Cover Story
Parallel Crises
If you’ve tried to find housing in the last few years, you know what a difficult task it is. Humboldt County property managers say local rental vacancy rates run between 0 and 3 percent — extreme, even in California, which has a roughly 4-percent vacancy rate statewide. Buying a home in Humboldt is also cost-prohibitive…
HumCo Public Health Reports Two More COVID-19 Deaths
Humboldt County Public Health reported today that the county has confirmed two COVID-19 deaths since its last report April 13: One was a resident age 80 or older and the other an individual in their 70s. Two new hospitalizations were also reported today but, according to a state database, five people are currently hospitalized with…
Sheriff’s Office Instructions for Reaching 911 During Verizon Outage
With the widespread Verizon outage preventing its customers from placing calls, the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office is providing instructions for how to reach 911 in case of an emergency. CNET reports of the outage are coming from up and down the West Coast and in some areas toward the east, including Denver, Washington, D.C., New…
Photos: Perilous Plunge Back in the Swim
In person once again after going virtual due to COVID-19, the Discovery Museum’s annual fundraiser the Perilous Plunge had sponsored supporters in colorful costumes leaping into Humboldt Bay from the pier at the foot of F Street in Eureka. It began with a parade down F Street with musical accompaniment from the Marching Lumberjacks, who…
Wind, Rain and Snow Forecast for Wednesday
Some more weather is heading this way Wednesday morning with the arrival of strong southerly winds that are expected to stay around for most of the day. The Eureka office of the National Weather Service has issued a wind advisory for southwestern, northern interior and southern interior areas of Humboldt County, with gusts up to…
A Silicon Valley Lawmaker Wants to Protect Workers from Employer Spying
Workers today are subject to more monitoring and tracking on the job — often without their knowledge — than ever before, advocates say. Various productivity applications, often on workers’ smartphones or other devices, track and predict delivery drivers’ and warehouse workers’ every move, collecting data on their location, speed, and accuracy in finishing orders, according to…
USA TODAY Highlights Case of HSU Dean Fired for Harassing Colleagues but Allowed to ‘Retreat’ into Tenured Post
USA TODAY published a two-month investigation into the case of a former dean at now Cal Poly Humboldt who was given a tenured professorship under what’s known as “retreat rights,” even though he was fired from his administrative role in 2016 after campus investigations found he had groped two female colleagues. According to the article,…
Skeletal Remains Found in Garberville
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office is investigating after skeletal remains were found Friday in a drainage area near Melville Road in Garberville by an environmental surveyor. According to a news release, deputies responded to the scene around 4:30 p.m. and recovered the remains. “Due to the state of the remains, identification of the decedent was…
What Would Brian Dahle do as California Governor?
They may not agree on much, but Republican gubernatorial hopeful Brian Dahle pledges that Democratic lawmakers would find a more receptive partner at the Capitol if he unseats Gov. Gavin Newsom this year. After a decade in the GOP’s (super)minority in Sacramento, Dahle said he knows how to build relationships across the aisle and pass…
NCJ Preview: The Green Issue
The annual Green Issue is back and we’re looking at stories that touch on the environment and the climate crisis this week. We’ll talk about building up vs. building out around the county, and the impacts and controversies related to creating needed housing in Eureka and Arcata. We’ve got updates on the proposed offshore wind…
Justice for Josiah Vigil
Charmaine Lawson spoke Friday at a courthouse candlelight vigil, continuing her call for justice five years after the still unsolved fatal stabbing of her son, David Josiah Lawson, at a house party in Arcata. On the same day, the Arcata Police Department once again put out the call for witnesses to come forward, stating that…
Long Lines as Hambro Recycling Opens in Arcata
After a lengthy permitting process, Hambro Recycling finally opened in Arcata on April 1. Humboldt County now has a CRV buy-back center two years after the Eureka Recycling Center’s CRV services were discontinued for safety amid an overload of residents wanting their CRV deposits back. “The process (of opening Hambro Recycling in Arcata) was long…
The Plunge is On!
