LAKEPORT, Calif. – This week the Board of Supervisors will discuss enforcing transient occupancy taxes and will honor the local students who received their degrees at Marymount California University last week.

The board will meet beginning at 9 a.m. Tuesday, May 17, in the board chambers on the first floor of the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.

The meeting can be watched live on Channel 8 and online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Boards/Board_of_Supervisors/calendar.htm . Accompanying board documents, the agenda and archived board meeting videos also are available at that link.

In an untimed discussion, the board will discuss and consider enforcing the collection of transient occupancy taxes on the county's vacation rental homes.

The county collects transient occupancy tax – also known as “bed tax” – from establishments including motels and hotels, resorts, and bed and breakfasts. The county has not, however, collected it from rental homes, and the supervisors will discuss pursuing that course.

In timed items, at 9:10 a.m. the board will present a proclamation recognizing and honoring the 2016 graduating class of Marymount California University, Lakeside Campus. Thirteen local students received their bachelor's degrees at the May 11 commencement, as Lake County News has reported.

At 9:15 a.m., the board will consider renewing a proclamation of a local health emergency first declared in September due to the Valley fire.

The full agenda follows.

CONSENT AGENDA

7.1: Approve minutes of the Board of Supervisors meetings held April 5 and April 19, 2016.          

7.2: Adopt proclamation recognizing and honoring the 2016 graduating class of Marymount California University, Lakeside Campus.   

7.3: (a) Adopt resolution approving a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide an animal damage control program for the county of Lake; and (b) approve work and financial plan between the county of Lake and United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Wildlife Services (APHSI-WS) for FY 2016-17 in the amount of $98,395 and authorize the chair to sign.   

7.4: Approve the second amendment to the agreement between the county of Lake and Karey Abbott for the Crisis Counseling Assistance and Training Program in the amount of $10,640 and authorize the chair to sign.

7.5: Approve the second amendment to the agreement between the county of Lake and Stacy Williams for the Crisis Counseling Assistance and Training Program in the amount of $10,640 and authorize the chair to sign.

7.6: Approve agreement between the county of Lake and Trilogy Integrated Resources LLC for the implementation and maintenance of the network of care web site for fiscal year 2015-16 for a total contract amount not to exceed $58,240 and authorize the chair to sign.            

7.7: Approve the first amendment to the agreement between the county of Lake and Victor Treatment Centers Inc. for children's specialty mental health services for fiscal year 2015-16 for an increase of $30,000 and a contract maximum of $60,000 and authorize the chair to sign.

7.8: Adopt Resolution Setting Rate of Pay for Election Officers for the June 7, 2016 Presidential Primary Election Pursuant to Section 12310 of the Elections Code.

7.9: Approve out-of-state travel to Omaha, Nebraska, June 20, 2016, through June 23, 2016, for Sherylin Taylor, PHN, Public Health nursing director, Public Health Division, to participate in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Public Health Nurse Leaders Program.

7.10: Approve agreement between county of Lake and RGH Consultants to provide geotechnical construction observation services and special inspection and testing services for the Kelseyville Skate Park Project, amount not to exceed $13,040 and authorize chair to sign.

7.11: Adopt resolution requesting the Lake Local Agency Formation Commission to initiate proceedings for the amendment of the sphere of influence and annexation of parcel #620-131-01 to County Service Area #2, Spring Valley Lakes and authorize the chair to sign.   

TIMED ITEMS

8.2, 9:10 a.m.: Presentation of proclamation recognizing and honoring the 2016 graduating class of Marymount California University, Lakeside Campus.

8.3, 9:15 a.m.: Consideration of renewal for proclamation of local health emergency.

8.4, 9:20 a.m.: Continued from May 10, consideration of agreement between the county of Lake and Mendocino Private Industry Council for support of services provided to Lake County residents.     

8.5, 9:30 a.m.: Public hearing, consideration of the Draft Housing Element Update of the Lake County General Plan (GPAP 16-05), which includes an assessment of housing needs, before the Valley fire, and an inventory of resources and constraints relevant to meeting those needs.

