KFC says Petaluma is pothole-fillin’ good

<p>Petaluma’s reputations as chicken capital and pothole capital are colliding.</p><p>The restaurant chain KFC announced last week it has picked Petaluma as one of four cities nationwide where potholes will be repaired and stenciled with the company’s logo.</p><p>The winning cities were chosen at random from 14 nominated after KFC’s president sent letters announcing the “Re-Fresh the Streets” contest to mayors across the U.S.</p><p>Petaluma Mayor Pamela Torliatt responded with a “very clever” request that referenced the city’s notoriety for both chickens and potholes, KFC spokesman Rick Maynard said.</p><p>“She thought that those credentials made Petaluma very qualified for this program,” Maynard said.</p><p>The mayor’s April 2 letter summarized Petaluma’s fame as an egg-producing region in the late 1800s and early part of the 20th century, noting that the city was home to the world’s only chicken pharmacy and that its poultry heritage is still celebrated today with the Butter and Egg Days Parade.</p><p>The city’s need to fix streets also generated publicity and prompted local citizens to “wage a guerilla assault against the system” by marking potholes with spray paint several years ago, Torliatt’s letter noted.</p><p>Torliatt said she and Vice Mayor Teresa Barrett both learned about the contest and suggested the city enter. The public works department said that amount could pay for a day’s worth of pothole-patching activity, enough to fill about 40 potholes.</p><p>Petaluma has received outside grants for street repair before, Torliatt said, and “every little bit helps.” KFC is asking the city to mark only one of the patched potholes with the temporary chalk logo, she said.</p><p>“We’re not selling out,” she said.</p><p>On Monday, however, a new twist emerged: The animal-rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals sent Torliatt a letter offering to double KFC’s money if the city instead marked potholes with an “evil Colonel Sanders” logo.</p><p>Torliatt said while “diversity of opinion is well respected by all in Petaluma,” the city is sticking with KFC’s offer and won’t participate in a “game of chicken” over pothole paving.</p><p>KFC will send Petaluma a $3,000 check and a large stencil for applying the “Re-Freshed by KFC” logo with temporary spray chalk, Maynard said.</p><p>The other winning cities are Topeka, Kan.; Warren, Ohio and Chattanooga, Tenn.</p><p>(Contact Corey Young at corey.young@arguscourier.com)</p>