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At today’s meeting, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors got into a tense debate over the fairness of the county’s Tobacco Retailer Licensing Ordinance.

At the heart of the dispute is a non-transferability clause that prevents tobacco retail licenses from being transferred when a business is sold. The ordinance, which only applies to retailers operating in unincorporated areas of the county, allows for a license to be transferred to a “parent, child, spouse, or domestic partner for tobacco retailing at the same retail location” if the current license holder is in good standing with the county. In all other circumstances, “a new tobacco retailer’s license is required whenever a tobacco retailing location has a change in proprietors.”

At the outset of the discussion, First District Supervisor Rex Bohn and Board Chair Michelle Bushnell both admitted that they must have overlooked the non-transfer clause when the board adopted the ordinance in July 2023. 

Bohn | Screenshot

“I did hear the grandfather part — it was mentioned — [but] I thought that meant that they would be able to transfer to anybody,” said Bohn, who was appointed to the Tobacco Retailer Licensing Ordinance ad hoc committee along with Fifth District Supervisor Steve Madrone. “We’re just still separated on what I feel is … a miscarriage of how [the ordinance] was presented, and [how] it was presented to the retailers.”

Bohn questioned whether staff with the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Public Health Division had done an adequate job in researching the ordinance and communicating potential impacts to local retailers. 

DHHS staff provided the board with a detailed presentation on the county’s ongoing outreach efforts, which began back in 2022. Sofia Pereira, the county’s public health director, emphasized that the primary focus of the ordinance is to protect youth and reduce accessibility to tobacco products. She noted that staff would be willing to investigate approaches taken by other counties to address some of the concerns brought forth by business owners.

Bohn mentioned a provision in Sonoma County’s ordinance that allows licenses to be transferred, and suggested that the county adopt something similar.He also highlighted a local tobacco retailer who operates “30-plus stores” across the state, including six in Humboldt. The only time he’s ever had an issue closing escrow on one of his businesses, Bohn said, was when he recently tried to sell a store in Humboldt.

“Out of five counties and this was the only place he couldn’t do it,” Bohn said. “I don’t think anybody understood that they were going to take a viable part of their business … and have it become a non-entity if they changed hands unless it went to a relative. This has taken quite a bit of financial toll on this one individual. It’s actually degraded the business’s values.”

During public comment, several local business owners claimed they didn’t know anything about the ordinance before it took effect. Tom Bero, owner of the Redwoods Market & Deli in Myers Flat, said he didn’t know about the non-transfer clause until he listed his business for sale.

“We didn’t get any information on the new ordinance,” Bero said. “Our market’s been there for about 50 years, and it’s always been able to sell tobacco. We’re in the middle of trying to sell our business … and the person purchasing the business does not want to purchase it unless he can apply for a new license or we can transfer our license. Our family relies on the sale of this business because we want to move on and do something else. … It’s getting to be too much.”

Dan Noga, owner of Country Club Market in the Humboldt Hill community, recalled county staff inspecting his business, but said he was never told that he couldn’t transfer his license. Noga asked why the county has set its sights on tobacco retailers rather than liquor stores and cannabis dispensaries. 

Noga | Screenshot

“Ingesting any smoke into your lungs is not good for your health,” he said. “Yet, there’s tons of marijuana shops that are being approved, and there’s no restrictions on them. … Liquor is bad for your health — just like cigarettes are — yet a liquor license is transferable. I don’t see the problem with transferring a license from one retailer to the next retailer. I understand if you don’t want a new retailer with a tobacco license.”

One speaker, who did not identify himself, noted that most of the business owners who rely on tobacco sales to stay afloat don’t have pensions or retirement funds. “This business is the pension,” he said. “If somebody loses a [significant] portion of their sales, they will not be able to sell the business.”

Following public comment, Fourth District Supervisor Natalie Arroyo noted that the board has had “no less than 10 meetings about tobacco retail licensing” and pushed back on the assertion that staff hadn’t done an adequate job in informing business owners about the new ordinance. 

“I’m, frankly, a little bit miffed about the way that we’re talking about the outreach that has happened and the meeting conversations that we’ve had,” Arroyo said. “Not very often do I get ruffled by this board, but thank you for just kind of bearing with it to the staff that are working on this.”

