The Eureka parking lot at Fifth and D, which is slated to be developed into multi-family housing by Dishgamu Humboldt Community Land Trust, a unit of the Wiyot Tribe. | Photo by Andrew Goff.

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Less than 48 hours before a judge was set to hear motions for preliminary injunction aimed at halting the start of several Eureka housing development projects, the local group Citizens for a Better Eureka (CBE) has issued a press release saying it has dropped those motions.

However, CBE says it will push forward with four lawsuits alleging that the city violated the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) by failing to adequately evaluate the impacts of converting the city-owned properties into housing developments. 

If a judge had granted the requests for preliminary injunction, the city would have been ordered to pause all work on the related housing development projects, pending the outcome of the CEQA suits. Now, the city can continue pursuing those projects, though CBE member Michelle Costantine doesn’t sound concerned about that, saying in the release that there’s “currently very little funding” for the projects.

Reached by phone, Eureka City Manager Miles Slattery said that’s simply untrue. Two of the three projects being targeted by the CEQA lawsuits — the Linc Housing developments slated to be built on parking lot sites at Eighth and G and Sixth and M — are largely funded already thanks to a $30.1 million grant awarded by the California Strategic Growth Council last year.

“That’s secured, ready to go, and we’re rolling,” Slattery said.

The city has applied for the rest of the needed funding on those projects — approximately $15 million — from the National Housing Trust Fund, a loan program financed by the California Department of Housing and Community Development and the federal government.

“We’ve been in this process for many months, going back and forth with them,” Slattery said. “If that gets awarded, we’ll be fully funded and ready to roll,” by completing the design and starting construction.

The third project site, at the corner of Fifth and D streets, is slated to be developed by Dishgamu Humboldt Community Land Trust, a unit of the Wiyot Tribe. The city completed a memorandum of understanding with the Tribe at the end of 2023. 

“As part of proposal [the Tribe] made it very clear that a tax credit program has set aside specific money for tribes,” Slattery said, adding that this is probably the most “fundable” multi-unit housing project in development due to the Wiyot Tribe’s ability to secure funding that’s not available to non-tribal entities.

The CBE, meanwhile, is largely funded by Security National, a real estate loan acquisition and servicing company founded by Robin P. Arkley, II, who in 2021 declared his intent to fight the city’s plans in the courts and at the ballot box. His corporation is also funding “The Eureka Housing for All and Downtown Vitality Initiative,” which will appear on ballots this November. 

Here’s the press release from the Citizens for a Better Eureka:

Citizens for a Better Eureka announced today they will continue with its lawsuits against the City regarding the development of downtown but will withdraw the current motions for injunctions against the City.

The CEQA lawsuits were pursued because the members didn’t believe the city had fully considered the impacts its plan would have on the economic vitality of downtown. Although members understood the likelihood of obtaining injunctions was low, they decided to pursue them to secure more certainty that the City could not move forward with its plan. At the same time, the CEQA lawsuits were still undecided.

“There’s an initiative qualified for the November ballot, and there is currently very little funding for the downtown developments, so it is better not to waste the court’s time with these injunctions,” Michelle Costantine, a CBE member, said.

After re-evaluating the injunctions in light of receiving additional information about the City’s plans, the members did not feel it was necessary to continue with the current injunctions and elected to withdraw them for the present time.

Citizens for a Better Eureka remains deeply interested in creating housing for City residents at all income levels and the economic vitality of downtown. The members are focused on addressing the misinformation that continues to permeate regarding their intentions with the initiative and the lawsuits.

The Citizens for a Better Eureka is a nonprofit organization of more than 60 Eureka downtown business owners and concerned citizens advocating for smart downtown planning and a vibrant local economy.

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[NOTE: This post has been updated from its original version to include replies from Eureka City Manager Miles Slattery.]

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