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Board of Supervisors invites applications for boards, commissions
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors is seeking applications from community members interested in participating in local government to serve on a variety of local advisory boards and commissions.
The following positions are available:
– Animal Control Advisory Board: Two vacancies – Supervisorial District 2 and member-at-large.
– Big Valley Groundwater Management Zone Commission: Seven vacancies – one member-at-large, four agriculture users category, two water district category.
– Building Board of Appeals: Four vacancies – one representative each from Supervisorial Districts 1, 2, 3 and 5.
– Child Care Planning and Development Council: Nine vacancies – two consumer, one public agency, two community representative, two discretionary appointee and two child care provider.
– Emergency Medical Care Committee: Thirteen vacancies – one community college district, one California Highway Patrol representative, two EMT representatives, one private ambulance company, one sheriff’s department representative, two fire departments, two emergency room affiliated medical care coordinators and three consumer-interested groups.
– Fish and Wildlife Advisory Committee: Eleven vacancies, one each from the following categories – fish and wildlife conservation, land conservation, education, agriculture, recreation, ex-officio member and one member of the general public from each supervisorial district
– Glenbrook Cemetery District: One vacancy – general membership.
– Hartley Cemetery District: One vacancy – general membership.
– Heritage Commission: Seven vacancies – one representative from each supervisorial district, and two members-at-large.
– In-Home Support Services Public Authority Advisory Committee: Four vacancies – two senior consumer, one disabled community representative, one disabled consumer.
– Kelseyville Cemetery District: Two vacancies – general membership.
– Library Advisory Board: One vacancy – Supervisorial District 3.
– Maternal Child and Adolescent Health Advisory Board: One vacancy – general membership.
– Mental Health Board: Three vacancies – two members-at-large, and one family member of a present/past consumer.
– North Bay Cooperative Library Advisory Board: One Lake County representative.
– Parks and Recreation Advisory Board: Five vacancies – one representative from each supervisorial district.
– Public Defender Oversight Committee: Two vacancies – one member of the general public, one attorney.
– Section 8 Resident Advisory Board: Nine vacancies – general membership.
– Solid Waste Appeals Panel: Two vacancies – one public member and one technical expert.
For applications, or if you have questions regarding a vacancy on one of these advisory boards, please contact the Clerk of the Board’s Office at 7707-263-2371.
Applications also are available online at www.lakecountyca.gov , or at the Lake County Courthouse, Clerk of the Board’s Office, Room 109, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport, California 95453.
Please note that all memberships on the above referenced advisory boards are voluntary.
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- Written by: Lake County News reports
Middletown community members raise concerns about Dollar General store proposal
MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The proposal to place a Dollar General store in Middletown was the main topic of discussion at Thursday's Middletown Area Town Hall meeting, which saw community members coming out to voice their concerns about the potential impacts on the town's aesthetics, culture and economy.
Several dozen people attended the meeting in the community room at the Middletown Senior Center, asking questions about whether Dollar General would be a good neighbor and donate to the community, raising issue with the products it sells and its impact on existing local businesses, and suggesting that it ultimately would have a negative impact on the town, which is the county's southern gateway.
The Board of Supervisors established MATH in December 2006 to act as a municipal advisory council for south county residents.
MATH Chairman Fletcher Thornton set aside the May 14 meeting solely for the purpose of discussing the application by Texas-based Cross Development – the developer acting on behalf of Dollar General – for the 9,100-square-foot store on a three-acre parcel at 20900 Highway 29.
The store will take up one acre of the site, with the owner – identified in county documents as Ann Neve of Petaluma – retaining the rest of the parcel, company representatives explained.
In addition to the Middletown store, Cross Development – one of the firms representing Dollar General in its projects in California – also has applied for a major use permit for a store in Kelseyville, which the Lake County Planning Commission will consider at its May 28 meeting.
At Thursday's meeting to field questions were project manager Joe Dell of Cross Development and Mark Gilchrease, a Dollar General district manager who currently oversees several stores from Grass Valley west to Lake County, where the two new stores also are under his management.
Dollar General is a 74-year-old “small box” retailer based in Tennessee that has begun a major move into the California and West Coast market.
It has opened two stores so far this year in Clearlake Oaks and Nice, with Cross Development also acting as the developer on those two projects.
