Supervisors to consider eminent domain case; also to discuss letter over Riviera West water fines
LAKEPORT, Calif. – When it meets this week the Board of Supervisors will hold a hearing on an eminent domain action in relation to a new force main project in Clearlake and discuss sending a letter to the state over millions in fines that may be levied against a local water system.
The meeting will begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday, May 22, in the board chambers on the first floor of the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.
At 9:15 a.m., the board will hold a hearing on a proposed resolution declaring the public necessity for taking and condemning several Clearlake properties for the nearly 5-mile-long sanitary force main pipeline project. As part of the action, the board will consider authorizing the filing of suit for condemnation.
At 10:50 a.m., the board will consider sending a letter to the Regional Water Quality Control Board on behalf of Riviera West Mutual Water Co.
The water company is facing the possibility of fines and penalties totaling nearly $2.9 million because it's alleged that the company failed to submit monitoring reports and violated effluent discharge rules over a several year period, as Lake County News has reported.
In an untimed item, Supervisor Jeff Smith and Supervisor Jim Comstock will ask the board to consider a $5,000 contribution to the new Clearlake Summer Program proposed by Dr. Bill MacDougall.
In other business, at 9:10 a.m. the board will present a proclamation appointing new Lake County Poet Laureate Elaine Watt for the years 2012-14.
The full agenda follows. Note: Some items are out of order due to an addendum being issued after the original agenda.
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: (a) Presentation of Proclamation appointing Elaine Watt as Lake County poet laureate for the years 2012-14; and (b) presentation of proclamation designating May 20-26, 2012, as EMS Week.
9:15 a.m., A-6: Hearing, consideration of proposed resolution declaring the public necessity for taking and condemning property for the sanitary force main pipeline project and authorizing the filing of suit for condemnation.
9:25 a.m., A-7: Presentation of proclamation designating the week of May 20-26, 2012, as National Public Works Week.
9:30 a.m., A-8: (a) Public hearing, consideration of proposed ordinance amending Article IX of Chapter Fifteen of the Lake County Code relating to the inspection program for all water vessels launched in
Lake County; (b) consideration of proposed installation of boat cleaning stations at Redbud Park in the city of Clearlake and in the city of Lakeport; and (c) presentation of preliminary results of the water and bottom sediment studies performed by the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
10:30 a.m., A-9: (a) Consideration of proposal to cancel further disbursements for the Collier Avenue Affordable Housing Project; (b) consideration of proposed HUD-50077-CR Civil Rights Certification Form (PHA Commission) Certification of Conformity with Civil Rights Act); (c) consideration of proposed PHA Certifications of Compliance with the PHA Plans; (d) consideration of proposed Section 8 Administrative Plan Revisions of March 13, 2012; (e) consideration of proposed Section 8 Family Self-Sufficiency Action Plan revisions of March 13, 2012; and (f) consideration of proposed Lake County Housing Commission Budgets for Fiscal Years 2011/2012 and 2012/2013.
10:50 a.m., A-10: Consideration of proposed letter to state representatives and to the Regional Water Quality Control Board regarding fines and penalties imposed on the Riviera West Mutual Water Co.
NONTIMED ITEMS
A-11: Supervisors’ weekly calendar, travel and reports.
A-12: Continued from May 8, (a) consideration of request to waive the formal bidding process and make a determination that competitive bidding would produce no economic benefit to the county; and (b) consideration of proposed Budget Transfers B-218 and B-219, from Wages and Salaries, for the purchase of a new phone system; and (c) consideration of agreement between the county of Lake and Nor-Cal Communications Inc., for purchase and installation of new phone systems for Health Services.
A-13: Consideration of proposed agreement between the county of Lake and California Forensic Medical Group (extending previous agreement for one year), for medical services in Lake County detention facilities.
A-14: Consideration of proposed agreement between the county of Lake and the Lake Transit Authority to establish a pilot program for a seasonal bus route along the Mt. Konocti Trail.
A-15: Consideration of request to award Bid No. 12-13 to furnish aggregate screenings and aggregate base for upcoming pavement preservation projects.
A-17: Consideration of request for funding for the Clearlake Summer Recreation Program.
CLOSED SESSION
A-16: 1.Conference with Labor Negotiator: (a) County Negotiators: A. Grant, S. Harry, L. Guintivano, M. Perry and J. Hammond; and (b) Lake County Deputy Sheriff's Association, Lake County Correctional Officer's Association and Lake County Deputy District Attorney's Association.
