The meeting will begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday in the Board of Supervisors chambers at the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport. TV8 will broadcast the meeting live.

The board voted at its Jan. 5 meeting to request the attorney general conduct the investigation into whether or not Sgt. David Garzoli's flight training under a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) marijuana eradication grant constituted a misappropriation of public funds, as Lake County News has reported.

The board also will consider sending identical letters to the DEA and the Federal Aviation Administration.

A County Administrative Office review of the matter concluded that the grants had funded $98,898 of flight time during which Garzoli had received training.

Altogether, Garzoli logged more than 300 hours that appear to have been amassed on county time, but county officials are unclear about how much of that might need to be repaid to the federal government if it's determined that only unapproved flight training – and not marijuana eradication activities – was taking place.

The draft letter that will be considered Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. was written by Board Chair Anthony Farrington, with help from county counsel.

The letter explained that the county has received the DEA grants since 1998, and that they're administered by the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

The funds “are primarily intended for payment of deputies'/officers' overtime, and reserve officers' salaries and overtime while those deputies and officers are actively engaged in the cannabis eradication process, as well as for per diem as appropriate, and other direct costs related to the actual conduct of cannabis eradication, such as rental of equipment and vehicles, fuel for vehicles and aircraft, and minor repairs and maintenance necessitated by their use to support cannabis eradication.”

The sheriff's office must annually submit an operational plan to the DEA for its approval, and the 2009 operational plan included a request that a helicopter flight training component be added, Farrington's letter noted.

“The Board was never informed or asked to approve such a component to this operational plan,” the letter said.

As was noted at the Jan. 5 meeting, the DEA approved the operational plan, and although DEA officials said they had overlooked the flight training request and probably wouldn't have approved it, they nonetheless considered the matter for 2009 closed.

However, Farrington's letter explained that the use of the funds for helicopter training began before the 2009 approval from the DEA. The administrative review presented earlier this month showed Garzoli had begun flying on county time in 1995. Within the last few years, particularly 2008, he had amassed numerous flying hours.

Beginning in 2008, the sheriff's office made several requests to the board for approval of helicopter rental services for aerial surveillance of illicit marijuana gardens, according to the letter.

“The helicopter services contractors additionally provided helicopter flight training to a Sheriff's Department employee,” the letter stated. “This additional service was not referenced in any of these contracts. The Board was never informed or asked to approve this additional contract service.”

The letter added, “The pursuit of this helicopter flight training was accomplished without the required approval of the Board of Supervisors, occurred largely on County time, appears to be beyond the scope of the authorized use of the DEA grant monies and may have included out-of-County and nighttime flights that were unrelated to the conduct of official County business even though public funds were expended to rent the helicopter for such flights.”

Referring to Garzoli, Farrington wrote, “Questions exist as to whether the employee receiving the benefit of this helicopter flight instruction acted upon his own authority or if the flight instruction expenditures were authorized within the Sheriff's Department.”

Farrington said that the board hasn't determined if the grant monies were intentionally misused, or how and why the sheriff's office “pursued and acted on this flight training component without obtaining the approval of the Board of Supervisors.”

He said it's the board's duty “to be capable and diligent stewards of public monies and it is, therefore, imperative that those determinations be made.”

Farrington asked the Attorney General's Office for “a thorough investigation” of the situation.

“In order to ensure that such investigation is conducted independently and to eliminate any possible public perception that those conducting the investigation might have a conflict of interest, we ask that the Attorney General initiate such an investigation,” Farrington's letter concluded.

Other items on the agenda include the following.

Timed items

9 a.m.: Approval of consent agenda, which includes items that are expected to be routine and noncontroversial; presentation of animals available for adoption at Lake County Animal Care and Control; consideration of items not on the agenda; current construction projects and change orders.

9:05 a.m.: Citizens' input: Any person may speak for three minutes about any subject of concern provided that it is within the board's jurisdiction and is not already on the agenda. Speakers must fill out a slip giving name, address and subject prior to speaking; forms are available in the Clerk of the Board's Office on the courthouse's first floor.