Arroyo said she was open to potential amendments to the ordinance that would lessen the impact on local businesses, as long as those changes didn’t increase the cap on tobacco retail licenses in a given area. “I would actually love to see more restrictions on smoking products,” she added.

Third District Supervisor Mike Wilson felt similarly, emphasizing that the goal of the ordinance was to “reduce smoking and the harms of tobacco in general.” He recalled in 1998, when California became the first state to ban smoking inside. 

“I remember very, very clearly the sort of language around the Armageddon that would occur [to] these businesses if that was to happen,” Wilson said. “Well, it turned out some months later that people still went to bars and people still went out. … I think the way that we deal with these changes over time is through caps, and that we do this through attrition. But I think the attrition that we were talking about was the transfer of these licenses.”

Madrone emphasized Arroyo’s previous point about outreach, noting that “it didn’t happen in a vacuum.” He also echoed Wilson’s point that the whole idea of the ordinance was to “reduce the number of outlets down to a cap based on our population.”

“And the way that was going to happen was that if a business [was] sold to somebody other than an immediate family member, that they would lose that license,” Madrone continued. “All of a sudden, it sounds like some people feel like they didn’t have any communication, but my understanding was that every effort was made to do that.”

Madrone also voiced frustration over Bohn “trying to push” his opinion at ad hoc meetings. “I don’t want to hear his comments for the 20th and 30th and 50th time on the same stuff over and over again.”

After a bit of additional discussion and a messy attempt at a straw poll, the board ultimately directed staff to further investigate license transfers, with a potential limit for business owners with multiple tobacco retail licenses. The board also asked staff to look into a cap on licenses within a certain radius of one another.

The motion passed in a 5-0 vote.

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PREVIOUSLY

• ‘This is a Big Deal for Humboldt’: State Awards $12.3 Million in Funding for Behavioral Health Triage Center in Arcata
• ‘A Game-Changer for Humboldt’: State Sen. Mike McGuire, County Officials Announce Additional Funding for Behavioral Crisis Triage Center in Arcata

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Large state investments for two mental healthcare facilities coming to Eureka and Arcata were announced by State Senator Mike McGuire at a press conference yesterday, totaling over $6 million for the Mad River Triage Center and the Sorrel Leaf Healing Center

The Mad River Triage Center will be a “crisis stabilization, sobering, and crisis residential center” with beds for 43 patients when it opens in 2027 on Mad River Hospital’s campus in Arcata. McGuire said yesterday that the state has earmarked $5.5 million for the project, which will break ground next year. 

It’s the latest addition to past rounds of funding for the project, which also received $12.3 million from the California Department of Health Care Services in 2023. 

Additionally, McGuire said the state was granting $750,000 to the Sorrel Leaf Healing Center near Indianola, a 12-bed, 13-acre “therapeutic farm” for youth experiencing mental health issues. It’s set to open in 2026. 

McGuire and other local officials highlighted the “desperate need” Humboldt has for expanded behavioral health services. 

“The reality has overwhelmed local emergency rooms and providers for years,” McGuire said. “[There’s an] increased number of homeless on our streets because there’s simply nowhere to go. There aren’t enough services. This is incredibly personal to me; it choked up my family. My family has seen addiction firsthand…From Westhaven to Weott, people in our community desperately need health care that’s appropriate, that’s comprehensive and effective, and treats patients in crisis.”

PREVIOUSLY:

• Eureka City Council Looks to Ban Nitrous Oxide Sales

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Press release from the City of Eureka:

The City of Eureka has removed Item G.6 from the October 21, 2025 City Council agenda. This item had proposed seeking Council authorization for the Eureka Police Department (EPD) to begin researching the potential implementation of an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) program. The proposed UAS program was intended to enhance EPD’s ability to safely and effectively respond to specific incidents, including:

• Mental health crises involving self-harm or suicidal individuals;
• Mental health crises involving potentially armed individuals;
• Searches for missing or at-risk persons, including children and adults;
• Barricaded suspect situations requiring interior or aerial assessment; and
• Public safety incidents occurring near schools or densely populated areas.
• Evaluation of Natural Disaster Incidents

These types of deployments have proven to improve outcomes and reduce risks to officers and community members. Currently, EPD must rely on outside agencies for UAS support, which can limit timely access to this critical resource. Examples of prior drone assisted operations include:

• De-escalating and negotiating with a person in crisis that was threatening to jump from the Eureka water tower;
• >De-escalating a crisis involving a person armed with multiple edged weapons inside a vehicle;
• Providing aerial lighting during nighttime tactical operations while maintaining officer concealment;
• Searching structures for armed barricaded suspects before team entry; and
• Locating armed subjects near school campuses during lockdowns.