CONSENT AGENDA
C-1: Approve minutes of the Board of Supervisors meeting held on May 15, 2012.
C-2: (a) Adopt proclamation appointing Elaine Watt as Lake County poet laureate for the years 2012-14; (b) adopt proclamation designating May 20-26, 2012 as EMS Week; and (c) adopt proclamation
designating the week of May 20-26, 2012 as National Public Works Week.
C-3: Change IHSS Advisory Board Member Willowoak Istarwood’s membership category from Disabled Consumer to Senior Consumer.
C-4: Approve lease agreement between the county of Lake and Canon U.S.A for copy machine supply and service, at an amount of $5,966.85 per month, plus a maintenance charge of $0.0054 per copy, and authorize the hcair to sign.
C-5: Adopt resolution establishing 2012-2013 Appropriations Limit in the county of Lake.
C-6: Adopt resolution authorizing grant project – Lake County District Attorney’s Workers’ Compensation Insurance Fraud.
C-7: Adopt resolution authorizing the director, Public Works Department, to sign a notice of completion for work performed under Agreement dated Dec. 30, 2011.
C-8: Public Services Approve Budget Transfer B-258, for $8300, from Permanent Salaries, for the purchase of one ADA compliant pool lift for the Middletown Pool, and authorize the chair to sign.
C-9: (a) Approve easement deed and direct clerk to certify for recordation (APN 039-43-66 - Carol Hoyt Childers), and approve right of way agreement between the county of Lake and Carol Hoyt Childers for the construction of the wastewater force main sanitary sewer line, and authorize the chair to sign agreement.
C-10: Approve easement deed and direct clerk to certify for recordation (APN 004-010-39 - Running Creek Casino) for the construction of the mainline sewer extension for purpose of providing sewer service to property located at 615 E. State Highway 20, Upper Lake, CA.
C-11: Accept dedication and conveyance of mainline sewer extension for purpose of providing sewer service to properties located at 635 and 665 East State Highway 20, Upper Lake (APNs 004-010-50 and 004-010-51 - Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake), and authorize the chair to sign.
C-12: (a) Approve the 2012-2013 appropriation limit of 1.0197; and (b) adopt resolution establishing 2012-13 appropriations limits for for special districts governed by Board of Supervisors
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Riviera West Mutual Water Co. facing potential $2.8 million fine
KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – A local water system is facing the potential for millions of dollars in fines for not filing required reports with the state for several years and for allegedly violating effluent discharge regulations.
The Riviera West Mutual Water Co. has been notified of a proposed administrative civil liability order for $2,844,000 from the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board.
The proposed fines are for failing to submit monitoring reports and for effluent violations based on the late reports.
At its meeting next Tuesday, May 22, the Board of Supervisors will consider sending a letter to the Regional Water Quality Control Board regarding the potential fines and penalties.
Riviera West Mutual Water Co. serves 245 water connections in the 505-residential lot subdivision, according to the Board of Supervisors’ report.
The matter has stretched over 14 years, according to Tom Smythe, chair of the Riviera West Mutual Water Co. Board of Directors. Smythe also is a water professional himself, working as a water engineer for the county of Lake.
“The real issue is that we’re being fined for not reporting on the possible discharge of backwash water,” said Smythe.
He explained that Riviera West’s treatment plant takes water from Clear Lake, treats it, runs it through filters, chlorinates it and then runs it through the distribution system.
Solids from the lake water stick on the filters, which are cleaned with treated drinking water, said Smythe. That “backwash” goes into a tank and is allowed to settle.
Smythe said that the system was allowed, at one point, to discharge that backwash into Clear Lake, but since about 2005 the water company has been discharging it on land.
“We’re being fined for polluting Clear Lake with drinking water,” said Smythe, adding, “It’s going to basically bankrupt us.”
In May 1996, the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board issued waste discharge requirements for discharge of the backwash water, including the requirements for quarterly reports and effluent limitations, with which the state alleges the company did not comply.
The regional water board placed a cease and desist order on Riviera West Mutual Water in 2002 after it was discovered that the company had submitted no monitoring reports from June 1996 through May 2002.
It also is alleged that the company did not regularly turn in the reports from Jan. 1, 2004, and July 1, 2007.
In November 2007 the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board informed Riviera West Mutual Water that it was being assessed $3,945,000 in administrative penalties for failing to submit several years’ worth of monitoring reports, as Lake County News has reported.
