‘An Otter Idea’
‘An Otter Idea’ — Bold initiative looks to raise funds and awareness by merging art, science and a massive scavenger hunt
Cover Story
‘An Otter Idea’
After a long hike in England’s Dartmoor National Park, Jeff Black and his wife stopped at Wayside Cafe. As they were sitting, drinking tea, they noticed scores of people coming in and out to take selfies with an otter sculpture. Out of curiosity, they approached the sculpture and learned there were 99 others scattered throughout…
Council Delays Marketing Vote Amid Transparency Concerns
The Eureka City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to delay selecting a marketing services provider after questions were raised about the fairness of the process, with several council members pointedly voicing frustration at the lack of information provided to them, despite their requests. So after several hours of discussion and public comment, the council opted to…
HSU Welcomes New President Tom Jackson Jr.
The Humboldt State University bells rang loudly across campus, 12 rings, it was noon and a group of people were walking toward the library. Upon entering the jam-packed lobby filled with HSU faculty, students and community members , the crowd began to applaud: The new president had arrived. Just a few hours after his announcement…
CSU Announces Hiring of HSU’s First African-American President
The California State University Board of Trustees this morning appointed Tom Jackson Jr. as Humboldt State University’s next president. A military veteran and Seattle, Washington, native, Jackson will be HSU’s first African-American president, coming from Black Hills State University in Spearfish, South Dakota, which he has helmed since 2014. “There are few institutions that are…
Walking the Walk: Photos for HSU Graduation
More than 1,800 Humboldt State University students sat through three graduation ceremonies in Redwood Bowl during Saturday’s rainy skies. In addition, the campus hosted the Black Heritage Graduation Celebration on late Friday afternoon in the Kate Buchanan Room, followed in the evening by the Latinx Graduation Ceremony (the largest in HSU’s history) at the Lumberjack…
Reward Offered in Poaching of Roosevelt Elk
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced this week a reward of up to $2,500 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone responsible for the December shooting deaths of four Roosevelt elk, including a pregnant cow. In a release, CDFW states the investigation is continuing, “including processing evidence left at the…
Earthquake Strikes Near Pine Hills
A preliminary magnitude-3.8 earthquake struck near the Eureka enclave of Pine Hills this morning, with reports of ground shaking spanning from Hydesville to McKinleyville, according to USGS. The 10:19 a.m. quake struck at a depth of almost 13 miles. This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
Arrest Made in Fatal McKinleyville Hit and Run
A 47-year-old McKinleyville man was killed Saturday morning by a hit-and-run driver who was later arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, according to a CHP release. The release states Clinton Eugene Deckert II was walking north on the east shoulder of Central Avenue, south of Bella Vista Road, when he was struck just…
The New Yorker Does Humboldt
Humboldt County just got The New Yorker treatment. The lead story on the magazine’s website today, “How Legalization Changed Humboldt County Marijuana,” takes a deep dive into Humboldt County’s cannabis industry, its roots and its future. Spoiler alert: The piece isn’t entirely optimistic. “Before legalization, people grew cannabis however they could and developed methods to…
HumBug: School Days
I was recently invited to give a slide show and talk to the second graders at a local school. Everytime I do this, we have fun. This time I think everyone had a question or story to share. Both good and bad, insects are something they could relate to, serving as a gateway to the…
Town Hall Focuses on Need for Transitional Housing
Gathered in the Christ Episcopal Church on a windy and wet Saturday afternoon, nearly 40 people talked about homelessness and the need for transitional housing in Humboldt County. Under the stained-glass windows and vaulted ceiling of the nearly 150-year-old church, Reverend Daniel London and his wife Ashley London Bacchi helped facilitate conversations with a panel…
Brazen Gun Theft Suspect Pleads Guilty, Most Weapons Still Unaccounted for
The Eureka man with an outlaw name who was behind a brazen gun theft at Pacific Outfitters nearly four years ago was recently sentenced to 33 months in prison after pleading guilty to the crime in federal court. Jesse James Marquez was 19 when he cut power lines to the sporting goods store in August…
‘Today is Your Day:’ Charmaine Lawson Accepts Son’s Degree in Emotional Ceremony
Ponchos, umbrellas and rain jackets surrounded Humboldt State University’s Redwood Bowl this morning as graduates celebrated their commencement. Among them, in a full cap, gown and graduation stole, was Charmaine Lawson, sitting in place of her son, David Josiah Lawson. David Josiah Lawson, who was a 19-year-old sophomore when he was fatally stabbed at an…
Town Hall Aims to Bridge ‘Empathy Gap’ on Transitional Housing