Under Eureka Municipal Code Chapter 104 (Military Equipment), City Council authorization is required before EPD can begin research or prepare information regarding any UAS system. While this item has been pulled from the current agenda, EPD remains committed to ensuring community safety through the use of Council-approved technologies and maintaining transparency in any future program development.

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

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California, listen up: Former President Barack Obama wants you to know that the whole nation is counting on you this November.

“Democracy is on the ballot,” the 44th president says straight to camera in the latest advertisement from Gov. Gavin Newsom’s campaign for Proposition 50, the ballot question that asks voters to temporarily gerrymander California’s congressional districts to favor Democrats.

“Republicans want to steal enough seats in Congress to rig the next election and wield unchecked power for two more years,” Obama continues in the seven-figure ad buy airing across California, referring to GOP-led redistricting efforts President Donald Trump has backed in other states like Texas. “With Prop. 50, you can stop Republicans in their tracks.”

As voters face a Nov. 4 deadline to turn in their ballots, California’s redistricting fight has reached a pinnacle as both sides pour tens of millions of dollars on their final push to persuade and mobilize voters. The Yes side has largely outraised and outspent its opponents, pulling in nearly $97 million — more than double the No side’s haul of $42 million — and garnered far more big names to appear in its ads.

Still, recent polling shows the race remains close, and persuasion in the final weeks is critical for both sides. While opponents of Prop. 50 are going all-in on a good governance message and playing on most voters’ unease with politicians drawing their own districts, supporters of the measure are doubling down on anti-Trump rhetoric. And both campaigns are trying to turn out Latino voters, a key constituency that could swing the election.

A survey from the nonpartisan Cook Political Report earlier this month found that although 50% of registered voters said they would support Prop. 50 and 35% said they would oppose it, nearly half of those surveyed indicated they were undecided or only softly committed to their vote. The poll included 918 registered voters with a sampling error margin of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.

There’s still plenty of time to sway voters, especially those who are just now tuning into the fact that an election is happening. If voters approve Prop. 50, California would temporarily adopt gerrymandered maps drawn by Democrats through 2030 and suspend the ones drawn by an independent citizens redistricting commission just four years ago. The ballot question informs voters that California’s redistricting is a direct response to Texas Republicans’ decision to redraw their district lines mid-decade.

And when it comes to persuasion, money is critical.

More than 68,000 people have given money in support of the Yes on Prop. 50 campaign since July, according to campaign finance data analyzed by CalMatters, with the biggest contributions coming from the House Majority PAC controlled by congressional Democrats and the Fund for Policy Reform controlled by Democratic megadonor George Soros. That doesn’t include the nearly $13 million that billionaire investor Tom Steyer spent separately to run his own ads supporting the measure.

By contrast, only 200 contributors have given to the two separate No campaigns, including a massive $30 million from wealthy Republican physicist Charles Munger Jr., who funded the 2008 and 2010 efforts to establish the state’s independent redistricting commission.

“‘No’ has the steeper hill to climb, there’s no doubt about that,” said Amy Walter, publisher and editor-in-chief of the Cook Political Report. She explained that opponents of Prop. 50 would not only need to solidify their tentative supporters and ensure they vote, but also persuade all undecided voters and also convert some of the tentative “yes” voters.

But working in the opposition’s favor is widespread unease with the idea of elected officials influencing the shape of their districts. About 56% of the Cook poll’s respondents who indicated they would probably vote “Yes” said they agreed that politicians shouldn’t draw their own district lines.

“If you’re the ‘No’ campaign, it is the one place where you can see you can get some traction,” Walter said.

Opportunity for Prop. 50 opponents

Opponents of Prop. 50 are trying hard to capitalize on that discomfort in their recent advertising.

