The restless crowd packed into city council chambers Tuesday night gradually filtered out until only the most hardcore civics enthusiasts remained, as the Eureka City Council meeting was extended, then extended again, stretching until 10:30 p.m. The majority of the four-and-a-half-hour meeting was taken up by public comment on two contentious items: whether or not […]
Eureka City Council
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City Mulls Shelter Crisis as Activists Protest Police Presence in PalCo Marsh
Tomorrow evening the Eureka City Council will meet to discuss two items related to the city’s homeless: the feasibility of a temporary, sanctioned camp and whether or not the city should declare a shelter crisis. City Manager Greg Sparks said a site has been identified as a potential temporary camp, a city-owned parking lot at […]
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City Revisits Plan for Sanctioned Homeless Camp
The Eureka City Council agenda for Tues. Dec. 15 went out yesterday replete with a vintage item: discussing the feasibility of a temporary sanctioned homeless camp. Within an hour, it was yoinked back via an emailed retraction, with the note that the item would be back on the table at the Jan. 5 meeting, when […]
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UPDATE: Eureka Council approves body cam purchase
UPDATE: The Eureka City Council voted unanimously last night to allocate $60,000 to purchase body-worn cameras for its police department. Prior to last night’s vote, Eureka Police Department Capt. Brian Stephens briefed the council on the departments’ proposal, as well as the rough outline of a draft policy the department is working on to govern […]
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UPDATE: The Dogs Are Alright, Eureka City Budget Passed
UPDATE: Suzie Owsley is going through old files at the Problem Oriented Policing office in Eureka, organizing for whoever steps in once she and the rest of the team move on. Owsley is one of eight police services officers with the Eureka Police Department whose position was eliminated in sweeping budget cuts passed by the […]
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UPDATE: Eureka City Council Chambers Packed for Budget Drama
UPDATE: A second budget meeting, held last night, explored options to preserve funding for public safety, according to an article in this morning’s Times-Standard. Council Member Melinda Ciarabellini suggested halving funding for Eureka Main Street and the chamber of commerce and cutting funding entirely for such organizations as the Retired Senior Volunteer Program and the […]
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Squires Tenants File $25K Claims Against City
Seven former tenants of Floyd and Betty Squire’s Blue Heron Lodge have filed nearly identical claims for damages against the city of Eureka, arguing the city unlawfully evicted them, violated their civil rights and intentionally inflicted emotional distress upon them when the city moved to condemn the lodge earlier this month. Each of the claims […]
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Eureka to Hold Special Meeting on Homelessness
Eureka city staff is seeking some direction on the issue of homeless encampments within city limits. Community members are invited to come weigh in tomorrow, December 16, from 4:30 to 5:40 p.m., just before the Eureka City Council meets. City officials will present various perspectives on homeless encampments in Eureka and possible solutions. Then, during […]
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Keep Biting Those Nails
The Humboldt County Elections Office is zeroing in final election tallies, and has inched closer to determining the final number of ballots outstanding in the nail-biter of a race for Eureka’s Ward 3 city council seat. When the dust settled from Election Day, incumbent Mike Newman led challenger Kim Bergel by 104 votes, having taken […]
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A Councilman’s ‘Dying Declaration’
In what appears to be a sworn declaration signed less than a month before he died, former Eureka City Councilman Lance Madsen claims Eureka City Attorney Cyndy Day-Wilson lied to him and tried to get another city hall employee to do the same in an effort to cover up her allegedly distributing a confidential and […]
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Chris Kerrigan to Run for Eureka Mayor
Looks like former Eureka City Councilman Chris Kerrigan is ready to pursue his second act on the city’s political stage. Kerrigan, who was just 20 years old when he was first elected to represent Eureka’s 4th Ward back in 2000, tells the Journal that he’ll be running for mayor next year, challenging incumbent Frank Jager. “I […]
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Chet Albin Will Be Eureka’s Next Councilmember
Looks like Eureka’s next councilmember will be the ward-hopping, party-switching, Tea Party-liking, Fox News-watching “Democrat” Chet Albin, who is set to replace ailing 5th Ward representative Lance Madsen. Here’s the press release: Mayor Frank Jäger announced today that he is recommending Chet Albin for appointment to the Eureka City Council, 5th Ward. The appointment will be […]