A visualization of what the Arcata flagpole will soon look like, probably, courtesy Earth Flag booster-upper Dave Meserve.

If the election office’s initial estimate was accurate, it looks like we’ve now tallied up almost all the ballots that were left untallied on election night (Nov. 8). This morning, the office released another report with another 9,279 votes recorded, which would put us somewhere in the range of 1,000 votes or so left to count.

That said, we can now definitively call some races!

In the countywide race for clerk-recorder/registrar of voters, Juan Pablo Cervantes has handily defeated his coworker, Tiffany Hunt Nielsen, by a margin (at this moment) of 55.96 percent to 44.04 percent. Bit of a turnaround from the June primary, when Nielsen finished just ahead of Cervantes.

In the Eureka City Council races, G. Mario Fernandez is a lock for the Ward 3 seat, with 52.93 percent of the vote tallied to challenger John Fullerton’s 47.07 percent. This is just the latest humiliation for old-school Eureka conservatism, which hasn’t won an election in any of the city’s wards in the last six years or so.

Meanwhile, the relatively unknown Renee Contreras de Loach has shocked Old Town businessman Nicholas Kohl in the race for the Ward 5 seat, with 53.47 percent of the vote counted. And local activist Julie Ryan, who works for Food for People, has ousted longtime conservative stalwart Alan Bongio from his seat on the board of the Humboldt Community Services District, which serves the traditionally conservative Cutten area, among other Eureka outskirts.

The come-from-behind victory of this cycle: Arcata’s Measure M, an ordinance to hang the Earth Flag at the top of city flagpoles. The “yes” tally now stands at 51.24 percent, which means that it should sail to victory. Expect a court challenge, which should be fun!

View full results here. See you in 2024!

In loving memory of William Joseph Foster, we are saddened to announce his sudden and unexpected passing on the morning of September 10, 2022 due to a heart attack at the age of 66.

William, born to Judy and William Foster in Bloomington, Illinois on November 29, 1955. Remarried, his mother moved her family in 1964 to Eureka, where William spent most of his life, graduating Eureka Senior High School in 1973 with a job at Herb Neely’s.

In 1975 he married Wendy Thomas and together, they raised two children, a son and a daughter, Jesse and Chelsea. However, they divorced in 1997.

A man of many trades including journeyman mechanic, machinist and carpenter.

There are so many things I can say about this man. Most knew him as Willie or Bill and he had a contagious smile and a laugh that could cheer anyone up. He loved muscle cars, music, cooking, fishing, hunting and carpentry. He had a great sense of humor, loved jokes and playing tricks. He was a friend to all. Willie was a dog lover and loves his dog Buckshot AKA Bucky.

William was preceded by his father, Wayne Nealis. He is survived by his mother, Judy Nealis; his two children, Jesse and Chelsea, their spouses Yvonne and Kirk; his brothers, Mark, Chris and Scott, among numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and friends.

A private memorial is being planned at a later date with details to follow. A heartfelt Thanks to Ayres Funeral home for providing cremation services for The Foster Family

Some of the biggest things he can be remembered by is that he had a smile and laugh that could light up the room. If anyone was sad, he could pull them out of it and light up that room.

This is not the end of the memory of William Joseph Foster. I would like him to always be remembered, and I would like to add a few lines of a song that to me is fitting.

“Phoneline to Heaven ~ Austin John Winkler”

If there was a Phoneline to heaven
I’d call you just to say Hello
‘Cause there’s just so much about you that I need to know

“Cause I love you
And yea… And I miss you
I just needed you to know

I’d give up a lifetime
for five minutes with you alone
“Cause I miss you

I just needed you to know…

You will be remembered and not forgotten.

###

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

Note: The Yurok Tribe and the Bear River Band of Rohnerville Rancheria also received grants to remediate homelessness today. For the full announcement, click here.

Press release from the Wiyot Tribe:

The logo of the Dishgamu mission.