Gilchrease noted during the meeting that Dollar General likes to place stores in “underdeveloped” areas,” and has plans to open 1,000 stores over the next three years, which he said “bucks the trend” of economic development in California. The company also is beginning to move up the West Coast, and has opened its first two stores in Oregon.
He told Lake County News after the meeting that Dollar General's new stores in Lake County have exceeded performance expectations.
Gilchrease said the corporation is seeking to open 300 new stores in California this year alone. Dell said that equates to about 1,600 new jobs.
Asked if there are more Lake County stores in the future – in addition to the two already open and the other two in the planning process – Dell said he couldn't say.
Gilchrease, however, said the list of locations the company is looking at for the remainder of this year doesn't include any other new locations in Lake County, outside of those for which the company already has applied.
Explaining the process
During the two-hour meeting, Thornton admonished community members to have a discussion, “not an argument,” over the store proposal.
The Middletown store major use permit application isn't yet scheduled to go before the planning commission, as it's still being processed, according to Community Development Director Rick Coel, who also was on hand Thursday to answer questions and explain the county's planning process.
Coel explained that he and his planning staff are still about halfway through processing the Dollar General Middletown application. In order to complete the project's evaluation and environmental analysis, Coel said there are still pieces to fill in, including site planning and input from Caltrans, and an analysis of soil needed for fill.
“I just want to be real clear, right off the bat, we're not set for hearing yet,” he said, regarding the planning commission.
He said he believed that the project likely would be recommended for a mitigated negative declaration, with numerous conditions required related to aesthetics.
Among the initial questions put to Dollar General's representatives related to the stores' close proximity to schools – which Dell and Gilchrease said not intentional – and the potential for Dollar General to pull out of a store.
Dell said Cross Development purchases properties, develops them and then leases them to Dollar General. In his experience, he said Dollar General hasn't left leases.
When asked about Dollar General's impact on small towns, Gilchrease said that the company is ranked 175 on the Forbes 500 list and has more than 12,000 stores nationwide. He said Dollar General has never closed a store, although there have been instances where the stores have been moved.
Gilchrease maintained that Dollar General is “a magnet to bring people into the area,” creating competition and spurring economic growth.
They also were asked about how many of their projects are made in the United States versus China. Gilchrease said the company tries to find the best items it can, and said that the majority of items Dollar General sells are American-made.
Regarding why Dollar General selected Middletown, Gilchrease said the company has a process of selecting its communities.
Community selection is based on a number of factors that Dollar General uses to determine areas where economic development is moving, he said.
Of the 12,000 items sold in Dollar General stores, roughly 2,000 to 3,000 are about a dollar in price, Gilchrease said. “Basically, we're a general store is what we are.”
The name Dollar General, he acknowledged, is commonly confused with the Dollar Tree – known more commonly as the “Dollar Store” – in California, Gilchrease said.
Community member Craig Eve asked if the corporation is involved in communities, and if they donate to local events.
Gilchrease said much of Dollar General's community giving is done through its home office, but he said if store managers come to him, they will do something, noting that they want to support the community.
During the discussion a man asked about a vote that had been taken by MATH against Dollar General coming into the community.
Thornton explained that MATH representatives had taken a straw vote at a previous meeting about the store proposal, and they subsequently attended a preapplication meeting on the project.
“I voiced the opinion of MATH at that time,” said Thornton, noting that that time that they had no application or drawings to go off of.
The group voiced its opinion, “But that doesn't commit us to anything,” said Thornton.
Linda Diehl-Darms followed up by asking if the community's voice has weight in determining if the project moves forward.
Coel pointed out that MATH is an advisory body to the Board of Supervisors. He said the county has processes in place. “The county is legally obligated to process this use permit.” Once it's processed, a public meeting notice will be issued.
He said he believes the board takes into consideration the opinion and viewpoint of all advisory committees, but added, “This has to run its course.”
Thornton added that when the matter goes before the Board of Supervisors, community members can go and express their opinion. “We can't stop anything. We can voice our opinion and give our input.”
More questions and concerns
Gilchrease said Dollar General stores tend to look different, with the corporation working with communities to get designs that fit with towns.
He said stores average between 10 to 12 employees, about half of them part-time, later clarifying that the number of part-time workers is 40 to 45 percent and depends on sales.
Starting wages are $9 an hour, with medical, dental, vision, stock purchase options and discounts at universities offered for full-time employees, he said.
The company also offers a literacy program, he said, because the company's founder Cal Turner was illiterate and became dedicated to addressing the issue.
