How to resolve AdBlock issue? 
Suspect in Fosters Freeze robbery arrested
LUCERNE, Calif. – The suspect in the weekend armed robbery of a Lucerne restaurant has been arrested.
Skyler Yale Holden, 21, of Ukiah was arrested Monday evening by Deputy Joe Dutra, according to jail booking records.
Sgt. Steve Brooks of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that Holden was arrested in connection with the armed robbery, which took place last Saturday afternoon at Fosters Freeze, located at 6552 Highway 20 in Lucerne.
The suspect in the robbery took just over $200, according to the sheriff’s office.
Brooks said he would have additional details on the investigation and arrest once he’s received the case report.
Holden was booked Monday night on felony charges of first degree burglary, committing a felony while armed with a firearm and misdemeanor possession of controlled substance paraphernalia. His bail is set at $500,000.
In February, Holden was arrested for drug charges, giving law enforcement false identification and evading a peace officer, according to jail records.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
Anderson Marsh negotiations continue in wake of State Parks controversy
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The revelations last week that State Parks officials were hoarding millions of dollars while park closures were taking place around California has raised questions about how the situation could affect local parks.
The California Department of Parks and Recreation has held $54 million in two accounts over the past 12 years, according to recent disclosures that came to light through a Sacramento Bee investigation.
The resulting controversy has resulted in the resignation of State Parks Director Ruth Coleman – who visited Lake County in April 2011 to dedicate the new education pavilion at Clear Lake State Park – and her second-in-command’s firing.
The funds have been held aside at the same time as threats to state parks – from deferred maintenance to the more recent threats of closures – have arisen. A $22 million general fund cut to State Parks had resulted in the proposal to close 70 state parks by July 1.
Over the last several years, both Clear Lake State Park and Anderson Marsh State Historic Park have been listed among the proposed closures.
While Clear Lake State Park was taken off the list, Anderson Marsh was set for closure July 1, but spared thanks to negotiations between State Parks and the Anderson Marsh Interpretive Association for the group to operate the park.
AMIA President Roberta Lyons said the developments surrounding the funds have so far not affected the group’s negotiations with the state.
“We are currently negotiating the contract that will allow us to take over partial operation of the park,” Lyons told Lake County News. “We are hopeful that we will reach an agreement soon. They have approved our Operating Agreement, which is our proposal for the types of things we will be doing, the next step is actual approval of the contract.”
State Sen. Noreen Evans, who represents Lake County, has been involved with legislation to spare the parks set for closure, and she is asking that plans immediately be submitted to the Legislature for the reopening of every park that has been closed or incurred shorter operating hours.
She said State Parks officials who were involved in hiding the funds “are responsible for the decay at every park in the state that suffers from maintenance that has gone undone, the job losses across the state from shortened park hours or partial closures, the dollars lost by local communities and businesses that depended on the tourism dollars parks bring in to the state.”
Evans also is calling on Gov. Jerry Brown to conduct an administration-wide audit of every department and every division.
The California State Parks Foundation, which has worked to rally the public and raise funds to help keep state parks open, issued a statement in which it said it was “disappointed and shocked” about the revelations of the hidden funds.
“We are especially frustrated that this occurred at the same time CSPF and the parks community has been working diligently and against tremendous odds to help temporarily keep threatened parks open,” the group said in a Friday statement.
Foundation President Elizabeth Goldstein sent parks supports an email message late last week noting that “the crisis that our state parks face is still very real.”
Goldstein said budget cuts to state parks over the years have decimated the system, with the general fund allocation for state parks reduced by 33 percent over the past four years and the system also facing a growing $1.3 billion deferred maintenance problem.
The effort to preserve a local treasure
Henry Bornstein, an AMIA board member and the group’s treasurer, said he was shocked by the news of the State Parks Department’s hidden $54 million.
“The local parks people are doing a great job. I imagine they’re pretty angry themselves,” Bornstein said, noting they’re dealing with diminishing resources and the fact the state has spent nothing on parks in years.
He called it especially distressing in light of nonprofits like AMIA scurrying around to try to keep parks open.
“Our nonprofit wasn’t designed to run parks,” Bornstein said, adding that he would like to see all of the parks taken off the closure list as a result.
In addition to the resignation of Coleman and her deputy’s firing, Bornstein said AMIA has heard that the lawyer negotiating with them also may have been dismissed.
“We’ve been working incredibly hard,” he said. “I have no idea what happens now.”
He said AMIA believes it’s close to reaching a deal on its operating agreement with the state, “assuming we get final agreement on everything,” although Bornstein was concerned the work may be delayed because of the parks scandal.
Bornstein said AMIA is going to keep up its work. “Right now our park is open.”
AMIA also is planning a 30th anniversary park for Anderson Marsh on Saturday, Aug. 11.
To run Anderson Marsh, only a small amount is needed. He estimated AMIA could keep the park open for as little as $12,000 a year.
He said the state does not keep track costs on a per-park basis, and he doubts the accuracy of the state estimate of how much it’s spent on Anderson Marsh – $80,000 a year, with overhead.
