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Humboldt & Mendocino Counties

An Economic, Political, & Sociological Overview To Enrich Your Redwood & Mendocino Scenic Drive

Normally, these BidonTravel scenic drives focus solely on scenery and a bit of history.

However, Humboldt and Mendocino counties have such a fascinating economic, political, and sociological situation that it would be a shame to overlook these, as you drive along.

This information, which I have tried to present in an evenhanded way, should help enrich your time in the area. You may judge how well I’ve done with this often-controversial material.

Some issues discussed include

The prevailing "hippie" influence
Arcata's foreign policy
Illegal agriculture
Schisms between those with "hippie values" and the new homeless
The changing local economy
An untapped resource
The sad case of neighboring Del Norte County

Countercultural capital

While traveling through Humboldt County and much of Mendocino County, you can’t help but notice the vibrant countercultural influence. Jointly, these two counties may be the countercultural capital of the world.

"We are stardust, we are golden
And we've got to get ourselves back to the garden"
—Woodstock, Joni Mitchell

Disillusioned with the bleakness of urban life and with the in their view increasingly negative national political scene during the late 1960s and early 1970s, hippies of the "Love Generation" poured into Humboldt and Mendocino counties.

They, their children, and grandchildren have set the tone ever since.

With the timber industry already in steep decline, land was plentiful and cheap. While newcomers found ample and rich land for small farms and communes, this rugged area didn't attract corporate agribusiness to drive up prices.

A mild climate with ample rainfall proved exceptionally favorable for farming—both for regular crops and for the preferred recreational one.

"Well I'm going where the water tastes like wine"
—Going Up the Country, Canned Heat

Although many "back-to-nature" hippies in the U.S. eventually returned home, those in Humboldt and Mendocino counties tended to stay. Moreover, new arrivals took the place of those who did leave.

The sense of community built by the large numbers who came, the extraordinary beauty and gentle climate of the region, and the relative closeness of the San Francisco Bay Area all probably played a part in attracting and keeping people here.

These days, the incredibly easy access to organic food in the area, the unusually abundant vegetarian meal choices available in its restaurants, and the ban on genetically engineered farm production in Mendocino County are all legacies of the hippies who moved here in such numbers years ago.

Moreover, you clearly see their influence in the "green" politics of the area described below.

Arcata

Although these new settlers spread out throughout the area—you'll notice their influence in nearly every town—Arcata with its progressive Humboldt State University became the larger city most impacted.

Even today, reporters know that Arcata gives a colorful story, still often at odds with so-called “Middle America” mores.

Arcata politics

During 1996, Arcata elected the first Green Party government in the United States. In 2007, the party regained a majority on the council, and its influence also grew in a number of towns between Arcata and San Francisco.

In Arcata, you won’t find Libertarians or Republicans represented in local government. They aren’t there to offer alternative ways of thinking, such as additional governmental regulation and spending may not solve every problem. The city lacks a “loyal opposition” to test the coherence of the majority.

You’d think that homogeneity of outlook would bring more efficient and serene governmental functioning, but that’s not the way it works in reality.

Even with the views of the local Democrat and Green parties similar on many issues, debates still become fractious and sometimes bitter.

Arcata foreign policy

"Don't you understand, what I'm trying to say?
Can't you see the fears that I'm feeling today?"
—Eve of Destruction, P.F. Sloan, Barry McGuire

As a reaction to the Iraq war and to Bush Administration war on terror and foreign policies in general, the Arcata city council passed its own policies. Needless to say, these differ markedly from those in Washington.

Some council rulings include:

The Iraq War is illegal
Arcata police are directed not to round up Iraq War military deserters
It is “illegal” to cooperate with the Patriot Act

As with other Arcata attempts to trump the federal government, these have not been tested in court.

In 2004 and again in 2006, the Arcata city council called for the impeachment or resignation of the president and in 2006 the vice president.

Earlier, nuclear weapons were banned in town. Remember that when you pack for your trip.

For more information about Arcata City Council meetings and how to attend, see Part 7: Arcata travel guide – what to do.

To give a flavor of local government, city committees and task forces include:

Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Commission
Homeless Services Plan Task Force
Democracy and Corporations Committee
Design Review Commission
Economic Development Committee
Energy Committee
Forest Management Committee
Handicapped Access Appeals Board
Open Space Committee
Parks and Recreation Committee
Planning Commission
Transportation Safety Committee
Wetlands and Creeks Committee

Surprisingly, there’s no police review board perhaps because in this smaller city people know their police.

