Update, afternoon of Dec. 16: Comment from Matt Mais, Public Relations Director for the Yurok Tribe, below:

The Yurok Tribe acquired the N Street property in March of 2025 for the purpose of converting it into a state-of-the-art natural resource management facility. Shortly thereafter, all tenants were informed of the plan. The Kinetic Sculpture Lab was notified in early September that their lease, ending on November 30, 2025, would not be renewed. Recognizing the Lab’s unique needs, the Tribe offered them a one-month extension until the end of the year to ensure a smooth transition.

The property’s several other tenants were able to move out within the mutually agreed-upon timeframe. The Tribe will soon begin upgrading the buildings to meet safety codes, including asbestos removal, and renovating the property, which will serve as a hub for dozens of scientists, engineers and support staff conducting fisheries research and river restoration projects across the Klamath Basin and Northern California. At the cutting-edge facility, the Tribe will also provide hands-on training to Yurok youth interested in natural sciences and ecosystem restoration.

###

The Kinetic Sculpture Lab is a tiny city, filled with miniature alleys and thousands of corners created by the dense thickets of art and tools that suck up all the breathing room. The leviathans within — a hippo, a horse, a ladybug, many slowly decomposing into ideas — are the skyscrapers. Stuck anywhere there’s room, they loom. 

But the managers that keep the place afloat may be the last to keep watch over the metropolis. The Yurok Tribe, the owners of the property that contains the 3,500 square foot Kinetic Sculpture Lab, told the lab staff today that they would not renew their lease next year. All of the things in the lab — the dozens of kinetic sculptures, their chassis, the mind-boggling amount of tools and supplies that take up almost all of the floor space and stacks to the soaring ceiling — must be gone by January 1, 2026. It’s taken years to fill. Even on its own, one huge fish took a whole week to install. The short timeframe may make moving impossible. 

“Being told we had to be out in 15 days — that’s a little bit of an impracticality,” Ken Beidleman, a decades-long volunteer with the lab and the Kinetic Sculpture competitor, told the Outpost. “It’s like [they’re saying], ‘Just take the place and blow it up. Go and be done with it.’ Yeah, there’s no fucking way.”

The lab benefited for years from a generous landlord that only charged $300 a month and let the lab swell. It’s hardly a perfect space; the foundation is weak, and volunteers had to build a low platform in one corner to keep items off of the floor because it floods sometimes. But it was cheap, and since the late ‘90s it was a great space to build the machines and host the public at events like an annual haunted house. People could also go in and check the chaos out for themselves. 

Beidleman and Malia Matsumoto, a competitor in the Kinetic Sculpture Race for the past 15 years, said they knew there was a chance they’d have to go, but that poor communication with the tribe inhibited their ability to put together a plan. Beidleman said the tribe had told them as recently as Halloween they weren’t planning on doing anything with the building. Now, they want to renovate, and need the Kinetic stuff gone. 

“I’m really shocked,” Matsumoto said, “We’ve been asking for communication about renewing our lease, and I think if they were communicating with us if they didn’t want to renew the lease, we’d have a plan in action by now. We would have been implementing something. It’s just shocking.”

They’re looking for a space to store everything, even if it’s only temporary. They’ll need a space about the same size and height. 

No one’s sure how this will affect next year’s Kinetic Sculpture Race; it’s just too soon to tell, Beidleman said. 

“We knew the bullet was in the chamber,” Beidleman said. “Now they’ve pulled the trigger.”

Todd Fulton. | Image via Facebook.

SoHum is about to get a new representative on the Humboldt County Planning Commission, and he’s the kind of man who’d look right at home sauntering through a pair of swinging saloon doors.

Supervisor Michelle Bushnell, whose Second District encompasses the county’s rugged southeasterly region — from Fortuna to Bridgeville, Alderpoint to Shelter Cove — is set to appoint the magnificently mustachioed Todd Fulton to the commission at tomorrow’s Board of Supervisors meeting. 

Fulton, a longtime Humboldt County sheriff’s deputy and investigator, will succeed SoHum cannabis farmer Thomas Mulder, who spent the past (nearly) five years as Bushnell’s appointee.

Now working as a security/safety coordinator for Green Diamond Resource Company, Fulton serves on the board of directors for both the Northcoast Regional Land Trust and the Fortuna Rodeo. He’s a member of the Humboldt County Fair Association Junior Livestock Auction Committee and a director for the Humboldt Del Norte Cattlemen’s Association.

