Freshwater Park will go without its iconic dam-made swimming hole for the third year in a row due to a torrent of logistical issues that will prevent the County of Humboldt from reinstalling the seasonal dam for another year, and possibly indefinitely.

Andrew Bundschuh, the Environmental Permitting and Compliance Manager for the county’s Public Works Department, told the Outpost that expired permits, the pandemic, drought, unfinished research for the dam’s fish ladder and modern environmental regulations have all contributed to the extended closure of the beloved Freshwater Creek pool.

“There’s still a lot of stuff to work out,” Bundschuh said.

For starters, the county’s decade-old permits for the dam and fish ladder expired in 2020. In order to reinstall the dam, the county needs to once again complete a successful review with various federal and state regulatory agencies, including the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the California Northcoast Regional Water Quality Control Board, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the National Marine Fisheries Service. 

“The permitting is basically for everything involved in installing the dam,” Bundschuh said. “There’s certain work that needs to be done. Boards are put in with a crane and we have to go in and smooth-out the creek bed to get the crane down there. During many winters, the fish ladder fills up with mud and silt. There’s lots of prep work covered in the permits. Then there’s the installation and the removal of the dam.”

A majority of these permits are designed to protect the fish that use the creek as a nursery and seasonal habitat. Cal Poly Humboldt Fisheries Professor Darren Ward said this includes three types of endangered salmon.

“Freshwater Creek supports three salmonids that are listed on the federal Endangered Species Act,” Ward said. “Coho salmon, chinook salmon, and steelhead trout, along with a suite of other native species including cutthroat trout, three-spined sticklebacks, sculpins, and lampreys.” 

While local salmon populations have been smaller in recent years, Ward said that there is a lot of variation with annual breeding, and that there is currently an abundance of coho juveniles living in the Freshwater Creek.

“The spawning season this past winter was actually a really good one for coho salmon and there are lots of juvenile salmon rearing in the creek right now,” he said. “These juveniles need to spend a year growing in the stream before they head out to the ocean.”

In order to reobtain its Freshwater dam permits, the county will need to develop a thorough system for placing and removing the dam that won’t harm these endangered species. Part of that process, Bundschuh said, will include “electrofishing” —  a method used by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to stun fish and other aquatic animals with electricity in order to sample or remove them from specific areas.

In the past, the county was able to install the dam by slowly scaring fish out of the area without electrocution. But Bundschuh said that the National Marine Fisheries Service now defines this method of frightening the fish as an example of illegally “taking“ endangered salmon.

“We hire consultants to do the electroshocking, which costs several thousand dollars,” he said. “The County Parks Department has been bleeding money for years. But the CDFW has agreed to assist us with the electroshocking and relocations, so we don’t have to spend $5,000 every summer. It’s a sign that the CDFW supports the project.”

By partnering with the CDFW, the county can piggyback on the agency’s scientific research permit exemption utilize trained CDFW employees to legally shock and remove listed fish species as long as the act is done for scientific research and collection purposes.

While the county may have found a manageable solution for its annual fish-relocation process, the most unpredictable problem still facing the Freshwater dam project continues to be the “megadrought” affecting much of the Western U.S. 

Even with proper permits, Bundschuh said that the dam could not have been installed this year due to the creek’s extremely low water levels. The creek is a drainage basin for the Kneeland area that’s fueled by naturally flowing springs of rainwater and snowmelt that ultimately empties into Humboldt Bay. But with nearly all of Humboldt County in a state of severe drought, there simply isn’t enough water to fill the dam without dramatically affecting the endangered fish downstream. It’s a familiar problem for the county, which has been shutting down the swimming hole during years with insufficient water flow since 2001.

“With climate change, it seems like we’re getting more and more extreme drought,” Bundschuh said. “We’re really going to be dependent on creek flow conditions. In major drought years, we won’t be able to install the dam without detrimental impacts to fish downstream.”

The Marine Fisheries Service currently requires minimum flow conditions of more than 5 cubic feet per second for the dam to be placed in Freshwater Creek. When the county assessed the creek in May, a month before the traditional dam installation period, water flow had already dropped to 2 cubic feet per second — well below the required level for dam-supplied summer swims.

Freshwater Park County Supervisor Michael Orr, who’s worked on the Freshwater dam project for nearly 30 years, told the Outpost that these are the worst summer creek conditions he’s ever seen.