Gilchrease said the company offers grants to schools, citing a recent grant of $40,000 to Riverside High School for new computers.
Business owner Tina Stewart raised her concerns about Dollar General, asserting that allowing the corporation to set up in Middletown essentially asks the community to support an out-of-area business. She said she was concerned about Middletown becoming a ghost town as a result.
Dell responded to questions about the property selection process. He said said Cross Development pursues every available piece of property that is for sale in areas targeted for stores. They then assess the location's viability, but he added, “It boils down to availability of the property.”
Monica Rosenthal asked if they had assessed other sites besides the one selected.
Dell explained that brokers and drivers will drive an area and look at good potential locations, pursuing all of them before settling on the one that fits best. He said they did pursue other sites in Middletown.
Resident Charles Morse said he didn't have an issue with the site, but questioned potential impacts on nearby St. Helena Creek, where there is a large annual trout run. He asked if that was being addressed.
Dell said the project's environmental report will look at potential impacts. “So, yes, we've looked at that,” he said, noting that the store site is on the farthest edge away from the creek.
State stormwater guidelines require them to retain almost all of their runoff, so Dell said there will be basically a “net zero discharge” due to retention basins on site.
Thornton questioned the project's layout, explaining that the site map showed the building at the back of the property, fronted by a parking lot.
He said the Middletown Area Plan wants new businesses to fill in with what already is there, and asked if the developers would be willing to consider a design change. Thornton said he would rather see the building be at the front of the property to be more in keeping with the town's look.
Dell said they are trying to reduce the parking, but he can't alter the layout of the store itself. Given the site's depth, the best store location is set back off the highway, he said, explaining that the delivery doors have to stay where they are located in the floor plan.
There also is the matter of the delivery trucks being able to get into the site, and a change in location would mean the truck couldn't make the turn into the property, Dell said.
In order to significantly change the layout, Dell said the company would have to purchase more land. “We can do things like landscaping that will soften the look.”
MATH Board member Charlotte Kubiak asked if any communities around the country have protested enough to make Dollar General change its plans to enter a community. Gilchrease said he wasn't aware of that happening.
Kubiak followed up by asking if they would still come in if the community said no, which drew a round of applause.
“Dollar General leaves that, I guess, to the community,” Gilchrease replied.
Diehl-Darms asked Coel if the county has talked to local businesses about the impacts of Dollar General. Coel said he recently talked to a business owner who is located across from the store in Nice who said he has gotten more foot traffic since the Dollar General opened there.
“He said he's not hurting him one bit,” said Coel. “That's the one example I have.”
Otherwise, Coel said he hasn't gone out to survey other local businesses about the stores, adding he looks at Dollar General as providing a service. In Clearlake Oaks and Nice, the stores offer items that largely aren't available otherwise to people who don't have transit options. “There was a need there.”
Coel was careful to explain that, ultimately, whether or not the store is approved is not up to him or his staff, but the planning commission. He said the community can express its concerns to the commission both during the hearing and beforehand. “They have to list to all sides.”
A community member suggested that the commission consider changing its meeting location to Middletown – rather than Lakeport – when it discusses the Middletown store proposal.
Middletown resident Lynne Norton asked if the Board of Supervisors will have the final say if the store is approved by the planning commission.
Coel said the final say would be up to the supervisors if the commission's decision was to be appealed. An appeal would need to be filed within seven days of the decision, and would cost $407, Coel said.
Dell maintained that Dollar General is a “great company,” with its stores offering tax benefits and jobs to communities.
“Our goal is to deliver a great store for a great client for a community that's in desperate need of its products,” which Dell acknowledged was a poor choice of words after it elicited loud murmuring and jeers throughout the room.
Thornton asked Coel for some final comments, at which point he noted that one of the big concerns for the south county has been “commercial leakage,” with very little in the way of commercial development to support the population.
In creating the Middletown Area Plan, the county spent significant time looking at that issue, as well as ways to create more local jobs, Coel said.
“When you look at the tax dollars and where they're going, the sales tax revenues in the south county, most of it leaves the county, it's not spent here. So that has to be factored in when these projects are reviewed and considered, ultimately, by the Board of Supervisors,” Coel said.
At the end of the meeting, Thornton would stop a community member's request for a show of hands for or against the project, noting that at a future MATH meeting there will be a formal vote, the results of which he will take to the Lake County Planning Commission.