“Prop. 50 takes us backwards and rips power away from the people,” an unidentified woman tells viewers in a recent No on 50 advertisement. Then the declaration “Politicians Can Rig Elections” flashes across the screen in bold red and black text.

Jessica Millan Patterson, the former state GOP chairperson who is leading the No on 50 campaign backed by House Republicans, said she’s targeting independents and Democrats who are dissatisfied with the party. That means focusing on a limited, simple good-governance message to turn out undecided voters.

Millan Patterson isn’t concerned about mobilizing the Republican base, she said, adding that the Yes campaign is already doing that for her by demonizing Trump and deifying Newsom, whom conservatives despise. In a small nod to the party faithful, the campaign is running one advertisement criticizing the governor. It hammers him on affordability.

“We can’t win with just Republican votes, so we need to make sure that those persuadable voters … that the conversation is happening with them,” Millan Patterson said. “They know that giving this power to politicians, it will not serve anyone but those politicians, and they just need some permission to vote no on this.”

That mirrors the message of the other No campaign paid for by Munger.

“If you look at all the polling since the beginning, voters don’t like gerrymandering, full stop,” said Amy Thoma Tan, spokesperson for that campaign. “So we’re just reminding people that this is gerrymandering.”

California unions settle on Trump message

By contrast, their opponents on the Yes side are investing heavily in an anti-Trump message, a move that Walter said was smart given that the president is “the special catalyst” that helps the Yes side overcome California voters’ traditional preference for rejecting ballot measures.

In digital ads, the powerful California Labor Federation is reminding its 2 million members that Trump has terminated federal workers’ contracts and cut infrastructure spending, which paid for many trades workers’ projects.

But in phone-banking operations, its president Lorena Gonzalez said the catch-all framing of Prop. 50 as a way to “fight back against Trump” works best to motivate voters, who all “know what they’re not happy about.”

“Do we want to talk about ICE? Do we want to talk about LGBTQ (issues)? Do we want to say, ‘fight fascism?’” Gonzalez said of discussion among labor organizers working to turn out students on University of California campuses.

The Service Employees International Union of California is taking an all-of-the-above approach, said Tia Orr, the union’s executive director. A digital advertisement urges viewers to fight back against the Trump administration’s “inhumane immigration policies” by supporting Prop. 50. And a recent mailer sent to SEIU’s 800,000 California members, many of whom work in health care, reminded them that the Republican-controlled Congress approved Trump’s megabill that would take health insurance coverage from an estimated 10 million Americans.

“I urge all registered nurses to volunteer, vote, and share the message with your friends and family,” reads the mailer, written in the first person and signed by Monique Hernandez, vice president of an SEIU local that represents nurses.

In Asian American immigrant communities, pro-Prop. 50 organizers are emphasizing cuts to health care programs and how Trump policies destabilize local economies — a nod to tariffs. For Latino voters, the Yes campaign is airing ads in English and Spanish featuring New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla of California, who was forced to the ground by federal agents in Los Angeles this summer during the height of the immigration raids that jolted the city.

Latino voters ‘the most undecided’

Latino voters, the state’s largest racial group and about 30% of likely voters, are a key constituency that could swing the election.

Affordability remains a top priority for Latino voters, a survey by the Latino Community Foundation of 1,200 Latino registered voters in California in September shows. But they also disapproved of the president by wide margins, and felt pessimistic about their personal economic prospects in higher shares than ever, vice president of policy Christian Arana said. By a three-to-one margin they said they felt Trump had betrayed them on immigration.

“There’s a lot of people that say if you really want to talk to Latino voters, you only have to talk about the economy,” said Yes on 50 consultant Juan Rodriguez. “It’s a false choice. You can’t just talk about kitchen-table issues when they’re burning down your house.”

The campaign has spent more than $10 million specifically on Latino outreach, Rodriguez said, including broadcast, digital, print and radio ads in Spanish and English, and phone banking operations with Latino community groups.

Still, Arana called Latinos “the most undecided voter.” Latino approval for Prop. 50 is just under 50% in the Inland Empire and Central Valley, according to the group’s survey, which has a sampling error margin of plus or minus 2.8 percentage points.

Arana is most concerned that fears of immigration or other federal agents showing up to polling places could depress turnout, particularly as immigration raids in California and elsewhere have ensnared U.S. citizens. The survey showed two-thirds of Latino voters statewide are concerned about immigration enforcement this election.

