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Lakeport Police logs: Saturday, Jan. 10
Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026
00:00 EXTRA PATROL 2601100001
Occurred at Lake County Law Library on 3D....
Lakeport Unified School Board supports exploring upgrades for Westshore Pool
LAKEPORT, Calif. – After meeting with state officials earlier in the day, on Thursday evening Lakeport Unified's maintenance director and superintendent presented to the district board the necessary next steps in the process to upgrade and reopen the Westshore Pool.
The board meeting room was packed with students, parents and local officials – including Lakeport City Council members Stacey Mattina and Martin Scheel, Lakeport City Manager Margaret Silveira, and Supervisor Anthony Farrington and Deputy County Administrator Alan Flora – who came to hear the pool discussion.
The pool normally would have been open by this time for the Channel Cats and the swim teams for Clear Lake and Kelseyville high schools to begin practice.
However, Lakeport Unified Superintendent Erin Smith-Hagberg discovered a December 2003 letter from the Division of the State Architect that raised issues about the pool's accessibility and structural safety.
Those issues weren’t addressed by the district’s leadership a decade ago, and the district – concerned about potential liability – has kept the pool closed while seeking more information from the state.
On Thursday four Division of the State Architect staffers met with representatives of the county, city and the Channel Cats to look over the pool, Smith-Hagberg said.
She thanked Farrington for taking the initiative to ask the Division of the State Architect for making the site visit. Smith-Hagberg and Dave Norris, the district’s director of maintenance, operations and transportation, previously had asked for a site visit and were denied, but a letter from Farrington apparently caused the agency to realize the pool is a community asset.
She said she thought it was a beneficial meeting, and raised everyone's understanding of the situation.
The meeting began, Smith-Hagberg said, with confirmation that the Division of the State Architect had not certified the pool – which was built by the county in 1973 – and, as a result, the district is in violation of the state education code, and board members are personally liable if any injuries occur.
The county was helpful in getting the pool's original plans to the Division of the State Architect on Monday, with the agency doing a “cursory review” of the plans followed by a quick visual inspection on Thursday, she said.
The Division of the State Architect offered the district options, including getting the pool certified, which is the only way students can begin to use it again. Smith-Hagberg said other options included having other entities take over the pool or assume liability.
Norris thanked Farrington for helping expedite the visit from the state. “That's incredible. This doesn't happen.”
Some of the concerns raised by Division of the State Architect staff included the pool's hillside location. Norris said the district was advised to hire a design team that includes geotechnical and structural engineers to collect data on the hillside and pool structure and come up with a plan to reinforce it.
The design teams finding and calculations would then be sent to the California Geological Survey and, if that agency agreed with the district's design team, the district could then pay $2,000 to open a permit with the Division of the State Architect, Norris said.
The division’s regional manager, Leroy Tam, who was among the state officials who visited on Thursday, said reinforcing the hillside could include boring holes in the ground and filling them with rebar and building a retaining wall. “He didn't think it was too involved,” said Norris.
Once the district submitted plans for addressing the pool's issues to the Division of the State Architect, there would be an eight-week waiting period before the agency began reviewing them. If they were approved, the district would then go out to bid, according to Norris.
Smith-Hagberg said the hillside stability needed to be explored before anything else was done. She said she and Norris recommended moving forward on that aspect.
In addition to the pool, Norris said the building at the pool also would need to be checked, with the walls bored into to check the rebar and the footing excavated. “Everything has to be verified, as if you are initially building it from the ground up.”
Norris and Smith-Hagberg didn't have definite cost estimates for some of the work, and the visiting state officials would not offer comment on potential costs, Norris said.
Agustin Merodio, coach of the Channel Cats as well as the Clear Lake and Kelseyville high school swim teams, said they were told during the visit that they could put in a portable, Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant bathroom, and that they don't need showers. They also could demolish the small building at the site, thus avoiding potentially high costs.
Farrington told the board that there was an offer on the table to help the district save money. Engineer Cliff Ruzicka, who designed the pool, is offering his services – including soil and structural analysis and all other steps in the process to upgrade the pool – for free.
“There's no downside to bringing him in,” Farrington added.
Farrington also suggested resurrecting a joint powers agreement that the county, city and school district had once had for operating the pool. “I think there's an opportunity for us to work together,” he said, adding that all he asked was for the school district to be willing to financially contribute to the pool's improvement.