According to his bio on the Land Trust website, Fulton and his family operate a small cow-calf operation in Kneeland. He’s a fourth-generation Fortuna man who spent 17 years employed by the Pacific Lumber Company, working in just about every facet of the logging industry.

If you’ll indulge this reporter in a brief personal note, the only time I met Fulton (as far as I recall) was one of the most remarkable and memorable experiences of my life. It was a few winters ago. My wife and I had just finished a beautiful snowy walk along Kneeland Road when we spotted Fulton out in a field among a herd of cattle, trying with all his might to pull a stillborn calf from a cow’s birth canal. 

He’d cinched a nylon strap around the calf’s legs and was tugging and heaving, to no avail. We hopped the fence and, after a few minutes of collective labor, we managed to dislodge the unfortunate creature. The exhausted mama cow survived, thankfully. Fulton — disappointed, a bit winded yet thoroughly friendly — shook our hands in thanks and chatted with us a bit about his operation before we parted ways.

Anywho, Fulton was nearly appointed to an at-large position on the Planning Commission in March of 2024 but narrowly lost the seat to Caltrans environmental scientist Lorna McFarlane.

Speaking to the Outpost by phone this afternoon, Bushnell expressed her appreciation for Mulder, saying he represented District 2 really well.

“I really appreciate his time and commitment, especially coming from Southern Humboldt, which is quite a trek,” she said.

In his resignation letter, Mulder says he plans to spend more time with his family and watch more of his sons’ sporting events. 

Describing himself as “a voice of reason and understanding” on the commission, Mulder says, “The opportunity and experience will forever be something I remember.”

Fulton, for his part, keeps it taciturn, in true cowboy style, on his application to join the commission, saying only, “I want to be more involved with our county’s growth and development.”

###

For nearly 20 years, Friends of the Dunes has had its eye on a blighted property just up the road from the Humboldt Coastal Nature Center in Manila. After failed purchase attempts and watching the 6.5-acre site deteriorate into an illegal dumping ground, the nonprofit has finally secured the funds needed to add the parcel to its 130-acre land trust.

The California State Coastal Conservancy last month approved $431,500 in grant funds to help Friends of the Dunes purchase and restore the long-neglected site, located at 150 Stamps Lane in Manila. The nonprofit is also exploring plans to expand its dune trail system and build a campground onsite to draw new visitors.

“This is a prime location for us,” Suzie Fortner, executive director of Friends of the Dunes, told the Outpost. “We have thousands and thousands of visitors every year — both local and from out of the area — who come to the Humboldt Coastal Nature Center to get information about exploring the coast, and right now, they’re driving past this boarded-up house and chain link fence just to get to our parking lot. It’s not the prettiest or most welcoming of views, so we’re really looking forward to improving the site.”

Friends of the Dunes first inquired about the parcel in the mid-2000s when it bought the Humboldt Coastal Nature Center property from the Stamps Family. At that time, the property’s owner wasn’t interested in selling. 

“Fast-forward to 2022: The property was foreclosed on, and everybody that lived on the property was evicted,” Fortner said. “It just sat there for a few years, and the property continued to get more and more degraded over time because it was [owned] by an out-of-state bank and there was nobody locally keeping an eye on it. … There were a bunch of outbuildings that got completely looted, and unfortunately, it became a neighborhood dumping ground.”

After “making a lot of noise about the condition of the site,” Fortner said the bank had the ransacked outbuildings removed and eventually sold the parcel to someone living in the Bay Area. 

“He had some plans for fixing the place up, but unfortunately, things changed with his life, and he couldn’t commit to that anymore,” she continued. “About a year later, he wanted to put it back on the market, and we had a conservation buyer purchase and hold onto it for us while we work towards getting grant funding for it.”

With the funding secured, Friends of the Dunes will soon begin a feasibility analysis to figure out next steps for the property and determine whether the remaining house and garage are worth saving for a potential on-site caretaker. The feasibility analysis will also explore the potential for a new campground.

“Something that the state Coastal Conservancy is really hoping to fund through their Explore the Coast Overnight Program is affordable overnight accommodations,” Fortner said. “For us, that would probably look like an affordable campground since we don’t really have a lot of places to stay out here in Manila. The closest campground is at the Samoa boat ramp, but that’s really just an asphalt lot where the off-road vehicle folks stay.”