National chains limited or banned

"And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same"
—Little Boxes, Malvina Reynolds

Don’t try to shop at Wal-Mart in Arcata. You won’t find one in larger Eureka either.

National chains are limited or outright banned in Arcata, except for a few motels and fast food outlets in a “corporate ghetto” known as the Valley West neighborhood and for a preexisting Safeway supermarket and several banks and service stations elsewhere in town.

These—the chain motels, the few fast food outlets allowed, and the few gas stations—produce the bulk of the city’s sales tax revenue—a problem for a council that may want additional restrictions on these types of businesses.

In nearby Eureka, Target positioned its new store as close to Arcata as possible. Kmart did the same north of town in McKinleyville.

We wonder about the size of the Arcata tax drain due to nonbelievers shopping out of town.

Boycotts

You may wonder if Arcata’s positions lead to economic boycotts. Yes, they do.

But, we don’t doubt that Arcata’s reputation has created overall increased prosperity—with like-minded people choosing to vacation in the area or even to move or study there.

Not everyone in Arcata likes its council diverting attention from pressing local issues to national ones, but you'll usually find a sense of pride in standing up for what most people there believe.

An agricultural capital of sorts

"Eight miles high and when you touch down
You'll find that it's stranger than known"
—Eight Miles High, The Byrds

The primary but illegal local cash crop is said to be the most lucrative agricultural product in California by far—quite an achievement considering that California’s traditional crops such as grapes, almonds, and asparagus still dominate the nation.

However, beware that even the Arcata police may arrest or cite you for purchasing or using in public places. Moreover, due to the general paranoia that results from illegal activities, do not hike on private property without permission. This area is a kinder and gentler but nevertheless a Chicago 1928 at the height of rum running and prohibition.

Although law enforcement eradicated the largest outdoor production site in the history of Humboldt County during August, 2007—134,082 plants already 1 to 3 feet tall—large-scale operations have mostly moved indoors due to aerial surveillance.

Estimates vary about the number of buildings converted to this use. Nearly everyone agrees that many of these facilities are firetraps and there’s a growing (excuse the pun) concern about them, especially in places like Arcata and Eureka where a “grow house” may exist next to family homes. Landlords are learning to distrust those who always pay in cash.

Transient population

"He's my brother
He ain't heavy; he's my brother"
—He Ain't Heavy; He's My Brother, The Hollies

"[True happiness] is not attained through self-gratification, but through fidelity to a worthy purpose."
—The Story of My Life, Helen Keller

The entire area, but Arcata in particular, continues to be impacted by large numbers of young transients.

Some at Humboldt State University believe the sheer number of homeless in the Arcata city center may be significantly reducing the university’s potential enrollment, as prospective students and their parents witness or hear about the situation. When customers stop shopping in areas frequented by transients, merchants too become concerned.

In Arcata, the homeless situation has been exacerbated by free food and other services given transients in Arcata but not nearly so generously or at all in other communities in the region.

Nevertheless, the young homeless are not just a regional problem. Cities all the way from Portland and Eugene to Berkeley and Santa Cruz and the Hollywood district of Los Angeles are impacted.

Attitudes vary

In Arcata, even determining a name for them is controversial. Are these

“Needy homeless kids deserving of help”, or
“Voluntarily homeless young vagrant bums who refuse to work for a living”?

Proponents of helping young transients point to studies that show these are often refugees from abusive home environments. Others say help, but help by moving young transients, when possible, to more productive lives by not enabling their current lifestyle.

Cultural schism

Petty crime in Arcata has ballooned. You are wise not to leave valuables visible in your vehicle while parked in Arcata or anywhere in the region for that matter.

However, most ire is directed toward what seems to be the utter disregard for the environment by many younger transients. This is evidenced many believe, in part, by the sheer volume of garbage and human waste left in illegal camps abandoned in Arcata’s community forest, its marsh, and elsewhere.

Every month, the Arcata Eye newspaper reports the cost of city’s share of the cleanup. It also prints frequent articles and letters to editor about the fears and disgust city employees and residents have in dealing with hazardous and other waste.

This seeming lack of an environmental consciousness represents a genuine cultural schism between the children of the 1960s and 1970s who rule the town and many of those in the current transient population.

In my opinion, this has become the main reason for a growing reaction against assisting young transients.

Homeless funds drying up

Even in liberal Arcata—and you can’t get much more liberal than Arcata—funds for the young transients are drying up and the most high-profiled “homeless advocate” was unceremoniously booted off the council by a large margin during a recent election.

Moreover, no one seems to want the current homeless service center, currently just off the Plaza downtown, moved to her or his neighborhood.

