Articles, Crime, Klamath

Arrest Made In 11-Year-Old Shooting Death of Klamath Teenager

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(Updated at 5:15 p.m. to include input from Del Norte County Sheriff Garrett Scott.)

A 27-year-old man faces a similar murder charge he received 11 years ago in connection with the homicide of Klamath teenager Dante Romannose-Jones.

Nathan Feliz, who was 16 years old when Dante was shot and killed, was arrested in Ukiah on Monday, the Redheaded Blackbelt’s Lisa Music reported. According to Del Norte County District Attorney Katherine Micks, Feliz’s current charge — murder with a special allegation of use of a firearm — originated in juvenile court.

Feliz appeared in court on Tuesday afternoon, Micks said. His next hearing is scheduled for July 30 before Del Norte County Superior Court Judge Darrin McElfresh, she said.

Continue reading Arrest Made In 11-Year-Old Shooting Death of Klamath Teenager →
Articles, CC Harbor, Economy

Schmidt, Nehmer object to doing business with LLC created to manage Harbor District RV parks

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Thumbnail photo: Bayside RV Park at the Crescent City Harbor is one of two that a new limited liability company, Crescent City Beach Village LLC, will redevelop and manage. | Photo by Jessica Cejnar Andrews

A nine-month long courtship between the Crescent City Harbor District and BSD Property Management was nearly derailed over what the investment manager said is standard procedure for a new business.

But after CCHD commissioners Dan Schmidt and Annie Nehmer balked at entering into a lease agreement with Crescent City Beach Village LLC, the limited liability company created to operate the harbor’s RV parks, Daniel Dahan said without trust, the relationship was doomed.

“If you always have to come back and say, ‘Why did you do this? Why is this? Why is that?’ not as an interest, but as a fear, that’s not a good relationship,” he said Wednesday. “That’s not a healthy marriage.”

Continue reading Schmidt, Nehmer object to doing business with LLC created to manage Harbor District RV parks →
Articles, Community News, Klamath, Regional News

‘I’ve Been In Good Spirits’; Though He’s Still Struggling With the Loss Of His Hand, Jason Turner Says He’s Optimistic About the Future

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Thumbnail photo courtesy of GoFundMe

Jason Turner didn’t have time to see what he grabbed before it exploded.

The father of seven and his girlfriend, Pamala Ganfield, were spending a post-holiday afternoon at the beach north of Crescent City. As they walked along the beach, Pamala picked up some trash, putting it in a pile to retrieve before they left, when something round and shiny caught Turner’s eye.

“We walked close to the water’s edge, there was a little bit of sand over it, but it was fairly close to where the water would get us,” he said. “To me, it looked like a lead sinker with something on it and I thought, ‘Oh, this is going to be cool,’ and that’s the last thing that happened.”

Two weeks after the July 5 explosion at Point St. George forced doctors at U.C. Davis Medical Center to amputate his left hand, Turner is back home in Klamath. He says he’s slowly getting used to his new life, including figuring out how to maneuver a game controller to play Fortnite, but he has a long road of surgeries, doctors visits, occupational and physical therapies ahead of him.

Continue reading ‘I’ve Been In Good Spirits’; Though He’s Still Struggling With the Loss Of His Hand, Jason Turner Says He’s Optimistic About the Future →
Alerts, Crescent City, Emergencies, Infrastructure

With Pac Power Unable To Support A Microgrid, SitelogIQ Proposes Solar Panels For The Jail, Flynn Center

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Thumbnail image: SitelogIQ had proposed using photovoltaic solar panels and battery backup to create a microgrid in the northern area of Crescent City that would power the school district, Sutter Coast Hospital, the airport and the Crescent Fire and Rescue fire hall. | Image courtesy of SitelogIQ

Two years after outlining microgrid projects that would keep Del Norte County’s critical infrastructure functioning during a power outage, SitelogIQ representatives told supervisors that a facilities-based approach would be more feasible.

Despite spearheading successful projects in Pacific, Gas & Electric territory, including four in Humboldt County, SitelogIQ’s governor affairs and community development representative Kristy Coughlin said Del Norte County’s utility, Pacific Power, would be unable to manage a microgrid.

“Pacific Power determined they did not have the capacity, resources, personnel or infrastructure to support a community microgrid,” Coughlin told supervisors on Tuesday, adding that the company had met with Pacific Power in March.

Continue reading With Pac Power Unable To Support A Microgrid, SitelogIQ Proposes Solar Panels For The Jail, Flynn Center →
Alerts, Environment, Local Government, Tribal Affairs

Del Norte Supervisors Weigh In On Assembly Bill That Recognizes Tribal Stewardship On State Conservation Lands

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Thumbnail photo: Rosa Laucci, Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation marine program manager, led a hike down the Sweetwater Creek Trail during a 2023 celebration commemorating the reclamation of place names at Tolowa Dunes State Park. | Photo by Jessica Cejnar Andrews

Three months after he opposed a proposal to transfer Tolowa Dunes State Park to the Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation, Del Norte County District 3 Supervisor Chris Howard has his sights set on another assembly bill penned by the same author.

