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A group of concerned Blue Lake residents gathered in the evening sun at Perigot Park last night to launch a citizen recall effort against three of the town’s city council members, who they believe to be responsible for ousting City Manager Amanda “Mandy” Mager during a closed session meeting on Tuesday.

The council did not announce any official action when it came out of closed session and employees yesterday refused to answer direct questions about Mager’s employment status. Early this afternoon, Blue Lake Finance Manager Dani Burkhart emailed the following statement:

City Manager Amanda “Mandy” Mager and the City Council have mutually decided to end their relationship effective May 9, 2025. The City Council expresses its sincere gratitude to Mandy for her nine-plus years of dedicated service to and leadership of the City of Blue Lake, and the Council wishes her the best in all her future endeavors. An interim City Manager will be appointed while the City conducts a comprehensive recruitment process.

“Please note: The City has no further comment as this is a personnel matter,” Burkhart added in her email.

Last night, as happy children squealed and barbecue smoke wafted across the people seated on picnic tables, Blue Lakers gathered to discuss a plan of action. Politics in this tiny city (pop. 1,172) have grown increasingly rancorous in recent years. Mager’s supporters describe her as the city’s most effective manager in years, if not ever, citing her progressive planning for housing and economic development and various municipal improvement endeavors.

Mager’s critics, meanwhile, allege that she ignored and suppressed public participation while she conspired, deep state-style, with insiders and private developers to accomplish her own agenda. A proposed mixed-use project from Danco has been particularly controversial, and the newly seated council majority recently refused to adopt the city’s updated housing element, risking fines and enforcement actions from the state. 

The latest in a series of letters to the city from the California Department of Housing and Community Development notes that the city is out of compliance with housing element law and warns that noncompliance can lead to ineligibility for state funds, a lawsuit from the Attorney General, financial penalties of up to $100,000 per month, additional fines of up to $50,000 per month and, if noncompliance continues, the loss of local control over when and where very low- to moderate-income housing and emergency shelters are built, via a mechanism called the “Builder’s Remedy.” [Click here to download that letter.]

The town’s political tensions were evident at last night’s gathering. A couple of people opposed to the meeting’s aims interjected and confronted attendees, leading to some tense stand-offs.

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Charis Bowman, a former city employee, kicked off the meeting by remarking that many in the community do not approve of the council’s recent actions toward Mager. 

“This is my first time stepping in, actually, to a role of … actively fighting for fairness, and what I think happened last night was not fair,” Bowman said.

Ex-mayor Adelene Jones, who lost her recent re-election bid via coin flip, interjected to say the plan should be to target Mayor John Sawatzky, Mayor Pro Tem Elise Scafani and Councilmember Kat Napier — all critics of Mager — in their recall efforts.

“Why? Why?” asked Lori Ponte, a Blue Lake resident who has spoken critically of Mager at recent public meetings. As angry cross-talk erupted, Ponte said she wanted confirmation that Mager has indeed been fired.

A woman named Elissa Rosado offered to answer that. “I’m not asking you!” Ponte replied. But Rosado continued, identifying herself as Mager’s best friend and saying she was indeed terminated and given four months’ severance. Another person said her termination had been verified by a city employee, and Mager is no longer allowed to enter City Hall.

“I work at City Hall,” another person said. “Mandy is no longer there.”

City employees later questioned directly by the Outpost declined to say anything on the record.

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The city’s official claim of a mutual decision seems unlikely to dissuade the recall effort. In the park last night, former Blue Lake City Councilmember Alex Ricca read aloud a draft letter for submission to City Hall explaining the justification for the three-pronged recall effort. 

The letter alleges that, after voting in closed session to fire Mager, Sawatzky, Scafani and Napier then “ordered her to vacate her office immediately.” It also accuses the trio of failing to report the council’s closed session action as required by California’s open meetings law, the Ralph M. Brown Act. And it cites the three councilmembers’ vote not to adopt the updated housing element. 

“We need to save ourselves from the political, financial, civic and social consequences of the three aforementioned City Council members’ ill-advised decision,” the letter reads.

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Resident Steve Spain passed around a sign-up sheet for supporters, and as loose dogs weaved their way through the crowd’s legs, he explained some of the requirements for a recall election. More than 40 people had put their names and contact info on the sign-up sheet before the meeting broke up.

Lori Ponte and her husband, Dave, elaborated on their opposition to a recall after the meeting. Dave Ponte said the attendees should have verified that Mager had been fired before taking action and added, “There are a lot of questions about how the city has been managed the last couple of years.”

