PREVIOUSLY:

Brian Mitchell addresses the board. | Photo by Ryan Burns.

After some heated public commentary across two public meetings, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors today voted 4-1, with Third District Supervisor Mike Wilson dissenting, to replace controversial at-large Planning Commissioner Lee Ulansey with Brian Mitchell of Security National Servicing Corporation.

Wilson advocated for Nicole Sager, assistant director of the Yurok Tribe’s planning department, but expressed respect for Mitchell.

Before voting, each supervisor listed their top one or two choices. Only Second District Supervisor Estelle Fennell included Ulansey in her suggestions, listing him as her second choice behind Mitchell. She also took some members of the public to task for the tone of their input last week, decrying personal attacks, “fake news reports” and insinuations that she or other members of the board could be “bought” with political donations. 

This post will be updated with more details later today.

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UPDATE, as promised:

As with last week, there was some debate at the outset of the discussion about how best to proceed with the appointment. Fifth District Supervisor Ryan Sundberg initially suggested that each supervisor list their top two candidates for the position. When he didn’t get immediate support for that idea he made a motion to nominate Mitchell.

But the rest of the board ultimately preferred Sundberg’s initial idea, so he pulled back his motion on Mitchell.

Public comment was again dominated by criticism of Ulansey. Carrie Peyton-Dahlberg of Trinidad said the political landscape has changed since Ulansey was appointed to the position in 2013. Noting the estimated 5,000-8,000 people who participated in the Women’s March over the weekend, Peyton Dahlberg said the general public is much more politically involved and demands government representatives who are respectful of their needs and aspirations.

Union rep and Democratic Assembly district delegate Allen McCloskey suggested applicants Nicole Sager and Sungnome Madrone, saying Ulansey has stoked public concerns with his political agenda and his financial contributions to four of the five county supervisors. 

Suzanne Cook, a resident of the Fifth District, mentioned that Ulansey owns nearly 200 acres of redwood timber production zone property and has applied for permission to subdivide it. This and his political donations would make his appointment suspect. “It just looks bad,” Cook said.

Brian Mitchell, a certified public accountant who has worked for local businessman Rob Arkley’s Security National Servicing Corporation since 2007, minus a two-year stint at Humboldt State University, was the only applicant to address the board this morning. He said it was an honor to be considered.

“I assure you I will listen to everyone who comes to the lectern,” Mitchell said. He also promised to respect staff and do his best to work toward consensus positions. 

When it came back to the board, Sundberg was the first to list his top two applicants: Mitchell and Virgil Moorehead, general manager of the Big Lagoon Rancheria. 

Fennell was up next, and she had some things to say before listing her names. “This has been a very difficult decision for me,” she said. She praised Ulansey for spending “an enormous amount of time and energy to protect property rights and the environment” and for being a vocal supporter of rural residents and their lifestyle. Specifically she commended him for protecting timberland at a time when the board of supervisors was considering taking away landowner rights. And she thanked him for putting his own life on hold to address these issues. “For that he has my deepest appreciation,” she said.

But the planning commission is expected to have a very full plate over the next few years, including decisions on the General Plan Update, the county’s cannabis ordinance and more. “That will require a commission that works well together [and] focuses on task at hand,” she said.

And he had one more point to make. “I was disturbed and angered by the tone of public input [last week],” she said, adding that personal attacks and partisan politics have no place in civil discourse, especially regarding a nonpartisan position. “I, for one, do not want to sink to such depths,” she said. Allegations that either she or her colleagues could be “bought” with political donations are both “negative and uninformed,” she said.

Finally, Fennell named Mitchell as her top pick and Ulansey as her No. 2.

Bohn started off by making a joke about a $1,000-per-couple fundraising dinner co-hosted by Ulansey and his wife, an event that has come under criticism in this process. “Well, it was a really good dinner,” he quipped. He, too, praised Ulansey and noted their close personal friendship, but in a surprising move he instead suggested Mitchell as his No. 1 and, as his No. 2 pick, Elizabeth Campbell, vice president of the Humboldt Association of Realtors.

In advocating for Nicole Sager, Supervisor Wilson noted that the Planning Commission, like so many other government boards, is currently made up entirely of white men. “We should be really thinking about that,” he said, noting that he marched over the weekend in support of his wife and daughters. Adding that Sager is “also extremely qualified,” he left her as his sole recommendation.

Fourth District Supervisor and board chair Virginia Bass agreed with Fennell that some of the recent public feedback felt threatening and was not the best way to get “buy-in,” and she said there’s a long history of planning commissioners making political donations to supervisors. 

She complimented Ulansey as someone who’s “smart, does his homework and asks tough questions” but said she’s also “looking for a consensus candidate.” She named Mitchell as her top choice, saying that a letter from Humboldt Baykeeper Executive Director Jen Kalt spoke volumes. While Kalt doesn’t always agree with Mitchell politically she respects him and can work with him, Bass said.

Her second recommendation was Sager. “Kind of surprising myself with this one,” she said.

Sundberg made a motion to nominate Mitchell, who had gathered the most recommendations. Fennell seconded. Wilson took a moment to say that he would be voting “no” for the reasons he stated in his support of Sager, but he added that Mitchell has shown respect for process. “I see where this is going, and I look forward to having him on the Planning Commission.”

Then came the 4-1 vote, bringing an end to Ulansey’s four-year term on the Planning Commission.