The full video of the meeting can be seen above.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
Water district annexation, marijuana policy on supervisors' agenda
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors has a full agenda for its Tuesday meeting, including a proposal for an annexation agreement between a county service area and a local water district, and the addition of a new marijuana policy to the county's legislative priorities.
The board will meet beginning at 9 a.m. Tuesday, May 19, in the board chambers on the first floor of the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.
The meeting can be watched live on Channel 8 and online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Boards/Board_of_Supervisors/calendar.htm . Accompanying board documents, the agenda and archived board meeting videos also are available at that link.
That will be followed at 9:10 a.m. by presentation of proclamations designating the week of May 16-22, 2015, as Safe Boating Week and designating the month of May 2015 as Military Appreciation Month in Lake County.
At 9:45 a.m., the board will discuss and consider a number of items related to the proposed annexation agreement between the Clearlake Oaks County Water District and County Service Area No. 16, Paradise Valley, and a waterline extension project to connect the two systems.
At 10:15 a.m., the board will consider adding the North Coast Counties Marijuana Policy Statement to the county's 2015 State Legislative Priorities.
The full agenda follows.
CONSENT AGENDA
7.1: Approve Amendment No. 1 to agreement between the county of Lake and T-Mobile for Facility Space License Agreement on Buckingham Peak, to allow T-Mobile to place additional equipment and pay the County $100,000 towards the power upgrade project, and authorize the chair to sign.
7.2: Adopt proclamation designating the week of May 16-22, 2015, as Safe Boating Week in Lake County.
7.3: Adopt proclamation honoring Congressman Mike Thompson for 25 years of outstanding and dedicated public service.
7.4: Adopt proclamation designating the month of May 2015 as Military Appreciation Month in Lake County.
7.5: Approve letter of support for SCR 48: Geothermal Awareness Proclamation.
7.6: Approve updated county equal employment opportunity plan.
7.7: Adopt resolution expressing support for the Lower Lake High School Homecoming Parade.
7.8: Approve request for out-of-state travel for Jessica Hamner, health programs coordinator, Public Health Division to attend the third National Health Impact Assessment (HIA) Meeting June 16-17, 2015 in Washington, DC.
7.9: Adopt resolution authorizing cancellation of Special Districts Administration Designated Equipment Reserve in the amount of $54,215 for vehicle purchase for Utility Area II and authorize Special Districts administrator to issue purchase order to Downtown Ford Sales in the amount of $54,214.55 under the state of California contract.
7.10: Approve "deferred improvement agreement" for final parcel map – Franklin PM 14-02 and authorize for the chair to sign.
7.11: Adopt resolution amending Resolution No. 2014-112 Establishing Position Allocations for Fiscal Year 2014-2015 Budget Unit No. 8695, Special Districts Administration to temporarily increase number of water/wastewater treatment plant operators from eight to nine.
7.12: Adopt resolution amending Exhibit "A" to the county conflict of interest code.
7.13: Sitting as the Lake County Watershed Protection District, Board of Directors, approve purchase agreement for property located at 7500 Reclamation Road, Upper Lake (APN 004-021-27), in the amount of $275,000 for the Middle Creek Flood Damage Reduction and Ecosystem Restoration Project, and authorize the chair to sign.
7.14: Award bid for 2015 Countywide Chip Seal Asphaltic Emulsions Project in Lake County, Bid No. 15-04, to Western Emulsions Inc. in the amount of $305,847.28 and authorize for chair to sign.
7.15: Award bid for 2015 Countywide Chip Seal Screenings Project in Lake County, Bid No. 15-05, to Granite Construction Co. Inc. in the amount of $150,029.50 and authorize for chair to sign.
7.16: Sitting as the Lake County Watershed Protection District, Board of Directors, approve joint funding agreement with US Geological Survey, in the amount of $13,700 to provide for operation of stream gauge station on Kelsey Creek and authorize for the chair to sign.
TIMED ITEMS
8.2, 9:06 a.m.: Swearing-in ceremony for newly hired Correctional Officer Christine Kawski. (This item is to be postponed.)
8.3, 9:10 a.m.: Presentation of (a) proclamation designating the week of May 16-22, 2015, as Safe Boating Week in Lake County; and (b) proclamation designating the month of May 2015 as Military Appreciation Month in Lake County.