Proposed transient campground

"As I was walkin - I saw a sign there
And that sign said - no tress passin'
But on the other side . . . it didn't say nothing'
Now that side was made for you and me!"
—This Land Is Your Land, Woody Guthrie

Advocates for the homeless point out that Arcata doesn’t even provide a proper toilet for the homeless or anyone else in the Plaza area and that the city can well afford to provide a secure and hygienic campground, which the other side says would attract even more transients.

Proponents counter that you can’t expect people without an address, phone contact, or a facility to keep clean, all of which a permanent camp would provide, to obtain employment in today’s economy.

Local economy in transition

With an apparently significant part of the local economy "off the books" (not reported to the IRS or other agencies), it's hard to discuss its overall health.

However, in terms of normal parameters such as growth of higher paying jobs that don't require advanced degrees, as well as success in attracting new businesses, the economy in Humboldt County and inland Mendocino County remains weak.

Shuttered mills

While traveling in and near Arcata and Eureka and the interior of Mendocino County, you’ll notice one closed lumber mill after another. As the result of more than a century of not replanting cut redwoods that are so slow to grow, the chickens have come home to roost.

The greed and shortsightedness of earlier generations have decimated the economic prospects of the current generation. Very few easy-to-reach large trees remain outside of protected areas. The local fishing industry, traditionally strong, also faces serious issues of depletion.

The often minimum-wage jobs generated by increased tourism do not make up for these job losses. Isolation from major airports and typically high fares into the local airport make it hard to attract new high-paying businesses that do not depend so much on natural resources.

Bright spots in ecomony

A bright spot comes from the growing number of retirees moving into the area, who create additional retail and service opportunities. The increasing desire of people to live and work in areas close to nature makes for another positive trend.

For example, many students who come to Humboldt State University from elsewhere do not want to leave this beautiful area upon graduation. Some start businesses here. Housing prices remain lower than in the Bay Area and Southern California—a plus when attracting new businesses.

Humboldt Bay

The Eureka and Arcata possess a major potential resource, Humboldt Bay, which adjoins both cities.

Humboldt Bay, California’s second largest bay and only deep-water port north of Oakland and San Francisco, has become the last sheltered port in California with room to expand and with still reasonable adjacent land prices.

However, with a severed rail connection and antiquated docks, the port currently attracts no large ships.

Humboldt Bay sits some 10 hours closer to Asia than Oakland, which helps make up for the increased rail time needed to reach the rest of the country. As a result, there’s a push to develop the port with modern container ship facilities and to restore the railroad connection.

This should create good jobs, but needless to say the proponents face an uphill battle in obtaining the necessary environmental permits for the port improvements and for upgrading the rail line.

Del Norte County

We haven’t mentioned Del Norte County, which includes the northern portion of Redwood National Park.

Del Norte County marches to a different drummer and remains the one Republican enclave in the area. The county largely lacks the "above the norm" organic, vegetarian, and other influences mentioned above.

We wonder if the “hippie invasion” that occupied Humboldt and Mendocino counties was somehow repulsed before reaching Del Norte.

In terms of personal income in 2001, Del Norte ranked next to last—57th out of 58 counties in California. Meanwhile, in spite of their generally rural and sometimes "off the books" (not reported to the IRS) economies, Humboldt ranked 32nd and Mendocino 25th.

In Del Monte, there may be a lack of openness to the occasional new idea, such as that organic produce fetches much higher prices than that grown in other ways, with consumption rapidly increasing.

In Mendocino and Humboldt, you have an advantage of new people. They brought new ideas—some perhaps bad, but many likely good.

Go on to Part 9: Scenic drive from Arcata to Redwood National Park, and continue your redwoods and Mendocino scenic drive!

Or, go on to Part 1: “Introduction to redwoods and Mendocino scenic drive,” if you have not read other sections, or to Part 7: Arcata travel guide, if you will only visit there.

Part 1: Redwood and Mendocino scenic drive introduction,
Part 2: Directions from San Francisco to Mendocino,
Part 3: Mendocino scenic drive,
Part 4: Avenue of the Giants scenic drive,
Part 5: Avenue of the Giants scenic drive (continued),
Part 6: Scenic drive from Avenue of the Giants to Arcata,
Part 7: Arcata travel guide – what to do,
Part 8: Humboldt and Mendocino counties in depth,
Part 9: Scenic drive from Arcata to Redwood National Park,
Part 10: From Redwood National Park to San Francisco,
Part 11: Motels and hotels along your redwood scenic drive,
Part 12: Camping along your redwood scenic drive, and
Part 13: Mendocino and Redwood parks airport choices.

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