Sorrel Leaf Healing Center has been given the green light to move forward with its plans to establish the first youth-focused residential mental health facility on the North Coast.
The California Coastal Commission approved a permit application for the project during this morning’s meeting for the North Coast District. The picturesque 13.5-acre site, located at 124 Indianola Road in Eureka, will host a 12-bed crisis residential treatment facility in a renovated three-story farmhouse. The facility will house several therapy rooms, kitchen and dining facilities, as well as administration and operation spaces, according to the staff report. The site will also include a yoga pavilion, a greenhouse where patients will grow their own food and a barn that for small livestock therapy animals.
The approved permit application includes several special conditions to protect the surrounding environment and wildlife, including 3.34 acres of wetlands and an active bald eagle nest, according to the staff report.
“We are very happy to have received the California Coastal Commission’s approval for our plans to develop our Eureka property into a beautiful, land-based healing environment in which the North Coast’s young people will receive compassionate, transformative healing,” Dr. Evan Buxbaum, the center’s executive director, wrote in an email to the Outpost.
The farm-based residential treatment facility will be the first of its kind on the North Coast. Currently, the closest options for inpatient treatment for children and adolescents between 7 and 18 years of age are in either Santa Rosa or Redding, and those centers are frequently at capacity.
Sorrel Leaf will also provide crisis stabilization, continuing aftercare and mobile crisis response for its patients.
“Our Mobile Response Team will work anywhere in the community to de-escalate crises through timely and thorough mental health assessment and diagnosis, as well as the development of an appropriate safety and care plan in coordination with the child and their caregivers,” according to the organization’s website. “Each child will receive individualized psychiatric and therapeutic interventions with the goal of minimizing further trauma and keeping them safely in their homes whenever possible, with appropriate follow-up referrals and case management in place.”
With the Coastal Commission’s blessing secured, the project can be put out to bid for contractors. If all goes according to plan, the crisis residential treatment center will be ready to accept patients by the end of 2024.
Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:
On Thursday April 13, 2023 the Humboldt County Drug Task Force served a search warrant on the 1800 block of 4th Street in Eureka after receiving complaints that 30 year old Alyssa Joanne Hunsucker was selling fentanyl out of her residence. During the service of the search warrant Hunsucker and two male subjects were located in the residence and another unidentified male subject fled out of a window and was not apprehended.
Hunsucker
During a search of the residence agents located approximately three ounces of suspected fentanyl, digital scales, and narcotics paraphernalia. Subsequent to the search, Hunsucker was arrested on the following charges:
H&S 11351(a)- Possession of controlled substances for sale H&S 11366.5(a)- Maintaining a residence for narcotics use
After being transported to the Humboldt County Correctional Facility it was determined Hunsucker had approximately one pound of fentanyl secluded on her person that was located prior to entering into the main facility.
Anyone with information regarding this case is encouraged to contact the Humboldt County Drug Task Force at 707-267-9976.
Alice Birney Elementary students enjoy a swim at the Arcata Community Pool | Photos submitted by Kristen Sobilo
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With summer approaching and river and beach days on the horizon, it’s an important time to make sure kids know how to be safe in the water. Now, thanks to the generosity of a local retired teacher, a group of 24 students from Alice Birney Elementary School were able to take six weeks of free swimming lessons to prepare for splashing season.
Marj Fay, who taught with Eureka City Schools for nearly 20 years and retired about 15 years ago, said that this service is something she’s wanted to provide for a long time. An avid swimmer herself and a member of the Arcata Community Pool’s board of directors, Fay believes that confidence in the water is a very important skill to have.
“I think every child in Humboldt County needs to learn how to swim,” Fay told the Outpost in a phone interview Thursday afternoon. “We are surrounded by rivers, lakes, ocean. It’s dangerous to not know how to swim. They don’t have to become excellent, proficient swimmers. But if they just know enough so they don’t panic, it’s a life-changer.”
