Tag Archives: del norte county news

Articles, Health, Local Government

Del Norte Joins CSAC, Other Counties In Seeking State Funding Ahead of ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ Implementation

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Thumbnail photo by Paul Critz

Del Norte is joining a statewide effort that seeks to shield counties from the “health and human services tsunami” that’s coming with the implementation of H.R. 1, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.”

In an April 14 letter conveying a “multi-year countywide H.R. budget request” to state lawmakers, county supervisors stated that California counties may see an impact of between $6 billion and $9.5 billion due to the federal legislation.

The demand for indigent care is expected to increase, which will force counties to expand their workforce, according to the letter. H.R. 1 will also strain other safety net programs due to people losing access to MediCal as a result. 

But there are so many parts, it’s unclear how much of an impact Del Norte County itself will feel.

Continue reading Del Norte Joins CSAC, Other Counties In Seeking State Funding Ahead of ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ Implementation →
Articles, Arts & Culture, Economy, Education, Local Government, Youth

Strengthening Bonds of Friendship; Largest Rikuzentakata Delegation Visits Del Norte

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Thumbnail photo: Takeya Owada, who is in the oyster fishery business, shows his fellow delegates from Rikuzentakata how to shuck one of the oysters Mike Schmidt and Erik Karle, of Schmidt’s House of Jambalaya grilled at the Taste of Japan event on Friday. | Photo courtesy of Jen Schmidt

Cal-Ore Lifeflight CPR instructor Aubree Arneson shows the life-saving technique to a Joe Hamilton Elementary School student as part of the Kamome Festival’s focus on emergency preparedness Friday. |

Taku Sasaki gave a simple “nice to meet you, konnichiwa,” when he and his fellow travelers filed into the Del Norte County Airport on Thursday.

After exchanging hugs, handshakes and bows, the Rikuzentakata mayor and his fellow delegates from Japan grabbed their bags and were whisked away to their first event, the cardboard boat races at the Fred Endert Municipal Pool. 

Coinciding with the Kamome Festival, this visit marks a new development in the Sister City relationship between Crescent City, Del Norte County and Rikuzentakata. The current delegation, consisting of 21 city officials, business leaders, students and educational leaders, is the largest to visit since cultural exchanges began more than a decade ago, according to Kiyoshi Murakami, Rikuzentakata’s senior international affairs advisor.

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Articles, Infrastructure, Local Government, Transportation

Paul Place To Get Attention This Year, Though Supervisors Decide Against Bringing It Into The County-Maintained Road System

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Thumbnail photo: Paul Place near Charm Lane and Old Mill Road was selected for repairs as part of an effort to ensure emergency vehicles have access to public roads that are not on the county-maintained road system.| Photo courtesy of Del Norte County

Del Norte County supervisors agreed to commit about $20,000 from the general fund to repair a ditch and grade Paul Place.

But they rejected a proposal to spend an additional $26,000 to pave the first 250 feet of Paul Place, adding it to the county’s network of maintained roads, despite County Engineer Jon Olson arguing that vehicles were tracking mud onto nearby Charm Lane and Old Mill Road. There’s also water puddling up onto Old Mill Road, which is damaging the asphalt, Olson said.

District 2 Supervisor Valerie Starkey said Olson’s argument could be made for Napa or Lake streets, which impact Washington Boulevard. 

Continue reading Paul Place To Get Attention This Year, Though Supervisors Decide Against Bringing It Into The County-Maintained Road System →
Articles, Education, Infrastructure, Local Government

Del Norte Unified Hits Brakes on SitelogIQ Proposal, Says Savings Potential Not Worth Challenges

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Thumbnail: SitelogIQ representatives proposed installing a solar array near Bess Maxwell Elementary School. | Image courtesy of SitelogIQ

Del Norte education officials decided that waiting 15 to 17 years for substantive savings installing a solar array might bring wasn’t worth committing to a $5 million project even with a $1 million federal rebate.

Reporting back from a March 20 meeting that included officials from the county, the airport and representatives from Pacific Power and SitelogIQ, Del Norte Unified School District Superintendent Jeff Harris said that the community’s utility stated that tying solar into its grid would be difficult.

Meanwhile, quotes DNUSD had received from SitelogIQ were only for solar panels that would be installed at what is currently Del Norte High School’s arboretum near Bess Maxwell Elementary School, Harris told trustees. 

Continue reading Del Norte Unified Hits Brakes on SitelogIQ Proposal, Says Savings Potential Not Worth Challenges →
Articles, Crime, Local Government

Hooper Given 44-Day Jail Sentence, 3 Years Probation Nearly A Year After DUI Arrest;

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Hooper

Thumbnail photo: Randy Hooper was arrested on a DUI with injury charge after he struck Megan Postma’s vehicle at Sand Mine Road and U.S. 101 on April 19, 2025 | Photo by Heather Polen

Randy Hooper will serve 44 days in jail, a Del Norte County judge decided on Monday nearly a year after officers arrested the assistant county administrative officer on a DUI with injury charge after leaving Elk Valley Casino.

