How to resolve AdBlock issue? Lakeport Public Works crew repairs water main leak
LAKEPORT, Calif. – A Lakeport Public Works crew closed a portion of Bevins Street on Monday morning in order to repair a water main leak.
Mark Brannigan, Public Works and City of Lakeport Municipal Sewer District director, said the repairs were made to one of the city's major sewer lines, and one that normally doesn't present any problems.
“We noticed it on Friday,” he said, but the crew had to wait until Monday for conditions to improve before starting repairs.
The crew was on scene by about 7:30 a.m. Monday and was finishing up by early afternoon, Brannigan said.
The city has an aging water infrastructure, which was one of the reasons given for water and sewer rate hikes approved by the Lakeport City Council in October 2012, as Lake County News has reported.
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County continues assessing facilities' storm damage, works to prepare Holiday Harbor for sale
NICE, Calif. – The county is continuing to assess its facilities after a windstorm caused significant damage to private and publicly held property alike last fall.
The windstorm on Nov. 21 and 22 did nearly $6 million in damage, according to a countywide estimate.
The Nice area was hardest hit, with the county-owned Holiday Harbor taking an enormous amount of damage.
Boat slips were crumpled and docks mangled by the winds, which were reported to be sustained in the 40-mile-per hour range, according to the National Weather Service.
Deputy County Administrative Officer Alan Flora said the it's estimated that the replacement value for damage done to Holiday Harbor ranges between $560,000 and $600,000.
Before the storm, there were 134 boat slips, although not all of them were rentable due to what Flora described as an “odd design.”
After the storm, 57 boat slips remain. He said the property also includes a duplex apartment that is fully occupied and a commercial space that is under renovation.
Flora said the only other county facility that sustained damage in the windstorm was the public bathroom at Keeling Park in Nice.
That building suffered some damage to the roof, but the estimate for repairs was $7,500. He said that with the county deductible of $5,000, the county elected not to submit a claim and potentially impact long-term insurance rates.
At Holiday Harbor, a number of privately owned boats that were housed at the harbor were damaged during the storm, Flora said.
Boat owners are required to provide their own private property insurance prior to leasing a space at Holiday Harbor Marina, he added.
Even though the lease agreements with boat owners state the county is not liable for damage caused by an “act of God,” Flora said two tenants filed claims against the county for storm damage to their boats.
Making things more challenging for the county is the fact that the marina's docks and piers were not insured, according to Flora.
“Docks and piers are generally not something insurance companies are interested in insuring,” he said. “Our policy does not automatically cover these types of improvements unless they are specified and separate coverage is requested.
“The docks at Holiday Harbor Marina were quite weathered and the county was prepared to provide routine maintenance until the property was sold at such time the developer could replace the docks with a type, style and configuration of their choosing,” he said.
Flora said the county still hasn’t made a final determination about whether or not the marina’s damaged docks will be replaced.
Marina tenants, he said, were notified that the county won’t be charging any rent until further notice because the water levels are so low that the marina isn’t very usable.
In the wake of the windstorm, the county is reviewing all similar facilities and levels of insurance coverage, Flora said.
Holiday Harbor, he added, is the only marina owned by the county, but there are several county-owned docks and piers such as the facilities at Clearlake Oaks Boat Launch, Lakeside Park, and Lucerne Harbor Park, with those facilities and their levels of insurance coverage now under review.
Flora said that the county wants to sell the majority of the Holiday Harbor property to a developer, with a portion remaining for use as a public park.
“We have tried a number of ways of promoting the property, but the recession and cold real estate market have proven difficult,” he said.
Last year, the county released two requests for proposals, with the most recent for listing and property management services, he said.
Flora said the county has been working with the selected bidder to iron out the remaining issues before signing a contract, and county staff are preparing to present recommendations to the Board of Supervisors in preparation for moving forward with a listing contract followed by a contract for property management services.
“We are optimistic of the development potential of the site and think the timing may be good for listing the property as we have seen renewed interest in development projects over the past six to nine months,” said Flora.
Flora said any tenant who has questions about Holiday Harbor Marina should contact the Lake County Administrative Office at (707) 263-2580.
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Supervisors to discuss landslide potential, consider accepting light armored vehicle
LAKEPORT, Calif. – This week the Board of Supervisors will discuss how to protect against a landslide at a north Lakeport subdivision and consider accepting a light armored vehicle from Sonoma County.
The board will meet beginning at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 11, in the board chambers on the first floor of the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport. TV8 will broadcast the meeting live.
At 9:10 a.m., the board will take up Public Works' request to consider actions to protect Hill Road East from potential land movement near the Lakeside Heights subdivision.