This year, the 21st annual Perilous Plunge, held Saturday, April 16 at noon at the foot of F St. in Eureka, might be more aptly named the Perilous Polar Bear Plunge, considering how motherlovin’ cold it’s gonna be. But the daredevils who leap for Redwood Discovery Museum’s annual fundraiser are fortified against the chill by…
Vigil Today to Mark Fifth Anniversary of Josiah Lawson’s Killing, Arcata Police Renew Call for Witnesses to Come Forward
Today, on the fifth anniversary of the still unsolved killing of David Josiah Lawson, his mother is holding a 4 p.m. candlelight vigil at the courthouse to call for justice for her son and the Arcata Police Department is once again putting out the call for witnesses to come forward. “It is paramount that witnesses…
California Backs Away from School COVID Vaccine Mandates
Although more than three-quarters of California adults are vaccinated against COVID-19, opinions are more divided when it comes to vaccinating children. That sentiment played out Thursday when first, the author of a bill that would have mandated vaccines for all children pulled the legislation, and then again when state health officials pushed back the date…
Check out these Cal Poly Humboldt Weekend Concerts
In the mood for some live, high-energy music? Look no further than the two shows Cal Poly Humboldt’s got on tap this weekend. First up, it’s the Cal Poly Humboldt Guitar Ensemble and Mariachi de Humboldt Concert, tonight at 8 p.m. in Fulkerson Recital Hall ($10, $5 child, free for CPH students w/ID). The concert…
Fish and Wildlife to Ban Crab Traps for Recreational Season
Effective April 24 at 7 p.m., the California Department of Fish and Wildlife is prohibiting the use of crab traps for recreational catches due to an increased risk of whale entanglement. “This restriction is being implemented because of the unusually large number of humpback whales that have migrated back to California waters earlier than in…
Clean-car Rules: California Unveils Proposed Measure to Ban New Gasoline-fueled Cars
California’s clean-air regulators this week unveiled a far-reaching proposal requiring a ramp-up in sales of zero-emission cars, culminating in a ban on new gasoline-powered cars by 2035. The rules to force Californians to end their dependence on conventional cars are a critical component to California’s goals to tackle climate change and poor air quality. If…
Free Will Astrology
ARIES (March 21-April 19): “I have lived my life according to this principle: If I’m afraid of it, then I must do it.” Aries author Erica Jong said that. Since I’m not an Aries myself, her aspiration is too strong for me to embrace. Sometimes I just don’t have the courage, willpower, and boldness to…
Coastal Commission Moves Offshore Wind Forward
The California Coastal Commission voted unanimously April 7 to conditionally concur with a federal determination that allowing energy companies and organizations to study a proposed offshore wind farm area on the Humboldt County coast is consistent with the state’s Coastal Management Program. The highly technical and bureaucratic vote clears the way for companies interested in…
‘Our Rightful Place’
On April 7, the Yurok Tribe reopened Chah-pekw O’ Ket’-toh (Stone Lagoon) Visitor Center in a historic ribbon-cutting ceremony, the event marking an unprecedented agreement between California State Parks, Parks California, Redwood National Park and the Yurok Tribe. For the first time in state history, a tribe has been put in charge of operating a…
Microphone Season?
I’ll make this quick, for once. I have included both open mics and karaoke gigs here in the Setlist this week, with the obvious elephant of two-plus years of plague looming in the room. I can’t make any decisions for you, thankfully, but I am curious what people think about sharing a common microphone with…
‘Live Small, Use Less’
Editor: We inhabit a closed system with finite natural resources called planet earth (Mailbox, April 7). This implies that there are limits to growth, and we are rapidly approaching the point of no return. As we move forward in our efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change, we are being called upon to be…
‘Earth on Top’
Editor: In Arcata, volunteers are circulating petitions to place an initiative on the November ballot, requiring the city of Arcata to fly the Earth flag at the top of all city-owned flagpoles, above the U.S. and California flags. We have about 1,300 signatures but need several hundred more. Questions we’ve been asked: Isn’t this just…
Vote McLaughlin
Editor: Experience matters. It’s rare to vote for a new judge in Humboldt. In this election the experienced candidate is Ben McLaughlin. Ben knows the law backwards and forwards. McLaughlin, like most judges, is a former prosecutor, with seven years as a deputy district attorney. But Ben McLaughlin also worked five years as a pblic…
Eat Your (Radish) Greens
Food waste — uneaten food (raw or cooked) and food preparation scraps from households, restaurants and grocery stores — is a problem. As food production requires energy and water and draws nutrients from the land, when the food is wasted, all those resources are wasted, too. Preventing food waste is within our reach. Awareness is…
Plant This, Not That
I follow more than a few plant and picture pages on social media, and it’s always interesting to see folks wax poetic about some of our more aggressive invasive plants. Often, they (the people) are transplants to the area and these plants aren’t an issue where they come from, but there are also people who…
Correction
A story headlined “Benefit Cliff” in the April 7, 2014, edition of the North Coast Journal misspelled the last name of Appolonia Coan, a staff services analyst with the Humboldt County Department of Social Services. The Journal regrets the error.
Generous Ocean King Season Set to Open May 1
With a strong ocean abundance of Sacramento salmon and the Klamath numbers trending upward, North Coast sport salmon anglers were rewarded with a generous ocean salmon season. The season within the CA KMZ (Klamath Management Zone), which was adopted by the Pacific Fishery Management Council Monday, will open May 1 and run through May 31.…
Spring Haiku
Wind stirs trees from their long sleep Spring has come again Life awakens from the roots. Elena
Game Changers
The editor suggested, due to some fairly horrific recent events, that I keep this week’s selection light, perhaps write a column about comfort viewing. I may have met her halfway. There are certainly times when I seek out broad comedy to soothe my beleaguered psyche. As previously (repeatedly) mentioned, my wife and I spent the…
‘Shock and Disappointment’
Editor: I can’t fully express my shock and disappointment at Karen Paz-Dominguez’s video response to the Board of Supervisors’ 5-0 vote to censure her for harassment/bullying of her staff (“A Symbolic Censure,” April 7). Two investigations (in 2018 and 2022) into 10 separate complaints of bullying/harassment by Paz-Dominguez sustained all 10 allegations. Her response was…
‘Someone Special’
Editor: Because I live in the rural wilds of Humboldt, I don’t get to read every Journal. It was only by chance that I picked up the March 31 issue and read Pat Bitton’s tribute to Joan Schirle (“Reflections on Joan Schirle’s World”). To say I was overwhelmed with loss and sorrow is an understatement.…
