How to resolve AdBlock issue? LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport City Council this week supported continuing work with the Lakeport Fire Protection District to reestablish controlled burns on larger properties in the city limits, an effort kicked off thanks to a community member’s advocacy.
The discussion begins at the 4:45 minute mark in the video of the meeting shown above. The staff report begins on page 31 of the staff report published below.
Community Development Director Kevin Ingram said that in 2018 the council voted to revise the Lakeport Municipal Code so that property owners are required to abate hazardous weeds and dry vegetation by June 1 rather than the first week of July, as Lake County News has reported.
It was during the discussion about those changes that the council gave staff direction about exploring other possible ordinance revisions to reduce wildland fire risks, he said.
Ingram said the city has been working with the Lakeport Fire Protection District and Lake County Air Quality Management as well as interested citizens on possible amendments to the city code, which currently completely prohibits outdoor burning.
City Municipal Code Chapter 8.11, “Outside Burning,” prohibits all outside burning of any kind within the incorporated city with the exception of barbecue and “fire department/district training exercises that include burning of a building or other structure when under the supervision of fire chief or his/her designee, and in compliance with applicable air pollution regulations.”
That portion of the city code was approved by Ordinance 817 in 2002.
City council minutes, provided at Lake County News’ request on Thursday by Deputy City Clerk Hilary Britton, show that at the council’s meeting on Aug. 14, 2002, then-Lake County Air Pollution Control Officer Bob Reynolds spoke to the council in support of an ordinance to prohibit outdoor burning.
At that point, the council voted unanimously to introduce an ordinance banning outdoor burning at the Aug. 28, 2002, meeting.
The council followed up with a half-hour-long public hearing on Aug. 28, 2002, taking public input from Reynolds and four other community members; the meeting minutes do not detail the content of those comments.
At the end of that hearing, the council voted unanimously to adopt the ordinance banning outdoor burning within the city limits “with the understanding that exceptions can be created where needed.”
On Tuesday, Ingram said they’ve been looking at allowing controlled burns on parcels one acre and larger in size. They’ve been looking at the rules for what is allowed in the unincorporated county, with more protections since the city is more densely crowded.
In the meetings between the city, the fire district, the Air Quality Management District and community members, Ingram said they have been discussing the possibility of conducting test burns overseen by Lakeport Fire this winter to explore possible impacts to the community before going ahead and make a formal amendment to the municipal code.
When the city conducts controlled burns on its dam structure at the wastewater treatment plant, it does a lot of public outreach, he said.
Ingram said potential areas for the proposed test burns are a Lakeport Fire parcel on Larrecou Lane near the Vista Point Shopping Center, a 15-acre property at 1842 Todd Road adjacent to KFC, as well as a group of larger properties on the north side of 11th Street, represented at the meeting by Frank Dollosso, a property owner whose advocacy brought the matter forward and who has spoken to the council previously.
“We wanted to kind of get the pulse of the council” on that approach before making a more formal proposal, said Ingram.
Lakeport Fire Chief Rick Bergem said Ingram and Dollosso have done a good job of bringing the matter forward, calling it “long overdue.”
Noting that the ban had been in effect for a long time, Bergem said it has made it difficult for property owners to keep properties clean.
“In that timeframe the fuel loads have just greatly expanded in the city limits,” he said.
Bergem said controlled burning will give the city a much greater chance if a fire comes close to it again.
Dollosso thanked everyone for working on the proposal.
He lives on a five-and-a-half-acre property on 11th street. He has two neighbors who have another 10 acres between them.
When he bought his property, the previous owner had done little clearing due to the burn ban. Dollosso said the result was that he had to cut dump truck loads of green waste from his property, which has numerous oaks and other trees. He said he can’t get enough green waste bins to keep it cleared.
Dollosso said that, if done properly, controlled burning shouldn’t have a big impact on neighboring properties thanks to the requirements for a smoke management plan and the fire chief being able to determine if burning should not happen on certain days because of community events.
Ingram said Dollosso’s comments echo what the city has heard from other community members about how cost prohibitive it can be to clear properties without the ability for controlled burning.
He said people want to do the right thing but have been hamstrung with the tools available to them.
Councilman George Spurr asked if the city would do public outreach for the test burns. Ingram said that’s what they do when the control burns at the dam, but he said he was not sure how far they would go with notifications on each individual burn.
Spurr said people are gun shy after having fires every year, and Ingram said that was the reasoning for doing the training burns this winter.
Mayor Tim Barnes said he liked the idea of stripping out the vegetation that serves as fuel, so if a fire doesn’t break out it isn’t sitting in the middle of a powder keg.
Ingram said most of the properties where the burns could take place are an acre or more in size and are on the city’s boundaries, particularly the western side. He said approval won’t be automatic, and must be granted by both the fire district and Air Quality Management District.
Councilman Kenny Parlet pointed out that even Bergem thinks it’s a good idea to change the city rule, and he said the old ways of doing things were good, and they were burning all the time.
Now, they have gotten away from burning and Parlet said they have seen the consequences of not taking care of business. He commended staff for working on the matter, which he said will be a lot better for everyone.
Barnes congratulated Dollosso, recognizing that he did a lot of the footwork.
Dollosso had talked to Barnes about controlled burns a long time ago, and Barnes said he had encouraged Dollosso to come to the council.
“The point of all of this, is coming and making it work, so good on you, man,” Barnes said, also thanking staff.
Councilwoman Mireya Turner moved to direct staff to continue to work with the Lakeport Fire Protection District and Lake County Air Quality Management on efforts including supervised controlled burns this winter by Lakeport Fire.
Parlet seconded Turner’s motion and the council voted to approve it 5-0.
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110519 Lakeport City Council Agenda Packet by LakeCoNews on Scribd
