The summer is certainly a season for taking a little extra time off, enjoying the rivers, drinking beer and barbecuing. But, like the rest of the year, the jobs of our dedicated public servants do not cease. Although the Arcata City Council seems to be taking a vacation, with its next scheduled meeting canceled, the Eureka City Council members continue to do their duty, bravely trudging to the muggy chambers of City Hall to make those important decisions that keep their town running.

At next week’s meeting the Eureka City Council will discuss some very exciting issues, such as adopting a resolution authorizing city staff to apply for SB 2 Planning Grant funds.

Ok. Maybe that doesn’t seem that exciting. Maybe everything on the upcoming agenda actually seems incredibly boring. But this is only because whoever writes those agendas doesn’t know how to make it sexy, LoCO-style! The Outpost tries to keep you, dear readers, up to date on the happenings of your local government. And this next meeting will be no exception. We will get you excited for this, no matter how difficult the Eureka city staff tries to make that task.

Here are some other (not boring) items on the upcoming Eureka City Council agenda:

Water Improvements Project Acceptance

In May of 2018 the Water Improvement Project was brought before the council. The project, awarded to Wahlund Construction, consisted of replacing a city water main with a new water main. According to the staff report, “the new water line will prevent continued maintenance, ensure the safety of the City’s drinking water and the integrity of the water distribution system.”

The project has already been completed, but with some changes in cost throughout the process. Basically the council is set to authorize the new bid amount and authorize filing a “notice of completion” at the Office of the County Recorder.

Wow. That does sound pretty boring. It was actually kind of hard to write that without falling asleep. Maybe the next item will be a little better.

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Destruction of Records

Well, obviously this is thrilling. What’s not exciting about destruction? Every so often, the city must do a little housekeeping and make some room by disposing of old documents that are out-of-date and no longer useful. At the next meeting the council will authorize the destruction of some police records and some from the city clerk’s office.

How does the city destroy these records? Imagine city staff gathering all the boxes of records in a vacant lot. Mayor Susan Seaman suits up and destroys them with a flamethrower.

This is not at all what will happen. The documents will be shredded. But that is boring and it is more exciting to imagine the flamethrower thing.

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Eureka Municipal Code - New Streets Chapter

Did you know that the city owns and maintains over 114 miles of streets and public right-of-way? Holy smokes! Well, those streets sometimes need to be excavated for installing utilities such as water, sewer, gas, etc. And each time that happens, those streets degrade faster, requiring more maintenance, which costs the city more money.

What can be done about this? Well, according to the staff report, some degradation is pretty much unavoidable. Oh well. But there are some work methods that are “superior to others with regard to quality and longevity.”

That’s why the City Council will possibly pass an ordinance which puts a new chapter in the municipal code establishing some new standards for street repairs. You can read about the changes included in the chapter here. 

And if you think that is street repair is boring, then the Outpost staff just feels sorry for you.

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The Eureka City Council meets on Tuesday, August 6 at 6:00 p.m. at Eureka City Hall — 531 K Street. After this article, you probably can hardly wait!