LAKE COUNTY – The county of Lake is entering the home stretch in its effort to purchase more than 1,500 acres on Mt. Konocti.
The purchase, the groundwork for which began almost two years ago, enters escrow next month, according to county Public Services Director Kim Clymire.
The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to hear and take action to open escrow at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15, during a regular meeting in the board chambers at the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.
Clymire expects the board to approve completing the purchase, noting they've voted 5-0 on the purchase in the past and the county has the money to buy the land in its budget.
He called buying the mountain property a “once in a lifetime” opportunity, noting that the county wants to preserve and conserve the land, which is sacred to many people.
Major funding for the project is comes from geothermal revenue, donations, Bureau of Land Management, and potential state and federal grant funds, Clymire said. Donations from the community to date total more than $42,000.
In 2007, the Fowler family – who has owned the acreage on the mountain for decades – contacted the county and offered it first right of refusal on two parcels – one of about 1,526 acres and a second parcel, on Buckingham Peak, that measured 176 acre in size, as Lake County News has reported.
The county already has purchased the Buckingham Peak portion of the property at a cost of $1.2 million, said Clymire. That property encompasses the communication site and currently generates approximately $85,000 annually in revenue, which will increase as additional antenna space on the site is leased. Those funds are earmarked to improve and maintain the mountain.
The next step is to enter escrow on the larger property, which the county is purchasing for $2.6 million. Clymire said that, once acquired, that parcel will be used as an open space county park and preserved and conserved as the precious natural resource that it is.
The option to purchase deadline calls for the purchase to enter escrow by Sept. 15, with escrow closing by year's end, said Clymire.
At most, escrow should last 60 days. However, Clymire added, “It's pretty clear cut so it might even happen in 30 days.”
Clymire said the county's staff have worked to make the purchase process as open to the public as possible.
“We've tried to have a transparent process,” he said.
To that end, the county has held a series of five public night meetings in Lakeport and Lower Lake to discuss the purchase and begin developing the Master Management Plan for the site.
He said a sixth meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 26, in the board chambers at the courthouse.
Clymire said the county will continue to do more focused master management plan meetings in the coming year, which will be used to determine issues such as signage.
He estimated that the mountain will be open to the public in the spring of 2010, but in the interim people can visit the property with a county-issued permit.
Some of the issues currently being worked out is where a road up the mountain should go, as Mike Fowler wants it away from the house on a piece of property he's retaining nearby.
If horses are allowed, they'll need to create a horse path and a nonmotorized vehicle and bike path around an entry gate, and Clymire said they may need to cut a trail.
Clymire said county staff has done three public radio interviews and made about 20 local presentations at clubs and organizations to explain the purchase process. Presentations have been made to Rotary, Kiwanis, Lakeport Women’s Club, the North Shore Garden Club, business associations, Lake County Land Trust, Sierra Club, the countywide Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee, Lake County Historical Society and Redbud Audubon.
He said he's due to appear before the Lake County Heritage Commission and Judge's Breakfast this month, and Redbud Audubon in September.
The purchase has been reviewed by the Lake County Planning Commission, the Robinson Tribal Council, and the Habematolel Tribal Council, and had a booth at the Heron Festival at Clearlake State Par, Clymire said.
The effort also received letters of support and approval from all of the groups he visited as well as from Congressman Mike Thompson, US Sen. Dianne Feinstein, State Parks, Bureau of Land Management, Big Valley Rancheria, McLaughlin Mine and hundreds of individuals. Nine people have expressed opposition to the acquisition or have concerns regarding the transparent process, he said.
Anyone with input for or against the Mt. Konocti property acquisition is asked to attend the Sept. 1 board meeting and to submit comments for the record in writing to Clymire at
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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