|
 
COVER
STORY | STAGE
DOOR | GARDEN
| THE HUM | CALENDAR
Nov. 25, 2004
HURWITZ HELPS DeLAY:
Newsweek
magazine reports this week that Charles Hurwitz is among a "posse
of corporate donors" who have opened their wallets to pay
for the legal expenses of Texas Rep. Tom DeLay, who is being
investigated for an allegedly illicit fund-raising campaign.
Hurwitz, the CEO of Maxxam, which owns Pacific Lumber Co., gave
$10,000 to the legal defense fund, and has contributed another
$24,000 to DeLay in recent years, Newsweek reports. The
investigation centers on a committee DeLay created to push a
controversial redistricting plan in Texas, which resulted in
four new Texas Republicans in Congress and thus consolidated
Republican control of the House.
FINAL RESULTS IN:
The county's elections department
released the final results of the Nov. 2 election Friday, after
elections staffers spent two and a half weeks tallying some 6,700
absentee and provisional ballots that were not included in election
night returns. Remarkably, given the number of close races throughout
the county, the final outcome of the election is roughly the
same as it appeared on Nov. 3. In the Arcata City Council race,
for instance, Paul Pitino nailed down his third-place slot, behind
Michael Machi and Harmony Groves. Pitino said Monday that his
top priority is to get a public restroom on the plaza. "I've
been talking about it might as well see if we can make it happen,"
he said. Kaitlyn Sopoci-Belknap held onto her lead in the water
district race. Final results varied from the early numbers in
two cases, however. In Rio Dell, late votes propelled carpenter
Marc Barsanti ahead of incumbent Jack Thompson, giving Barsanti
a seat on the City Council. In Ferndale, late votes broke the
election night tie for mayor; incumbent Elizabeth Anderson squeaked
past challenger Jeff Farley, finishing with a comfortable eight-vote
margin of victory and ruining the prospect of a media-friendly
coin toss in the middle of Main Street to decide the race. A
Blue Lake measure to raise business license fees ended up failing
by a single vote. One hundred and twenty-six Blue Lakers who
did cast a ballot in the election did not vote on the measure
either way. In total, 78.3 percent of the county's registered
voters cast ballots this time around.
MCKINLEYVILLE MARINE
INJURED: McKinleyville native Alex
Nicoll, a 22-year-old Marine Corps lance corporal, was severely
injured in the battle against insurgent Iraqi forces in the city
of Fallujah last week. According to a Web site friends built
to disseminate information, Nicoll was shot several times in
the leg and injured by a grenade after becoming trapped in a
building during door-to-door fighting. After being rescued he
was transported to Germany, where military doctors were forced
to amputate his left leg below the knee. He is recuperating at
Bethesda Naval Hospital in Maryland. Nicoll is the son of Larry
and Penelope Nicoll. Well-wishers may post their comments at
the "Get Well Alex Nicoll" Website: www.alexnicoll.net.ms.
COURT STAYS PL
LOGGING: In response to a petition
from the Environmental Protection Information Center, a state
appellate court halted logging on six Pacific Lumber Co. timber
harvest plans on Friday. EPIC's Cynthia Elkins charged that the
company's logging plans, most of which pertain to operations
in the Van Duzen watershed, bent forest practice regulations
by allowing the harvest of extremely young trees. Such types
of harvesting ignores state rules that the company get "maximum
sustained production" from the timber it owns, EPIC claims.
"We're saying that this is not only bad for the ecology
of the area, but also the economy," Elkins said. Palco spokesman
Chuck Center said Monday afternoon that he had not heard of the
shutdown and could not offer comment. Both sides were scheduled
to file additional arguments with the 1st District Court of Appeal
on Tuesday, after the Journal went to press.
SCOTIA INN CLOSED: The Scotia Inn was shuttered last week after Humboldt
Hospitality & Entertainment, the company that has been running
it for the last few years, declared bankruptcy. The Pacific Lumber
Co., the inn's owner, has taken back the grand dame hotel and
has suspended operations. Palco spokesman Chuck Center said that
the company will have to wait until litigation surrounding Humboldt
Hospitality & Entertainment's bankruptcy is concluded before
figuring out its future plans for the Inn. This marks the second
time this year that one of the county's distinguished old hotels
has shut down -- in February, the Eureka Inn closed after a creditor
repossessed the historic structure.