8.4, 9:15 a.m.: Public hearing, consideration of proposed ordinance amending Chapter 21 of the Ordinance Code of the County of Lake pertaining to age limits for installation of used manufactured homes on private property.
8.5, 9:30 a.m.: Public hearing, consideration of Planning Commission's recommendation of GPAP 14-01 and RZ 1402 proposing a general plan amendment of one parcel from Commercial Resort/Rural Residential to Suburban Residential Reserve/Rural Residential and Commercial Resort and a rezone from "CR-DR-SC-WW-FF" Resort Commercial-Design Review-Scenic Combining-Waterway-Floodway Fringe; "RR-DR-SC" Rural Residential-Design Review-Scenic Combining to "SR-DR-SC-WW-FF" Suburban Reserve-Design Review-Scenic Combining-Waterway-Floodway Fringe; "CR-DR-SC-WW-FF" Commercial Resort-Design Review-Scenic Combining-Waterway-Floodway Fringe and "RR-DR-SC" Rural Residential-Design Review-Scenic Combining; applicants are Daniel Streckful and Donna Streckfus; project location 9435 Konocti Bay Road, Kelseyville (APN 009-016-05); and consideration of proposed mitigated negative declaration based on Initial Study (IS 14-27).
8.6, 9:45 a.m.: Consideration of (a) approval of letter of agreement approving the participation of the county of Lake, by and through Lake County Special Districts, in the Proposition 84 Integrated Regional Water Management Drought Grant and approving Yolo County Flood Control and Water Conservation District as the fiscal agent; (b) adoption of resolution of county of Lake approving the preannexation and annexation agreement by and between the county, on behalf of County Service Area No. 16 and Clearlake Oaks County Water District and authorizing the chair to sign; (c) request for waiver of the competitive bidding process and approval of award of construction contract to O.C. Jones & Sons for the installation of pipeline in Highway 20 for the County Service Area No. 16 Waterline Extension in the amount of $800,000 and authorize the chair to sign; (d) request for waiver of the consultant selection process and approval of the agreement for engineering services for Clearlake Oaks Water System Zone 3 as required by the preannexation and annexation agreement by and between the county of Lake, on behalf of County Service Area No. 16, and MC Engineering, authorize the chair to sign.
8.7, 10:15 a.m.: Consideration of North Coast Counties Marijuana Policy Statement and approval of said policy statement as an amendment to county of Lake’s 2015 State Legislative Priorities.
NONTIMED ITEMS
9.2: Presentation on Community Choice Aggregation program for electrical power purchase, including renewable energy, for residents and businesses in the unincorporated area of Lake County.
9.3: Discussion and consideration of county land record audit.
9.4: Consideration of staff’s request to use the former Visitor Information Center in Lucerne as a Department of Social Services satellite office.
9.5: Ordinance, second reading, consideration of proposed ordinance amending specified sections of Article I of Chapter 2 of the Lake County Code Relating to Meetings of the Board of Supervisors.
9.6: Consideration of sheriff's request to purchase four portable repeaters; (a) approve budget transfer in BU 2704 Emergency Services to transfer $29,979 from account 62.79 to 62.74; and (b) authorize purchasing agent to issue a purchase order to FisherWireless Services, Inc. in the amount of $46,685.32.
CLOSED SESSION
10.2: Conference with legal counsel: Existing Litigation pursuant to Gov. Code Sec. 54956.9(d)(1): City of Lakeport v. County of Lake, et al.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
Clearlake Planning Commission to discuss variance request, graffiti wall proposal
CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. – The Clearlake Planning Commission this week will discuss proposals for a residential lot variance and a graffiti wall at a city park.
The commission will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 19, in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive.
On the agenda is a proposed variance submitted by Robert Matthews, who is asking to have the
required 20-foot frontyard setback reduced to 16 feet on a 5,000-square-foot corner property located at 16002 39th Ave.
The variance is meant to accommodate a replacement doublewide manufactured home and two-car garage on the lot, according to the report from Assistant Planner Julie Burrow.
Also on Tuesday, the commission will hear a presentation and hold a discussion on the possibility of establishing a graffiti wall at Austin Park. The commission also will consider whether to make a recommendation on the wall to the Clearlake City Council.
Staff also will give the commission a verbal report on former redevelopment agency projects.
The commission includes Chair Carl Webb, Vice Chair Cheryl Hutchinson, and commissioners Nathalie Antus, Bill Perkins and Dirk Slooten.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson