January 2026
Vol. 45 No. 1
Website: www.humbike.org
Email: info@humbike.org
New and Renewed Members of the HBBCA
The following are new and renewed members since the last newsletter. If you haven’t renewed your dues for 2026, please see the application at the end of this newsletter.
Renewed Members (since last newsletter)
Will Dvorak & Carole Beaton, Eureka***
Mark Mueller, Eureka***
Carl & Judy Cooper, Bayside**
Gordon Inkeles, Bayside**
Jim & Frances Maunder, Eureka***
Lloyd McClelland, Eureka***
Rick Knapp, Eureka***
Gail Popham, McMinnville, OR***
Those with a ** next to their name gave an additional donation. Those with *** have given a $25 or greater donation in addition to their dues. Thanks to all those who have joined or renewed their commitment and those who have given additional donations to support our many causes. Get on board now for all the benefits, including discounts at bike shops. See application at the end of the newsletter.
Next Meeting at Carmela’s Mexican Restaurant on Monday,
The next meeting of the HBBCA will be on Monday, January 26th. The dinner meeting will be at Carmela’s Mexican Restaurant, 13th and G Streets in Arcata, from 6-8 pm. The agenda will be set by the attendee
C Street Bike Boulevard Nearing Completion in Eureka—Update to October Wheel People
As of January 1, RAO Construction had not completed the project. The four sections of reversing one way sections have been established, resulting in anticipated controversy. The most apparent work to be done is centerline striping in various areas.
In the early stages of planning, the HBBCA wrote a support letter for a State grant, conditioned on the City holding a public meeting at the Jefferson Center to get community input on the details before design was finalized. That didn’t happen, which is disappointing. At a recent Henderson Center walk/bike audit conducted by renown expert, Dan Burden, two community members who attended expressed their extreme displeasure with the reversing one-ways.
While the reversing one-ways will reduce automobile traffic on the Bike Boulevard, traffic on C Street has always been relatively low. Of greater concern for bicyclists is the fact that cross traffic is not stopped at major intersections like 7th, 14th, Buhne, and Henderson Streets. For a bike boulevard to be effective for bicyclists, especially inexperienced bicyclists, it needs to give priority to bike traffic.
Reconnecting Arcata December Update
The following is an update from the City of Arcata:
“Please recall that the City of Arcata was one of three communities in the State to be selected to receive funding through the California Air Resources Board – California Climate Investments (CARB/CCI) via Caltrans, for the initial phase of the Reconnecting Communities: Highways to Boulevards State Pilot Program (RC:H2B) in March of 2024 in order to address the division of Arcata’s Valley West, central downtown, and the Gateway neighborhoods by US Hwy 101 and State Routes 299 and 255. However, due to the State’s ongoing budget shortfall, in part due to the fires that occurred earlier this year in southern California, funding for the Reconnecting Communities program has been suspended. Despite this, and because the Arcata community is eager to see progress on improved multi-modal transportation infrastructure, the City solicited bids for planning and design expertise this past June 2025, received four proposals in July, and in October awarded a contract in the amount of $300,000 with City funds to SmithGroup for planning, community outreach, existing conditions and constraints analysis, and preliminary concept designs in line with Reconnect Arcata project goals.
SmithGroup is a national planning, engineering, and design firm, and their San Francisco office has been working successfully for the past several years in the region assisting Cal Poly Humboldt with the campus physical plan through a series of community engagement activities, the Humboldt Transit Authority on the Eureka Regional Transit Hub, and most recently HCAOG on the Humboldt County Regional Vision Zero Action Plan. For the Reconnect Arcata project, SmithGroup partnered with the local engineering firm GHD and together their team will be working over the next several months on the following tasks for Arcata’s Valley West, central downtown, and Gateway neighborhoods:
The kick-off meetings with SmithGroup and City staff are scheduled for December 2025 and January 2026 and will be followed by regular team meetings. Priority tasks for the team over the next six months are preparation of the preliminary project plan, community partnership strategy and marketing, and financial plans, which will be followed by the start of assessment of existing conditions within the project areas. The first Community Workshop, including walking tours of Valley West and Central Arcata are tentatively planned for March 2026. Stay tuned for more information as the City works to bring the Reconnect Arcata project to fruition!”
