Category Archives: Infrastructure

Articles, Community News, Crescent City, Infrastructure, Local Government

Crescent City To Add New Tank To Water System, Plans To Dismantle 68-year-old Elevated Tank

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Crescent City will add a new component to its water system that will regulate water pressure more efficiently and, eventually, lead to the dismantling of the 67-year-old elevated tank near Wonder Stump and U.S. 101.

The City Council approved a $694,000 contract with Humboldt County-based Wahlund Construction to build a 6,000 gallon pressurized tank. The new tank will be across the street from the Ranney collector, which takes in water from the nearby Smith River, Public Works Director David Yeager said Monday.

The new tank, which will include a bladder that runs on an air compressor, will be able to absorb additional pressure in the event of a surge in the system, Yeager said. It’s also closer to the Ranney collector instead of a mile and a half away — the distance from the Ranney collector to the elevated water tank, he said.

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Articles, Community News, Curry, Infrastructure, Local Government

Curry County Hosts Cybersecurity Summit Two Years After Ransomware Attack

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Thumbnail courtesy of Curry County

Curry County is hosting a cybersecurity summit that will feature information from experts who helped the county get back on its feet from a ransomware attack that crippled its network about two years ago.

Chief Information Officer Phil Dickson told commissioners on Wednesday that he invited representatives from special districts within Curry, Coos and Del Norte counties to attend. In addition to providing information about multi-factor authentication and good backup practices, the summit hosts will conduct an assessment of every attendee’s network, he said.

“It’s not something to get you in trouble or go, ‘Oh, gotcha!’” Dickson said, adding that about 40 participants have registered to attend so far. “This is going to be a moment where we can have a baseline. What these professionals are going to do is spend 10 to 15 minutes with each individual district and say, ‘This is what I recommend you look at first, this is what I’d recommend you look at second…’”

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Articles, Community News, Curry, Infrastructure, Law

Discovery of Lead Paint on Bunk Beds Force Curry County Commissioners To Reduce Jail Capacity

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Thumbnail photo: Ken Lund via Wikimedia Commons. Creative Commons License

Lead paint on bunks at the Curry County Jail prompted commissioners to temporarily reduce the facility’s capacity, cutting its number of beds from 35 to 16.

The Curry County Sheriff’s Office will be more judicious about who they accept into the jail as a result, according to Lt. Jeremy Krohn. But it’s the less drastic of two options he presented to commissioners at an emergency meeting on Friday. The alternative was to completely evacuate the jail, he said.

Some staff have already been relocated, Krohn said.

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Articles, Community News, Education, Infrastructure

Del Norte County, Education Officials Lobby For Century-Old Funding Source

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Thumbnail photo by Amanda Dockter

Pointing out that Del Norte County’s apportionment is a significant part of its general fund, District 3 Supervisor Chris Howard said continuing to lobby hard for the Secure Rural Schools program is important, even though Congress didn’t include it in the budget it approved last month.

Howard, whose district includes the Smith River National Recreation Area and parts of Redwood National and State Parks, called the loss of nearly $1.4 million to the community huge. It’s huge for Del Norte County and huge for Del Norte County Unified School District, he said.

But, while he urged Del Norters to let their elected representatives know where they stand on funding for infrastructure and schools, DNUSD Superintendent Jeff Harris said the district has learned not to count on those SRS dollars.

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Articles, Community News, Education, Infrastructure, Local Government

School Board Signs Onto SitelogIQ Proposal After DNUSD Admin Says Potential $65k Fee Won’t Impact Staff

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Thumbnail: DNUSD logo

Despite hearing from two skeptics who balked at the possibility that Del Norte Unified School District would be on the hook for $65,000, trustees endorsed a proposal from SitelogIQ to conduct energy audits of DNUSD campuses.

Del Norte Teachers Association President Amber Tiedeken-Cron was one of those skeptics. On Thursday, she pointed to the names of teachers that had been posted on the wall at the district office, asking trustees to keep them in mind when they think about spending money.

“We had put the names of every one of the teachers that received pink slips on the board,” she told Redwood Voice Community News on Friday, “and asked that the School Board keep our students and the names of the staff who have been given preliminary layoff notices at the forefront of every decision they make.”

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Articles, Community News, Infrastructure, Local Government

Del Norte CAO Says Federal or State Loans May Be An Option To Finish Jail, Pyke Field Rehab Projects

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Thumbnail photo: Despite receiving about $3 million for much-needed improvements to the jail, Del Norte County Administrative Officer Neal Lopez says additional funding is needed. | Photo courtesy of the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office

Del Norte County officials are looking to state and federal loan programs to complete needed upgrades to the jail and to the Pyke Field Sports Complex despite receiving roughly $3.5 million in Congressionally Designated Spending funds last year.