True North Organizing Network will host a town hall meeting tomorrow afternoon on the need for transitional housing locally. The meeting — scheduled from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. at Christ Episcopal Church at 625 15th St. in Eureka — is intended to bridge the “empathy gap” organizers feel exists in conversations about finding shelter for…
Congressman Jared Huffman Votes to Pass the Equality Act for LGBTQ Americans
With the help of North Coast Congressman Jared Huffman, the U.S. House of Representatives today passed the Equality Act, which aims to extend protections of the 1964 Civil Rights Act and other civil rights laws by specifically prohibiting any form of discrimination on the basis of sex, gender identity and sexual orientation. “It’s 2019: how…
The Pink Lady is Up For Sale
The Pink Lady is up for grabs and for a cool $1.2 million, the Queen Anne Victorian house can be yours. Known for its elegant exterior and blush color, the four-bedroom vacation rental hit the market May 13. The Pink Lady has stood on M Street for 130 years, first as a wedding gift to…
UPDATE: One-Way Traffic in Effect After 299 Slide
UPDATE: One-way traffic is in effect due to the slide. Motorists should expect 30-45 minute delays until 6 p.m. PREVIOUS: A slide has closed State Route 299 between mile markers 29.09 and 33.21 west of the junction with State Route 96 and Willow Creek. Caltrans District 1 reports, “There is no estimated time for reopening.…
Sheriff’s Office Seeks Aid in Finding Missing 4 Year Old
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office is asking for the public’s help locating in a missing 4-year-old girl who is believed to be with her mother. According to a release, Delisse Lalee Jones, 37, and her daughter Ariana Bemis-Eib were last seen by the girl’s father when Jones picked her up for an overnight visit on…
Making Rooms: Eureka Approves Hotel Project
The former Eureka Chamber of Commerce building and its surrounding property are slated to become the site of a new “upscale” 83-room hotel after the city council voted unanimously last week to accept a $435,000 bid for the parcel. The project by SJN Hospitality — which built the Holiday Inn Express & Suites in Eureka…
‘Incredibly Disappointing’
Two days and 600 miles apart, a pair of governing bodies held very different conversations about the need for local input into development decisions that will impact Humboldt County for decades to come. It was a bit jarring. First, on May 7, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors had a testy exchange over a seemingly…
The Big Dipper
Dangles above the coastline Where countless stars and waves Welcome me home. One of these stars Is extremely rare Having immigrated From a Dwarf Galaxy Far, far away… All of the waves come From foreign lands Much closer to home.
‘A Manufactured Divide’
Editor: On behalf of the Ladies of the CAB, along with the supportive listening community, thank you Humboldt State University journalism department for speaking out on behalf of KHSU (“KHSU Dismantling Rebuked, KEET Board to Discuss Possible Radio Venture,” posted online April 17). Your statement of support sheds light on a manufactured divide between the…
Setting the Record Straight
Editor: In last week’s Journal, some misinformation was printed in the article headlined, “The Graduates.” I really would like to clarify some things about my painting titled, “Red Scare: US Involvement in the Indonesian Genocide of 1965.” I would like to make clear that the two central figures are not children and they are not…
‘Two Different Games’
Editor: Sherman, buried in your diatribe against Franklin Graham, you alluded to but for the Electoral College system of electing a U.S. president, we would be experiencing our first female president (Mailbox, May 9). The game played was Electoral College, not Popular Vote — two different games. To attempt to rationalize Hilary’s loss by claiming…
Fleeced by Phylos?
About two years ago, we wrote in these pages about the looming battle over cannabis genetics and the effort of deep-pocketed companies to register utility patents — the strongest intellectual-property protection available for field crops in the United States, one that essentially treats them like works of art — for cannabis (“Who Owns Your Pot?”…
The List
Ken Burton and Cindy Moyer are on a mission. Again. For the second time, they are making their way through an alphabetical list of restaurants in Humboldt County — the Journal’s online A-Z Restaurant Guide, in fact — and eating at every single one within an hour’s drive. Yes, in alphabetical order. The first time…
Cap and Gown and Getting Down
It’s time for the big walk this weekend and no, I’m not talking about the trip into the Pacific Ocean that I’ve got booked for sometime in the next 40 years in lieu of a functioning retirement plan because the world is dying and the previous generations have destroyed the notion of upward economic mobility.…
The Universe: Whodunnit?
Cosmology is essentially a whodunnit but, unlike your typical 600-page detective yarn, this story doesn’t unfold clue by clue until the denouement in last few pages. The puzzle — basically, “How the hell can we explain our presence here?” — is more cryptic than ever. For all the thousands of brilliant minds working on the…