9:10 a.m.: Discussion/consideration of two appointments to the Genetically Engineered (GE) Crops Ad-Hoc Advisory Committee, replacing Lars Crail and Lorrie Gray, who have resigned from the committee. Continued from Jan. 12.

10 a.m.: Discussion/consideration of proposed changes to the Lake County Rule LCR 1-195 on Aerobic Systems. Continued from Jan. 5.

11 a.m.: Assessment appeal hearings – Rebecca Stansberry, 21518 Bartlett Springs Road, Lucerne; and David Woodall, 9129 Soda Bay Road, Kelseyville.

11:30 a.m.: Assessment appeal hearings – Dorta Watson, 9995 Meadow Drive, Cobb; and James Watson, 10055 Meadow Drive, Cobb. Continued from Oct. 6, 2009.

Nontimed items

– Supervisors' weekly calendar, travel and reports.

– Proposed agreement between the county of Lake and Unity Care Group Inc. for specialty mental health services in the amount of $25,000.

Consent agenda

– Approves minutes of the Board of Supervisors meeting held on Jan. 10.

– Appoint Bonnie Trumble (senior community representative), Beverly Bergstrom (senior consumer, past or present representative) and Jeanne Morin (In-Home Support Services provide, past or present representative), to the IHSS Advisory Committee for two year terms expiring on Jan. 1, 2013.

– Appoint David Estep to the Lower Lake Waterworks District 1 Board of Directors for a four year term expiring on Jan. 1, 2015.

– Approve staff recommendation and authorize County Public Works Department to assume responsibility for administration and engineering of the Clearlake Oaks Highway 20 Sidewalk Improvement Project; and adopt Resolution No. ___ appropriating $1.2 million in unanticipated revenue for the Clearlake Oaks Highway 20 and Sidewalk Improvement Project to Budget Unit No. 1781-Special Projects.

– Adopt Resolution No. ___ amending Resolution No. 2009-233 establishing position allocations to conform to the Fiscal Year 2009-10 Final Budget, Budget Unit No. 2602 – Building and Safety (continuing a Building Inspector I/II allocation with the designation of being an at-risk appointment).

– Adopt Resolution No. ___ authorizing the Public Services Department to submit an application to the California Integrated Waste Management Board for a Local Government Waste Tire Cleanup and Amnesty Event Grant for Fiscal Year 2009-10.

– Adopt Resolution No. ___ declaring intent to adopt a Resolution of Public Use and Necessity – Bartlett Springs Road, Federal Emergency Management Agency project.

– Approve the California Boating Safety and Enforcement Grant Equipment and Operation Contract in the amount of $18,000 and authorize Sheriff Rodney Mitchell to sign the contract and the chair to sign the recycling certification and certification clauses (Exhibit D).

The board also will hold a closed session to discuss labor negotiations, existing litigation with the California Sportfishing Alliance and the water resources director position.

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf .

The workshop will start at 5 p.m. in the council chambers at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St. The regular meeting will follow at 6 p.m.

The agenda and supporting staff reports can be downloaded at http://www.cityoflakeport.com/departments/docs.aspx?deptID=88&catID=102 .

The 5 p.m. workshop will be held for the purpose of discussing the Redevelopment Housing Program and development of a strategy for the expenditures of redevelopment set aside for low and moderate income housing funds, according to the agenda.

During the regular meeting, the council will discuss establishing a local vendor preference policy in awarding bids and contracts.

Over the past month local business representatives have spoken to the council about sending large projects out of county, particularly the $316,000 engineering contract for phase two of the city's Downtown Improvement Project, which went to a Ukiah firm.

Mayor Jim Irwin asked the vendor preference policy to be placed on the agenda, and the council is expected to give City Attorney Steve Brookes direction to draft a resolution to establish such a policy for the city.

