Cotati, California is located in Sonoma County approximately eight miles south of Santa Rosa, nine miles north of Petaluma and 47 miles north of San Francisco near Highway 101. Named after a Miwok Native American village, Kota’ti, the peaceful-looking region with its rolling hills and colorful fields is primarily a residential community made up agriculture and local business enterprise.

Once a destination for tourists with hotels and entertainment, Cotati was home to alternative music and attracted those seeking alternative lifestyles during much of the 20th century.  As the regional population grew, however, it incorporated and created a slow growth policy. Music continues to be an important element of the community's well-being as the city enjoys an infusion of local talent and a larger base from nearby colleges. Near Cotati are Sonoma State University and Golden Gate University, recognized as one of the top universities in the United States for information technology.

Having a major university nearby is certainly a cultural asset, but there has never been a shortage of culture in Cotati. In September the City and the Chamber of Commerce gather to celebrate Cotati at the annual Showcase Cotati, where local businesses puy on a "street fair" beneath the trees of La Plaza Park to showcase their wares. The city is home to the Cotati Jazz Festival each June, the newly established Cotati Philharmonic, the annual Kid's Day Parade and the internationally renowned Cotati Accordion Festival in late August.

"Use an Accordion, Go to Cotati" say the bumper stickers that promote the Cotati Accordion Festival, one of Sonoma County's largest events and one of the most significant accordion festivals in the United States. Clifton Buck-Kauffman and Jim Boggio, local accordionist extraordinaire, invented the festival in 1991. The festival draws accordion aficionados from all over the world to La Plaza Park to participate in a full weekend of fun, food and music celebrating the beloved squeezebox.

In 1996 festival co-founder Jim Boggio died. He was considered by his fans to be the "King of the Accordion" and by Keyboard magazine to be one of the three best accordion players in the United States at the time of his death.

In 1997, a statue was erected in La Plaza Park in honor of Jim Boggio and in memory of his contribution to the city's cultural heritage and to the continuing history of Cotati.