“In 30 years, I’ve never seen a flow as low as this,” Orr said. “It’s an extreme low. Thank goodness for those spring rains we had. The creek looks like it does in September during the driest of years.”

To make matters more difficult for the county, the permitting agencies are requesting that the dam never be installed before late June due to a small number of coho salmon that may still be out-migrating at that time. With strict flow requirements in place and rapidly dwindling summer water levels, Bundschuh said that the county is going to have a difficult time finding a slot where the dam can be installed.

“As a result, the dam may not go in every year based on flow conditions,” he said.”If we don’t meet those flow conditions in June, then the NMFS and all the national regulatory agencies can say: ‘You’re not installing the dam.’”

While dams are synonymous with environmental issues, Bundschuh said that Freshwater’s seasonal dam actually provides an ideal habitat for salmon during the hot summer months. This beneficial, man-made habitat, he said, is a major incentive for the permitting government agencies to work with the county and get the dam back in compliance.

“When I started working for the County of Humboldt in 2006, right before we installed the fish ladder, we surveyed the pool behind the dam on Freshwater Creek,” Bundschuh said. “It provided some of the best habitat for fish within Freshwater Creek because it’s a deep, cold pool for them to hang out in. The agencies recognize that the dam creates a cool-water refugium. [Obtaining the permits] is just a matter of making sure we’re all on the same page.”

In addition to the beneficial pools, Bundschuh said that the dam also has a one-of-a-kind wooden fish ladder that was developed and installed with the help of Humboldt State University Students before the 2010 summer season. 

The fish ladder’s wooden baffles.

“You’ll never find anything like this anywhere else,” Bundschuh said about the small community dam and its humble wooden fish ladder. “Basically, HSU Engineering and Fisheries students came up with the contraption. This thing was made out of plywood and was only meant to be used for a couple of years. Our permanent ladder is based on that design.”

This fish ladder has allowed the salmon, including juveniles, to navigate around the Freshwater Creek dam for more than a decade. However, the ladder’s wooden baffles, which were initially meant to be temporary, are now rotting away and the county is racing to develop new, more efficient baffles that currently don’t exist in order to meet modern-day standards.

Despite all these issues, Bundschuh, like a salmon swimming upstream, is actively working toward completing the permitting process, and hopes to reopen the swimming hole by next year.

“I hope to have it open by next year,” he said. “I don’t see any reason why it can’t, other than mother nature intervening. We have time. I feel confident that we will come up with something that works for the county and the agencies in order to establish a public swimming area for years to come.”

Marshall L’Herault (July 28th, 1965 - June 30th, 2022)

It is with much sadness that we announce the death of our brother, Marshall L’Herault. Born in Illinois, the youngest of five boys, and raised in Rhinelander, Wisconsin, he was from a very young age an adventurer, always looking for the next exciting aspect of life. He loved his family, his friends, Humboldt County, Nature, camping, fishing, golfing, reading, political discourse, all types of music, skate-boarding, skiing, rock climbing, kite flying, surfing, philosophy, and woodworking.

Unfortunately, during the last 10 years of his life he succumbed to a disorder he was unable to overcome. He was a very kind, peaceful, intelligent man who was curious about the world around him.

Marshall has joined his beloved grandparents Leon and Helene Bank, his mother Carol L’Herault, his brother Matthew L’Herogan, and his uncle David Bank. He is survived by his uncle Larry, three older brothers Marc, Mitch, Marty and their families.

Marshall will forever be remembered and missed. 

Eleanor Estelle Lendahl was born August 8, 1943 at Trinity Hospital in Arcata, to Jack and Eleanor Sheppard. She passed away after a long fight with lung cancer at the age of 78 on May 25, 2022.

Eleanor went to College Elementary School and Arcata High School, graduating in 1961. After high school, Eleanor went to work for Pacific Bell. During this time, she married Rex Lendahl. They lived at Maple Creek Cutoff for many years, where they enjoyed horses, being outdoors, and living the ranch life. She loved her neighbors, who she called “the hill people”, with whom she spent many happy hours in conversation. When her marriage to Rex ended, she went to work for Arcata Liquors. Some may remember her decades of work there and her no-nonsense demeanor with the many colorful characters on the Plaza, as well as her giving spirit and sense of humor.