California Governor Gavin Newsom this morning announced $47 million in Homeless Housing Funding to California tribal nations to support their efforts to prevent and end homelessness. The Wiyot Tribe will receive more than $14 million to purchase, convert and operate an office building and two single-family Victorian-style homes into 39 interim and permanent units serving homeless youth and one manager unit, to create the Jaroujiji Youth Housing Project in Eureka.

The grant will create 39 units of housing for Youth who are experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness.

“This Youth Center is a true blessing. It will help to keep Wiyot youth and homeless youth protected from addictions and dangerous environments that might try to attack them from the outside world. It is our responsibility to keep our children safe,” said Ted Hernandez, Tribal Chairman.

The Tribe is acquiring two properties in north Eureka, with one office building and two Victorian-style single-family homes and rehabilitating them to be suitable for youth housing and to house supportive services for residents of the Jaroujiji Youth Housing Project. The grant has three phases; acquisition of two buildings, renovation and rehabilitation of the buildings to create 39 interim and permanent housing units and supportive services to offer the residents of the project. These properties will be restricted to use as homeless youth housing for 55 years. Creating a transitional youth program that will serve youth for at least the next half century. This grant was developed through the Tribe’s Dishgamu Humboldt Community Land Trust. Dishgamu (dish-gah-muh) Humboldt Community Land Trust is an Indigenous led land trust organized under the Wiyot Tribe. Through land return, Dishgamu seeks to return public and private land within the unceded ancestral territory to the Wiyot Tribe.

David Cobb, Advancement Manager of the Dishgamu Community Land Trust commented, “Our name, ‘Dishgamu’, means Love in Soulatluk (Wiyot language), and this work seeks to invest love and caring into our community of which Jaroujiji (Eureka) sits in the center,” Trust. “Housing prices continue to soar, young people just starting off in life are struggling, our work and this project are about stabilizing housing, and providing care and support so that youth in our community have a healthy safety net and a place to grow, heal and develop,” said Michelle Vassel Tribal Administrator.

Morgan March, Director of Dishgamu stated, “We have worked very closely with the State to land this grant, and their ambassadors have been very helpful and supportive through the whole process. We hope to build a more stable local housing market and helping those who are the most vulnerable is one part of our strategy. Young folks are the future, and if we can support them towards stability, we feel like we have succeeded.”

Dishgamu also seeks to prioritize Wiyot people in affordable housing to allow Wiyot people to remain in and protect their homelands and Environmentally, Culturally, and Ceremonially restore land, take action against climate change and continue to be stewards of their own land/ancestral territory by utilizing deep green building practices and restoration of green spaces. We aim to develop and train local people through our projects to produce living wage jobs in our area and to bring best practices in construction, energy production, building materials, and housing design to Humboldt County.

The Wiyot Tribe’s Dishgamu Community Land Trust aims to restore Wiyot people to their rightful place in relationship with their ancestral land. Wiyot language and ceremony are an active, thriving part of the cultural landscape, where Wiyot place names are restored, recognized, and where intertribal Indigenous communities have affordable housing, and living wage jobs. Dishgamu Humboldt is centered in Jaroujiji (Eureka, CA), the ancestral homeland of the Wiyot Tribe, now known as the Humboldt Bay area.

Press release from Humboldt Bay Fire:

On Monday, November 21 at 08:30 pm Humboldt Bay Fire units responded to a structure fire at the intersection of 2nd and Q Streets. The first-arriving engine reported a smoke column visible from 5th and W Streets and found a detached garage significantly involved with heavy fire and smoke, threatening the single-family house on the property. Engine 8114 secured a water supply and quickly attacked the fire, achieving fire control within ten minutes. Other units searched the structure and verified there was no fire extension or damage to the nearby house. The occupant at the house who reported the fire was uninjured. There was approximately $25,000 of damage to the garage with an undetermined cause following investigation. Units ensured the residence and garage were safe and secured before turning the property over to the owner.