Lori said, “I think it’s unfortunate that we’re doing this instead of trying to come together and find a solution.”

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As the meeting was winding down, some attendees spotted Sawatzky and Scafani Napier huddled in discussion with a few other folks at the outskirts of the crowd. As I approached and introduced myself, Scafani Napier vamoosed in the opposite direction, and others wandered away, leaving only me and Sawatzky behind. [CORRECTION: This post initially misidentified Napier as Scafani, as evidenced by the strikethroughs. The Outpost regrets the error.]

When I asked if he could confirm that Mager was no longer employed by the city, he took a step backwards, raised his hands in a defensive gesture and glanced toward the retreating figure of Scafani Napier.

“I can’t, uh, we’re not commenting on that,” he said.

I reminded him that the Brown Act requires California legislative bodies to report any actions taken in closed session.

“Sorry, guy. I apologize,” he said. He then asked for my name and contact information, and after an awkward silence he said, “Yeah. How’s your life?”

I said it was going alright, though I was confused about why nobody was willing to confirm or deny that Mager was still employed by the city. Again, Sawatzky took a step back and raised his hands. 

“I don’t want to talk to the press right now,” he said. “I apologize.”

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Reached by the Outpost, Humboldt County Clerk-Recorder and Registrar of Voters Juan Pablo Cervantes said he has serious concerns about Blue Lake’s ability to manage a recall election without a city manager or a city clerk. (The city is in the process of recruiting candidates for the latter position.)

“They’re a pivotal, functional part of this [recall] process,” Cervantes said. “I imagine that, if the city council is interested, they will be requesting support from the county on it.”

He explained that each recall election must be its own separate thing. “That means separate Notices of Intention, separate petitions, and separate rounds of signature gathering and verification,” he explained in a follow-up email. “If all qualify, one election could be held with separate recall questions for each official.”

The first step is for one or more registered voters to serve a Notice of Intention to Recall for each of the three targeted councilmembers, accompanied by a 200-word-or-less statement of the reason for recall and at least 30 signatures from local registered voters. The notice must be served to the city clerk (again, a position that’s currently vacant in Blue Lake) and published in a local paper. 

Another requirement for the recall is that proponents must gather valid, verifiable signatures from at least 30 percent of the city’s registered voters, which amounts to somewhere around 252, according to Cervantes. The city clerk submits those to the county’s Elections Office, and if the signature threshold is met then the city council must call an election within 14 days. That election must then be held between 88 and 125 days after it’s called, or up to 180 days later if it lines up with a regularly scheduled election.

Does that mean the recall could happen this November? It’s possible, Cervantes said, but since this is an off year, elections-wise, there likely won’t be countywide ballots printed in Humboldt County, in which case Blue Lake wouldn’t save money by consolidating its recall with a county election.

A recall election would likely cost the City of Blue Lake between $9,000 and $12,000, Cervantes said, adding that his estimate factors in the tariff-driven rise in paper costs.

The Outpost was unable to reach Mager for comment. 

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PREVIOUSLY

• Blue Lake’s City Council Election Tie Will Be Resolved By Pulling a Name From a Hat, Essentially
• NAPIER DEFEATS JONES: Blue Lake Election Tie Resolved By Pulling a Name From an Envelope Pulled From a Box
• Blue Lake City Council to Consider Controversial Battery Storage Facility at Tomorrow’s Meeting
• After Chaotic Public Meeting, Blue Lake City Council Opts to Extend Timeline for Proposed Battery Storage Facility
• Flouting State Guidance, Blue Lake City Council Votes Not to Adopt Its Own Updated Housing Element
• The Blue Lake Community is Under the Impression That Its City Manager Has Been Fired, But City Hall Won’t Say Whether She Has Been Or Not

Last night’s Arcata city council meeting was light on substance, though city councilmembers did contemplate buying software to catch operators of short-stay vacation rentals (such as Airbnb and VRBO) who don’t have a permit or aren’t paying tax. 

They also decided to let around 20 operators without a permit keep renting out rooms. 

Arcata’s short-stay vacation rental (SSVR) rules work like this: there are 100 total permits available for those who wish to operate an Airbnb or a VRBO rental, unless the owner lives on the property, it’s historical, or it’s only rented out less than 30 days a year. If the SSVR falls into any of those three categories, it needs a different SSVR permit. Arcata can give out an unlimited number of these exempt permits. 