Laura Kadlecik, Senior Project Manager
Who to Call When You See a Safety Concern (Rev. 9/27//24)
The HBBCA periodically checks with agencies in the Humboldt Bay region to determine appropriate contact personnel to respond to bike-related issues. If you see a condition that needs to be corrected in order to improve safety or convenience for cyclists such as a pothole in a bike lane, accumulated debris on a roadway shoulder, the need to re-stripe a bike lane, the need to clear vegetation encroaching on a shoulder, or a street light that is out, call the responsible agency/person listed below. Of course, if you see a condition that requires immediate attention, like a stop sign knocked down, call 9-1-1. For non-emergency conditions, the following contact information is provided:
Caltrans
Customer Service Liaison, Jessica Henry Gibbs
707-441-5655 online Customer Service Report:
csr.dot.ca.gov
County of Humboldt
707-445-7421 Public Works
RoadsDispatch@co.humboldt.ca.us
Abandoned Vehicles:
County Sheriff’s Office, 707-445-7251
City of Arcata
Engineering Administrative Staff
707-825-2128
Engineering@cityofarcata.org
Abandoned Vehicles:
Arcata Police Dept. at 707-822-2424
City of Eureka
707-441-4203 publicworks@ci.eureka.ca.gov
Abandoned Vehicles:
707-268-5232
eurekapoliceabatement@ci.eureka.ca.gov
HBBCA Board of Directors (Rev. 10/4/25)
(all phone numbers have 707 area codes)
President---------------------- Rick Knapp
499-5918(cell) email: info@humbike.org
Vice-President---------------- Brett Gronemeyer
845-2117(cell);
Secretary----------------Gail Popham
502-8030(cell)
Director of Planning-----open/available
Director of Publicity ----open/available
Contact Rick Knapp if you are interested in filing a vacant Board position.
Please Join or Renew Your Membership for 2026
Your membership, on a calendar year basis, will help pay for youth helmets, bike racks, this newsletter, the website, BikeSmart promotions, “Bike Month” activities, prizes, postage, insurance, etc. And, it will help demonstrate your commitment to our goal.
With your membership card, you may request discounts on bike parts and accessories at Revolution Bicycle Repair and Adventure’s Edge. Discounts are typically 10%, but may vary. Membership cards include stickers on the back showing discounts offered by the various bike shops.
Enclosed: $_____dues ($5.00) $_____donation
Name_______________________________________________
Address_____________________________________________
______________________________________________________
Phone__________________(h)______________________(w)
____I’d rather receive my newsletter by email. This is my neatly printed email address:
_____________________________________________________________
Mail to HBBCA, P. O. Box 9054 Eureka CA 95502-9054
Website: www.humbike.org
Email: info@humbike.org
New and Renewed Members of the HBBCA
The following are new and renewed members since the last newsletter. If you haven’t renewed your dues for 2026, please see the application at the end of this newsletter.
Renewed Members (since last newsletter)
Will Dvorak & Carole Beaton, Eureka***
Mark Mueller, Eureka***
Carl & Judy Cooper, Bayside**
Gordon Inkeles, Bayside**
Jim & Frances Maunder, Eureka***
Lloyd McClelland, Eureka***
Rick Knapp, Eureka***
Gail Popham, McMinnville, OR***
Those with a ** next to their name gave an additional donation. Those with *** have given a $25 or greater donation in addition to their dues. Thanks to all those who have joined or renewed their commitment and those who have given additional donations to support our many causes. Get on board now for all the benefits, including discounts at bike shops. See application at the end of the newsletter.
Next Meeting at Carmela’s Mexican Restaurant on Monday,
The next meeting of the HBBCA will be on Monday, January 26th. The dinner meeting will be at Carmela’s Mexican Restaurant, 13th and G Streets in Arcata, from 6-8 pm. The agenda will be set by the attendee
C Street Bike Boulevard Nearing Completion in Eureka—Update to October Wheel People
As of January 1, RAO Construction had not completed the project. The four sections of reversing one way sections have been established, resulting in anticipated controversy. The most apparent work to be done is centerline striping in various areas.
In the early stages of planning, the HBBCA wrote a support letter for a State grant, conditioned on the City holding a public meeting at the Jefferson Center to get community input on the details before design was finalized. That didn’t happen, which is disappointing. At a recent Henderson Center walk/bike audit conducted by renown expert, Dan Burden, two community members who attended expressed their extreme displeasure with the reversing one-ways.
While the reversing one-ways will reduce automobile traffic on the Bike Boulevard, traffic on C Street has always been relatively low. Of greater concern for bicyclists is the fact that cross traffic is not stopped at major intersections like 7th, 14th, Buhne, and Henderson Streets. For a bike boulevard to be effective for bicyclists, especially inexperienced bicyclists, it needs to give priority to bike traffic.
