County's one-stop permitting at old Kmart site on 5-7 year timeline

This week, the Eureka Planning Commission entertained a long-delayed plan to convert a long-vacant big-box store location at 4325 Broadway into a "one-stop" permitting office for Humboldt County. The commission also moved forward with a plan to rename a portion of an alley after local artist Duane Flatmo.

Former Kmart site

The city has been in negotiations with the county to approve a permitting office at the location of the former Kmart and Papa and Barkley location since last year. The county had been in negotiations with the property owner to purchase the site; those negotiations were scuttled in October last year when Walmart reportedly expressed interest in the site, potentially moving from its location on the west side of the Bayshore Mall to the long-vacant facility.

At the planning commission's meeting, Development Director Cristin Kenyon outlined the features of the facility, which include a 54,184-square-foot building, 4,800 square feet of patio space and a 1,700-square-foot garden shop. The site also holds a 237-space parking lot and a 20.5-foot-tall sign pole from its tenure as a big-box store. The site is located at a traffic signal on a stretch of Broadway that is currently undergoing a series of multimodal improvements - including a future connection to the Humboldt Bay Trail.

To the west of the site (on Broadway) there are two smaller plots that are not included with the site, and a representative from the county said that the county might potentially be interested in acquiring those plots, though the landowner had indicated to city officials that they had planned on developing automotive businesses on those sites.

The county plans to redevelop the site within a timeframe of five to seven years.

"There's part of (me) that would love to see sales tax generated there, but big-box stores aren't what they used to be," Planning Commissioner Michael Kraft said. "I have a personal connection because I was with Papa and Barkley when that property was acquired, and they asked me to try to sell it to somebody, anybody, as one of the last four employees of the organization. … I would love to see that building be used. It hurt me before to drive by it when it was vacant, before Papa and Barkley acquired it, and it definitely does so now. It just feels personal now. So, I'd love to see the timeline be faster than five to seven years."

The planning commission voted unanimously to approve a general plan conformance review for the county's plan.

Duane Flatmo Alley

Also in front of the planning commission this week was another returned item; commissioners entertained a plan to rename a stretch of alleyway bounded by 4th and 5th and F and G streets as "Duane Flatmo Alley."

The city had previously attempted to rename Snug Alley after Flatmo, but scuttled that plan after learning that Snug, in fact, had a historical namesake.

The new plan, which was approved unanimously to be forwarded to City Council, was brought forward by Eureka City Council member Kati Moulton, who spoke at the planning commission's meeting. The item is on the city council's agenda for next Tuesday.

"Flatmo is a Eureka icon," Moulton said. "His work can be seen in every corner of our community, from the six-story dancer overlooking … the center of town to his memorable kinetic sculptures floating - or sometimes not floating - across the Humboldt Bay … to local product and event artwork you can find in most people's closets, refrigerators or garden sheds. Flatmo's style is as unique and recognizable as the man himself. It's become a part of the landscape, part of the local vibe. It's a little gritty, pretty weird, but playful and approachable, like Duane."

The entirety of Wednesday evening's Eureka Planning Commission meeting can be viewed at https://tinyurl.com/3h849y9k.

Robert Schaulis can be reached at 707-441-0585.

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