Eleanor was preceded in death by her parents, Jack and Eleanor Sheppard, brother Bill Sheppard, and husband Rex Lendahl. She is survived by her brother Roy Sheppard (Sylvia) and sister-in- law Myrna Sheppard; nephews and nieces Paul Sheppard (Laurie), Pam Sheppard Getchell (Howard), Holly Sheppard Aitken (Neil) Jack Sheppard (Paula), Kelly Sheppard and many great- nephews and great-nieces.

The family would like to thank Myrna Sheppard and Alder Bay Assisted Living for their compassionate care of Eleanor. If you wish, you can make a donation to American Cancer Society in Eleanor’s name.

And that’s a wrap! The Humboldt County Elections Office just posted its “Final Cumulative Report” of the June 7 primary election results and, as far as the semi-close local races of consequence are concerned, nothing has changed since the previous update! OK!

This means, of course, Natalie Arroyo will be your next Fourth District Supervisor, as she somewhat easily avoided the chore of devoting energy to what would surely have been an anticlimactic runoff against runner-up Mike Newman. The Clerk-Recorder/Registrar of Voters race, though, is still in runoff territory, as it was when last we checked, meaning that Tiffany Hunt Nielsen and Juan Pablo Cervantes will face off again come this November. The outcomes of all the other local races were clear on election night. The end. 

So that’s it! Thank you, all, for democracy-ing! If you’d like to pore over the county’s final report for some reason you can click on over to the county’s website here.

PREVIOUSLY: LoCO ELECTION NIGHT COVERAGE

UPDATE, 2:50 p.m.:

The Eureka Police Department shared the following statement:

This is an ongoing investigation. Upon a determination made by the fire inspector as to the origin of the fire, as per the press release likely human caused, we will take an arson report. There is no information at this time to show that the fire, if determined to be human caused, was set intentionally simply because the trailers were to be used to shelter houseless community members.

UPDATE, 2:04 p.m.:

The following is a press release from Humboldt Bay Fire:

At 12:22 A.M. four units from Humboldt Bay Fire were dispatched to a reported structure fire at the Foot of Hilfiker Lane in Eureka. While units were enroute, Humboldt Bay Fire Dispatch received additional reports that multiple large trailers were on fire. The first arriving Humboldt Bay Fire Engine arrived on scene and found six wood-framed single-wide portable construction type trailers fully involved with fire with additional nearby trailers burning on the outside from radiant heat.

The initial Company Officer requested a second alarm and declared that the fire was a defensive operation. Additional responding units had their access hindered by passers-by in vehicles and motorhomes driving in to watch the operations. Eureka Police Officers were requested to control traffic to allow access for emergency apparatus only. As additional units arrived, personnel checked the nearby trailers for any occupants. Once the trailers were confirmed unoccupied, multiple master streams were put in to place. Fire personnel had the fire controlled within an hour. Pacific Gas and Electric was requested to respond to confirm that the nearby utility poles and electrical lines were not damaged.

The fire is under investigation but appears to be human-caused as there were no electrical or gas services to any of the trailers. Humboldt Bay Fire would like to thank their allied emergency partners for their assistance: Arcata Fire Protection District, Blue Lake Volunteer Fire Department, Eureka Police Department, City Ambulance, and Pacific Gas and Electric. There were no injuries to fire personnel or civilians, nor any damage to the residence located next to the trailers or the Humboldt Bay Fire Training Center.

The 11 modular trailers were originally donated by PG&E for a Betty Chin Housing project in 2017, six of the 11 trailers were destroyed in the fire and the other 5 were damaged. The trailers will be demolished and removed from the site due to the safety hazard they present. This will not prevent the project from moving forward as the City of Eureka has secured State funding to purchase new trailers for Betty’s housing project at the site. Unfortunately, it won’t allow for the trailers to be donated for reuse as planned. Infrastructure development is planned for the site on the Crawley property in the near future.

For further information regarding the fire incident please call 441-4000; for further information regarding the Betty Chin Housing project please call City Manager Miles Slattery at 441-4184.

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Original Post:

Large machinery could be seen clearing charred debris Thursday morning after at least six of the 11 PG&E trailers donated to the Betty Kwan Chinn Homeless Foundation to help folks struggling to find housing were destroyed in a fire at the foot of Hilfiker Lane in Eureka.

“I feel like I broke my promise to PG&E and our community,” Chinn told the Outpost this morning. “I went over there this morning and it was really emotional. We’ve been working on this for the last four or five years and now it’s gone. I feel really bad.”

