| Scotia | |
|---|---|
| — census-designated place — | |
| Main Street in Scotia | |
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Scotia
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| Coordinates: | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Humboldt |
| Area[1] | |
| • Total | 0.842 sq mi (2.179 km2) |
| • Land | 0.746 sq mi (1.932 km2) |
| • Water | 0.096 sq mi (0.247 km2) 11.3% |
| Elevation[2] | 194 ft (59 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 850 |
| • Density | 1,010.3/sq mi (390.1/km2) |
| Time zone | Pacific (PST) (UTC-8) |
| • Summer (DST) | PDT (UTC-7) |
| ZIP Code | 95565 |
| Area code(s) | 707 |
| GNIS feature IDs | 232715; 2611446 |
| U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Scotia, California; U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Scotia, California | |
Scotia (formerly, Forestville)[3] is a census-designated place[4] in Humboldt County, California.[2] It is located 8.5 miles (13.7 km) south-southeast of Fortuna,[3] at an elevation of 194 feet (59 m).[2] The ZIP Code is 95565.[5] The population was 850 at the 2010 census.
Scotia is a company town which was previously wholly owned by the Pacific Lumber Company (PALCO). While it is home to approximately 800 past or present mill employees and their dependents, a process is underway to divide the homes into lots for sale. Located in northwestern California's Humboldt County, its partially wooded hillside near the Eel River is highlighted by the sheer size of mammoth lumber mill buildings located between the town and the river. Via U.S. Route 101, the town is 28 miles (45 km) south of Eureka, California and 244 miles (393 km) north of San Francisco.
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Scotia was founded in 1863 as Forestville and renamed 25 years later. At the time of its founding, Scotia was just one of many company towns across the Pacific Northwest, many of which closed down during the Great Depression. Scotia, however, was one of a relative handful of company towns to survive this period. Most of the existing homes were built between the 1920s and 1950s.
The first post office at Scotia opened in 1888.[3] The Humboldt Bay and Eel River Railroad connected Scotia to Humboldt Bay in 1885. This railway became part of Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway subsidiary San Francisco and Northwestern Railway in 1903 and was linked to the national rail network by completion of the Northwestern Pacific Railroad in 1914.[6]
The town was formed following the winter flood of 1861-62; and that flood level was not observed again until 1955. The Eel River crested at a gauge height of 72 feet (10.1 feet higher than 1955) on 23 December 1964. Eighteen-million board feet of redwood logs and 23-million board feet of lumber were washed out of the Scotia sawmill and scattered along the lower river and Pacific coast to the mouth of the Columbia River.[7]
A large 1992 earthquake caused widespread regional damage. A fire broke out in Scotia's only shopping center, causing extensive damage. PALCO completely rebuilt the structure.
PALCO announced in 2006 a desire to sell the homes (to the employees and retirees who currently live there) and commercial property. The company suggested that Scotia become part of Rio Dell, which is a small neighboring city located directly across the Eel River. In 2007, the company filed for bankruptcy. Additionally the need for employees has reduced from over 1,000 to around 300 in part due to a lack of logs and also from automation.[8] On January 18, 2007, PALCO filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. On July 8, 2008, the court issued its judgment and order confirming the Plan of Reorganization submitted by secured creditor Marathon Structured Finance Fund (Marathon), joined by Mendocino Redwood Company (MRC). Pursuant to that plan, most of the Town of Scotia’s real and personal assets transferred to a reorganized entity wholly owned by Marathon, Town of Scotia Company, LLC (TOS). Under the plan, the active Scotia sawmill facilities and other ancillary office buildings will transfer to a second reorganized entity, Humboldt Redwood Company (HRC) in which Marathon and MRC both have interests (United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Corpus Christi Division as “Case No. 07-20027-C-11” under the consolidated title, In Re Scotia Development LLC, et al., Debtors.) The Town of Scotia LLC has pursued a General Plan Amendment/ Zone Reclassification and Final Map Subdivision application. Subdivision requires fulfillment of conditions of approval which include formation of a community services district or other public entity to manage utilities. Service district formation requires approval by the Humboldt County Local Agency Formation Commission, which has a pending application. The purpose of the subdivision is to create individual parcels for existing residential and commercial properties, and public facilities. The proposed subdivision would allow for the sale of residential and commercial lots (all of which are currently owned and operated by the Town of Scotia LLC) to individual property owners.[9]
Offerings includes the following: a movie theater, a museum and a hotel with the town's only bar and restaurant, a new shopping center, a school through eighth grade, a community recreation center, a baseball field and two churches. PALCO operates the town on a one million dollar annual budget. Available housing consists of 274 two-to-four-bedroom wood frame cottages. The 28 person volunteer fire department is fully funded by PALCO.
The 2010 United States Census[10] reported that Scotia had a population of 850. The population density was 1,010.0 people per square mile (390.0/km²). The racial makeup of Scotia was 674 (79.3%) White, 3 (0.4%) African American, 35 (4.1%) Native American, 3 (0.4%) Asian, 9 (1.1%) Pacific Islander, 90 (10.6%) from other races, and 36 (4.2%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 150 persons (17.6%).
The Census reported that 848 people (99.8% of the population) lived in households, 2 (0.2%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.
There were 265 households, out of which 161 (60.8%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 140 (52.8%) were heterosexual married couples living together, 42 (15.8%) had a female householder with no husband present, 30 (11.3%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 41 (15.5%) unmarried heterosexual partnerships, and 2 (0.8%) homosexual married couples or partnerships. 35 households (13.2%) were made up of individuals and 4 (1.5%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.20. There were 212 families (80.0% of all households); the average family size was 3.44.
The population was spread out with 322 people (37.9%) under the age of 18, 84 people (9.9%) aged 18 to 24, 277 people (32.6%) aged 25 to 44, 144 people (16.9%) aged 45 to 64, and 23 people (2.7%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 26.0 years. For every 100 females there were 104.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.1 males.
There were 273 housing units at an average density of 324.4 per square mile (125.3/km²), of which 0 (0%) were owner-occupied, and 265 (100%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0%; the rental vacancy rate was 1.5%. 0 people (0% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 848 people (99.8%) lived in rental housing units.
The Scotia Museum contains artifacts, photographs, and exhibits. The Fisheries Center allows visitors to view various types of the area's native fish and experience a setting that is remarkably similar to their natural environment.
In the state legislature Scotia is located in the 2nd Senate District, represented by Democrat Noreen Evans, and in the 1st Assembly District, represented by Democrat Wesley Chesbro. Federally, Scotia is located in California's 1st congressional district.