Humboldt Bay Area Plan and Local Coastal Plan Amendment and Zone Reclassification
Humboldt County
Description
The commission held a public hearing on the full update of the Humboldt Bay Area Plan, including land use and zoning changes on numerous parcels, then voted 4-1 to recommend the Board of Supervisors adopt it — with the intermediate sea level rise scenario, a five-year review requirement, and staff's changes in response to Coastal Commission and public comments.
Impact summary
This document will set the rules for development, conservation, and industry around Humboldt Bay for the next few decades.
Applicant
- Name
- Humboldt County Planning and Building Department
- Address
- All unincorporated areas of Humboldt County within the Humboldt Bay Area Plan
At a glance
- Hearings
- 2
- Public comments
- 2
- Total mentions
- 2
Last vote · Planning Commission
A recommendation, not a final decision. Board of Supervisors decides next.
Discussed at 1 meeting in the last 60 days; most recently Oct 15, 2026.
Meeting timeline (2)
Planning Commission — October 15, 2026
The commission held a public hearing on the full update of the Humboldt Bay Area Plan, including land use and zoning changes on numerous parcels, then voted 4-1 to recommend the Board of Supervisors adopt it — with the intermediate sea level rise scenario, a five-year review requirement, and staff's changes in response to Coastal Commission and public comments.
Planning Commission — July 16, 2026
A sweeping rewrite of the 1982 coastal plan for over 21,000 acres around Humboldt Bay, adding hazard, tribal history, and environmental justice chapters and creating the framework for a port overlay zone. The workshop was continued to August 6 with a public hearing targeted for September 3.
Related issues (4)
General Plan Safety Element / Hazard Mitigation Plan update
The commission recommended folding the updated Hazard Mitigation Plan into the county's General Plan Safety Element — the paperwork that keeps Humboldt eligible for federal hazard-mitigation and disaster funding.
Humboldt Bay Area Plan and Local Coastal Plan update
The first full rewrite of the bay-area coastal plan since 1982 adds chapters on tribal history, environmental justice, and hazards like sea level rise and tsunami, and reorganizes land use policies. It will shape what can be built around Humboldt Bay for decades, with a public hearing targeted for September 3.
Humboldt Bay Area Plan comprehensive update
The county's blueprint for bay-area development is being rewritten, and commissioners wrestled with whether to tie a future heavy-lift marine terminal to offshore wind or keep it open to any coastal-dependent industry. The compromise keeps wind in the plan's background but leaves the terminal flexible — a decision that shapes what can be built on the peninsula for decades.
Port overlay zone groundwork for offshore wind terminal
The plan lays the framework for a future port overlay zone governing the Harbor District's proposed heavy-lift offshore wind terminal near Samoa. The Harbor District, not the county, is lead agency on the environmental review; residents like Aaron Gonzalez pressed for clarity on noise, lighting, and truck traffic protections for nearby homes.
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