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Communities Unite To Entice Google
On February 10, Google announced that it wanted to test a high speed network to serve a population of between 50,000 and 500,000  residents. The Cities of Eureka and Arcata with the County of Humboldt requested that RREDC apply on their behalf. We submitted an application to Google for the greater Humboldt Bay region, which covered the two cities and their adjacent populated areas.
Google says that they will be notifying communities of their decision by the end of the year. For more information go to:
Of course, this effort is a long shot. Over 1,100 communities, large and small, from across the country have applied. Nevertheless, we believe that our community's long-standing activism around broadband coupled with the national attention we have received as a result makes us a great candidate for Google's network.
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Employment Law Update Workshop To Be Held In Fortuna on April 21.
 The Northcoast Employer Advisory Council will hold a workshop on updates
in employment law for 2010. This workshop will be held April 21 from
7:30 am to 4 pm at the River Lodge in Fortuna.
For more information, go to the Northcoast Employer Advisory Council's website by clicking here.
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RREDC Business Spotlight:
Wild Planet Foods
Q: What' s low in mercury, high in Omega 3 fatty acids and SUPER GREEN?
A: Premium quality seafood from Wild Planet Foods.
The Monterey Bay
Aquarium Seafood Watch® program has identified seafood that is 'SUPER GREEN', meaning that it is a good choice for human health and
does not harm the oceans. Wild Planet is one of their top picks for packaged
seafood that provides good health, good taste and is good for the environment.
Award-winning Wild Planet
Seafood is sustainably caught, meaning their harvesting techniques do not damage marine
habitat. One of the goals of Wild Planet
is to be an example to the seafood industry of "finding a sustainable balance
in both the use and preservation of precious marine resources."
Wild Planet has its roots
in a Humboldt County seafood company, Carvalho Fisheries. In 1999 Bill Carvalho came to RREDC for a working capital
loan. Even then, Bill used only environmentally responsible fishing methods and
was carving out a niche market for his product. In 2005 the Wild Planet brand
was introduced and Carvalho Fisheries was merged into Wild Planet in 2008.
Wild Planet albacore,
Dungeness crab, wild king and sockeye salmon, California sardines and wild shrimp are sold
in over 4000 supermarkets and natural food stores across the country. Find out
more about Wild Planet Foods by going to their website at www.wildplanetfoods.com.
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RREDC Loan Program Overview
 For over 30 years, RREDC has been making loans to small businesses in Humboldt County.
Over 180 businesses from Garberville to Willow Creek to Orick and
everywhere in between have received over $18 million in loans from
RREDC. Many well-known local businesses got their start or expanded
with our help.
RREDC is an "Economic Development Lender". Therefore, the loans we make should have an economic development purpose, such as:
Building our economic base by increasing the amount of goods and services sold outside Humboldt County Creating or retaining good-paying jobs Improving blighted areas Bringing business to underserved areas
We are also a "gap" lender. This means that we are not allowed to
compete with banks and other private lending institutions. Our
customers must have a financing "gap" that cannot be filled by a
private lender. This can be a denial of a loan request or the need for
additional financing not provided by the private institution.
For more information, go to www.rredc.com/loan-program.
Our loan fund was created in 1978 with a grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration (EDA).
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News From Our Members
City of Eureka
Anyone driving along Waterfront Drive in Eureka would be curious about the major construction occurring at the foot of C Street. Two  projects are being completed, the $3.2 million Fishermen's Terminal and the $2.8 million "C Street Market square." These two projects complement the $5 million "Fishermen's Dock." All told these projects represent an investment of $11.5 million, $7.6 million from outside sources.
Completion of these projects will be another major milestone in the City of Eureka's long standing commitment to revitalizing its waterfront. More information on these projects can be found by clicking here.
County of Humboldt
Humboldt Made, a project of the County of Humboldt Economic Development Division is releasing videos featuring local food and beverage makers, including former RREDC customer Loleta Cheese. Check out their site and the videos by clicking on the logo.
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Summer Intern Opportunities Abound at HSU
National and
statewide summer internship deadlines are just around the corner and the
Humboldt State University Career Center is looking for more local employers
interested in hosting career-related summer internships.