Water board officials told Lake County News in early 2008 that according to the company’s permit requirements, it was to submit monitoring reports on the discharge of effluent from its drinking water plant.
Due to the proposed fine amount, Smythe said he and the board now are considering options that include declaring bankruptcy, dissolving the water company outright or convincing Lake County Special Districts to take over the water system.
Hearing still to be held
While the suggested fine currently stands at nearly $2.9 million, Ken Landau, assistant executive officer for Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board’s Region 5, said no fines have yet been finally assessed.
The Regional Water Quality Control Board had scheduled a February hearing in the matter, but new evidence was introduced shortly before hearing was to be held. That led to Landau and other staff suggesting the hearing be postponed in order for the evidence to be considered.
He said a new hearing date has not yet been set, but the matter is not on the board’s June meeting agenda. The board’s next meeting after that is in August.
“In terms of possible outcomes there are a number,” Landau said.
Landau said the board could decide that there were no violations and, as such, no fines would be assessed.
Alternately, the board could go with discretionary fines or rule the violations were significant enough to merit the full $2.8 million. He said it’s unlikely the board would assess fines higher than the $2.8 million.
Findings of some violations would be accompanied by mandatory fines, Landau said.
A 2004 change in state law requires mandatory fines for not complying with monitoring requirements. The California California Water Code establishes a minimum penalty of $3,000 for each 30-day period in which a report was not submitted.
While Landau said there could be a finding of no violations, Smythe does not appear to be prepared to make that argument.
“There were violations,” he said.
However, Smythe also faulted the state for not following its own enforcement policy, which requires that the state notify the discharger within a certain timeframe if it has incurred penalties of more than $30,000.
The new state law requiring mandatory minimum penalties went into effect in January 2004, and the same month Riviera West Mutual Water began accruing penalties, Smythe said.
“We didn’t submit their reports, there’s no question about that, but they didn’t follow their own policy, either,” said Smythe.
He said his predecessors on Riviera West’s water board attempted to negotiate with the state to get the penalties reduced “and they didn’t get very far.”
Smythe and his current board colleagues haven’t gotten very far, either.
He said they’re now facing a proposed penalty that’s nearly 10 times the water company’s annual income, which the memo for the Board of Supervisors puts at $345,000.
Riviera West’s water board is facing several options, including dissolving the company before the Regional Water Quality Control Board holds its hearing, said Smythe.
In that case, the state would have to go after all 505 property owners, with a per-parcel penalty estimated to be $5,700 or $11,600 per water connection, he said.
“They have said they won’t do that,” Smythe said.
Another option is to have Lake County Special Districts take over the system, but Smythe said, “I don’t think there’s a lot of interest there.”
Still another possibility is to dissolve the water company and let the California Department of Health Services – which regulates public water supplies – take over the water system.
“They can charge whatever they want,” and are not subject to rate increases or rules, Smythe said.
He added, “We’re basically in a no-win situation.”
A meeting of Riviera West property owners was held Thursday evening so the board could apprise them of the situation.
Smythe said only about half a dozen people showed up to hear about what the water company is facing, which he called “disappointing.”
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Board approves funds for study to identify Geysers noise emissions
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday agreed to allocate $35,000 to go toward a study to track the source of noise emissions coming from The Geysers geothermal steamfield on Cobb.
Lake County Special Districts Manager Mark Dellinger asked the board to approve funding the study after the Anderson Springs Geothermal Mitigation Fund Committee reached unanimous consensus on the proposal at a recent meeting.
Dellinger said both Calpine and the Northern California Power Agency – or NCPA – which have plants at The Geysers have tried unsuccessfully to isolate the source of the noise, which has been occurring late at night for more than a year.
Calpine and NCPA also have agreed to provide matching funding if needed for the study, Dellinger said.
He said Calpine agreed to contract for the study but had concerns about the perception of impartiality if it managed the work alone.
Supervisor Jim Comstock said he was concerned that having the mitigation committee oversee the study, since the group only meets about once a month.
Dellinger said he was willing to coordinate the effort.
“I don’t necessarily need more work to do but this is extremely important,” he said, adding, “We have to solve this.”
Dellinger said the committee was happy to meet more often if necessary. Supervisor Denise Rushing said managing a project by committee may not be the best way.
Bruce Carlsen of Calpine was on hand for the meeting, indicating the company was supportive of the study.