The following morning at approximately 07:30am units were again dispatched to a structure fire at 307 W Sonoma Street. At the time, one of the HBF units was already on a medical aid incident but was able to quickly clear and respond to the fire call.

The Battalion Chief arrived on scene first and reported fire and smoke coming from one unit of a duplex apartment building. All occupants were able to safely exit the structure. The tiller truck arrived on scene next and quickly hit the fire with their tank water, stopping any further significant growth. The remaining crews secured a water supply and searched both units for any occupants or pets. Fortunately, all made it out safely except for a pet gecko that perished in the fire conditions.

Crews controlled the fire within 20 minutes but significant damage was sustained throughout the one unit. Once the fire was completely extinguished, firefighters cleared both apartments of smoke. Both families were displaced by the incident and were provided aid for alternative accommodation by HBF and the Red Cross. After an investigation, it was determined that a candle had been left burning near combustibles which led to smoke and, eventually, an accidental fire. The damage to the home is estimated to be a total of $250,000 including damage to the structure itself and its contents.

This was a costly reminder to never leave candles unattended or near combustibles. Great care must be taken with any open flames within your household. It is also a good reminder to ensure smoke alarms are operational and all occupants know what to do when they sound.

Humboldt Bay Fire would like to thank our partners at City Ambulance, Eureka Police Department and Public Works, Arcata, Blue Lake and Samoa Fire Districts for the assistance on both of these incidents.

Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office has been alerted to the suspicious deaths of multiple dogs in the Cutten area.

Over the last week, approximately five dogs in the area of Excelsior Road have died after reportedly exhibiting symptoms associated with poisoning. Preliminary investigation indicates the dogs may have consumed an unknown green substance found on sidewalks of the neighborhood. Residents in the area are encouraged to inspect their yards and sidewalks for any unknown materials, and monitor pets closely while out on walks in the area.

The symptoms of poisoning vary depending on the substance and quantity your dog has breathed in or eaten. There is no single sign that you can use to diagnose the situation. However, there are some common symptoms to watch out for such as gastrointestinal or neurological issues. The following may be signs of dog poisoning:

• Diarrhea or blood in the stool (either bright red blood or dark black tarry stools)
• Vomiting or loss of appetite.
• Seizures or tremors.
• Behavioral changes (lethargy or unsteady when standing or walking; hyperactivity)
• Bruising or bleeding (best found in areas of little or no hair, such as the gums, inside the ear flaps, and inside the groins; nose bleeds or bloody urine)
• Finding of unusual material in a dog’s stool, such as peculiar green or corn-like substances which might be rodenticide ingestion.

If your dog is exhibiting the above symptoms or you’ve found your dog interacting with something dangerous, take immediate action. The faster you respond, the better the outlook for your dog. Here are the steps you should take:

• Stay calm and remove your dog away from the potentially poisonous substance.
• Take note of the situation and your dog’s symptoms.
• Contact your veterinarian. Always have their number programmed into your phone. If it’s after hours, contact the nearest emergency clinic or a pet poison hotline. Ask if you should come in immediately or induce vomiting at home.
• If possible, safely collect any of the remaining potential poison or the packaging. If your dog has vomited, collect a sample. This will help the vet diagnose and treat your pet.
• Follow your veterinarian’s directions completely. If they advise you to come in, go in as soon as possible.

To learn more about keeping animals safe from poisonous substances, visit: https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control

This case is still under investigation. Anyone with information about this case or who locates a similar suspicious substance 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.

Affordable Homeless Housing Alternatives (AHHA) recently made the difficult decision to retire its Shower Care-A-Van and pop-up care program at the end of this year to focus on the organization’s guiding principle: creating housing opportunities for Humboldt County’s most vulnerable.

“We have to put our focus on creating some alternative housing projects where people can be safe, warm and dry instead of continually being pushed to the margins,” AHHA Co-founder and President Nezzie Wade told the Outpost in a recent interview. “We have to do something more and we just don’t see that the low-income housing projects that are getting built are going to be able to be accessed by the people that we serve. We’re looking at the folks who always fall into the gap.”