Earlier this month the Board of Supervisors approved Farrington's request to allocate $15,000 toward getting the pool reopened, with the city of Lakeport agreeing to purchase a new pump after several years of shouldering most of the pool costs.
Clear Lake High Principal Steve Gentry, seated in the audience, said it was nice to see the Board of Supervisors getting involved once again after dumping the pool in the district's lap 12 years ago, with the city and the Channel Cats coming on later to help support the facility.
Farrington responded that it was his understanding that when the joint powers agreement was in force, the county carried the pool's responsibility for 20 years, with the city and district not pitching in. The county finally stepped away from the pool when the agreement reached its sunset.
He said he's trying to bring the county back to a joint powers agreement, but to get board support the school district needs to be willing to contribute.
Jennifer Hanson of the Channel Cats said the club has its own liability insurance, and she wanted to know if the swim team could use the pool in the summer if it assumes liability. Smith-Hagberg said the district's attorney indicated that was a possibility.
“Everybody here is supportive of getting the pool up and running as long as I don't have to give them my house to do it,” said Board member Dennis Darling.
Pointing out that the Division of the State Architect's representatives made a point of saying the board members are personally liable for the uncertified pool, Board member Wally Cox said he wanted to make sure everything is done right before the pool is reopened. “It's got to be ironclad or I'm not going to go for it.”
Silveira said the city is starting to look for summer lifeguards, and the city insurance carrier has told them that nothing has changed related to the city's liability. Smith-Hagberg said the district's attorney will want to talk to the city attorney about setting up an agreement for the city to run the pool this summer.
Smith-Hagberg also pointed out that the economic feasibility of upgrading the pool will come out in the state certification process.
The board hoped to have information from Ruzicka by the time of its meeting next month. Smith-Hagberg said the district also could hold a special meeting, depending on how fast Ruzicka can submit his initial findings.
Flora told Lake County News following the discussion that county officials came away from the meeting with the state believing that there actually are many options for getting the pool reopened, and county staff also is available to help with studying the facility's needed improvements.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
Lakeport Planning Commission approves removing golf course project from general plan update
LAKEPORT, Calif. – On Wednesday the Lakeport Planning Commission got to work on the early groundwork for updating the city's general plan, agreeing to remove the language for a golf course and housing development on city property and looking at how agricultural lands fit into the plan.
Richard Knoll, the city's retired Community Development director who now is working part-time as a special projects coordinator, took the general plan discussion to the commission Wednesday evening.
He said the process, which will unfold over several commission meetings, will involve a focused update, review and possible amendment of the city's general plan, last updated in 2009.
There also may be updates to other documents, including the city's zoning ordinance. “Frankly, we're not sure about that at this in point in time,” said Knoll.
The goal Wednesday evening, Knoll said, was to introduce the project, address questions from commissioners and reach consensus on some items to help move the project forward.
Typically, when communities are engaging in general plan updates there is a citizens advisory committee – independent of the planning commission – formed to meet regularly and arrive at consensus on policy goals and objectives, he said.
In the case of the city's current project, Knoll said they are eliminating the citizens/advisory committee approach, “primarily because it's a very focused project that we're involved with here,” and having the planning commission also assume that citizen advisory role.
One of the main discussion points Wednesday was the city's sphere of influence, the area that extends beyond its limits where urban growth is expected to occur in the future.
Going back to 1992, when the city went through a comprehensive general plan update, it included definitive policies about annexation and its sphere of influence, which were reaffirmed when the general plan's latest version was adopted in 2009, Knoll said.
In 2011, city staff completed a study under the California Environmental Quality Act and completed a mitigated negative declaration to annex 197 acres along S. Main Street. Knoll said the city received numerous comments from the county of Lake, Sierra Club, Lake County Land Trust and other public entities – primarily county departments – that will be addressed in this process.
Knoll said the Lakeport City Council approved a proposed resolution on Jan. 21 to begin the general plan update process.
He said the Lake Local Agency Formation Commission has a related matter before it regarding a statutorily required update to the city's sphere of influence.
Some of the general plan updates are basic language changes, like removing references to the city's now-dismantled redevelopment agency, Knoll said.
One of the key items Knoll discussed with the commission was the specific plan area designation that covers the City of Lakeport Municipal Sewer District land, which totals more than 700 acres.
CLMSD Director Mark Brannigan told Lake County News that 241 acres of the property is within the city's limits.
Knoll said the specific plan designation covers the city-owned CLMSD parcels and some private properties south of the current sphere of influence, running along Hopland Road.