“This has a lot of people in industry frustrated,” said Dellinger. He said he’s scratching his head over it as well.
NCPA representative Bob Young said the agency also wanted the study done. They’ve done their own noise surveys without making a final conclusion, and also have upgraded equipment.
Longtime Anderson Springs resident Meriel Medrano, who also is a member of the mitigation committee, is one of the area residents who has experienced the disconcerting noise firsthand since January of 2011.
“It’s two definite noises,” she said.
One of the noises sounds like a huge industry generator, the second like an airplane circling an airport, Medrano said.
Medrano said she started logging the sounds on Feb. 2, 2011, along with the temperatures to figure out “what in the world this thing was.”
She usually hears the sounds beginning at 6 p.m. and going until after midnight, coming from a westerly direction. It happens most days of the week, but not all.
In the winter time, when the nearby creek is roaring and it’s pouring down rain, she can stand outside and hear nothing. But in her house, under the same conditions, she hears the noise.
Medrano said her house sits high on a hill, and is built into a hillside. A nearby neighbor, who couldn’t attend the meeting, also experiences it and is logging when she hear the sounds, Medrano said.
“It’s just really a strange thing and we don’t know how to solve it,” said Medrano, asking the board for its help.
Medrano said the sound lasted all day last Sunday, Mother’s Day, beginning at 7 a.m. and continuing until midnight, but the previous day there had been no noise.
Board Chair Rob Brown asked Medrano if she was OK with Dellinger’s proposal. She said yes. “I don’t know what else to do.”
Joan Clay, chair of the mitigation committee, said she believes Medrano. While she can’t hear the sound at her own home, she said she’s heard it while visiting Medrano’s home.
She asked when the study would start. Dellinger said they would get it going as quickly as possible.
Comstock moved Dellinger’s recommendation to authorize the allocation as well as to authorize Calpine to procure the services because time is of the essence.
Dellinger told Lake County News following the meeting that he believes Medrano and the neighbors hearing the sound are genuinely suffering.
While he doesn’t think that drilling is responsible for the sound, he said that everything needs to be considered.
“Noise is not an easy thing to diagnose,” he said.
The noise appears to affect the people who live higher on the hillsides, Dellinger said.
It also isn’t always easy to predict when it may occur. He visited Medrano’s house and didn’t hear it, but then was told that after he left the sound started.
Calpine and NCPA have spent time and money to study the problem and improve equipment, Dellinger said.
One drilling rig in Bear Canyon that’s managed by NCPA had new sound blankets placed on it and noise complaints from other area residents ceased, but it offered no relief for Medrano and her neighbors, Dellinger said.
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Supervisors take no action on proposal to deny city encroachment permit
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday chose to take no action on a resolution to direct Public Works staff to refuse an encroachment permit for a proposed Lakeport water project, but the discussion served to underline continuing disagreements between the county and city.
Those disagreements are centered in the South Main Street area, where the water project would take place and which the city also wants to annex.
Supervisor Anthony Farrington asked the board to consider the resolution over his concerns that the water main extension – which the city says is necessary to loop its system and address water pressure and fire suppression concerns – won’t allow adjacent property owners to hook into it.
Lakeport City Manager Margaret Silveira, Lakeport Mayor Stacey Mattina, Utilities Director Mark Brannigan, Community Development Director Richard Knoll and City Engineer Scott Harter attended the meeting to address the resolution.
“This is a hard item to bring before this board,” said Farrington, who pointed out that the county also is studying putting a water main in the area.
Farrington said the city has maintained that it’s not its policy to provide water services outside of its jurisdiction. “My response is there is no such policy and there has never been such a policy,” said Farrington.
Last month the city council directed staff to formalize its policy, which Silveira said last week is not yet complete.
He said there are existing agreements with the city to provide water to some county water users if necessary due to algae blooms. The city also has accepted wastewater, and had an agreement to take wastewater from Lampson Field.
Regarding the Lampson Field agreement, Farrington said the city has indicated it won’t renew unless the county and city reach an agreement on annexation. There is $1 million in federal funding at stake if the agreement doesn’t continue, according to Farrington.
The city’s water main extension project along Parallel Drive, Farrington suggested, should actually have been rerouted down Main Street where there exists a larger commercial tax base, and where the county could have participated with up to $1 million.
“This project absolutely makes no sense to me,” he said.
