LUCERNE – More improvements to the Northshore community of Lucerne will come to fruition this summer, county officials told community members on Saturday.

Eric Seely, the county's deputy redevelopment director, gave a report on county projects at a Saturday community town hall meeting, held at the Lucerne Senior Center and hosted by District 3 Supervisor Denise Rushing.

One of the main redevelopment projects under way for the community is the Third Avenue Plaza, which Seely said will be built across from the post office at the former location of the “Blue Monster,” a three-story home the county purchased and demolished last year.

The county's design for the project is now at 90-percent plan check, said Seely. However, “The designer's aspirations exceeded our budget,” said Seely, so the plans are being scaled back a bit.

The county's renderings of the plaza show it will include a lawn area, seating, trees, water access, water steps and a pier.

Seely said a combination of redevelopment money, and state and federal grants will fund the plaza project.

Lucerne's new plaza also will be the site of the Northshore's first implementation of traffic calming, which will make use of bulbouts – curb extensions which help narrow the roadway – and enhanced crosswalks to make the area more pedestrian-friendly, Seely said.

The county is working with Caltrans on the permits for the project right now, and Seely reported that the process is moving along well.

The plaza isn't the only place in Lucerne where redevelopment money is being spent, said Seely.

Lucerne Creek Park is slated for some minor improvements, said Seely, which so far have included creek stabilization.

The county has met with adjacent property owners to get their input and one, Donna Christopher, is helping with plans to add redbud trees and conduct a wildflower seeding project, Seely said.

Christopher brought with her to the meeting 72 little redbud trees which she's propagated from cuttings from trees around the county. Many of the tiny trees already were budding and some even had tiny pink flowers.

Then there is the issue of the senior center itself, which shows signs of significant water damage in its main dining room and corridors.

Last month the Board of Supervisors – sitting as the redevelopment board of directors – approved spending redevelopment funds to repair the Lucerne Senior Center's roof, as Lake County News has reported.

Seely said they're moving ahead with minor repairs to protect the building through the rainy season.

The county is now seeking bids from roofing contractors to repair to reroof the center, which Seely said is expected to cost about $30,000 and would likely be completed by this summer.

The building, he added, has many other issues as well, including needed repairs to its electrical system, kitchen, and heating and cooling, as well as requiring new insulation and weather stripping.

Redevelopment will need the community's support in order to continue with those improvements, said Seely.

Rushing asked the roughly 60 community members at the meeting about their preferences when it came to repairing the senior center or the community's clubhouse, which is located along Highway 20.

The response was that residents valued both buildings, but were willing to put off the clubhouse repairs in order to focus first on the senior center's more pressing issues.

Another redevelopment project, said Seely, is Harbor Village, the group of four small, alpine-style buildings located next to Harbor Park.

He said the plan has been to use the village as a business incubator, giving new businesses a chance to get a good start before moving out into new locations in town.

Rushing said the county also is receiving interest from local artists, who are interested in having a presence there.

If a business or artist is interested in Harbor Village, they're invited to call Seely at 263-2580.

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

{mos_sb_discuss:2}