Kathryn “Sue” Blankinship (Holder) passed away peacefully surrounded by loving family at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Eureka at the age of 70 on Tuesday, February 6, 2024, after a long struggle with cancer.  

She was born on August 25, 1953 in Arcata and was a 1971 graduate of Arcata High School.  Sue was a devout Christian who loved Jesus with all her heart.  She also enjoyed her Starbucks frappuccino drinks, being involved with her church community, spending time with family, shopping and pedicures, trailer camping, and never met a stranger anywhere she went.

She is survived by her husband of 42 years, Wayne Blankinship; her daughter, Melissa “Missy” Mathews, (and Kurt); her son, Marcus “Bo” Blankinship, (and Lauren “Lola”), her son James “Yamie” Flanagan; grandsons, Luke Mathews, Karsen Mathews, and Roman Blankinship; brothers, Gary Holder (and Joeinne), Jerome Holder (and Daniel), and John Holder (and Danyell); and countless friends.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Vestal and Mardell Holder, and sister Peggy “Poopsie” Godfrey.

Sue’s family is respecting her wishes to not have a memorial service; however, anyone wanting to honor her life is encouraged to make a donation to their local Hospice in her name.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Sue Blankinship’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.

Hundreds – perhaps thousands – of Humboldt County residents could lose access to landline services in the next year. 

AT&T California has applied to remove its designation as a “carrier of last resort,” which requires the telecommunications giant to provide traditional, analog telephone service via copper wires, also known as “plain old telephone service,” to residential and business customers throughout its service territory. If the application is approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) in the coming months, AT&T would no longer be required to provide basic landline services in certain areas, leaving only cellular and internet-based voice communication services that it and other companies provide.

AT&T contends that the “outdated” COLR obligation has forced it to “wastefully operate and maintain two duplicative networks: one, an antiquated, narrowband network with an ever-dwindling base of subscribers, and the other, a forward-looking, fiber and wireless broadband network,” as stated in the executive summary of the application. “The modest regulatory reforms sought in this application would boost investment in next-generation broadband services and networks, reduce waste, and ensure regulatory parity.”

The proposal would affect a large swath of Humboldt County, including much of Arcata, Eureka, Fortuna, McKinleyville, Rio Dell, Trinidad, and smaller communities along the local highways, as depicted in the map below.

Removal of the COLR designation does not necessarily mean landline service would become obsolete in communities AT&T currently serves, according to a fact sheet provided by the CPUC. Another carrier could volunteer to become the COLR in a given area, but they would not be required to do so. 

“If AT&T’s proposal were accepted as set forth in its application, then no COLR would be required to provide basic service in your area,” the fact sheet states. “This does not necessarily mean that no carriers would, in fact, provide service in your area — only that they would not be required to do so. Other outcomes are possible, such as another carrier besides AT&T volunteering to become the COLR in your area, or the CPUC denying AT&T’s proposal.”

(Click here to enlarge.) 

Frontier California, Inc. and Citizens Telecommunications Company of CA provide communications services in some parts of Humboldt County (as seen in the map to the right), but their reach is limited to their respective service territories. Since AT&T owns its network infrastructure, neither company can just jump in and assume services. 

AT&T has promised to maintain services “for the few customers” without access to alternative carriers. 

“None of our traditional copper landline customers in California will be left without service,” an AT&T spokesperson told the Outpost. “By our analysis, 99.7 percent of consumers within our service territory have at least three facilities-based alternative options for voice service. … Our commitment is that customers currently in our California service territory will retain access to a service connection, whether from us or another provider.”

Even so, the proposal has sparked significant concern among local and state officials who worry that the loss of landline service would hinder access to critical 9-1-1 services and emergency alerts, especially for rural residents. 

“This proposal leaves rural residents vulnerable and it’s dangerous,” Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire wrote in an emailed statement to the Outpost. “AT&T’s idea to cast off their obligation as the [COLR] and stop maintaining their network will literally take people’s lifelines away. … Every resident in this state must have access to reliable phone service, no matter where you live. We’re going to fight this cockamamie proposal on behalf of the 600,000 folks who would be hung up on by AT&T.”

Assemblymember Jim Wood expressed similar concerns, adding that broadband service is notoriously unreliable on the North Coast, especially during storms, wildfires and earthquakes.

