After nearly two hours of discussion, the Eureka City Council voted Tuesday to pass an ordinance repealing and replacing the city’s camping ordinance, with Councilmember Leslie Castellano dissenting. The ordinance was altered to reflect public concern over perceived criminalization of homelessness, changing the recommended criminal charges for involuntary camping from a misdemeanor to an infraction. […]
PalCo Marsh
Posted inLife + Outdoors
For Gerrianne Schulze, Died Aug. 22, 2020
I met Gerrianne through a picture taken on a camera loaned to someone for a birthday party in the summer of 2015. That fall I looked over a pot of pasta at the Bayshore Mall parking lot Services Faire and asked her if she knew my friend. She didn’t say anything, just looked at me […]
Posted inNews
TL;DR: How Andrew Mills Barely Escaped Humboldt
In case you missed it, Humboldt County bid former Eureka Police Chief Andrew Mills adieu last week. We offered a handful of stories looking at his tenure in town and what’s next for EPD. We encourage you to take a few minutes to look at the coverage and weigh in. But there are also a few […]
Posted inNews
Tent Cities: An Expert’s Opinion
In the lead-up to the PalCo Marsh vacation, city and county officials and members of the homeless working group, emailed around articles with suggestions for what worked in other cities and states. Among these was an article written by Iain De Jong, titled “Tent City: How to Respond Effectively.” De Jong, a consultant and professor […]
Posted inNews
Key Players and Their Emails (A Companion to This Week’s Cover Story)
This week’s cover story, “Swept,” takes a deep dive into the Eureka city government’s collective thought process as it planned to clear the PalCo Marsh of homeless encampments over the course of more than a year, culminating in the May 2, 2016 sweep that resulted in the relocation of more than 100 homeless people. To […]
Posted inNews
‘Heart’ of Palco Marsh Case Allowed to Proceed
A federal judge dismissed portions of a lawsuit claiming that Eureka’s ordinances against camping and the storage of personal items in public spaces violate the Constitutional rights of homeless individuals but is allowing an amended complaint to be filed. U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey White also found the civil suit filed against the city by […]
Posted inNews
UPDATE: Temporary Homeless Sleeping Area Abruptly Halted (with Video)
As on many other mornings, the deadline for campers to leave the temporary sleeping area came and went with people packing their belongings onto shopping carts in the mud as the Eureka Police Department stood by and waited. The official deadline was 9:30 a.m., but at 11:30 the last of the 30-plus people staying in […]
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Eureka Seeks Dismissal of PalCo Marsh Lawsuit; Plaintiffs Look to Make it a Class Action
The city of Eureka is asking a federal judge to dismiss the lawsuit brought by 11 people challenging the city’s May 2 eviction of the PalCo Marsh homeless encampments. Meanwhile, Peter Martin, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, has informed the court he intends to turn the case into a class action suit, which could bring […]
Posted inNews
Eureka Council to Mull Rotating Free Camping Zone
The Eureka City Council will consider amending its recent shelter crisis declaration again Tuesday, this time to allow for a rotating free camping area for homeless people with nowhere else to go. Currently, the city is allowing homeless people to camp in the city-owned parking lot on the corner of Koster and Washington streets during […]
Posted inNews
The Devil’s Playground No More
The PalCo Marsh is looking a lot different these days. Not only was the marsh cleared of the city’s largest and most entrenched homeless encampment on May 2, but crews from Figas Construction have now started demolishing the old concrete lumber kilns that have long been dubbed the Devil’s Playground. For decades, the kilns have […]
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McGuire Helps Nab $1 Million for PalCo Marsh Trail
North Coast State Sen. Mike McGuire announced this morning that he’s helped secure $1 million in state funding for the Eureka Waterfront Trail, which will transform the PalCo Marsh from its current blighted state into a waterfront nature trail. The funding will help fund the construction of 3.75 miles of new trail, which will consist […]
Posted inNews
UPDATED: Why is Eureka Being Squirrely About Handing over Public Records?
Editor’s Note: An update has been added at the end of this post. Well, this is awkward. You see, generally we at the Journal don’t talk much about our requests for documents made under the California Public Records Act. We just submit them and then write about the information we get back. That’s kind of […]