The board of directors of Eureka City Schools unanimously — even rapturously — voted to trade the long-blighted Jacobs Campus to a private developer for another piece of land at its meeting Thursday night.
The district will get 3553 I Street, a tiny home on an 1/8 of an acre lot south of Harris.
3553 I Street, via Google Street View.
That, plus $5.35 million.
Why does the school district want a tiny house way out on I Street? Well, if you believe the resolution approved unanimously by the board tonight, it needs the property for “housing district employees in the future.”
But the $5.35 million was far more to the point at the board of trustees meeting. Trustees and Superintendent Fred Van Vleck — attending his last board meeting — repeatedly referred to how welcome the money would be. Van Vleck in particular referred to the refurbishment of Eureka High’s Albee Stadium, which he said would cost in the neighborhood of $45 million total. He said he expected the district still needed to scrape together around $15 million for the project.
Even leaving aside the I Street house, the private developers who ended up with Jacobs — “AMG Communities-Jacobs,” an LLC registered with the Secretary of State just a few days ago — offered $1.35 million more than the California Highway Patrol’s last bid, Van Vleck said.
But throwing the I Street property into the mix seems to mean that the school board was able to avoid the standard procedure for a government entity wishing to dispose of surplus land. By engaging in a “land exchange,” the board was able to short-circuit the regular surplus land laws, and instead to claim an exemption under California Education Code Section 17536, which allows a school board to “exchange property” with a private party.
The exchange agreement approved by the school board tonight puts the overall value of the Jacobs Campus at $6 million. It values the I Street property at a patently absurd $650,000 — Zillow has it at $372,000 — which, perhaps not coincidentally, is just over 10 percent of the total value of Jacobs. The balance will be paid to the district in cash.
Were it not for the “land swap,” the district would have to continue to follow the onerous “surplus lands” process, which is well outlined in this pamphlet from the law firm of Lozano Smith. Districts have to offer surplus land to other governmental entities first, and follow an involved process of bidding and regulatory notifications and etc. But it can “exchange land” with basically anyone, at any time, with a 2/3 vote of the board.
That vote seemed never in doubt, with one board trustee member calling the deal a “no-brainer.”
“I’m here for the kids,” said board president Mike Duncan. “I’m here to make sure that these kids have a future, so to me — whether it’s $1.7 million with a property, $1.5 [million] or $1.3, it’s still one million-plus or two million more towards everything that we need to get done for these kids.”
Toward the end of the meeting and immediately before the vote, resident Thomas Stewart bemoaned the lack of transparency around the issue. Only today did anyone in the public have any idea that the school district was swerving away from the CHP deal — only at the meeting, really — and he expressed disappointment at the loss of what he believed to be an opportunity to make his neighborhood safer, with the addition of an on-the-ground law enforcement presence.
Duncan advised Stewart to take the issue up with the City of Eureka, which is in charge of policing the town.
The Outpost will have more on this deal — which, in addition to being extraordinary in itself, reshapes the political fight over affordable housing in the downtown area — in the coming days.
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Outpost reporter Stephanie McGeary contributed to this report.
The race to succeed family dentist and former Healdsburg Mayor Jim Wood as the state Assembly’s Second District representative is crowded, with no fewer than seven candidates qualifying for California’s March primary election ballot.
The endorsement of the incumbent is bound to give one candidate a significant leg up, and this afternoon brings word that Wood has given his nod of approval to none other than California Democratic Party Chair and fairly recent Arcata resident Rusty Hicks.
For the record, the other six candidates in the race are as follows:
Cynthia Click, a former music director at KMUD Community Radio
Michael Greer, Del Norte Unified School District trustee, Republican
Ariel Kelley, mayor of Healdsburg
Franklin “Frankie” Myers, vice-chairman of the Yurok Tribe
Chris Rogers, Santa Rosa councilmember
Ted Williams, Mendocino County mayor supervisor
Here’s the press release from the Rusty Hicks campaign:
Today, Assemblymember Jim Wood, who has served the people of the 2nd Assembly District since 2014, endorsed Rusty Hicks and expressed his confidence in Hicks’ ability to continue the vital work of representing the diverse needs and interests of the district.
“I love my job as your State Assemblymember, and together we’ve made progress on the challenges in our region and our State. After careful consideration, I’ve decided to endorse Rusty Hicks to succeed me in the March 5th Primary Election.” said Assemblymember Jim Wood. “He has the proven leadership skills and integrity we can count on to stand up for our communities and the working families that keep the North Coast moving. Rusty’s experience as an classroom educator, union leader, military veteran, grassroots organizer, and as the Chair of the California Democratic Party show that he brings people together to get things done – and that’s what we need during these turbulent times. I’m proud to endorse Rusty Hicks, and urge you to join me, along with the firefighters, nurses, and working people across the North Coast in supporting him.”