For years, AHHA has urged the county and the City of Eureka to take a more proactive and innovative approach to affordable housing development through the creation of sanctioned encampments and tiny house villages. The county agreed to incorporate these suggestions into its revised housing element in August 2019 but Wade said “it will be a long time before any ordinances are passed” to move the plan forward.

Looking for another way to offer support, AHHA launched its Shower Care-A-Van, a three-stall ADA-compliant mobile hygiene trailer unit, in November 2019 to provide homeless community members with free access to hot showers and haircuts, along with resources and services to help them get back on their feet.

“Morally, we couldn’t leave people out there with no support or alternatives,” Wade said. “We’ve done a lot of basic health care for people because we’ve been able to bring resources directly to them. …And then COVID hit and we thought, ‘This is more [necessary] than ever.’”

And for the next three years, the Shower Care-A-Van and its volunteers traversed between Arcata, Eureka, McKinleyville and Redway, serving hundreds – or likely thousands – of residents. But even with all of its benefits, Wade said the program only underscored the fact “that people don’t have what they need.”

The decision to discontinue the beloved program did not come easy.

“It’s a very hard thing to do,” Wade continued. “It’s been a wonderful experience for the communities that we serve. … But we are discontinuing the project so we can put our resources and all of our efforts into actually creating some alternatives that will [provide] people with stable places to be.”

Fortunately, AHHA has coordinated with the Betty Kwan Chinn Homeless Foundation to ensure Eureka’s homeless residents have regular access to free showers located inside St. Vincent de Paul’s dining facility.

“Nezzie called me and said they were going to close down their shower [program], so we’re going to open our showers Monday through Friday,” Betty Chinn told the Outpost. “We also serve breakfast.”

Chinn is also working on a grant application with the City of Eureka to bring a portable shower trailer to Betty’s Blue Angel Village. 

Arcata House Partnership is hoping to offer showers through the Annex in the near future, Wade said. The McKinleyville Family Resources Center is hoping to do the same.

As AHHA shifts focus back to housing efforts, Wade is looking for local groups and individuals that can help the organization find available property and finance communal housing projects.

“We really are reliant on community support,” she said. “We’re looking for people who will help us build our capacity and regenerate that focus on housing. We’re looking to build our committee structure and our board, but we are also looking for people who would like to invest in a project. That is really essential.”

Press release from the Yurok Tribe:

On Saturday, November 12, the Northern California Condor Restoration Program performed x-rays on two elk that were illegally killed in an area frequented by the recently released condors. One of the carcasses contained enough lead to kill several condors.

“This is about as close as you can get to a worst-case scenario. If the carcasses weren’t quickly reported, and our free-flying condors accessed them, it is very likely that one or more of the condors would have consumed a life-threatening quantity of lead,” said NCCRP Manager and Yurok Wildlife Department Manager Chris West, who has more than two decades of condor management experience. “The risk this incident presented to the condors cannot be understated, since at least four of our recently released condors were less than a 10-minute flight from the poaching event at the time that it occurred.”

“Based on the circumstances, we’re lucky we didn’t have to transport condors for treatment or lose a bird to lead poisoning,” said Yurok Wildlife Department Director Tiana Williams-Claussen. “Lead is by far the single biggest threat to condors in the wild.”

“We are so fortunate that we did not lose one or more members of the new condor population,” added Redwood National and State Parks Superintendent Steven Mietz. “We are doing everything possible to find the people who illegally killed the elk and put the new condor population at risk. If you have any information that might help us hold those responsible for this illegal act accountable, please contact the park or the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.”