Also at the meeting, the council is expected to award the Forbes Street Overlay project to North Bay Construction of Petaluma in the amount of $521,217.

In other business Tuesday, the council will present a proclamation for the 2010 Census Partnership with the United States Census Bureau and is expected to adopt Resolution No. 2381 (2010) ordering vacation of a portion of Tunis Street between Martin and Armstrong Streets.

Convening jointly as the council and Lakeport Redevelopment Agency, they will receive and file the Redevelopment Agency 2009 Year-End Annual Report for Fiscal Year 2008/09 activities.

The council also will hold a closed session to discuss a pending case of litigation, City of Lakeport v. Vincent, discuss negotiations with the Lakeport Police Officers Association and hold property negotiations for 50 Fifth St.

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf .

The following positions are open:

– Animal Care and Control Advisory Board: Two vacancies, one in Supervisorial District 2 and one in the member-at-large category.

– Area 1 Developmental Disabilities Board: Two vacancies.

– Big Valley Groundwater Management Zone Commission: Four vacancies, two in agricultural users category and two in the water district category.

– Child Care Planning and Development Council: Three vacancies, two in the consumer category and one in the public agency category.

– Lake County/City Areawide Planning Council: One vacancy in the member-at-large category.

– Library Advisory Board: One vacancy, Supervisorial District 5.

All the vacancies are countywide unless stated.

For applications, or if you have questions regarding a vacancy on one of these advisory boards, please contact the Clerk to the Board at 707-263-2371.

Applications also are available at the Lake County Courthouse, Clerk of the Board Office, Room 109, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.

Please note that all memberships on the above referenced advisory boards are voluntary.

On Jan. 14, 2010, the City Council of the city of Clearlake and the Clearlake Redevelopment Agency continued the public hearings to consider:

1. Whether to certify the draft mitigated negative declaration/initial environmental study in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act; and

2. Authorizing the executive director to execute the draft disposition and development agreement; and

3. Authorizing the executive director to execute the land exchange agreement with the adjoining property owner to the south; and

4. Approving the disposition and development agreement between the Clearlake Redevelopment Agency and KK Raphel Properties LLC, and authorizing the city administrator and city clerk to execute the agreement; and

5. Abandonment of part of the right-of-way for Airport Road; and

6. Amendment of Article 18-1, Administration, and the nonconforming provisions of the Zoning Ordinance;

to the regular scheduled meeting of Jan. 28, 2010, at 6 p.m.

Melissa Swanson

City Clerk

After hours of discussion, accusations from upset community members and board members' expressions of distrust in the station's volunteer operations manager, the PEG Board on Wednesday temporarily put off reopening the station to normal operations after its office locks were changed Monday.

Following more than four hours of meeting time on Wednesday, the PEG Board decided to schedule a special meeting and workshop for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 20, in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive.

At that time board members said they would continue to work on the issues that have led to their actions with regard to the station's current situation.

The group governs the PEG Channel, TV8, the county's cable access station, which is held by the city of Clearlake with some financial support from the county of Lake and Yuba College.

On Monday Clearlake City Administrator Dale Neiman had the locks on the station office changed after PEG Board members said volunteer manager Allen Markowski failed to follow their directions to run a trial period in which prime time hours would be extended.

Some PEG Channel members who were waiting to check out equipment were reportedly turned away after the Monday lockout, according to Vincent Reese, a station volunteer.

PEG Board member and Clearlake City Council member Joyce Overton said Neiman technically is station manager and that city volunteers like Markowski are considered at-will employees and are subject to Neiman's authority.

Overton said they're implementing a “cool down period” by leaving the station the way it is temporarily. That means running a community bulletin board and the live Tuesday broadcasts of the Board of Supervisors meetings.

At its Dec. 9 meeting, the board asked for a 30-day trial period that included an expanded prime time schedule – expanding the hours from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., changed from the previous prime time hours of 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. – during which they wanted only local programming played, with imported videos allowed at other hours.