Reconnecting Arcata December Update
The following is an update from the City of Arcata:
“Please recall that the City of Arcata was one of three communities in the State to be selected to receive funding through the California Air Resources Board – California Climate Investments (CARB/CCI) via Caltrans, for the initial phase of the Reconnecting Communities: Highways to Boulevards State Pilot Program (RC:H2B) in March of 2024 in order to address the division of Arcata’s Valley West, central downtown, and the Gateway neighborhoods by US Hwy 101 and State Routes 299 and 255. However, due to the State’s ongoing budget shortfall, in part due to the fires that occurred earlier this year in southern California, funding for the Reconnecting Communities program has been suspended. Despite this, and because the Arcata community is eager to see progress on improved multi-modal transportation infrastructure, the City solicited bids for planning and design expertise this past June 2025, received four proposals in July, and in October awarded a contract in the amount of $300,000 with City funds to SmithGroup for planning, community outreach, existing conditions and constraints analysis, and preliminary concept designs in line with Reconnect Arcata project goals.
SmithGroup is a national planning, engineering, and design firm, and their San Francisco office has been working successfully for the past several years in the region assisting Cal Poly Humboldt with the campus physical plan through a series of community engagement activities, the Humboldt Transit Authority on the Eureka Regional Transit Hub, and most recently HCAOG on the Humboldt County Regional Vision Zero Action Plan. For the Reconnect Arcata project, SmithGroup partnered with the local engineering firm GHD and together their team will be working over the next several months on the following tasks for Arcata’s Valley West, central downtown, and Gateway neighborhoods:
- Prepare Preliminary Project & Financial Plan
- Develop Public Engagement Strategy & Marketing Plan
- Hold Community Meetings
- Solicit Community Engagement through a series of Public Engagement Activities
- Assess Transportation Connectivity Gaps
- Assemble GIS Public Space and Multimodal Transportation Data
- Analysis of Existing Conditions / Opportunities and Constraints Prepare Preliminary Project & Financial Plan
The kick-off meetings with SmithGroup and City staff are scheduled for December 2025 and January 2026 and will be followed by regular team meetings. Priority tasks for the team over the next six months are preparation of the preliminary project plan, community partnership strategy and marketing, and financial plans, which will be followed by the start of assessment of existing conditions within the project areas. The first Community Workshop, including walking tours of Valley West and Central Arcata are tentatively planned for March 2026. Stay tuned for more information as the City works to bring the Reconnect Arcata project to fruition!”
Laura Kadlecik, Senior Project Manager
Who to Call When You See a Safety Concern (Rev. 9/27//24)
The HBBCA periodically checks with agencies in the Humboldt Bay region to determine appropriate contact personnel to respond to bike-related issues. If you see a condition that needs to be corrected in order to improve safety or convenience for cyclists such as a pothole in a bike lane, accumulated debris on a roadway shoulder, the need to re-stripe a bike lane, the need to clear vegetation encroaching on a shoulder, or a street light that is out, call the responsible agency/person listed below. Of course, if you see a condition that requires immediate attention, like a stop sign knocked down, call 9-1-1. For non-emergency conditions, the following contact information is provided:
Caltrans
Customer Service Liaison, Jessica Henry Gibbs
707-441-5655 online Customer Service Report:
csr.dot.ca.gov
County of Humboldt
707-445-7421 Public Works
RoadsDispatch@co.humboldt.ca.us
Abandoned Vehicles:
County Sheriff’s Office, 707-445-7251
City of Arcata
Engineering Administrative Staff
707-825-2128
Engineering@cityofarcata.org
Abandoned Vehicles:
Arcata Police Dept. at 707-822-2424
City of Eureka
707-441-4203 publicworks@ci.eureka.ca.gov
Abandoned Vehicles:
707-268-5232
eurekapoliceabatement@ci.eureka.ca.gov
HBBCA Board of Directors (Rev. 10/4/25)
(all phone numbers have 707 area codes)
President---------------------- Rick Knapp
499-5918(cell) email: info@humbike.org
Vice-President---------------- Brett Gronemeyer
845-2117(cell);
Secretary----------------Gail Popham
502-8030(cell)
Director of Planning-----open/available
Director of Publicity ----open/available
Contact Rick Knapp if you are interested in filing a vacant Board position.
Please Join or Renew Your Membership for 2026
Your membership, on a calendar year basis, will help pay for youth helmets, bike racks, this newsletter, the website, BikeSmart promotions, “Bike Month” activities, prizes, postage, insurance, etc. And, it will help demonstrate your commitment to our goal.
With your membership card, you may request discounts on bike parts and accessories at Revolution Bicycle Repair and Adventure’s Edge. Discounts are typically 10%, but may vary. Membership cards include stickers on the back showing discounts offered by the various bike shops.
Enclosed: $_____dues ($5.00) $_____donation
Name_______________________________________________
Address_____________________________________________
______________________________________________________
Phone__________________(h)______________________(w)
____I’d rather receive my newsletter by email. This is my neatly printed email address:
_____________________________________________________________
Mail to HBBCA, P. O. Box 9054 Eureka CA 95502-9054