and Alliance Medical Center, produced 10 Design Mandates: a set of resident-generated principles for a center rooted in belonging, cultural celebration, and shared ownership. Architecture firm Goring & Straja has been engaged to bring that vision to life.

Phase 1 begins with what residents asked for most visibly: color. Exterior walls will be painted in bright, vibrant hues, both to reflect the community’s spirit and to help visitors navigate the campus. Community-based multicultural murals will follow, created through a participatory process in collaboration with local artists.

The Process Is the Point

What distinguishes this effort from a traditional building project is the philosophy driving it. Rather than arriving with a finished plan, the partner organizations have engaged community members from the very beginning. Their role is not to arrive with answers, but to listen to what the data shows and to what community members know from their own experience.

“For too long, the people who needed community resources most have had the least say in shaping them. This project is different. When a community helps build something from the ground up, that sense of ownership doesn’t end at the ribbon cutting. It carries forward, and that is what real, lasting change looks like,” said Amy Ramirez, Executive Director of Healthcare Foundation Northern Sonoma County.

A Space the Community Has Long Needed

The Abel de Luna Community Center is already woven into the daily life of the broader Healdsburg community. Families bring young children to music classes here. ESL programming quietly serves hundreds each year. Individuals and families come together for both organized and pickup sports that keep the space full of energy. The community center is also a valued gathering place for Healdsburg’s Latine community, and Corazón has hosted programs and services here since 2016. Neighbors from all walks of life have long come together on this campus.

The Multicultural Center will build on that foundation, becoming a place where families can access services, celebrate culture, and strengthen community ties in dignity, safety, and a true sense of shared ownership. The Design Mandates that residents shaped call for multigenerational spaces for movement and play, a community kitchen and cafe, areas for creative expression and lifelong learning, digital access, and a deep commitment to environmental justice and sustainability.

“From the American Institute of Architects R/UDAT study in 1982, to the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion report the City commissioned in 2023, we have known that a center that embraces inclusion and belonging is needed. The City of Healdsburg is excited to step up and do our part to deliver on this promise at the Abel De Luna Community Center and throughout the City,” said Healdsburg Mayor Chris Herrod. “Healdsburg residents are warm and welcoming people who want all to feel that they belong.”

How to Get Involved

A Design Advisory Committee has been selected, bringing together 15 community members — both youth and adults — who self-nominated or were nominated by family, friends and fellow community members. This committee will participate in the full arc of the project, from continued visioning through completion.

There is still plenty of opportunity for the broader community to have a voice in shaping the Multicultural Center. Design concepts are on display at the entrance of the Abel de Luna Community Center. Everyone is encouraged to stop by, take a look, and vote for their favorites. “Belonging is not just about being invited into space, it is about being part of shaping it. Community members have been part of imagining and now designing a place that takes form through their own lens. When people feel seen, heard, and connected, they thrive. That is what we are building here, and none of that happens without trust, commitment, and a deep belief in community leadership,” said Marcy Flores, Executive Director of Corazón Healdsburg.

About the Healthcare Foundation

The Healthcare Foundation Northern Sonoma County acts as an incubator, convener, and funder for local health equity projects. The Foundation responds to local data, identifying gaps in our system of care and responds, prioritizing collaboration and sustainable solutions. The organization’s values center on community, compassion, and equity. All our strategies support equitable access to culturally sensitive healthcare and mental health services and promote overall community wellness. Founded in 2001, the Healthcare Foundation has invested more than $26 million to build a healthier region for all who live, work and play in northern Sonoma County. For more information, visit healthcarefoundation.net.

About Corazón Healdsburg

Corazón Healdsburg works to create a more just and compassionate community for all. Corazón operates a bilingual family resource center and offers family-centered case management, as well as a cradle-to-career approach to education for all ages. We amplify the local Latin-American voice, and host community events, workshops and discussions to promote and celebrate diversity, equity and inclusion. Learn more at corazonhealdsburg.org.

About the City of Healdsburg Founded in 1857, the City of Healdsburg is a quintessential small town, with an economy rooted in agriculture and service. Throughout its history, the City has focused on shared values and resident driven services. A renewed focus on belonging and inclusion is supported and welcomed. For more, visit healdsburg.gov.

Media Contact

Amy Ramirez, Executive Director, Healthcare Foundation, aramirez@healthcarefoundation.net, (707) 478-6767