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After a violent brawl broke out in front of The Jam in Arcata over the weekend, one local bartender is planning a “Peace Picnic” – a community rally against violence – on the Arcata Plaza on Sept. 26. 

“I just felt in my heart that I had to do something,” Jennifer Whitman, a bartender at Everett’s, told the Outpost in a phone interview Tuesday morning. “I just feel like we’re becoming okay with day-to-day violence … We all have to come together and show that we care.” 

A Humboldt County resident for about 12 years, Whitman has been working the day shift on the weekends at Everett’s since January. And in that relatively short amount of time, Whitman said, she has witnessed multiple acts of anger and violence near the bar on the Arcata Plaza. She even once had to break up a knife fight. The incidents Whitman has seen vary in severity, she said, but the fighting has been frequent enough that she, other business owners and community members have become very concerned about the state of the Arcata Plaza. “It’s getting overwhelming,” she said. 

Contacted about the incident outside of The Jam this weekend, Detective Sergeant Chis Ortega of the Arcata Police Department described a very chaotic scene. At 1:11 a.m. on Sunday the APD responded to calls about a large fight on the 900 block of H Street and officers arrived to find “numerous subjects actively fighting” and “several persons down on the street with injuries.” There was also a “large and aggressive crowd,” Ortega said, which prompted APD to call for help from other law enforcement agencies. The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office, California Highway Patrol, the Cal Poly Police Department and fire and medical personnel all responded to the scene. 

Ortega said that the incident is still under investigation, but officers determined that the large fight had been started inside The Jam by a group of five or six males who, after being asked to leave the bar, started attacking bar staff, patrons and bystanders. The attackers had fled the scene before the police arrived, Ortega said, and no arrests were made. Multiple people had suffered a range of injuries including face lacerations, head injuries and loss of consciousness. One person was hospitalized after suffering two broken ribs and a punctured lung. Though rumors have surfaced that this person succumbed to their injuries, Ortega said that “no fatalities have been reported or attributed to the event.” 

APD is working to identify the attackers, Ortega added, and anyone with information is requested to contact APD at 822-2424 or 825-2558. 

When asked if there has been a lot of violent crime on and near the Arcata Plaza recently, Ortega said that he couldn’t say without looking up some actual statistics. But he did say that historically there tend to be more violent incidents in bar districts. Because of this, APD does try to do foot patrol near the bars, especially on weekends. But staffing shortages have affected how many officers the department can allocate to that area, Ortega said. 

There have been quite a few crimes, acts of violence and even one homicide on the Plaza in recent years, and how to address it has been a major discussion topic among city officials, the police department and community members. The City briefly established a Plaza Improvement Task Force to come up with suggestions on how to make the Plaza safer, and more recently the City established a Community Ambassador Program to address the issues on the Plaza. 

Whitman said she is not sure what the best way is to address the crime on the Plaza, but hopes that holding an event like the Peace Picnic will bring the community together and inspire everyone to do their part to keep Arcata a peaceful and safe place to live.

“We all need to be held responsible,” Whitman told the Outpost. “I’m just asking for awareness and for people to abide by the laws and rules that we’re all supposed to.”

Miriam Cruz Montanez was born September 3, 1949 and passed way due to cancer on September 12, 2022. Miriam resided in Eureka.

Miriam (mom) is survived by her three children: Raymond Charles Page (Loren), grandchildren Canyon and Phoenix of Bend, Oregon; Dr. Veronica Renee Wizes (Scott) of Eagle Point, Oregon, grandchild Alexandria Wizes of Charleston, South Carolina; Ricardo William Page, grandchildren Timulin and Anujin, of Eureka.

She is also survived by her ex-husband Eric V. Van Duzer and his family. Miriam and Eric built and shared a life together for 33 years.

Her siblings that she leaves behind include Ray Caunday (Trish), Mariano Caunday, Frank Caunday (Delma), Mildred Montanez (Tito), Freddie Montanez and Tamara Montanez. In addition, many nieces and nephews.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Vicente Monzon Montanez and Lydia Ester Cruz Caunday, as well as her two younger sisters, Sylvia Caunday and Wonda Caunday.