The board also suggested that an existing policy limiting the playing of imported videos to twice in a month's time be more closely followed. That limit would be in place regardless of how many people submitted the video.

In reaction to those proposed changes, Markowski and some other station volunteers alleged that the board was banning the videos outright and censoring content.

Volunteer Dante DeAmicis said the imports policy was going to have a cumulative 90-percent reduction in the imported material available for broadcast. He added that no local programming has ever been preempted by an imported video.

DeAmicis also told the board that they were in “very, very dangerous areas” by getting involved in editorial or content issues.

PEG Board member Ed Robey told the volunteers that they had “freaked out” and not understood the board's ideas, and that Markowski and some other volunteers had “perpetrated a hoax” against the county.

Over the weekend, a message appeared on the station's screen claiming that the PEG Board had banned certain videos, which board members emphasized Wednesday wasn't true.

The message also urged people to contact PEG Board members – Overton, Robey, Jeff Smith and Candyce Hagler – and included personal contact information for three of the members, while Smith's Board of Supervisors e-mail was posted.

Board members said that message went too far, although some station volunteers suggested that it was an expression of free speech.

The person responsible for the message wasn't specifically identified during the Wednesday meeting – part of which ran in the morning and continued on into the evening.

However, when approached by Lake County News after the meeting, Markowski said he had done it out of his belief that the board's direction wasn't appropriate.

Markowski, who only receives some travel stipends for his work, had previously been locked out of the station in July 2008 after Neiman told him not to continue with live broadcasts without the PEG Board's permission, as Lake County News has reported.

The meeting first convened at 7 a.m. at the Best Western El Grande Hotel, where more than 20 community members crowded into a small conference room along with board members.

One community member Patrick Tuell, who had given the station a $200 donation last October, said he wanted his money back.

A Vietnam veteran with post traumatic stress disorder, Tuell said he is partially housebound and has trouble sleeping. TV8 has offered him programming “on those long and lonely nights.”

Tuell then began throwing around pieces of notepad paper that he said signified the Bill of Rights and US Constitution.

Looking down at the paper-covered floor, Overton asked, “Would you mind picking up your papers?” Tuell promptly did so.

Smith said the issue had been blown completely out of proportion. In addition to lengthening prime time, “We were only trying to get closer to what the manual said, and it was a trial basis,” he said.

On Monday, during a meeting with the grand jury, which is looking at the station's operations, Smith said grand jurors gave him a paper with the message that had run on the station over the weekend with the ban allegations.

“What has been put across to you is false. We changed a couple of little things,” he said, adding that he appreciated so many people being there, and understood why they had come.

Robey said if people are getting their information from Markowski and DeAmicis, they're not getting the whole story. “The volunteers who were down there running the station took it upon themselves to do it whatever way they felt was right.”

Markowski told the board that he's tried to follow the manual from the beginning, and said some of the board members have admitted not reading the entire document, which he said disqualifies them from oversight.

He said complaints about programming, which some board members had said at the Dec. 9 board meeting that they've received, haven't been put in writing, as the manual requires, which he said represents and “end run” around him.

Cobb resident Hiram Dukes, who films many community events to submit them to the station, said he's submitted many hours of programming that haven't been played. Markowski said it was because his paperwork wasn't properly completed.

Overton said she's had calls from people who would like to volunteer to help. “That's what we want, we want local broadcasting,” she said, with prime time set aside for local programs.

“I hope everybody's clear on that now,” she said.

Overton said if local residents wanted to have a program, they could include whatever videos – including imports – that they wanted to show.

Concerns about communication breakdown

Smith, who said he'd read through the manual completely since the last meeting, told Markowski that he can't pick and choose what rules he wants to follow, and that's what he was doing by not following the board's direction to follow the manual yet at the same time holding Dukes to the rules.

Local programmer Leon Stephens, who recently was put in charge of the station's equipment, was open to working with the board's directions. “It sounds like what you're asking is not hard,” he said.