8.6, 9:40 a.m.: Public hearing, consideration of the incorporation of the County Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan and the Community Wildfire Protection Plan, in the Health and Safety Element of the County of Lake General Plan.

8.7, 10 a.m.: Hearing, consideration of notice of nuisance and order to abate for property located at 4012 Jeannie Lane, Kelseyville (APN 088-011-03 -Dorothy Braden).

8.8, 10:10 a.m.: (a) Presentation/consideration of the joint powers agency agreement between the counties of Napa, Marin and Lake (Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act/Workforce Alliance of the North Bay Workforce Development Area), (b) approve the memorandum of understanding between the counties of Napa, Marin and Lake, and (c) appoint two Lake County supervisors to the JPA Governing Board.

UNTIMED ITEMS

9.2: Consideration of continuing the proclamation of a declaration of a local emergency due to wildfire conditions.   

9.3: Discussion/consideration to enforce the collection of transient occupancy taxes (TOT) on vacation rental homes in Lake County.     

9.4: Consideration of negotiating committee’s recommendation regarding the county’s share of proceeds from the sale of the former Pearce Airport property.    

9.5: Second reading, consideration of a proposed ordinance amending Article X of Chapter Two of the Lake County Code to revise local procurement procedures to state and federal standards.          

9.6: Consideration of the following appointments: Emergency Medical Care Committee (EMCC) Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health (MCAH) Advisory Board.

9.7: Continued from May 3, consideration of request to defer enforcement of Lake County Zoning Ordinance 59.9, major destruction of a non-conforming building or structure or use for Valley fire reconstruction projects under specified conditions.     

9.8: Consideration of resolution approving the application and certification statement for the Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health (MCAH) Grant with the State of California, Department of Public Health for Fiscal Year 2016 through 2017.   

9.9: Sitting as Lake County Watershed Protection District, Board of Directors, consideration of resolution authorizing the Lake County Watershed Protection District to (a) file a grant application and signature authorization to execute agreement for a California State Parks Division of Boating and Waterways Quagga and Zebra Mussel Infestation Prevention FY 2015/2016 and authorize chair to sign and (b) grant titled Clear Lake Mussel Prevention Improvement Project.

9.10: Consideration of agreement for engineering services between the county of Lake and Peterson Brustad Inc. for a feasibility study for the Middle Creek Flood Control Project.     

CLOSED SESSION

10.2: Conference with legal counsel: Significant exposure to litigation pursuant to Gov. Code Sec. 54956.9(d)(2)(e)3: Claim of Lake County Correctional Officers Association.   

10.3: Public employee appointment pursuant to Gov. Code Section 54957(b)(1): Appointment of Community Development director.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – This week the Lakeport City Council will consider the introduction of an ordinance to deal with soliciting and panhandling on private property and discuss staff's suggestion that a sewer rate increase set to go into effect in July be put off for a year.

The council will meet in closed session beginning at 4 p.m. for a conference with the labor negotiator and negotiations for a utility easement concerning 818 Lakeport Blvd. Before convening in open session at 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 17, in the council chambers at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St.

Lakeport Police Lt. Jason Ferguson will introduce the solicitation ordinance to the council and ask that a public hearing be set for June 7.

“Within the past two years, the City of Lakeport has experienced an increase in subjects soliciting money, food or services from citizens in the community. These solicitors are typically associated with the homeless population and located at various retail establishments throughout the city wherein; civilian traffic is heavy,” Ferguson explained in his report to the council.

“At times, the Police Department is called upon when solicitors become too aggressive after being denied money and asked to leave the premises by representatives of the property. Currently, the officers are not allowed by law to request the solicitor to leave private property such as, Safeway, without first having the property owner, or their representative, make the advisement to leave the property,” he said.

He said law enforcement has tried to consult with property owners and corporate executives regarding prevention of solicitation on their properties “with negative results,” adding, “Without the ability to regulate soliciting under these circumstances, it is likely the solicitors will continue to aggressively panhandle within our community.”

Ferguson said the ordinance has two purposes. The first is to regulate solicitation by requiring a permit, free of charge, for those who wish to solicit “in any place of public accommodation, in any place of
business open to the public generally, on city streets and sidewalks, in the public parks, or in any public places.”