At a sentencing hearing before Judge William Follett, Hooper offered an apology to Megan Postma, the Grants Pass woman whose vehicle he struck at U.S. 101 and Sand Mine Road on April 19, 2025.

“I wish I could have apologized sooner, but I was advised not to by my attorney,” Hooper told the judge. “I think my conduct was not of character — it certainly is not the way my parents raised me nor the way my wife and I are raising our children.”

Continue reading Hooper Given 44-Day Jail Sentence, 3 Years Probation Nearly A Year After DUI Arrest; →
Articles, Infrastructure, Tribal Affairs

Del Norte County Board of Supervisors Recap, March 24, 2026

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Thumbnail image: The 57-acre “Sand Spit Property” the Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation is seeking to acquire. |Image courtesy of the Bureau of Indian Affairs

District 2 Supervisor Valerie Starkey was absent. Among the items discussed at Tuesday’s Del Norte County Board of Supervisors meeting:

Trust Acquisition Opposition: County supervisors approved a letter to the Bureau of Indian Affairs opposing the Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation’s efforts to acquire 57 acres of undeveloped land just outside its boundaries in Smith River.

Known as the “Sand Spit Property,” the parcel is located on the south side of the Smith River estuary near the river mouth.

Continue reading Del Norte County Board of Supervisors Recap, March 24, 2026 →
Articles, Emergencies

Earthquake/Tsunami Drill Set For Tomorrow

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Thumbnail map courtesy of the Redwood Coast Tsunami Working Group. To find maps for Fort Dick, Smith River and Klamath, click here.

Del Norters who have opted into the county’s emergency alert system will get a notification between 11 a.m. and noon Wednesday.

Coinciding with Tsunami Preparedness Week, the earthquake and tsunami drill will only involve the county’s Everbridge system, Emergency Services Manager Deborah Otenburg told county supervisors on Tuesday.

“Oftentimes we have community members say we didn’t receive the alert, you do have to be registered to receive that alert,” Otenburg said. “And there will not be sirens. This is not a live-code activation. This is not a National Weather Service putting this out. It’s just us.”

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Articles, Elections, Local Government

Del Norte Election Lineup Set For June Primary

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Thumbnail image by Dwight Burdette via Wikimedia Commons. Creative Commons license.

Del Norte County voters will cast a ballot for two contested local races on June 2.

Incumbents Chris Howard and Joey Borges will each face challenges to their District 3 and District 4 seats on the Board of Supervisors, County Clerk-Recorder Alissia Northrup told Redwood Voice Community News.

The deadline to submit election paperwork was 5 p.m. Friday.

Continue reading Del Norte Election Lineup Set For June Primary →
Articles, Community News

Crescent City, Del Norte Preparing For ‘Pause’ In CDBG Program; Funding Supports CASA, Senior Nutrition, Pacific Pantry

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Thumbnail image: Marina MacNeil and Dominique Richcreek, staff members at Pacific Pantry, visited Smith River in this photo from September 2024 with the pantry’s mobile market. Pacific Pantry is supported through CDBG funding from the city. | Photo by Jessica Cejnar Andrews

Though her organization’s main funding source, the Community Development Block Grant, is set to pause for two years, Christine Slette said she’s not totally freaking out.

With a year and a half left of its 2024 allotment, Court Appointed Special Advocates of Del Norte may be OK, its executive director told Redwood Voice Community News on Thursday. But if CASA is unable to renew its application in 2026, the number of foster youth its volunteers work with will decrease, Slette said.

“It feels like we have to spend more time fundraising and doing grant management than we do serving the children,” she said. “It’s frustrating. But we have such an amazing community (that) always steps up and helps us through tough times. But it’s a strain and it’s so unfortunate.”

Continue reading Crescent City, Del Norte Preparing For ‘Pause’ In CDBG Program; Funding Supports CASA, Senior Nutrition, Pacific Pantry →
Community News

The Volunteers of Del Norte’s 2026 Point in Time Count

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Photos and video by Monique Camarena

On one windy day in January, Del Norte Health and Human Services and local organizations came together to gather data, provide support, and spread love to Del Norte’s homeless community at the county’s annual Point In Time Count. 

This year’s PIT count was held in the Del Norte County Fairgrounds Main Building on Jan. 27, where those considered unhoused could take a 5-minute anonymous survey and receive free meals, backpacks, clothes, showers and many more resources. Even free haircuts!

Continue reading The Volunteers of Del Norte’s 2026 Point in Time Count →