Thumbnail photo: The Crescent City Council appointed Planning Commission Chair Steve Shamblin to the seat Daran Dooley left behind in October. | screenshot Three of the four remaining Crescent City councilors on Tuesday chose the chairman of the city planning commission over a former fire captain to fill the seat Daran Dooley vacated in October. With Mayor Pro Tem Candace Tinkler praising his resume, the Council appointed Steve Shamblin to serve through the certification of the November 2026 General Election. “I did read Mr. Shamblin’s resume and I have worked with him in previous committees so I do agree that he really does his homework,” Tinkler said. “He didn’t mention this, but I know from his resume that he also has education in urban planning, which I think is very useful.” Councilor Jason Greenough dissented. Greenough nominated the only other applicant to show up at Tuesday’s special meeting to interview for the vacancy, Noya Reno, a local medical assistant and volunteer firefighter with Crescent City Fire and Rescue. A third candidate, Shawna Hyatt, withdrew her application, according to City Manager Eric Wier. Shamblin, who received a Bachelor’s degree in urban studies from California State University, Northridge, is currently the chairman of the Crescent City Planning Commission and oversight committee monitoring how Measure S tax dollars are being spent. Shamblin is also a member of the Del Norte County Planning Commission and said he was the public health manager for Del Norte County, ensuring 29 programs were successfully implemented. Shamblin said he also has a 25-year career in the aerospace industry overseeing government contracts and had been on the library board in Palmdale, a city of about 150,000 in Southern California. “We had a budget of about $2 million and our major accomplishment there is we got a new library built for the public, which was hard to do,” he said. “I had to convince the city manager to do it and the Council, but we got it done.” Reno told City Councilors that she chose to live in Crescent City when she was a child. She raised her children in the community and served with her husband as a volunteer firefighter. Reno said she was seeking a seat on the City Council to help the community move forward. “I’m a pretty straightforward person,” she said. “I have a mellow personality and, being a first responder and in emergency services — I work in the medical field — I’m able to deal with situations … able to get things accomplished without causing elevated moods.” During the interview, Mayor Isaiah Wright asked both candidates what they would like to accomplish, about their leadership style and what they bring to the City Council as well as what they think the city’s greatest strengths and most pressing concerns are. Wright also asked how each candidate would approach the budget process and how Measure S tax dollars would be best allocated to support the community’s needs. In response to the Measure S question, Shamblin said as chairman of the oversight committee it’s his job to review expenditures and make sure they “basically make sense.” Both Shamblin and Reno mentioned improvements to Crescent City’s downtown and its efforts to bring more affordable housing to the region. However, Shamblin said that downtown still needs improvement and while most of the housing developments have focused on low-income families, “moderate-range housing” is needed. “I’d like to see a townhouse complex go in the downtown area,” he said. “I’m hoping we have a nice downtown that’s walkable, has a lot of businesses and becomes a destination spot (so) people drive right past Eureka and other places to come here. I’m a big fan of mixed use development.” Shamblin said he’s good at handling large chunks of data and using it to get to a right answer — something he’s had experience in on the Planning Commission. He said he understands the need to compromise as well as to hear from all points of view before making a decision. “I just want to say for our democracy to function, everybody needs to participate,” he said. “I’ve always been one of those who likes to participate. We all have different abilities and, for me, serving on these commissions and committees is what I like to do.” Though he acknowledged that he’s not a city resident, Kevin Hendrick, chair of the Del Norte County Democratic Central Committee, endorsed Shamblin’s appointment to the City Council. According to Hendrick, Shamblin is “objectively the best choice.” “The City Council previously appointed Steve to the Planning Commission and the Measure S committee where he has demonstrated his commitment,” Hendrick said. “Steve has planning experience and a detailed awareness of city projects. This is good preparation to serve on the City Council.” For his part, though he acknowledged that he likely wouldn’t receive a second on his nomination, Greenough praised Reno’s desire to build up the community as well as her experience as a fire captain. Greenough also pointed out that with Crescent City Fire Chief Kevin Carey leaving, Reno’s experience could help the City Council find the right person to replace him.