ARCATA BANS GMOS: Measure M, the countywide initiative that would
have banned the growth of genetically modified organisms, went
down to dismal defeat on Nov. 2, following the discovery of scientific
and constitutional flaws in its language. But that didn't stop
the Arcata City Council from passing its own GMO ban last week,
becoming the first city in the state to so act. City Manager
Dan Hauser noted on Monday that the law contains several exceptions
-- it allows sale of GMO goods at local markets, and it allows
scientific study of the organisms to take place in contained
research facilities. City government in Arcata seems to be focusing
on ecological matters of late. The council also recently renewed
its pesticides policy, which bans use of poisons on city property,
and the city's energy committee is seeking ways that the jurisdiction
can reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. The committee is seeking
comments on its draft greenhouse gas plan, which is available
at www.arcatacityhall.org or at the city clerk's office.
CASTING CALL: Ready for the big time? Casting agents for United
Artists are looking for two Native American adolescent boys to
star in a major motion picture by the director of L.I.E.,
Michael Cuesta. The script calls for a 10- to 13-year-old and
a 15- or 16-year-old of native or aboriginal descent to play
the parts of "Edgar" and "Cecil," unlikely
friends at a reform school. Cuestra's L.I.E., a provocative
film about an adolescent boy who struggles with his sexual identity
and a disintegrating home life, won critical acclaim and film
festival awards. Casting director Emily Schweber said that Internet
research led her casting company, United Artists, to send press
releases to areas with large Native American populations. Schweber
said that 500 applications have come in so far and there are
still about three weeks left to apply. Acting experience is not
necessary for this film. Send a snapshot with name, age and height
to Edgar Mint Casting, United Artists, 10250 Constellation Blvd.,
T-9092, Los Angeles, CA, 90067.
GAS THIEF CAUGHT:
A man sought by police in connection
with a band of gasoline thieves confessed to stealing gas from
Renner Petroleum stations. Ruben Anthony Peredia, 26, was arrested
at 5 a.m. Saturday in the Lundbar Hills area of Eureka after
an officer noticed that a gold Honda Accord was parked at an
odd angle in an area of the street where there were no nearby
homes, Eureka police said. The officer then noticed movement
in the vehicle and found Peredia hunkered down in the passenger
seat. The man said that he had no identification, gave his brother's
name as his own, attempted to flee, but was sprayed with Mace
by the officer and taken to Humboldt County Jail, police said.
Detective Curtis Honeycutt said Peredia later told him that he
bought a Renner gas card knowing that it was stolen from a company
car. Peredia is one of several people responsible for taking
1,200 gallons of gasoline from Renner Petroleum, police said.
CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER
IN HUMBOLDT: The Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth,
a veteran civil rights leader and colleague of Martin Luther
King Jr., will be touring Humboldt County next week to speak
to local children and interested members of the public on the
history of America's civil rights movement. On Wednesday, Dec.
1, Shuttlesworth will speak at Humboldt State's Fulkerson Hall
(in the music building) at noon and Eureka High Auditorium at
7 p.m. On Thursday, he gives two lectures -- at 12:30 and 3:30
p.m. -- at College of the Redwoods' Forum Theater. Each of these
events is open to the public.
FENNELL HONORED:
The California Fire Safe Council
decorated KMUD reporter Estelle Fennell last week, honoring her
coverage of last year's Canoe and Honeydew fires, which ravaged
the SoHum area last summer. In its commendation, the council
said that Fennell "comprehensively reported the fires with
a commendable level of professionalism and accurateness"
and noted that the firefighters themselves came to depend on
KMUD for information about the blazes.
SEE COHO DO THEIR
THING: People interested in seeing
salmon spawn firsthand can sign up for a new tour offered by
Redwood National and State Parks this fall. Park interpreters
will lead guided tours of spawning pools on Mill Creek, one of
the park's newest acquisitions and one of the most productive
coho streams in the state. The tours, which leave from the park's
Crescent City headquarters, will be offered twice every Saturday
-- at 8:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. -- through mid-December. Call 464-6101,
extension 5064, to reserve spaces. The tour is free.