He suggested it was a “strategic Trojan horse” approach to annexation and was a disservice to the people he represented.
Farrington also alleged that city staff had made “less than candid” comments to area business owners about being unable to provide services, and that Silveira previously had claimed that Lakeport has lower water rates than Kelseyville and Finley, which Farrington said isn’t true.
City officials explain need for project
Silveira, in her comments, began by stating that Farrington – who sits on the city’s redevelopment oversight board – voted to deny the city administrative costs to which it is entitled under the law phasing out redevelopment.
She said she had a two-hour phone conversation with him, asking how they could improve communications.
“I did advise him of what we were proposing,” she said in relation to the water main project.
Silveira suggested that Farrington could meet with city staff once a month or come to city council meetings occasionally in order to keep abreast of what is happening with the city.
She said the resolution was premature. “The city has not submitted an application for an encroachment permit,” she said and, as such, the county can’t make a decision on the project’s merits because no application yet exists.
Silveira also said an engineer had informed her that pairing the county and city water lines is workable.
The proposed resolution, she suggested, could bring with it unexpected, negative consequences, and added that the project has been in the city’s master plan for some time.
Farrington responded to Silveira’s comment about the oversight board by saying he had fiduciary responsibilities.
“Information that you give people needs to be credible, and not misleading,” he said, adding that of the $700,000 in tax increment revenue the city was receiving, more than $400,000 was going to administrative staff, well over the 10 percent the county allocates to its staff to help with redevelopment’s phaseout.
Lakeport city staff later told Lake County News that the actual amount going to cover administrative staff was about $250,000.
Board Chair Rob Brown told Farrington that redevelopment was not on the agenda.
Brannigan told the board that the city has been planning since the 1980s to loop its water mains to provide reliable, safe drinking water.
“This has been a process,” Brannigan said, with the city now having the opportunity to take advantage of long-term, low-interest financing from USDA.
Supervisor Denise Rushing said that if the board was going to consider the project’s merits, she would have plenty of questions, such as why the city is proposing to do only a mitigated negative declaration when the county has spent $1 million on environmental studies in the same area.
She asked County Counsel Anita Grant if the board could take action on the matter, and Grant suggested they could give direction to Public Works Director Scott De Leon.
“What we’re being asked to do is symbolic but it’s also got a pretty strong message to it,” said Brown, suggesting there were other ways to address the situation than through Farrington’s proposed resolution.
“If you’re really concerned about relationships, this probably isn’t the way to do it,” Brown said.
Brown pointed out that in the Kelseyville-Finley area the county didn’t let some property owners hook into the system. Later in the meeting, Special Districts Administrator Mark Dellinger explained that not allowing those hookups was a mitigation to protect agriculture in the area.
Silveira said the city is happy to provide property owners in the area with water, but they must go through the annexation process.
Farrington replied that he felt the city and county were at impasse on the annexation issue.
Brown said annexation was not on the agenda, either. “I don’t think this is the only alternative that we have in order to get some agreement,” he said. He also felt the resolution could do more harm than good.
When asked about the status of talks with the city, County Administrative Officer Kelly Cox told the board that negotiations over annexation were still under way. “We don’t have an agreement yet.”
He said he has not been involved with the water issue. “It appears that it could be in conflict with what we’re proposing to do,” he said.
Cox said it seemed appropriate not to issue a permit, and that he understood and agreed with Farrington’s concerns, adding that it didn’t make sense to install two water lines.
Grant said the county had the chance to “issue a warning salvo” to the city if it’s going to take a position against the project. She said a collaborative effort between the two jurisdictions may help resolve the issues.
De Leon, who was at the meeting, indicated he understood the board’s concerns and would come to them before approving any such permit.
Supervisor Jim Comstock had concerns over the resolution and, using Navy vernacular, he indicated that he would rather “put a shot over the bow,” adding, “If you don’t listen there will be one down your smoke stack, that’s where I’m coming from.”
Brown asked if the city would consider any other options to annexation. Silveira said yes, if it’s a “win-win” for everyone.
Calling for common sense
Supervisor Jeff Smith said he wanted common sense to prevail, and it didn’t appear that it was in the circumstance with the city. He said providing water to additional customers made sense to him.
“I feel like we’re being held hostage over an annexation,” he said.
In Clearlake, there are three different water systems, run by different entities, and it works all right, he said.
“Let’s get something done. We can help each other out,” Smith said, suggesting that they needed to take annexation out of the picture and consider it separately.
