Kaci Poor/The Times-Standard
12/13/2012 02:16:27 AM PST
As the Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District board considers moving forward with plans to develop a district-operated recreational vehicle park on Woodley Island, some members of the business and fishing communities have stepped forward to voice concerns.
At a harbor commission meeting last week to discuss the project, Eureka boat builder and Humboldt Fisherman's Marketing Association Vice President Ken Bates said about 35 people turned out. Two petitions, with more than 300 signatures, were submitted expressing opposition to the project.
According to a draft study, the proposed 65-space RV park would be located on Startare Drive, the main access road to Woodley Island. In addition to RV parking, the site would include landscaping, a play area, and a dog area. The preliminary feasibility study estimated the start-up cost at a little over $1 million, with the yearly gross profit of the RV park expected to net just under $550,000 by 2018.
Bates said concerns range from a loss of open spaces to the proposed zoning changes for the RV park harming commercial fishermen.
”Our goal right now is not to tell the district no, it is to redirect their efforts somewhere else,” he said, adding that many would support the project if it was moved to a different location, like Fields Landing.
Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District chief executive officer Jack Crider is not ready to give up on the project --or Woodley Island -- just yet. When Crider took on the position of chief executive officer last May, he said he knew he would have to hit the ground running.
After years spent in the red, the agency had eaten away at its reserve funds. Debt from dredging Humboldt Bay in 2000, combined with lost revenue from disappearing timber companies and the closure of the Simpson pulp mill in 2008, saw the district's reserve funds plummet from $6 million in 2006 to just over $2 million in 2010.
Hired to replace longtime CEO David Hull, who was fired without cause, Crider said he has always tried to be upfront about the harbor district's financial situation with the public and the district's commissioners.
”It's not desperate,” he said. “We have a wonderful marina. But we are not utilizing our resources to their fullest. We don't have a plan to take care of the harbor in the future.”
Crider said he quickly realized that the district would need to start thinking of alternative revenue sources.
In addition to another round of dredging -- which Crider said will likely need to happen in about four years with the rate silt sediment is piling up in the bay-- the district also needs to start thinking about replacing the more than 50,000-square-feet of marina floats that make up the harbor dock.
”We are really, really lucky in the way our dock was built. It's one of the best in terms of longevity, but they don't last forever,” he said. “Right now, we are about two-thirds of the way through the life of our marina floats. Replacing those will be a $3 million nut to crack.”
Crider said he wants to put a plan in place similar to what other harbor districts have: replace small sections of the dock, at a cost of about $300,000 each year, over a period of 10 years. That way, he said, in 10 years the district doesn't end up with a failing dock and a bill for $3 million.
But that means finding a reliable revenue source that can bring in thousands of dollars each year without a tremendous start up cost.
That's when he came up with the idea of building an RV park on Woodley Island.
”This isn't something that I invented,” Crider said. “If you go to every port up the coast, 95 percent of them have an associated RV park. I would say half or more of those ports make more money off of that than they do off their marina. I am not trying to break the mold, I'm just trying to come up with something realistic that can generate revenue for the district.”
Patience and persistence is what Crider said he knows he will need to make that possible.
”Right now, we are just trying to work through the issues and make the modifications,” he said. “Whether we will get to the point where we satisfy everyone, I doubt it.”
The ultimate decision, Crider said, will be up to the commissioners.
”If they feel it is not the right thing to do, then we will make that work,” he said. “But there is nothing wrong with this process as it is moving forward now. It's what you need to go through for any project.”
Bates said his issues with the project are nothing personal. He said he understands that Crider needs to make up a lot of ground in a short period of time.
”I think he's a really great guy, who is doing a good job with what he has,” Bates said. “All of us come to a new job with the tools we had at our old job. We bring those skills, and we try to apply them to new situations. Jack just hasn't had the opportunity to have that long-term history here.”
The commissioners decided to table the project at last week's meeting. The commission isn't expected to bring back up the issue until after the holidays.
Commissioner Aaron Newman, who is also the Humboldt Fisherman's Marketing Association president, said he is reluctant to comment on the future of the project. He said he would like to see more community input and analysis before moving forward.
”Everything we are doing right now is about making more money,” he said. “But I would like to see something that makes everyone happy. Right now, we are looking at all the different aspects, trying to find ways to make something work with everyone in mind.”
