In the News: Cloverdale approves Spanish interpretation services at City Council meetings

By Anna Armstrong | anna.armstrong@pressdemocrat.com | The Press Democrat
PUBLISHED: November 2, 2026 at 4:07 PM PST

Spanish-speaking residents in Sonoma County’s northernmost city will soon be able to more fully participate in local government after the Cloverdale City Council endorsed having interpretation services at its meetings.

The services will begin in January after the council on Oct. 28 voted 4-0 in support of a one-year contract with interpreter Manual Gonzalez, who will provide in-person, live Spanish-language interpretation at council meetings.

“I am very happy to see this,” said Councilmember Andrés Marquez, who has helped spearhead the effort. He noted many of the Latino and Hispanic residents who make up roughly 40% of Cloverdale’s population are monolingual.

Under the agreement, spending on interpretation services is capped at $12,300. The Healthcare Foundation Northern Sonoma County, which works to address health inequities in the region, has committed to covering half those costs.

Mayor Brian Wheeler was absent.

The move follows nearly two years of advocacy by a group of Spanish-speaking seniors who have been working to address barriers in civic participation in Cloverdale, according to Amy Ramirez, the foundation’s executive director.

The effort began in 2024 when the Healthcare Foundation Northern Sonoma County was selected to participate in an initiative aimed at empowering underrepresented older adults to identify pressing needs in their communities and advocate toward common goals.

Through that work, the foundation established a working group that brought together around 20 monolingual Spanish-speaking seniors in Cloverdale and other partners, Ramirez said.

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