LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Valley Fire Long-Term Recovery Task Force next week will begin conducting a survey of those impacted by the fire.

The survey will begin on Tuesday, Feb. 16.

It will focus on long-term recovery and rebuilding, and the results will be used to guide the Lake County Board of Supervisors in recovery-related policies.

Long-Term Recovery Coordinator Carol Huchingson emphasized the importance of taking the survey.

“County recovery policy can best represent the needs of the fire survivors if the county has information from as many fire survivors as possible,” she said. “We hope all fire survivors will take the time to complete this very important survey to help guide policy making decisions.”

The survey will be sent to fire survivors via email and should take five to 15 minutes to complete.

If no survey is received, survivors should check their spam box or go online to www.LakeCountyRecovers.com and take the survey there.

Those unable to complete the survey online will receive a phone call or can call 707-533-9271 to set up an appointment to take the survey.

The Lake County Valley Fire Recovery Task Force is a partnership of local, state, federal and tribal representatives. These agencies are working together to provide comprehensive services to aid in the recovery of Valley Fire survivors and Lake County residents.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Planning Commission on Wednesday honored a retiring member, approved an amended environmental document for the Downtown Improvement Project and got an update on projects handled by the city's planning department.

Shortly after accepting the meeting's agenda and consent agenda, the commission stopped to thank retiring Commissioner Ross Kauper for his efforts for the last 13 years.

Kauper announced late in 2015 his intention to leave the commission, which he joined in October 2002.

The city has been recruiting for his successor since then. A new commissioner is expected to be approved at an upcoming Lakeport City Council meeting. Applications are still being accepted.

“It's kind of bittersweet and sad,” said Community Development Director Kevin Ingram, who lauded Kauper for his attention to detail, timeliness and work ethic, and presented him with a plaque to mark his service.

Vice Chair Harold Taylor said it had been a pleasure to serve with Kauper, and that he would be missed.

Kauper, in turn, said it has been a pleasure working with commission and staff, and expressed his belief that the city was in good hands with Ingram, who took the Community Development director job at the end of 2014.

“Do I have to leave now?” Kauper joked. Ingram said no, that he was staying through the meeting.

His other colleagues on the commission – Suzanne Russell, Tom Gayner and Ken Wicks Jr. – also thanked him for his work and insights into planning issues.

“I plan to stay involved,” Kauper said.

Mayor Marc Spillman made an appearance to thank Kauper, who he had worked with while he was a planning commissioner for six years, finding him “genuinely vigilant.”

Spillman added, “You're professional and you're informed,” and carried out work with heart and courage. He then went up to the dais to shake Kauper's hand.

Kauper did stay for the remainder of the meeting, the main item for which being approving an updated mitigated negative declaration for the second phase of the Downtown Improvement Project.

The project, expected to be constructed from March 29 through Aug. 15 at a cost of $2.2 million, will stretch along N. Main Street from First to Fourth streets. Work will include repaving the street, widening sidewalks, updating sewer and water infrastructure, planting new street trees and installing improved Americans with Disabilities Act access.

In order to expedite the project and minimize the impact on downtown businesses, the city is proposing to have construction take place from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Ingram said that in order to pursue the nighttime construction, it was necessary to amend the project's initial study – which first went to the commission in 2006 – to reflect the additional impacts from noise and lighting.

Associate Planner Dan Chance said the project originally was much larger. The first phase was completed several years ago. “This is the final part of it.”

Two of the main issues requiring an updated review are lighting and noise, as well as a new law requiring that a tribal monitor be on site during significant grading, he said.

He said the Lakeport General Plan allows certain noise levels from 7 to 10 p.m., with noise levels required to be reduced after that point.

The downtown area's two-story structures are expected to significantly reduce the sound from moving farther away. “We're not saying it's going to be completely quiet,” Chance said, but the noise will be under the allowable decibels threshold.