In 2006, the Lakeport City Council had approved an agreement with Boeger Land Development – the same firm that proposes to develop the Cristallago project near Lakeport – for a golf course and housing development on the land, as Lake County News has reported.
Knoll said that the project called for between 600 and 1,200 homes to be built, along with a golf course, on the land.
“What I really wanted to point out is that language, according to what I am told, is no longer consistent with city policy,” Knoll told the commission.
When the current general plan was being formulated in 2007 to 2008, the Lakeport City Council was negotiating an agreement for the development of the site, he said.
“That project is not apparently going forward,” said Knoll, and the city's intent is to remove from the general plan the language referring to the possibility of a development project on the CLMSD site.
He said the city wants to go back to the idea that the land will be used for providing wastewater treatment, storage and disposal, the reasons for which the land originally was purchased.
With that language regarding the project being removed, “The idea that there is a need to do a specific plan goes away,” said Knoll.
Knoll suggested the specific plan area be redesigned to refer to public and civic use, and that the privately held lands – including a Catholic cemetery – be removed from the city's sphere of influence. He added that keeping the city-owned CLMSD land within the sphere of influence made sense.
The commissioners reached 4-0 consensus – with Vice Chair Tom Gayner absent – to accept Knoll's proposals to remove the specific plan area language relating to the development project, redesignate the CLMSD property for public and civic uses, and drop the privately owned properties from the sphere of influence.
Knoll and the commission also explored the issues of including prime agricultural land in the sphere of influence. Such lands aren't primary areas for annexation, but nonetheless Knoll said the fact that the lands are included had been a source of criticism of the city by the county of Lake.
The city was suggesting a new approach – excluding such lands, including those under Williamson Act contract – from the sphere of influence altogether or adopting a policy that mirrors how the county handles its agricultural zoning in order to be totally consistent, Knoll said.
Knoll said he liked the idea of simply excluding the lands, which he said doesn't preclude a future general plan from reconsidering their inclusion.
Another issue that has to be corrected in the general plan update, Knoll said, is that the city's urban reserve designation was not defined in any way in the current general plan.
Commission Chair Ken Wicks Jr. pointed out that an area of agricultural land along S. Main Street that is used for cattle grazing is a flood plain that includes Manning Creek.
“Nobody in their right mind would build on that land for one good reason, it's soft land,” Wicks noted, adding that the acreage includes wetlands and has been used for agriculture and hunting for many years.
Knoll said local environmental groups had criticized the city for including the Manning Creek area within the city's urban growth area, and he proposed also pulling it from the sphere of influence.
With the land's flood zone and riparian habitat, “It's really an environmentally sensitive area,” said city Planning Services Manager Andrew Britton.
Knoll said there also had been a discussion about making the city's sphere of influence coterminous with the city limits, which he called “ludicrous.”
“That doesn't allow for any kind of growth,” said Commissioner Suzanne Russell.
Knoll said he will bring back to the commission more information and resources on the floodplain and agricultural uses.
The commission is next set to meet on March 12, with Knoll suggesting a special meeting on the general plan process be called in March.
Wicks said he hopes to have more community input as the process continues, noting that will make the process better. “We would like to see the town come together and say, this is what we'd like to do.”
Also on Wednesday, the commission passed a resolution to clarify rules for commercial signage, specifically relating to when a second freestanding sign may be appropriate.
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Lakeport Unified School Board to discuss Westshore Pool Thursday
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Unified School District Board of Trustees this week will discuss the situation surrounding the Westshore Pool, which remains closed due to concerns about its safety and accessibility.
The board will meet in closed session at 5:30 p.m. before convening in open session at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 13, at the Lakeport Unified District Office, 2508 Howard Ave.
The district office reported that the Westshore Pool item that Dave Norris – the district's director of maintenance, operations and transportation – will take to the board is for discussion only, with no action agendized.
No report was available ahead of the meeting, however, the district indicated that there will be a detailed report offered at the meeting regarding the structural improvements needed to open the pool based on the requirements of the Division of the State Architect and the Field Act, which mandates earthquake resistant construction.
The city of Lakeport has taken primary responsibility for running the pool for several years, despite the fact that the pool is owned by the school district and there is a 2004 contract between the city and school district for sharing pool-related expenses.
Last fall the pool pump broke and the Lakeport City Council voted to fix it – the cost is estimated at about $9,500 – but asked the district to begin contributing to the pool's costs once again.