Fay also knows that paying for and getting to swimming lessons is not possible for many families, especially in rural Humboldt, where the Arcata Community Pool is the only public pool that doesn’t require a membership, which is why she decided to donate about $1,000 to provide swim lessons for kids who might not otherwise have access to the classes.
Having spent some time teaching at Alice Birney, Fay decided to approach the school’s principal, Kristin Sobilo, with her contribution. Sobilo was thrilled with the idea and decided to make it available for a group of third through fifth grade students who were enrolled in the afterschool program. Starting at the beginning of March, the students went to the Arcata Pool on Fridays after school for six weeks and just finished up their last lesson on April 7.
“Two students had never been to a pool,” Sobilo wrote in an email to the Outpost. “Only five students were even able to tread water. Today, they all can! Our students are thankful and realize the amazing experience they are having.”
Because the school’s buses were not available for transportation on Friday evenings, Fay said, she also needed to organize drivers to shuttle the students to the pool. She reached out to friends and other teachers and was able to get together more than a dozen folks who were willing to help the kids out. Per school policy everyone had to fill out a volunteer form, be fingerprinted and take a TB test before driving the students.
Fay said that she was heartened by how many people wanted to help out and felt that her idea went swimmingly (yeah, that was a bad pool pun.) In the future Faye hopes to work with others to create a program that can regularly provide young students with access to this fun and valuable experience .
“The nicest thing about it was that everybody who went said that it was fun,” Fay said. The kids were adorable and they had a wonderful time. They really loved it. Heck, I loved it, too.”
Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:
On April 12, 2023, at about 11:08 a.m., the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Team was dispatched to Centerville Beach for the report of a suspected military ordnance found by beachgoers.
According to the reporting party, a group of beachgoers were utilizing metal detectors at the beach when they found the ordnance buried in the sand. Upon realizing the potential of this object being a live explosive, the group immediately contacted law enforcement.
EOD deputies arrived at the beach and inspected the object. It was determined to be a live antique military-grade artillery round. Deputies rendered the ordnance safe, and no one was injured.
There is no perceived elevated threat to the community. Antique military ordnances are commonly found in Humboldt County due to heavy civil defense/military activity in the area during the early 20th century. The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office would like to remind the community that if you see something suspicious or out of place in your neighborhood, do not touch or move it, but contact your local law enforcement.
Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:
On April 11, 2023, at about 1:04 a.m., a Humboldt County Sheriff’s deputy on patrol in the county’s jurisdiction of Eureka conducted a traffic stop for a vehicle code violation in the area of McCullen Avenue and Iowa Street.
Deputies contacted two women inside the vehicle. The driver was identified as 34-year-old Katherine Erin Carlson and the passenger, 48-year-old Sara Marie Carnemolla. Carlson was found to have two outstanding felony warrants for her arrest and was on parole. During a search of Carlson, Carnemolla and the vehicle, deputies located drug paraphernalia and items consistent with the sale of controlled substances. During their investigation, deputies learned that both women were in possession of controlled substances hidden on their bodies.
Carlson and Carnemolla were transported to the Humboldt County Correctional Facility and searched. During a search of Carlson, correctional deputies located over 54 grams of suspected fentanyl. During a search of Carnemolla, correctional deputies located over 44 grams of suspected fentanyl and over 20 grams of methamphetamine.
Carlson was booked into the Correctional Facility on charges of possession of a controlled substance (HS 11351), transportation/sale of a controlled substance (HS 11352(A)) and violation of probation (PC 1203.2(a)(2)), in addition to warrant charges of violation of probation and parole revocation (PC 3000.08(f)).
Carnemolla was booked into the Correctional Facility on charges of possession of a narcotic controlled substance (HS 11364) and possession of a controlled substance paraphernalia (HS 11364).
Anyone with information about this case or related criminal activity is encouraged to call the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251 or the Sheriff’s Office Crime Tip line at (707) 268-2539.
Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:
On April 11, 2023, at about 11:45 p.m., a Humboldt County Sheriff’s deputy on patrol in the Hoopa area conducted a traffic stop for a vehicle code violation in the area of Highway 96 and Pine Creek Road.