Miriam was born in Cayey, Puerto Rico. When she was two years old she and her mother Lydia came to live in the United States, both first arriving in New Jersey. Her mother worked as a housekeeper. Lydia then met and fell in love Isidoro Caunday. Miriam and her mother with Isidoro moved to the San Francisco Bay Area.

Isidoro and Lydia welcomed additional children into the family. Miriam took on the role of older sister, helping raise and care for her younger siblings.

Miriam was a spirited teenager. She loved music and she loved to dance. She loved to laugh and always enjoyed a good joke. Later in life she taught herself how to play the guitar.

When she was 15, she met the older brother of her best friend, Charles William Page. She and Charlie married when she was 16 years old. By her 17th birthday, together they had three children — Raymond, Veronica and Ricardo. She had a love for her children that reached no limits. She always gave the best, tightest hugs. She loved to celebrate their birthdays, put coins in their cakes and always made Halloween the very best, spending time to make homemade costumes.

Their life together was anything but conventional. They chose to raise their children off the grid, living and surviving in the back wood mountains of Trinity and Humboldt County. Mom learned to cook on an open fire and even ground her own wheat to make homemade bread. Charlie instilled the beauty of the outdoors and the value and benefits of reading. Miriam and Charlie remained married for 10 years.

After her divorce, in order to make a living, she and her best friend Ronnie became women house painters. They painted many homes, inside and out, in Humboldt County. She also achieved her GED. This allowed her to become employed at College of the Redwoods. She learned and become an off-set print operator, managing and running the printing department at College of the Redwoods.

During her employment at College of the Redwoods, she met and fell in love with Eric V. Van Duzer. They both developed a painting company that took them out of Humboldt County to the San Francisco Bay Area. She continued her profession as an off-set printer operator, working in Berkeley.

Eric’s educational goals and with his graduation from UC Berkeley, brought both Miriam and Eric back to Humboldt County, where they both shared in the love for the ocean and the redwoods. Excited about the birth of her first grandchild, Alexandria, Miriam opened a child care business called, “Critter Town.” She successfully ran the child care for approximately four years.

Unfortunately, for many years Miriam endured many health issues that forced her to retire from working. In her retirement she enjoyed spending time with her grandchildren, Alexandria, nicknamed Lovee, Canyon, nicknamed River Mermaid, Phoenix, nicknamed Bottle of Joy, and Timulin and Anujin, nicknamed My Imps. And of course, her dog, Mello-D.

Thank you to everyone, including both family and friends for your support and kindness during her difficult challenges.

Miriam will be deeply missed. A celebration of her life will be planned for the Spring of 2023.

“The Sands Have Shifted, Long Before I awaited, Their Fiercest Force, Unafraid Storm called Life. -Peace Out” MCM

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The obituary above was submitted by Miriam Montanez’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.

On Wednesday, August 17, 2022, Ron Lee Carterby passed away peacefully surrounded by his wife and five children. He was 67 years old. Born to Ruth and Arnold “Art” Carterby on October 27, 1954 in Arcata, Ron graduated from McKinleyville High School in 1972. Over the years, Ron made Humboldt Country his playground. He explored areas that most of us have never seen all while viewing it from the back of his dirt bike. Ron rode motocross for many years.

Through this sport he met many friends and gained a lifetime of memories that he loved to tell anybody who would listen. He had a love for football, music, bowling, golf and sports of all kinds. He was always giving family and friends updates on where motocross riders were placing during competitions and what was happening during the Little League World Series. He would tell you these stats whether you cared to hear them or not.

His greatest love of all was his family and spending time with them. He was a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma Indian Tribe and was very proud of his heritage. He was always excited to learn about the history surrounding his tribe. He was thrilled to discover that one of our own family members (Ben Carterby) was a Code Talker during WWI.

Ron was preceded in death by his father Arnold “Art“ Carterby and other extended family members. He is survived by his mother Ruth Carterby, sister Lorrie (Garth) VanVoltenberg, wife Kathy Carterby along with his five children: Jesse Carterby, Ashley (Guy) Walkner, Anika Carterby, Jaidyn Carterby and Brydan Carterby. Ron had two granddaughters, Tatum and Baylee Walkner, who will forever miss their Pop Pop.

