Category Archives: Local Government

Articles, Business, Crescent City, Economy, Housing, Infrastructure, Local Government

Workshops Delve Into Potential Architectural Styles For Downtown Crescent City

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Thumbnail image courtesy of ccdowntownplan.com.

Before launching into a presentation of the different architectural styles that would preserve Downtown Crescent City’s small-town character, Don Arambula mentioned the opposition some have to the city’s plans.

Arambula, principal planner and urban designer for Portland-based Crandall Arambula PC, spoke at a workshop Wednesday for business owners, nonprofit and other government representatives — members of a steering committee driving the development of Crescent City’s Downtown Specific Plan.

During the workshop, Arambula urged steering committee members to think about context. The city’s architectural guidelines and standards need to reflect its “Redwoods to the Sea” motto, he said.

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Articles, Emergencies, Infrastructure, Local Government

Del Norte, Crescent City, Other Jurisdictions Finalize Local Hazard Mitigation Plan

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Thumbnail photo: H Dock in the Crescent City Harbor’s marina bore the brunt of the damage from Kamchatka tsunami on July 29 and July 30, 2025. Tsunamis were among the potential risks Crescent City and other parts of Del Norte County face, according to its the most recent countywide Local Hazard Mitigation Plan. | Photo courtesy of Mike Rademaker

Del Norte County supervisors on Tuesday adopted an updated plan that seeks to reduce risk to life and property from natural disasters and other hazards.

The five-year two-volume countywide Local Hazard Mitigation Plan identifies the community’s risk from wildfires, tsunamis, earthquakes and other disasters, said Sasha Jones, a senior resilience and climate adaptation planner with Tetra Tech. 

The plan is a product of more than two years of public outreach, meetings, surveys and collaboration with other jurisdictions that must also adopt the plan, Jones told supervisors.

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Articles, Infrastructure, Local Government

Del Norte County Board of Supervisors Recap, Sept. 22, 2026

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Thumbnail photo by Aisling Bludworth

Among the items discussed at Tuesday’s Del Norte County Board of Supervisors meeting.

Board Adopts Final 2026-27 Budget: County supervisors closed a 14-day public hearing and adopted the county’s final 2026-27 budget. 

According to a staff report prepared by County Administrative Officer Neal Lopez and Auditor-Controller Clinton Schaad, the county’s overall recommended budget is $283,790,326 with a general fund budget of $53,614,829.

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Articles, Crescent City, Housing, Local Government

After Suffering Major Setbacks, Battery Point Apartment Developers Are Working To Weatherize Structures By November

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Thumbnail photo: Plagued by water damage last winter, the developers spearheading the Battery Point Apartments project are working to weatherize the structures by November. The first phase of the development, including the senior housing building, is expected to go online in 2027. | Photo by James Brooks

Wanting to avoid a repeat of last winter’s water damage, the developers behind Battery Point Apartments say their internal goal is to have two of its three buildings protected against the weather by November.

Contractors and sub contractors are also laying the foundation for the third building and ensuring that it is protected against the winter rains, Synergy Community Development Corporation Chair Jason Hobson told the Crescent City Council on Monday.

Two years after Synergy and Step Forward Communities broke ground on the site at Gary and E streets, Hobson said the goal is to get the project’s first phase, Buildings A and C, online between the summer and fall of 2027. Building A will consist of 40 senior housing units and Building C will be housing for families.

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Articles, Crescent City, Infrastructure, Local Government

Crescent City Council Recap, Sept. 21, 2026

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Mayor Pro Tem Candace Tinkler was absent. Among the items discussed at Monday’s Crescent City Council meeting.

Water system servers: Councilors approved spending $83,045 for two servers from Dell Technologies to run the water system’s supervisory control and data acquisition software, or SCADA.

According to City Manager Eric Wier, the SCADA system monitors alarms, water pressures and enables staff to turn pumps on and off without having it manned 24-7. The system was updated in 2019, however a server’s average lifecycle is five years. With the city’s manufacturer support and hardware replacement coverage expiring next April, “the time to replace them is now,” the city manager said.

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Articles, Crescent City, Economy, Infrastructure, Local Government

Contractors Selected For City’s RV Park Revamp; Coastal Conservancy-Funded Project Includes Two Cabins, Renovated Apartment

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Thumbnail photo: Crescent City is using a California Coastal Conservancy grant to install two ADA-compliant cabins at its Lighthouse Cove RV Park. | Photo courtesy of the City of Crescent City

After they weren’t able to reach a consensus on vacation rental regulations, Crescent City councilors last week approved contracts to install cabins and renovate an apartment for rent at the city-owned RV park.