“I am honored and humbled to receive the endorsement of Assemblymember Jim Wood. His unwavering dedication to representing every North Coast community has set a high bar - one I will do my best to live up to. Together, we will work tirelessly to address the pressing challenges facing the 2nd Assembly District and fight for a North Coast that works for all of us.” said Rusty Hicks.
The endorsement from Assemblymember Wood adds to the growing momentum behind Rusty Hicks’ campaign, with support coming from a diverse range of North Coast leaders, local Democratic leaders, and labor unions representing healthcare workers, first responders, and construction workers.
The Jacobs Campus, in Eureka’s Highland Park neighborhood. File photo: Stephanie McGeary.
There is a mysterious item on tonight’s agenda for the board of trustees of Eureka City Schools.
That item — numbered M.33 — carries a long title. It is called:
“Adoption of Resolution 23-24-023 Approving Property Exchange Pursuant to Education Code Section 17536 and Directing District Superintendent, or Designee, to Finalize and Execute the Agreement for Exchange of Real Property”
The staff report for that item — read it here — contains a little bit more information. It is a memo from staff to the school board, asking the board to approve a property swap. The board is asked to trade 674 Allard Avenue — the long-disused Jacobs Campus — for another piece of property.
Which piece of property would the district be trading for? Who would they be trading with? For what purpose?
The district is not saying. The details of the proposed land-swap staff is proposing are contained in a draft contract attached to the staff report — they call it “Exhibit A” — which school district staff say will not be made public until the time of the meeting.
This morning, the Outpost spoke with Micalyn Harris, the executive assistant to Superintendent Fred Van Vleck, who is scheduled to leave the job at the end of the month. Harris declined to provide the Outpost a copy of “Exhibit A,” on the grounds that the board was also dealing with the question of the Jacobs Campus earlier in the evening, during a closed session item.
Whether or not the board takes action on the staff’s proposed land swap will depend on what happens during that closed session discussion, Harris said.
“Depending on the board’s determination out of those confidential discussions, they may or may not decide to take action,” Harris said. “And if they do decide to have a conversation outside of closed session and take action on that item, those documents will be available for the public.”
One trustee on the Eureka City Schools board told the Outpost that they had received documentation about the proposed land swap, but that they could not discuss it with us, for similar reasons — that it would be discussed earlier, in closed session, and that fact precluded release of information about the deal scheduled to be heard later, in open session.
So the public goes into tonight’s meeting blind about the details. Despite that, the staff report asks the board to approve the property swap at tonight’s meeting. This, at the very least, is an unusual state of affairs in California, which has laws to ensure that the public’s business is conducted in public.
The Jacobs Campus has been much in the news of late, and not only for its squalor. Last year the City of Eureka attempted to purchase the property from the school district in order to build housing, but its bid was rejected. The California Highway Patrol has been in negotiations to buy the site for a new headquarters for well over a year. Most recently, proponents of the pro-parking “Housing for All Initiative” have touted it as an alternate site for housing development, which might theoretically allow for the preservation of downtown parking lots.
The staff report estimates the value of the proposed land swap at $6 million.
The Eureka City Schools Board of Trustees meets at at 5:30 p.m. at district headquarters — 2100 J Street, Eureka.
On December 13, 2023 an Agent from the Humboldt County Drug Task Force (HCDTF),
who has been actively involved in this investigation, authored a search warrant for
several locations in response to the ongoing attempts to locate additional toys stolen
from the Toys for Tots storage location.
The search warrants were executed by HCDTF,
assisted by Detectives and an Evidence Technician from the Eureka Police Department.
During the search of one of the locations, additional stolen toys were located and
recovered. Also located was a stolen handgun, ammunition, body armor and two (2)
digital scales with narcotic residue.
This is an ongoing investigation and additional charges are expected to be filed once
reviewed by the Humboldt County District Attorney’s office.
The Agent who authored the search warrants shared that this theft hit close to home for
him. He understands how these generous donations of toys have such a positive impact
on the children of our community, and is committed to recovering as many of the toys
as we can while bringing those responsible to justice.
We are pleased to share a bittersweet moment for our department, the retirement of Administrative Technician II, Suzie Owsley.
Suzie began her career over 32 years ago starting as a Police Services Officer and has worked in many different positions throughout the department. To say she has been a fundamental part in our operations would be an understatement. Suzie has provided a great deal of support to our goal of providing the best service possible to the citizens of Eureka.