Staff did sound testing, and reported that the louder construction activity will take place earlier in the evening. There also will be a contact person for the contractor on site at all times, with businesses and area residents to have that person's phone number. Construction lighting will be required to be downlit.

Regarding the new law requiring tribal monitoring, Chance said the city has requested a proposed agreement from the local Pomo. “At this time we haven't heard from them.”

Ingram said the document's official review period began this week, and that the city expects to receive comments from local agencies.

Taylor anticipated people questioning if there would be additional phases and further improvement efforts in downtown.

Ingram said the project fell to the ax when the state ended redevelopment. “We're pretty lucky to have anything here,” he said, noting the city has to fight with the successor agency to get the bond monies back. “At this time there is not a plan for those future blocks.”

During the discussion, Ingram noted that the noisiest time for the project will be demolition. He said business owners have agreed to close earlier at night so the crews can get to work on the demolition work between 6 and 7 p.m.

Chance estimated that the sound from construction will be similar to a Harley Davidson motorcycle going down the highway.

No parking spaces are anticipated to be lost, and Ingram said traffic will be detoured along Forbes and Park streets.

Spillman, addressing Taylor's questions about future phases, said the first steps would be to get plans done, then the city could look at potential funding avenues.

Ingram said that the city's engineer estimated that it would cost between $200,000 and $300,000 to repave just one block in the downtown area. That cost would include no other improvements besides the pavement overlay.

“It's still within the bounds of the old project so it's still a possibility but I wouldn't hold your breath,” he said, explaining that he had taking part in a meeting with the regional transportation body earlier in the day and the outlook is bleak for roadway improvement funding.

Russell asked if the city could do a bond to finance it. “I think it would be pretty difficult,” Ingram replied.

Russell moved to forward the amended mitigated negative declaration to the city council for review and adoption, as well as some minor mostly technical and grammatical changes proposed by the commission. Gayner seconded and the commission approved the motion 5-0.

Also on Wednesday, Ingram presented a summary of land use applications, code enforcement and nuisance abatement activities for 2015.

“It's not particularly pretty,” said Ingram, pointing to an almost 60-percent decrease in the total number of planning-related applications in 2015 when compared to 2014, which he said also wasn't a great year.

Overall, there were 71 land use applications in 2014, and 41 in 2015, according to Ingram's report.

“It is definitely an outcome of the recession that we're coming out of,” with Lake County usually having a longer lag time in recovery, Ingram said.

Ingram also told the commission that only one new single family residence was completed in Lakeport in 2015, down from two in 2014.

He said staff is using this time to catch up on long-term planning items in order to be prepared when projects come in.

The commission unanimously approved forwarding Ingram's report to the council, and also heard a brief update on pending projects, including the AutoZone store proposed to be built on Industrial Avenue.

The commission is next scheduled to meet on Wednesday, March 9.

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.

MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The Middletown Area Town Hall is set to get an update on new medical marijuana legislation and its potential impacts on the community.

MATH will meet at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 11, at the Middletown Community Center, 21256 Washington St.

Meetings are open to the community.

At the January meeting, MATH Secretary Margaret Greenley asked for a discussion of the new medical marijuana legislation, signed into effect by Gov. Jerry Brown in October.

County Supervisor Anthony Farrington will attend the Thursday MATH meeting to discuss the legislation – introduced by state Sen. Mike McGuire, who represents Lake County – and its economic impacts.

McGuire's SB 643 is part of a three-bill package that makes up the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act, as Lake County News has reported.

Also on the agenda will be plans for the annual chili cookoff, thank you letters to those who helped the community during the Valley fire, new Middletown gateway signs and agenda items for the March 10 meeting.

The MATH Board includes Chair Fletcher Thornton, Vice Chair Claude Brown, Secretary Margaret Greenley, and members Linda Diehl-Darms and Gregg Van Oss.

MATH – established by resolution of the Lake County Board of Supervisors on Dec. 12, 2006 – is a municipal advisory council serving the residents of Anderson Springs, Cobb, Coyote Valley (including Hidden Valley Lake), Long Valley and Middletown.