Stephens suggested it was the volunteers' job to make it happen, adding that the sides could go back and forth all day until they're “blue in the face.”

Shannon Nailer, another community member with plans for a show on racing, agreed with Stephens, and said he was enlightened by the discussion.

After about an hour and a half, the board decided to continue its morning meeting to the evening, which began with the station's former programmer, Frank Gillespie, telling the board that the station had received increasing kudos for its efforts.

But Gillespie complained that the board's directions weren't in writing, neither were complaints, and meetings weren't at an appropriate time.

Smith reiterated that the board wanted to improve the station, and there were hopes to once again have a paid manager. “There is no coverup. There is nothing else going on here,” he said, adding, “There are folks who wanted to make a point at your expense.”

Community member DC Wiseman suggested that the real issue was “really a huge amount of miscommunication,” and said it sounded simple enough for people to do their own programs to show what videos they wanted.

“You have comprehended what we were saying,” said Robey.

Looking around the room, where about 30 people had gathered for the evening session, Wiseman said, “I think you guys all owe me pizza.”

Wiseman, who has cable access experience, said he didn't think what the board was asking for was out of line, and he suggested people get down to the station to participate. “Let's do it,” he said.

Clearlake resident Mike Dunlap offered to mediate the issues through Lake County Alternative Dispute Resolution Services, because he also perceived a lack of communication. Overton said she believed it was more a matter of someone not following directions.

Smith said the board was clear enough with Markowski about what was expected that on Dec. 14 he went to the station's wiki site and changed the station's manual online. Markowski said the wiki was meant to show the public the changes.

“The point is you understood,” said Smith.

It was noted during the meeting that Shawn Swatosh, the local Mediacom manager who had sat on the PEG Board, resigned after the board began discussing programming, because he's prohibited from being involved in such issues by franchise law. Overton said when it was reported that the grand jury was looking into the station, Mediacom's corporate attorneys told Swatosh not to be involved.

Board members then expressed their concern over Markowski's behavior. Robey read from the manual which outlines appropriate conduct for producers and crew members, who can have their privileges suspended or revoked.

Smith said they need to have a station manger who is focused, neutral and objective, such as former station manager, Mike McCutcheon.

“I think you have really blown our trust in you and it bothers me to say that because we've had some good conversations,” Smith said, reminding Markowski that he had told him after the Dec. 9 meeting that he was doing a good job.

“I don't trust Allen to do the right thing at this point,” Smith said.

Community members including Vince Metzger asked them to keep Markowski, who he noted gets very passionate, emotional and overenthusiastic, but who “wants freedom for everyone.” Rather than not reinstating Markowski, Metzger and others suggested some minor sanctions.

Robey said he has supported Markowski, “but I am so disappointed that he would do what he did. That is just something I cannot tolerate.”

Phil Mathewson shot back that the reports cards of some of the people on the board aren't great. “Shame on you for this,” he said, going on to say the county was “a wreck,” which caused some people in the audience to tell him he was off topic.

Asked if he wanted to say anything, Markowski said his feelings and energy tend to overtake him. He started to hyperventilate and weep, and said, “I need people to help me,” at which time a group of people clustered around him and he began to openly sob.

The board took a break to allow him to compose himself, after which they decided to hold the Wednesday meeting and continue the cooling off period.

The meeting continued for about another half hour, with the group discussing the PEG Channel's budget and replacement of a new board member before adjourning.

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On Tuesday Community Development Director Rick Coel, who oversees the code enforcement and planning divisions, took to the Board of Supervisors four options for how to address the needed changes in his department.

The board chose option No. 3, which would leave vacant the code enforcement manager slot, consolidate the code enforcement and planning divisions, plan for eventual staff reductions and pair planners in “micro teams” to work on cases.

Coel said staff currently includes four officers and one technician. He told the board that he was concerned about cutting too deeply into staff because it could result in a rollback on the things the division has accomplished over the last several years.