On behalf of a grateful department, we want to congratulate Suzie on her retirement, and wish her well in her future endeavors. Thank you for the years of dedicated and unwavering service you have provided to the City of Eureka, citizens of Eureka, and the men and women of the Eureka Police Department.
Conceptual rendering of the Humboldt Bay Offshore Wind Heavy Lift Marine Terminal | Photo: Harbor District
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The Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District Board of Commissioners will receive a status update on the Humboldt Bay Offshore Wind Heavy Lift Marine Terminal Project during tonight’s regular meeting. Tonight’s report will include more information on the district’s recent decision to extend its “Exclusive Right to Negotiate” agreement with Crowley Wind Services, the marine logistics company that’s been selected to build a full-service facility to support offshore wind development on the West Coast.
The agreement, which prevents the district from negotiating with other potential developers, was set to conclude at the end of this month. The extended agreement will end in March 2024.
The Harbor District has spent the last year working with Crowley to design the Humboldt Bay Offshore Wind Heavy Lift Marine Terminal Project, to be located at Redwood Marine Terminal 1 on the Samoa Peninsula, and come up with a lease agreement for the project site.
The proposed development has sparked controversy among some local stakeholders and tribal leaders who have asked the Harbor District to reconsider its partnership with Crowley following allegations of sexual misconduct among some company higher-ups. Others, including some local environmental advocacy groups, have questioned the legality of entering into a lease agreement before environmental review.
“Since signing the ERTN agreement in October of 2022, the District and Crowley have received numerous comments and questions from community members about the possibility of a lease,” the staff report states. “Both parties have been actively listening to Tribal governments, community members, interested parties, and affected communities. Both parties continue to work diligently to understand concerns and to evaluate how various interests could be reflected in a lease.”
Staff will also provide a general update on port development efforts during tonight’s meeting, including the project schedule, budget, tasks completed, tasks underway, upcoming tasks and the latest overall project strategy.
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The Harbor District Board of Commissioners will meet tonight at 6 p.m. in the Woodley Island Marina Meeting Room – 601 Startare Drive, Eureka. Remote viewing instructions and the agenda can be found here.
Traffic on Highway 99 near Parkway Drive in Fresno on Feb. 25, 2023. Photo by Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters/CatchLight Local
California’s funding from gas taxes will drop by nearly $6 billion in the next decade due to the state’s electric car rules and other climate programs, “likely resulting in a decline in highway conditions for drivers,” according to a new state analysis released yesterday.
As California phases in major policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions — such as the mandates for zero-emission cars and trucks — consumers buy less gasoline and diesel, and consequently pay less taxes.
Those declines in tax dollars will be partially offset by the state’s road improvement fee, which drivers pay when they register their electric cars. But the Legislative Analyst’s Office stressed that overall the state will still see a $4.4 billion drop in funding, a 31% decline, over a decade, so the Legislature and governor must come up with substantial new funding sources.
Unless the drop is accounted for with new fees or other funding, there would be substantially less money for highway programs as well as local road maintenance, the analysts wrote. Work supporting buses, trains and other public transit options across the state also would face drops in funding.
“As the state tries to meet its ambitious climate goals through the adoption of zero emission vehicles, and greater fuel efficiency within conventional vehicles, the report finds that we’ll see a decline in fuel tax revenues,” said Frank Jimenez, a senior fiscal and policy analyst with the office.
Fuel taxes and vehicle fees fund about a third of state spending on transportation. This year’s budget, passed in June, includes about $14.2 billion in state funding for transportation.
The report projects declines of $5 billion, or 64%, in the state’s gasoline excise tax, $290 million, or 20%, in the diesel excise tax and $420 million, or 20%, in the diesel sales tax, over the next decade.
Highway maintenance is funded primarily by the fuel taxes “and therefore will face significant funding declines,” the report says. “…We project funding for these programs will drop by roughly $1.5 billion (26 percent) over the next decade, from $5.7 billion to $4.2 billion.”
Lawmakers could make up for the shortfalls in many of these programs by spending less on transportation, but that would likely mean worsening roads and highways, and also some public mass transit cuts. They might also consider further increasing gas taxes or vehicle fees. But that might have an outsized impact on the state’s lower-income communities, who are expected to adopt zero-emission vehicles more slowly as middle- or higher-income Californians.
Lawmakers also could consider using other state funds for transportation or implementing a road charge, which would tax people based on the number of miles they drive.
The report comes as California is bracing for a projected $68 billion budget deficit next year. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Finance Department on Tuesday ordered departments and agencies across government to reign in spending on everything from travel to office supplies.
California aims to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 85% below 1990 levels by 2045, when the state is expected to reach a statewide goal of net zero emissions. One of the most prominent ways the state is doing that is by banning the sale of all new gas-powered cars by 2035.
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CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.