Meetings are subject to videotaping.

For more information email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

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.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The Clearlake City Council approved the city finance director's proposal to amend key areas of the 2015-16 budget and set aside funds to plan for needed equipment replacement – from police cars to Public Works equipment.

Finance Director Chris Becnel took the midyear budget review to the council at a special meeting Thursday night at Clearlake City Hall.

Becnel's presentation took up the second half of a meeting that began with City Manager Greg Folsom's progress report on a list of 36 city council goals that his staff has been working on over the past six months.

A rundown of the first half of the meeting and those goals can be found here: www.bit.ly/1Rcvn6b .

In explaining the budget's composition, Becnel noted that 72 percent of the city's budget – not including capital projects – is spent on personnel.

“A lot of the way that you accomplish your goals is through the proper application of the work that the personnel do in the city,” he said, explaining that the personnel positions should reflect the city's goals.

“I would also like to remind you that the staffing is extremely tight and at or very near capacity,” he said.

Becnel said the tendency is to assume there is an unlimited ability of ability of staff to do things, but there isn't. He urged the council to keep in mind that there are only so many people there to do the work. Many of the staffers also have multiple tasks and allowing them to spread into other areas can allow inefficiencies.

The budget includes about 50 employees, plus the five council members, said Becnel.

The Clearlake Police Department is the city's largest department, with 30.5 positions, of which 22.5 are sworn officers, five dispatch and three nonsworn. The department is in the process of hiring an additional officer now, he said.

According to Folsom's report earlier in the meeting, the police department had 21,508 incidents, 3,543 reports, 2,288 traffic enforcement stops, 1,989 arrests and 1,311 citations in a year's time.

Becnel said Code Enforcement staff is down by one person and Public Works is fully staffed. In administration, one of the requests from staff was to add a full-time engineer, as the city has been contracting for that position, and it creates inefficiencies.

Referring back to Folsom's presentation and the impressive number of tasks the staff has completed or has in process, Becnel said, “That ain't many people to do all of that work.”

Becnel said his staff tabulation didn't include the part-time state drought workers that the state is paying to help the city. They began with seven in Public Works – and are now at five – with two in the administration.

“They are making a significant impact in the workload of the city,” said Becnel, noting that additional help ends in May.

Folsom said the city was allowed a six-month allocation for the state drought workers.

Becnel then went over the city's cash flow, noting total revenues are up about $51,000, with expenses up about $48,000, through Dec. 31.

He said they had about $95,000 in unbudgeted revenues, and transient occupancy tax – or bed tax – now exceeds all of the budgeted year plus $6,000.

Building permit fees also are up $10,000, with more construction now occurring in Clearlake, he said. Senior center rental fees also are up.

Altogether, that nets out to another $77,000, in addition to the $95,000 unanticipated revenue he previously mentioned.

He went over the spending side and the significant budget adjustments staff requested in five specific areas: animal control, $34,268; community development, $102,000; legal fees, $83,075; engineering, $39,067; and the Clearlake Police Department Nixle service, $6,500.

Regarding animal control, he said the city had to incur some short-term costs while developing long-term solutions including making modifications to the temporary facility at the Public Works yard to accommodate the animals.

Improvements included spending $13,000 for kennels – which they needed to buy for the new facility anyway – from bond funds and hiring a temporary kennel technician, he said.

Becnel said the city administration also wanted a full-time office assistant job, at about $20,000 for the last six months, in order to allow the city's animal control officer to spend more time on the streets and less time doing paperwork, licensing and other responsibilities.

He said the costs were temporary, and based on estimates, that the cost to the city for animal control in the future is estimated to be “significantly higher.”

In community development, the city wanted to add $30,000 to cover planning assistance from consultant Gary Price, plus $72,000 for Price's work on the general plan, with those funds to come from bond money. Becnel said that $102,000 is to be added to the $75,000 the city originally budgeted.