Last March, a landslide occurred at the subdivision, damaging a number of homes and leading to concerns that the nearby Hill Road East could be damaged or blocked.
The earth movement eventually stopped, and in an effort to keep the land stable last fall the county and the Lakeside Heights Homeowners Association paid a contractor to tarp about five acres of the slide area to protect it against moisture.
In an untimed item, the board will consider Sheriff Frank Rivero's request to receive from the county of Sonoma the gift of a 1994 Cadillac Commando V-150 light armored vehicle.
Rivero's report to the board explains that the Lake County Sheriff's SWAT Team has been in need of a highly mobile armored vehicle for some time.
Currently, the agency has a Vietnam-era tracked armored vehicle, a M113 personnel carrier, which is slow moving and has to be transported to sites due to the damage it does to pavement, according to Rivero.
The LAV-150 has tires instead of tracks and its armor will withstand a .50-caliber rifle cartridge, with a .308 rifle cartridge able to penetrate the M113's armor, Rivero reported.
Rivero said the vehicle can be rapidly deployed in emergency situations, including active shooter incidents, situations where there are wounded citizens or officers, or hostages.
“The type of operations LCSO SWAT performs routinely encounters subjects with lengthy violent criminal records and who are often armed with various caliber sized firearms,” Rivero wrote to the board.
The full agenda follows.
TIMED ITEMS
9 a.m., A-1 to A-4: Approval of consent agenda, which includes items that are expected to be routine and noncontroversial, and will be acted upon by the board at one time without discussion; presentation of animals available for adoption at Lake County Animal Care and Control; consideration of items not appearing on the posted agenda, and contract change orders for current construction projects.
9:05 a.m.: Citizen's input. Any person may speak for three minutes about any subject of concern, provided that it is within the jurisdiction of the Board of Supervisors and is not already on the agenda. Prior to this time, speakers must fill out a slip giving name, address and subject (available in the clerk of the board’s office, first floor, courthouse).
9:10 a.m., A-5: Consideration of actions to protect Hill Road East from potential land movement near the Lakeside Heights subdivision.
NONTIMED ITEMS
A-6: Supervisors’ weekly calendar, travel and reports.
A-7: Consideration of appointments to the In Home Support Services (IHSS) Advisory Committee.
A-8: Consideration of request to accept gift from county of Sonoma one 1994 Cadillac Commando V-150 light armored vehicle.
A-9: Consideration of proposed Agreement between the county of Lake and Praeses LLC for audit and reconciliation services of the inmate phone system, total amount $18,000.
CLOSED SESSION
A-10: 1.Conference with labor negotiator: (a) County negotiators: A. Grant, L. Guintivano, S. Harry, M. Perry, A. Flora and C. Shaver; and (b) employee organization: Deputy District Attorney's Association, Lake County Deputy Sheriff's Association, Lake County Correctional Officers Association, Lake County Employees Association and Lake County Safety Employees Association.
A-10: 2. Employee Disciplinary Appeal Hearing - EDA 2014-01.
CONSENT AGENDA
C-1: Approve minutes of the Board of Supervisors meetings held on Jan. 28 and Feb. 4, 2014.
C-2: (a) Waive Travel Policy section regarding time limit for submitting travel reimbursement claims; and (b) approve late travel claims for four Grand Jury members to attend out-of-county training Nov. 1, 2013, per diem, total amount $34 each, total amount $136.
C-3: Approve agreement between the county of Lake and Lake County Youth Services Inc. for facility improvements at the city of Clearlake-owned youth center building, located at 4750 Golf Ave., Clearlake, total amount $5,000, and authorize the chair to sign.
C-4: Waive 900-hour limit for extra help Buildings and Grounds maintenance worker Gary Arnold.
C-5: Adopt resolution authorizing the director, Public Works Department, to sign a notice of completion for work performed under agreement dated Sept. 24, 2013 (rehabilitation of three roads in Lake County, Bid No. 13-14).
C-6: Approve out-of-state travel for investigators John Drewrey and Eric Keener to Las Vegas, Nev., from March 3-7, 2014, to attend California Homicide Investigators Association conference.
C-7: Approve lease agreement between the county of Lake and Schall Investment LP for office space at 809 S. Main St., Lakeport, and authorize the chair to sign.
C-8: Approve lease agreement between the county of Lake and Law Offices of Ewing and Associates for parking space at 995 S. Main St., Lakeport, and authorize the chair to sign.
C-9: Approve advanced step hiring of Special Districts Deputy Administrator-Fiscal Tanya Michel due to applicant’s extraordinary qualifications (fifth step salary range).
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Lakeport Planning Commission to consider signage, general plan update
LAKEPORT, Calif. – This week the Lakeport Planning Commission will discuss signage and an update to the city's general plan.