About 2% of Arcata’s housing is an SSVR, and 99 of the non-exempt permits are being used. There are another 55 SSVRs with an exempt permit.

SSVR owners also need a business license and have to pay the Transient Occupancy Tax to the city. 

But not everyone plays by the rules, and there are an unknown number of SSVRs out there that don’t have either kind of permit and aren’t paying the TOT. David Loya, Arcata’s director of community development, told the council he gets sales calls occasionally trying to sell the city software that crawls rental websites, cross-references them with TOT and permit rolls, and spits out a list of illegal SSVRs. 

City councilmembers did not make a decision on buying software one way or the other, but all of them seemed warm to the idea. If they did decide to purchase it, the fee to get a permit would likely be bumped up a bit to fund it. 

Loya didn’t anticipate any pushback by current SSVR renters — anyone operating one illegally is cutting into the legal operators’ business.

Currently, the only way Arcata enforces these laws is if someone complains about an illegal SSVR. The city doesn’t have the staff and the time to hunt them down. 

The city council also decided to let 20 SSVRs, who had been paying the TOT but didn’t have a permit, keep operating. Loya wasn’t sure how that had happened, but he said he assumed they simply didn’t know they needed one and the city never told them. 

Councilmembers Kimberley White and Meredith Matthews said they were inclined to let them keep renting rooms out because of the lack of hotels outside of the Valley West area.

“I would like to see our money stay here in Arcata instead of sending to other outside cities’ jurisdictions,” White said. “I want them to spend money in Arcata. I want them to stay in Arcata. And however we can do that [is good].”

Press release from the City of Rio Dell:

At approximately 7:17 a.m. on Thursday, May 8, 2025, the Rio Dell Police Department and Rio Dell Fire Department responded to a report of a residential structure fire on the 1000 block of Riverside Drive. Fire crews from the Rio Dell Fire Department, with critical assistance from the Fortuna Fire Department, were able to contain and extinguish the blaze before it spread to neighboring homes, preventing more extensive damage.

During the response, it was determined that one occupant had been rescued from the residence by a neighbor. Tragically, a second occupant was located inside the structure and was pronounced deceased at the scene. The identities of those involved are being withheld pending notification of next of kin. Preliminary investigation indicates that the fire was likely caused by an unattended candle inside the home. At this time, there is no evidence of foul play.

The Rio Dell Police Department and Rio Dell Fire Department commend the quick and courageous actions of local residents who helped minimize this tragedy. We also extend our sincere thanks to the Fortuna Fire Department and the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office for their valuable assistance.

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This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters.

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Chalk one up for the 4-year-olds.

Thanks to a relentless onslaught of pleading, cajoling, lobbying and public pressure, Head Start appears to have dodged the federal budget axe — for the time being.

Last month, President Donald Trump’s early budget draft called for the elimination of Head Start, the free early-childhood program for low-income families. Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation’s conservative policy roadmap, also called for the program’s demise, saying it has “little or no academic value.”

That triggered an all-hands-on-deck response from Head Start staff, families and alumni, who touted the program’s success in propelling families out of poverty. The National Head Start Association said advocates sent more than 300,000 letters to Congress, added more than 50,000 signatures to petitions and attended rallies throughout the country.

Meanwhile, Head Start advocates took to social media and national TV to plead their case and visited Republican members of Congress to convince them of the program’s value. They reached out directly to the White House. In their free time, advocates said they lobbied everyone from neighbors to hairdressers to gardeners — anyone who had even a remote interest in the program.

It appears to have worked: The latest draft of Trump’s budget proposal, released last week, doesn’t call for any changes to the $12.27 billion program. Still, advocates worry that new cuts may lie ahead.

“We mobilized absolutely everyone,” said Melanee Cottrill, executive director of Head Start in California. “We launched a very intensive campaign. We still have a lot of concerns, but right now there’s a sigh of relief.”

From prenatal to kindergarten

Head Start, launched in 1965, served about 800,000 children last year, including 83,000 in California. Originally a preschool, the program now serves children from birth through age 5. Children get meals and a play-based academic curriculum that prepares them for kindergarten, while families get housing and job assistance, referrals to social and medical services, prenatal visits and parenting support.

To qualify, families need to be below the federal poverty line, which is $26,650 for a family of three, be homeless or receive food assistance. Children in foster care also qualify.

The program is relatively cost-efficient: The per-pupil annual cost is about $13,700, compared to the cost of private preschool, which in California can easily exceed $20,000 a year, depending on the location.

