Full Biography for Jack McKellar

Candidate for
Council Member; City of Eureka; Ward 3

FULL BIOGRAPHY FOR

JACK MCKELLAR

I was born on February 9, 1923, in Portland, Oregon, and spent most of my early life in the State of Oregon, in Portland, Salem, Roseburg, Klamath Falls, and Bend. I attended grade school and high school in Portland. I then attended Benson Politechnic School, which at that time offered a curriculum equivalent to most graduate colleges today. My studies included mechanical drawing, mechanical engineering, and electrical theory – including atomic theory in its infancy. I graduated from Benson in 1940 – incognito – as I had joined the Navy.

I traveled in the Navy all over the North and South Pacific, North Atlantic, and one trip around Cape Horn. I was honorably discharged in San Diego, and worked for a few months as a lifeguard for Los Angeles and San Diego counties.

Application for a Game Warden position brought me to Crescent City in 1947, and I worked as a Game Warden in that area for several years.

I then became a Timber Faller, and worked as such until crushed in a logging accident in 1955. Following the logging accident, I still needed to make a living for my family and myself, so I established a fishing guide service on the Klamath River. That occupation provided a good life for my family for a number of years, until the Crescent City tsunami disaster in 1964.

When the tsunami hit in '64, the Army Corps of Engineers hired me to oversee the rebuilding of the Crescent City Harbor. That was to be a temporary job, and ended up lasting 29 years! During those years with the Corps, I participated in all types of major construction, including an advisory position for major design decisions. I retired from the Corps in 1989, was called back for one year, retired again, and became a Eureka City Councilman. At present, I still do consulting work for a number of construction companies. I also conduct shore protection seminars for the Corps of Engineers at Vicksburg (Mississippi) Waterways Experiment Station, teaching shore protection techniques, including the construction and placement of dolos.

I am very proud to have been the supervisor of the reconstruction of the Humboldt Bay jetties in 1971 and 1972, and the continued restoration of the Humboldt Bay jetties in 1985 and the reconstruction of the Cresent City harbor jetty in 1987.

In my eight years on the Eureka City Council, I have participated on a number of National, State, and local boards and commissions, including the Environmental Advisory Committee for both the National League of Cities and the League of California Cities. I serve on the Humboldt County Association of Governments (HCAOG) Board, and have had the privilege of contributing to the acquisition of major grant funds to be used for improvement of local highway and infrastructure projects. I have also had the satisfaction of seeing many of those grant-funded projects come to fruition.

In addition to my ongoing work with the League of California Cities and the Humboldt County Association of Governments, I also serve on the following boards and commissions: Northcoast Railroad Authority, Humboldt Bay Harbor Pilot Commission, and Redwood Art Association Board.

I am a registered Republican. I decided to run for City Council eight years ago because I felt that I had a considerable wealth of knowledge and working experience, and wanted to offer the benefits of that experience back to a community that has been very good to me. Chronologically, I am part of a generation that prides itself on solid, dependable social values, work ethics, and personal commitment, and those values extend into my work as an elected official. I know what it means to work hard for a living, and I have a keen appreciation of the needs of the citizens and business owners of this community. The Eureka City Council faces difficult social and economic issues, and in my decision making, I strive for a healthy balance of those concerns.

If re-elected, my top priorities include: Public Safety; Humboldt Bay Harbor and Waterfront Improvements; and City Infrastructure. My thoughts on those issues are detailed in a separate section on this website.

Eureka is my home. I have spent the last several years restoring my residence, a two-story Victorian in the downtown area, and I have no plans to move – ever! I am committed to the betterment of the Eureka community for all of us.