Friends of the Dunes is also working with Caltrans to create a safer entrance to the Humboldt Coastal Nature Center, which is situated just off of Route 255. 

Fortner added that the nonprofit will be working with the Peninsula Community Collaborative as it works through the feasibility analysis to ensure the community is a part of the process. “They’ve been doing such a great job of improving the Samoa Peninsula in general,” she said.  “We’re really excited to work with them and the Manila Community Services District, as well as the Bureau of Land Management, which manages the Ma-le’l Dunes, and the Humboldt Bay Wildlife Refuge, which manages the Lanphere Dunes. 

Friends of the Dunes expects to close on the property early next year, probably in February or March. In the meantime, Forter asks visitors to respect those “no trespassing” signs.

###

Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

On Dec. 13, 2025, at 1: 02 a.m., a Humboldt County Sheriff’s deputy was patrolling the area of Broadway St. and Sunset St., in Eureka when he observed a white Jeep Cherokee parked at a local gas station. There were two people associated with the Jeep, the deputy then stopped and contacted the two individuals. The driver and owner of the jeep was identified as 37-year-old Jesse Eugene Johnson, and the passenger was identified and determined to be on formal probation with a search clause.

The deputy then conducted a search of the vehicle to ensure the subject on probation was adhering to his terms of release. During the search the deputy located a homemade explosive device inside the vehicle. The deputy detained the two subjects and requested the assistance of the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office Explosive Ordinance Detail (EOD). EOD responded to the scene and rendered the explosive device safe.

A further search of the Jeep conducted by the deputies revealed approximately 13.61 grams of methamphetamine, 13.16 grams of Psylocibin mushrooms, drug paraphernalia, .22 caliber ammunition [and] a .22 caliber rifle. Through the investigation, it was determined that the device, drugs, weapon and ammo belonged to the driver, Jesse Johnson.

Johnson was arrested and transported to the Humboldt County Correctional Facility and booked on the following charges:

• HS 11377(a): Possession of a Controlled Substance
• HS 11350(a): Possession of a Controlled substance
• HS 11364(a): Possession of Drug Paraphernalia
• PC 18710(a): Possession of a Destructive Device
• PC 29805(a)(1): Possession of a Firearm w/ Spec Misdemeanor Conviction
• PC 30305(a)(1): Prohibited Person in Possession of Ammunition

The passenger of the Jeep 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.

Blue Lake City Councilmember Elise Scafani. | Image via City of Blue Lake.

Last week, registered voters in the City of Blue Lake received an important piece of mail amid the deluge of (also important) holiday packages and greeting cards: Ballots for the voter-initiated effort to recall Mayor Pro-Tem Elise Scafani were sent out a week ago, likely arriving in mailboxes last Tuesday or Wednesday.

Something was missing, though. On Saturday, staff at the Humboldt County Elections Office realized that they’d forgotten to include both the statement of reason for recall, submitted by those behind the effort, and the response statement submitted by Councilmember Scafani.

“We were reviewing materials and realized we needed to get additional information out to voters,” Humboldt County Registrar of Voters Juan Pablo Cervantes told the Outpost via phone this morning. After realizing their mistake on Saturday, staff hustled to get the necessary materials together on Sunday, and the supplemental info was mailed out today, Cervantes said.

In a notice posted online, the Elections Office says the recall election will still take place as scheduled on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, and the ballots issued last week remain valid. 

Ideally, the supplemental information would have been sent out at the same time as ballots, but Cervantes said that California Election Code is not always organized in the most intuitive way.

“These kinds of things happen sometimes when you’re under the gun,” said Cervantes, whose office had a short runway this fall to prepare for California’s special election on Proposition 50. 

In Blue Lake, where municipal politics have turned as bitterly divided as those at the national level, a group of local residents mounted a recall effort against three of the five council members, including Mayor John Sawatzky, following the closed-session ouster of longtime City Manager Amanda “Mandy” Mager. Recall proponents fell a few signatures shy of the threshold necessary to trigger recall votes for Sawatzky and Councilmember Kat Napier, leaving Scafani the only one at risk of removal.