In December, the school board had indicated it wanted to find ways to open the pool so the Channel Cats and the Clear Lake High School swim team could begin practicing for competition this month.
However, last month Superintendent Erin Smith-Hagberg told the Lakeport City Council that over the Christmas holiday break she found a December 2003 letter saying that the pool – constructed in 1973 – was built without the Division of the State Architect's approval or inspection, as Lake County News has reported.
The letter includes “preliminary findings of the complex based on limited information” and raises issues with the pool's accessibility, said its construction does not meet current state code, and points to potential safety issues with its structure and the location of some equipment.
Based on statements by the school district and the Division of the State Architect's responses to questions from Lake County News, the district did not originally respond to the agency's concerns.
As a result of the letter's recent discovery, the district has not reopened the pool. Quail Run Fitness Center has offered the swim team a place to practice so the swimmers can compete this spring.
Smith-Hagberg told the Lakeport City Council last month that priority repair items totaled about $34,000.
At the Board of Supervisors' Feb. 4 meeting, Supervisor Anthony Farrington asked for, and received, approval to provide $15,000 – which already had been set aside for the pool – to help fund needed capital improvements or professional services in order to get the facility reopened.
The supervisors, also at Farrington’s suggestion, agreed to hold off on allocating another $15,000 that had been set aside in this year’s budget for a solar project at the pool in advance of getting all parties – city, county and school district – to the table to discuss contributions.
They also agreed to send letters to the Division of the State Architect asking to meet with local representatives as soon as possible. Farrington himself sent such a letter to the Division of the State Architect asking to meet to work on the issues.
“The County is extremely concerned about the impact the closed pool will have on the local swim teams, which rely on this facility for meets, and want to pursue a swift resolution to the DSA's concerns,” Farrington wrote. “This facility is also a key regional recreational amenity that would be sorely missed.”
Engineer Cliff Ruzicka, who originally designed the pool, also has volunteered his time and professional services to help improve the facility, Farrington said.
Farrington also sent a letter to Lakeport Unified Board Chair Phil Kirby Feb. 7 informing him of the county’s monetary contribution to the pool and noting he had reached out to the state in an effort to resolve the matter.
“The Board recognizes the benefits that the pool provides to the residents of the unincorporated areas of the County, as well as the residents of Lakeport and students of the Lakeport Unified School District,” Farrington wrote, adding the board recognized the necessary capital improvements are too much for one or two entities to bear.
“We strongly encourage you to review the District's budget to determine the availability of funds that could also be allocated towards the cost of these improvements and make a financial contribution to this worthwhile project,” Farrington said.
The Lakeport Unified School District contacted the Division of the State Architect last week to ask for a meeting, according to Ken Hunt, a Division of the State Architect spokesman.
Hunt said that meeting – which will include a discussion about the outstanding issues noted in the original letter – was to take place this week.
As to whether the issues could be resolved so the pool can be reopened, Hunt told Lake County News that’s a question the district will need to answer.
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County authorizes new veterans photo ID card
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Because so many veterans do not have a quick or easy way to show proof that they are U.S. military veterans, the Lake County Board of Supervisors has authorized the Lake County Veterans Service Office to begin issuing veteran photo identification cards.
The Veterans Service Office will follow Veterans Affairs guidelines to verify that the individual has served in the U.S. military and was discharged under honorable conditions or for medical reasons.
The veteran identification card can be useful to verify veterans' status for participating stores, restaurants and businesses offering discounts or promotions to veterans.
The Veterans Service Office has started to create a list of local and national businesses that offer discounts to veterans; local businesses that want to be added to the list should contact the local agency.
Applying for the veterans card also will give the Veterans Service Office the opportunity to inform veterans about their entitlement to federal, state and local benefits and to assist them in applying for those benefits.
Veterans who wish to obtain a veteran ID card will first need to obtain an application which can be found and printed from the Veterans Service Office Web site, http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/VeteransServices.htm , or by calling the Veterans Service Office at 707-263-2384.
After completing the application contact the Lake County Veterans Service Office to make an appointment for either a Tuesday or Thursday between the hours of 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Lakeport office only.
Veterans will need to bring to the appointment a legible, original, copy of their DD214/military discharge or a copy of any VA rating decision where the veteran has been rated with a service connected disability.
If either of these documents are not available, contact the Veterans Service Office and they can assist you in obtaining your DD214 or VA Rating Decision.
Veterans also will need to show at the time of the appointment a driver’s license or other form of legal identification.