During a presentation on capital improvement projects that are either finished or ongoing, County Administrative Officer Neal Lopez said staff is working on applications for a U.S. Department of Agriculture loan and a potential loan through the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank, or Ibank.

Staff have also decided that tackling the Pyke Field rehabilitation project in phases would be the best path forward, he said.

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Articles, Community News, Infrastructure, Local Government

County Engineer Presents List Of Repairs Planned For Del Norte’s Unmaintained Roads, Proposes Long-Term Options For Residents

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Thumbnail: Rock delivery and minor grading on Childs Avenue is among a list of planned repairs to unmaintained county roads for the upcoming fiscal year. | Photo courtesy of Del Norte County

Four Del Norte County supervisors on Tuesday agreed to finance repairs to public roads the county doesn’t maintain for a second year. They also supported a proposal to use that allocation as an incentive to get residents to take on that responsibility themselves.

That policy pitch came from County Engineer Jon Olson. He acknowledged that residents weren’t receptive to a proposed benefit assessment to pay for those repairs about 15 years ago, but, he said, an up-front investment might get them to change their minds.

“This Board is spending $50,000,” Olson said. “That could be the leverage or the carrot that we need to get people to take responsibility long term for the roads that they’re responsible to maintain instead of just spending out $50,000 each year.”

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Articles, Community News, Crescent City, Infrastructure

New Wall System Shores Up Pebble Beach Drive As City Council Approves Second Work Order

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Thumbnail photo by Amanda Dockter

Crescent City’s public works director on Monday unveiled a Pebble Beach Drive that’s completely different from the eroded remnant an atmospheric river left behind in January 2024.

A new wall system shores up the scenic thoroughfare between 7th and 8th streets. Constructed of vertical piles, soil nails and reinforced shotcrete, it’s been sculpted and stained to mimic the surrounding bluff, according to Public Works Director David Yeager. A rock revetment provides further erosion control and a landscape contractor has sown more than 500 native plants at its base.

“We also have a 240 foot wall that is a vertical space and so that brought about the idea of putting in some sort of railing,” Yeager told the City Council. “The most attractive in terms of not being able to lose your view is a steel cable rail. It’s a 3/8ths inch stainless steel cable rail that’ll go through the posts and so you’re basically looking through wire.”

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Articles, Community News, Infrastructure, Local Government

City Starts Process To Underground Utility Lines Ahead of Gateway Project

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Crescent City hopes to use the last leg of Front Street’s reconstruction along with a gateway project as an opportunity to underground electrical distribution lines between K and M streets, but it’s under a tight deadline.

Councilors have until June 8 to update the municipal code chapter governing the creation of underground utility districts. They must hear from the public, adopt a resolution creating the underground utility district, coordinate with Del Norte County on the transfer of work credits Pacific Power can use to underground the existing power lines and negotiate an agreement with Pacific Power.

“It’s that last action which commits the funds,” City Attorney Martha Rice told councilors on Monday.

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Articles, Community News, Education, Infrastructure

DNUSD To Undergo $698,000 Upgrade To Its Wifi Access Points

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Thumbnail image by RRZEicons via Wikimedia Commons. Creative Commons License

Trustees green lit a proposed $698,000 upgrade to Del Norte Unified School District’s wireless network infrastructure, replacing wireless access points that are at the end of their life with new units that came out in November.

Ryan Bahten, DNUSD’s director of information network services, said he plans on replacing 379 access points that are currently housed indoors. There are 13 others that provide internet access outdoors, but “we’re just talking about the inside ones,” he said.

DNUSD currently uses Wifi 5, which is the fifth generation of WiFi technology, Bahen said. Its hardware is currently at the end of its life and is no longer warrantied. He proposed upgrading to Wifi 7, which became available in November.

“[Wifi] 6 has been out for almost 10 years so we’re going straight to [Wifi] 7,” he said. “[It] offers simultaneous connections, better range. We expect to see more benefit in our classrooms for our students and our staff.”

According to Bahten, the total cost breakdown for the upgrade is about $155 per user, which includes students and staff. He said the $698,285.98 cost would come out of a special reserve DNUSD set aside for technology infrastructure, called Fund 40.

Bahten also pointed out that state testing is done via Chromebooks and iPads as are other district assessments.

According to Assistant Superintendent of Business Jeff Napier, DNUSD has contributed to Fund 40 every year after the DNUSD had to borrow $3.5 million for technology upgrades.

District 3 representative Frank Magarino was absent.