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July 19, 2001
Waterfront proposals in
A luxury waterfront hotel in
Old Town Eureka? A fish cannery? More shops? How about a parking
lot?
Four proposals were submitted
by the July 2 deadline for the 1.8-acre group of waterfront parcels
east of C Street owned by the city of Eureka, but one project
was quickly withdrawn and a second was submitted without the
mandatory $10,000 application fee.
The City Council had requested
proposals from developers for 1.8 acres, which includes seven
continguous parcels. Six of the seven parcels are vacant and
one contains the historic H.H. Buhne Building, peeling green
and dilapidated, which would have to be moved to another city-owned
parcel on the west side of C Street.
The developers submitting proposals
included some familiar names. Gary Stone, owner of the Humboldt
Bay Inn on 4th Street, was back again with a new financial partner
and a proposal for a hotel on the site. Then early this week
the city was notified he would not be submitting a proposal after
all.
Stone had been awarded an earlier
exlusive agreement by the city to build a major hotel, but after
several plan revisions to meet all the stringent requirements
for development in the coastal zone, the project stalled and
time expired on the contract. (Stone did not return calls from
the Journal for this report.)
The city also received a proposal
from Laurence Lazio, owner of Lazio's Seafood Co. and former
owner of Lazio's Seafood Restaurant across C Street from the
city's parcel. Lazio is proposing to be an operator --not an
owner --a multi-use facility that may include a restaurant, take-out
and fish-processing facility for tuna and salmon, strikingly
similar to the complex he owned and lost during the economic
downturn in the 1980s. The old waterfront restaurant was once
one of the premier tourist attractions on the North Coast.
But Lazio failed to provide
the $10,000 upfront money required from all developers and whether
the city will consider his proposal is unknown.
The two developers who met the
deadlines and requirements of the city are Delores Vellutini,
who is attempting to build on the adjacent parcel she owns between
D and E streets, and Glenn Goldan.
Goldan and ReProp Investments
are proposing a "Seaport Village & Square -- a place
to live, work, visit and play." The project mixes a public
"piazza" or square, private residences, rental suites
and commercial space.
Eureka Waterfront Partners,
which includes Vellutini and partner-architect John Ash, has
continued to struggle with the city's parking requirements for
its adjacent development called the Eureka Pier, between D and
E streets, which was first proposed in 1995. The retail-restaurant-boat
rental project with luxury condos on the second floor has undergone
numerous revisions. The partners propose to use part of the city-owned
C Street property for parking and reserve the remaining portion
for future development.
The proposals will go before
the Redevelopment Advisory Board Tuesday, July 24, and to the
City Council Aug. 7.
Meanwhile, other city waterfront
projects are progressing or are complete. The small boat basin
at the foot of Commercial Street has been rennovated and the
boardwalk from C to F streets is under construction. Signs and
kiosks on 4th and 5th streets directing visitors to Old Town
have been installed.
In addition, a business plan
has been completed for the Humboldt Fishermen's Marketing Association
project west of C Street -- which will combine a public fishermen's
work area, fish-buying and processing, and visitor access --
and the city is seeking funds for development. The city also
has secured block grant funds for a feasibility study for a round-the-bay
tourist train.
Regarding the city-owned 14-acre
parcel east and west of the Samoa bridge, site of the failed
Halvorsen project, the city has secured funding from the Environmental
Protection Agency to study contaminants on the parcel and a second
grant to study the best use of the property.
In the private sector, property
owner Rita Sicard is moving forward with a plan to build 41 waterfront
suites to be used as daily rentals on the east side of F Street
on the waterfront. The complex will also include a day spa, restaurant
and shops.
HSU
case goes to DA
Humboldt State University police
have concluded an investigation into the activities of John Sterns,
executive director of university advancement from 1998 until
March 20 when he unexpectedly resigned. The case was turned over
to the district attorney July 6 for evaluation and possible prosecution.
Sterns was in charge of alumni
relations and media relations for the university, and he had
fiscal and supervisory oversight for the campus public radio
station KHSU, the Natural History Museum in Arcata and the First
Street Gallery in Eureka. Sterns also directed the university's
fund-raising activities and had access to several funds administered
by the HSU Foundation and some state accounts.
According to a press release
Tuesday, university staff noticed "financial irregularities"
in expense accounting reporting by Sterns, who was their supervisor.
In March the employees, along with "prominent alumni leaders,"
presented the information to officials. Sterns was placed on
leave and instructed to leave campus, and an investigation was
launched.
Based on reports, financial
support from the community grew from $10.9 million in 1997-98
to $28.4 million in 1998-99 to $39.2 million for 1999-2000 --
a rate of growth that won the praise and attention of the California
State University Chancellor's Office. The figures for the two
most recent years are being revised.
Once the irregularities were
discovered, campus officials notified the police and the Chancellor's
Office, which launched its own administrative review. In addition,
HSU officials notified the state Department of Finance and the
state auditor.
HSU police have maintained contact
with Sterns throughout the investigation, according to Sean Kearns,
director of university communications. Sterns could not be reached
for comment.
Dairy adviser
for Humboldt
"We have a dairy industry
that happens to be one of the few viable resource-based industries
left here in Humboldt County," said Dennis Leonardi, chair
of the board of the Humboldt Creamery.
To help that industry stay viable
during rapid changes in the marketplace, the University of California
has decided to place an adviser in Humboldt County to help educate
dairy farmers and research how they do their jobs.
