LAKEPORT, Calif. – This fall Lakeport City Manager Margaret Silveira and city department heads – including Administrative Services, Engineering, Finance, Public Works & Utilities, Planning, Economic Development and Lakeport Police – have been conducting a business outreach program within the community.

The program consists of the city manager and city management team members walking door-to-door in the business districts and contacting business owners or managers to solicit suggestions or concerns regarding issues that may affect them or their customers.

In addition, these visits provide an opportunity for business owners to provide input regarding how the city of Lakeport could assist them in their business operations or suggestions about what city departments can do to provide better services throughout our community.

City management team members conducted business outreach visits on Sept. 6, Oct. 4 and Nov. 1. So far, they have received tremendous support and feedback for the program.

Those contacted provided information related to various issues and concerns in the city. To date, the majority of the feedback and concerns have been related to public safety, economic issues, utilities and streets and traffic.

The city's departments are currently working to address concerns that have been presented. While some concerns and issues can be quickly addressed, others are much larger in scope and cost and may not be able to be immediately addressed.

Silveira and management team members will again be out conducting business outreach in selected areas of the city Friday, Dec. 13, and they look forward to meeting more business owners.

In addition to our door-to-door contacts, city officials want business owners and managers to know that they are free to contact the city manager or any city department head or their management to provide suggestions or discuss concerns at any time.

The city's businesses are one of its most valuable resources and officials want to assist them however they can. They also remind city residents that local businesses are the ones who continually donate funds and supplies to youth and community programs which make the community a better place. Please thank them for all their efforts by shopping local and continuing to support the community.

Silveira wants the community to know that the city's business and community outreach programs will continue to expand in the future.

Please contact us with concerns and suggestions at any time. They want to hear from you about how they can improve operations and communications throughout the city.

Silveira, city department heads and other city staff can be reached by finding contact information in the city's personnel directory at www.cityoflakeport.com/departments/contact.aspx .

The city maintains other detailed information and resources on its Web site at www.cityoflakeport.com , and also provide other community information and alerts on the Facebook pages for city of Lakeport, https://www.facebook.com/CityofLakeport , and Lakeport Police Department , https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lakeport-Police-Department/176101292414821 .

You also can follow Lakeport Police on Twitter at https://twitter.com/LakeportPolice , or the city of Lakeport at https://twitter.com/CityofLakeport .

Citizens also can sign up to receive public and traffic safety alerts for the city of Lakeport by setting up a text or email account at www.nixle.com .