The family would like to thank Eureka EMT, St. Joseph Hospital staff and especially the ICU nurses who supported the family during this difficult time.

A memorial service will be planned at a later date.

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The obituary above was submitted by Ron Carterby’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.

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On Tuesday afternoon, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to censure Planning Commission Chair Alan Bongio for derogatory and racist remarks he made during recent meetings.

The board’s motion, which was made by First District Supervisor Rex Bohn, the man who appointed Bongio to the Planning Commission nearly a decade ago, also called for Bongio to be removed — or to remove himself — from the chair position, though he must evidently take that step voluntarily since the board lacks the authority to order his removal.

While discussing the matter, Fifth District Supervisor Steve Madrone revealed that the county received a formal complaint on Monday from the Wiyot Tribe. The six-page complaint, which you can download and read in its entirety by clicking here, says Bongio used “racist and offensive language” at the Planning Commission’s August 18 hearing.

The complaint also alleges that Bongio created a hostile environment for tribal government staff and that his comments and actions revealed bias in favor of applicant Travis Schneider.

The complaint, which is signed by Tribal Administrator Michelle Vassel, Tribal Chair Ted Hernandez and the balance of the Wiyot Tribal Council, goes on to say that Planning Commissioner Melanie McCavour was given an unfair advantage in her capacity as the Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the Bear River Band of the Rohnerville Rancheria, and that her dual roles create a conflict of interest while giving her “special privileges” in conversing with the rest of the Planning Commission. 

The complaint was submitted “in the hope that the County of Humboldt Government will take action,” though no specific action is requested. “Chair Bongio’s conduct the night of August 18, 2022 was shocking, shameful and prejudice [sic] and I hope not reflective of the Humboldt County Government,” it concludes.

Madrone

Madrone, in his introductory remarks, called out Bongio’s behavior at both the August 18 meeting as well as the September 1 follow-up, saying, “It certainly did seem to me that the chair’s actions and demeanor at those meetings showed a strong disregard for respect and decorum with derogatory and racist remarks that were made by the chair towards local Native American tribes and representatives.”

He proposed establishing a formal code of conduct and a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policy to govern all county boards, pointing out that the Planning Commission was presented with a proposed set of rules in the past year or two but failed to adopt them.

Madrone also recommended that the board formally censure Bongio, adding that ideally he’d like the board to recommend that Bohn remove Bongio from the commission, “but our current rules don’t really allow us to do that as a board.” And he suggested that Bongio should be required to undergo DEI training.

County Administrative Officer Elishia Hayes told the board that the county’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion team, headed up by Dr. Jeremy Clark and Neftali Rubio-Mills, recently asked for county leaders to send a letter to local tribes outlining the county’s efforts with DEI work “and really just showing support for the tribes, who are valued community partners for the county.”

Second District Supervisor Michelle Bushnell and Fourth District Supervisor Virginia Bass expressed displeasure that the Planning Commission previously failed to adopt the county’s recommended code of conduct, and Hayes said the board has the authority to require it of them.

Dr. Jeremy Clark.

Clark stepped forward to address the board. He recounted some of the county’s recent DEI initiatives, including a series of commitments and pronouncements made on July 19. “[A]nd anytime any agent of the county operates in a manner that is inconsistent or antithetical with those, you will likely hear from from our committee,” Clark said.

Hayes said that she’s the one charged with investigating formal complaints, and she’s working with the Human Resources Division and county counsel to address the one received yesterday from the Wiyot Tribe.

About 25 minutes into the hour-plus discussion, Bohn finally weighed in, saying that, at his request, county staff arranged a DEI training for Bongio. 

“I’ve been called every name in the book this week, [told] I should resign,” Bohn said. “I guess we’re born at the hip with our appointments and things like that,” he added sarcastically. “And I appreciate everybody who’s written and especially those that want me to resign.”