Harter told the board that an area in north Lakeport where the city provides water to county residents on an as-needed basis is a good example of issues that come up and impact the city’s capacity, and is a reason why it’s difficult to offer utilities outside of a system jurisdiction.
“It impacts us in a way that we have no control over,” he said.
Silveira said the city has had a good relationship with the county, and that the water main project was about what was best for the city.
She added that passing the resolution would be denying what is best for Lakeport residents.
On Tuesday evening, Silveira gave the Lakeport City Council a brief report on the meeting.
She said Farrington made misleading statements about the city, her and her staff.
“It’s very disappointing,” she said.
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Board to consider denying permits for city water main extension project
LAKEPORT, Calif. – This week Supervisor Anthony Farrington will ask the Board of Supervisors to deny permits to the city of Lakeport for a proposed water main extension project in an area the city is seeking to annex.
The Board of Supervisors' meeting will begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday, May 15, 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 9:45 a.m., Farrington will ask his board colleagues to approve a proposed resolution directing the Department of Public Works not to give encroachment permits to the city of Lakeport for the South Main Street and Soda Bay road right-of-way.
The proposed project is within the 197-acre area that the city wants to annex, a process the county has objected to over the last several months. At stake is hundreds of thousands of dollars in sales tax annually.
The city is proposing a water main project in order to loop its water system in the interests of fire suppression and public health, according to City Manager Margaret Silveira.
Farrington wrote in his memo to the board, “This proposal is not only a disservice to the property owners who need service, but it is duly unfair for the current rate payers within the City limits to pay for additional infrastructure, which they do not need, when their existing system is antiquated and is in need of repair and upgrades.”
Silveira said the city has applied for U.S. Department of Agriculture loans for several projects, including the water loop.
“We're quite a ways from doing it,” said Silveira, who explained that there is a long process to reach the final project, which would need council approval.
While the project is in county jurisdiction, county residents won't be able to connect to it. Silveira said that's because it's the city policy not to offer water services out of its jurisdiction.
“The city is not in a position to allow any hookups unless they’re annexed, said Silveira.
She added, “That's a policy that every city has.”
The Board of Supervisors recently approved a $27,000 agreement with Ruzicka and Associates to do a feasibility study that considers developing ground water supplies for that area as well as extending a water main from the Kelseyville-Finley water system, which Farrington told Lake County News was necessary because the city refuses to provide water to this area.
Silveira said the city has to protect its water system. She said the city doesn't know if the annexation even will go through. “We still need to do what’s best for the city.”
Farrington told Lake County News that there has never been such a city policy in writing regarding not providing water services outside its limits.
Last month, the Lakeport City Council directed staff to come back with a formal policy on offering services within its jurisdiction. Silveira told Lake County News that the policy is not yet complete.
The city has historically provided services outside of city limits, Farrington said, pointing to a tie-in in North Lakeport that serves County Service Area No. 21 where the city will provide county residents water in the event that the county system is unable to effectively treat lake water during algae blooms. “This agreement also allows us to provide water to city residents,” he said.
He said the city also currently accepts sewage from Land’s End residents and many other residents from South Lakeport off of Soda Bay Road, which is in the county boundaries, and there has been an agreement – which just expired – where the city would accept sewage from Lampson Airport.
Farrington said city staff “signaled that they have no desire to support the renewal of this agreement unless the city and county reach a deal regarding the city's desire to annex the South Main/Soda Bay Road corridor,” and as a result there is a risk of losing $1 million that Congressman Mike Thompson helped secure to provide sewer to Lampson Airport.
Silveira said Farrington didn't reach out to the city before placing the item on the board agenda. She said she will be at Tuesday's meeting for the discussion.
Last Wednesday, after the agenda was posted, Farrington emailed Lakeport Mayor Stacey Mattina to notify her of the proposed resolution.
In the email Farrington told Mattina that he felt it was in the best interests of adjacent property owners to be able to tie into the system, and said, “there is a need for fire hydrants and adequate fire protection along this corridor. These facts coupled with the reality that residents within the incorporated area of the City as ratepayers will be required to pay for the costs of this proposed main extension with a future rate increase; and not realize any benefit for their investment requires me to take a position of opposition.”
The city previously had cited its agreement with Yolo County Flood Control and Water Conservation District – which holds the water rights to Clear Lake – as a barrier to allowing the hookups.