“Just with this recent storm, and the massive power outages, it is obvious that people absolutely need their landlines, not to mention the life-saving companies and organizations that are unable to serve the community during disasters without their landlines,” Wood told the Outpost. “I have not experienced [that] AT&T [is] willing to make the investments needed to extend broadband to these hard-to-reach areas. Do they not see how severe the digital divide is in rural areas? Until … reliable broadband covers all parts of this rural district, I don’t believe AT&T has any right to stop providing this most basic, and often, critical service.”

The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors sent a letter of opposition to the CPUC at the end of last month. The board’s letter notes that traditional landline phone service is “the most reliable communications tool in the [county’s] safety net arsenal,” adding that AT&T hasn’t been capable of meeting the county’s current obligations to provide reliable access to communications services.

“While AT&T will be able to pre-position its resources to withdraw its wireline infrastructure, customers will not be similarly situated to find a suitable alternative service to transition their households and/or businesses,” the letter states. “COLR relief should not be granted without securing widespread alternatives with uniform, technologically neutral minimum service quality standards of [plain old telephone service] alternatives.”

The promise of modern technology and enhanced broadband services is great, but the proposal comes with too many risks, said Humboldt County Office of Emergency Services (OES) program manager Ryan Derby.

“In many scenarios, landlines will still operate during a power outage, allowing emergency management and first responder agencies to send out life-saving communications through our alert and warning system,” Derby told the Outpost. “This proposal would require modern communications networks to be installed in areas that currently don’t have coverage, contributing to an increased strain on our already vulnerable energy grid, and posing scenarios where residents could lose access to 9-1-1 services and emergency alerts, particularly when power outages or other system disruptions occur.”

AT&T’s proposal has the potential to endanger communications between emergency responders and healthcare providers, said Kate Witthaus, CEO of the Northern California Community Blood Bank. 

“As the sole blood provider for Humboldt and Del Norte Counties, communication with our local hospital customers, particularly during emergency situations, can be a matter of life and death,” Witthaus said. “We know from direct experience that our internet and cellular-based phone services can and do fail. Imagine a hospital needing an urgent blood delivery and being unable to reach us.”

As of this writing, the CPUC has received over 2,600 virtually-submitted public comments from AT&T customers across the state. Online comments can be submitted at this link.

AT&T has also asked the CPUC to remove its designation as an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier (ETC). Doing so would allow AT&T to discontinue its federal Lifeline program (not the California LifeLine program) and other such programs designed to subsidize telecommunications support for low-income and rurally-located individuals. 

The CPUC will host a series of in-person and virtual public forums for AT&T customers to address questions regarding the two proposals. Humboldt County residents will want to attend one of the virtual forums on Tuesday, Mar. 19 at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. 

More information can be found here.

PREVIOUSLY: 

• Humboldt Asian and Pacific Islanders in Solidarity (HAPI) Plan Memorial for Old Town as Part of ‘Eureka Chinatown Project’

Humboldt Area Foundation release: 

Humboldt Asians and Pacific Islanders in Solidarity (HAPI) received a $25,000 strategy grant from HAF+WRCF toward the building of a monument near Eureka’s waterfront in Old Town as part of its ongoing Chinatown project.

“The goal of the monument is to remember and recognize what happened to the Chinese population in our area,” said HAPI steering committee member Sheri Woo. “The HAF+WRCF grant is the first significant funding for our project, bringing us to about two-thirds of the way to meeting our $254,000 goal.”

The “Eureka Chinatown Monument,” designed to tell the history of Chinese people in the area and the violent Chinese Expulsion of 1885, is planned for the city-owned corner of E and First streets. The monument design includes a Chinese moon gate (an archway done in traditional architecture), landscaping, and a river “timeline” with stones marking significant points in the history of the area’s Chinese people from 1865 to present day. The nonprofit hopes to break ground on the monument this summer.

Woo said HAPI has raised more than $125,000 itself, along with a commitment from the city of Eureka to cover liability insurance costs and maintenance of the corner property. Donations can be made to HAPI at its website www.inkpeople.org or through a GoFundMe campaign.

“It is a real joy and privilege to support HAPI with funding as part of the eight commitments HAF+WRCF has made regarding race, safety and belonging in the region,” said Rachel Montgomery, HAF+WRCF’s Program Officer for Programs & Community Solutions.

HAF+WRCF’s strategy grant program, funded by its generous donors, is designed to assist groups and projects in Humboldt, Del Norte, Curry, and Trinity counties. HAPI is one of five organizations or projects that received strategy grants at the end of 2023.