 Each year hundreds of
HSU's top students look outside of Humboldt
County to get work experiences
needed for resume and career development.
However, many students would remain in Humboldt County
all year if more local businesses were able to offer similar or competitive
work-experience opportunities.
For more information
on how you can develop a summer internship or advertise upcoming openings, contact Ann
Johnson-Stromberg at 826-5453 or email her at acj1@humboldt.edu.
You can visit the HSU Career Center by clicking here.
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Economic Fuel Contest Climaxes in April
 April will be a big month for the Economic Fuel contestants culminating with the awards ceremony on April 30 in Eureka's Wharfinger Building.
April's schedule is as follows:
Monday, April 19th - Finalist Orientation
HSU, room TBA, 5:30-6:30pm
Friday, April 23rd - Finalists Submit Electronic Presentation
Materials
Monday, April 26th - Judged Finalist Presentations, Teams 1-4. Kate Buchanan Room, HSU, 6:00pm - 8:30pm
Watch it Live provided courtesy
of StreamGuys.
Tuesday, April 27th - Judged Finalist Presentations, Teams 5-8. Kate Buchanan Room, HSU, 6:00pm - 8:30pm
Watch it Live provided courtesy
of StreamGuys.
Friday, April 30th - Awards Ceremony
Wharfinger Building, 1 Marina Way, Eureka, 6:30pm - 8:00pm. Watch it Live provided courtesy
of StreamGuys.
For more information, go to http://www.economicfuel.org.
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Small Business Development Center Offers Free Classes For Businesses
The SBDC's Business Basics workshops provide good information for start-up businesses as well as good refresher course material for those in business.
Please let anyone you think would benefit know about them. The schedule for March and April is:
Startup Basics:
Wednesday, April 14, 6-8:00 PM
Wednesday, May 12, 6-8:00 PM
Marketing Basics:
Tuesday April 27, 6-8:00 PM
Tuesday May 18, 6-8:00 PM
Books and Records Basics:
Wednesday, April 28, 6-8 PM
Wednesday May 26, 6-8:00 PM
Financial Basics:
Tuesday, May 4, 6-8:00 PM
Business Plan Basics:
Thursday April 22, 6-8:00 PM
Thursday, May 27, 6-8:00 PM
Classes are free and held at the Prosperity Center, 520 E Street, Eureka. In addition, classes are held in Crescent City. For more information, go to www.northcoastsbdc.org
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RREDC Board of Directors
City of Arcata - Mayor Alex Stillman
City of Blue Lake - Councilmember Sherman Shapiro*
City of Eureka - Councilmember Linda Atkins
City of Ferndale - Councilmember Ken Mierzwa
City of Fortuna - Councilmember Ken Zazni
City of Rio Dell - Mayor Pro Tem Melissa Marks
City of Trinidad - Councilmember Julie Fulkerson*
County of Humboldt - Supervisor Mark Lovelace*
Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation & Conservation District -
Commissioner Mike Wilson
Humboldt Bay Municipal Water District - Director Bruce Rupp
Humboldt Community Service District - Director Frank Scolari*
Manila Community Services District - Director Dendra Dengler
McKinleyville Community Services District - Director Helen Edwards*
Orick Community Services District- Director Kristina Combs
Redway Community Services District - Director John Rogers
Redwoods Community Colleges District - Trustee Tom Ross
Willow Creek Community Services District - Director Tyler Holmes*
*Members of the Executive Committee
RREDC Loan Committee:
Chair:Scott Pesch-Coldwell Banker Commercial Pacific Partners Real Estate
Vice Chair:Liana Simpson-Sequoia Personnel
Helen Edwards-McKinleyville Community Service District-Director
Frank Scolari-Coldwell Banker Cutten Realty
Sherman Schapiro-RREDC Board of DIrector
Jennifer Budwig-Redwood Capital Bank
Phil Sullivan-Umpqua Bank
Dan Sweet-Coast Central Credit Union
Angela Machado - Alternate Member from Umpqua Bank
Dean Charlton - Alternate Member from Coast Central Credit Union
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Gregg Foster-Executive Director
Virginia Fisher-Lender
Bonnie Smoller-Administrative Assistant
Suzanne Dockal, CPA - Accounting
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