The cause of the fire and the extent of the damage remains unclear. At least six trailers were completely destroyed in the early morning blaze, she said, but the smoke damage could render the remaining trailers useless. No one was injured and there are no suspects at this time. 

Location of the now-destroyed trailers

The housing project was proposed back in 2017 when PG&E agreed to donate 12 trailers to Chinn’s foundation to be converted into modular housing units. The trailers were placed on the Crowley site and have been sitting vacant for years while the City of Eureka worked through the necessary steps to allow for a housing development on the site.

The Eureka City Council voted unanimously to adopt the Coastal Development Permit needed for the site almost exactly one year ago but there were still a handful of improvements required for the property before the trailers could be lived in.

The Outpost reached out to the Eureka Police Department and Humboldt Bay Fire seeking additional information. We will update when we hear back.

PREVIOUSLY:

• Betty Chinn’s Trailer Housing Project One Step Closer to Reality After Eureka City Council Approves Coastal Development Permit for Property Off South Broadway
• (VIDEO) Eureka Considering New Transitional Housing Facility Off the Hikshari Trail, on City Property; Chinn Would Run ‘Betty’s PG&E Village’
• New Betty Chinn Transitional Housing on the Eureka City Council Agenda Tomorrow; Trailer Village Could Open Near Hikshari Trail
• Trailers Off the Table: City Abruptly Yanks New Betty Chinn Project From Tonight’s Agenda
• Remember Those Trailers PG&E Donated to Eureka for Transitional Housing? After a False Start, the City’s Gearing Up Again to Get Them Occupied
• EUREKA CITY COUNCIL: The City May Make a Few Zoning Changes, Including to the Site Which Holds Betty’s PG&E Trailers
• Eureka City Council Discusses Efforts to Address Homelessness During COVID-19 Crisis
• Eureka City Council Advances Ordinance Banning Camping In Parks, Near Trails and In Several Business Districts
• Eureka City Council Set to Finalize Agreement With Needle-Exchange Program, Clear Remaining Red Tape on Betty Chinn Trailer Village off South Broadway
• Eureka City Council Poised to Finalize Permitting for Betty Chinn Trailer Village Near Hikshari Trail; Project Could Be Completed Soon, Unless Someone Files an Appeal

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Videos of last night’s blaze from Redheaded Blackbelt

The announcement at last night’s game. | NCNTV

Senator Mike McGuire drew cheers from the crowd at last night’s Crabs game after he announced that the state still will provide $1 million in funding to renovate the Arcata Ballpark.

“For nearly 80 years, the Humboldt Crabs have been bringing joy to the North Coast,” McGuire stated on social media today. “The team is beloved. That’s why we couldn’t be more thrilled to announce a $1 million investment in Arcata Ballpark by the State of California for a major renovation.”

The state has earmarked the funding for stadium improvements, including added disability access, a new front facade and the construction of a new ballpark entrance. However, the Humboldt Crabs organization has implied that additional improvements may be possible.

“What would you Crabs fans like the City of Arcata to spend the money on at the ballpark?” the team asked on social media yesterday.

A popular response among Crabs fans was a request for larger, higher-quality bleachers. Standing room and picnic areas included, the ballpark currently has a maximum capacity of 1,600 people. It’s unclear at this time if renovations could enhance the park’s seating capacity.

“We’re so excited to see what the future holds for Crabs baseball,” McGuire said.

Flora Annette Brazil Sauers was born to John and Mary Brazil on March 3, 1938. She died on June 24, 2022 at the age of 84.

Flora was raised in Fortuna and graduated from Fortuna High School. She married Crayton Sauers and they had three boys, Kenny, Tony and Jerry. She worked in a paint store in Eureka, and simultaneously continued working the sheep and dairy cows on the Brazil ranch in Fortuna, while raising her boys, with the help of her mother Mary her sister Irene (Annette and Rick) and her brother John (Jojo and Madeleine). After the family sold the sheep and dairy cows, Flora went to work for the USPS as a mail carrier in Fortuna until she retired 20 years later. She was a hard worker, an avid gardener, and loved her family.

Flora was preceded in death by her parents. She is survived by her sister Irene Ingham, her brother John Brazil, her three boys Kenny Sauers (Carol), Tony Sauers (Cindi), and Jerry Sauers (Debbie) and numerous nieces, nephews, grandchildren and great grandchildren. She will be missed.

There will be a celebration of life at a later date.

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