The commission will meet beginning at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 12, in the council chambers at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St.
Planning Services Manager Andrew Britton will ask the commission for its interpretation of the city's sign regulations in light of an auto dealership's inquiry about installing a second freestanding sign because it must use separate signage for the GM and Chrysler vehicles it sells.
Britton said staff believes the rules regarding the maximum number of signs for any one use is vague – the rules state one sign per street frontage, and only one freestanding sign is allowed.
“Staff discussed this matter with the City’s Interim City Attorney and it was agreed that ambiguity exists and that the Municipal Code is not as explicit as it should be regarding this question,” Britton wrote in his report to the commission.
Citing the city's desire to support local business, Britton said city staff is suggesting acknowledging the ambiguity in the city's regulations and asking the commission to “provide a reasonable solution to respond to unique situations where a second freestanding sign for an individual retail business may be appropriate.”
Britton added, “We believe that the proposed Resolution strikes the appropriate balance of public and private objectives by allowing adequate avenues for commercial messages that can help support our local business community.”
In other business at the Wednesday meeting, the commission will initiate the focused review and update/amendment of the Lakeport General Plan.
Richard Knoll, the city's retired Community Development director who now is working as a special projects coordinator, is presenting a resolution passed by the Lakeport City Council Jan. 21 to initiate the general plan review and update.
Some of the issues to be addressed include the city's sphere of influence, according to Knoll's report.
He said staff will lead an introduction and discussion on the focused general plan review and update.
“There will be a need for formal consensus actions on various policy matters and administrative items,” Knoll said in his report to the commission. “Once consensus is reached on a given item or policy, it will be noted and then incorporated into a final General Plan amendment document for formal consideration and recommendation to the City Council.”
Knoll said the process will include a California Environmental Quality Act document and environmental clearance recommendation.
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Big field forms for District 3 supervisorial seat; more candidates join other county races
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – As candidates continue to join the races for several county offices, by far the biggest field that's formed is for District 3 supervisor.
Two-term Supervisor Denise Rushing said she won't seek reelection, and the open seat has drawn a lot of interest.
Registrar of Voters Diane Fridley said this week that the District 3 race has now grown to eight candidates.
The candidates to date include Craig Bach, John Brosnan, Marv Butler, Mark Currier, Nine Green, Herb Gura, Wilmer “Buddy” Lipscomb and Jim Steele, Fridley said.
In the race for District 2 supervisor, incumbent Jeff Smith so far is being challenged by Clearlake City Council members Joyce Overton and Jeri Spittler, according to Fridley.
In the sheriff's race, Fridley said first-term incumbent Frank Rivero is being challenged by Bob Chalk and Brian Martin.
In other election developments, Richard Ford, the county's assistant auditor-controller, has joined the race for assessor-recorder, along with local businessman Logan Weiper.
Longtime Assessor-Recorder Doug Wacker told Lake County News in a recent interview that he was still deciding about whether he will run for reelection. Fridley said he has until March 7.
Several other county offices – including county clerk-auditor, district attorney, superintendent of schools and treasurer-tax collector – so far have single candidates, Fridley said.
Fridley said many of the candidates currently are circulating in-lieu-of-filing-fee petitions, which allow them to gather signatures in order to reduce the amount of their filing fees.
She said candidates are not required to submit the in-lieu petitions. Local candidates must file a declaration of candidacy, a nomination paper with a minimum of 20 valid signatures and pay the filing fee in order to qualify to have his/her name printed on the ballot.
Valid signatures on in-lieu petitions may be counted towards the candidate’s nomination signatures as well as a monetary value towards the candidate’s filing fee, Fridley said.
The full list of candidates is below.
– Assessor-Recorder: Richard Ford, Logan Weiper (incumbent Doug Wacker has so far not filed to run for reelection).
– County Clerk-Auditor: Cathy Saderlund (appointed incumbent).
– County Supervisor, District 2: Joyce Overton, Jeff Smith (incumbent), Jeri Spittler.
– County Supervisor, District 3: Craig Bach, John Brosnan, Marv Butler, Mark Currier, Nine Green, Herb Gura, Wilmer “Buddy” Lipscomb and Jim Steele (open seat; incumbent Supervisor Denise Rushing is not seeking reelection).
– District Attorney: Don Anderson (incumbent).
– Lake County Superintendent of Schools: Brock Falkenberg (open seat; incumbent Superintendent of Schools Wally Holbrook is not seeking reelection).
– Sheriff-Coroner: Bob Chalk, Brian Martin, Francisco “Frank” Rivero (incumbent).
– Treasurer-Tax Collector: Barbara Ringen (appointed incumbent).
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