A rendering of “Sunset Heights,” an 88-unit affordable housing project planned for a 4.18-acre plot of land near Winco. | Image via City of Eureka


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The City of Eureka is making progress on its plans to bring workforce housing to the “Sunset Heights” property — a 4.18-acre site overlooking Highway 101, between Harris and Henderson streets near Winco. Having cleared most of the bureaucratic hurdles that come with housing projects, city staff are now focused on securing the funding needed to bring the project to life.

Image: City of Eureka

Need a little refresher? In 2022, the city traded three publicly owned downtown parking lots for the mostly vacant Sunset Heights site to facilitate the development of affordable housing. The project will include 88 units (86 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments and two manager’s units) in four buildings, as well as two indoor community centers and two outdoor plazas. The plans  — linked here and here — include on-site laundry and bicycle storage space. The Eureka Planning Commission and Eureka Design Review Committee gave the project a final stamp of approval in December 2024. 

Now, the city, Rural Communities Housing Development Corporation (RCHDC) and Humboldt Transit Authority (HTA) are applying for funding through the Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) program, a state initiative that funds eco-friendly housing and transportation projects. The state funding would support pedestrian improvements and public transit needs within the two-mile radius of the Sunset Heights property.

Here’s where you come in! What kind of transit-related improvements would you like to see in that neighborhood? More bike-friendly infrastructure? More bus stops? You can share your thoughts with city staff at a community meeting at Alice Birney Elementary on Monday night.

“We’ve already gone through design review, so this meeting is more focused on the development and potential impacts to the neighborhood that could be mitigated with this grant funding,” Eureka City Manager Miles Slattery told the Outpost. “[This meeting] is focused on transit-related things. You know, vehicle access to and from the site, bike paths, mass transit.”

Despite concerns about impacts to the viewshed and potential traffic issues on Harris Street, Slattery said the project has received broad support from people living in the neighborhood.

“But if you have concerns, come to the meeting,” he said. “We’re doing this so that we can get input and mitigate any concerns that people may have.”

The project’s timeline is hinged on funding. If the city receives the AHSC grant award it would serve as a match for tax credits down the line and “go a long way” in closing the funding gap,” Slattery said.

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The community meeting will take place on Monday, Feb. 24, at 6:30 p.m. at Alice Birney Elementary — 717 South Ave. in Eureka. If you can’t make it to the meeting, you can attend a virtual meeting on at 12 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 26. Register for the Zoom meeting here.

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Image: City of Eureka


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