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Hello,
Dave Meserve here. I am writing as a long time resident and land owner at 910 and 922 Grant Ave. From your recent postcard, it appears that you have incorporated our area into what you are calling the “Craftsman’s Mall/St. Louis Opportunity Zone.”
In fact, Craftsman’s Mall is an industrial area to our north that is going to be developed for housing by Cal Poly Humboldt.

Our neighborhood, which includes Eye St., Grant Ave.,and Todd Court, is currently zoned Residential Low Density, and is apparently set up to be changed to Residential High Density. There are approximately 60‐70 housing units in this area, and the change that has been proposed will allow Strombeck to develop his 1.7 acres by the tennis courts into a 70 unit apartment complex, doubling the neighborhood population. Other than that, the zoning change will have minimal effect on the ability of other landowners to add second units or subdivide under SB‐9.

Doubling the number of residents, and vehicles, will have huge negative effects on our neighborhood. As it is today, there is no room for two vehicles from opposite directions to pass on the south end of Jay St. That is not a huge problem for us now. Everybody is used to politely pulling over to let the other car pass. That would not work with double the
number of cars.

Today, people and their kids and pets walk casually, either on the sidewalk or not, knowing that everybody who lives here drives safely and with respect. With 70 new rental units at the corner of Grant and Eye, that would not be the case.

Before moving ahead with catering to Strombeck’s rental greed, please consider how it would destroy a sweet Arcata neighborhood. If he wants to build however many units will fit on 1.7 acres of low density residential, let him go ahead and do it. But please do not sacrifice our neighborhood by allowing high density development.

Also, please consider not including the Eye/Grant residential area in the “Craftsman’s Mall Opportunity Zone”.

Thank you for considering these issues.
Dave Meserve