Becnel said the additional $83,075 in legal fees includes a $9,075 adjustment to the city's contract with the Jones & Mayer law firm, for whom City Attorney Ryan Jones works, along with $15,000 in miscellaneous litigation costs.

He also added a litigation reserve of $59,000 – not with Jones & Mayer – that pertains to a case discussed in closed session. Becnel said that $59,000 may not be spent at all, but he wanted to have it ready in case it proves necessary.

The city's adopted budget for engineering services was $65,329. Of that amount, $12,280 had not been spent. Becnel said the city wants to make a net adjustment of $39,067 – for a total adjusted budget of $104,396 – to add a city engineer/superintendent position.

As the city sees more development, a city engineer will be critical, he said.

Moving to the $6,500 police department adjustment for the Nixle public notification service, Becnel said the city has no comprehensive way of notifying the public about public safety issues, and Nixle – also used by the sheriff's office and the Lakeport Police Department – is meant to address that issue.

Becnel then looked at the police department's spending rate, noting that the agency's overall budget for this fiscal year is about $3.6 million.

He said that in the last budget year, when the department still had numerous vacancies, a large amount of overtime was incurred. When creating the current fiscal year budget, the department's overtime budget was similarly planned to be high because administrative staff didn't know if those positions were going to be filled or not.

However, with that overtime now down, in the first half of the current fiscal year the police department underspent its budget by about $175,000, Becnel said. If they continue at that rate, there could be an end-of-year savings of $350,000.

Going over the net adjustment reconciliation – which includes the unbudgeted revenue and unspent funds, Becnel said at the year's end the city budget would be underspent in approved revenues $523,501.

Less the $264,910 budget adjustments requested for the five key budget areas, that leaves $258,591 in net unallocated funds, he said.

Becnel said that as he looked at the budget over the last few years, “It became painfully obvious to me that the way the city goes about funding equipment purchases is on a very ad hoc basis.”

He sat down with city administrative staff to plan for how much money to set aside on an annual basis to be able to acquire the equipment that they need consistently without creating havoc with the budget.

The council has set up a number of reserves, he said. For the last few years, the city has been funding the revenue reserve – also called the “reserve for economic uncertainty” – and with the audit finished for last year and the $50,000 he plans to put into it this year, at the end of this year the city will have a $307,000 balance in that fund, according to Becnel.

“You all were hoping to get to 5 percent. Well, that's 6.77 percent,” he said.

He said he then looked at other ways to stabilize the city's financial situation, so he began to look at the economic replacement reserve. 

He recommended putting aside $212,000 aside to cover the police department equipment expense.

Becnel said he sat down with acting Chief Tim Celli and his sergeants to look at the police department's needs over a 10-year time period. Key equipment includes 22 police vehicles, Tasers, body cameras, a dispatch communication panel and computers.

He said that it would require putting aside about $212,000 annually – or about 5 percent of the department budget – to cover the needed equipment on an ongoing basis.

One of the police department's critical issues currently is the need for upgraded communications panels, which is the interface between the calls from the community and the officers on the street, Becnel said.

He said one of the department's two panels is dead, and they are now using a panel that Celli said is at least 20 years old.

“I suspect it's way beyond its useful life,” said Becnel, adding the police department would be in trouble if it failed.

The panels can be replaced for $47,000, Becnel said.

If the council chose to do nothing else, he urged its members to approve the purchase of the new panels. “The consequence of the failure is extremely serious,” he said.

The next department with expensive equipment requirements is Public Works. Becnel said he worked with Public Works Director Doug Herren on what he would need over the next 10 years. That number comes to about $65,000 annually.

He said Public Works needs a few trucks and a utility dump trailer this year, at a cost of $30,000 each for the trucks and $10,000 for the trailer. “The trucks we have are fairly old,” Herren said.

The city's road tax funds – which now total about $580,000 – will help cover those purchases, Becnel said. He said those road funds are accumulated to help cover road projects, which are expensive and can quickly exhaust that money.

