NOTICE: Local agencies are preparing to conduct a prescribed burn on approximately 20 acres of Montini Open Space Preserve during the week of June 23, 2025. Read more below.

Montini Open Space Preserve

Sonoma Ecology Center partners with the City of Sonoma to manage the Montini Preserve’s land, including habitat restoration and trail work by our Restoration Department. Our educators also use Montini—sometimes in conjunction with Restoration—to teach children about nature and the outdoors.

Montini Open Space Preserve’s looped trails are open from dawn to dusk every day and are accessible to the public by two trailheads, one at 4th Street West and Haraszthy Drive and one at Field of Dreams on 1st Street West.

To stay updated on our work at Montini and hear about upcoming events at Montini Open Space Preserve, subscribe to our newsletter!

June 2025 Prescribed Burn at Montini Open Space Preserve

Last updated: June 9, 2025

A coalition of local agencies, including the Sonoma Valley Fire District, Sonoma Ecology Center, Sonoma Resource Conservation District, the City of Sonoma and CAL FIRE, is preparing to conduct a prescribed burn on approximately 20 acres of the Montini Open Space Preserve during the week of June 23, 2025. The exact date will depend on weather and site conditions to ensure a safe and effective operation. The park will be closed during the burn and reopen once conditions are safe.

Sonoma Ecology Center will continue to share information about the upcoming prescribed burn on this web page, including updates before, during, and after the day of the prescribed burn. Sonoma Ecology Center will also share updates related to the prescribed burn on our social media channels and through our email newsletter. Follow @sonomaecologycenter on Instagram and Facebook, and subscribe to our newsletter.

To learn more about the upcoming prescribed burn at Montini Open Space Preserve—why it’s happening, what to expect, and how it supports both public safety and ecological health—read the official press release below.

Montini Preserve to Undergo Prescribed Burn to Protect Homes, Habitat, and Hillside Health

Joint Press Release

Date: June 9, 2025

Sonoma, CA – A coalition of local agencies, including the Sonoma Valley Fire District, Sonoma Ecology Center, Sonoma Resource Conservation District, the City of Sonoma and CAL FIRE, is preparing to conduct a prescribed burn on approximately 20 acres of the Montini Open Space Preserve during the week of June 23, 2025. The exact date will depend on weather and site conditions to ensure a safe and effective operation.

This carefully planned prescribed burn is part of a proactive strategy to reduce wildfire risk in a Very High Fire Severity Zone that borders the City of Sonoma and nearby neighborhoods. In addition to reducing hazardous vegetation (fuel loads), the burn will support long-term ecological goals, including managing invasive species such as yellow star-thistle, medusahead, Italian thistle, and ripgut brome, protecting native trees and plants, and promoting healthy grasslands.

“This prescribed burn not only helps safeguard our community during this fire season—it’s part of a long-term commitment to ecological stewardship and wildfire resilience,” said Richard Dale, Executive Director, Sonoma Ecology Center.

Fire officials also emphasize that prescribed fire is a vital tool in the broader effort to protect Sonoma Valley’s communities.

“This is a responsible step toward building a more fire-resilient landscape,” said Sonoma Valley Fire District Chief Steve Akre. “Our goal is to eventually conduct similar operations across wildlands and open spaces throughout Sonoma Valley—including in the Springs area—to help protect the Valley as a whole.”

Prescribed fire is a time-tested land management tool. While it may be a relatively new practice near urban areas like Sonoma, it’s increasingly used across California to restore natural ecosystems and reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire.

“While this type of operation may be new for our City, bringing back ‘good fire’ to our wildlands and open spaces is both environmentally and socially responsible,” said Sonoma Mayor and Sonoma Ecology Center Board Vice President and CFO Patricia Farrar-Rivas. “We recognize that residents who have experienced wildfires may feel anxious about any fire nearby, but this carefully planned, ‘low and slow’ burn is the opposite of a wildfire—it’s a proven strategy to help prevent one.”