Second, the ordinance would provide officers the ability to request solicitors to leave private properties such as, Safeway and Kmart, if the solicitors do not have a permit, Ferguson said.

In other business, city Finance Director Dan Buffalo will ask the council to consider delaying the sewer rate adjustment that was set to begin on July 1 by exactly one year and schedule a public hearing to formally begin the process of making that change.

Buffalo reported that sewer rates are expected to be 7 percent higher than anticipated this year, “adequately capturing the revenue requirement for sewer operations, debt service, reserve enhancement, and capital improvements for this time period. Delay of the final adjustment is not expected to adversely impact the sewer enterprise in 2016.”

City Manager Margaret Silveira on Tuesday will give an update on the public safety town hall the council hosted on April 25 and ask the council for direction to staff regarding the results of the event.

In her report on the meeting, Silveira said staff is recommending holding a budget town hall next to address issues raised at the public safety town hall.

Also on Tuesday, the council will meet new Lakeport Police Officer Victor Rico; consider approving a resolution authorizing Silveira to submit an Active Transportation Program grant application for the Hartley Street pedestrian improvements project; and consider resolutions involving the use of lease revenue bonds for financing for the police station and acquisition project.

On the meeting's consent agenda – items considered noncontroversial and usually accepted as a slate on one vote – are ordinances; warrant registers for May 11; minute of the special city council meeting of April 25, 2016, and the regular city council meeting of May 3, 2016; approval of Application No. 2016-014 with staff recommendations for the Lake County Chamber of Commerce for the following events for the annual Memorial Day Parade on May 28 and Oktoberfest on Oct. 1; approval of Application 2016-002 with staff recommendations for the annual Grillin’ on the Green fundraiser to be held at Westside Park on Aug. 6; approval of the proposed 2015-2017 memorandum of understanding between the city and the Lakeport Main Street Association (LMSA), and receive and file the 2014/2015 LMSA Annual Report; and approval of the employment contract with Silveira for city manager services.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

051716 Lakeport City Council agenda packet

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A longtime Lake County resident and retired law enforcement officer has been appointed to fill a seat on the Clearlake City Council vacated in March by a resignation.

On Thursday evening, the council voted to select Stanley “Nick” Bennett to fill the remainder of the term of Denise Loustalot, who resigned effective March 25 due to a move outside of city limits, as Lake County News has reported.

Loustalot's term ends in November.

A total of nine Clearlake residents applied for the seat, city officials reported.

An ad hoc committee of Mayor Russ Perdock, Vice Mayor Gina Fortino Dickson and Clearlake Planning Commission Chair Nathalie Antus vetted the applications and recommended that the council consider four candidates – Bennett, Aqeela El-Amin Bakheit, Phil Harris and former Councilman Joey Luiz.

“It was very gratifying to see the number of qualified applicants that we had to choose from,” said Perdock. “I initially expected to be at the meeting long into the night debating the candidates, but Mr. Bennett scored very highly on all of our interview questions and we were able to come to consensus pretty quickly.”

Added Fortino Dickson, “I look forward to working on the priority goals of the city that Mr. Bennett clearly understands.”

Bennett was raised in Lake County, served honorably in the United States Army and pursued a career in law enforcement beginning in the 1960s, working at Bay Area agencies including the police departments in South San Francisco and East Palo Alto, according to his application.

In 1995 he was recruited to join the Clearlake Police Department, where he served for the last 20 years, retiring in 2015 as a sergeant.

Over the past several decades Bennett also has served a number of charitable and nonprofit organizations, including working with youth activity leagues, an ecumenical hunger program and, more recently, was a board member of North Coast Opportunities. He is a member of the Clearlake Rotary.

A special Clearlake City Council meeting has been called for 6 p.m. Thursday, May 19, in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive.

At that meeting, Bennett will take the oath of office and then join council members Fortino Dickson, Perdock, Joyce Overton and Bruno Sabatier on the dais.

