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Butte County staff told supervisors on June 24 they will continue work with the state to qualify two projects as “shovel‑ready” for potential Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) disaster‑recovery funding: the Humboldt Senior multifamily housing project and Skyway evacuation‑route improvements tied to the Magalia Dam rebuild.

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Deputy CAO Katie Simmons and Public Works Director Joshua Pack said the Humboldt Senior site is fully entitled and has prior conditional county support, and Paradise Irrigation District’s Magalia Dam and spillway rehabilitation design could be an opportunity to widen and improve Skyway evacuation capacity if PID can incorporate a wider alignment into its final design. The board directed staff to continue work with HCD and project sponsors; staff will return with application‑ready materials and any required resolutions if funds become available.

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Simmons told the board HCD contacted the county seeking shovel‑ready infrastructure projects potentially eligible for CDBG disaster‑recovery money. She said the Humboldt Senior project — an 80‑unit, single‑story, cottage‑style affordable housing development for older adults near Highway 32 — remains fully entitled and has cleared environmental review, so it could meet HCD’s “shovel‑ready” criteria pending updated sources‑and‑uses information.

Joshua Pack summarized the county’s interest in Skyway improvements that would tie to the Magalia Dam rehabilitation pursued by Paradise Irrigation District (PID). Pack said PID’s design is roughly 60% complete and that the dam rehabilitation is estimated at about $60 million total construction cost; earlier BRIC funding had been in play but the FEMA BRIC award was subsequently terminated. Pack said PID requested the county consider contributing financially to widening Skyway through the dam area, and he outlined a potential corridor for improvements that could extend northbound from Paradise (Pence Road) through the dam to intersections such as Nimshu, Columbine or Humbug Road. Pack noted the county has not done formal engineering or environmental studies for a widened Skyway and that any added alignment should minimize new right‑of‑way and environmental impacts to meet HCD’s timelines.

PID engineer Blaine Allen attended and told the board PID is continuing design work and is compiling cost estimates for adding road widening into the dam project. Allen said the district’s design has been with California Division of Safety of Dams (DSOD) for months and that PID would need to finalize certain design elements before construction could be scheduled. He asked the board to pursue county‑state coordination now so the dam design can accommodate a widened roadway or bridge crossing if funding becomes available.

Outcome and next steps
The board did not make a formal funding commitment but directed staff to continue working with HCD, Humboldt Senior developers and PID to prepare application materials. Staff will return to the board to request formal authorization (resolutions) if an application is warranted and HCD funds become available.

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Pack and Simmons said staff will request detailed cost estimates from PID, continue coordination with DSOD and HCD, and return with application‑ready materials and proposed resolutions if the projects meet CDBG disaster‑recovery eligibility.