The county set aside one-time monies in its marketing and economic development budget in the 2002-03 fiscal year in order to bulk up the department, Coel explained. The money has lasted four years longer than anticipated, but its funds are expected to be completely depleted by this coming July 1.

Voris Brumfield recently transferred from the code manager job to the geothermal coordinator position, Coel said.

He proposed leaving that job open, and had discussed with County Administrative Officer Kelly Cox ways of reorganizing the department “in order to maintain an effective enforcement program with less staff.”

During the county's budget process last year, he said the board had been informed that this would be the last year of enhanced code enforcement.

One way to help fund code enforcement division would be to implement measures for cost recovery, Coel said. Otherwise, with the county's discretionary revenue declining, there don't appear to be other sources readily available.

“We still strongly believe that that code enforcement is a very important program and that much additional code enforcement work is required throughout the county,” he said.

Coel didn't want to see lost traction with regard to the significant progress they've made along highway corridors and areas frequented by tourists.

Looking at a budget of $405,000 for the year, Coel laid out his options, which also included maintaining current staff levels and cutting elsewhere or reducing staffing back to pre-enhancement levels, when they had about two to three officers at a time. At the division's peak, it had eight officers.

The fourth option, which he didn't advocate because of “a number of problems,” was to eliminate code enforcement altogether and transfer its functions to planning.

Instead, Coel suggested not filling the manager slot and relocating the division back to Lakeport from Lucerne. He would oversee code enforcement with assistance from his principal and senior planners, but taking on that responsibility would require the entire staff to be in Lakeport.

Planners would work with code enforcement officers on addressing violations, options and completing paperwork and reports, which would help increase efficiency, Coel said. In return, he envisioned seeing officers out in the field more.

He said that consolidating the divisions could help realize savings that would spare him from having to lay off staff. Coel added that he was willing to take on those extra management duties for a few years and, when the economy improves, look at handing those duties off again.

Coel said he believed the consolidation could offer a seamless transition.

Even with the potential cuts, Coel said, “There's still work to do,” especially in high priority areas such as near schools and resorts, and in the area of the Lucerne Hotel, which now is being marketed for sale.

Board Chair Anthony Farrington said the board has invested a substantial amount of time and money in the program, and there were frustrations along the way.

“We thought we might be able to accomplish more than we did,” he said.

Coel told the board that a chapter of county code was being amended and should be before them sometime in the next two to three weeks that would include a cost recovery process.

That process would apply in cases such as when people take too long to comply with enforcement but ended up cleaning up properties themselves. In those circumstances Coel said division resources still are used and the property owners should have to pay for them.

Supervisor Denise Rushing said she wanted to better understand how they were doing as far as getting people to voluntarily comply with county codes. “Voluntary compliance isn't something that's easily measured right now,” she said.

Coel explained that, each month, a roughly equal number of cases are opened as are closed. He added that most of the cleanups along the highway were voluntary.

Supervisor Jeff Smith said he hated to see enhanced code enforcement go away. “It's had its ups and downs,” he said, but it was something for which he had long advocated, because it improves property values, especially in the redevelopment area.

But, like Farrington, Smith added, “My expectation was a lot higher than what we achieved,” which may have been a reason why the money lasted as long as it did.

“I hate to set you up in some ways to fail,” he said.

Smith said code enforcement has especially built up morale on the Northshore, where a lot of cleanup has taken place.

“That's been a concern of ours going in this,” said Coel. “We don't want to back off.”

However, he suggested that the code revisions for cost recovery could be one of the most cost-efficient ways to keep the program intact.

“Give me a couple years with this,” he said. “I'll do my best to reorganize it, boost up our efficiencies,” as well as dealing with scenic and tourism-related corridors.

Cox said all county departments are competing for the same discretionary funding, following a “very, very difficult” year last year.

The board unanimously approved Coel's option No. 3.

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