Also at that meeting, there will be an orientation for Bennett before he dives right in, joining his colleagues in discussing allocation of the Series A Bond funds and holding a study session to review the city's mission statement, core values, vision and goals.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LUCERNE, Calif. – As friends, family and educators looked on Wednesday, 13 students received bachelor's degrees during the first four-year university commencement ceremony in Lake County's history.

The Wednesday evening ceremony feted the first graduates of Marymount California University, which came to Lake County several years ago to offer local residents a new and more significant educational opportunity.

It's been just under three and a half years since the county of Lake and Marymount California University celebrated the lease agreement to bring the first four-year university to Lake County and house it in the former Lucerne Hotel, the stately white castle on the hill overlooking Lucerne and Clear Lake.

That agreement, formalized in October 2012, followed the county's purchase and renovation of the 1920s-era building, a landmark which for years had passed from one owner to another before finding its greatest purpose as a university campus.

The dream of giving Lake County residents more opportunities to advance their education got under way in the fall of 2014, when classes began at the campus.

When it was time to confer degrees on the first round of graduates, having a graduation ceremony in Lucerne was the natural option, allowing the graduates to celebrate at home with friends and family, according to Campus Executive Director Michelle Scully.

Scully said Marymount California University's main campus in Rancho Palos Verdes in Southern California had its commencement last week.

Speaking at the event were Scully, who has guided the new campus through its infancy; university Board of Trustees member Kelly Cox, the county of Lake's former county administrative officer who championed the county's purchase of the former Lucerne Hotel and worked to turn it into an educational institution; graduate Barbara Clark; Lake County Superintendent of Schools Brock Falkenberg; degree candidates Dawn McElroy and Dawn Spurling; and Dr. Ariane Schauer, the university's provost and executive vice president.

Cox delivered the commencement proclamation. “We're not only recognizing an enormous accomplishment for the graduates, who will be receiving their degrees, we're also celebrating a long-awaited milestone for Lake County,” he said.

“The existence of an accredited four-year university in Lake County has been a dream many of us have had for a very long time,” he said. “It's now a dream come true, and the fact that it's happening in this magnificent, historic building is the icing on the cake.”

He told the graduates that they will always have a special and unique distinction thanks to being the first to graduate from the campus.

Cox thanked the Board of Supervisors, the Marymount California University Board of Trustees, Schauer and everyone else who shared the vision of making the campus a reality. He singled Scully out for special recognition, saying no one has worked harder to make the campus a success and support the students.

He told them they will be rewarded for doing things that help others. If they choose to remain in Lake County – which he said he hopes they do – they will have the opportunity to become part of the new generation of community leaders.

“Trust me when I tell you, you can make a difference in this community,” he said. “You really can, I know you can. And the rewards you'll receive for doing so will be great.”

Graduating student Barbara Clark gave the student address, explaining that many of them had to overcome obstacles to go back to school.

“We're not the typical class,” she said, adding that they also were a team.

Clark said the class was presenting the university with the gift of a new bench.

During the ceremony, Scully said her colleagues at the main Rancho Palos Verdes campus call those at the Lakeside Campus pioneers.

Pioneers left the place that they knew for a place of opportunity, trading a sense of comfort for a better life, she explained. “That has been very much like our journey here.”

She reminded them that the most interesting people have been broken, mended and broken again, and she urged them to shine their unique light in a dark world and into places where many are afraid to look.

During her remarks, graduating student Dawn McElroy recalled first visiting the campus. “I could tell great things were going to happen here, and I wanted to be a part of it.”

She thanked those who have made the campus a reality through dedication, leadership and a lot of hard work. Congratulating her fellow graduates, she said, “We made it, and we're just beginning.”

Dr. Schauer conferred the degrees on the graduates, saying she believed their time at the campus has strengthened their dedication to community and their readiness to have a greater impact in it.

“Together we have invested in a grand experiment,” one she said was fueled with a dream, courage and the will to do.

Schauer also credited Scully with embodying the Marymount values of integrity, service and leadership, presenting her with a plaque signed by her colleagues.

A pioneering group

The pioneering graduating class of 2016 includes individuals from a variety of backgrounds. Many are parents, most have previous work experience and associate's degrees, some wanted to advance their education to improve their job prospects.

