Hey all - another Monday Lowdown for you.

There is actually a good amount going on right now, and this feels like one of those weeks where it helps to have some actual town notes.

Not in a dramatic way. More in a “there are a bunch of fun, useful things moving, shifting, opening up, and happening around town, and you’re better off knowing than not knowing” kind of way.

Quick Napa trivia to start us off: how many colleges are there in Napa County?

One of the bigger general themes lately is just movement.

New stores opening. New businesses getting started. New clubs and extracurriculars popping up. A lot of little signs that things are still shifting and growing around town.

There is also still plenty of construction in the mix, so we are very much in that phase too - stuff changing, stuff opening, stuff still halfway wrapped in plywood.

Something a little different but here is a little graphic update below:

At least, that’s a bit of what’s on my radar right now. As you can see, Napa is feeling a little younger lately, dare I say.

For an old dog, we’ve got some new tricks again. A lot of new businesses, a lot of fitness, a lot of movement. Would love to hear your thoughts on that as well on what you are seeing out there :)

BottleRock being sold out is one signal, but the hotel numbers are the more interesting part - had to do a little digging.

KAYAK says the average double room in Napa is $521/night right now, and its monthly pricing shows January at $373/night versus May at $842/night. That is a $469 jump, or about 126% higher than January.

And as someone who lives here, the real question is not whether it is happening. It is how much more expensive it is than last year. Which I am honestly still curious about.

Because this part is not exactly shocking: Napa is getting expensive again.

And of course, hotels are not the only thing that start feeling it. You will probably notice it when you are trying to book dinner, trying to find a place for friends to stay, and honestly even just moving around town once weekends start getting more crowded.

So yes, there are other extracurriculars behind some of this pricing. But the simple thing to know is: be on the lookout. The seasonal squeeze is starting.

One thing I’ve noticed about this group is that there is no single “type” of reader here.

For the latter two - this one is for you.

Open registration for Napa Valley College summer classes starts April 21.

Priority windows have already been rolling out, but this is the point where it opens up broadly. Summer classes begin June 15, and students need to pay within 14 days of registration or they can be dropped for non-payment.

Shoutout to all of you trying to make school work around actual life.

Piggybacking off that, Napa Valley College is also holding its Annual Spring Career Fair on Thursday, April 23 at the college.

It is free and open to the community, not just students, with parking in Lot G and validation available on-site.

And based on the map alone - which looks like it was designed sometime in the early internet era - I think it is fair to say this is probably going to be a pretty local one.

So no, I would not go in expecting some giant polished recruiter circus with every big SF tech company under the sun - that crew can stick to their boujee networking events.

But from what I have heard, that is kind of the point. This feels more like real jobs, real people, real local employers, which honestly might be more useful for a lot of Napa anyway.

NVC says there will be 100+ employers there across different industries and experience levels. They are also pushing career-center support pretty hard right now, including resume help, interview prep, templates, and one-on-one support for people trying to get themselves moving.

This is a wonderful place to work, contribute, and be part of the community - so if you’re in that transition stage and trying to picture where to go next, let me just say this: this is not a bad option.

There you go - Monday Lowdown complete.

If you made it this far, you are now at least a little more dangerous walking into the week. You know what’s coming up, and what might actually matter in this busy season.

That is kind of the whole point of these. Not just random information for the sake of it, but the kind of local knowledge that makes you feel a little more oriented.

Now, on the trivia: I’m calling the answer 3.

And yes, before anyone emails me, I know that one might get a little controversial depending on how picky you want to be.

But if we are talking actual colleges in Napa County, I’m going with these 3:

If you want to come back at me with a smaller school I missed, I’m open to it. I genuinely am. But until proven otherwise, 3 is the number I’m living with today.

Anyway - those are the Monday Town Notes. You are caught up, your Napa brain is on, and we move.

Callie.