The board's last meeting took place on Dec. 15, and it was shortly before that that Clearlake's shopping center plan – to be anchored by a Lowe's home improvement center on the site of the old Pearce Airport property off of Highway 53 – was made public.
A short public comment period on the plan's mitigated negative declaration environmental document was held from Dec. 1 to Dec. 31.
The Clearlake City Council and Clearlake Redevelopment Agency will hold a special joint meeting at 6 p.m. Thursday at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive, to discuss the plan and consider moving forward without an environmental impact report (EIR).
Board members Denise Rushing and Rob Brown both sent letters to the city of Clearlake to voice their concerns about the project and the proposal not to do an EIR, as Lake County News has reported.
During the Tuesday meeting's public comment period, Mark Borghesani, whose family built the new Kelseyville Lumber home center which opened last year, spoke to the board about his concerns regarding the Lowe's plan, which he estimated will have broad impacts across the county.
Borghesani, who noted he would be against any “big box” corporate chain development like Lowe's, said the $9.5 million put into Kelseyville Lumber was money he had to pay, not redevelopment money used to support the project. He was referring to the Clearlake Redevelopment Agency's proposal to spend at least $6 million to help improve the site and facilitate the development.
Rushing asked to take up a special discussion regarding the Lowe's development, citing the Thursday Clearlake meeting and the desire to have the full Board of Supervisors weigh in on the project. The board voted unanimously to hold the discussion.
“We as a body haven't had a conversation about that project, but in my view it does affect the county greatly” – especially in terms of the potential for closed business and blight, Rushing said.
She estimated that Kelseyville Lumber, Kelseyville Appliance and other similar businesses in other areas of Lake County would be most impacted by Clearlake's plan.
“I'm not sure what options this board has,” said Rushing – other than to suggest a full EIR be conducted.
Brown urged the board to take a position regarding the EIR.
Noting that he's opposed to big box intrusions, Brown said there's a process anyone proposing a project should go through, and that the city of Clearlake needs to be consistent.
Late last year, the county's Mental Health Department wanted to purchase the now-closed Lake Escape Resort in Clearlake and use it for to offer mental health services. Brown noted that the city demanded a “very significant environmental report” be done to convert the resort into the mental health facility. The county backed out of the project in the spirit of cooperation after the city's planning commission voted it down.
Supervisor Jim Comstock, who said he wouldn't take a position on big box stores, nevertheless pointed to restrictions in the general plan on the stores.
Newly appointed Board Chair Anthony Farrington said the general plan places a major restriction on big boxes and requires them to go through a planned development process that includes an analysis of the impact on existing businesses.
Comstock agreed with Brown that everyone should follow the process, which he was concerned the city of Clearlake is trying to circumvent. He suggested the board “respectfully request” the city follow it and monitor the impact, which will be beyond the city's limits.
“I understand and appreciate Clearlake's desire to develop a regional shopping center,” said Comstock, who added that he believes they've been open about it.
But Brown quickly replied, “I don't think they have been that open about it,” suggesting Clearlake's leaders have used “methods of deception” and refused to respond to direct questions about the project from county representatives.
“We have not been privy to very open information from them at this point,” Brown said.
Supervisor Jeff Smith, whose District 2 area includes Clearlake, said he also wouldn't come out for or against the plan at this point.
However, Smith – a former Clearlake City Council member – said when the city purchased the property from the county in the 1990s, the plan was to put some type of development there. A use study concluded that a home improvement store like a Lowe's was the best use, he said.
He said he's asked city officials for information and was turned down, as it was a confidential negotiations process. Smith said he thought the plan was released as soon as the city could do it.
“Do I wish there would have been more public meetings other than this one on the seventh? Definitely,” Smith said.
Smith said he wasn't surprised about the plan. Brown said others on the board weren't so much surprised by the plan as the proposal to move forward with it without an EIR.
He also complained about the short public comment period and its scheduling. “They're giving 30 days over the holidays, between Thanksgiving and Christmas,” Brown said. “It's nonsense.”
Smith said an EIR was required for the Clearlake Wal-Mart because it was proposed for a place that didn't have the right zoning, but the Pearce Airport property is properly zoned.
Brown contended that the city's basic environmental report is flawed. While he's not a fan of EIRs – which he said he believes often are used to try to shut down projects – in this situation he feels it's necessary.
“In this case there's so much to consider,” he said. “This is the biggest development any of us will ever see in Lake County.”
Brown moved to request the city do an EIR that looks at the project's economic impacts.
Rushing seconded his motion, but asked for further discussion, and wanted to have other impacts considered as well, including traffic.
Farrington, who felt all of his fellow board members had hit on important concerns, said that, for him, the issue isn't about being against Lowe's or big boxes.
He explained that there had been “posturing and holding out” when it came to reaching a countywide agreement against big boxes, with both Lakeport and Clearlake not signing on.
For him, the major concern was one of impact. “It bleeds through the jurisdictional boundaries in terms of the impacts on the economy,” he said.
For that reason alone, through either an EIR or a basic economic impact, Farrington said the city should be able to answer questions about the economic impact.
Smith said he didn't know that a full EIR should be required as much as a focused document. The land, he said, has a lot of fill that needs to be replaced in order to make the site usable. The city essentially owns a worthless piece of dirt that will cost as much to fix as to develop.
Brown noted that the county had been working with the city on a plan to improve the Lake County Sanitation District (LACOSAN) sewer system in that area, which would be needed to help the project go through.
“We don't have a commitment that we have to honor,” said Brown.
He added, “We don't have to accommodate them to slit our own wrists.”
Comstock said he felt an EIR focused on economic impact and traffic was appropriate.
Rushing said she disagreed with the idea that EIRs are meant to stop projects; rather, she said, they're a way to mitigate issues that come up with projects.
She said she felt they didn't have enough time to call for a focused EIR, because the short time frame hadn't allowed them to fully review the project.
“I'd like to suggest they stop and consider an EIR,” she said, noting it should be a full EIR, not a focused one.
Brown suggested they can could request a focused EIR on main concerns – economic impacts and traffic – and any other concerns arising from public review. He altered his motion accordingly.
Farrington suggested that an analysis with LACOSAN also is necessary.
Smith said the airport development likely only will take about 10 percent of the estimated 3,000 new hookups that upgrades to the Clearlake sewer system will provide.
“This sewer project just doesn't help this development project,” Smith said. “It helps the rest of the buildout up in the Avenues and Lower Lake, too.”
Rushing said some of the issues that will come up in an EIR would be trips caused by the store and resulting sprawl. Brown said the city's current report makes the claim that the city will reduce its carbon footprint by having Lowe's at the airport.
Brown's motion to request Clearlake do a focused EIR on the specific issues the board outlined passed 5-0.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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