Spurling shared that she has physical disabilities that provided her with an additional challenge. Many of them are volunteers for community groups.

Others found themselves focusing in on new directions as they learned more about their fields. That was the case for Nate Maxman, who received his Bachelor of Arts degree in business.

He had intended to pursue a career in government finance, but his schooling led him in a new direction – a newly realized passion for nonprofit finance.

Getting his degree – which he did with a grade point average of more than 3.7 – took more than the average dedication.

Maxman and wife Jacqueline both work and have three small, energetic children. Even with his family and school commitments, he still found time to regularly volunteer at the warming shelter run by the Lake Ministerial Association earlier this year. He would sit up through the night at the warming shelter, keeping an eye on things and also working on his university assignments.

Maxman said he's debating where to do his master's degree – either at Marymount or possibly elsewhere – while also considering a local job prospect.

Spurling, another graduate with highest distinction in business, came to Marymount California University with three associate degrees – two from Yuba College and one from Mendocino College.

Those community colleges have partnered with Marymount California University to create a seamless program for students moving forward to receiving their bachelor's degrees.

“What an incredible experience,” said Spurling, accompanied by friends and her brother – who had kept after her about getting her homework done.

“Hopefully, we'll be the first of many” more graduates to come, she said after the ceremony.

Spurling, whose degree has an emphasis in management and entrepreneurship, is still looking at what she's going to do next. Her degree has given her more options.

Clark, who received a bachelor's degree in business with highest distinction, went back to school in order to expand her chances for advancement at her current job.

She's already begun her master's degree program at the Lakeside Campus, and said she is a third of the way through it.

“My plan is to remain in Lake County,” she said, with the goal of using her education to make this part of the world a better place.

The graduation was the end of a few whirlwind days at Lakeside Campus.

On Tuesday, new Marymount California University President Dr. Lucas Lamadrid paid a visit and met with the graduates at an evening reception.

Lamadrid was named the Catholic university's seventh president in March, succeeding Dr. Michael Brophy, who chose to open the third campus in Lucerne.

Lamadrid said the theme of his presidency will be “friendship,” explaining that he was inspired by the work of St. Thomas Aquinas, who in his “Summa Theologica” describes how humans were created for friendship with God.

While Lamadrid had hoped to stay for the graduation, he was called back to Southern California in order to meet with Archbishop of Los Angeles José Gomez.

At the end of hosting the new president and orchestrating the campus' first graduation, Scully said she was “elated, exhausted and really thrilled for the graduating students.”

After a brief breather, it will be time to start working on preparing for the fall semester. Enrollment numbers have been going up, more classes have been added, and Scully said they are now handling inquiries and applications for the fall.

Information about the Lakeside Campus and its educational programs can be found at http://www.marymountcalifornia.edu/lakeside/explore . Follow the campus on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/MarymountLakeside/ .

The full list of graduates, their degrees and honors are listed below.

CANDIDATES FOR THE BACHELOR OF ARTS DEGREES

Bachelor of Arts in Business

Barbara J. Clark, with highest distinction (3.9 to 4.0 grade point average), member of Delta Epsilon Sigma

Natasha Ray Ann Cornett

LaKeeta Mari Grant, with high distinction (3.7 to 3.89 GPA), member of Delta Epsilon Sigma

Nathanael Maxman, with high distinction, member of Delta Epsilon Sigma

Dawn L. Spurling, with highest distinction, member of Delta Epsilon Sigma

Juan C. Valadez

Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts

Erin Rose Wurm, with high distinction, member of Delta Epsilon Sigma

Bachelor of Arts in Psychology

Ernest Jamarr Jones

Linda A. Jones, member of Psi Chi

Nichole Lorensen

Sam Lindsey Massette, graduating with distinction, member of Delta Epsilon Sigma and Psi Chi

Dawn C. McElroy, with highest distinction, member of Delta Epsilon Sigma

Sharon Marie Maher Moranda, with highest distinction, member of Delta Epsilon Sigma and Psi Chi

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.