Third District Supervisor Mike Wilson spoke up, saying Bongio’s language was not just offensive to the people in the room and listening to the meeting elsewhere. 

“I want to speak to the damage that was also done to the relationships with the county with our tribal counterparts, not just the ones directly involved but those also listening and hearing and the wounds that has reopened,” Wilson said. “From an institutional perspective, we need to say we’re sorry about that, we apologize about that — recognize what has happened and then re-commit ourselves to those relationships.”

Bohn then addressed the matter head-on. 

“I guarantee you, it hurt me more than probably any of you to hear what [Bongio] said, because my relationship with quite a few tribal leaders is very solid, and I have since talked with [Bongio] about that at length. And as Supervisor Madrone said, we all have bad days. We all say things we shouldn’t say … and he got caught up in the fever. And it was bad. And I’ve told Alan I was disappointed. [That] doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate him [and] his 55 years of friendship.”

He went on to commend Bongio for his 10 years on the Planning Commission “without any written complaints,” though he acknowledged that some people have complained verbally about Bongio being tough on cannabis.

“His attendance is second to none,” Bohn continued, adding that the fact Bongio was recently re-appointed as chair shows his colleagues’ respect for him. 

“Now, does he lose that respect the other night? I would hope so,” Bohn said. He went on to say that Bongio has agreed to attend more DEI training and has tried to reach out to the local tribes. 

“And we can all learn from our tribes,” Bohn said. “They’ve got a great approach on managing the lands. We’re seeing that [with] fire; we’re seeing that culturally. They’ve got some some great ideas.”

Bohn said he agreed with the request to censure Bongio and would agree to ask him to step down as chair. “But if we’re going to ask every one of us that ever makes a mistake — .” He left that thought unfinished but went on to reiterate his disappointment in Bongio’s actions.

“I support him going forward and learning about the cultural aspects of our native population, and we’ve all learned a little bit about Native populations in the last two years, four years, 10 years,” Bohn said. “I think we’ve all learned a little bit [about] where they stand and that we have to respect all native — we can’t pick. We have to respect them all. And so I would make the motion to censor him [sic] and have him step down as chair, if he decides. That would be up to him.”

Bohn said Bongio doesn’t appear to have a history of such behavior. “It was a bad day,” he said. “I don’t know what happened to him.”

Bongio wanted to attend today’s meeting but was out of town, Bohn said. 

Bohn

“I will still support my friend,” he continued. “I will still be appalled at the reprehensible statements he made and the way they were presented. …  and much like the Native Americans and ourselves and what we all do, we’re not going to get anywhere unless we’re forgiving.”

Bohn said he doesn’t like the idea of, “If you offended us, we cancel you.” 

“I just can’t bring myself to it. Because I’ve spent 68 years on this planet, a majority of those trying to help our community, build our community and hopefully sometimes in there, being forgiving with people … ,” he said.

Bohn again advocated for further training and education for Bongio to “make him a better person, which is going to make him a better planning commissioner.”

He concluded, “I can’t fire my friend. I’m sorry.” He then made a motion to have the board censure Bongio, ask him to step down as chair of the Planning Commission and participate in further training.

Wilson asked whether Bohn would be willing to make an addition to his motion directing staff to send a letter to the tribes acknowledging the situation and inviting them to connect with the county’s DEI staff. Bohn said he was fine with that suggestion.

Wilson spoke up again, saying he wanted to push back against the notion that a solution can be found simply through education and training.

“It’s not just about learning about another person’s culture,” he said. “It’s really having to look deep inside yourself about the biases that we carry, and how do we move on that arc towards ridding ourselves of those biases, or working really hard on that? That is actually the real work … .”

Wilson said Bongio’s recent comments revealed deep-seated biases that he’s been carrying. “It’s not like it just showed up one day and there it was,” he said. “And it’s going to take work to remove it. … And I’m saying that we all carry all kinds of biases, that we need to work on those things, challenge ourselves and appreciate those challenges.”

Wilson said he’d like to see that work from the Planning Commission as well as himself, adding that there are also biases around “who you know,” who owns land and resources and who’s in control.

