LAKEPORT, Calif. – As a result of the recent rains and concerns about ground movement, county officials have decided to close a portion of Hill Road East near the Lakeside Height subdivision, where a landslide has destroyed several homes.
The Lake County Public Works Department issued the closure notice late Tuesday afternoon.
Effective immediately and until further notice, Public Works has closed Hill Road East to all traffic from just north of Sutter Lakeside Hospital to Lakeshore Boulevard due to safety concerns.
With the amount of rain that's been falling over the last several days, “It just seemed to be the most prudent thing to do,” said Jill Ruzicka, the county of Lake's public information officer.
“There has been some movement that's been detected in the hillside,” which has raised concerns for public safety, Ruzicka said.
Ruzicka said Public Works has put together a comprehensive detour plan with signage to alert motorists traveling through the area.
Sutter Lakeside Hospital is still accessible on Hill Road East and can be reached by taking the Park Way Exit on Highway 29 or by taking Park Way from Lakeshore Boulevard, Public Works reported.
Ruzicka said the closure is just below the intersection into the Lakeside Heights subdivision, so residents will be able to access their homes by following the same route as that used to reach the hospital.
Beginning in March 2013, a landslide developed at Lakeside Heights, the hilltop subdivision of 29 homes that overlooks Hill Road East, as Lake County News has reported.
Several homes were destroyed – some split in half, others fell off the hillside – because of large holes and cracks that developed in the ground. The Board of Supervisors subsequently declared a local emergency.
Pinpointing the exact cause of the landslide has been a source of contention between county officials and subdivision property owners, with the latter group filing suit against the county last year, alleging that the county water system was at fault.
In June, the county filed a cross-complaint against the Lakeside Heights property owners, alleging they were responsible for the situation.
One factor that appears to be agreed upon amongst the parties is that water in the hillside contributed to the situation in some way.
In an effort to keep the slide area dry and stable, last fall the county and the homeowners partnered to pay for and install plastic over about five acres of the slide area.
However, by early this year the plastic was damaged and the Board of Supervisors decided not to replace it due to the high cost of what was considered to be only a very temporary fix.
The landslide's potential impact on Hill Road East has been a longtime concern for the county.
In February Public Works Director Scott De Leon told the Board of Supervisors that he and his staff had been focused on keeping the road open.
At that time De Leon had said that the chances of the hillside suddenly collapsing and closing the road “are probably not that high.”
Still, the impact of the inclement weather, with the soil becoming saturated and heavy, led to the decision this week to close the road, according to Ruzicka.
“If the soil were to come down, we just want to make sure there is no one there,” she said.
Once the rainfall is past, Ruzicka said the county will reevaluate the situation and decide whether to reopen Hill Road East.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
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