Children enjoy a bubble machine and play games during a Dia del Niño celebration at St. John’s ECS Head Start in Chula Vista on April 30, 2025. Photos by Adriana Heldiz, CalMatters

Research is mixed on the program’s effectiveness. One study found that Head Start alumni had significantly higher rates of high school and college graduation. But another study found that children who attended Head Start outperformed their peers at first, but by third grade the advantage had all but dissipated.

Regardless, the program is immensely popular with families and programs typically have waiting lists.

Head Start is helping families in San Diego

Oscar Gomez, vice chair of Episcopal Community Services’ board of directors, a Head Start provider in San Diego, attended the program as a child growing up in Tulare County. While his mother worked in the nearby almond and orange orchards and took English classes, Gomez and his three siblings learned to share and take turns, count to 20 and write their names.

Head Start imbued him with a love of school and allowed his mother to take classes that led to higher-paying jobs, he said. Gomez went on to get two master’s degrees and his mother now conducts home visits for Head Start.

“I can honestly say that without Head Start I would not be where I am today, and there are millions and millions of people like me,” Gomez said.

Episcopal Community Services runs 17 Head Start programs, serving 1,200 children from Chula Vista, San Ysidro, San Diego and other communities. Parents typically work in local restaurants or hotels, and 60% share their living quarters with other families.

If they lost Head Start, families would either have to curtail their work hours or leave their children with neighbors or other family members, arrangements not likely to provide the same high-quality curriculum or services, said Rosa Cabrera-Jaime, the organization’s director of early education and family services.

“Absolutely, some of our families would become homeless if they lost Head Start,” she said.

Precious Jackson, a single mother of four, has relied on Head Start while she earns her bachelor’s degree and works as a substitute school librarian in San Diego. She also credits Head Start for providing speech therapy to her son, when he wasn’t talking as a toddler, and providing an extra academic boost to her daughter, whom she believes is intellectually gifted.

“Head Start has made a tremendous difference in my life,” Jackson said. “I am not wasting one drop of this opportunity.”

Children and families participate in various activities during a Dia del Niño celebration at St. John’s ECS Head Start in Chula Vista on April 30, 2025.. Photo by Adriana Heldiz, CalMatters

Without Head Start, she’d be working two or three jobs just to pay for child care, she said. Now, she can plan a higher-paying career. She hopes to graduate soon with a degree from University of Arizona’s online campus and work as a school librarian.

But she’s rattled by potential cuts to Head Start, which could derail her own education.

“For me, Head Start is a necessity,” she said. “I want to tell Congress, Head Start works. Let’s keep it rolling.”

‘Folks are scared’

Congress will release its budget in the next few weeks, and Head Start advocates are confident that it will reflect Trump’s wish to save the program. But it’s not guaranteed, and the final budget may still include steep cuts. In addition, they worry about cuts to other programs, such as Medicaid, that could cause Head Start families to lose health care and other services.

Neither Trump nor Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., who oversees Head Start, have addressed Head Start cuts directly, but Trump has said he wants to hand more education programs to the states and reduce federal spending. Meanwhile, some Republican lawmakers have come out in favor of Head Start, including numerous members of the California Legislature who last week joined their Democratic colleagues to send a letter to Congress asking to protect the program.

Cuts to HSS have already affected services, Cottrill said. Amid a 10,000-employee workforce reduction, the agency closed half of its regional centers, including one in San Francisco, leading to long delays in getting help and receiving payments. An HHS ban on public communications has prevented Head Start staff from getting clarity on funding.

“We’ve had programs within hours of closing their doors,” Cottrill said. “It’s been so hard to keep morale up and keep staff focused on their jobs, if they don’t know whether they’ll have a job tomorrow and families don’t know if they’ll have someplace to take their children.”

Head Start staff also worry about the Trump administration’s anti-diversity orders. The program requires a culturally sensitive approach in the classroom, which includes bilingual education and meals that children would recognize from home, among other things. Staff aren’t sure how to comply with Trump’s orders while also meeting program requirements.

Tommy Sheridan, deputy director of the National Head Start Association, said the recent tumult has left staff and families nervous.

“Folks are scared. The fact that eliminating Head Start was even under consideration has been scary,” he said. “We’re confident that Congress will do the right thing, but even a 25% cut would be pretty austere.”

Imogene Fay DeWarns died at her home in Fortuna on April 28, 2025.

