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November 15, 2001
Election
2001
The number of voters that made
their way to the polls Nov. 6 was small: Only 14,501 of Humboldt
County's 74,146 registered voters -- a little less than 20 percent
-- cast votes.
While participation varied widely
across the county, no precinct was able to involve more than
half the electorate. The contest with the highest rate of turnout
was that for the Mattole Unified School District, where 39.9
percent of registered voters participated.
Those who did vote reinforced
the political status quo: In almost all races in the county,
incumbents seeking another term were reinstated. Harbor Commissioner
Ron Fritzsche, who had faced an enthusiastic campaign by challenger
Pete Oringer, won by a slim 4 percent. Fritzsche's fellow incumbent
Ronnie Pellegrini won re-election handily.
Three challengers running as
a slate in the Arcata school board election were apparently defeated
by two incumbents and a write-in candidate. Mary Wells and David
Narum were re-elected along with Erin Taylor, the write-in candidate
who was endorsed by the incumbents, although results are unoffical
pending counting of all ballots.
A few incumbents lost their
bids for re-election. In the Jacoby Creek School Board race,
Harvey Kelsey and Howard Stauffer were ousted by David Collentine,
Ethan Heifetz and Susan Brater, who ran together as a slate.
In Rohnerville, incumbents Kevin Steele and Kevin Toler lost
out to Greg Dale, Mike Benbow and Leonard Whitchurch.
One of the more dramatic election
stories was in a contest without any candidates: The Peninsula
Union School District finally passed a $600,000 bond measure
to repair the school after failing in two previous elections.
This year's bond measure passed
with 61 percent of the vote. Until last year, that would not
have been enough. Before the 2000 passage of Proposition 39,
a two-thirds majority was required to pass school bond measures.
The money will be used for seismic
retrofitting, asbestos abatement, a new library and a meeting
room.
Crabs
set to travel next year
The Humboldt Crabs will leave
home base for the first time since 1996 next year.
The semiprofessional baseball
team is including away games in its schedule. They will travel
to Portland, Ore., to participate in the All-American Tournament.
"Having a tournament in
the schedule keeps morale up and gives the players something
to look forward to," said Gail Gourley, spokesperson for
the Crabs. "It'll really add spark to the season."
Fans worrying about missing
games can take heart: Not only is the team extending its schedule
to make up the lost games, it is also looking into providing
chartered transportation to Portland.
Weightlifter
to New Zealand
The 2000 National Bench Press
Champion and Eureka resident Tammi Callahan has qualified for
the world weightlifting championships in New Zealand in early
December.
Callahan, who placed second
in the bench press at the 2001 National Championships in Cleveland
Sept. 23, will fly to Christchurch to compete with the national
team Dec. 7.
The hardest part of making it
there may not be the weights. Callahan, an amateur athlete who
earns her living as a construction worker, has to raise all her
funds herself. She's even responsible for buying her own uniform.
"Airfare alone is $1,500,"
said Maggie Kraft, who has been handling Callahan's fund-raising
efforts.
People interested in making
a tax-deductible donation to Callahan's championship hopes can
call Kraft at 445-5974.
Mussel quarantine
over
The Humboldt County Public Health
Branch's annual mussel quarantine was lifted on schedule Oct.
31. The ban on mussel harvesting is imposed every year due to
toxins that build up in the shellfish during the summer.
Routine testing shows that the
mussels are again safe for human consumption. Call 445-6125 for
more information.
Skies open
again
The Federal Aviation Administration
reopened the airspace surrounding the Humboldt Bay Nuclear Power
Plant Nov. 6.
The airspace closure, which
extended for 10 miles around the plant, came in reaction to threats
of possible terrorist activity along the West Coast. Rohnerville,
Murray Field and Eureka Municipal Airports were affected.
Community
leaders wanted
Community leaders with the desire
to expand their capabilities may get a chance in January as students
at the fourth annual Cascadia Leadership Training Program.
Cascadia is designed for individuals
"who have been involved with community and organizational
improvement efforts, who have a commitment to their communities
and who have the potential to grow as leaders," said program
director Julie Fulkerson.
Applicants from any background
are welcome, from businesses to non-profit groups. The deadline
for applications is Dec. 10. Call 442-2993 for more information.
Concert
group rides again
After almost 70 years in business,
the Humboldt Community Concert Association found itself in a
bind last year. Revenues were down, performers' fees were up,
and the organization itself was getting old.
"The volunteers who had
been behind the organization were going on to whatever we go
onto after this life. Our audience looked like a sea of grey
hair," said Leon Berliner, president of the association.
Luckily for Eureka's classical
music aficionados, the organization got a shot in the arm. The
association is now officially considered a "presenter"
by the California Arts Council -- and is eligible to receive
grants to help pay for performers' fees. The association is also
trying to keep pace with the times by renting smaller venues,
Berliner said.
The association's first show
under the new arrangement will feature the same performer as
its last show prior to receiving presenter status: violinist
Linda Wang, Jan. 11. Call 444-2378 for more information.
Shopping
in a Humboldt world
Shoppers perusing the Bayshore
Mall this holiday season will have a chance to see more than
sales and special deals. Thanks to an innovative approach to
education, they'll see hands-on learning as well at a store run
entirely by high school students.
