Humboldt supervisors appoint Wilson, Vander Meer to Great Redwood Trail board

A 3-2 vote put Board Chair Mike Wilson and Arcata nonprofit consultant Carol Vander Meer into Humboldt County’s two at-large seats on the Great Redwood Trail Agency board, giving them a direct role in a 307-mile rail-to-trail project that could shape access, land use, tourism and public spending from Humboldt Bay to San Francisco Bay.

The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors split after tense deliberation, with First District Supervisor Rex Bohn and Second District Supervisor Michelle Bushnell voting no. County materials showed 18 applicants for the openings, a field that included elected officials, retirees, engineers, consultants and local trail advocates, almost all of them Humboldt County residents. The presence of a Trinity County supervisor among the applicants sharpened the discussion over who should speak for Humboldt on a regional authority with a corridor that reaches deep into Mendocino and Trinity counties, including the remote Eel River Canyon near the Humboldt-Mendocino line. Supporters pushed for strong local representation, while skeptics questioned whether the final choices best matched the communities most directly affected.

The seats opened after the term expiration of Jeff Hunerlach and the resignation of Supervisor Steve Madrone. The county posted the vacancies on March 27, accepted applications through April 21 at 5 p.m. and had planned to bring the appointments to the board on April 28. The two appointees will serve two-year terms that expire April 28, 2028.

Wilson brings the perspective of the county board chair, while Vander Meer enters as a local nonprofit consultant and member of the Humboldt Trails Council. Their selection matters because the Great Redwood Trail Agency is no ceremonial body. Created in 2021 to replace the North Coast Railroad Authority, it oversees the former rail corridor across Humboldt, Mendocino and Trinity counties through a board that gives each of Humboldt, Marin, Mendocino and Sonoma counties two appointments, plus a city representative chosen by the cities served by the line.

The agency’s master plan was approved after four years of planning and public outreach, and the trail remains a long-term fight over what the corridor becomes on the ground. Agency materials describe 231 miles of trail within Mendocino, Trinity and Humboldt counties, while recent accounts have said sections are already open to the public and other stretches remain in planning or construction. In July 2025, the board also moved into property management, approving contracts with community-based organizations to monitor undeveloped right-of-way and respond to illegal dumping and homelessness-related issues. For Humboldt, the next decisions on access, environmental concerns and property-owner worries will be shaped by the two people just handed those seats.