Authored by San Bernardino Assemblyman James Ramos, Assembly Bill 53 would allow federally recognized tribes to receive grants, awards and loans from the Wildlife Conservation Board’s California Riparian Habitat Conservation Program and Inlands Wetlands Conservation Program.

It would also allow federally-recognized tribes the ability to enter into contracts or agreements with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to manage “certain lands.” 

Continue reading Del Norte Supervisors Weigh In On Assembly Bill That Recognizes Tribal Stewardship On State Conservation Lands →
Articles, Environment

Federal Assessment of California’s Coastal Policies Prompt Starkey, Borges To Call For Offshore Oil Drilling Opposition Letter

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Thumbnail photo: Oil platforms off the coast of Seal Beach, Calif. | Photo by Mike Peel via Wikimedia Commons. Creative Commons License

Del Norte County Supervisors on Tuesday decided to put their opposition to offshore oil drilling in writing. But whether they’ll send their letter to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) officials assessing the California Coastal Management Program remains to be seen.

District 2 Supervisor Valerie Starkey pushed for the opposition letter, reminding her colleagues that lease sales may be under consideration in three years. 

Though he went along with his colleagues in approving the letter, District 3 representative Chris Howard said he still thinks Del Norte County shouldn’t get involved in a political butting of heads between Gavin Newsom and the Trump administration.

Continue reading Federal Assessment of California’s Coastal Policies Prompt Starkey, Borges To Call For Offshore Oil Drilling Opposition Letter →
Articles, Crescent City, Emergencies

Body Of 63-year-old Man Recovered From Capsized Boat Near Battery Point Lighthouse

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Thumbnail photo: A U.S. Coast Guard vessel and the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office’s patrol boat responded to a capsized boat near Battery Point Lighthouse on Wednesday. | Photo by Heather Polen

The Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the death of a 63-year-old man whose body was recovered from the water near Battery Point Lighthouse early Wednesday afternoon.

A U.S. Coast Guard 47-foot motor lifeboat from the Chetco River recovered the body of James Eric Englehart after the sheriff’s office received a report of a vessel spinning in the water with no one on board near the lighthouse.

The call came in at about 11:20 a.m., according to Undersheriff Devin Perry. By the time the sheriff’s office deployed its boat about 15 minutes later they found that Englehart’s 12-foot aluminum vessel had capsized, but was still floating.

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Articles, CC Harbor, Infrastructure

Del Norte Supervisors Accept Harbor District’s Facilities Plan, Enabling It To Use Measure C Dollars For Maintenance

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Thumbnail photo: The federally-funded reconstruction of Citizens Dock is one of the projects the Crescent City Harbor District’s facility plan lists. | Photo by Jessica Cejnar Andrews

Del Norte County supervisors accepted the Crescent City Harbor District’s facilities plan on Tuesday.

A necessary step for the Harbor District to be able to use Measure C tax revenue for maintenance, Board Chairman Joey Borges noted that the previous iteration CCHD officials presented to them in December “lacked a few items.” 

The revised version, completed in May, includes a list of potential projects as well as costs and timeframes by which Harbor District officials would like to see them accomplished, Borges said.

Continue reading Del Norte Supervisors Accept Harbor District’s Facilities Plan, Enabling It To Use Measure C Dollars For Maintenance →
Articles, Local Government

Del Norte Supervisors Initiate Hiring Freeze, Though Starkey Says It Won’t Be Enough to Close $9.6 Million Budget Deficit

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Thumbnail photo by Paul Critz

Three weeks after supervisors approved a recommended budget that included a $9.6 million deficit, Del Norte County’s top administrative officials proposed a temporary freeze in hiring for general fund positions.

It’s a step the Board unanimously agreed to on Tuesday, but District 2 Supervisor Valerie Starkey said it won’t be enough to close the budget gap. 

Starkey referenced the staff report County Administrative Officer Neal Lopez submitted, which stated that there were 31 vacant positions within the general fund, each yielding about $81,000 in savings per pay period. She noted that if the hiring freeze lasted for a year, Del Norte County would still have a $7.4 million budget deficit.

Continue reading Del Norte Supervisors Initiate Hiring Freeze, Though Starkey Says It Won’t Be Enough to Close $9.6 Million Budget Deficit →
Articles, Crescent City, Infrastructure, Local Government

Crescent City To Pursue CDBG Dollars For Street Improvements In The Downtown Area

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Thumbnail photo: Public Works Director Dave Yeager showed Crescent City councilors the proposed concept for a revitalized 3rd Street last week. | Image courtesy of the City of Crescent City

The day before Don Arambula presented the revitalization of 3rd and K streets as catalyst projects for the Downtown Specific Plan, Crescent City’s public works director unveiled a plan to pursue grant dollars to help pay for those improvements.

Up to $5 million in Community Development Block Grant dollars expect to be available this fall, Yeager told the City Council on July 6. To be competitive, the city needs to prepare design work associated with those catalyst projects as well as its storm drain masterplan by the time the Notice of Funding Availability drops, he said.

“We did the survey work up front,” Yeager said. “What we’re asking from you this evening is to approve this task order, which is $100,000, so we can finish the design.”

Continue reading Crescent City To Pursue CDBG Dollars For Street Improvements In The Downtown Area →

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