BAD CHECK PROGRAM:
The District Attorney's office
is encouraging people who receive bad checks to fill out complaint
forms. The Check Restitution/Prosecution Program helps hold bad
check writers accountable for their swindling, and gets the money
back to the businesses or people to whom they were written. Forms
are available at www.DA-BadCheck.com, or with law enforcement,
the DA's office, or by calling (800) 454-6737.
Preservationists fight demolition of Eureka high
gym
by
AHNIE LITECKY
If school district officials
get their way, Eureka High students will be playing sports in
a new gym by 2006. But the planned demolition of the existing
gym has become a lightning rod for preservationists and others
who are fighting to keep it.
Measure S, a bond measure that
Eureka voters approved in March 2002, provided taxpayer money
for construction projects at the city's middle schools and high
school.
As part of Measure S, Eureka
High received $30 million for several major construction projects.
The school district plans to build a technology center, art complex
and campus plaza, as well as seismically retrofit the main campus
building.
But controversy has centered
around plans to raze the existing gym, which some say is too
historically valuable to destroy.
"It could be put on the
National Register today," said Jill Macdonald, an instructor
in historic preservation and restoration at College of the Redwoods
and a 1983 graduate of Eureka High. "It's certainly architecturally
significant."
Building a new facility, however,
is the more fiscally responsible choice, said Jim Scott, the
Eureka schools superintendent. "We have to invest the bond
dollars in a manner that is the most sustainable," he said.
The estimated cost to renovate the gym is $10 million, while
a new gym would cost around $13 million, officials said. That
cost does not include money needed to build a new pool, however
-- something that plans for the new gym do not include.
The gym is slated be built on
the parking lot next to the current gym and take between 12 and
16 months to complete, Scott said. The building will have
two basketball courts, classroom and locker space, and will seat
1,200 spectators at sporting events.
Besides the benefits to students,
community members would have access to the new gym for sports
programs like adult basketball leagues, Scott said.
Renovation of the existing building
would be a long-term maintenance liability and a bad investment
for the district, he said.
In addition, the current gym
building has significant problems, said Sheldon Reber, director
of school and community relations for the Eureka school district.
Reber said that the building
has disabled access concerns, humidity seeping through the concrete
walls, rust problems, peeling paint, old pipes and high energy
consumption.
But some are concerned that
the demolition of the Jay Willard Gymnasium would mean the destruction
of an historical landmark.
The gym was built in 1947 in
the International Style, an architectural design that was developed
in the United States after World War II, Macdonald said.
Under the California Environmental
Quality Act all buildings over 50 years of age must be evaluated
for historical worth before major construction projects can be
carried out, said cultural resource consultant Suzanne Guerra.
She is working with historic preservationist Alex Stillman
on an evaluation. Stillman estimated it will be completed by
January.
Age is only one criterion for
categorizing a building, said Mary Ann McCulloch, president of
the Eureka Heritage Society. Community ties to the building will
also be considered in the analysis.
If the consultants determine
the building is historically significant, they may recommend
the structure be repaired instead of demolished. One possibility
is using the building for another purpose, such as leasing or
converting the building to a museum.
Eureka resident Fred Griffith
also questioned plans for the new gym on fiscal grounds. The
list of bond measure projects given to voters specifically included
new floors and bleachers for the 57-year-old gym, but not a brand
new building.
"We voted to increase our
taxes to repair and not replace facilities," said Griffith,
who works as a senior vice president at Security National Servicing
Corp., owned by Eureka businessman Rob Arkley.
Arkley and his wife, Cherie,
donated $384,000 for renovation of the gym's pool, which was
completed two years ago, although district officials said that
was always considered a short-term fix.
The new gym will not include
a pool, and Scott said he did not have an estimate on how much
a pool would cost.
Griffith said he is skeptical
that the estimated costs are accurate and believes the school
district should get a second opinion.
Small school districts often
do not have expertise in construction projects and may not receive
a fair bargain from contractors and architects, he said.
Ahnie Litecky is a journalism
student at Humboldt State University.
COVER
STORY
| STAGE DOOR | GARDEN | THE
HUM | CALENDAR
Comments? Write a
letter!
© Copyright 2004, North Coast Journal,
Inc.
|