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Previously:

• Del Norte County Supervisor Bob Berkowitz Dies at 81

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Since 2017, Bob Berkowitz was known to some as one of five county supervisors.

He’d show up at 6 a.m. to Fisherman’s Restaurant every day, eager to speak with anyone who’d care to meet with him. District 5 voters elected him to a second term in 2020.

But Berkowitz’s experience in Del Norte County dates back to when he bought KCRE in 1979 and turned it into the community’s first FM radio station in 1980, waging war with then KPOD owner Bill Stamps, according to John Pritchett.

When he was a field representative for U.S. Rep. Frank Riggs, Berkowitz was instrumental getting the gym built at Gasquet Mountain School.

He was also a school board member in 2008, when the community approved the Measure A bond measure that built the gym at Smith River School, according to Pritchett, who met Berkowitz in 1991 and became his business partner in 2007

“He did a lot for this community,” Pritchett told the Wild Rivers Outpost. “He wasn’t everybody’s cup of tea, but he never held a grudge. He would work with you regardless of your economic situation or your political party. It didn’t matter ‘cause if he could work with you, he did.”

Berkowitz, who “served the citizens of Del Norte County with great dedication for many years,” died early Wednesday morning following a long illness. He was 81 years old.

Berkowitz’s death means there’s now a vacancy on the Board of Supervisors. According to Del Norte County Clerk-Recorder Alissia Northrup, his replacement will likely be appointed by the California governor, though she said she’s not entirely sure what the process is.

“We’ve never had to do this before, thank goodness,” she told the Outpost.

In the meantime, the Board of Supervisors and the County Office of Administration will be able to assist in “whatever needs the citizens of the 5th district, who were so well represented by Bob over the years, might have during this difficult period,” a county public service announcement stated.

District 2 Supervisor Valerie Starkey, whose election in 2020 coincided with Berkowitz's re-election, said her colleague was always available to offer guidance during her first year on the dais.

"Although he was ill, Bob always took the time to check in with me and provide much needed suggestions," Starkey told the Outpost.

In addition to his service on the Del Norte County Unified School District Board of Trustees and the Del Norte County Board of Supervisors, Berkowitz owned and operated Lifestyles Research Company.

According to Pritchett, Berkowitz’s wife, Bonnie, ran it as a welcome wagon of sorts, while Berkowitz helped political candidates with polling data and conducted phone surveys.

Local businesses could also use the data Lifestyles Research gathered to determine where people were getting their news and what their reading habits were, said Cindy Vosburg, former advertising director and publisher of the Del Norte Triplicate and the current executive director of the Crescent City-Del Norte County Chamber of Commerce.

“We purchased his research typically every year to help guide local political candidates to gain their offices,” she told the Outpost. “Bob knew where people were getting their news from and what they were looking for. That definitely applied to local businesses trying to target new customers.”

Berkowitz proved to be an important resource for the Triplicate, Vosburg said.

“He was never afraid to tell us when we had done something incorrectly and he was always good at praising us when we got it right,” she said.

Berkowitz was also very involved in the Chamber of Commerce, Vosburg said. This included serving as director for the Del Norte County Visitors Bureau for about two years. More recently, he was also the county representative on the Chamber of Commerce, she said.

There was a side to Berkowitz that few people saw, Pritchett said.
Berkowitz made a lot of money in real estate and property rentals, Pritchett said. He could have made a lot more, but had a soft heart, Pritchett said.

“He helped a lot of people and the only people who knew about it was Bob and the individual he was helping,” Pritchett told the Outpost. “He would get them into some rentals that they really shouldn’t have gotten into. But he would find ways to make it work for them. There were some people who got housing at a time they desperately needed it and Bob never made a big deal about it.”

Berkowitz also served in the U.S. Navy — something he didn’t advertise, Pritchett said.

Berkowitz was also in the Crescent City Rotary Club for about 30 years.

“We’ve lost an iconic Del Norter,” Vosburg said. “He will always be missed and never forgotten.”

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