The Napa Valey Vine TrailA Time Traveler’s Journal JANUARY- F E B R UARY 2 0 1 5 47 artwork and article by Lance Buris This is the first part of a four-part series that places the proposed Napa Valley Vine Trail in its historical and planning context. Past as Prologue (1958 – 2014) In the late nineteen fifties I attended high school in St. Helena. Even as a teenager I knew how privileged I was to live in such a romantic place, surrounded as it was by vineyards framed by darkly-forested mountains and oak-studded hills. St. Helena was defined by its Main Street, which at that time was lined with small shops serving the needs of the town’s residents. Its treeshaded neighborhoods consisted of older homes built in a graceful mix of nineteenth and early twentieth century architectural styles. Standouts included a handful of genteel Victorians, their intricately carved wooden facades partially obscured by the billowing white and lavender blossoms of ubiquitous hydrangeas. By now you may have sensed that my memories of the Napa Valley are filled with color: bright blue skies; fields of yellow mustard, sprinkled with orange poppies and purple lupine; silver olive trees; stately black oaks; and, of course, the green, amber, and russet vineyards which faithfully recorded the change of seasons. The Napa Valley had all the bold color of a Van Gogh painting, but unlike oil on canvas, the Valley was a living thing and therefore subject to change. I was reminded of this discomfiting fact by the sudden appearance of a new subdivision at the edge of town—its little stucco houses popping up like toadstools after a spring rain. Was this unwelcomed change a sign of things to come? Even at the age of seventeen, I understood that California’s changing demographics and automobile culture posed a threat to the Valley’s agriculture and the rural character of its small towns. During my senior year, I was editor of the high school yearbook, which was called the Silverado. In light of my concerns about the future of the Napa Valley, I asked the school’s student photographer to drive to the top of a nearby hill that provided panoramic views of St. Helena and its valley setting. I featured the black and white photograph at the beginning of the yearbook, where it appeared as a twopage spread that included an insert, the title of which read “Welcome to the Past.” The text then introduced the book’s cartoon character (Silverado Joe) who, as stated in the insert, symbolized “a way of life that is rapidly disappearing and may have indeed disappeared when once again you refer to this book in the future.” Today, now more than half a century later, it is clear that the future I feared did not come to pass. The Napa Valley has changed, but not in the way I imagined. In other words, it has not become a Northern California version of the San Fernando Valley. Yes, it is different, but it is arguably more attractive and certainly more economically vital today than it was in 1958. There have been tradeoffs, of course. The prune orchards and oak savannahs have been replaced by vineyards. Where there were a handful of family-owned wineries, there are now more than four hundred, some of which are corporate and foreign-owned. The tree tunnel located at the north end of town is still there, although the elms are showing the infirmities of old age. While some of St. Helena’s local-serving shops remain, many have been replaced by boutiques and restaurants catering to tourists. The tree-shaded neighborhoods are still intact; however, their older houses have been gently restored. Yes, the Valley has changed, but its fundamental character has not. That did not happen by chance. The next article in this series will describe the public and private initiatives that enabled the Napa Valley and its small towns to preserve their rural character. These initiatives include the building of the Yountville bypass, passage of the Agricultural Preserve Act, establishment of the Robert Mondavi Winery, construction of the Napa River Flood Control Project, and building the cultural center known as Copia (which remains a work in progress). These past initiatives paved the way for the most ambitious project of all: the proposed forty-seven-mile Napa Valley Vine Trail which will bring the Valley’s wine, food, arts, and wellness activities together for the benefit or residents and visitors alike, doing so in a manner that will change the Napa Valley’s culture.
NVLife_JanFeb_2015
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