LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lake County Planning Commission has given the go-ahead to the county redevelopment agency's proposed purchase of the Lucerne Hotel.
The matter went before the commission at its meeting last Thursday.
Earlier this month the Board of Supervisors approved a purchase option agreement to buy the 75,000-square-foot building and the seven acres on which its sits for $1.35 million from Castlepoint Ministries, as Lake County News has reported.
The property is located at 3700 County Club Drive and 6607 14th Ave.
The redevelopment agency is proposing to purchase “The Castle,” as it is known in Lucerne, and currently is exploring its use in housing a culinary and hospitality training program in cooperation with local community colleges. Another proposal for the building is to convert it into a conference center, an amenity listed in the county's redevelopment plan.
Commissioner Cliff Swetnam noted he has spent the night in the historic building, which was built in the 1920s and has since passed through numerous owners.
“It's kind of hard to miss this particular Lake County landmark,” said commission Chair Clelia Baur.
The planning commission held a brief public hearing on the proposed purchase to explore if it conformed with the county's general plan.
Planner Keith Gronendyke went over the item with the commission, explaining that two vacant manufactured homes on the property either will be removed by Castlepoint Ministries or the redevelopment agency.
Commissioner Gil Schoux asked if the county could afford the building. Deputy County Counsel Bob Bridges explained that the funds would come through the redevelopment agency.
Schoux expressed hope that the proposals for the building would work out. “It's been a dead horse for years,” he said.
Bridges explained that the idea behind the purchase is to revitalize the Lucerne community.
No public comment was offered on the purchase proposal.
Baur, in whose district the building is located, said the proposal corresponds to the Shoreline Communities Area Plan.
She said she believed that, with some imagination, some good mixed uses are possible in the building.
Swetnam moved to approve the conformity report, which Commissioner Bob Malley seconded. The commission approved the motion 5-0.
The Board of Supervisors is planning a September public hearing on the purchase option, which county officials said expires on Sept. 30.
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