Below is the info mailed to Blue Lakers this morning, including the “Statement of Reasons for Recall” and Scafani’s “Answer of the Officer.” 

STATEMENT OF REASONS FOR RECALL

TO THE HONORABLE Elise G Scafani: Pursuant to Section 11020, California Elections Code, the undersigned registered qualified voters of Blue Lake, in the State of California, hereby give notice that we are the proponents of a recall petition and that we intend to seek your recall and removal from the office of City Council Member, in Blue Lake, California.

The grounds for the recall are as follows:

Through your actions, you have exposed the City of Blue Lake to financial, legal and operational jeopardy by:

1. Your inability and/or unwillingness to vote for and adopt a Housing Element as required by law in the State of California and as part of the General Plan for the City of Blue Lake.
2. Separating the City Manager, Amanda “Mandy” Mager, from her position without justifiable cause and in a meeting that most likely violated the Ralph M. Brown Act.

These two acts have placed this city in jeopardy of potential lawsuits from contractors, fines from the state and loss of local control. By removing Mandy as City Manager, at such a crucial time, it leaves the city open to disfunction and an inability to respond to any legal challenges that may arise.

For these reasons, we the citizens of Blue Lake, no longer feel you have our best interests at heart and demand that you vacate your positions either thru resignation or recall.

The printed names of the proponents are as follows: 1. Elissa Rosado 2.Charis Bowman, 3. Steve Spain, 4. Bobbi Ricca, 5. Dennis Whitcomb, 6. Barbara Keating, 7. Elizabeth Mackay, 8. Eric Hall , 9. Susan Lane, 10. Ron Perry

###

ANSWER OF THE OFFICER

The last time HCD certified Blue Lake’s Housing Element Update was in 2004. The current update was due on 8/31/2019, work on it began in 2021. There have been many drafts before the planning Commission over the years and before the previous City Council in late 2024. The current city council is committed to working with HCD to come into compliance with state housing law and has set forth a schedule by which to study and adopt an updated housing element no later than 12/31/2025. [NOTE: The Blue Lake City Council adopted an updated Housing Element in July.] There is no immediate threat of fines from the state related to this issue as this ongoing effort and intention to comply are recognized.

On May 8, 2025 the City Manager and the City Council announced a mutual decision to end our professional association. This decision was the product of extensive consideration by all parties involved and occurred under the guidance of the City’s legal team to assure compliance with all employment laws/ethics and the Ralph M. Brown Act. Assertions of unlawful process in this matter are not based on factual events. I am committed to ensuring the City maintains functionality and essential services as we transition.

Cordially,

Elise Scafani

###

PREVIOUSLY

• Flouting State Guidance, Blue Lake City Council Votes Not to Adopt Its Own Updated Housing Element
• With the City Manager’s Abrupt Exit, Blue Lake Residents Mount Recall Effort Against Three Council Members
• SERVED: Three Blue Lake Council Members Were Handed Recall Notices at Tonight’s Meeting
• Blue Lake City Council Approves Nine-Month Timeline to Reach Compliance With State Housing Law
• State Threatens Blue Lake With Hefty Fines and Legal Action for Failure to Adopt a Compliant Housing Element
• Under Pressure From the State, Blue Lake City Council Adopts an Updated Housing Element; PLUS: New Councilmember Appointed
• Duffy Aims to Calm Turmoil in Blue Lake; City May Have Violated Open Meeting Law Again, Expert Says
• Blue Lake Recall Proponents Submit Signatures to City Hall, But Did They Gather Enough to Trigger an Election?
• Blue Lake Recall Effort Falls Short for Two Council Members, But Election Will Proceed for Scafani

Press release from the Eureka Police Department:

The holiday season can be dangerous for people on the roads. In December 2023 alone, 1,038 people were killed in the U.S. in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Eureka Police Department wants to remind the public of the dangers of driving impaired and to celebrate the holiday season responsibly by not driving under the influence.

From December 12 through New Year’s Day, Eureka Police Department will have additional officers on patrol looking for drivers suspected of being under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs. The high-visibility enforcement effort is part of a national campaign, Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over, with the goal of stopping suspected impaired drivers who put others at risk.

To that end, On Thursday, December 18th 2025, the Eureka Police Department will conduct a driving under the influence (DUI) Checkpoint from 7:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m. at an undisclosed location.