Bornstein also raised the issue of the possible fallout for the parks themselves, which he calls an amazing asset for California, and like nothing found elsewhere in the world.
People need to understand parks are worth saving, he said.
“People have a hard time separating the parks from the people who are running them,” Bornstein said.
As for the controversy over the funds, he said, “I can’t imagine this is the end of it.”
Email Elizabeth Larson at
Education officials: Governor makes damaging cuts to county’s early childhood education programs
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Local education officials say that state budget Gov. Jerry Brown’s has signed contains drastic cuts to California’s early childhood education system.
The reductions have wielded another blow to a structure already struggling under the weight of constant funding reductions, according to a Lake County Office of Education report.
The agency said $130 million in cuts to early childhood education will impact families throughout the state, and Lake County is no exception.
These cuts to early childhood education include a reduction of $30 million to state preschool and, for the first time, the implementation of parent fees; other child care and development programs are cut by over 10 percent, bringing the total reductions over the past two years to a staggering 25 percent; and alternative payment voucher-based child care programs are reduced by $20 million.
The funding Lake County received for early care and education to low income families only provided enough preschool slots for approximately 30 percent of the eligible children, the Lake County Office of Education reported. With these new reductions in funding, that percentage will drop even lower.
The budget reductions are forcing the closure of the Early Connection Preschool operated by Lake County Office of Education on the campus of East Lake School, and the elimination of eight slots at the Early Connection Preschool operated by Lake County Office of Education on the campus of Lower Lake Elementary School.
Lake County Office of Education continues to offer state preschool programs at Burns Valley School, Pomo School, Kelseyville Elementary School, Lakeport Elementary School, Lucerne Elementary School, Middletown Elementary School and Lower Lake Elementary School.
Additionally, The Learning House offers state preschool programs at their facility in Clearlake.
“This reduction of funding has forced us to make some very difficult decisions,” said Cindy Adams, director of Child Development Programs at Lake County Office of Education.
“The closure of the program located on the campus of East Lake is distressing,” Adams said. “We are hopeful that these children will be served through the new Transitional Kindergarten program at East Lake, or parents may elect to enroll their preschooler in another LCOE program. We thank Debi Malley, Principal at East Lake School and the Konocti Unified School District for all their support of the East Lake Early Connection Preschool for the past 15 years.”
Adams, along with Elaine Robinson, owner of The Learning House state preschool, also shares her frustration with the implementation of the family fees now required in the governor’s budget. Family fees will range from $20 per month to $177.60 per month, based on family income and size.
“For a single parent, doing their best to provide for their family, these monthly family fees are a tremendous burden, and calls are already coming from frustrated parents trying to find some solution that will allow them to give their children this important experience to help them succeed in school,” Adams said.
The true victims of this shortfall will be the children who, according to Shelly Mascari, director of the Lake County Child Care Planning Council, will be deprived of the life-changing impacts of quality early care and education, when families resort to leaving their young children with unlicensed caregivers with no regulations, no education program.
According to Mascari, state preschools are only one of the programs being impacted by these reductions.
With $20 million in cuts to the alternative payment program, private licensed centers and family child care programs will be forced with tough decisions when families are no longer receiving subsidized child care support and must foot the bill.
“Quality child care is a critical component to turning our economy around, and building strong communities throughout Lake County in the years to come,” said Mascari. “Early childhood education adds 200,000 jobs and $11 billion to California’s economy. These cuts are job killers for parents and the small businesses who serve them.”
Concerned citizens are urged to contact their state government representatives to share their concerns: State Assembly Member, Wesley Chesbro, 707-463-5770; and State Senator, Noreen Evans, 707-468-8914.
Sunday rollover crash injures two
KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – A Clearlake woman and a child were injured in a Sunday crash near Kelseyville.
The single-vehicle rollover occurred at 4:40 p.m. on Highway 29 north of Highway 175/Cobb, according to a Monday report from the California Highway Patrol.
Tabitha Martinez, 31, was driving a Ford Excursion northbound on Highway 29, with two children – an 8-year-old female and a 7-year-old male – riding with her, the report noted.
The right side tires of the vehicle traveled onto the highway’s north gravel shoulder. Martinez overcorrected, losing control of the vehicle, causing it to rotate in a counter-clockwise direction back across both lanes of Highway 29, the report explained.
The CHP said Martinez’s SUV went off the west road edge and down a steep downhill embankment, where it overturned, causing major damage to the vehicle.
Martinez suffered minor injuries, including complaints of pain to her left arm, neck and back. The CHP report said the 8-year-old had a small laceration to her left hand and abdominal pain, while the 7-year-old was uninjured.
A REACH air ambulance flew Martinez to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital while CalStar flew the children to Children’s Hospital and Outreach Center Oakland, the CHP said.
The CHP said the section of Highway 29 where the crash occurred was restricted to one-way traffic control for approximately one hour.
Officer Steve Curtis is investigating the collision.