It's important scientific work
because Humboldt has a unique and mostly unexamined dairy production
system, said Deborah Giraud, director of the UC Davis agriculture
extension office in Humboldt County. Humboldt dairy cows feed
mostly on pasture, while most of the dairy cattle in the state
are kept in feed lots.
"There isn't a lot of information
on our pasture-based dairy system," Giraud said.
A large part of the new extension
officer's job will be to study how pasture-based dairies deal
with manure. It can be a source of pollution, Giraud said, adding
too much nitrogen to runoff water. But if it is used properly,
it can be a helpful fertilizer for the pastures.
"We all think it's better
to have the grass in the pastures suck up that nitrogen than
for it to go downstream," Giraud said. "What we don't
know is how much nitrogen the grass can suck up. Those kinds
of research test plots need to be done."
No HMOs
for HSU?
Humboldt State University employees
will lose an important choice in healthcare starting Jan. 1.
The three health insurance companies
that had been providing Health Maintenance Organization-style
coverage are all withdrawing from Humboldt County. HealthNet,
PacificCare and Blue Shield had all offered relatively inexpensive,
no-frills health insurance to HSU employees through the California
Public Employees' Retirement System.
"There are about 840 employees
in the three HMOs," said Sean Kearns, director of university
communications. Kearns said they will all have to choose a different
health plan this fall.
That will be more expensive.
Employees will have to choose one of two "preferred provider
coverage" plans, PERSChoice and PERSCare. Both allow patients
more choice about which doctors they want to see but also cost
considerably more.
"Say you've got the Blue
Shield HMO plan. You're paying $35.04 a month. Under PERSChoice,
you'd be paying $68 a month."
Other Humboldt County residents
that had used the HMOs will also have to find new insurance.
Michelle Naiditch, spokesperson for Blue Shield, said in a telephone
interview from Los Angeles that the contract between CalPERS
and the insurance company makes it impossible for them to continue
offering HMO products in Humboldt County -- even to people who
are not employees of HSU.
"Our CalPERS contract stipulates
that if we withdraw our HMO offering from CalPERS we are required
to withdraw from the entire county."
Employees enrolled in the HMO-style
plans will receive information concerning future choices when
the open enrollment period starts in September.
Loleta Cheese
awards
If you've tasted it, you already
know: Loleta Cheese Factory Organic Sharp Cheddar is first class.
That fact has now been confirmed by the judges at the California
State Fair commercial cheese competition, where three Loleta
organic cheeses won gold medals.
The Loleta Cheese Factory manufactures
organic cheeses using Strauss Family Creamery organic milk. That
cheese is then sold under both the Loleta Cheese Factory and
Strauss Family labels (see Journal cover story,
"It's the organic cheese," Feb. 1).
According to Vivien Strauss,
who runs the creamery in Petaluma with her brother, the secret
to the cheese's success is simple: Loleta Cheese owners Bob and
Carol Laffranchi make cheese "in small batches with really
high quality milk."
Blue Lake
casino underway
Construction officially began
on the Blue Lake Rancheria casino July 14.
The $13 million building, expected
to be completed by June, could employ as many as 450 individuals.
Profits from the casino are to be distributed in a way that helps
the surrounding community, especially the city of Blue Lake,
according to tribal leaders.
Residents of Blue Lake have
expressed concern about the effect the casino could have on the
character of their city (see Journal cover story,
"Gambling on Casinos," June 15, 2000). The rancheria has promised to perform additional
environmental studies and cooperate with the city to resolve
policing responsibilities.
A major expansion of the Cher-Ae
Heights Casino in Trinidad is also underway with expected completion
by the first of the year. The project includes a restaurant and
bar overlooking the Trinidad harbor.
No God Squad
for Klamath
The federal government took
action to relieve the plight of farmers without irrigation water
in the Klamath basin -- but not the kind of action they had hoped
for.
The farmers had requested that
the federal government convene a committee that provides exemptions
to the Endangered Species Act. The Bureau of Reclamation decided
earlier this year to shut off irrigation water to the farmers
based on concerns over three threatened species of fish, including
Klamath River coho salmon.
That request was denied in a
letter from Interior Secretary Gale Norton to farmers' attorneys
July 13.
Earlier in the week, however,
the Senate approved $20 million in disaster aid to the farmers
as part of a bill dealing with the larger problem of the drought
in the Pacific Northwest.
Some farmers continued to force
open headgates at the Klamath Irrigation Project in Klamath Falls,
Ore. A July 13 attempt marked the fourth time the headgates had
been forced open, although none of the attempts released enough
water to help the farms. Local law enforcement again declined
to arrest any of those involved.
Vegan activist
gets her menu
Judge Tim Cissna ruled July
11 that a vegan inmate of the Humboldt County has the right to
vegan food.
Kimberly Starr, a forest activist
who received a 120-day sentence for trespassing and resisting
arrest, had claimed a vegan diet -- one including no animal products
-- was part of her Jewish faith. The county initially refused
her request, maintaining her diet was a matter of choice rather
than religious conviction.
Judge Cissna ruled that Starr's
veganism was an important part of her religion. He gave the jail
the choice of either feeding Starr vegan meals or releasing her
until a hearing could be held on the issue. The county decided
to feed Starr vegan meals until her release in three weeks.
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