Democratic organizers emphasized in a recent Zoom call for volunteers that they were pushing for early voting by mail instead.

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CalMatters’ Jeremia Kimelman contributed reporting.

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Press release from the California Highway Patrol:

On October 19th, 2025, at 1713 hours, Humboldt Communications Center notified CHP units of a solo vehicle crash on US-101, in Richardson Grove. A semi tractor without a trailer, was traveling on US-101 when, for reasons still under investigation, the semi tractor drove off the roadway collided with the barrier of the bridge just south of the entrance to Richardson Grove State Park. The semi tractor travelled off the bridge and landed on its roof, beneath US-101. The driver, Juan Herrera Garcia (75), was uninjured and DUI was not a factor in this crash. US-101 was closed for approximately 30 minutes as a result of this crash.  Fluids from the engine of the semi tractor leaked from the vehicle onto the roadway below.  Mitigation measures were placed, and State Parks is overseeing the cleanup efforts within the State Park.
 
The CHP Garberville Area would like to thank Cal Trans and the California State Parks Office for their assistance during this incident.
 
The CHP Garberville Area Office is investigating the cause of the crash.

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At a special meeting today, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors approved an ordinance that clears the way for development of the McKinleyville Town Center. The board’s 4-1 approval came despite concerns from some residents about various aspects of the plan, particularly a “road diet” proposal that calls for roughly half a mile of Central Avenue to be reduced from five lanes to three.

During the public comment period, roughly three dozen people lined up to voice their opinions, with much of the commentary focused on the traffic plans. Many residents warned that reducing Central to three lanes would cause congestion, increase traffic accidents and negatively impact neighboring roadways. Others spoke in favor of the concept and urged the board to pass the ordinance. Board members said they’ve received lots of public feedback and it has been split roughly 50-50 on the road diet idea.

Still other public speakers alleged that there has been a lack of transparency thus far, with several people accusing decision-makers of ignoring their input. 

Wesley Chesbro, a former Arcata Councilmember, Humboldt County Supervisor and State Assemblymember, urged the board to pass the ordinance, saying, “I’m willing to sacrifice a minute of my time going into the shopping center if it makes Central Avenue a little bit safer.” He recalled an incident on Central where two teenaged pedestrians were nearly struck by a vehicle that failed to yield for the flashing lights at a crosswalk and said it was “one of the most horrifying driving experiences I’ve ever had.”

A few speakers focused on Life Plan Humboldt, a local nonprofit that aims to build a senior residential facility at the south end of the Town Center. That organization’s president, Ann Lindsay, urged the board to “have courage” and adopt the ordinance. “We want to get our development going,” she said.

The board’s approval, which came after several hours of deliberation, marks the culmination of six years of planning and public review for this project. Originally conceived during development of the McKinleyville Community Plan, the Town Center Master Plan aims to establish an identity and geographic heart for Humboldt County’s largest unincorporated community.

John Ford, the county’s planning and building director, explained at the outset of today’s meeting that the Town Center was designed to provide “a viable focal point for the community,” a mixed-use area in the heart of town for social interaction and business ventures, with convenient access for pedestrians, cyclists and automobiles.

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To get specific, the approved ordinance rezones 134-acres in the middle of McKinleyville to Mixed Use, with a qualified combining zone (Q Zone) overlay that spells out a set of development criteria and allowed uses. In other words, any new development inside this area will be streamlined and simplified for projects that meet the guidelines. 

Buildings in the town center must comply with a “form-based code” that aims to create “an urban downtown feel,” according to Ford, with commercial uses on the first floor and residential above that. In all, the Town Center allows for the development of up to 2,650 housing units and 900,000 square feet of retail and office space, along with pedestrian- and cyclist-focused infrastructure and other outdoor amenities.

Much of the work to develop this project was done through the McKinleyville Municipal Advisory Committee (generally abbreviated as “MMAC” but referred to in conversation as “The Mick Mac”). That group started working on the Town Center project in 2019. The Humboldt County Planning Commission conducted a community workshop in August and held a public hearing the following month.