Farrington told Mattina in his email that he had made multiple requests to the city for its contract, and when he didn't get a response he contacted Yolo Flood Executive Director Tim O'Halloran.
“After my reading of this contract and in my conversation with Mr. O'Halloran there is nothing in the contract that would prohibit Yolo from providing water to consumers outside of City limits as consistently presented by you and your staff,” Farrington wrote. “This agreement only requires that Yolo Flood grant permission or approval prior to the sale and distribution of water outside of City limits.
He added, “In light of this truth, our Board will be having a joint meeting with the full Yolo Board in the near future and this issue will be one of our proposed agenda items that will be discussed.”
The full agenda for Tuesday's meeting 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: Presentation of proclamation designating the week of May 19-25, 2012, as National Safe Boating Week.
9:30 a.m., A-6: Hearing, nuisance abatement of 8426 Lake St., Lower Lake, CA (012-054-20 - A.C. Trary).
9:45 a.m., A-7: Consideration of proposed resolution of direction to the Department of Public Works regarding encroachment permits in the South Main Street and Soda Bay road right-of-way.
10:15 a.m., A-8: (a) Consideration of request to allocate $35,000 in AB 1905 funds to conduct a noise study in the Southeast Geysers area (funds to be matched, if necessary, by Calpine and NCPA); and (b) consideration of request to authorize Calpine to procure noise monitoring and evaluation services and manage the study.
NONTIMED ITEMS
A-9: Supervisors’ weekly calendar, travel and reports.
A-10: Consideration of request to approve out of state travel for Facilities Maintenance Tech Aden Pierson to attend the West Coast Energy Management Congress, May 23-24, 2012, in Seattle, Wash.
A-11: Consideration of proposed third amendment to the agreement between the county of Lake and the Regents of the University of California for sediment sampling in Clear Lake (adding nitrogen
analysis and extending the study one year, at an increase of $19,577.88).
CLOSED SESSION
A-12: 1.Conference with Labor Negotiator: (a) county negotiators: A. Grant, S. Harry, L. Guintivano, M. Perry and J. Hammond; and (b) (b) Lake County Deputy Sheriff's Association, Lake County Correctional Officer's Association and Lake County Deputy District Attorney's Association.
A-12: 2. Sitting as the Board of Directors of the Lake County IHSS Public Authority: Conference with Labor Negotiator: (a) agency negotiator: Carol Huchingson and F. Buchanan (b) California United Homecare Workers Union Local 4034.
A-12: 3. Conference with Legal Counsel: Existing Litigation pursuant to Gov. Code Sec. 54956.9, Subd (a): 1. County of Lake v. David Moses dba Alternative Solutions; 2. Lake County Deputy Sheriff’s Association v. County of Lake (Sheriff’s Department) (Public Employment Relations Board); 3. Hawley v. State of California, et al.
A-12: 4. Public employee evaluation: Community Development Director Rick Coel.
CONSENT AGENDA
C-1: Approve minutes of the Board of Supervisors meeting held on May 1, 2012.
C-2: Adopt proclamation designating the week of May 19-25, 2012, as National Safe Boating Week.
C-3: Approve the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) Grant Agreement, in the amount of $10,000, for the FY 2012-2012 Free Feral Cat Neutering for the Public Project, and authorize the Animal Care and Control director to sign.
C-4: Approve participation agreement between the county of Lake and the California Mental Health Services Authority for data collection and evaluation training services as part of the Multiyear Regional Data Workgroup Program, through FY 2013-2014, in an amount not to exceed $35,600, and authorize the Mental Health director to sign.
C-5: Approve Drug Enforcement Administration Marijuana Eradication (DEA) Agreement between the county of Lake and Drug Enforcement Administration of the United States Department of Justice (DEA will pay Lake County $175,000 to defray the cost relating to the eradication and suppression of illicit marijuana), and authorize the sheriff to sign the letter of agreement and authorize the chair to sign
the agreement, workplace certifications and grant assurances.
LAKE COUNTY SANITATION DISTRICT BOARD OF DIRECTORS
C-6: Approve the purchase and authorize the Special Districts administrator/assistant purchasing agent to issue purchase orders for one Prowler Jr. Easement Machine from 3T Equipment Co., in
the amount of $27,993, and one trailer from 101 Trailer & RV, in the amount of $2,245.98, for the cleaning and maintenance of various wastewater collection system piping.
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