Called Humboldt USA, the store
is planned, staffed and managed by students from Arcata, McKinleyville,
Fortuna and Eureka high schools and sponsored by the Humboldt
County Office of Education.
The store serves two functions,
according to EHS senior Stacy Toner. Only Humboldt County products
are sold, helping to boost the local economy. And it will serve
as a means to introduce students to an environment many will
face as workers.
"We're learning how to
put together a whole store," Toner said.
The products will be organized
into theme baskets. For the culinary connoisseur, there's a basket
with Lazio tuna and the Larrupin' Cafe's mustard dill sauce.
The more adventurous may want to try something a little more
spicy: the Humboldt Hot Stuff basket, with pepper paste, jalapeño
jam and Smokin' Moses sauce.
Even if you don't find the perfect
gift at Humboldt USA, Toner said she thinks she may have found
her vocation.
"I like this," she
said. "It's a great opportunity."
Regional
forester named
The National Forests of Coastal
California are about to get a new boss.
Jack Blackwell, a 30-year veteran
of the Forest Service, has taken over as regional forester for
the Pacific Southwest region -- including Six Rivers National
Forest.
"This guy will have a lot
of say on local issues," said Tim McKay. Those who have
a problem with National Forest policy, for instance, they have
to appeal that policy to the regional forester before taking
the case to court.
Blackwell formerly was regional
forester for the Intermountain Region, which covers Nevada, Utah,
Southern Idaho, Western Wyoming and some acreage in California
and Colorado.
Consolidation
continues
It may not sound like a very
drastic move, but it's representative of a major change in how
things get done in county government.
Jeff Arnold, former director
of the Humboldt County Department of Public Health, was appointed
to be the deputy director of the Public Health Branch Nov. 5.
It's just one of the many changes taking place as part of the
county's consolidation of three departments into one super-department
with three branches.
When the Board of Supervisors
voted last year to consolidate the departments of Mental Health,
Public Health and Social Services into a Department of Health
and Human Services, it was hoped that the integration would make
more funding for specific programs available.
That is already happening, said
Phil Crandall, director of the new department, as the integration
has allowed county government to divert funding to those that
need it most.
As an example, Crandall pointed
to the Healthy Moms program. A drug and alcohol treatment program
for mothers, Healthy Moms was underfunded to the point where
it could not to provide the level of service needed.
"But by mapping which target
populations different programs have in common, we found that
many of the people in Healthy Moms were also in CalWorks [employment
training]," Crandell said. "Now we're able to use the
allocation for CalWorks to enhance the Healthy Moms program."
Crandall said that as the integration
process continues, such "creative funding packages"
are likely to become more common. The integration is scheduled
to be completed by 2003.
No patterns,
please
Arcata has come up with an ordinance
that will limit the number of national chain restaurants by going
after one of their essential qualities: That all their branches
look identical.
The city's Committee on Democracy
and Corporations has released its proposed ordinance on "pattern"
restaurants, those food service companies that have more than
12 branches similar in operation and appearance.
The ordinance would limit such
establishments to their present number, nine. Five of those are
concentrated in the Valley West neighborhood north of Arcata.
At issue is more than aesthetics:
Chain restaurants are thought to draw income out of the community.
But ordinances that specifically aim to curb the growth of chain
restaurants have been struck down in court. Ordinances that aim
to preserve the diverse aesthetic nature of a town, on the other
hand, have succeeded in other California cities.
The ordinance has not yet been
taken up by the City Council.
Meteor shower
coming
The Leonid Meteor shower happens
Nov. 16 or 17 every year, as the Tempel-Tuttle comet's trail
passes through the atmosphere and pieces of cosmic debris burn
up in the atmosphere. This year, said Humboldt State University
physics professor David Kornreich, will be something special.
"There isn't going to be
any Moon this year, and the comet is passing especially close
to the earth, so we should see a lot more meteors," he said.
HSU's Fickle Hill observatory
will be open for the meteor shower, Kornreich said -- weather
permitting.
"The forecast is partly
cloudy, but who knows?" he said.
Call 826-4002 for more information.
Assembly
mambo
The Nov. 7 deadline for filing
to run in next March's 1st State Assembly District race has passed,
defining the field of candidates trying to replace Assemblywoman
Virginia Strom-Martin.
Strom-Martin cannot run for
re-election due to term limits, leaving a seat open in a heavily
Democratic district. That has drawn four Democrats into the field
for the March 5 primary: Cloverdale Mayor Bob Jehn, Lake County
Supervisor Ed Robey, former Ukiah Mayor Jim Mastin and from Humboldt
County, Patty Berg, former executive director of the Area Agency
on Aging.
Three Republicans have also
entered the contest: Clay Romero of Willits, Robert Brown of
Kelseyville and Mendocino County Deputy District Attorney Timothy
Stoen.
Three Republicans have also
declared their candidacy for the 2nd state Senate seat. Peggy
Redfearn of Nice, Dennis Purificacion of Vallejo and Benecia's
Stuart Posselt are all competing for the chance to run against
incumbent Wesley Chesbro.
Correction
The date of the public meeting
on Humboldt County' proposed beach ordinance was incorrect in
last week's edition. The meeting will take place Nov. 19 from
6:30 p.m.-9 p.m. in the county supervisor's chambers.
COVER
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