The burn will be led by the Sonoma Valley Fire District with support from partner agencies. Fire personnel will remain on site overnight to ensure safety. The burn is expected to last about five hours, but visible smoke, flames, glowing embers, and a post-burn blackened landscape may be seen during and after the operation—this is normal and expected.

“We also know that seeing a familiar landscape after a fire can be disheartening at first,” said Dale. “We’re installing temporary signage at the site to help our community understand the ‘why,’ the ecological and safety benefits of prescribed fire, and to see up close how a beneficial fire works in the landscape.”

The burn will appear on the Watch Duty app, marked with a green flame icon labeled “Rx.” However, Watch Duty does not send push notifications for prescribed burns, so residents are encouraged to check the app manually for updates. Sonoma Ecology Center will provide real-time updates on its website, sonomaecologycenter.org/montini-open-space-preserve/, and social media.

While smoke impacts are expected to be minimal, those with respiratory sensitivities are encouraged to take precautions to limit exposure during and shortly after the burn.

In addition to community-scale efforts like prescribed fire, residents play an important role in wildfire risk reduction by managing vegetation on their own properties. The Sonoma Valley Fire District encourages homeowners to:

• Avoid mowing or using gas-powered tools during the hottest part of the day or when it’s windy.
• Maintain defensible space around homes by removing dead plants and limbs.
• Trim grasses and weeds early in the season before they dry out.
• Avoid parking vehicles in tall grass.

For more vegetation management tips and guidelines, visit www.sonomavalleyfire.org.

For additional information and updates about the prescribed burn at the Montini Preserve, please visit sonomaecologycenter.org/montini-open-space-preserve/

Media Contacts:
Sonoma Valley Fire District
Mason Lewis
(707) 996-2102
masonl@sonomavalleyfire.org

Sonoma Ecology Center
Aila Fassett
(707) 996-0712
aila@sonomaecologycenter.org

City of Sonoma
Sarah Tracy, PIO
(707) 933-2210
stracy@sonomacity.org

History of our work at Montini Open Space Preserve

Throughout the 1990’s, Sonoma Ecology Center promoted the vision of a “protected hillside backdrop” for the City of Sonoma. We worked with community leaders and organizations toward this vision, which resulted in protection from development of the City’s Mountain Cemetery property and creation of the Sonoma Overlook Trail, as well as protection of the Montini family’s ranch on the western hillside.

Ninety-eight acres of the Montini ranch property was purchased in fee by Ag + Open Space as the Montini Open Space Preserve, and transferred to the City of Sonoma in 2014. The Preserve is situated at Sonoma’s northern edge and is visible from most of town. Locals and tourists now walk its trails for scenic views of Sonoma Valley, San Pablo Bay, and San Francisco, as well as to enjoy its oak woodlands, seasonal streams and wildflowers. The former ranchland is also important local habitat for Sonoma Valley’s many native species.

Sonoma Ecology Center partners with the City of Sonoma to manage the Montini Preserve’s land, including habitat restoration and trail work by our Restoration Department. Our educators also use Montini—sometimes in conjunction with Restoration—to teach children about nature and the outdoors.

On the eastern side of the hillside backdrop, with the City of Sonoma, we support Sonoma Overlook Trail Stewards, an all-volunteer group to manage Sonoma Overlook Trail. Sonoma Overlook Trail Stewards maintains the trails, provides information focusing on the trail’s flora, fauna and history, and raises money to maintain the trail. Learn more about Sonoma Overlook Trail Stewards on their website.

Montini Open Space Preserve’s looped trails are open from dawn to dusk every day and are accessible to the public by two trailheads, one at 4th Street West and Haraszthy Drive and one at Field of Dreams on 1st Street West.

To stay updated on our work at Montini and hear about upcoming events at Montini Open Space Preserve, subscribe to our newsletter!