The board went on to discuss the mechanics of getting Bongio to step down as chair, given the board’s limited authority over the Planning Commission.

Bohn said he’s hopeful that Bongio will be “respectful enough of the motion to resign at the next meeting,” but Madrone expressed doubt about the board’s ability to ensure that result.

Finally, Bohn said that if Bongio refuses to give up his chairmanship, Bohn will ask him to resign. “I think that will take care of all your problems,” he said, adding once again an expression of appreciation for Bongio as a friend as well as someone who “pounds nails” for a living and “knows how to get project through and what it takes.”

Madrone thanked Bohn for that commitment and for his willingness to see how serious the situation was.

The board unanimously approved the motion.

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PREVIOUSLY:

• Heated Meeting Sparks Accusations of Dishonesty and Discrimination, Opening Rift Between Tribes and Humboldt County Planning Commission
• Despite Silence From Tribes, Mega-Home Builder Optimistic Ahead of Tonight’s Continued Planning Commission Hearing to Address Permit Violation Fallout
• After Rebukes and Apologies for Bongio’s ‘Disrespectful’ Comments, Planning Commission Defers Decision on Mega-Home Permits
• ‘Unfit to Serve’: Local Environmental, Social Justice Groups Call for Resignation or Replacement of Planning Commissioner Alan Bongio
• County Supes to Consider Censure of Planning Commission Chair Alan Bongio for Inappropriate Conduct

Six Rivers National Forest release: 

Isolated rain events in early August released tons of suspended sediment downstream from the McKinney Fire. Soil, ash, and other organic matter was discharged creating highly turbid water which is still visible within the Klamath River today.

In response, the Six Rivers National Forest Fisheries Program in partnership with the Klamath Basin Fish Health Assessment Team (KFHAT), have been monitoring water quality and fish health conditions within the Klamath River. Crews are surveying mainstem refuges and incoming cold tributaries where adult fish typically hold during their migration. A portion of these adult Chinook and steelhead have been showing visible signs of Flavobacterium columnare (bacterial gill rot) and Ichthyophthirius multifillis (Ich infection—a parasite in the Phylum Ciliophora). These fish diseases are not uncommon for the Klamath River, but sick and dead Chinook salmon have been observed over the past six weeks throughout most of the basin which is uncommon.
 
“High stream temperatures coupled with low flow conditions from late July through early September certainly worsened the situation within the Klamath River,” says LeRoy Cyr, District Fish Biologist on the Orleans, Ukonom, and Lower Trinity Ranger District.

Organic debris and filamentous bacteria found in Chinook gills

Thermal fish refuge at Dillon Creek confluence

Moribund Chinook holding near tributary confluence

Chinook and Klamath River Small Scale Sucker carcass recovery

Six Rivers National Forest fish studies also show a lot of migrating adult Chinook and steelhead crowding into small thermal refuges where these pathogens can quickly spread. Since early August, the Klamath River mainstem discharge at Orleans has been hovering around 1.600 cubic feet per second (c.f.s.) until September 10th when release flows below Iron Gate bumped it up to 2,400 cfs. As a result, mainstem temperatures dropped from 24° to 20° C.
 
“We are hopeful that more forecasted rain in the coming weeks can further improve conditions, but the KFHAT is still very concerned about the overall health, migration, and spawning success of this fish run,” says Cyr. “It is imperative that we continue to work together to monitor, report, and find a future course of action.”
 
The KFHAT was formed in 2003 when a large fish kill occurred resulting in the loss of about 35,000 adult Chinook salmon. Low flows, high temperatures and high fish densities in September 2003 allowed disease to run rampant. Since that time, basin partners have worked together to develop preventative measures that safeguard against such a catastrophic fish kill from occurring again. The group is currently carrying out weekly meetings and real-time communication due to the on-going elevated concerns throughout much of the basin.
 
On September 9, 2022, the group was able to complete a fish kill response training event (the first in several years), with attendees representing US Forest Service, CA Dept. Fish & Wildlife, CA Waterboards, Karuk Tribe, Yurok Tribe, US Fish &Wildlife Service, Salmon River Restoration Council and Mid-Klamath Watershed Council.
 