DUI checkpoint locations are determined based on data showing incidents of impaired driving-related crashes. The primary purpose of DUI checkpoints are to promote public safety by taking suspected impaired drivers off the road.

“Impaired drivers put others on the road at significant risk,” Eureka Police Department’s Chief Brian Stephens said. “Any prevention measures that reduce the number of impaired drivers on our roads significantly improve traffic safety.” Drivers charged with a first-time DUI face an average of $13,500 in fines and penalties, as well as a suspended license.

“We want to make sure everyone gets home safely so that they can celebrate the holiday season with their families and loved ones,” Eureka Police Department’s Commander Rabang said. [Ed. That’s Wayne Rabang.] “Not only is driving impaired illegal, but it is also dangerous and never acceptable. We are asking everyone to do their part to keep themselves and everyone on the roads safe.”

Eureka Police Department encourages everyone to stay in for the night or plan ahead by designating a sober driver, using public transit or calling a taxi or rideshare service if you intend to drink.Impaired driving is not just from alcohol. Prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, cannabis products and other drugs may also cause impairment. If you plan on drinking or taking medications with a driving warning label, let someone who is sober drive. If you see someone who appears to be driving while impaired, call 9-1-1.

Funding for this program is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

###

Press release from Cal Poly Humboldt:

On a warm August afternoon, on a quiet side street in Arcata, a group of Cal Poly Humboldt students are taking turns swinging a sledgehammer against a small steel plate on the ground. They pause for five seconds and strike again. Five seconds. Another.

Each blow sends a clang echoing down the street and vibrations deep into the ground. In a lab half a mile away, scientists watch their screens to see whether those vibrations register on a seismometer-like machine—a Distributed Acoustic Sensing interrogator. The strikes are spaced five seconds apart so they’re distinguishable from other ground noises, like passing cars.

The students are running what’s known as a tap test—part of an experiment to explore using fiber optic lines to detect earthquakes, which could one day help communities more quickly receive warnings of seismic events. 

This project is part of a multi-year, multi-agency effort led by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Cal Poly Humboldt, Vero Fiber Network, and state and local partners to monitor seismic activity.

The tests take place above buried fiber optic cables in Humboldt County, which lies in the most seismically active part of the continental U.S. These cables, which will provide high-speed internet to more than 20,000 residents in the region, can also be used to detect earthquakes by capturing even the tiniest seismic disturbances. When vibrations—whether from a sledgehammer or a real earthquake—pass through, they slightly stretch or compress the fibers, changing the light pulses that carry data. Scientists can detect those changes on the interrogator, which is connected to the cables and is so sensitive, it can detect earthquakes as small as magnitude 1 on the Richter scale.

“This is a major leap in seismology research capability,” explains Eric Riggs, co-lead on the project and Dean of the College of Natural Resources and Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt. “It’s ushering in a new era of earthquake detection and monitoring.”

Fiber optic earthquake detection systems help scientists understand how to better prepare for the impacts of earthquakes, explains USGS geophysicist and ShakeAlert Chief Scientist Jeff McGuire. “A system like this could also potentially be used for the quick earthquake detections needed to give hospitals, schools, and entire communities a few precious seconds to brace for impact and reduce damage.”

The research builds on work already underway in Humboldt County, where fiber optic cables are being installed to expand internet access as part of California’s Middle Mile broadband expansion program. Three years ago, Cal Poly Humboldt partnered with USGS on a pilot study using a small fiber line between Arcata and Eureka. Traditional seismometers were installed parallel to the fiber line to study the difference between what the methods detected during an earthquake.

The project has also strengthened Cal Poly Humboldt’s earthquake research capabilities and expanded its role in statewide seismic research. The University recently became a participating institution in the Statewide California Earthquake Center. The center is a collaboration between agencies throughout the state that work to advance earthquake science, community resilience, and education. 

Over the next three years, researchers—including students—will continue to evaluate the cables’ ability to monitor seismic activity. Cal Poly Humboldt will act as a central hub, linking fiber optic lines and creating a testbed for the technology.

This technology is revolutionizing earthquake monitoring and research, says McGuire. “Cal Poly Humboldt is creating an amazing test facility for seismic research. By using the fiber optic networks already in place, we will collect the data needed to test ways to build a faster, smarter early warning system that can reduce the impact of future earthquakes.”