She was born Imagene Fay Crayton on May 1, 1937, in Tickfaw, Louisiana, the daughter of Elmore Luther Crayton and Mary R. Crayton. Her parents divorced when she was a child, and her mother joined a traveling circus, leaving Imagene to be raised by her grandparents on their farm. There she hoed and raked and picked cotton, learning the power and satisfaction of hard work, values that sustained her all her life.

As a young woman she moved to Indiana, where she changed the spelling of her first name to the more common Imogene. Playing guitar in a church band, she met Sherman Ross Prochnau, who played banjo. They married and had a son, Sherman Ross Prochnau jr. Shortly after young Sherman was born, the marriage ended, and Imogene and her son moved to California, to live with her mother, who had remarried and taken up residence in Eureka.

After extensive study at Eureka Adult School, she became a Licensed Vocational Nurse, and began work at a nursing facility in Pine Hill, where Lawrence K. Leavens was an orderly. They married and had a son, Johnnie Karl Leavens. Hard-working and a quick learner, Imogene did well at the nursing home, taking on more responsibility, and rising to a management position.

After her marriage to Larry came to an end, she married Henry “Hank” DeWarns and moved to Fortuna. Hank was the love of her life. They traveled extensively, often taking their children and grandchildren around the country in their travel trailer; among other destinations, they went to Mardi Gras in New Orleans, and cruised along the coast of Alaska. With her friend Eva Frye and Pastor Mike Delamarian of Hydesville Community Church, Imogene visited Jerusalem.

After Hank died, Imogene gave herself to her family, while continuing her lifelong commitment of service to others. At the Hydesville Community Church, where she worshiped, she volunteered in the day care and every August attended Royal Family Kids Camp, where she was everybody’s Grandma. She volunteered as well in the local Meals On Wheels program, feeding housebound and impoverished seniors, and drove around Fortuna keeping the peace as a member of the Senior Citizens on Patrol. She served at Redwood Memorial Hospital as a Pink Lady, bringing aid and comfort to patients, sat on the Ways and Means Committee and supported the many fundraisers, socials and other events.

Her children and grandchildren remember her constant nurturing attention, her patience, her kindness, her commitment to true Christian values. She took them to Church; she taught them the ideals that gave her life direction. In her living room she kept a box of toys for them to play with when they visited her. She was always ready to listen and support them.

Her devoted stepdaughter Carmen Leavens Rosenberg cared for her at the end of her life, allowing her to stay in her home. Hospice of Humboldt provided invaluable support during her last weeks.

In addition to Carmen, she leaves behind her grandchildren Zoe Anastasia Leavens and Lawrence Tiger Leavens, and Chanel and Gracie Leavens; her step-grandchildren Heather RosenbergMatthews, Paula Smith Haberman, and Crystal Rosenberg; her great-grandson Emmett William Robinson; her step-greatgrandchildren Drevin Haberman, Dayton Haberman, Jaylee Smith, Vinitree Smith, Hallie Stiglich, Ashley Grzymski, Jordan Wildman and Ryder Meyer; and her step great- greatgrandchildren Delilah Haberman and Aria Wildmon.

Her legacy is her example, a full life, lived well, a force for good in the community, a treasure to us all.

Her family will celebrate her life at her home in Fortuna on Saturday, May 10, at 1 p.m.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Imogene DeWarns loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.

Rayetta Warlick, born Rayetta Colleen Short on July 30, 1937, passed away on April 15th of this year, 2025, at the age of 87 in Eureka.

She is survived by her husband and sweetheart, (her handsome Timmy) Timothy David Warlick; her brother, Raymond Short; her three remaining daughters, Lona Deaton, Theresa Laidlaw, and Polina (Polly) Hryn; her 14 grandchildren, Monica Hurley, Toni Williams, Christine Klebe, David Elsa, David Deaton, Michael Dority, Jennifer Laidlaw, Tori Laidlaw, Ridge Peterson, Brice Peterson, Ford Peterson, Justin Lendahl, Benjamin Hryn, and John Hryn; her 16 great-grandchildren, Russell Hurley, Kashi Hurley, Brittany Wonnacott, Kenny McDonald, Elijah Hill, Eve Juntz, Mickey Juntz, Ayden Juntz, Jenny Juntz, Liam Juntz, Aubrey Juntz, Amelia Juntz, Elle Dority, Hudson Dority, Hannah Lendahl, and Lucy Hryn; her eight great-great grandchildren, Elijah Hurley, Alexandria Black, Ash Black, Stormy Black, Aurora Black, Ava Carns, Lannon Carns, Michael Davis; and her dog, Rosie. She was preceded in death by her father, Ray Short; her mother, Marie Antoinette Short; her sister Myra Zamarripa; and her daughters Debbie Klebe and Tuesday Peterson.

