Thursday, January 21, 2010
Nichols Out, Glass In as NEC Prez
Posted By Ryan Burns @RyanBurnsy on Thu, Jan 21, 2010 at 5:07 PM
Two bombshells from the
Northcoast Environmental Center
this afternoon:
1) Eureka City Councilman Larry Glass has replaced Pete Nichols as president of the NEC board.
2) The organization's drastic economic downsizing over the past year or so has been effective: The NEC is now debt-free, according to both Nichols and Glass.
Glass said the power transition took place last night. It will be his third stint as president of the board for the Arcata environmental institution but his first since being elected to Eureka City Council. Glass said he doesn't foresee any conflicts of interest arising from his dual roles, especially since the NEC dropped out of a lawsuit challenging the environmental impact report for the proposed Balloon Track project on Eureka's waterfront.
"I informed the NEC board before they elected me that I have sworn an oath to the Eureka City Council, and that takes priority," Glass said Thursday afternoon. He also advised the city attorney of his position at the NEC, he said. "The [NEC] board realizes they won't be tangling with the City of Eureka on anything substantial," Glass said. Asked if that might hamstring the agency, Glass said no. "We've got other fish to fry."
Nichols, who serves as Executive Director of another environmental watchdog group, Humboldt Baykeeper, will remain on the NEC board, Glass said.
As for the second bit of news, Glass said pulling the agency out of debt took some drastic measures, many of which weren't especially popular with members and supporters. Last year the group downsized significantly, laying off its executive director and cutting back on production of EcoNews, its monthly newsletter. The group also moved offices after it was forced to sell its Arcata headquarters building .
"We adopted a more businesslike attitude," Glass said. "When times are good, nonprofits can get away with livin' large. But times are tough. You have to run a nonprofit just like a business, otherwise it will go away. And I wasn't about to sit around and see the NEC go away. And neither was Pete."
Readers also liked…
-
Notorious Humboldt County Murderer Dies in Prison
- Aug 17, 2021
-
Fire Updates: Windy, Dry Conditions Prompt Fire Growth
- Aug 18, 2021
About The Author
Ryan Burns
Ryan Burns worked for the Journal from 2008 to 2013, covering a diverse mix of North Coast subjects, from education, politics and marijuana to human suspension, sex parties and amateur fight contests. He won awards for investigative reporting, feature stories and news coverage.
more from the author
-
Last Days of the Surfing DA
Heading into his final year in office, Paul Gallegos talks politics, family and The Smiths
- Jan 2, 2014
-
Unequal Opportunities
Behind the ACLU's allegations of racial, sexual and disability discrimination in local schools
- Jan 2, 2014
-
Systematically Misled
- Dec 26, 2013
- More »
