The county has budgeted $1.7 million for Upper Lake's downtown revitalization, including $14,000 for the new clock, officials reported Tuesday.
Board Chair Denise Rushing, who had the item placed on the agenda, said the clock was part of redevelopment's original plan for the downtown revitalization, now under way.
She said she had challenged the town's residents to show their support, and they had done so.
“The bottom line is, Upper Lake wants their clock,” said Rushing.
The town once had such a clock, said Rushing. In 1914 the Womens Protective Club funded the clock, and also provided donations for street lights, a fire bell and a flag.
The group formed in 1913 in the wake of countywide epidemics and diphtheria at the time the county was fighting over the Cache Creek dam.
In the years since, that original clock has gone missing, but townsfolk are engaged in a search to find it, Rushing said. At the same time, they've launched a letter writing campaign to local officials, asking for the funds for a new one.
County Administrative Officer Kelly Cox said it was rumored that the old clock wound up in Healdsburg, although officials there don't know its whereabouts. However, he said some local residents were headed over to check out a Healdsburg warehouse where it was thought the old clock might be kept.
Rushing recalled that at a previous meeting she had reported that she hadn't heard from any Upper Lake residents about wanting the clock, but that situation has since changed.
Town business owner and resident Shalean Smith assured the board that the town wanted its focal timepiece.
“To me it's kind of like the finish on the cake,” she said, referring to the work that's been done recently in downtown, including new sidewalks and street lights.
Another business owner, Tony Oliveira, agreed. “We do want the clock. We've been working at it for a long time.”
Rushing worried that, with the town's businesses struggling, they wouldn't be able to raise even half of the estimated $14,000 needed for the clock.
Cox said the $1.7 million budgeted for Upper Lake included the $14,000 for the clock's full amount.
Supervisor Jeff Smith said he's encouraged by the huge steps being taken in Upper Lake, but told the board that he had voted against a previous clock project in Lakeport.
However, Smith was ready to wholeheartedly support finding and renovating the original clock. “I'd support the old clock in a heartbeat,” he said, adding that he can't see spending $14,000 for a new one.
Rushing tried to sell him on the idea, reminding him that the money was budgeted and that the clock was part of the original plan.
Cox said that even if they can find the clock in Healdsburg, they'll likely have to pay to get it back, and renovations also will be expensive.
Supervisor Anthony Farrington said when he came into office the clock in Lakeport was a hot topic, and he supported it because the groundwork had been done by his predecessor on the board, Karan Mackey.
Farrington said he didn't really support paying the money for the clock, preferring to put the funds toward infrastructure. However, he was willing to consider it if the community put forward a good faith effort to help raise 50 percent of the cost, an amount Rushing thought was too high given the current economic conditions. She suggested a 10- to 20-percent community match.
With Supervisor Rob Brown out of the room the board deadlocked in a 2-2 vote on having the community provide 10 percent of the clock's purchase price, a motion made by Supervisor Jim Comstock.
Smith instead suggested a 25-percent match. Farrington said they should shoot higher. He said they've similarly challenged other communities around the lake to do the same.
Cox said they may be able to find a clock for less money.
Referring to fundraising efforts going on in Clearlake Oaks – where that town also is working on a clock project – Cox said the total amount that the county and the redevelopment agency have spent in Clearlake Oaks far exceeds what they've spent in Upper Lake.
“Every dollar that we spend here is the community's money,” he said, particularly when it comes to redevelopment.
Shalean Smith asked if there was a time line to complete the fundraising. Comstock said there should be a time line and a report, otherwise it won't get done. He asked Smith about what would be a good time frame; she indicated some time was needed because food drives and other charitable efforts currently are going on in the community.
Rushing said they could bring it back in six months.
Farrington stayed firm on the 25-percent match. He said the community could do something like sell fireworks. Shalean Smith pointed out that, while fireworks may be legal in Lakeport, they're not in Upper Lake.
The board unanimously approved a motion for the county to provide 75 percent of the cost, with a 25-percent community match, and to get a price on the restoration of the original clock. If it can't be found, they'll look for a replica.
In other redevelopment news, the board received the annual report on the Northshore's redevelopment area.
Administrative analyst Doug Willardson outlined current projects in the area, including downtown Upper Lake, Hinman Square in Nice, and Lucerne's Third Avenue Plaza and Promenade, as well as the sheriff's substation and Lucerne Harbor Village.
He said the agency's current indebtedness to the general fund totals approximately $4,074,319, with $2,431,945 in tax increment generated.
“The county is planting seeds, really,” said Rushing.
In the communities where they've seen the most success, residents and businesses have stepped up and played a part, Rushing said.
“I'm really impressed with what we've done so far,” with the county able to hold its own despite tough economic times, she said.
Cox noted the agency hasn't had to issue bonds yet.
He told the board that they had formed the agency at a good time. “The stars were aligned,” he said.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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