Southern Humboldt business district proposal draws skepticism in Redway

At the Mateel Community Center in Redway, a roomful of business owners, residents, supporters and skeptics spent about two hours pressing organizers behind the proposed Southern Humboldt Business Improvement District on a question that cut to the core of the plan: would it help struggling local businesses, or simply add another assessment?

The proposal has been in the works for four years, but it still lacks a board, bylaws and the 51 percent of signatures needed to move forward. That unfinished status underscored the mistrust in the room, especially as organizers tried to sell the district as a way to present Southern Humboldt as a single destination and fund marketing, destination development and economic enhancement for assessed businesses.

The assessment would apply to taxable business sales in Garberville, Redway, Benbow and Evergreen. It would start at 0.75 percent of taxable sales, or 75 cents on every $100, then could rise by as much as 0.5 percent each year for five years, with a cap of 1.5 percent. The plan says the assessment base is gross direct-to-consumer sales revenue subject to California sales tax, which would leave out tax-exempt items such as groceries and prescriptions. A feasibility analysis attached to the proposal says the district could generate about $260,000 to $782,000 a year, depending on the assessment rate.

That money is intended to market Southern Humboldt more aggressively, but the debate in Redway reflected a deeper concern about fairness and representation. In a corridor where many businesses are not neat downtown storefronts, merchants questioned who would actually pay, who would benefit and whether businesses already under pressure from the collapse of the cannabis economy could absorb another cost.

The proposal sits inside a formal state process. California’s Property and Business Improvement District Law of 1994 requires a petition signed by owners who would pay more than 50 percent of the proposed assessments before formation proceedings can begin. Humboldt County adopted Resolution 23-45 on April 4, 2023, authorizing examination of sales and transactions-and-use-tax records for possible formation, and the county later extended the petition drive through October 1, 2026.

That gives organizers more time, but not much room for error. Humboldt County planning documents have long noted that growth in southern Humboldt has strained Redway and Garberville as service centers, and local commerce has been battered by the end of the old cannabis-era foot traffic. For supporters, the BID is a chance to build a locally funded engine for promotion and destination-building. For skeptics, the question remains whether the district can earn enough trust to survive the signatures it still needs.