Bayside Corners Seeks Humboldt Nonprofits to Own Historic 1882 Temperance Hall

Bayside Corners has posted a Request for Proposals inviting Humboldt County nonprofit organizations to take ownership of the Temperance Hall and adjacent property at the corner of Old Arcata and Jacoby Creek Roads. "Humboldt nonprofits are invited to submit a proposal for the ownership of the Temperance Hall and property at the corner of Old Arcata & Jacoby Creek Roads," the organization said, announcing a transfer intended to place the building with a community-based steward.

The wood-framed hall was built in 1882 by the International Order of Good Templars and is described by Bayside Corners as "Humboldt County’s last standing Temperance Hall of the pre-Prohibition Era." The building has hosted meetings, live music, worship, voting, community dinners, lecture series, education, celebrations, and dance classes, and Bayside Corners notes it "has served the community for 144 years." For decades the hall has been in continuous local hands; Bayside Grange members used the space until their larger grange hall was built in 1942.

The hall has been home to Mistwood Educational Center for years. "For 33 years, the Temperance Hall has been used by Mistwood Educational Center, a private, nonprofit school with an extraordinary academic program for grades K-12," Bayside Corners reports, and other excerpts say Mistwood has occupied the hall since the mid-1990s. Bayside Corners’ materials also state that the nonprofit accepted legal ownership of the property in one statement referencing 2013 and another referencing 2014, reflecting slightly different timelines in organizational materials.

Bayside Corners framed the RFP as a due-diligence step to identify a nonprofit with the capacity and mission to rehabilitate and maintain the hall. "Most important is selecting an organization with financial capability to be responsible for the Hall’s rehabilitation and repair; and that shares Bayside Corners’ values for public education, historic and natural resources protection, and a deep appreciation for the community," the announcement says. The organization adds that income from the transfer "is not their top priority" and that the effort is a placemaking project intended to beautify and restore a declining public site and strengthen neighborhood belonging and pride.

Bayside Corners describes the revival as "an ambitious project requiring significant fundraising," and it emphasized the hall's central role in Bayside's historic district next to the Grange. The board said it "looks forward to the beautification of the property and a positive presence at this prominent location in Bayside." Bayside Corners also signaled it will continue operating as an all-volunteer group and focus on organizing residents around emergency preparedness, safety, and intergenerational social and cultural gatherings.

The RFP and instructions are posted on Bayside Corners’ website; the public materials provided with the announcement did not include a submission deadline or applicant contact in the excerpts released. The transfer could determine whether the Temperance Hall is restored as a public gathering space, continues to host local education like Mistwood, or shifts to new community uses. For Humboldt nonprofits, the next step is to review the posted RFP and determine whether they can meet Bayside Corners’ rehabilitation and stewardship priorities.