Measure F is the most expensive ballot initiative in Eureka’s history. With split local views, we asked those on both sides what they thought.
The city currently has proposed low income housing to be built on Downtown Eureka parking lots. Measure F would change this by re-zoning the housing to other areas.
“So, the city has a plan to build affordable housing on lots that they own throughout the city, to allow that the housing be built on those lots in the city that they own. And so that’s the plan that the city is putting forward. And in this plan that the yes on F is saying is like, let’s not do that and instead build on the Jacobs campus,” said Solomon Everta of Eureka Books, an opponent of Measure F.
Opponents of measure F say they are unsure if private developers can secure Jacob’s campus and get the job done. They also want to preserve downtown Eureka’s walkability by adding housing to Old Town.
“So the zoning that we have now, we’ve had many meetings of the public that have said we want to keep the character of Old Town the way it is. And that includes having housing, having buildings that are close to each other and have it walkable and things like that. And so we need in order to do that is to allow these new developments to occur,” Everta said.
However, those behind the ballot measure say it isn’t about getting rid of housing, just moving it to a more appropriate place.
“Well, it’s not us building, to be clear. What the initiative says is we’re going to put an overlay on the city. Lots that are downtown and also change the zoning on the Jacobs property,” said Michael Munson of Kingsview partners, a Co-Sponsor of Measure F.
The zoning overlay, Munson says, states that any housing built downtown must have 1.8 parking spots per unit. Munson says the lack of parking will hurt the business district.
“You know, what will this look like in ten, 20, 30, 40 or 50 years? For these projects, you know, if this turns into low income, high rises downtown. I do believe we need a lot of housing down here, but I don’t think we need it at the density that they’re proposing. If we can find other options to put that density in already existing areas, closer to hospitals, closer to affordable grocery stores. The mall, bus lines,” Munson said.
“That being said, you know, there’s a reason they have residential areas. There’s a reason they have commercial areas. There’s a reason that they have industrial areas. And, you know, we really need to make sure that downtown remains a viable place to do business,” he said.
Story by Tucker Caraway