Deputies contacted two men inside the vehicle. The passenger, 26-year-old Stephen Ray Noble, was found to have outstanding felony warrants for his arrest. During a search of Noble and the vehicle incident to his arrest, deputies located approximately 33.5 grams of Methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia and items consistent with the sale of controlled substances.
Noble was arrested and booked into the Humboldt County Correctional Facility on charges of possession of a controlled substance for sales (HS 11351), possession of a controlled substance (HS 11378), possession of drug paraphernalia (HS 11364(a)) and violation of mandatory supervision, in addition to warrant charges of Post Release Community Supervision Revocation (PC 3455(a)).
The driver of the vehicle was released at the scene.
Anyone with information about this case or related criminal activity is encouraged to call the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251 or the Sheriff’s Office Crime Tip line at (707) 268-2539.
We can talk freely, here, amongst ourselves — flying out of ACV can be a hassle, sometimes.
Most of the time, of course, everything goes exactly according to plan and having a local airport is a wonderful convenience. One-way flights to Burbank for under $100? Fantastic. Your employer’s footing the bill to get you to some conference in middle America? They’re not going to balk at the extra cost.
But once in a while, you spin the barrel and it lands on that sixth chamber. Flights delayed. Flights canceled. You’re camping out at SFO for days on end, desperately dreaming of delivery.
Cody Roggatz, Humboldt County’s Director of Aviation, joins us for a Conversation today to talk about what the county’s doing to try to fix all that, or at least to make it less likely. The airport’s going to get major upgrades this summer — so major that it’s going to shut down all flights for about two weeks in August — with the goal of modernizing the infrastructure somewhat. Roggatz is here to tell us what they’re hoping to accomplish.
Video above, transcript below.
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JOHN KENNEDY O’CONNOR:
Welcome to another Humboldt Conversation. I’m here today with Cody Roggatz. Did I get that right?
CODY ROGGATZ:
You got it.
O’CONNOR:
Who is the Director of Aviation with the Humboldt Airport. Or what is the actual official title? Because everyone has a different name for it.
ROGGATZ:
Yeah, for the airport itself, it’s the California Redwood Coast-Humboldt County Airport. I just say ACV, to keep it simple.
O’CONNOR:
There’s quite a few changes coming up. A lot of changes to the runway, electrical improvements, etc. that are going to be happening this fall, which is going to have a very big impact on the airport, because the airport itself is going to have to close.
ROGGATZ:
Yes, yes.
O’CONNOR:
So what is the situation?
ROGGATZ:
So, for the first time in about 25 to 30 years, we are doing a major overlay of our primary runway. Unfortunately, our primary runway here at ACV is the only runway that airlines can use at any of our six airports. It’s the only one long enough for them to safely take off and land. But what we’re gonna be doing starting in June is phase one of an electrical upgrade, and that’ll be replacing infrastructure that dates back, some of it’s all the way back to the 1950s actually. So, long overdue for replacement.
We’re super excited to be receiving the federal funds to be able to do this. It’s about a $20.2 million project. When we’re done with phase one of that electrical, that’ll roll into pavement. So we’ll mill two inches off of the runway surface, add six inches to that infrastructure. And then on the third phase, so that second phase is August 14th through the 25th, so 12 day closure. And then on the backside through about mid-December, we’ll be finishing up the electrical and bringing those new lights up to be flush with that new surface. So they’re actually four phases.
O’CONNOR:
One, three and four will not impact the closure of the airport. It’s only phase two.
ROGGATZ:
It’s one, two, and three, and all three will. So two is the main impact. That’ll be 12 full days of closure of the entire airport. We’re hoping we don’t have to do anything like this for about another 20 years. So it’s a short-term sacrifice for the long-term benefit so that we can keep that runway open in the long-term and keep it structurally sound for the bigger aircraft that we have coming and going. The electrical on phase one and three will not have impacts to the airlines, but we worked very closely with them to compress that phase two paving timeframe. But also on phase one and three, we’ll be doing overnight closures, so outside of their normal operating windows. So it’ll only be overnight when we typically don’t have airline flights anyways.