“The Klamath Fish Health Assessment Team allows us to bring together data from across the basin, and provide both updates to the public, as well as information and potential recommendations to resource managers,” says Dan Troxel, Environmental Scientist for California Department of Fish and Wildlife. “Data from KFHAT and similar technical workgroups informed the decisions which provided additional releases of water down the Trinity River in late August 2022 to ameliorate disease concerns in the lower Klamath River. However, this may have also served to allow more fish to migrate into the mid-Klamath region, where environmental and disease concerns are equally problematic, resulting in the high concentrations of fish observed by USFS Orleans.
 
Six Rivers National Forest and the KFHAT team will continue to be vigilant and monitor this situation as it progresses.

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PREVIOUSLY: PG&E’s Electricity Transmission Limits Threaten to Throttle Development Throughout Southern Humboldt, Blindsiding Local Officials

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In reporting yesterday’s story about the recent revelation that PG&E has all but reached the limits of its capacity to transmit electricity to new projects across southern Humboldt County, the Outpost asked the utility a series of questions.

Among them: Why didn’t PG&E anticipate these issues and address them earlier? When did PG&E become aware of the capacity issues, and why weren’t local officials warned earlier? Does PG&E blame cannabis projects for the situation?

PG&E did not respond before our story deadline, but spokesperson Deanna Contreras emailed a statement this morning. It addresses some of the questions we’d asked, but not all. And it raises others.

For example, while the statement below says short-term capacity work will allow the new Jerold Phelps Community Hospital in Garberville to move forward, it does not offer a timeline for other improvement, including a line reconductoring project and substation upgrades to increase capacity in Fortuna, Rio Dell and Garberville.

We have requested more information, including details about how much capacity will be added via the reconductoring project and upgrades mentioned in the statement along with the timeline for that work. We’ll let you know if and when we hear back.

Here’s the statement from PG&E:

PG&E’s grid planning process carefully considers the energy needs of the 16 million customers we serve in Northern and Central California, including our hometowns in the North Coast. As part of our Distribution Planning Process, we annually forecast load growth to assess needs on the electric distribution system and create plans and projects to address them. Similarly, the CAISO’s annual Transmission Planning Process forecasts load growth on the electric transmission system. Examples of projects created to address needs in this vital part of our service area include the Humboldt Bay Power Plant which opened in 2010 specifically to support local capacity needs, and the more recent Redwood Coast Airport Microgrid, which provides grid resiliency and additional local generation.

Our multi-year grid plan is addressing needs in this area through projects already in progress, and others planned over the next few years. These include a line reconductoring project and upgrades to the Rio Dell substation to increase capacity in Fortuna and Rio Dell; transmission and distribution system line reconductoring, and upgrades at the Garberville substation, to increase capacity for serving the Garberville area.

While some of this work is longer-term, in the short-term our capacity work planned through next year will support smaller energy load applications, such as the new Jerold Phelps Community Hospital in Garberville, to move forward.

Building new transmission facilities requires engagement from multiple parties, including our customers, landowners, environmental regulators, and the CAISO.  We are committed to working creatively and collaboratively to develop standard and creative solutions to meet our customers’ needs.

It is our privilege and our obligation to serve all our customers.  To do that, we generally follow a first-in, first-out approach to grid project planning, while prioritizing the most important projects in each area, including our North Coast region. It’s critical to maintain open two-way communication with our customers and communities at the earliest indication of potential growth projects. Our regional service model, launched in 2021, is designed to facilitate that communication. We acknowledge that past projects have experienced delays, and we are dedicated to continuous improvement so that we are doing the right work the right way to support local economic growth and vitality.

UPDATE, 12:20 p.m.: Well, that went about as you’d expect! Less than three hours after the Sara Bareilles concert announcement was made, Eureka Mayor Susan Seaman has confirmed to LoCO that all of the roughly 11,000 free tickets to next month’s show have been claimed. We’d like to think we played a part, but more likely Sara video-promoting the show on her social media did the job. 

Anyway, way to spot a deal, Humboldt. See you at Halvorsen Park!