Ford noted that an Environmental Impact Report found only one significant and unavoidable impact: increased traffic noise along Railroad Avenue. The main points of public contention, however, have been related to traffic (as noted above), the amount of possible development, impacts to wetlands and the designated amount of open space and parkland.

As for the controversial “road diet” component, the stretch of Central Avenue between Heartwood on the south and Railroad Avenue to the north would be converted to three lanes, with sidewalks, buffered Class 1 bike lanes and landscaping on both sides of the street. That’s the current design, anyway.

Here’s an illustrated cross-section:

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And below is the stretch of road in question. The area in blue would change from five lanes to three, and the area in green would remain at five lanes.

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The MMAC recommended approval of this design, but the Planning Commission was “vexed” over the matter, according to Ford. That body wound up recommending an additional traffic study.

Ford explained that the MMAC had already been provided with an “operational analysis” of traffic in all intersections around the Town Center. The analysis found that there would indeed be impacts to the “road diet” plan but that intersection improvements would allow those intersections to maintain maintain an “adequate level of service.”

One x-factor thrown into the mix: Caltrans is considering building a freeway interchange where Hiller Road crosses over Hwy. 101, which would likely change traffic patterns on Central Avenue.

[CLARIFICATION: While some McKinleyville community members and leaders have expressed a desire for such a freeway interchange, and while that desire has been documented in Caltrans’ U.S. 101 Corridor Management Plan, a spokesperson for the agency tells the Outpost, “This location has not been identified by Caltrans as a location that meets the criteria for modification.” He added, though, that non-Caltrans entities can advance interchanges. “When that happens, they are sponsored and funded by the advancing entity, as Caltrans would provide oversight to ensure the facilities meet state highway safety and operational standards.”]

Fifth District Supervisor Steve Madrone shot down some misconceptions about the project. He noted that the proposed zoning for the Town Center actually represents a reduction in density, and any removed wetlands removed will be replaced at a ratio of one and a half to one.

“So there will actually be more wetlands than exist now in terms of acreage, and they would be all concentrated into what I consider, as a wetlands expert, a very high-quality wetlands complex in the western third of the developable area,” Madrone said.

First District Supervisor Rex Bohn, who quipped that he’ll never claim to be an expert at anything, said he’s heard from a lot of people who are opposed to the road diet idea, and he, too, is skeptical. He asked Ford for his take.

John Ford

“I think this has a tremendous upside for the community,” Ford responded. He said he’s been a planner “for more years than I feel comfortable saying,” and throughout his time in the profession the talk has been about moving away from traditional four-lane arterial roads in favor of “creating a more pedestrian scale for business and for people who live and work there. The communities that have done that have found their businesses are actually more successful because people aren’t just driving through very fast,” he said.

That said, there’s currently no financing for the “expensive prospect” of redesigning Central Avenue, so the Town Center can begin to develop without the road diet, Ford explained. He also noted that while “it’s comforting to ask for additional studies,” the board should first consider what’s already in front of them and decide whether that’s acceptable. 

During the board’s deliberations, Third District Supervisor Mike Wilson expressed support for the Town Center plan. Regarding the proposal to reduce the lanes of travel on Central, he pointed to Fort Bragg as an example, noting that the main road only has two lanes through the (relatively) bustling downtown area while the four-lane stretch farther south is a freeway-like thoroughfare that’s unfriendly to pedestrians. 

Fourth District Supervisor Natalie Arroyo noted that Humboldt County is ranked fourth out of 58 counties in the state for bicycle collisions and fifth in the state for pedestrian collisions. 

“There were over 25 pedestrian collisions on Central Avenue in that stretch within the last 10 years,” she said, referring to the half-mile part of Central that could see a lane reduction.

Arroyo assured the public that she has heard all of their input.

“I’m here and ready to move forward,” she said.

Bohn remained hesitant. He criticized the proposed road diet, saying it will cost $20 million or more and likely be “a total mess.” He later added, “I know you want to force us out of cars. I know that’s the whole idea.” Bohn pointed to projects in Eureka that were designed to improve pedestrian and cycling safety and said, “They’re not working.”

Second District Supervisor Michelle Bushnell said, “I recognize that being slowed down is a pain in the butt,” but she also said that high-speed traffic represents a danger. And Bushnell voiced concern about the costs of doing an additional traffic study that might come up with the same results as the analysis already completed.