Paid for through a $835,000 California Coastal Conservancy Explore the Coast Overnight grant, the project isn’t meant to compete with locals who own Airbnbs or VRBOs, Public Works Director David Yeager said at the Council’s Sept. 8 meeting. 

Though the rates have yet to be set, Yeager described renting the cabins and apartment as a “lower cost opportunity” than booking a privately-owned vacation rental.

Continue reading Contractors Selected For City’s RV Park Revamp; Coastal Conservancy-Funded Project Includes Two Cabins, Renovated Apartment →
Articles, Local Government

Del Norte County Experiences 4.5% Drop In Staff Vacancy Rate; Elected Officials, Union Rep Raise Concerns About State-run HR System for Social Services, Child Support Services Programs

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Thumbnail photo by Paul Critz

After learning that Del Norte County’s financial situation isn’t as dire as it was in June, county supervisors found out that its vacancy rate had also improved.

The county’s overall vacancy rate dropped from 25% last year to 20.5% in 2026, Human Resources Director Kerri Vue told supervisors on Sept. 8. Out of 483 authorized full-time positions, 99 are currently vacant, she said.

“This reflects an official drop from triple digit vacancies for the first time in many years,” Vue said.

Vue presented these statistics to county supervisors after they opened the public hearing process ahead of final adoption of Del Norte’s 2026-27 budget. County supervisors learned that despite reporting a $9.6 million deficit in June, last-minute revenue and efforts from departments to reduce expenditures led to more resources than anticipation.

Continue reading Del Norte County Experiences 4.5% Drop In Staff Vacancy Rate; Elected Officials, Union Rep Raise Concerns About State-run HR System for Social Services, Child Support Services Programs →
Articles, Crescent City, Economy, Local Government

Crescent City Council Fails To Agree On Vacation Rental Ordinance

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Though he shared Candace Tinkler’s sentiments concerning vacation rentals, Crescent City Councilman Steve Shamblin couldn’t convince his colleagues that ensuring “everyone’s paying their fair share” was common sense.

Shamblin, and Tinkler, the city’s mayor pro tem, argued for an ordinance that would capture the addresses of Airbnbs, VRBOs and other short-term rentals operating within city limits. But after the city manager and finance director on Tuesday concluded that short-term rentals make up about 2.8% of Crescent City’s overall housing stock, councilors Jason Greenough and Ray Altman said enacting stronger regulations was a waste of time.

“The city should mind its own business and leave property owners alone,” Altman said, repeating a statement he made about two months ago. “Staff should be working on stuff that’s way more important.”

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Articles, Education, Elections, Local Government

DNUSD Board Poised To Appoint John Pritchett To Empty Trustee Area 1 Seat on Tuesday

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Thumbnail photo courtesy of Michael Hawkins

School board officials are set to meet Tuesday morning to discuss appointing John Pritchett to the vacant Trustee Area 1 position.

The meeting will be held at 8 a.m. at the Del Norte County Unified School District office, 301 W. Washington Boulevard. Trustees will interview Pritchett for the position, which has been vacant since Don McArthur retired in July. If he is appointed, Pritchett will serve through the end of the position’s current term which ends in December, according to DNUSD Director of Communications Michael Hawkins.

Pritchett was general manager for Del Norte Ambulance for about 20 years and had been the editor of the Daily Triplicate before that. He is the announcer for the Del Norte High School football and basketball games on KPOD and is a member of the Del Norte Fair Board and Sutter Coast Hospital Board of Directors.

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Articles, Crescent City, Crime, Local Government

‘Our Information Is Not Sold To Anybody Else’; CCPD Allowed To Keep Axon Automated License Plate Readers

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Crescent City’s police chief convinced policymakers Tuesday that the automated license plate reader cameras installed in his department’s patrol vehicles are not the Flock Safety cameras residents raised concerns about last month.

Richard Griffin told city councilors that the Axon ALPR devices the Crescent City Police Department uses helped a dementia patient get home to Southern Oregon and a MythBusters host recover a stolen vehicle.

They’re not stationary like the six Flock Safety cameras the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office has posted throughout the community, he said. Any agency that wants access to the data must go through him.

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