“HAPI has done phenomenal work in a short amount of time to build strong connections among the Asian-American, Pacific Islander, and Desi immigrant communities in Humboldt County, as well as highlighting their historic and ongoing contributions and challenges with the wider community in Humboldt County and beyond,” Montgomery said.

Learn more about HAF+WRCF’s Strategy Grants via by emailing grants@hafoundation.org or call 707-442-2993.

UPDATE, 9:20 p.m.: The Eureka Police Department lets us know that Ms. Fishtrom has been found safe.

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Eureka Police Department press release:

The Eureka Police Department has issued a Silver Alert and is asking for the public’s  assistance locating 86-year-old Jacquelyn Montana Fishtrom. She is an at-risk missing  person and suffers from Dementia.

She walked away from her residence on the 200 block of South Hillsdale Street this  morning, Thursday, February 8th, sometime before 6:00 AM. We were notified of her  disappearance around 1:00 PM, and a report has been taken. 

Jacquelyn is described as a white female, 5’2’’, 135 lbs, with short gray hair. She often  wears dark sunglasses, walks with a walking stick and a small beige dog. Jacquelyn is not associated with a vehicle, and often frequents Old Town, Bayshore Mall, and Harbor  Lanes.  

Anyone with information on Jacquelyn’s location is asked to call the Eureka Police  Department at (707) 441-4044.

In a step toward building the first massive wind farms off California’s coast, three Assembly members today proposed a $1 billion bond act to help pay for the expansion of ports.

The bill, if approved, would place a bond before voters aimed at helping ports build capacity to assemble, construct and transport wind turbines and other large equipment. Long Beach and Humboldt County have plans to build such expansion projects.

Port expansion is considered critical to the viability of offshore wind projects, which are a key component of the state’s ambitious goal to switch to 100% clean energy. The California Energy Commission projects that offshore wind farms will supply 25 gigawatts of electricity by 2045, powering 25 million homes and providing about 13% of the power supply.

The first step to building these giant floating platforms has already been taken: The federal government has leased 583 square miles of ocean waters about 20 miles off Humboldt Bay and the Central Coast’s Morro Bay to five energy companies. The proposed wind farms would hold hundreds of giant turbines, each as tall as a skyscraper, about 900 feet high. The technology for floating wind farms has never been used in such deep waters, far off the coast.

An extensive network of offshore and onshore development would be necessary. Costly upgrades to ports will be critical, along with undersea transmission lines, new electrical distribution networks and more.

The Port of Long Beach, for instance, is planning a $4.7 billion, 400-acre offshore wind turbine assembly terminal. It is the only port in California close to being able to handle this, according to previous CalMatters reporting.

In Humboldt County, some federal grants have been awarded to develop the port for wind farms. The federal Department of Transportation last month awarded the Humboldt Bay harbor district $426.7 million to build a new marine terminal where turbines can be assembled and transported.

The proposed bond measure was announced today by Rick Chavez Zbur, a Democrat from Los Angeles, as well as other members of the Assembly. Jim Wood, a Democrat from Ukiah, and Josh Lowenthal, a Democrat from Long Beach, are coauthors.

Two separate climate bond bills also aim to pay for climate-related projects, such as shoring up vulnerable communities and wildfire prevention efforts. Each house has passed its own version of a bond. Negotiations over whether they will appear on the November ballot remain open. The debate over adding debt comes as California faces a projected $38 billion deficit, according to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s estimate last month.

Zbur, the lead author of the offshore wind bond bill, said at a press conference today that he is in talks with legislators who authored the climate bonds about earmarking funds for offshore wind in lieu of moving ahead with his proposed bond measure.

“We are engaged with discussions with them on that, and that would be another alternative to moving forward,” Zbur said. “Our goal today is really to make sure that this $1 billion is included in the range of bonds.”

CalMatters has reported that offshore wind has raised many issues for California since it is experimental technology on a fast track off Humboldt County and Morro Bay. Humboldt officials hope the projects would boost their struggling economy, while some Central Coast residents are fighting the wind farms because they say it would industrialize their coastline.

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CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.

Caltrans release:

Heads up, Fernbridge travelers: Route 211 at Fernbridge is scheduled to close for 40 hours from 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 23, to noon Sunday, Feb. 25. This plan is weather-dependent.

Contractors will install a concrete slab and expansion joint on the Ferndale side of the bridge. This work requires a full closure in the interest of worker safety due to the narrowness of the bridge. The closure will also reduce working hours on the structure, and if all goes according to plan, weekday commutes should not be impacted. Travelers are encouraged to make plans accordingly.