Madrone then spoke for nearly 18 minutes straight. He thanked the people who got the project this far, including Anne Pierson, the majority landowner of the underlying project, and the members of the MMAC. 

Regarding public opposition, he said, “If you make comments and your comments aren’t necessarily what the end result is, it feels like you haven’t been heard, and I can appreciate that. But I will tell you that I think the MMAC did a magnificent job.”

Madrone wound up making a motion to adopt the ordinance as recommended and to request a comprehensive circulation study before moving forward with the road diet portion of the plan. 

Wilson seconded the motion, but during the ensuing discussion both he and Arroyo said they would prefer to pass the ordinance without requiring an additional traffic circulation study because that could slow development of the Town Center.

Bushnell spoke passionately about the importance of trying to help local businesses. She talked about the precipitous economic decline in Southern Humboldt and warned that it could get just as bad at this end of the county. Given the prevalence of online retail, she said, revitalizing a town comes down to “the feel and the dining and the small mom and pops and the experience that really bring people in to walk from store to store and have that really good feel.”

Arroyo and Wilson wound up convincing Madrone to drop his call for an additional traffic circulation study. Madrone said he’s confident that the process of altering Central Avenue will still be slow and deliberative, with ample communication between the county and the McKinleyville Community Services District.

Public Works Director Tom Mattson explained that any project to redesign Central Avenue would come back to the board for approval before the county puts it out for bids. 

The board also decided to ask Caltrans to prioritize an interchange project at Hiller Road, but since that issue wasn’t on the agenda it will have to be formalized at a later meeting.

Bohn cast the lone dissenting vote, and thus the board approved the ordinance by a vote of 4-1. 

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PREVIOUSLY

• McKINLEYVILLE ASKS: Can We Make a There There? Meeting on Town Center Proposal Scheduled for Next Week
• Whoa, There! County Planning Head Splashes Cold Water on McKinleyville Town Center Dreams, but Advisory Committee Pushes Ahead
• The Debate About the Future of McKinleyville Has Begun; Advisory Committee and Public are Hashing Out What the Town Center May Look Like
• After a False Start in Arcata, Life Plan Humboldt Secures McKinleyville Property for a Large Senior Residential Community
• Planning Commission Approves Contentious McKinleyville Housing Development Despite Neighborhood Concerns
• Humboldt County Wants to Hear Your Thoughts on Its Plans for the Long-Awaited McKinleyville Town Center
• Government Addresses McKinleyville Town Center Criticisms at Crowded Public Meeting
• Local Nonprofit Buys 14.6 Acres in McKinleyville Town Center With Plans to Build 101 Senior Apartments and Cottages
• Humboldt Planning Commission OKs ‘Heroic’ McKinleyville Town Center Ordinance, Forwards to Board of Supervisors for Review

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PREVIOUSLY

• Homeless Activists Force Arcata Special City Council Meeting to End
• What’s Going on at the Homeless Encampment on Arcata’s O Street?

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The last unhoused people occupying a chunk of private property left a years-old encampment today in Arcata after the police asked them to leave — the end of a months-long effort from the city and private contractor John Shelter, operator of New Directions.

Located at the west end of O Street, the property is sometimes called “The 40.” Around 50 people lived on 20 acres of land split up among four parcels as recently as August. Arcata Police Department Lieutenant Luke Scown said that nine people were still camping there this morning. No one was arrested and Scown said everyone left without incident. 

The owner of the property had wanted them gone for months, and Scown said they’d “reached the point” of asking the remaining campers to clear out. 

According to Shelter, most of them moved to a different chunk of private property near Samoa Boulevard; Scown said a couple had left with representatives from Arcata House Partnership.

Shelter said that he’d worked to make sure everyone there knew that they’d be forced to move soon and told the few people still there last week that the time was approaching. APD had done the same.

Shelter has cleaned up over 150,000 pounds of garbage from the property since May, and said in an interview with the Outpost that there was probably another 15,000 pounds left in the now-empty sites. 

Both Shelter and Scown emphasized that they’d attempted to enforce the law and do their jobs as empathetically as they could. 

“It’s really important to remember that this is private property and this was a five-month-long process here during which a lot of services were offered and a lot of outreach done,” Scown said.