O’CONNOR:
Now is there any contingency possible for that closure period? I mean, will the flights operate from other local airports? Will there be transportation to those airports? Or it really is just a closure?
ROGGATZ:
It really is just a closure. We’re continuing to meet with the airlines. We’ve been meeting with them for over six months discussing this now, and they’ve been a part of planning for this. And one thing we’ve asked them to do is monitor the bookings that they have prior to the closure and if they have the capability to add some additional flights on those days leading into that 12-day closure to address those folks that won’t be able to fly during those 12 days.
O’CONNOR:
Now we recently ran a survey on Lost Coast Outpost and it was very interesting. The majority of people said they actually still would prefer to travel out of Medford or San Francisco and do that commute because they’re frustrated by the airport. I mean how do you react to hearing something like that? It’s very negative.
ROGGATZ:
It is, and I think it’s, for a lot of folks, it’s been decades for some people where they’ve been frustrated. This is a big piece, is replacing this electrical infrastructure and the runway pavement itself. But we’re also working on another project on the planning side and evaluating if we would be eligible to upgrade our approach system here, which is what folks talk about typically is our fog. And if you look back at the history of this airport, it was put here to train pilots in foggy conditions because it’s so prevalent.
Now, if you look at the statistics, too, a lot of our delays and cancellations are actually credited to issues with San Francisco and that airport being so congested. But nonetheless, we’re making an effort on the home front here to try to ensure that we have the best systems possible moving forward.
O’CONNOR:
Because we spoke to a reporter, she was actually up here, it took her three … she lives here, it took her three days to get home. And in fact she was in the air, but they had to turn back. And that is very bad.
ROGGATZ:
It is very frustrating and we’re trying to do the best we can and get the latest technology if we’re eligible for that. But we’re in that exploratory phase right now, we’re just kicking that project off. I’ve been here for four and a half years and the records that I’ve dug through, I haven’t seen any evidence of this being explored before. So we’re trying to get the best we possibly can that’s available in the industry.
O’CONNOR:
And will there be more flights added once the runway is in better shape? Because we lost the American flight to Phoenix, that’s gone. And others have also reduced service, etc. So will airlines be coming in rather than out?
ROGGATZ:
Yeah, so we actually added a whole bunch of service last year — well, now a year and a half ago, in 2021. We did lose some of that last year in 2022, but we have retained the majority of that capacity. The Burbank service with Avelo has been wildly successful and very popular with the local community. We’re very thankful for the community supporting that.
Unfortunately, the Phoenix one in particular that you mentioned was load factor-wise, or seats filled versus those available, was very successful, but the industry as a whole, not just American on the regional level, which was who is providing that service, is really struggling with pilot capacity. There’s a nationwide pilot shortage that there’s a lot of headlines daily about that situation, and many small communities like Humboldt or like the ACV airport have been negatively impacted a lot worse than we have.
So while we don’t want to ever see anybody leave, and it was unfortunate to see American go because that was a great service directly to Phoenix and the large hub that they have there, providing connections in and out of the Phoenix region, we are still meeting with airlines. In fact, that’s why you and I aren’t sitting down until today, or part of the reason. Just a couple weeks ago we were meeting with airlines and throwing those pitches.
I don’t know that we’ll have anything exciting to announce here in 2023, again due to the pilot constraints and capacity issues, but we’re full bore ahead on trying to entice somebody to come in here or multiple new routes, hopefully, for 2024 or beyond.
O’CONNOR:
Will you go to London at any point, or…
ROGGATZ:
I don’t know about a direct flight. Either way, we’re just rehabbing it.
O’CONNOR:
Cody, great to meet you. Thanks for taking the time for a Humboldt Conversation today. Great to see you.
ROGGATZ:
Thank you very much.
O’CONNOR:
I hope to have another Humboldt Conversation very soon.