12/13/2012 02:16:27 AM PST
As the Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District board considers moving forward with plans to develop a district-operated recreational vehicle park on Woodley Island, some members of the business and fishing communities have stepped forward to voice concerns.
At a harbor commission meeting last week to discuss the project, Eureka boat builder and Humboldt Fisherman's Marketing Association Vice President Ken Bates said about 35 people turned out. Two petitions, with more than 300 signatures, were submitted expressing opposition to the project.
According to a draft study, the proposed 65-space RV park would be located on Startare Drive, the main access road to Woodley Island. In addition to RV parking, the site would include landscaping, a play area, and a dog area. The preliminary feasibility study estimated the start-up cost at a little over $1 million, with the yearly gross profit of the RV park expected to net just under $550,000 by 2018.
Bates said concerns range from a loss of open spaces to the proposed zoning changes for the RV park harming commercial fishermen.
”Our goal right now is not to tell the district no, it is to redirect their efforts somewhere else,” he said, adding that many would support the project if it was moved to a different location, like Fields Landing.
Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District chief executive officer Jack Crider is not ready to give up on the project --or Woodley Island -- just yet. When Crider took on the position of chief executive officer last May, he said he knew he would have to hit the ground running.
After years spent in the red, the agency had eaten away at its reserve funds. Debt from dredging Humboldt Bay in 2000, combined with lost revenue from disappearing timber companies and the closure of the Simpson pulp mill in 2008, saw the district's reserve funds plummet from $6 million in 2006 to just over $2 million in 2010.
Hired to replace longtime CEO David Hull, who was fired without cause, Crider said he has always tried to be upfront about the harbor district's financial situation with the public and the district's commissioners.
”It's not desperate,” he said. “We have a wonderful marina. But we are not utilizing our resources to their fullest. We don't have a plan to take care of the harbor in the future.”
Crider said he quickly realized that the district would need to start thinking of alternative revenue sources.
In addition to another round of dredging -- which Crider said will likely need to happen in about four years with the rate silt sediment is piling up in the bay-- the district also needs to start thinking about replacing the more than 50,000-square-feet of marina floats that make up the harbor dock.
”We are really, really lucky in the way our dock was built. It's one of the best in terms of longevity, but they don't last forever,” he said. “Right now, we are about two-thirds of the way through the life of our marina floats. Replacing those will be a $3 million nut to crack.”
Crider said he wants to put a plan in place similar to what other harbor districts have: replace small sections of the dock, at a cost of about $300,000 each year, over a period of 10 years. That way, he said, in 10 years the district doesn't end up with a failing dock and a bill for $3 million.
But that means finding a reliable revenue source that can bring in thousands of dollars each year without a tremendous start up cost.
That's when he came up with the idea of building an RV park on Woodley Island.
”This isn't something that I invented,” Crider said. “If you go to every port up the coast, 95 percent of them have an associated RV park. I would say half or more of those ports make more money off of that than they do off their marina. I am not trying to break the mold, I'm just trying to come up with something realistic that can generate revenue for the district.”
Patience and persistence is what Crider said he knows he will need to make that possible.
”Right now, we are just trying to work through the issues and make the modifications,” he said. “Whether we will get to the point where we satisfy everyone, I doubt it.”
The ultimate decision, Crider said, will be up to the commissioners.
”If they feel it is not the right thing to do, then we will make that work,” he said. “But there is nothing wrong with this process as it is moving forward now. It's what you need to go through for any project.”
Bates said his issues with the project are nothing personal. He said he understands that Crider needs to make up a lot of ground in a short period of time.
”I think he's a really great guy, who is doing a good job with what he has,” Bates said. “All of us come to a new job with the tools we had at our old job. We bring those skills, and we try to apply them to new situations. Jack just hasn't had the opportunity to have that long-term history here.”
The commissioners decided to table the project at last week's meeting. The commission isn't expected to bring back up the issue until after the holidays.
Commissioner Aaron Newman, who is also the Humboldt Fisherman's Marketing Association president, said he is reluctant to comment on the future of the project. He said he would like to see more community input and analysis before moving forward.
”Everything we are doing right now is about making more money,” he said. “But I would like to see something that makes everyone happy. Right now, we are looking at all the different aspects, trying to find ways to make something work with everyone in mind.”