Becnel recommended an estimated annual equipment reserve of $293,100 to cover all departments. That total number includes the $212,000 recommended for police reserves along with $65,500 for Public Works, $5,000 for administration and $10,000 for code enforcement.

“We will spend some of that this year,” he said, with about $146,000 of the $212,000 to be spent this year for the new police communications panels, two new patrol cars and some Tasers. The carryover would be added to next year's reserve.

“The benefit is, we can plan out the expenditures, we know when they're coming,” he said.

Councilwoman Joyce Overton agreed that Public Works needed new vehicles, but wanted to see the allocation increased, as she was concerned it wasn't enough.

In the discussion with the council regarding his equipment, Herren said, “The last equipment we bought new was in 2002.”

The older vehicles were surplus from Pacific Gas and Electric and other local agencies. Herren said he's tired of spending money to fix them.

Herren agreed with Overton to ask for $10,000 additionally for each truck, bringing the total cost to $40,000 each. When asked about the purchasing process, Herren said he started looking at vehicles in November and was waiting for bids.

“I appreciate that this document and this process gets easier every year,” said Vice Mayor Gina Fortino Dickson.

Fortino Dickson noted that the fiscal situation is improving every year, and she appreciated the staff focus and forward thinking, which is helping the council make both micro and macro decisions as it looks to the future.

She said the budget document also helps the council to strategize for the future and get the most out of its money.

Overton moved to approve the resolution for the budget adjustments – with the increase she proposed for vehicle purchases – with Councilman Bruno Sabatier seconding and the council approving it 5-0.

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.

Clearlake Mid Year Financial Review

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The Clearlake City Council this week will consider the final reading of an updated marijuana cultivation ordinance, and updated rules for animal control and camping.

The council will convene at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 11, in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive, following a closed session to discuss an existing case of litigation and a performance evaluation of City Manager Greg Folsom.

On the agenda is the second and final reading of an updated medical marijuana cultivation ordinance.

Key items in the proposed ordinance include a six-plant limit on parcels of all sizes; prohibitions on areas in the city where the plant can be grown – with limits with regard to distance from parks, schools, daycare centers, water bodies, and certain scenic and beautification zones; and the establishment of a permitting system.

The council held a second reading at its Jan. 28 meeting, but due to revisions, including the need to correct the setback distance – it was 10 feet but had been mistakenly changed by staff to 5 feet – and an added requirement to have all outstanding fines paid before issuance of new cultivation permits, City Attorney Ryan Jones said the updated version of the document would need to undergo a second reading.

In other business on Thursday, Folsom will present to the council an ordinance prohibiting camping on private property, which is meant to address the problem of homeless encampments on private properties throughout the city.

The proposed ordinance would only make it legal to camp on private property in certain circumstances, including in a yard with the property owner's consent; on a private property that is properly zoned and permitted as a campground and has adequate restroom facilities and garbage removal; and with a temporary permit in connection with a special event permit, Folsom reported.

Folsom also will take to the council an ordinance regarding animal control. With the city resuming control of full animal control services, Folsom said the city's existing animal control ordinance lacks the ability to adopt out animals to either individuals or rescue operations.

“Now that the City of Clearlake has resumed full control of the Animal Control function, the ability to adopt out as many animals as possible is paramount,” said Folsom in his report.

“This ordinance clarifies and updates the regulations regarding impounds, redemptions, and adoptions,” he said.

The meeting also will include consideration of a new sign that names the softball field at Redbud Park in honor of Mr. and Mrs. Dale Valentine, a presentation marking Black History Month, and consideration of an ad hoc committee to review and recommend a committee and commission appointment policy.

On the meeting's consent agenda – items considered noncontroversial and usually accepted as a slate on one vote – are warrant registers; minutes of the Jan. 28 council meeting; minutes of the Dec. 9 Lake County Vector Control District meeting; and consideration of Resolution No. 2016-07 authorizing submittal of application for payment programs and related authorizations.

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.