Bride, mother, grandmother, friend … homemaker, bookkeeper, dealmaker, fun maker … Rayetta (Rat) has been crowned with a life well lived, and abundant love for her shall be carried forth by those of us who remain.

With dominant traits of wit and magnetism, she found her match in Tim, her love and companion to whom she was a fiercely loyal and devoted partner spanning most of their lifetimes. Statuesque and elegant, standing firmly by Tim’s side, they were a couple to be reckoned with, both fun-loving and flirty with attractive personalities, making them quite the popular duo. With an innate sense of fashion (hot pants inclusive), and a unique style all their own, they complimented each other, that along with their shared spunky, sassy, quirky sense of humor. Together they partook in countless adventures, some taking them across the seas to New Zealand and the Isle of Man, a British island territory.

Rayetta helped to secure heavy equipment contract jobs for Tim throughout California and Nevada, accompanying him and simultaneously getting bookkeeping jobs. She also worked for an extended period in HR at Blue Lake Forest.

Naturally self-expressive and silver-tongued, Rayetta had interest in real estate and with sharp negotiating skills, She had the ability to talk anyone into just about anything. She had innovative ideas and the know-how to translate them into concrete actions. And with her inherently clear understanding of the most important aspects of life, she had the ability to communicate that insight to others, providing a solution … and a smile.

Rayetta was a caring, generous, nurturing figure, adept at gardening, canning, cooking, sewing, and yarn work to name just a few. She also enjoyed crafting stained-glass art and pitching horseshoes, eventually winning the entire Northern California Horseshoe Tournament.

She liked street tacos and her daughter Debbie’s homemade chicken enchiladas. Her favorite holiday was Thanksgiving. Her favorite song was Danny Boy. Her favorite ice cream was chocolate peanut butter. Her longest friendship was with Laverna, her friend of 87 years. They grew up together, as their mothers were acquainted.

She has now been held up in the arms of heaven, her light of golden dusk merging with the eternal flame, the everlasting embers of her memory remaining to guide us along our path. She glances down at the tears in our eyes and soothes us with the enveloping hug of a gentle breeze. Though she may seem further from us now, we shall see, in every rose, her beauty and eternal youth. We shall look on with admiration at her spirit in the magic of morning dew on a spider’s web, the replenishing droplet on a flower petal, the playfulness in an April shower.

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Last night, as has been happening quite often lately, the Blue Lake City Council met in special closed session to discuss the performance of the town’s city manager, Amanda Mager.

The new city council, which was seated on the flip of a coin a few months ago, has been holding special meetings on the same topic quite often. Sometimes they go until the wee hours of the morning.

Mager has long been a target of revanchist ire in the town, and it was long hoped in those circles that this council — the same council that recently torpedoed an effort to get the city’s housing element into compliance with state law — would give her the boot.

What happened at last night’s meeting? As can happen in small towns, the word has spread: Mager was, in fact, fired. People are all over Facebook, either lighting off fireworks or planning protests in the streets.

But is that word correct? Apparently no one who remains at City Hall is willing to say. The Outpost tried twice today to get comment. The first time we called, we were told someone would call us back. This never happened.

The second time we called, the person who answered the phone told us that the city had nothing to report.

Nothing to report? we asked. Well, the Brown Act states that a public body must report any action taken during a closed session upon the closure of the meeting. Are you saying that Ms. Mager, was not, in fact, fired?

Again we were told: We have nothing to report.

But if that’s the case, then …

Click.

So we’re in a bit of a pickle, information-wise. Either:

• Everyone in Blue Lake is wrong, or 
• This city employee is engaging in exxxtreme cover-your-ass behavior. 

We tend to think that Option #2 is far more probably true, but we could be wrong. Maybe Mager was compelled to quit, rather than technically fired. We don’t know. Maybe she’s still working there! Seems unlikely.

In any case, pro-Mager citizens operating under that same assumption will be gathering tonight at 6 p.m. at Perigot Park to discuss what options they have, if any.

Here is the beginning of last night’s meeting, before the council went into its closed session, at which people spoke in favor of or against the city manager. Kind of gives you of taste of where Blue Lake is at right now.