Officers with Redwood National and State Parks and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife are investigating the incident and ask for the public’s assistance in this case. Investigating officers are urging anyone with any information to call either NPS Ranger Attendorn at 707 465 7789 or Game Warden Castillo at 707-673-3678. To anonymously make a report, please call CDFW’s CalTip at 1-888-334-CalTIP (888 334-2258) or call the park’s anonymous crime tip line at 707 765 7353

Several lead fragments, including the bulk of the lead ammunition round, were found in the neck of one of the cow elk and within a fist-sized chunk of meat presumably dropped by the poachers at the site. All meat containing lead was removed from the site. Additionally, approximately 40 pounds of consumable meat were left on each animal.

Lead is the leading cause of condor mortality. Since the critically endangered avian scavengers were first reintroduced in 1992, more than half of all condor fatalities have been linked to the ingestion of lead fragments from consumed animals shot with lead ammunition.

When an animal is shot with a lead bullet, much of projectile breaks apart upon impact and continues to fragment as it travels through muscle, bone, and organ tissue. Hundreds of lead particles, ranging from the size of a fingernail to a speck of dust, may travel more than one foot from the wound channel. For this reason, small metal fragments frequently spread broadly through meat and viscera of lead-shot animals. In Southern California, many healthy condors have expired after eating one lead-tainted meal.

Condors only consume decomposing animal tissue or carrion. The large vultures normally ingest small bones in the carrion, along with dirt, pine needles and other natural yet undigestible debris. Similar to owls, condors have a way to caste or “cough up” most of the undigestible bits. But often this does not happen with lead. When a condor consumes carrion containing lead fragments, an early side effect of lead toxicosis, or lead poisoning, is paralysis of the gastrointestinal tract. As a result, the heavy metal stays in the tract where strong acids continue to release highly toxic lead particles into the condor’s bloodstream. With each meal, the toxic metal is exposed to more digestive acid and greater quantities of the poison enter the bird’s vital organs, muscle, and skeleton. In general, when a condor consumes lead fragments, the bird will experience a series of worsening symptoms that often unfold over the course of days and weeks and lead to an excruciating death.

The first visible sign of lead poisoning is disorientation and lethargy. The bird’s immune system will also be diminished at this stage. If the condor does not receive medical treatment, it will be at higher risk of predation, in-flight collisions and other life-threatening incidents. Any of these are far less agonizing than what follows. Next, the toxin causes the bird’s crop to stop functioning, which is known as crop stasis. Located above the stomach, the crop is a thinly walled pouch that is used to store up to three pounds of carrion for later digestion. Any decaying meat in the paralyzed crop quickly begins to discharge an entirely different set of potentially lethal toxins, including one that can burn though the skin pouch. While normally able to regurgitate as needed, crop stasis prohibits expelling the tainted meat. The condor will begin to experience dehydration and starvation, but cannot eat or drink due to the constriction in its crop. If not consumed by a predator, the compromised bird eventually succumbs to dehydration, starvation, or diseases that would not harm a healthy bird.

“Every condor is critical and sacred. Older condors teach younger birds how to make it in the wild. When a condor dies prematurely from lead poisoning, all of the knowledge it amassed throughout its life, such as where to find forage or safely roost for the night, is lost and won’t be transmitted to the next generation. This transmission of knowledge is essential to the health of our condor population,” said Williams-Claussen. “In order to conserve the species, it’s critical to transition to non-lead ammunition, which is high performing and viable as a harvest tool.”

Performing the necessary x-rays to remove tainted meat from the field takes a lot of time and money that should be spent on other high priority condor management actions.

In May, the NCCRP released the first condor to soar over Northern California’s iconic redwoods in more than a century. In the last six months, the program has released seven additional birds. The program plans to release a group of birds every year for the next two decades or longer. Prior to the May reintroduction, the program developed agreements with the Sequoia Park, Oregon, and Oakland Zoos to provide treatment to condors sickened by lead because it is such a serious threat.

The NCCRP is a collaboration between the Yurok Tribe and Redwood National and State Parks.

For more information on the impacts of use of lead, and transitioning to non-lead ammunition, please visit https://huntingwithnonlead.