The Cristallago project will be back before the board at 9:45 a.m. Tuesday, at which time supervisors are expected to vote on the Sierra Club Lake Group's appeal of the project's final environmental impact report, which the Lake County Planning Commission certified this past October, as Lake County News has reported.
The actual merits of the project are scheduled to go before the Board of Supervisors in March.
Cristallago Development Corp. – which includes developers Matt Boeger and Mark Mitchell – envision the development including up to 650 homes, 325 resort units including a hotel, an 18-hole Jack Nicklaus signature golf course, a commercial development and open space on 860 acres along Hill Road.
At the Jan. 26 board meeting, when a lengthy public hearing took place, people from around the county and beyond came to hear the discussion.
One of the people in the audience was developer Dick Price of Modesto, who is leading Lake County Resort Partners' efforts on the Provinsalia project, which the Clearlake City Council approved last April.
Provinsalia would include 565 single-family homes, 100 condominiums and a nine-hole golf course on 292 acres located at 17012, 17055 and 17065 Dam Road and along Cache Creek.
During public comment Jan. 26, former District 1 Supervisor Ed Robey – in speaking against Cristallago – raised concerns about the capacity of the county's Basin 2000 sewer pipeline, which carries treated wastewater to The Geysers geothermal steamfields, where it's injected to help in the production of steam.
Robey argued that a big project like Cristallago would end up taking up as many as 1,000 residential sewer connections that current property owners have a right to expect they'll be able to use.
Pointing to Price in the audience, Robey said he should be worried about the capacity for his project as well.
After the meeting, Price told Lake County News that the sewer issue is one that's been on his mind.
“I've been concerned from day one that they might not get sewer solved quickly enough,” said Price.
Price also was at the Lake County Planning Commission's Oct. 22 meeting when it approved Cristallago's final EIR.
Also in the audience that day was Ken Porter of Sonoma County, who is proposing the Valley Oaks housing project at 18196 and 18426 S. Highway 29 near Hidden Valley Lake.
Valley Oaks is proposed to include 380 single-family homes, senior housing, commercial and retail development and a 49-bed senior care/assisted living facility, according to its draft EIR, which the Lake County Planning Commission approved in February 2009.
Emily Minton, a county planner, told Lake County News that Valley Oaks' final EIR is being completed, but there is no date for it to go before the Lake County Planning Commission yet.
Price said he has a connection to the Cristallago project.
He's friends with some of the property owners, including Richard and Kimberly Evans, and Mitch Adams, the latter being a golf course developer, he said.
Price said he helped get all the parties to the table, where they sat down and put the deal supporting the project together.
“This project is important to me because they're friends,” he said.
Jim Burns, a member of Cristallago Development Corp.'s team, said Price has invested no money in the project, and that he couldn't speak to Price's level of involvement in the project.
“I'd like to see Matt (Boeger) make it happen,” Price said.
While Boeger and his team say that they've spent about $2 million to get Cristallago to this point, Price said about $4 million has been spent on Provinsalia so far.
Price said he's moving forward on the next steps for Provinsalia, which include a subdivision map application and work on the roadway entry into the project.
He said he expects applications on both items to be submitted to the city of Clearlake this month.
There also is an air quality study that needs to be done, work with the Army Corps of Engineers and an application that must be made to the Local Area Formation Commission (LAFCO) for Provinsalia to be taken into the Konocti County Water District, Price said.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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