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Sara! | Photo: Justin Higuchi, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Original Post: It is not often that LoCO gets to bring you happy-making news of this magnitude, but after some lengthy negotiations between city officials and a certain beloved hometown hero, we can now confirm that Sara Bareilles will be playing a concert in Eureka’s Halvorsen Park on Sunday, Oct. 16. 

Oh, by the way, those wishing to attend will need to secure tickets, but said tickets are free. This is happening, people!

More details can be found in the City of Eureka release below:

The internationally-acclaimed musician, actor, and writer Sara Bareilles is returning home to perform a special community concert on Sunday, October 16, at Halvorsen Park on the Eureka waterfront. Live music is scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m., and opening acts will include local performers hand-selected by Bareilles.

“I am so lucky to be able to come home and share music and appreciation for the community that raised me.” says Bareilles. “It has been such a long time since I have been able to do a show for my hometown, and this year felt like a good year to make an effort to spread some joy. The roots of my music and my artistry come from Humboldt County, and I am who I am because of where I’m from. I hope to simply bring some music and gratitude to the community to say thank you for being my home.”

Eureka Mayor Susan Seaman adds, “This is an exciting opportunity for our community to come together and celebrate our shared love of this city and all of the wonderful art, culture, and craftsmanship it inspires. We are so proud of Sara’s nationally acclaimed success and her continued support of the arts and the many wonderful non-profit organizations in our community.”

“This concert is a big deal,” City Manager Miles Slattery said. “We are all especially excited that Sara is sharing this performance with us in a way that will allow everyone in our community to participate. Personally, I am really looking forward to spending the day enjoying the park and the waterfront with my friends, family, and neighbors.”

Although entry will be free, tickets will be required and can be reserved in advance at visiteureka.com/sbconcert. Up to six tickets may be reserved at a time and an individual ticket will be needed for each attendee regardless of age. Ticket reservations will be closed when venue capacity is reached.

Concert goers are invited to bring picnic baskets or small soft-sided coolers, folding chairs, and blankets. On-site food trucks and beverage vendors will also offer refreshments for purchase, and all vendors will be donating a portion of their proceeds to local non-profit organizations.

A free city shuttle will help bring attendees to the event from several designated special event parking locations across the city.
More information is available at visiteureka.com/SBConcert.

 ABOUT SARA BAREILLES

Sara Bareilles’ performances on the world’s largest concert stages, as well as on Broadway and television have made her internationally acclaimed, but her success remains a significant point of pride for Humboldt County. Many consider her to be Eureka’s favorite daughter.

Bareilles burst onto the national music scene in 2007 with her single “Love Song,” which spent 41 weeks on the Billboard top 100 chart, 19 weeks in the top ten. Other hits and millions of album sales followed, but perhaps more importantly, other doors were opened for Bareilles to broaden her reach. In 2015 she wrote the lyrics, composed the music, and later starred in the hit show Waitress on Broadway, for which she received a Tony nomination. More recently she stars as Dawn Solano in the ongoing TV series, Girls5eva, and in 2022 played the Baker’s Wife in the critically acclaimed run of Sondheim’s Into The Woods on Broadway.

But Bareilles’ impact locally extends well beyond her accomplishments in entertainment. Her philanthropic legacy has helped fund a variety of youth-empowerment programs in Humboldt County and beyond, and she consistently acknowledges the positive impact that growing up on California’s North Coast has had on her success.
 
ABOUT THE CITY OF EUREKA

As the county seat of world-famous Humboldt County, California, the city of Eureka (Pop. 27k) is the heart of the U.S. Redwood Coast. Eureka is the market and cultural center of a beautiful region filled with iconic redwoods – the world’s tallest trees – and stunningly beautiful, rugged, and remote ocean landscapes. Eureka is the largest coastal city between San Francisco and Portland and a frequent stopover point for road trippers exploring the Pacific Northwest.

Culturally protected by the ‘redwood curtain,’ the city is most famous for its unique Victorian architecture, one-of-a-kind shops and artisanal businesses, and its rich, authentic history. Learn more at visiteureka.com.